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It appears to have been around a week or so, but I just discovered an interesting beer web site that is part of slashfood.com. It is called Beer Suggest. Here is the link.
It is slow to load but does offer a reasonable rundown of what is new .
Anyone familiar with it?
Opinions on it?
I like the Beer Advocate site and the Real Beer site.
Can we have too many beer Web sites? I think not.
The O's were down 4-2 last night to the Yankees when I went to the fridge and cracked open the bottle of Brasserie Dieu Du Ciel Peche Mortel.
This is an Imperial Stout, called Mortal Sin, from a Montreal brewer. At 9.5 percent alcohol by volume, this is an after-dinner beer, so I put my recliner in the full horizontal position as I sipped and watched the game on TV.
Then came the fireworks, both in the game and in my beer mug. The O's and Yanks were launching home runs -- an amazing nine of them by the end of the fifth inning. As Jim Palmer observed, none of them were "cheapies." They were monster shots.
This beer was also exceptional. It was dark as the Yankees' heart. It felt creamy in my mouth and was suffused with roasted-coffee flavors. I thought I was only going to drink half the 11.5 ounce (Canadian math) bottle, but somehow, the entire contents slipped down my throat.
Before I knew it, the O's had tied the Yanks 8-8, and thunderstorms that would have scared Noah were drenching Camden Yards. The umps refused to call a rain delay until the Yanks finished batting in the bottom of the eighth.
I tried to wait out the hour-plus rain delay, but it was a worknight and that 9.5 ABV took its toll. I nodded off. Wednesday morning came word that the O's were victorious, 10-9 in 11 innings.
What a game. What a beer.
The wages of Mortal Sin are pricey, $5 a bottle. The distributor in this area is DOPS. I found a bottle at The Wine Source.
Anybody else had this beer.?
Anybody stay up for the entire Os-Yanks game?
The beer fridge is under attack. Beer drinkers who are serious about helping the environment should get rid of their old energy-guzzling beer refrigerators, says Denise Young, a University of Alberta researcher writing in the journal Energy Policy.
The beer fridge tends to be a vintage unit, often exiled from the kitchen by the arrival of a more-efficient fridge.
A 1985 fridge uses about 1,060 kilowatt hours a year, authorities say, while newer units consume 275 to 440 kilowatt hours annually, depending on the size. of the fridge. Tossing out the old beer fridge and replacing it with a new unit is one remedy. But it could be costly.
Choosing between a cold beer and a green enviroment is a tough call.
I had a beer fridge in my basement, but it died last year and I was not able to fix it.
That is how I ended up going green with my cold beers. Now my beer has to share space with food for the family. The beer is confined to one shelf. It is a sacrifice.
How do you wrestle with the cold beer-old fridge issue?
Anyone got a green solution?
The Dogfish Head Brewery, folks who admit to brewing off-center ales for off-center people, have not only produced an interesting beer aged in wood, Palo Santo, but they have also produced an entertaining video telling how the beer was born.
The short version of the story is that John Gasparine, who runs JG Architectural Supply, a Linthicum business that specializes in green building materials and a craft beer fan, pitched the idea of brewing with the exotic wood to Dogfish. Sam Calagione, the brewery's big fish, liked the notion and consulted with Gasparine, who secured the wood in an eco-friendly way, from forests in Paraguay. Now the brewery is making Palo Santo, a unfiltered big brown ale, that is aged in tanks made with Palo Santo wood.
The wood is so dense it does not float in water and so strong it has been used to fashion the propeller shafts of ships, Gasparine told me. It is also used by the natives of Paraguay and Argentina to fashion kitchen tools, including the vessels for mate, a South American tea. Gasparine said he was intrigued when the locals told him that the wood imparts flavor to the mate.
The beer is sold in four-packs, for about $15. It shows up from time to time in liquor stores. I found it at Wells Discount Liquors on York Road. The distributor for this area is F.P. Winner.
I had one the other night. It is a very big beer, dark, with a creamy head. It packs a wallop at 12 percent alcohol by volume. It has so much body and wood flavor, it is almost chewy.
It is a sipper, say, in 2-3 ounce portions, not a gulper. An after-dinner beer.
Anybody else had a Palo Santo?
Anybody else seen the video?
Bill , a correspondent and lover of suds, is searching for area establishments -- not crab houses or bowling alleys -- that still serve beer in pitchers.
I thought of Bill's Terrace Inn, but that of course is a crab house.
Where have all the pitchers gone?
Any suggestions for places that still pour by the pitcher?
I went to the commencement exercises at the Maryland Institute, College of Art the other day. It began with a chant and prayer from the Rev. Clifford Canku of the Dakota tribe, and ended four, yes four, hours later with a recessional and 550 graduates clutching their diploma carriers. They picked up the real sheepskins later. Among them was Kim Ruppert, a friend of our 23-year-old son. She graduated cum laude in environmental design.
I know I should be thinking big thoughts at such lofty events, but during commencement my mind wandered to the beers I had placed on ice for the post-graduation party to be held at our home.
On one side of the cooler I had the fruit beers: Oxford Class Raspberry Wheat, Abita Strawberry, Pyramid Apricot Ale, and a new beer, Shiner Light from Texas.
On the other side of the cooler I had the heavier stuff: the 60 minute IPA from Dogfish, the Troegs Hopback Amber.
Picking the right mix of beers for a gathering of family and friends is tricky. Their are different ages and differing tastes.
In this instance, we came back to our house, toasted the graduate, ate barbecued brisket and quaffed beverages. At the end of the day, very few of the light and fruit beers had been touched, but the Dogfish and Troegs were hit hard.
This got me thinking about beer-serving strategies for May parties, graduation get-togethers, weddings, etc.
What is the right mix of heavy to light beers?
Is it like the red wine-white wine ratio, two to one? Or should it be 50-50?
What style of beers do you serve at your family gatherings?
I was impressed with Savor, the beer and food pairing festival held last weekend in Washington's Andrew Mellon auditorium.
Forty-eight craft breweries from around the country poured their beer in small glasses. and each beer was matched with a food item.
My favorite matchup was the Boscos Brewing Co. Hefeweizen from Memphis Tenn., paired with chicken breasts cooked with lemon grass. The two-day event was sliced into three sessions, and attendance was capped at 700 for each session. Each session was a sellout.
Women comprised at least a third of the crowd, a much higher proportion than at most beer festivals.
Pairing the beer with food, along with the high-tone setting of the Mellon with its guilded ceilings, probably attracted the ladies.
Anyone else attend? Anyone else have a favorite pairing?
What do you think of my theory that if you hold a beer tasting in nice setting, and match beer with food, then women will come?
Quick reminder that Savor, the craft beer and food festival, is this weekend in Washington at Mellon Auditorium. Advance ticket sales only.
Next weekend there is a food, wine and beer festival in Lancaster, Pa., featuring, among other brews, some beers from Victory Brewing and some from Bube's Brewery of Mt. Joy, Pa.
Anybody had a Bube's?
Today, May 15, is according to the Coors marketing machine "cold activation day."
It is a make-believe celebration, but it does raise the question of how cold you want your beer.
The labels on the Coors bottles start to turn blue at 47 degrees F, and hit their peak blue at 43 degrees. That is what the Coors folks told me.
What do we think of these temperatures?
When beer gets too cold, its flavors fade.
Apropos of all the comments on when we should drink seasonal beers, I feel I should confess that back in 1998, I was on a panel of tasters that picked a Paulaner and Hacker-Pschorr as the year's best Oktoberfests.
Trouble was, the bottles we tasted were actually leftovers from 1997. Yikes! I wanted to hide behind some hop leaves. ( Back in 1998, hops were plentiful.)
When the tasters got the "right stuff," the 1998 versions, we all said we liked them just fine. But it did make me wonder about the freshness argument.
Namely, are there some beers that don't have to play by the "freshness" date rules?
A brewer told me that beers with high alcohol age better than those with low ABVs. Agree?
And last summer I drank a "winter beer" I found hiding in my fridge. Tasted real good, even though it was seasonally incorrect.
Any thoughts on which beers age better than others? Any thoughts on which beer drinkers age better than others?
Yesterday I had a Samuel Adams Summer Ale at Slainte Irish Pub in Fells Point, sipping it at the bar with a clutch of soccer-loving regulars.
I like the Sam Adams brewery, but was not impressed with this summer wheat ale. Perhaps one reason I didn't like it was that it was not really summer. It was still spring. The Sam Adams web site describes this beer as a clean finishing beer perfect for those hot summer days.
I was drinking it on a mild day in May. Summer doesn't start, officially, until June 21.
The craze in food these days is eating locally produced food when it is in season. All good "locavores" should soon be eating strawberries and rhubarb.
Should the same "locavore" rules apply to beer drinking?
Do you believe in drinking seasonal beers only in the official season?
If so, what should you call yourself -- a 'locabeervore?"
Yesterday I celebrated Cinco de Mayo, by drinking Mexican beer, Pacifico, at a neighborhood get-together. My kind of holiday.
The host pointed out that Cinco de Mayo has lost its historical roots. It marks the Battle of Puebla in 1862 when the Mexicans defeated the invading French army. The French won the rematch a year later.
Lately, the Fifth of May festivities have been promoted by the brewers of Corona and Tecate. This May, Bud Light has launched a Mexican-style beer flavored with lime, which competes with Miller Chill, another south-of-the-border-style brew flavored with salt and lime.
I have had the Chill, which with its salty notes was better than expected.
Anyone sample the Bud Light Lime?
On the whole I prefer Pacifico. Agree?
Any other Cinco de Mayo brews worth mentioning?
Interesting story in yesterday's New York Times' "T" magazine by Toby Cecchini about a drink called Black Velvet, a 50-50 mixture of stout, usually Guinness, and real champagne (not sparkling wine).
Fergus Henderson, a hearty London chef who lives larg,e said the drink can bring you back from the edge of death. In others words, it seems to be a hangover cure.
Anyone try this?
Anyone have any other cures?
It is difficult these days to go to a weekend beer festival without buying your tickets days in advance.
From the viewpoint of the festival organizers, advance sales yield a firm estimate of how many people will be attending. At the recent City Paper festival, organizers capped ticket sales at about 1,200, and the Saturday event sold out on Thursday. This resulted in good crowd control and kept the beer flowing.
However, procrastinators, who waited until the day of the event to see what their schedule was like and what kind of weather the day would provide, got shut out. I confess I was in that position but was saved by the kindness of festival poo-bahs.
The spontaniety of "oh, it is a sunny Saturday, let's go drink beer," is lost. I mourn its passing. Anyone else? Anyone have mournful tales of being turned back at the gates of a festival?
Howsabout tales from the other side -- festivals that did not cap sales and were mobbed?
The next local beer festival, Savor, with a theme of matching food and beer, is set for Washington the weekend of May 16-18. It features Boston Beer's Jim Koch, Brooklyn Brewery's Garrett Oliver, and Maryland's Flying Dog and Clipper City crews. The tickets -- $85 per session for drinkers, $50 for designated drivers -- are being sold only in advance. None will be sold on the day of the event. Click here for details.
Prodded by the post of bryanintimonium who took issue with my fondness for fruit beers by proclaiming "Reinheitsgebot! Reinheitsgetbot! Reinheitsgetbot! No fruit in beers," I looked up the German beer purity law.
The Reinheitsgebot proclaims "the only ingredients used for the brewing of beer must be Barley, Hops and Water. Whosoever knowingly disregards or transgresses upon this ordinance shall be punished by the Court authorities' confiscating such barrels of beer, without fail." The law, written in 1516, forgot to mention yeast, which got added in one of the subsequent revisions of the brewing rules.
After reading a critique of the Reinheitsgebot by rpattinson on the ratebeer web site, I subscribe to the author's view that discussion of beer should "concentrate more around the factors which are truly crucial to the taste of a beer: the quality of the ingredients, lagering times, pasteurisation, filtration and carbonation."
So I say it is okay to drink fruit beer, as long as it is good beer. Agree?
Besides, don't the Germans put a slice of lemon in some of their beers? Doesn't that violate the spirit, if not the letter, of the law?
And does this law mean that the Belgian beers are not considered beers?
