Once again we spin the beer bottle to predict the outcome of the Ravens game.

Critics may note that so far this prognostication technique is 0-2, or about as accurate as the Ravens passing game. But we drink the beer and press on.

The best beer so far in this three week endeavor has been the Penn. Pilsner from Pittsburgh. This week’s beer, The Raven, is a league or two above last week’s spinning brew, Natty Boh. Rich, malty and bit heavy, The Raven lager is the creation of Stephen Demczuk, a Dundalk native who has a doctorate in biochemistry and molecular biology.

While living in Europe, Demczuk got a taste for good beer, and when he moved back to Baltimore in the late 1990s, cut a deal with Clipper City to bottle his recipe for The Raven. The beer is named in honor of the poem, not the football team. But tailgaters tell me it is popular brew in pre-game gatherings on the M & T Stadium parking lots.

The Raven represents a one-beer operation that, against long odds, has been stayed in the game. I like the parallel with this year’s football team.

The spinning Raven, by the way, predicts a Baltimore win against Cleveland.