Laissez Bon Beer Rouler
The New Orleans Bassmaster Classic in 2011 was a tough one for me. While everyone else was out having fun in the evenings, I was either finishing a story or gearing up for the next fog-bound boat ride. When I’d get up to go to work, my wife would be stumbling back to the room draped in beads. Hey, I don’t judge.
We’ve been back several times since, both for New Orleans itself and on the way to Venice and we both love it there, perhaps most notably for the food and drink. Of course, Hurricanes fall into the latter category, but there’s plenty of good beer down there as well. Something about being in the swamp just makes everything taste better.
I love several Abita products, including Purple Haze, but I’ve also noted that they have several swamp-themed products, like Andy Gator and Strawgator.
So I set out to see if there are other beers named after the swamp. First I found the Mudbug Brewery in Thibodeaux.
And Bayou Teche Brewing in Arnaudville, which offers LA 31 Swamp Thing IPA, inspired by the “countless supernatural creatures…said to lurk in he shadows of South Louisiana’s bayous and swamps,” including, “The Loup-Garou, Madame Grand Doigt, Tataille, Le Feu Follet and the Cauchemar.”
They also make a gumbo stout, with creole seasonings from Tony Chachere, a longtime friend of the angling scene.
You may not think of Ohio as particularly swampy, but Warped Wing Brewing Company, “Downtown Dayton’s Favorite Brewery,” has offered various Pirogue-labeled beers, named after da bayou’s favorite boat.
I found rumors online of a Gnarly Nutria Smokey Brown Ale, but could not locate a picture.
If you get down into the salt, you can chase some redfish with a Goliad Redfish IPA
Terrapin Beer Company may be based in Athens, Georgia, but you know someone down the bayou would eat or drink Tippy Turtle.
Muskellunge Brewing Company in Ohio makes a Bowfin Rye IPA, although elsewhere it might be called grinnel, mudfish, dogfish or (in Louisiana), a “choupique.”
New Jersey’s Mudhen Brewing Company makes a Cackling Coot, which in Louisiana would be called Cackling Pooldo (from “poule d’eau”).
