National Beer Day - Prost!

In honor of National Beer Day I thought I'd talk about one of our favorites. The family of Shiner beers.

The Spoetzl Brewery, where Shiner is brewed, is located in the small town of Shiner, Texas. The brewery was started by German and Czech immigrants in 1909. They couldn't find the type of beer they enjoyed in their home countries so they decided to brew their own. The brewery gained in popularity and the owners decided they needed a trained brewmaster to helm it. That brought in Kosmos Spoetzl. He bought the place and changed the name but kept the Shiner name on the beer. It's changed a bit from the tin shack it was then but the beer is still brewed with care and like they say, every drop is still brewed in Shiner.

Shiner has a standard line-up of beers and also brews special occasion and seasonal beers. One of the summer seasonal brews we've enjoyed is their Ruby Redbird. It's a tart, refreshing beer made with Texas Ruby Red grapefruit and ginger. The perfect thing for a long, hot, summer day or anytime something refreshing is in order. Happily, the Ruby Redbird has made the jump to a standard offering and is now available all year.

Iced beer in troughs is located on the way to the counter at some BBQ joints

A few years back we started seeing Shiner Prickly Pear in the summer. At the time the only places we found it were occasionally in the iced beer troughs at Rudy's BBQ and in Shiner Family Reunion six packs. It's one of our favorites and we bought it whenever we came across it.

Fast forward to a couple weeks ago and imagine my surprise when we found this...

...in a grocery store, in Georgia! We'll be happily drinking this all summer.

Shiner is now available everywhere. Lucky us that means we can now find it in most of the places we visit. It's not a craft brew or a micro-brew. It's just good beer brewed in a place steeped in tradition.

Definitely check out the Shiner Ruby Redbird or Prickly Pear if you can find it. They both go well with BBQ, good friends and long summer days.

Prost!

Louie Mueller Barbecue - Taylor, Texas

After having visited one of the newer houses of smoke in Texas, Franklin Barbecue, we decided to make a pilgrimage (and that's what it is for any barbecue enthusiast) to one of the original temples of Texas style smoked meat, Louie Mueller Barbecue in Taylor, TX.

There is no doubt that Franklin Barbecue in Austin is the current darling of the barbecue world. With good reason, if you ask me. I mention this only to make the point that while there are newer places doing great barbecue, the old school places that blazed the trail for them are still going strong.

Louie Mueller Barbecue has been in its current location in Taylor, Texas since 1959. As I took a look around it was easy to see the history of smoke in this place. The building itself seems nearly as smoked as the brisket.

Each dot represents where a customer came from to eat BBQ at Louie Mueller

We got there early and managed to avoid a line. I think we got lucky...

Once the doors opened we headed in. The problem, and it's always a problem, is that we can only eat so much BBQ. It was difficult, but we managed to narrow down our choices and still have room for dessert.

The menu

Sides, sauce and a sample

Lunch!

The brisket

The turkey

The Sausage and Pork Loin

The Banana Pudding

So what's the verdict? Is Louie Mueller Barbecue worth a journey to Central Texas? The short answer is yes. The long answer is hell yes! Every bite of smoked meat we had at Louie Mueller was pilgrimage worthy. It now holds the number two spot on my list of best barbecue.

Truth be told a thousand words could and have been written about the relationship between Aaron Franklin and the Mueller family (Aaron started out with John Mueller's old pit) about the fact that the Mueller siblings now run some of the best BBQ spots around (La Barbecue and John Mueller Meat Company) with a brother now in charge of the original family business, Louie Mueller Barbecue as well. Suffice to say that barbecue at the top of the of the game is a small community with a colorful and connected past. (A link to an article that covers some of that at the end of this post)

This history and passion is one of the many reasons you should be planning a trip to Texas to try it for yourself. Head to Austin for some great live music and awesome barbecue, then drive out into the country to experience where it all started. Hit the places along the Texas BBQ Trail and you'll see for yourself what drives the devotion to Texas style barbecue and get to enjoy some of the best smoked meats in the country.




Happy dining!


Note: An interesting article about the history of Texas barbecue from Texas Monthly magazine. Worth the read.  Also, if you love good food and a road trip I suggest you check out the Texas BBQ Trail.

We based our trip in Round Rock, Texas. This gave me the chance to try Round Rock donuts and another well known BBQ joint in the area. We also made a detour to Bellville, TX to try the Silver Saddle Smokehouse. Look for those reviews soon.