[dhacker]

What a magnificent beer! Seek it out it IS that good. I wish I knew what the grain bill is because it just seems there's something more than Pilsner going on in there. Initially it has the signature Belgian character . . banana and clove . . peppery, a subtle, pleasing alcohol warmth (9.3%abv) but as it lingers there is a complexity that builds and when you exhale, you are reminded of the faint flavor of a superfine cigar. AWESOME!

[MDixon]

I believe Great Divide is often underrated or overlooked and believe it or not I think it is due to the blandness of the labels. I'm not a label kinda guy, but many are.

If you had the choice between these two and knew nothing about them, which would you choose?



Their labels are almost like the generics from the 70's which just said BEER. Thank goodness enough of us look past the label to find out what is inside the bottle.

As far as their Tripel, not confident I have had it, I'll have to give it a whirl.

[blatz]

thanks for posting dhacker.  I agree with MDixon that Great Divide is underrated overall - they have a great portfolio of beers.  I have seen this before, but have skipped over, I don't know why, but I'll grab a bottle next time I'm in the store.  IIRC, its a bomber only, correct?

Cheers!

[bluesman]

Great Divide makes a great IPA. I haven't had their Tripel yet.  I'll keep a look out for it though.  
Thanks for the review!

[dhacker]

thanks for posting dhacker.  I agree with MDixon that Great Divide is underrated overall - they have a great portfolio of beers.  I have seen this before, but have skipped over, I don't know why, but I'll grab a bottle next time I'm in the store.  IIRC, its a bomber only, correct?

Cheers!

Not sure about the packaging. Mine came from the keg. It was one of the beers tapped at Growler's Craft Beer on Hilton Head Island when I was there. I brought a growler home and wish I had about 20 more! 

[euge]

I can get a whole host of Great Divide beers here. Will have to try- probably this weekend when I do s'more ribs...

[narvin]

Most people I know think very highly of Great Divide. If Great Divide Tripel is overlooked, it is either because they usually make American style beers, or because they aren't as new as The Bruery and people like the latest and greatest thing.  

[MDixon]

I just picked The Bruery label because it was the first one I came across without the bottle showing. Pick ANY tripel label and simply based on appearance most would choose whatever vs the Great Divide labels.

[narvin]

I just picked The Bruery label because it was the first one I came across without the bottle showing. Pick ANY tripel label and simply based on appearance most would choose whatever vs the Great Divide labels.

Let me clarify -- no one I take seriously chooses beer by label.  People who do also choose beer based on othesr whims.  Despite this, Great Divide is doing just fine.  They've been around longer than most.

[majorvices]

Labels have more control over our purchase making decisions than most of us could ever realize.

Haven't had the GD tripel yet but I will see if I can find it. Love the Titan and the Yeti. I don't think I have had any of their other beers.

[MDixon]

I generally try to sample the beers I have not had before, but most people go to the store and are swayed by the labels. If you are a brewery or ever dream of opening one, I'll guarantee a good name for the brewery and decent packaging/art can take you further than a poorly chosen name and bland packaging. If you set a Stone bottle next to a Great Divide bottle, most people would grab the Stone if they knew nothing about the beer, and much as we liked to geek out about it, the vast majority of the consumers know little about the beer...

[majorvices]

It's almost not fair to compare Stone's branding to .... well ... anyone. They have done a fantastic job. But I do not think that GD has "generic" labels. They are basic, but they are attractive. I certainly don't think they are on line with Stone - those guys have the marketing thing wrapped up tight.

Label design and branding are subjective and - as a graphic designer and marketing guy - I would give GD a "B" .... maybe a "B-" on theirs. Personally. I'd give a B+ or maybe A- to their beers.

[MDixon]

If you boyz had some decent beer stores down there you'd quickly see how easy it is to pass over the GD stuff. Our local beer heaven has them in with other beers on a shelving unit and I'll admit they get lost in a sea of other more colorful and well thought out labels.
Here's a couple of shots someone took of about half the store, can you spot the GD?  Me neither...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/meguiar/2451821891
http://www.flickr.com/photos/meguiar/2451821957

At one time the labels were not quite as bland. Yeti looked like this


Now it appears more bland like this


I seem to recall yet another Yeti label, but don't remember exactly what it looked like. Anyway, my point has been there beers are generally very good or better, their artwork is kinda bland. 

[narvin]

We have some great beer stores.... this is only one wall of a giant beer section:



There's also a local bar with 101 taps from around the world - lots of rare stuff - and they currently have 4 Great Divide's on.  I'm not saying that advertising doesn't mean a lot, but in the craft beer world there's so much more going on... word of mouth, online reviews, etc.

Besides, at bars, can you really see the tap handle?

[bluesman]

Narvin...which store is that.  

I don't live terribly far from you and I am always on the hunt for stores with giant beer selections.

I'm still trying to find Yeti.