It all started with a tweet, and the rest is, as they say, social media history.

On Sunday, in a trendy Montrose wateringhole, scores of Houston foodies, tweetsters and Bobby Heugel groupies gathered for a cocktail throwdown.

The drink: the lowly michelada, a beer-based cousin to the bloody mary

The venue: the lofty Anvil Bar & Refuge

The challengers: Anvil owner/chief mixologist Heugel, Beaver's Icehouse chef Jonathan Jones and Bedford pastry chef Plinio Sandalio.

The genesis of the extravaganza started with a tweet by a member of the Houston Chowhounds, a convivial group of foodies that move in packs through the local culinary scene. There's no food too exotic, too spicy or too homely for this bunch.**

Here's Houston Foodie's terrific tweet-by-tweet account of the event's history.

Teo's micheladaI joined the pre-Anvil michelada crawl, where I had hoped to gain an appreciation — or at the very least, a taste — for the drink.

The first stop was Connie's, one of the those colorful eateries on Airline that leave you wondering why you ever paid $22 for a plate of (fill in the cuisine) at one of those Galleria-area restaurants.

The Chowhounds were gathered at the bar, feasting on ceviche and micheladas, when I arrived a few minutes after the appointed hour. Never a fan of beer, I skipped Connie's michelada, which looked orange and underwhelming.

Judge's scorecard at Anvil
Next came Teotihuacan, an establishment that takes its margaritas seriously. Perhaps the restaurant is just as proud of its micheladas.

Smart move. The micheladas arrived at the table beer-ready. The deep red mixture in the salted-rim glass was pungent. The waiter had suggested a Corona michelada. I poured the beer to the rim and admired its color.

Unfortunately, the color was all I was going to admire about the michelada. HATED IT!!! And that's the good thing about a Chowhound gathering — no food/drink/nibble goes to waste. There's always someone with a bigger appetite or a more adventurous palate at the table.

The last stop of the michelada crawl — Taqueria Arandas on North Shepherd — was sabotaged by a crazy thundershower and Teotihuacan's unbelievable vat-sized (menu says medium/$6.99) portion of queso flameado.

Michelada-maker extraordinaire Bobby Heugel
Our group arrived at Anvil at 4:15, way ahead of the bar's posted opening of 5 p.m. I'd like to say that I was there when Heugel was crowned michelada champ. But it didn't happen. Tried a sip of Chef JJ's triple-smoked michelada. It tasted like a premium barbecue sauce. I'm glad I already had finished my nice pinot noir.

A friend and I slipped out of Anvil as the party roared on.

Micheladas just don't deserve this amount of attention. Somebody tweet me when me margarita smackdown begins.

** Full disclore: I'm a member of the chowhound confederation. Derive from that what you will.