The opening day of hunting season is a religious holiday here in Montana. It generates more talk and excitement than almost any other day. Archery season for deer and elk rolls around first, in two days actually, followed by rifle season in the latter part of October.
Somewhat sadly, the best fall fishing is smack dab in the middle. It leaves a man a hard choice… Lucky for me I sold my bow a few years ago, so all I’ll be chasing until October are birds and big browns. It’s easy to throw a shotgun over your shoulder when you’re hiking along a stream.
Every year, there is always some dumbass that ends up shooting a cow, thinking it’s an elk. The term “slow elk” was coined for this reason. My favorite such story is of someone from Texas shooting a llama and vehemently claiming it was an elk to the owners, the sheriff, and the game warden.
In honor of this phrase, and of hunting season, Big Sky Brewing has named their fall seasonal brew Slow Elk. The moment I saw it in the store, I knew I had to get some. It’s an oatmeal stout, something I personally had never tried before. It was rich and creamy, the kind of beer that really feels like it has some substance. Probably not a good choice for hot weather, but for sitting around a fire after a long day chasing big trout or elk on a cool fall evening, it would be perfect.
It doesn’t matter if you hunt or not, if you like a good, rich, dark beer, then you’ll enjoy this one.
