After walking in and bellying up to the bar, I started my meal with a healthy pour of Hill Farmstead’s Arthur and pork liver pâté, served with sweet onion jam on toast. In the past I wouldn’t normally order liver, but I’ve been getting a little more adventurous with offal ever since the 
The burger is served on a house-made bun and available with a rotating selection of toppings. Both the burger and the thick-cut bacon was cooked to perfection (I prefer bacon to have plenty of flex and a little fat to chew) and the house made pickles killed it, reminding me I need to get off my ass and can some more for Chez Fuj. The bun was a little more dense than I prefer on a burger but there was no doubt there was a lot of thought and effort put into its creation. 
Most of the beers I had just seen while doing growler fills at Hill Farmstead were also on tap at Three Penny, along with plenty of other great beer from other breweries in the Northeast including fresh cans from The Alchemist, Smuttynose, Allagash and 
Three Penny Taproom has been on Draft Mag’s Top 100 for several years now, has earned praise from The Boston Globe to many local Vermont publications and has quite the following of beer nerds on both BeerAdvocate and RateBeer, often touted as a must-stop location and one of the best bars in the nation. It deserves this praise. The small amount of time I spent at Three Penny Taproom did not do it justice, as this is the type of place to grab a spot at the bar, chat with the bar staff, split a few snacks, and strike up a conversation with a local sitting on the bar stool next to you while lingering over more than a few great craft beers. Next time.
Well, since BeerAdvocate has gone and changed the way they are determining the ratings of their beer, there’s been a bit of a shakeup at the top of the charts. Long time champ Pliny the Younger has gotten knocked down from newcomer Heady Topper, and there have been plenty of other changes down the line as well. After seeing Adam’s post on the matter, I thought it’d be a good idea to go down the line and see how many I’ve been able to try in 2012. Hads are starred and in bold:
*1 Heady Topper The Alchemist 4.71 2362
2 Pliny The Younger Russian River Brewing Company 4.69 1309
3 Bourbon Barrel Aged Vanilla Bean Dark Lord Three Floyds Brewing Co. & Brewpub 4.67 361
*4 Founders CBS Imperial Stout Founders Brewing Company 4.66 1821
*5 Pliny The Elder Russian River Brewing Company 4.64 5311
*6 Trappist Westvleteren 12 (XII) Brouwerij Westvleteren (Sint-Sixtusabdij van Westvleteren) 4.64 2431
*7 Zombie Dust Three Floyds Brewing Co. & Brewpub 4.63 2283
8 Peg’s G.O.O.D. Rare D.O.S. Peg’s Cantina & Brewpub 4.63 92
*9 Founders KBS (Kentucky Breakfast Stout) Founders Brewing Company 4.62 3917
*10 Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout Goose Island Beer Co. 4.61 1486
*11 Parabola Firestone Walker Brewing Co. 4.59 1860
12 Citra DIPA Kern River Brewing Company 4.59 595
*13 Double Sunshine IPA Lawson’s Finest Liquids 4.59 445
14 Kaggen! Stormaktsporter Närke Kulturbryggeri AB 4.59 126
15 Adam From The Wood Hair of the Dog Brewing Company / Brewery and Tasting Room 4.58 259
16 Duck Duck Gooze The Lost Abbey 4.57 367
17 Cantillon Blåbær Lambik Brasserie Cantillon 4.57 328
*18 Double Galaxy Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.57 226
*19 Hunahpu’s Imperial Stout – Laird’s Apple Brandy Barrel Cigar City Brewing 4.57 211
*20 The Abyss Deschutes Brewery 4.56 2693
*21 Supplication Russian River Brewing Company 4.56 2338
*22 Cantillon Fou’ Foune Brasserie Cantillon 4.56 758
23 Dark Horse Bourbon Barrel Aged Plead The 5th Dark Horse Brewing Company 4.56 579
*24 Ephraim Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.56 322
25 Kuhnhenn Bourbon Barrel Fourth Dementia Kuhnhenn Brewing Company 4.55 624
*26 Abner Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.55 447
27 Drie Fonteinen Oude Geuze Vintage Brouwerij Drie Fonteinen 4.55 210
*28 Hunahpu’s Imperial Stout Cigar City Brewing 4.53 981
*29 Cantillon Lou Pepe – Kriek Brasserie Cantillon 4.53 592
30 Cable Car The Lost Abbey 4.53 312
31 Bourbon Barrel Aged Dark Lord Imperial Stout Three Floyds Brewing Co. & Brewpub 4.53 282
32 Peg’s G.O.O.D. RareR D.O.S. Peg’s Cantina & Brewpub 4.53 119
33 Keene Idea Alpine Beer Company 4.53 65
34 Alesmith Speedway Stout – Vanilla & Coconut AleSmith Brewing Company 4.53 32
35 Bell’s Hopslam Ale Bell’s Brewery, Inc. 4.52 4953
36 Black Tuesday The Bruery 4.52 1068
37 Trappist Westvleteren 8 (VIII) Brouwerij Westvleteren (Sint-Sixtusabdij van Westvleteren) 4.52 1037
38 Hoppy Birthday Alpine Beer Company 4.52 234
*39 Founders Breakfast Stout Founders Brewing Company 4.51 5896
*40 Trappistes Rochefort 10 Brasserie de Rochefort 4.51 3860
*41 Bourbon County Brand Stout Goose Island Beer Co. 4.51 3495
*42 Beatification Russian River Brewing Company 4.51 879
*43 Bell’s Black Note Stout Bell’s Brewery, Inc. 4.51 696
44 Ann Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.51 89
45 Oude Tart With Sour Cherries The Bruery 4.51 82
46 Abrasive Ale Surly Brewing Company 4.5 1296
*47 §ucaba (Abacus) Firestone Walker Brewing Co. 4.5 1261
*48 Everett Porter Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.49 492
49 Bad Boy Alpine Beer Company 4.49 216
*50 Society & Solitude #5 Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.49 146
51 Darkness Surly Brewing Company 4.48 1285
*52 Cantillon Saint Lamvinus Brasserie Cantillon 4.48 677
53 Mother Of All Storms Pelican Pub & Brewery 4.48 667
54 Silva Stout Green Flash Brewing Co. 4.48 363
55 Imperial Eclipse Stout – Elijah Craig (20 Year) FiftyFifty Brewing Co. 4.48 345
*56 Birth Of Tragedy Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.48 259
*57 Society & Solitude #4 Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.48 186
58 Bell’s Bourbon Barrel Aged Batch 9000 Bell’s Brewery, Inc. 4.48 151
59 Marshal Zhukov’s Imperial Stout – Zhukov’s Final Push Cigar City Brewing 4.48 46
*60 St. Bernardus Abt 12 Brouwerij St. Bernardus NV 4.47 3952
61 AleSmith Speedway Stout – Barrel Aged AleSmith Brewing Company 4.47 429
62 Imperial Eclipse Stout – Elijah Craig (12 Year) FiftyFifty Brewing Co. 4.47 387
63 Imperial Russian Stout – Bourbon Barrel Aged Stone Brewing Co. 4.47 225
64 Winter Ale (2012) / 5th Anniversary Ale Kern River Brewing Company 4.47 186
65 Churchill’s Finest Hour 2012 Port Brewing Company / Pizza Port 4.47 98
66 Dirty Horse De Struise Brouwers 4.47 91
67 Darkness – Bourbon Barrel Aged Surly Brewing Company 4.47 55
*68 Consecration Russian River Brewing Company 4.46 1808
*69 Temptation Russian River Brewing Company 4.46 1534
*70 Cascade Sang Noir Cascade Brewing / Raccoon Lodge & Brewpub 4.46 365
71 Matt Hair of the Dog Brewing Company / Brewery and Tasting Room 4.46 323
*72 Double Citra Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.46 158
73 Hop Venom Double IPA Boneyard Beer Company 4.46 108
74 Exponential Hoppiness Alpine Beer Company 4.45 595
*75 Chocolate Rain The Bruery 4.45 397
*76 Dreadnaught IPA Three Floyds Brewing Co. & Brewpub 4.44 2668
*77 Cantillon Gueuze 100% Lambic Brasserie Cantillon 4.44 878
*78 Cantillon Lou Pepe – Gueuze Brasserie Cantillon 4.44 282
*79 Maple Bacon Coffee Porter The Funky Buddha Lounge & Brewery 4.44 186
*80 Susan Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.44 148
*81 Nor Hill Farmstead Brewery 4.44 139
82 Drie Fonteinen Framboos Brouwerij Drie Fonteinen 4.44 89
83 Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan 4.43 3318
*84 Sculpin India Pale Ale Ballast Point Brewing Company 4.43 3251
*85 AleSmith Speedway Stout AleSmith Brewing Company 4.43 2124
*86 Samuel Adams Utopias Boston Beer Company (Samuel Adams) 4.43 736
*87 Brute Ithaca Beer Company 4.43 634
88 Bourbon Barrel Aged Hi-Fi Rye Flossmoor Station Restaurant & Brewery 4.43 218
89 Humulus Lager The Bruery 4.43 210
90 Columbus Bodhi DIPA Columbus Brewing Company 4.43 128
91 Hunahpu’s Imperial Stout – Bourbon Barrel Aged Cigar City Brewing 4.43 128
92 Moe’s Bender Surly Brewing Company 4.43 118
93 AleSmith Speedway Stout – Kopi Luwak AleSmith Brewing Company 4.43 61
94 Oil Of Aphrodite – Kopi Luwak Jackie O’s Pub & Brewery 4.43 34
*95 Péché Mortel (Imperial Stout Au Cafe) Brasserie Dieu Du Ciel 4.42 2049
*96 Fat Head’s Head Hunter IPA Fat Heads Brewery & Saloon 4.42 527
97 Melange No. 3 The Bruery 4.42 431
98 Drie Fonteinen Schaerbeekse Kriek Brouwerij Drie Fonteinen 4.42 405
*99 Drie Fonteinen Oude Geuze Golden Blend Brouwerij Drie Fonteinen 4.42 213
100 Black Damnation V – Double Black De Struise Brouwers 4.42 160
47 out of 100. Not too bad. Ease of access to the numerous Hill Farmstead beers has hit a huge chunk on this list, but I definitely have some work cut out for me. How many of the BeerAdvocate Top 100 (Most Popular) beers have you had?
