Thanks for the reply, Wes.
Yes, that's very helpful information. I plan on having about 10 guests as well, so it's good to know that 15 bottles is plenty. I think my group will be a good mix of micro-brew lovers and non. I don't anticipate any excessive drunkenness either...
My wife wants to include some fancy cheeses along with the beer, but maybe you're right to stick with
mild cheeses and fruits as snacks.
I'm not planning on getting something representative of each style, but mainly, just stuff that looks interesting, with some variety. Here's what I have so far (in no particular order):
Delerium Nocturnum
La Fin Du Monde
Green Flash (Double) Stout
Rogue Mom Hefeweizen
Otter Creek Sphinx
Allagash Tripel Reserve
Harpoon Single Hop ESB
Dogfish Head Theobroma
And I like the recommendation to have a bottle or two of BMC for comparison purposes, so I plan on that as well.
I don't think I'm even going to bother with trying to record any observations. I'm sure the ones I like will stand out, and I'll remember them.
What did you use as drinking containers? I can't decide whether to use glass beer mugs and rinse in between styles, or get small disposable plastic cups. I suppose the snob in me says "no" to plastic, as that might affect the flavor of the beer?
I'm also thinking of getting a bucket/cooler full of ice in which to hold the bottles, rather than the fridge. It seems it would be a pain to be continually opening and closing the fridge all night. Besides, I'm pretty certain most of the nicer beers are better at temps slightly warmer than a typical fridge would keep them. Although, this is a more trivial matter, IMO.
I hope my guests like Tom Waits' music, 'cause that's what I plan on listening to during the party. :cross: