Beer Ranks

I mentioned that I drank a lot of great beer in San Diego. This is true, and I tried to only drink ones that I knew that I wouldn't be able to get back in Wichita. Below I ranked in order from best to not best (because there was no "worst" if you know what I mean) all the beers I had:

1. Karl Strauss IPA--This was a surprising 1-2 finish for the Karl Strauss brewery. I'll have to admit that I had never heard of their beer before, and was enthusiastically pleased that we went to eat there. Extra points go to them for serving each beer in the proper glass.

2. Karl Strauss Barley Wine--Great hoppy barley wine. Smooth and full tasting. Perfect after-meal beer for me.

3. Dogfish Head 90 min. IPA--Desperately wanted it to be better. My expectations might have been a tad high. It was a great beer though, better than the 60. Bring on the 120!

4. Stone Pale Ale--Head and shoulders better than the Stone IPA, very surprising.

5. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale--I know I can get this in Kansas, but at the bar it was the best option, and come on, it's Sierra Nevada...always a great choice.

6. Karl Strauss Hefeweizen--I only had a drink of this, but it was enough to know that it was a fine beer. Great color as well.

7. Lagunitas Old Gnarlywine--I hate that it has to be down this far, because it was really good. But it couldn't stand up to the others. I like my barleywines hoppier than this one as well.

8. Stone IPA--Reminded me a lot of Dogfish Head's 60 min IPA. It was too thin for my taste, lacked color and body. I was disappointed I couldn't get my hands on the Ruination. I'm curious how they differ.

There were just too many beers, not enough time.