Beer Hunting

Late last year, Narragansett Beer started releasing "private stock" limited-edition craft brews, beyond their seasonal offerings like Porter and Summer Ale. I managed to miss both of the first two; I went to both of the large local stores I tend to buy beer at, and neither one had either of them.

Then I happened to be over in Somerville's Ball Square one day and went into Ball Square Fine Wines, where Giuseppe from An Affordable Wardrobe works when he's not out scouring thrift stores for overlooked gems. He told me that his store had carried both of the previous limited editions, and observed that "this neighborhood is full of beer geeks."

The third limited beer, Imperial Black Steam, was released a couple of weeks ago, and I was able to make my way over to Ball Square again last Saturday and got a bottle. I enjoyed it last night with a burrito from Anna's. It was a lot like a stout, though at about 9% alcohol by volume it was definitely stronger than Guinness. A bit heavy for summer drinking, but still worth tasting.