I just got a Sam Adams Christmas sampler pack and I tried Old Fezziwig and it was not what I expected but it was good. The pack also introduced Sam Adams' Christmas Porter which is brand new. I have not tried yet but I will soon and I will let you all know how it was. Any of you guys tried it yet, if so, how was it?

In Reply To #22 Haven't tried it. To me, it's not worth buying a twelve pack if I have to suffer through 6 crappy beers to get to a pretty good Old Fezzi and a unknown porter. If I ever see it as a single I'll pick one up, otherwise, it won't touch these lips.

Cottrell, I will try it and see how it is. I like porters but after trying Dogwood Youngblood's imperial Porter everything else has a lot to live up to, It's too bad Dogwood is going out of business. It does not sound like you are a fan of Sam Adams. Is there any Sam Adams you like?

In Reply To #24 Tough question. I like their Double Bock after it has been aged for a year or more. The Old Fezziwig isn't bad, but not something I buy a lot. The O'Fest isn't really bad, but not really good either. The Chocolate Bock was alright, but overpriced and hard to finish. The Boston Ale is pretty impressive for what it is, I buy that on occasion. The cream stout and white ale both fall into the 'mediocre' category. I find most of their selections to be unchallenging and boring, with the exception of some of their seasonals. BTW - If you liked Youngblood's Impy Porter you should try to get ahold of the upcoming release of Thomas Hooker's Imperial Porter. It comes out in November. If you still have access to the Youngblood, we could certainly set up a trade if you like. The Hooker Impy Porter comes in 1 L swingtop bottles. Also, have you tried any baltic porters? From what I gather, the baltic porter was the inspiration for imperial porters, so you might want to give some a try. Perkuno's Hammer and Baltika Porter are two fine examples. They are typically lagered, and are basically a cross of a porter and an imperial stout. You should be able to find the Baltika anywhere that doesn't have an ABV% cap.

Cottrell, Yes we can do a trade but I am new at it. How many bottles would you like? I have never tried any Baltic Porters and we could trade that or we could trade some of the upcoming Hooker Imperial Porter. Let me know what you want to do because you have already beer swapped once; correct?

In Reply To #26 I've swapped several times, twice on beerpal with FoamDome and Brett. I'll see how available the Hooker Imperial Porter is when it comes out. If you can grab a bottle of the Youngblood and hold on to it until the Hooker comes out that'd be great. Perkuno's Hammer unfortunatly isn't available around here, but I can probably get Baltika and Cooperstown Benchwarmer Baltic Porter. Maybe we could set up a trade something like 1 Hooker Impy Porter, 1 Baltika, 1 Benchwarmer for 1 Youngblood, and 2 other GA micros, like Sweetwater Blue and 420 IPA. How's that sound? Is there something else in particular other than porters you were looking for from the great northeast? EDIT: Respond in the beer trading forum, I didn't realize I was in the wrong thread.

This message was edited by Cottrell at 10/26/2004 4:34:43 PM.