Beer, roasted

     So, my department at work has a Roast every year (the thing where people get up and say really mean but hopefully funny things about one another), and this year I got invited to speak.  I hadn't attended in years past because I heard that the roasters were really offensive and mean, and I didn't want to participate in that.  But since I was part of it this year, I got to hear about half of it before hand and it wasn't so bad (and it was hilarious).  Well, the half that I didn't hear beforehand turned out to be pretty vulgar, crude and mean spirited, but that's beside the point.
     The point IS that I met a guy named Dave Cave (husband to one of my bosses), who's a promoter and distributor of craft beers in the Charleston area.  He didn't as much as say so, but it sounds like he's responsible for many of the amazing beers we enjoy in Charleston being available there.  Example, he was telling me about when New Belgium was wanting to break into the Charleston market and he convinced several pubs and restaurants to start carrying it.  Now you can get a Fat Tire just about anywhere.
     Needless to say, after 2 hours of going back and forth between laughing and cringing during the roast, it was refreshing to talk beer with a guy who really understands and enjoys it.  He had a cooler with him and introduced me to 2 brews I'd not had before.
     The first is Merry Monks' Ale from Weyerbacher Brewing Co.  It's a tripel (take my car keys) that is yellow/orange with a thick white head.  The flavor is slightly sweet with fruit flavors I couldn't quite place, something like banana.  The hops are more citrus-y than floral and are pretty strong.  I liked it very much, even though tripels and doubels aren't my thing.
     The second was Palm Export from Brouwerij Palm NV.  That's a brewery in Belgium, which I think is why it's called Palm Export.  Anywho, it's a really nice pale ale, very clean and tasty.  Yellowish copper in color (or colour if we're being European), it is not overly hoppy.  Dave Cave described it as "sessionable" and I can see what he means; I could definitely drink a couple-three of these.
     Until next time, Cheers!