The Spotlight: Gonzo Beers

It's a little odd that I'd put up an article about beer.  Sure, I like it (okay, I love it), but on the surface it has absolutely not one iota to do with literacy at large.  But the guys at Flying Dog Brewery have married the gonzoness of Hunter S. Thompson and artist Ralph Steadman with beer.  I think Dr. Gonzo would be proud to have his quotes on a beer bottle for eternity.  Seems fitting enough.

Being a little snobby about beers, I was surprised that I'd not sampled Flying Dog before.  How in the heck did this one blip off my radar - especially with a Thompson endorsement.  The brewery has been around for 20 years so it should have already reached my palate.  Regardless of the why, I've been blessed to try their IPA known as Raging Bitch, and I'm a fan for life.  I've also been researching them and have decided that this is one story that needs to be in the spotlight.

From their website, you can gather a little about their "legend".  Just reading about it reminds me of the lost art of bar stories, the big fish tales that harken a past life in bars that you seldom see any longer:

The Flying Dog Legend begins in 1983, and like every good legend there are several versions of this tale. The villains of the peace in this story are two non-conformist, 'not likely to take it lying down' ranchers named George Stranahan and Richard McIntyre.

As George tells it, he and 11 of his closest friends and family decided to embark on what they called an “amateur mountaineering expedition” to climb K2 in the Himalayas. Under-qualified and unprepared, they started their journey with a Sherpa, a donkey, and a suitcase full of contraband. Naturally, half way through the trip the contraband was gone and the Sherpa and donkey had run off, leaving George and his group to fend for themselves. Luckily, everyone managed to make it off the mountain alive, and with a new outlook on life.

Like any good beer drinker would at the end of an experience like that, George and his group found a local Pakistani hotel bar to have a drink in. Now, alcohol is banned in most Muslim nations, but if you sign an affidavit stating you are the son of a Christian, it’s like a license to drink. George gladly signed away and got down to some serious drinking. That’s about the time he noticed a painting in the Flashman Hotel of a Flying Dog hanging on the wall that had been drawn by a local artist. Now, we all know dogs don’t fly, but nobody told this particular dog it couldn’t fly, just like no one had told George and his friends they couldn’t make this extraordinary journey. The Flying Dog became a symbol that George and his group used to describe what had happened to them with the mantra, “it is amazing what you can achieve if nobody tells you that you can't.

The brewery, itself, is located in Frederick, Maryland, but in 1990, the geniuses behind this operation decided to open up an actual brew-pub in Aspen, Colorado.  Anyone who has been in the bar business knows that it's never as easy as "just opening up shop".  There's a lot to lose, but these guys didn't.  Perhaps that's due to the admiration of Hunter S. Thompson, the Grand Poobah of Gonzo, himself.

Thompson was on record as being a fan of Flying Dog beers.  In fact, the writer introduced the boys to Ralph Steadman (the illustrator whose artwork adrons every bottle of Flying Dog) and supposedly the four of them had some weird and wild adventures, of which little is known.  I'd love to read the transcripts of those wild nights.  Hands down, no doubt.

What is known, though, is that Hunter frequented George's bar and was notorious for not paying his tab.  Still, as friends go, George considered Hunter one of his best.  This is probably due, in no small part, to the fact that Hunter provided countless entertainment - from motorcycles to allowing George to, in his words, "blow shit up".  Besides their friendship, though, the biggest contribution that Thompson would make for Flying Dog was that introduction of Ralph Steadman.

The guys at Flying Dog have stories about the dynamic duo of gonzo.  And one day, I'll sit and listen, absorb it all.  Right now, they still keep the spirit alive by wearing it.  You, too, can get some of that, too.  Visit the only OFFICIAL Hunter S. Thompson merch store: ttp://www.gonzostore.com/

But, back to the beers...

Alcohol goes with writers like peanut butter goes with jelly.  But what's good and what's bad?  There's plenty out there that is cheap (and some of it, I'll confess, isn't horrid).  Flying Dog isn't the cheapest but it is one of the best that I've had.  I recently visited Once Upon a Vine in Richmond, VA and was pleased to see their cooler stocked with all the different varieties. 

My personal favorite is the Raging Bitch IPA, which is celebrating it's 20th year in existence!  It's an 8.3 % beer that tastes sublime.  I'd love to keep writing about it, but fear I'd be unable to provide anything more poetic than "I love this beer" (Then why don't you marry it!)  Ralph Steadman, however, summarizes it perfectly:

"Two inflammatory words...one wild drink.  Nectar imprisoned in the bottle.  Let it out.  It is cruel to keep a wild animal locked up.  Uncap it.  Release it...stand back!  Wallow in its golden glow in a glass with a white, foaming head. 


"Remember, enjoying a Raging Bitch, unleashed, untamed, unbridled - and in heat - is pure gonzo!!


"It has taken 20 years to get from there to here.  Enjoy!"


And enjoy it I shall.  So should you.

For information on Flying Dog, please take a moment to vsit their website, which has wonderful dinner pairings or their beer selection, gonzo artwork, homages to Hunter S. Thompson, and a complete history.  http://www.flyingdogales.com/.

While there, you can also sneak a peek at where to pick up Flying Dog.  If you're in the Central Virginia region, I'd suggest Once Upon a Vine, the preferred shop of the Authors Speak.  You can visit them on facebook or on their website: http://www.onceuponavine.us/aboutus/whoweare.html