Beers from Overseas

[Chris P]

Hi all,

In March I am going to LA (and San Deigo for a day) and I am trying to hunt down Pliny so I can finally say I have had it and have seen some bars which almost always have it so if I cant find a bottle anywhere at least I will have it fresh... but I digress.

When I come back I hope to bring back some nice bottles with me and not have them confiscated or have to pay hundreds to keep them.

Maybe looking at up to 10 bottles of whatever...

Also I am stopping in Fiji for a few days on the way back so if I get stung I hope not to get stung there too!

Just after others advice and experiences with this sort of thing.

 

Any advice will be duly noted and appreciated.

 

Cheers all

[Matt Smith]

Hey Chris, just noticed your thread. I just got back from a bit of a beer pilgrimage in the States. Of the places you've mentioned (not sure if you can still make it to them) but, both Mohawk Bend and Fathers Office had Pliny on tap, plus so many other rare and exiting offerings. I don't know what kind of atmosphere your into, but Mohawk Bend was absolutely packed, very loud, and we had to wait an hour for a table, so id recommend going for lunch or on a weeknight. Fathers Office had a much more chilled out vibe and was a bit cheaper.  Up near Universal, this place looks cool http://tonysda.com/, I had been meaning to go but ran out of time.

You won't find any Russian River at Bevmo unfortunately, they don't distribute there due to not being guaranteed refrigeration. If there is a Whole Foods store nearby you might be able to find some, but make sure you ask if you can't see it on the shelf. Same goes for Alpine. Mention how far you have come also, they have a reputation for holding beers back for local beer geeks and mates etc. In the first instance tho, make sure you have it on tap, I concur with nzbrewer, I took a couple bottles of Pliny home and at 3 weeks since bottling they are nothing compared to fresh on tap.


Also, thought I should add, I brought about 10 litres of beer home (split between mine and my wifes suitcases) so a little over the limit each, and about a KG of sealed hop pellets. I declared the extra beer and the hops, got a few smiles from the officers and sent on my way without opening my bags for anybody or passing through a single scanner. Its basically an express lane, we got through faster than anybody else!