Yay for Growlers

As anyone who has cracked open a Heineken that smells like cat pee can tell you, beer does not have an infinite shelf life. There are certain things--darker colored bottles, higher alcohol content, increased hops--that can prolong the inevitable, but unless you use pasteurization or preservatives (ick), brewers face a losing battle against time as soon as their beer leaves the fermenter. Add to that the fact that automated bottling/canning equipment is expensive and a time consuming process, and it's no wonder why you don't see more locally brewed beer on store shelves.

Columbus Brewing Company and Barley's both have great brewpubs, but sometimes I'd just like to enjoy their beer from the home front. (Some of my sports-related foul mouthed  tirades don't go over well with large crowds. Or my wife.) CBC doesn't bottle its monthly Hop Oddessy series, and Barley's doesn't bottle at all. The solution? Enter the growler.

Growlers are half-gallon jugs offered by micro brewers  to get fresh beer in the hands of their customers. You can find a brief history  of growlers here on beeradvocate. For a one off fee (usually around $5) you get a glass jug with the brewery's name on it, which you can fill whenever you visit. For self-serving purposes (as well as legal ones), a brewery is not allowed to fill another's growler. Thus, I have two--for CBC and Barley's. Elevator Brewery and Mad Mex on campus also both have growlers, but I'm sure there's a few more places around town.

The drawback of growlers is that it is indeed fresh beer, and once you unscrew the cap you've got 2-3 days to kill it before it goes flat, though mine seldom last that long. It will stay fresh unopened in your fridge for a week to ten days, so drink up or make friends.

A fill up at CBC for one of their standard offerings is $8--$18 for their Hop Oddessy releases. Prices at Barley's are similar. If that seems a little steep, realize you're paying for a one-off brew that will probably never be produced again. They are also boozier in terms of ABV, and compare favorably with some of the more expensive six pack seasonal offerings of Founders or Stone. Plus it makes you feel like you're drinking illicit hooch from a big 'ol jug. Cue banjos.

I was lucky enough to snag some of CBC's Uncle Rusty, an imperial red ale. For the uninitiated, imperial is code for extra boozy, as in the strong beer that Russian czars had made for their imperial courts. It's like a nice mix between Founder's Red Rye IPA and Sierra Nevada Bigfoot--equal parts roasty malt and piney hops, and plenty tingly from the alcohol. You might be able to grab some before it runs out, but fear not, the next release, Bohdi, is due for release on Cinco de Mayo. Ole!