As Gut Check reported back in March, the opening of the Flying Saucer Draught Emporium (900 Spruce Street; 314-932-1456) was marred by an anti-Cardinals conspiracy launched by one Joe Hoffmann.
The plot: Be the first to drink 200 beers and claim the location's first "Ring of Honor" plate in the name of Don Denkinger, the first base umpire who "blew a call" that allowed the Royals to win against the Cardinals in the '85 World Series.
Cardinal Nation got wind of Hoffmann's dastardly scheme and three challengers stood between him and plate no. 1. After 66 days and 198 brews, it all came down to Saturday morning when the employees at Flying Saucer opened the doors.
Four men entered. One no. 1 plate emerged.
See also: -[VIDEO] Flying Saucer Opening Marred by Evil Royals Fan Plot; Kicks Off Most Important Drinking Contest of All Time -First Look: Flying Saucer Draught Emporium -Flying Saucer Draught Emporium Opens Downtown Today at 5 P.M.
Hoffmann, Richard Haegele, Whitney Brown and Nate Minshew arrived for the 10 a.m. opening on Saturday with friends, family, and no clue how the winner would be chosen. The contenders speculated that a four-way drink-off was about to go down.
Here's what happened:
Although disappointed with his fourth place rank, Haegele is dedicating his plate to the memory of Stan Musial, plus there's this:
In happier news, I raised $250 for Cardinals Care, and the awesome folks at @4handsbrewery have agreed to match it. That's $500 for charity!
— Richard Haegele (@STLWorldBeeries) May 13, 2013
Follow Jessica Lussenhop on Twitter at @Lussenpop. E-mail the author at [email protected].
