Beer. Beer. And more beer.

[Abraham Smashington]

YEAHHHHHH MN! IT's a small step, but a step none the less.

[IggytheBorg]

Last weekend I bought a 6 of Anchor Brewing Co's California Lager. Wonderful stuff. It had the sharp bitterness of a good pilsner up front, but had a lot more heft to it. A malty, bready, grain-infused center and aftertaste, it kind of reminds me of a Dortmunder export, but didn't have the contrasting sweetness, preferring instead to cling more closely to the bitter end of the spectrum. Which I liked more, actually.

[IggytheBorg]

Last weekend, I drank a 6 of DuClaw's Mad Bishop Oktoberfest. Pretty damned good. had nice caramel roasted malt flavors going on, as any good Oktoberfest/marzen should, with just enough hop bitterness to keep it honest. A very good, respectful example of the style. All too often American brewers fuck Oktoberfest up by making it too hoppy because, 'Murica. We's all about the hops. These guys didn't do that.

On a side note: I bought a mixed six pack of loose bottles at my local liquor emporium the other night, and on an impulse I bought a couple Mooseheads. I was quite fond of this beer in my youth, and drank tons of it. I have come to the realization that this is a pretty skunky international pilsner with few redeeming qualities. Still better than Bud, I suppose, but not by as much as I remember. I'm almost afraid to try Molson again to see if my fond memories for that golden ale are also misplaced. . .

[IggytheBorg]

Also, I bought a bottle of J.W. Lees Harvest Ale barleywine about a year ago, intending to pair it with Stilton. According to Garrett, this is the most orgasmic of beer and food pairings. What a let down. This stuff tasted like date flavored turpentine. I poured almost all of it out. It reminded me of poor American examples of barleywine, like Stone's Old Guardian. I can't believe this garnered the praise it did. Unless you need to age it far longer (as it supposedly ages well). I don't know if I want to try that. I mean, aging can have a great effect on barleywine. I have a Sierra Nevada Bigfoot approaching the 2 year mark in my cellar, and I'm looking forward avidly to busting that one out with some strong cheese. But I aged the JW Lees almost a year as it is; how the fuck long does this shit need?

I also tried a new Stone beer, the HiFi/LoFI Mix Tape Ale. They took a 90 day aged ale and mixed it with the same stuff, unaged. Not nearly as interesting as it sounds. Good, to be sure, and had a lingering, pleasant hop bitter aftertaste. But nothing extraordinary. Pretty much just like a good pale ale or IPA.

[Abraham Smashington]

Will have to check out that HifiLofi stuff.

[IggytheBorg]

Last night I drank some Sweetwater beers from a build your own six pack I put together. One was their brown ale, which was very good. Roasty and malty, with just the right amount of hop bitterness to keep it honest. Very traditional. These guys know what they're doing, and keep well to traditional styles. When that's what they're making, that is. I also drank an experimental brew of theirs, called an "India style brown", which was like nothing I've ever had before. It started out with the typical roasted flavors of a brown ale, but they were perhaps a bit blunted and restrained. Not in a bad way, mind. The middle however, was like a muted and very pleasant IPA/pale ale hoppy bitterness; nowhere near as hoppy or bitter as a full on IPA/pale ale would be, but it gave you the essence, with a brown ale like earthiness to it. And then the roasty flavor was back for the aftertaste. Wonderfully flavorful and complex, these guys know what they're doing when they experiment, too. I am extremely impressed with this company. You must try this one.

[Ingrid]

Got to try Not Your Father's Root Beer for the first time the other day. That stuff is dangerous with me. My lightweight body could only handle about half of one, but it was so enjoyable I could have easily polished off 3(then blacked out and regretted it in the morning).

[Abraham Smashington]

I wish had zero tolerance. I want to have one of those mixed with some Rum Chata to have an "adult" root beer float

[Martin]

Got to try Not Your Father's Root Beer for the first time the other day. That stuff is dangerous with me. My lightweight body could only handle about half of one, but it was so enjoyable I could have easily polished off 3(then blacked out and regretted it in the morning).

Wish I could try this stuff.

[IggytheBorg]

I hear they're going to make it available in Canada for a limited time. But not at YOUR store. All your friends in different provinces will be drinking it and telling you how good it is all the time, and you won't be able to find it. Then it'll be gone.

[Abraham Smashington]

and then Martin will be all like, "Yeah, I tried it but at a different store. A store that you don't know of. In America."

[Timothy225]

and then Martin will be all like, "Yeah, I tried it but at a different store. A store that you don't know of. In America."

"With my girlfriend. Who's American. From AMERICA. She's like, TOTALLY into me, yo."

Then Martin goes home. Where he starts to cry. 'Cause he has no girlfriend. Who'd be American. From America. But she isn't. So she ain't. And Martin misses out on the frothy cold beer goodness from the other stores in the other provinces. So he cries harder. Into his pillow. Soaking it with his tears. Til he falls asleep and dreams...

[Martin]

I hear they're going to make it available in Canada for a limited time. But not at YOUR store. All your friends in different provinces will be drinking it and telling you how good it is all the time, and you won't be able to find it. Then it'll be gone.

If the timing is right, I go to Ottawa and get it there. Fuck I HATE the language laws here in Québec.

[Matt]

Tried a non-alcoholic beer the other day that was pretty good...St. Pauli Girl or something. Did it taste as good as a regular beer? Hell no, but considering that I can't drink anymore, it's more than tolerable. Any port in a storm, right?

[IggytheBorg]

Tried Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter this weekend. Not bad. Deep, roasted malt flavors. Very strong and coffee like. Offset a bit by sweet malt, with just enough bitterness to keep it in check. Pretty strong at 9.3 ABV, it doesn't fuck you up QUITE as much as you'd expect. Not something I'd got to regularly, but worth a try. Fans of porters and stouts might like it better than I did (coffee flavors aren't my thing).