Enjoying the beer-snob lifestyle

Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale is allowed to be self righteous
- Photo by Brian Doll

As we all know, San Diego takes its beer seriously. Brew snobs are the new wine snobs, scoffing at the sight of a frosty Coors Light and praising the hops quality in their double IPAs. Just trade the yuppie sweater over the shoulders for a worn brewery T- shirt. Right now, you can find your local bars, pubs and brewhouses filled with these connoisseurs, sampling the best of the best during San Diego Beer Week.

I stopped by the Sheraton San Diego Hotel on Harbor Island Sunday night for Stone Brewing Co.’s beer-pairing dinner. Full disclosure: I had to re-write this account of the evening because the unlimited beer tastings and dinner stations got the best of me. Someone should invent a spell check that deciphers and fixes drunken writing.

There were six beers on tap, including an Oaked Arrogant Bastard Ale, a smoked porter with vanilla bean and my favorite, the Stone Double-Dry Hopped Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale. I don’t know what “double-dry hopped” means, but it was liquid heaven.

The beer wasn’t just in the tasting glasses; it was in everything: in the salad dressing, braised in ham hocks, baked in the bread and brownies. Add to all that a singer-songwriter named Ryan Hiller shredding smoothly on his guitar, and it’s no wonder everyone had that sleepy, goofy-grin look on their face. Well, everyone except the Packer Backers, a group of Green Bay Packers fans in town for the game against the Chargers. They were annoyed by the lack of bottled Miller Light in the house. Their team may have defeated the Bolts, but we still laughed at their beer ignorance. Snobs.

Although I don’t consider myself a full-on beer snob—I was raised by a Coors Light drinker, after all—I could sure get used to the lifestyle.