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Another 22 days of playing VP and drinking good beer in DT Vegas.

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by wasilla, Mar 10, 2020.

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  1. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    If your 55 or up you can join the 55 club that gives a 20% discount at Hugo's, Magnolia's, Chicago Brewing, and some items at the gift shop.

    Not many people solo dine at Hugo's. If you don't mind, they don't mind. The first few times, they stuck me at the back wall. Lately, they're seating me all over the restaurant..
     
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  2. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    I ate with family at Hugo's cellar and we were all over 55. Prior to dinner I took all over to the Royal Club (or whatever they call QQQQ's club) and got them cards. Dropped 20% across the board on the bill and used comp dollars for the balance.

    55 Club.PNG
     
    Last edited: Mar 21, 2020
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  3. NittyOne

    NittyOne VIP Whale

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    Ah thanks.
     
  4. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    2/23 Sunday at 4Q's

    I've had some issues with translating my notes. For the trip, I'm $2,900 down at this point. This entry is a little fresher because I wrote it up for another board when it happened.

    Sunday afternoon, I left my room with an $1,100 session roll. If I lost it I would reevaluate. I considered switching to JOB, but headed back to Chicago Brewing for another shot a DDB first.
    I ordered another overflowing mug of Baily's and coffee and started playing at 12:45PM. I lost my $100 buy in at 1:12. I put another $100 in and drew a 4th King at 1:21 for $63.50, and a 4th Queen at 1:36 for $63. At 1:43 I hit Aces for $203. My Tito dropped to $300 at 1:46 and I cashed out. I lost my new $100 buy in at 2:09. I considered switching to JOB, but put another $100 in. At 2:32 I drew a 4th 2 and a kicker for $259.50 and hit 4's for $115 at 2:41. I hit Kings at 2:55 for $68.50 and cashed out at 3:05 when my TITO dropped to $400. I was up $300. I hit Queens at 3:32 for $63. Things picked up a little after that.
    I was distracted a bit by a woman getting a salad at the bar. I commented that that was healthiest thing I had ever seen eaten at that bar. She admitted that she also had a pizza coming. World order restored.
    At 4:19 I held an Ace and got 3 more and a kicker on the draw for $557. It surprised me almost as much as seeing a salad at the bar. At 4:27 I drew the other 2 Aces for $217. I hit 3's at 4:51 for $112, 2's at 5:17 for $107, Aces at 5:26 for $211, 8's at 5:19 for $68.50 and Jacks at 5:52 for $63. A senior bartender, Mike, came in and asked me how I was doing. When I asked him if he really wanted to know, he replied "sort of." I appreciated the honesty and told him anyway. I hit K's at 6:14 for $66.75 and cashed out a $500 TITO. Things picked up a little after that.
    I had been drinking. The day started with a baily's and coffee, progressed to 20oz IPA's to wash down my Windy City Pizza, and was currently on white Russians infused with vanilla vodka. I had lost track of winnings and was having trouble selecting the far left card. I wasn't exactly sharp, but I was winning and played on.
    I lost my new hundred at 7:09. I hit 7's at 7:16 for $64.50, 10's at 7:36 for $64. At 8:35 I was dealt queens. I knew the person next to me, so I let the progressive grow a bit while I went to the bathroom. I hit 6's for $64.50 at 9:00 and cashed out my TITO. I lost the new buy in at 10:38.
    At 11:20 I was dealt a K,Q of Hearts and drew the other 3 for $1,000. By now the bartenders knew that I was on a quarter run and were pretty supportive. I usually tip the bar $20 when I hit a RF. My white Russian bartender had just gotten off and was eating dinner at the bar, I asked Mike if he would split the tip, asked for change and handed him a hundred. He didn't hear the change part and it was awkward when I clarified. Later I thought that I should have just let them have the $100. They were great and it had been a slow tip night.
    At 11:28 I was dealt 2's for $100.75 and 8's for $63.75 at 11:52. As the other bartender was leaving, I hit Aces again at 12:35.
    I told the bartenders that I had hit Aces again and gave them the other $80. They were hyper appreciative.
    I drew a 4th deuce with a kicker at 12:40 for $270. I had switched to their seasonal tap which was a Belgium Trippel at around 9%. This would normally be sold in snifters, but I was drinking 14oz and 20oz servings. It was seeming a little surreal. I wouldn't normally try this at home. I hit 9's for $64 and cashed out a TITO.
    Mike closed the bar, but let me play on. At 1:38 I lost my hundred as the slot tech hovered to shot down my machine.
    I'd won $2,500 over 13 straight hours on quarters. Close to $300 of this came from progressives. Only once before have I managed to win 10,000 credits during a playing session. I'm still down $400 for the trip, but am feeling pretty hyped about where the day has taken me.. I still had about 18oz of high octane beer left, so I decided to write this as I drank it.
     
    Last edited: Mar 21, 2020
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  5. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    Finally happened. Thanks for following this thread and Random Alaska Stories.
     
  6. shermanleroy

    shermanleroy Low-Roller

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    Enjoying your trip report Wasilla, I loved your 2 previous reports as well!! The whole time you were on your trip, I kept looking for your report, I'm happy to see it now!!
     
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  7. FormallyTD

    FormallyTD Big Time

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    I have zero clue what's going on here with this report and/or where it comes from, but who/what has New Belgium Trippel on tap other than the actual breweries in Fort Collins and Asheville??

    Very important information.
     
  8. cunningja

    cunningja Tourist

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    Great day, always enjoy reading your reports!
     
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  9. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    This is a LV TR on a trip that occurred mid February to early March. A Belgian Trippel is a beer style from Belgium. It is generally light in color, low on hops, on the sweet side, and higher in alcohol often around 9%. Many American breweries do their own version. Chicago Brewing has won awards for theirs. That's the one I was drinking in my previous few posts. Don't know if I've ever had a New Belgium Trippel.
     
    Last edited: Mar 21, 2020
  10. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    @wasilla I love hearing the details of your trip. Including the ones I have heard of. Given that the casinos are closed, it is particularly interesting to read a recently completed trip.

    FAB
     
  11. GamblingGolfer

    GamblingGolfer VIP Whale

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    Ya, great stuff to follow along, @wasilla - congrats on the 'run'. Impressive amount of drinks, too ... lol (not sure I want to meet at an Alaskan pub if our cruise ever gets there .... oh, what the hell, it would fun ... ;)

    GG
     
  12. GoriGambler

    GoriGambler Low-Roller

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    Great recover!!!! Looking forward for the next installments....
     
  13. NittyOne

    NittyOne VIP Whale

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    Wow what a crazy run.
     
  14. FormallyTD

    FormallyTD Big Time

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    Thank Christ, I'd lost my mind.

    New Belgium Trippel is my 100% favorite beer & you said you had it (22 oz) at...where, exactly?

    Chicago @ 4 Qs had that on tap?

    I'm mesmerized.

    Thanks, @wasilla
     
  15. FormallyTD

    FormallyTD Big Time

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    @wasilla...forget my rants about New Belgium Tripp....I completely misinterpreted something you had written while I was under the influence.

    Good to know Chicago has a Tripp, though. Thank you.

    Try mine if you get the chance.
     
  16. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    No problem. If I ever find a place that gives away 22oz of your New Belgium Trippel, I will definitely let you know. Besides Chicago Brewing, The Front Yard at Ellis Island was also comping their Trippel in much smaller snifters.
     
  17. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    2/24 Monday at DTG

    It's another moving day. I get a late start. The hotel gives me a 1:00 check out. The high from last night still hasn't worn off. I transferred 2 grand back to my safe money. The automatic check out shows that I owe money. I only anticipated a couple dollars at most, but they are asking for close to $30. I have to go to the desk. I've got a $50 comp on my offer and another $20 for going green. The person I'm dealing with is new, but she gets a supervisor. The supervisor writes everything off.

    DTG has a room ready. It's in their more convenient casino tower. The room is once again nice as it is quiet. This is the first time that I am staying here on an offer, In addition to 3 nights, I have a $25 food credit, comedy club tickets, and two $70 MP's. Since my last trip, they have eliminated their best VP. I plan to run $10,000 through 8/5 BP over the next 3 days. This should leave me time for non-gaming activities.

    I come downstairs to play midafternoon. I order a Bailey's and Coffee, but it isn't very good. I discover that I left my notebook in my room and decide not to retrieve it. You'll be spared my normal VP play accounting for this post. I hit a few ordinary quads, but still lost a couple hundred dollars. I played enough to get a 50% off food coupon and 3 X points. It was HH and I took a break and got a decent IPA and a bacon cheese burger. I was pleased with the meal and took the rest of my beer back to a bar top. As I was finishing my beer the bartender asked what else I wanted. I had noticed that they had added Dogfish Head 60 minute IPA. Ho told me he could only comp the macrobrew domestic lagers. I declined to order anything, and he was apologetic. It wasn't his fault, but I thought this place really needed a management shakeup. I hit a quad and left when I lost my $100 buy in. I was down $300 for the day at a place that wouldn't comp a decent beer.

    Time to go drinking. I'm afraid that my experiences are running together. I told you that I went drinking at Tenaya Creek last Thursday. Today was when I actually went to Tenaya Creek. Since I accidently told my Tenaya Creek story in Thursday's entry, I will tell you my actual Thursday drinking adventures today. I've already talked about this in Grabbing a Great Beer Downtown. This is a walking tour.

    Hop Nuts was my first stop. It had a full tap list, 15 of theirs and 5 guests. Several of the beers are new. I had trouble communicating with the bartender on my previous visit, but we had somehow become friends. She remembered where I was from and was really helpful with selecting beers from the new tap list. I had a 5 6oz sampler flight and it was one of the best flights I've ever had.
    I started with a 6% Japanese Lager. It was dry as expected, but was also a tad spicy, subtle and clean. I wouldn't normally order this beer, but the bartender sold me on it. She has a good palate. I was surprised at how much I liked this.
    Next was the 7.5% Papa's Imperial Amber. It was full bodied and pleasantly malty. Instead of the sweet after taste of an Alaskan Amber, this was more balanced and complex with a hint of spice running from my nose and into my throat before dissipating.
    Then came Galactical Present, a 8%, 80 IBU DIPA. By now I was talking a lot and fell down on my note taking. All I wrote was "crisp." I recall it being a good, but not outstanding example of the style.
    Their Nitro Imperial Stout at 8.1%, 69 IBUs was really good. Smooth, creamy, but still slightly drier than your average big stout. They don't normally serve it in a 6oz pour though.
    Best for last was their DBA Imperial Stout. This 10%, 69 IBU barrel aged stout is chocolatey delicious. An outstanding beer that I'm returning for a full pour of.
    I talked to whoever would talk to me. A couple originally from Germany, was traveling by RV. We talked about brew pubs and I discovered that she had been given a plastic duck at Able Baker. I vowed to get one.
    Cost for the flight was $13.80 that included a industry discount.

    Next up was Craft House. The beer list that I got from them didn't make it home with me. Most of their tap list was familiar with a couple of my favorites gone. I liked the couple of pours I had. It was a drinking night and I didn't remember any details that I didn't write down. I do recommend the place. They have a great variety of decent beer for a reasonable price. I cover this place more extensively in my last trip report and an early post in Grabbing Great Beer Downtown.

    Able Baker continues to be my favorite spot. The line up includes fewer huge beers than my November visit. I'm sure this fits with patrons' drinking preferences. My new favorite in Infamy 2403, a 12.7% Imperial Porter nectar of the gods. A 5.5oz pour runs $5.50 so its a bit pricier. I was already drunk when I tasted this and will have to return for it. I had a couple of 5.5oz pours that were cheaper, but still good. I wound up with another industry discount, so maybe this is becoming a thing for beer fans in the Arts District. The bar was crowded at times and I tend to think that I'm funny and entertaining when I drink. I was randomly engaging people in conversation. A couple ladies spent a long time selecting t-shirts. The bar tender gave them a plastic duck. I had forgotten about them, and said (perhaps too seriously) that I wasn't leaving without one. Well, I forgot about it again, but the bartender gave me my own duck as I was leaving. For more on this place, Viva talked about it in his latest TR, I talked about it in my last TR, and their are several mentions in Grabbing Great Beer.

    A new brewpub, Beer District opened the previous Weds. It is on Main Street a little north of Charleston and less than a 100 yards south of The Gambler's Book Store. I had heard about it, but didn't know the precise location or that they had opened. I noticed it on my way back home. They only had 2 of their own beers on tap. I liked the IPA. Their were also several guest beers. They are planning a grand opening around mid March after more of their beers are ready. The brewer is talked about with mad respect by others in the area, so I'm hopeful. I realize that the beer details are sparse here, but I only ran across it as I was walking home from a high octane tour of the area's other places. Viva gave a good review of this place in his latest TR.

    I didn't hit Three Sheets this tour, but I will describe it a bit. It is a craft beer bar a minute walk from Craft House. They have 30 taps and I think that they all rotate. They have about a half dozen bar seats and a few tables inside. There is a lot of outdoor seating. They have TV's both inside and out. The bar was staffed by friendly and extroverted women who knew about their beer. They have a happy hour T,W,TH. I think it is 4:00 to 6:00. I was there right before Trivia night at the tail end of HH. They had a couple HH customers, but I was the only patron after that. The bartender told me that costumers were waiting for the trivia. They had started to trickle in as I left.

    Once again, this is a description of my drinking last Thursday. What I was actually doing today, was walking back from Tenaya Creek. When I got back to DTG, I started playing again. I hadn't gone upstairs to get my notebook, so you still don't have to suffer through VP details. I sat down to play and the same bartender was working. He asked me what I wanted and I let him know that I would be gambling beverage free. He asked for my card and was gone a few minutes. When he came back and gave me my card, he said that the host was covering my beer and poured me a Dogfish Head. He had noticed that I was gambling with $100's and had taken it upon himself to get my beer comped. I commended his common sense and told him that I had left the casino in order to drink some good beer.

    While I was waiting for my card a guy I had gambled with at QQQQ's joined me. He moved from 4Q's to DTG a day ahead of me. With the poorer pay tables and beer selection at DTG, he was continuing to gamble at Chicago Brewing. For those of you interested in QQQQ's comps, he gambles $4,000 a day and gets a couple nights and $80 FP. The machine he was sitting at had about 80 credits. I told him he should just play them. If someone came back for them, I figured that I would give them the twenty.

    My host, Curt came out and introduced himself. He had comped my previous stay at DTG and had booked this stay. I, however, had only met him once, years ago, when I walked into the Plaza Host office and he comped a stay there. He was very nice and reiterated that my beer was covered and told me how to access my FP. I don't remember the details of my VP play that night, but the beer was flowing and I played a while. My bartender switched out and passed on the beer comp info to his replacement. They kept a duplicate card in a glass and ran it every time I ordered another. I ordered cheese curds at the bar on the recommendation of my new bartender. I was surprised at how much I liked them. There is a small bar menu of inexpensive and tasty food.

    I think that I ended up losing another $100 or two at VP. Somewhere along the line, I got a $70 FP coupon from the kiosk. I didn't realize that my $70 FP would be a single $70 coupon. I lost it betting black. I have another one to play on another day. I had a losing day, but it hadn't put a dent into the buzz that still felt from the previous day's play.

    Tomorrow I plan for an excursion away from downtown.
     
    Last edited: Mar 22, 2020
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  18. cunningja

    cunningja Tourist

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    I'm bummed about the notebook, i like all the details, really look forward to your daily updates while i'm holed up in the house!
     
  19. GamblingGolfer

    GamblingGolfer VIP Whale

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    Good stuff, keep it coming.

    GG
     
  20. NittyOne

    NittyOne VIP Whale

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    I’m looking forward to hearing about your adventures away from DT.
     
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