Busted Bottles

by | Jul 13, 2024 | Beer, Brewing, Food & Drink | 137 comments

Like every other chemistry major, I attempted to make my own alcohol in college. Unlike every other chemistry major, I had two roommates with guns in their room.

This is my review of Saison DuPont Belgian Farmhouse Ale:

So what happened? Shortly after I went to my first class of the day, AFROTC Physical Training (yes I got credit hours for it, no it wasn’t Pilates), the cider I attempted to make exploded in the hall closet. Waking up my both my SoCon roommates before dawn and sending them through the apartment each with a 12 gauge to figure out what was going on. In short, it was this—except there was a hole in the drywall where the cap lodged itself.

What happened? The bottles I purchased weren’t up to the task of holding the pressure from the fermentation process. A complex series of chemical reactions resulting in a predictable kinetic action.

When shopping for this weekly feature or if you will, maintaining the healthy aspects of my lifestyle I find fewer “bombers” (a single 22oz bottle). This used to be the option if you simply wanted one to try without buying an entire pack. Why the switch? There are several advantages for both the brewer and drunkard for using cans. There are also attitudes like this:

The founder of TRVE Brewing, Nick Nunns, also saw bottle sales taking a dive. The Denver-based brewer had seen bottles of his mixed-culture beers, fermented with various yeasts and souring bacteria, languishing on shelves. “Nobody wants to buy a bottle anymore anyway, unless it’s something very, very special,” Nunns says. “A 375 ml bottle is not as appealing as a four-pack of cans.”

This guy can fuck off from 2018. What will they say next, Americans don’t want big sedans and instead want similar sized but somehow more fuel efficient crossover vehicles? Yeah…I know.

The one exception for the longest time were Belgian Ales. The fact most have been made in monasteries for centuries lends itself to a traditionalist appeal is one reason. Tradition aside, the better reason of course is physics. Cans can only handle so much pressure. This poses a problem for a style that is often bottle conditioned at the brewery and meant to sit on the store shelf for months or even years. But as cited above, that is changing and “can conditioning” is no longer all that unusual.

There are however, people that insist it tastes better out of bottles. I am in no position to say they’re wrong, after all its all personal preference.

So how is this one? Unfortunately, I couldn’t go back into the archive and dig up the review I wrote in 2017 to try to compare. It tastes the same as I remember with one caveat: it didn’t hold its head. That might not seem like a big deal but head is often considered one of the best signals to the brewer’s skill and overall quality of the beer. Head means carbonation, carbonation releases the elegant bouquet you might almost take for granted from a brewer like this. It is almost like whatever made it special, wasn’t included in the can. As much of a chore I am making this out to be, I actually have to go buy both and try it side by side and decide at a later date. For right now, its better in the bottle. Saison DuPont Belgian Farmhouse Ale: 3.2/5

About The Author

mexican sharpshooter

mexican sharpshooter

WARNING: Glibertarians.com contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. https://youtu.be/qiAyX9q4GIQ?t=2m22s

137 Comments

  1. Mojeaux

    Some people scheduled themselves for 11 pm, instead of 11 am. Just sayin’.

    • UnCivilServant

      So who’s doing the midnight article then? 🤔

    • juris imprudent

      It’s probably that AZ heat – I’d rather be active at 11pm than 11am too.

      • Chafed

        11 pm activities are often more fun.

      • Gender Traitor

        *Starland Vocal Band has entered the chat.*

    • mexican sharpshooter

      Shit, sorry.

  2. The Late P Brooks

    It’s probably that AZ heat – I’d rather be active at 11pm than 11am too.

    9 out of 9 roofing contractors in Phoenix agree.

  3. Gustave Lytton

    Fuck cans. Cans are for tailgating and coolers. Bottles are for drinking.

    • R.J.

      You can’t take bottle to the pool.

      • Yusef drives a Kia

        Pack in pack out means Cans weigh less.
        But a glass is always preferred

      • Chafed

        At my house you can. Come on over.

    • KK, Plump & Unfiltered

      Takes a swig out of the can.

      * buuuuurp *

    • Chafed

      GL gets it.

    • mexican sharpshooter

      Exactly. You can’t break a can and use it as a makeshift weapon.

    • Nephilium

      That used to be true, not so much anymore.

      Cans are lighter, more durable, and stack better. On top of that, cans do not let in air or light, which bottles do. Cans are the superior packaging method for beer. The downside (for the breweries) is that while the cost per unit is less for cans, the start up costs are much higher. There are also now mobile canning lines, to allow breweries who don’t want to put in the packaging line (or run it themselves) to can their beers a batch or two at a time.

      • R C Dean

        Have they finally got a liner for cans that works? As in, makes sure zero point zero taste is imparted to the beer?

      • Gustave Lytton

        HE washers are superior washing machines.

      • Nephilium

        R C Dean:

        In my opinion, yes, and they’ve had that for quite a while. The one that convinced me was Sly Fox Royal Weisse. The large amount of good pils, kolsch, wits, hefes, and lagers that I’ve had out of cans since provides further evidence. And one thing I’ve never had out of a can was light struck beer.

        Now, I’ll still recommend pouring it into a glass, but you should be doing that for bottles as well.

      • R C Dean

        Thanks, Neph. Good to know. I generally get a growler for the house and rarely buy canned/bottled beer.

      • Nephilium

        R C:

        I’m much more of a fan of the crowlers (16-32 ounce cans that are filled at the brewery) than growlers. They keep longer, have less issues with carbonation loss, are much less of a commitment, are priced comparable (in most cases). and I have more than enough empty growlers at home already.

  4. Gender Traitor

    Been sampling various NAs* lately as an alternative to sweet beverages after work (enjoyed during “attitude adjustment hour” on the patio,) storing them in the old “not-beer fridge” in the basement. The fridge is an old side-by-side, and I found out the hard way that one ought not put a six-pack of cans up against the side right next to the freezer. Before I’d even had a chance to try one of these, I found one had frozen and burst open and another had frozen and bulged out both ends of the can. 😒

    *Insert howls of derisive NA hate here.

    • UnCivilServant

      So, might you lay a panel of styrofoam against that side to insulate?

      • Gender Traitor

        🤔 By golly, that could work!!

      • R C Dean

        That might keep the fridge side warmer than you want, or result in the freezer running too hard, depending on where the thermostat is.

      • UnCivilServant

        Shouldn’t they have separate thermostats?

      • R C Dean

        Typically, there is one compressor/cooling unit, which means one thermostat to turn it on and off.

      • UnCivilServant

        If the spacer is as tall as a six pack, it shouldn’t interrupt the regular balance, but it will keep the beer itself from freezing.

    • Chafed

      I just don’t get NA beer. To me, it tastes different, and worse, than beer. Skipping alcohol is fine. Just drink something that tastes good.

      • UnCivilServant

        But with beer, the alcohol is the appology for the taste.

      • Gender Traitor

        Recently had an NA Blue Moon that I quite liked.

      • mexican sharpshooter

        NA beer gives me gas.

      • Tres Cool

        The time I was over when UCS visited, TT handed me an NA (I had to work later that night) that was quite tasty.

        On the other hand, beer without alcohol is like dating a woman with no vagina.

      • trshmnstr

        On the other hand, beer without alcohol is like dating a woman with no vagina.

        It’s all about the mouthfeel?

      • rhywun

        I bought a sixer of Stella a couple weeks ago only to find out it’s NA.

        And it tastes like crap.

        I haven’t had the heart to toss it yet so the other five bottles are sitting in my pantry.

    • Ted S.

      There’s only one Not Adahn.

  5. The Artist Formerly Known as Lackadaisical

    ” I actually have to go buy both and try it side by side and decide”

    It’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it.

      • mexican sharpshooter

        Its Faith No More, isn’t it?

        Edit: Yes!

      • Chafed

        MS with the win.

        🤘🤘

      • rhywun

        Danced to that so many times

        That song was everywhere for a while

    • R C Dean

      “Saison DuPont Belgian Farmhouse Ale”

      I’ve had this. The 3.2 rating surprises me, unless the can really fucked it up.

  6. The Artist Formerly Known as Lackadaisical

    I could use a decent stout right now actually. Or maybe a Belgian triple… Or 3.

    Agree that head is necessary for this style especially.

  7. The Late P Brooks

    They keep saying this…

    It may not seem like it, but on average, Americans’ paychecks are going further these days than they did before the pandemic.

    June’s better-than-expected inflation report was the latest in a series of data showing paychecks are growing faster than bills. As of June, average hourly earnings grew 3.9% over the last year, while Thursday’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) report showed prices had only risen 3%, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
    1

    Most people’s household budgets have been hurt by steep price increases on essentials like groceries over the past four years. That’s especially true for those who earn lower wages and typically spend more of their income on necessities. Yet, hourly earnings have been on a distinct upward trend for nearly two years, and are well above pre-pandemic averages.

    Put another way, paychecks have risen faster than price tags.

    I find it hard to believe. I suspect it’s some sort of artifact of an aggregate number. Some people, like teamster and UAW workers, got hefty raises, but I don’t know how broadly based i really is.

    Meanwhile, over at the MSNbc Business Channel, they’re talking about how many people have taken on “side hustles” to make ends meet. Maybe that’s what is being counted as increasing wages.

    • J. Frank Parnell

      Some people, like teamster and UAW workers, got hefty raises

      And fast food workers in California. Well, the ones that weren’t laid off due to the minimum wage increase, but I’m pretty sure their new $0/hour wages aren’t being included in the “average hourly earnings”.

      Meanwhile this

      prices had only risen 3%

      is complete and utter bullshit.

      • rhywun

        And nobody is dressed like a slob.

      • Gustave Lytton

        Skinny people and smaller portion sizes. Look at how many small fries are being served.

    • R C Dean

      Or, it’s just a lie.

    • Suthenboy

      “I find that hard to believe.”

      That is one way to put it.

  8. The Late P Brooks

    I just don’t get NA beer. To me, it tastes different, and worse, than beer. Skipping alcohol is fine. Just drink something that tastes good.

    Same with pretend meat. Don’t want meat? Fine, don’t eat it. Just eat vegetables as they are. Stop pretending.

  9. The Late P Brooks

    In the meantime, those who argue the economy is in good shape are hoping people pay as much attention to their paychecks as their grocery bills when assessing their financial condition. Grocery prices have risen 1.1% over the year, according to the CPI, versus the 3.9% increase in typical wages, noted Kirabo Jackson, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, in an interview.

    “You can buy about 2.8%, almost 3% more food at the grocery store than you could a year ago,” he said. “That’s a meaningful increase. That’s a real thing.”

    Really. That’s like an extra loaf of bread and a jar of tartar sauce.

    • trshmnstr

      are hoping people pay as much attention to their paychecks as their grocery bills

      I am. My grocery bills are insane. My paycheck moves 1-3% per year, and my boss has told me that I deserve a promotion with a large pay raise, but promotions have been frozen for a year. Both sides of the equation are negative

  10. Nephilium

    I forget who it was, but a couple weeks back someone was lamenting never seeing sparking limeade for sale. I just picked up a bottle at Trader Joe’s.

    • mexican sharpshooter

      They sell one under the Topo Chico brand, very refreshing.

      • Nephilium

        Damn it. I knew there was something I forgot while I was out today.

      • Yusef drives a Kia

        They spike that too, nowadays

    • Yusef drives a Kia

      Any good grocer carries it, I’m drinking a spiked version now,
      Simply Limeade

      • Nephilium

        Simply is still, this was specifically about sparkling (like the French/Italian sodas). Not difficult to make yourself, but when using something as a quick substitute, making your own gets away from the quick substitute realm.

      • Yusef drives a Kia

        But Topo Chico is both spiked and carbonated now

  11. UnCivilServant

    Sometimes it feels sacreligious to sacrifice a NY Strip to make wraps, but culinary boredom set in and I didn’t want to leave it to go bad.

    It was still tasty.

    • trshmnstr

      Similar to grinding a Boston butt for breakfast sausages. OTOH, it makes for some damn good sausage

      • Chafed

        That’s a common euphemism in slumbrew’s home.

    • UnCivilServant

      They sell mental illness in liquid form?

      • Nephilium

        Yes?

    • Chafed

      That’s how you relax on a day off.

  12. Sean

    Ugh. Took my gf clothes shopping. I’m standing here holding a bag of shoes while she’s trying stuff on. 🙁

    • Gustave Lytton

      …changing room hijinks as music starts…

    • Gender Traitor

      Don’t you think it would have been less painful to just give her the credit card?

      • UnCivilServant

        Is the purpose to spend, or to get approbation from the SO?

      • Sean

        Back to school clothes and birthday gofts

      • Aloysious

        Your girlfriend is going back to school?

        /Bad joke

      • ZWAK came for the two-fisted tentacle-fighting, stayed for the crushing existential nihilism.

        Back to school clothes

        You competing with the Old Man for dates now?

    • Chafed

      That’s okay if you’re in the lingerie store.

  13. Sean

    Entertain me.

    • rhywun

      Entertain me.

      Okay.

      • Chafed

        That takes me back. They played my college. Richard Butler must have been deep into a heroin habit judging by how pale and white he was. Great show.

      • rhywun

        They played my college.

        Mine too.

    • Beau Knott
  14. Sean

    These clothes prices are retarded.

    • Sean

      I retract that statement. After markdowns, they’re reasonable

      • UnCivilServant

        Had they started at the post markdown price, would your opinion be the same?

      • Sean

        Yes

  15. The Late P Brooks

    OMG so stoopid!

    Yes, we know. People are moving to the Lone Star State in droves. Some 220,000 educated workers moved there in 2022 alone, according to the Census Bureau. So how could we possibly score Texas at the bottom for Quality of Life? The fact is that people move to a state for any number of reasons. The ones arriving in Texas are encountering some serious livability issues, based on the data.

    ——-

    Those new Texans are also finding few protections in the law. Texas is another state with no public accommodation law barring discrimination against non-disabled people; it has passed a barrage of laws targeting the LGBTQ+ community; and its abortion ban is the strictest in the nation. Also, if any of those new Texas residents lose their jobs, state unemployment benefits cover less than 10% of the average cost of living, according to Oxfam America.

    Might Texas’ restrictive policies trigger a backlash? There are some anecdotal accounts of people leaving the state over its abortion ban and its anti-LGBTQ+ laws. But for now, statistically speaking, people keep pouring into the state with America’s worst quality of life.

    It’s inexplicably baffling why anybody would move to that troglodyte shithole. Go with that, MSNBC Business Channel.

    They say value is subjective, but that’s just dumb. Who moves to a state with no gender affirming health care?

    • rhywun

      How do they write any of that with a straight face? SMDH.

      • Chafed

        I think the writer’s paycheck is contingent on it.

    • R C Dean

      “Texas is another state with no public accommodation law barring discrimination against non-disabled people;”

      I wasn’t aware any state had a law saying you can’t discriminate against someone because they aren’t disabled.

      • Chafed

        Kamala Harris is teaching them to write.

    • Shpip

      Quality of Life metrics include Crime, Child Care, Health Care, Environmental Quality, and Inclusiveness.

      One of these things is not like the others.

    • Suthenboy

      Yeah….y’see, the reason people are moving there is because the places they are fleeing have all of the commie shit you list. That is why they are moving there.
      Now and then I see a story about someone butt-hurt over it and wanting to move back. Ok, they can knock themselves out…and watch out that the door doesnt hit your ass on the way out.

      There seem to be a lot of ‘dont believe your lying eyes’ arguments of late. The economy is great! You just dont know how good you’ve got it! Joe is sharp as a tack! Ukraine is winning! We are doing everything we can to secure the border!
      Keep it up, fuckwits.

  16. The Late P Brooks

    Entertain me.

    *sings “Camptown Races”*

    • The Hyperbole

      Hold it, hold it, hold it!

      • The Hyperbole

        What the hell is that shit?

      • mexican sharpshooter

        Oh do dah dey

      • Grumbletarian

        “What in the wide wide world of sports is-a goin’ on here?!”

    • Yusef drives a Kia

      Bunch of Kansas City Faggots!

    • R C Dean

      “Keep it up, fuckwits.”

      Have no doubt, they will.

  17. The Late P Brooks

    How do they write any of that with a straight face? SMDH.

    I think it demands something more akin to what I like to call “prissy pinchmouth bitchface”.

  18. Sean

    Bathroom break. Chicks

  19. Sean

    Oh, btw, gf found another teaching job already. Interviewed, offered, and accepted.

    • creech

      How is teacher employment outlook in Bucks? DIL is graduating in Dec. with degree in elementary/special ed.

      • Sean

        Idk. She’s certified in NJ.

  20. Sean

    I think I’ll treat myself to some new socks.

    • UnCivilServant

      “Those are too expensive, you have socks at home.”

      • R.J.

        “Steal your neighbor’s socks, comrade. You have a greater need.”

    • Ted S.

      Better than treating yourself to used socks.

  21. kinnath

    I am strongly biased towards bottles over cans.

    Of course, I am strongly biased towards age-worthy sour ales over almost everything else.

    There may be a correlation there.

    • ZWAK came for the two-fisted tentacle-fighting, stayed for the crushing existential nihilism.

      As I grow older, I have come to appreciate the simple joys of a good sour in the summer.

  22. The Late P Brooks

    Losing the African American vote

    Current US President and Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden’s campaign spokesman James Singer told Reuters, “Musk knows Trump is a sucker who will sell America out, cutting his taxes while raising taxes on the middle class by $2,500. Joe Biden has been standing up to people like Elon and fighting for the middle class his entire career — and it’s why he’ll win in November.”

    He’s thwarting Democrat-ocracy.

    • R C Dean

      The longer this campaign goes on, the less objection I have to ditches full of dead people.

  23. R C Dean

    Handwaving Freakoutery actually read AOC’s impeachment filing against Thomas, and it is a thing of wonder. If applied across the board, it would leave DC a desolate waste, devoid of politicians, functionaries, dilettantes, and misc. hangers-on.

    https://substack.com/home/post/p-146519400?source=queue

    • Chafed

      What’s the downside?

    • creech

      Sounds like we should all line up behind AOC.

      • R C Dean

        I don’t know if she rolls that way, but OK.

      • ZWAK came for the two-fisted tentacle-fighting, stayed for the crushing existential nihilism.

        Oh, I am pretty sure she is in… training, to be a party bigwig.

    • Pine_Tree

      That reminds me… A sidebar advertisement for all of you while I go read the article: If you haven’t read HWFO’s article called “Autistic Rationalist Goes to DEI Training”, then do yourself a favor and check it out.

      • rhywun

        Ya, classic.

  24. The Late P Brooks

    If applied across the board, it would leave DC a desolate waste, devoid of politicians, functionaries, dilettantes, and misc. hangers-on.

    You slay me.

    As if they are going to go through Kagan’s finances and emoluments with a fine tooth comb.

    • R C Dean

      His main point is that it completely bulldozes Biden’s defense against impeachment.

      But, yeah, it calls for a microscopic examination of “gifts” and, even better, the activities of the family members of everybody in a position of power. It posits a duty to know, and I think by implication control, the beliefs and activities of your spouse (and by extension other family members), such that not doing so is impeachable.

      You might as well just drop a neutron bomb on DC (I know, I know, “you don’t have to sell me on it”).

      • Suthenboy

        you are forgetting the advantages of a multi-tiered justice system. Multiple sets of rules for various classes of people. One way streets and all that.

      • R C Dean

        But this isn’t the justice system. This is impeachment, by Congress.

      • Suthenboy

        I am aware. In a banana republic (takes note of your avatar) you are making a distinction without a difference. The rules/laws are what the party in power says they are.

    • R C Dean

      And, yeah, if the Repubs had any balls, they would do a minimal markup of her articles and file them against Biden and the SCOTUS leftists.

      But, they don’t, so they won’t.

    • Yusef drives a Kia

      Dang, one of those weeks eh?

    • Tres Cool

      One of the best sound bites they used on Howard Stern when he was still mildly funny.
      RIP.

  25. The Late P Brooks

    Sounds like we should all line up behind AOC.

    You can have my place in that line.

  26. Gender Traitor

    It appears as if Saturday evening links were scheduled – and on the correct side of the meridian – but are showing as “Missed schedule.” (Cut it a little too close? Happens to the best of us.)

    • Ted S.

      I see a post there now.

  27. R.J.

    Holy crap, somebody just took a shot at Trump.

    • Suthenboy

      looking at the news….not seeing it?

      • Suthenboy

        Oh shit. And hit hit him in the head.

      • UnCivilServant

        reports are it’s a grazing hit.

    • UnCivilServant

      I’m surprised it took this long.

      • Tres Cool

        That was my exact reply, too.