Who knew? Utah's great brew
Utah gets national exposure, the Guv will be happy to hear, for being a great place to get a drink — at least a craft-brewed glass of suds.
Unfortunately, The New York Times article, freelanced by Salt Lake Tribune restaurant critic Vanessa Chang, can't seem to get past the quirkiness that good beer can be had in Mormondom with its "somewhat restrictive" liquor laws. So much for the sophistication showcased at the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics, a couple dozen Sundance film festivals and nearly 20 years of brewing prize-winning beer. Apparently, the NYTimes is just catching on:
Around Salt Lake City a string of inventive small breweries make for an inviting, if unexpected, tasting tour.The otherwise excellent travel article includes a lush slide show tour of Utah brew pubs, including Ogden's Roosters, Red Rock and Squatters.
7 Comments:
The Chang article just plays off of old stereotypes, and is poor writing at that. Thanks a lot. You've told the world we have good beer alright, but at the same time reinforced misbegotten perceptions of Utah.
It's not a stereotype or a misbegotten perception that you can't get any beer on tap in Utah with an alcohol content above 3.2% by volume. It's the law. You can't get a pint of any of the standard beers that you will find in most pubs around the world. No Guinness, Bass, Newcastle, Molsen, not even Fat Tire.
You can possibly buy an overpriced bottle of those beers, if you pay a membership fee and fill out the Private Club paperwork, but you can't get a pint of Guinness anywhere in Utah in the form that it's traditionally served. Don't call it "quirky". It's stupid.
Uh, Justin. Guinness is a 3.2 beer from the get go. It is a weaker version of the extra-stout, and mandated by the Irish government to combat rampant alcoholism.
You may be thinking of Guinness foreign export extra-stout. It is stronger than 3.2.
& Justin, you can get a pint of Guinness on tap in Utah but why would you want to??!!! With such amazing dark local beers as Roosters Chocolate Stout, Wasatch Polygamy Porter, Captain Bastard, & Kings Peak which are all so much better than Guinness! If you're looking for something with a higher alcohol content most Utah bars & restaurants worth being at in the 1st place will have the spectacular Czech beer Lev. Drinking Guinness with so many better options so readily available is kinda like going to McCrap for a fine meal (or ever) & is ok (not really), if you don't know any better.
Welcome to beer amateur hour...
Chang didn't write her story for Utards, she wrote it for New Yorkers and others who believe Utah's liquor laws are puritanical, which they are, except for little holes punched in the ZCurtain here and there. It was a fine article for its purpose.
Freelancers like Chang do their thing by finding an angle to write a story. Her angle was that Utah is not as puritanical as you think. Um... That is just dumb. Of all the things that are interesting about the beer, wine and liquor culture in Utah, she came up with that? David's above listing of beers was better. Anyway, if you wanted to dispel perceptions to New Yorkers, you'd let people know that Colorado has the same 3.2 restriction, yet nobody seems to mind going on their ski trips there....
Justin you may want to do a little checking before posting comments.
The draft cap on Utah beer IS NOT 3.2% alcohol by volume it's 4.0% alcohol by volume. Your thinking alcohol by weight. Guess what? Guinness all over the world is 4.0%abv.
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