Run Now, Beer Later!

I don't know if I've shared this on the blog, but my husband is a homebrewer. Before we had kids, he brewed beer all the time, brewing all different styles of beer and winning competitions. He also took the exam to become a beer judge, and so he's also quite knowledgeable about beer. After the boys were born, he stopped homebrewing, but has recently started up again. I'm happy about that because while I not a huge drinker, there's nothing better than a cold beer after a long, hot run or bike ride. Plus he needs a hobby.

Recently, I was offered a free entry into the latest Gone For A Run virtual run, the Run Now Beer Later 10k. The theme of the race got me thinking...what are my top 5 favorite post run beers? I put the question to my husband. And we started to argue discuss what constitutes a perfect post-run beer.

When I signed up for Chicago this year, I asked him to brew me a Wheat beer to enjoy after the race. To me, there is nothing more refreshing. There are several different styles of wheat beers. For example, a nice tall glass of German Hefeweizen tastes oh so good after a long bike ride. My new favorite example of this style of beer is not brewed in Germany, tho, but in Seattle by Sierra Nevada. Known for their excellent IPAs, Sierra Nevada outdoes themselves on this one. Kellerweis is just outstanding.

sierranevada.com

Goose Island is a local brewery that produces one of my favorite wheat beers, 312. Now owned by Anheuser Busch, my husband is still grieving that change of ownership. This so called "urban wheat ale" (an american pale wheat ale) is featured at the finish line of the Chicago Marathon, and is the perfect reward for a long, hard run on the city streets.

buddistributing.com

I also like the very commercially available and very drinkable Belgian wheat style Blue Moon (made by MillerCoors). For some reason, Blue Moon is served with an orange slice. I don't understand that, because it is pretty tasty on its own.

bluemoonbrewingcompany.com

Another beer that I love--but is not a wheat beer--is Spotted Cow from New Glarus brewery. I've talked about it on the blog before. Spotted Cow is only available in Wisconsin. That makes this beer an extra special treat. Spotted Cow is a cream ale style beer, which is similar to a lager. Except that it's an ale. And it's ale good...

beerfm.com

Sorry about the pun...

On these 4 beers, my husband was in full agreement with me.

But when I mentioned that Lagunitas IPA that I have enjoyed the last 2 years at the CARA Lakefront 10 miler, he begged to differ. IPA (India Pale Ale) beers are made with hops, and some might call them bitter. He cited the hops, and thought that a hoppy beer wouldn't be refreshing. I don't know why not? So we looked up the IBUs (international bitterness units) and found that this beer isn't all that "hoppy". He was shocked. I was vindicated! And so this is one made the list.

orionhomebrewing.com

My husband's idea of the perfect post run beer? A style he called Mild Ale. When I asked him for an example, he couldn't name one. So much for that. He called it a "session beer", which is a low alcohol beer that traditionally was brewed for workers to drink over lunch. No 2 martini lunches for those workers. My husband argued that after running, you wouldn't want anything high in alcohol, and that this beer would be perfect. He cited the popularity of Michelob Ultra as a post run beer. To which I said, ick. I won't drink that swill. Since I dissed his suggestion, he went off on a tangent. After all, he is the beer expert at our house. He named Guinness, which is a surprisingly low alcohol beer. But because of its thick texture and dark color, Guinness just does not appeal to me as a post run beer.

And since he doesn't run, I told him that he wouldn't know what would be a good post run beer. And so ended our conversation.

Anyways, about this virtual run.

As the race description explains: "Run, Walk or Crawl 6.2 miles". Entrants receive a t-shirt and this cool finisher's medal with a bottle cap opener. Which I plan on using as soon as I finish. I love functional bling. The Madison Mini Marathon medal also has a bottle opener! Which makes sense, because, Wisconsin...

And if you feel that you don't want to pay for a virtual race or find it indulgent, I wanted to let you know that proceeds from this race go to support the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund. The fund supports members of the Armed Services and their families and has provided over $150 million in support.

Don't wait because these races sell out! By the way, I'll be running this race in Seattle! I'll have to find a tasty local microbrew to drink at the virtual finish line.

Disclaimer: I was given a free entry into Run Now Beer Later by Gone For a Run in exchange for this blog post. All opinions, as always, are mine.

Will you be joining me? Have you ever gotten a medal that you could actually use?