The Imbibe Hour

Back to Domku, and a small trip into Georgian wine

2012-02-15T21:31:00.000-05:00

I set back to return to a familiar place. Domku is a restaurant in the Petworth neighborhood of DC that I had often visited back in the day. This time for a return visit was for a different occasion as they were hosting a wine and diner pairing, for of all things Georgian wine.

Georgian wine is not something I run into too often and I was eager to partake. Here I usually grab some good Eastern European food and drink (check out the meatballs, and the aquavit here), but this created a good opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. I have never had Georgian wine before and more importantly was very eager to see what it was like. Our first course was to be served a simple sparkling brut type wine named or perhaps from Bagratoioni.

This was paired with probably the best part of the meal, a nice lemon and egg soup called Chickhirtma. The brut's nose was typically spritzy but also with a green floral chlorophyl sense. Body was extremely light, crisp, and had a very club soda like palate. Sort of a sparkling wine club soda mix and floral air. Very unique and interesting.

Things were starting off well, as the next course arrived. I went for a Khinkali which was very much like a stuffed perogi, while my dining companion chose the spiced lamb meatballs. Wine paired was a Chateau Mukharani Goruli Mtsvane Dry White.

The Mukharani had a nose of a mild sweet green grape bouquet, very faint honey in the palate mixing again with some soft florals. Finish was mellow as to be expected, but once again extremely light.

I was beginning to wonder if there was a character emerging in the wines. Many of them felt incredibly light bodied compared to just about every other wine I have had. I was eyeing the back of the bar where a Bell's tap handle exclaimed Two Hearted and tried to stay focused. I was hoping that as a mostly red wine drinker that the next wine would be a bit different change of pace.

Served with a simple piece of lamb and rice pilaf was Mukuzani Dry Red. Dry was quite apt, however, the nose exhibit some cherry jam, almost pectin, with the palate also extremely light as well, with mild tannins and a faint hint of plum.

I was beginning to wonder if it was just me who was thinking the wines all felt quite light bodied and sort of "nearly thin", but they were quite unique and distinct but still managed to have enjoyable qualities.

In the end no dessert was served, except our last drink, which was described as "like a grappa" by our waitress.

The drink was called Chacha and was very much like a digestif grappa "like" drink. It did have a distinction of tasting very much with a unique faint powdery cocoa on the finish. This was probably the most unique drink of the night.

I am not sure if I have exactly been converted, or transformed into a huge fan of Georgian wine, but just having a few nice bites in a familiar fond place, has sparked my curiosity.

The year in beer 2011

2012-01-19T15:49:00.002-05:00

It wasn't suppose to happen this way. It wasn't suppose to happen at all.

When I started out deciding to write a blog about drink, I was very focused on spirits. I've been a big fan of cocktails and spirits, and started focusing on bourbon primarily when I started. However, there were many times I just want to just sit back and grab a beer, instead of mixing up drinks.

Beer.

It's one of those ubiquitous drinks that is just about anywhere on the planet, and when it comes to imbibing alcohol it's probably the first place you begin. I started drinking beer up in Canada when I was in my late teens, not unlike most people who discover beer. Back then there really wasn't much choice. Many of the top producers or what some today would call macro-breweries, even made beers that weren't available in certain areas of the country, keeping certain brews to only local markets (I still to this day have never seen Molson Export sold anywhere West of Ontario, maybe things have changed?). On top of that many of the liquor laws did not look kindly to imports, and taxes were generally higher. In short there was less options, and you ended up usually drinking the same domestic mass produced fizzy yellow lager that probably first fell in your hands, because it was cheap and easy to get. Then something happened.

It's hard for me to pinpoint the exact date I noticed something change, but around the late 80s / early 90s a word came up that I heard called "micro". Small independent brewers were trying to make their way on to the scene. Part of my personality is to always taste something new, and when I heard there were small independent micro-breweries trying to make an appearance I desperately wanted their beer. Reports came out about mass produced beer being pedestrian. There were comments that small producers could make a better product, they used old recipes, better ingredients, the large mammoth breweries got so large that they could no longer make a quality product, and so forth. They were "different". All the points seemed to indicate their beer was better to some. Still, whether you believed this or not, I often could never get my hands on these micro-beers, and if I did they weren't cheap.

When I came to the US and settled down 14 years ago, I remember distinctly wanting to try some better beer. I was definitely not a fan of beers of macro US produced breweries. I grew up being inundated with their advertising, and flooding the market, and perhaps more so really hated their beer not just on taste but out of some pride to buy local and some perhaps nationalistic sentiment. Hey why have fizzy yellow US lager, when I can have... umm.. fizzy yellow Canadian lager? This sentiment, didn't last very long, my tastes changed, and more importantly, I got bored. Also in my young days of yore, it was probably a stupid sentiment to be had, so I'll chalk that up to inexperience. I found myself leaving beer and going to wine. Then something else happened.

I was at a liquor store in the US and started noticing more varieties of beer on the shelves. I went to other places, some even specialized in beer sales. Depending on what state I was in, the laws sometimes were less restrictive than what I grew up with, the shelves were filled with LOTS of different beers, some from around the world, more so than what I saw in Canada. I was quickly drinking a lot of Belgian beer and liking it.

My head exploded, I had to have them all. Then around 2002 I saw a 6 pack on the shelf that said beer of the year. I thought that was a pretty dam bold statement to make. I looked at the package and it said Dogfish Head Raison d'Etre. Long story short, I took it home, and my life since then for beer has never been the same. When I gushed my enthusiasm for the beer to a store employee about the micro brewery he described a term that to me was new. Dogfish as he mentioned, was some of the best "craft beer".

Since that day over ten years ago, "craft" beer has taken off unlike anything I have ever seen. There are more breweries now that I can think of. Beer made locally is now considered desirable, perhaps even filling in with the niche of supporting local farms, and having an emphasis on a better product. In Washington DC where I was living there were no local breweries 10 years ago, now with Port City, DC Brau, and a host of others there are several. The same thing has happened in other areas of the country, and there is now a lot of craft beer. Attitudes are changing about acquiring beer. Instead of just going out to the bar and having "the usual", there are craft beer bars, where you can drink several kinds of beer from multiple breweries. Events can be held, and even the brewery reps and sometimes the brewers themselves will be there and you can talk to them. Local breweries are also turning into social centers. Instead of heading to the store, you can go to the brewery and buy beer there direct from the source. Many breweries have tap nights, entertainment, and it has become a social gathering spot and not just a place to take away the wares, or have a tour (you've seen one fermenter you've seen them all I say!). Speaking of beer to take home, you can fill up on tap beer with a growler and take it home as well (either at the brewery, and some other beer bars). This is a common practice in many States (it varies depending on the law), where you can bring in a growler to fill of 64oz of fresh tapped beer and just walk home with it. Growing up in Canada, this was impossible because of the liquor laws. When I first came here I didn't even know what a growler was.

Suddenly I was very excited about beer again.

With my insatiable appetite, I had something at my disposal that as a young beer drinker years ago was practically impossible. The Internet, and more so, the information that comes with it.

With a host of active tools and a world of instant information literally at my finger tips, I discovered beers I could only dream of twenty five years ago, and more importantly "understand" them better. In 2011 I finally decided to chronicle my year in tasting beer, and I decided to make a video about it. The results are below. Grab a few beers, sit down and relax and watch the show.

I don't know where craft beer is going in this trend, but I am really liking the amount of drink and choice that is available. Even back in Canada, there are more independent breweries than before, beer is now taking off more than ever and what could be a better time to have a great drink to imbibe on once in awhile.

Cheers!

Oysters and Lambic Gueze, a match made in heaven

2012-01-02T13:51:00.000-05:00

I love seafood. Whipping up a good dish to eat is incredibly satisfying, but it's even easier when the preparation is really simple. I really enjoy fresh crab, peeling just cooked shrimp and drawn butter, and once in awhile I jump into just a solid raw oyster on the half shell. Nothing needs to be done, except for perhaps some shucking skills, and a good appetite.

However, I always thought something real good to imbibe on with raw oysters would be a real nice gueze.

So here I try out a gueze from two different breweries. Oude Gueuze Tilquin à L’Anciene, and Drie Fonteinen Doesjel. Turned out to be a great food pairing, and they were also pretty good drinks to imbibe on as well.

Cheers!

Diving back in to whiskey, heading to Tennessee

2012-01-02T12:36:00.002-05:00

I have been away from imbibing whiskey for sometime. With numerous special beers being released, and a basement in my house being turned upside down, pretty much all my spirits are still sitting in boxes.

I started this blog mostly to focus on spirits and bourbon whiskey in particular. In the time I was moving, it was easier to dive back into beer and enjoy its great sudsy goodness, while all my whiskey was packed and shelved away, hard to get to, almost never to be touched and seen again. Beer would be consumed quickly, and easily fit in my fridge. Whiskey went in a box, and thus hibernation.

I am in the process of re-building my basement which will also contain a brand new bar which I am quite excited about. This is slowly looking like more of a reality, and my mind starts getting all excited about the possibilities of delving back into spirits and throwing my bourbon on a nice piece of perhaps cherry wood? One can dream.

When thinking back to all the bourbon I reviewed, I realized it was quite sometime ago that I had jumped into it. Numerous barrel aged beers, Lambics, and Belgian styles beers consumed, whiskey seemed like a distant memory. I needed to get back, but... where to start? I had several bourbons still to try for the first time, but being so absent for drinking whiskey in so long it didn't seem right to leave off where I was. I felt I needed to start a little bit back in the beginning, and I had the perfect starter in mind.

I grabbed a bottle of George Dickel no. 12, which is a "Tennessee Sipping Whisky". This is not a bourbon, but very much has the characters of one. It was a great place to get my feet wet before starting to dive into bottles of say, Van Winkle or George T. Stagg. I decided on a video review, a few year end comments, and also decided to make a whiskey sour with this whiskey. Check out the video below to see more.

Cheers!

Something Skunky this way comes. How quickly and easily beer can go bad.

2011-11-19T00:12:00.001-05:00

Look closely at the picture to your left. Aside from the fact the height level of beer in these glasses is slightly different, one of these things is not like the other. They are all filled with the same beer, Stella Artois, but can you tell what's wrong? Before you start emailing me hate mail, or beating yourself brainless, the reality is there is nothing you can physically see that is different. There is though a distinct difference I experienced with these beers after I took this picture. One of these beers, is perfectly fine, the other two have been ruined by a very common problem. The problem is, two of these beers are "skunked". (Just for the record the first beer on the left is the one that is fine :) ).

So what does this mean?

The term "skunked" beer or "skunky", is a product of having beer exposed to blue light, that will break down the hop compounds (isohumulones), and produce a very undesirable aroma/flavor, that basically smells like a skunk (sometimes going by a more scientific name as 'methyl', or 'isopentyl mercaptan'). [Randy Mosher, Pg. 61 "Tasting Beer"]. Sunlight is a good source, but this will also happen in one of the most common beer purchasing environments, and that is the cooler-lit cases of a beer store isle.

Beer as we know comes in a variety of formats, bottles and cans being the most common. As we all know cans are metal, and we can't see through them and neither can light. Having beer on tap, comes from a keg, basically filled from the brewery at time made and then shipped to somewhere for consumption. This no doubt prevents the beer from the chance of being skunked. I will say though, I have been in many a drinking establishment where some idiot at a bar is drinking his "craft" beer, doesn't like it or it's unappealing, or perhaps it might rarely be off in some other way, but he will actually thinks it is skunked and says so. Believe me I've seen it with my own eyes, as the bartender (who can often be the proprietor) will just roll his eyes usually and bite his tongue, and pour the schmuck something else.

This leaves then the other common delivery of beer that we all know as the glass bottle.

Skunking can happened to bottled beer not even opened because bottles are essentially clear. I mean you can see through them when you look at them right? Of course. Beer bottles in the US are mostly brown, this prevents "some" skunking but not entirely. The biggest culprit of skunking happens in either green or clear bottles. These bottles offer NO protection whatsoever.

I have always wanted to test this theory out and set out to do so. The perfect candidate seemed to crop up and I chose it because it is often stored in a green bottle, and it just recently started showing up in cans. That beer is Stella Artois, a basic European Pale Lager.

I grabbed a few cans, and a six pack at a store and proceeded set up my test. The bottled six pack I have to admit was "sort of" sitting in a refrigerated section for awhile, in of course a typical store. It would be pretty much impossible to buy a six pack of Stella that had been lying around in darkness, because that isn't how they are displayed of course. This is also why this problem is so common among beer on the shelf in green and clear bottles.

I decided I would try three Stella Artois beers in three different ways. One was from the can. The second would be from one of the glass bottles I bought from the six pack that I had stored away in my basement and wrapped up so that no light could get to it. The third bottle would be a bottle I would take from this pack, and place outside in direct sunlight for 15 - 20 minutes. All beers would then be chilled in my fridge to be tasted together for consumption and reviewing.

I did this, and the results were really amazing. This is science and it doesn't lie. It was also real fun to do. You can do this with any green or clear color bottled beer and I suggest you also try this experiment at home. It will really open your eyes to imbibing beer. To see how this turned out, watch the video below. Cheers!

Dukeing it out again with Australian Shiraz. Mollydooker wines say you gotta do the shake

2011-11-17T22:03:00.001-05:00

I really enjoy a good Australian Shiraz wine once in awhile, and sometime ago, I came across a wine called "The Boxer" from a winery known as Mollydooker. It was a real fun,very well balanced shiraz full of flavor. I made sure to actually remember this wine which is something I rarely do in imbibing, but this one made me take note. It was awhile ago, so the only thing that comes to my mind back then was that it was extremely enjoyable. There is a lot of wine out there, and it can get confusing also, but often it's out of reach by either being too obscure or sometimes just too expensive for myself. However, Mollydooker wasn't like that for me and I made a mental note to get this wine again. It's memorable 30s style cartoonish pugilist character easily would help me recognize the bottle on the shelf as well.

The new vintage came out recently and I was all set and ready. I know wine enough to trust my own palate, and know pretty much the basics if you could call it that, and will always love wine and its incredible variety around the world. I do tend to focus on specific varietals from specific regions, since they are what I like to drink. I certainly by no means am an "expert" but know plenty enough to get around. I was basically all set to crack this open and have at it, when I noticed something I hadn't seen before.

With the bottle tightly clenched in my fist, on a day I was trying to find a bottle of Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout, I turned the label and was reading perhaps to learn more about how it was made, or just anything interesting. On the label it simply said, to make sure to do the Mollydooker shake before serving.

What?!?!

There wasn't much else it said, but like all good companies with a marketing presence they had a nice website for you to visit to find more about them and their product. The website went into describing that the bottle had to be SHAKEN first before being served.

I thought this was kind of a novelty at first but with a nice simple fun video they explained their reasoning. You can see it here. I remember back in my wine tasting days that there was one fun incident where a guy I knew pulled a wine out from his cellar that he wanted me to taste. His decanters were full of other wines and being used and he wanted to decant this but had no option. He stuck his thumb over the bottle and gave it a quick shake. He jokingly mentioned to me in a fun playful voice, "This is what I call cheating".

It was all very much wink and a nod after that, but no harm or foul seemed to be done. Thinking back to the event though it made me wonder if shaking this wine would even make a difference. Mollydookers website goes into a brief discussion also about why this wine should NOT be decanted, but SHAKEN. I was skeptical, but was willing to try it out. In fact I thought it would make a great video.

So here below I give my opinion and thoughts on the Mollydooker shake. Enjoy and Cheers!

Trying to wrap my head around this one. Heady Topper makes a rare appearance

2011-11-12T08:31:00.001-05:00

It's happening again, and to some extent I understand, but other times I sort of just shake my head.

I was out on my usual beer run in DC and in one of my go to stores which once in awhile gets some obscure beers. My eyes scanned the shelf selection, recognizing much of the same beer I had seen on the previous visits not too long ago. Yeah nothing new...

I did remind myself to either ask the proprietor if something new came in, or if something might be coming, but more importantly I always tell myself to look again in the same spot. I often miss items on shelves, and have found new ones by scanning them again with razor like precision. My eye drifted to an empty corner of the book shelf where some Surly use to sit in the past, and some Dark Horse plead the 5th still remained. There were some cans there that practically blended into the wood work, but there were many of them and in a sparse black design almost seemed to be invisible. I did realize this was a new product on the shelf, but then looking closely it hit me what exactly I was looking at, and I had to make sure I wasn't dreaming.

Several cans of Heady Topper from a brewery in Vermont called The Alchemist, were on the shelf, a very highly desired beer. From their website the beer is described as a "Double IPA that will put hair on your chest". As far as I know, the beer has a limited distribution range and having it show up here seemed a complete fluke. Big IPAs seem to be the rage with many beer fans, and lots of people want to have this beer and many beer related sites rate it very highly. In short, the beer is highly coveted, but has limited distribution.

I went and reviewed the beer, and have to admit it is really enjoyable. This seemed like some sort of karmatic retribution for myself. A good friend of mine had recently moved away from the area and took a job in Vermont. Both of us being big beer fans, he sent me emails about his trips to Hill Farmstead and The Alchemist, in a way taunting me. Suddenly it seemed like the beer gods felt sorry for me and decided to drop a bunch of Heady in my backyard. The irony wasn't lost on me.

However, it occurred to me that highly coveted, obscure, and great tasting beer might have a price to pay. A recent Youtube comment from "zodiak3000" brought it to my attention that the beer was going for crazy prices on Ebay. This was sounding all too familiar.

Having just went through the Founders CBS madness, I plugged in Heady Topper in the Ebay search bar. The first listing came up, four cans... 60 dollars. Wow, I sat there stunned. Other listings showed single cans going for 10-12 dollars, with many days still left in auction for the price to go up. When I mentioned to a family member back in Canada that I paid 7 dollars for a can of this beer, they asked me if I was crazy. Suddenly looking at Ebay I don't feel so bad, but more importantly, a basic beer in a bar in DC goes for that amount, usually higher (and you wont get 16oz of it either which is the size of the can). Telling the prices to others what they were going for on Ebay, a good friend just simply said, "there's one born every minute."

Suddenly this is where I feel torn, but I also feel this is where the great divide really happens among consumers when it comes to beer. Nobody bats an eye, or gets wildly upset, seeing people buy bottles of wine for forty dollars, but someone purchases a can of beer for over 4 dollars, they need their head examined. There was also a great article recently in the Washington City Paper that asked why is craft beer so expensive in Washington?, and it hints of the economic reality of what people will pay for certain things, compared to elsewhere, and how this relates to "craft" beer. It's a great article, you should check it out. It certainly put things into perspective when I took a three and a half hour drive North to Selin's Grove PA to check out the tavern and Selin's Grove Brewpub/Brewery, and have phenomenal craft beer for 3.50 - 4 dollars a glass.

This is where I feel torn. One part of me wants this drink to be taken seriously, the other part doesn't want it to be outrageously expensive and wants it to be accessible to all. But one thing is all too common, it's just economics 101.

Hopefully, it just doesn't get too far out of reach for myself, to enjoy good drink.

Here's my review and thoughts on Heady Topper - The Alchemist, Enjoy!

Fruit beer goodness, and from all obscure places... Wisconsin.

2011-11-06T10:01:00.000-05:00

While jumping around the imbibing trail, beer is often on the radar for myself. However, in my search for good beer, even great beer, my thoughts have usually drifted to tried and true tested beer hot spots. Often I am thinking of West coast state breweries for their hop pleasures, or countries with long brewing traditions such as those of Germany or more importantly Belgium, and the breweries that have made those countries the standard for which beer is measured. In the end the best beer for myself is in the United States, with it's array of breweries, multiple styles, and it's focus on innovation and perhaps pushing boundaries to the extreme.

Nevertheless, when I was on my search for great beer in the US, an obscure brewery to me came up from Wisconsin called New Glarus. Wisconsin? I thought... the place that is known for cheese? Dairy? But beer? Beer WORTH drinking in Wisconsin? get out of here..

The idea that Wisconsin was to have a brewery that could make fascinating beer not unlike great breweries in California, Oregon, Michigan and so forth seemed like an afterthought. However, when looking at New Glarus it was obvious this place was doing something very unique.

From their website: "New Glarus is run by an enthusiastic couple Daniel and Deb Carey, who have successfully combined business management and brewing professionalism." One thing I noticed when checking out their website was that there were some beers here that had an emphasis on fruit as a main ingredient. Two particularly stood out. One was a beer titled "Wisconsin Belgian Red", a beer with a pound of Door county Montmorency cherries in every bottle, lagered in oak tanks and balanced by Hallertau hops for a year. The other "Raspberry Tart" is a classic Framboise made in a similar manner.

New Glarus is not distributed very wildly, but somehow I needed to try these beers having read their descriptions and salivating. It didn't hurt that both beers were also highly award winning, and also quite coveted by beer fans. Long story short I was able to acquire the two products, and also get a bottle of Unplugged Enigma, which is as a sour brown ale not unlike a fantastic Flanders Oud Bruin. I am very grateful for getting it since it is no longer being brewed. In short it was amazing.

Below is both a review of the Belgian Red and the Raspberry Tart. Make sure you make an effort some day to try these fantastic brews if you can. Cheers!

Raspberry Tart

Wisconsin Belgian Red

Understanding what you like, not all well aged and crafted works all the time

2011-09-27T22:20:00.000-04:00

In my times imbibing it has been important to know what you like and should pursue, and for the most part what items just don't work for you. With that being said it is probably a good time at this point in my writing as you are gazing at a logo near to my left, that I should mention I don't gravitate towards scotch whisky to imbibie on.

Sure, if you saw my long ago posting of the Johnnie Walker event, it was a good romp and one I enjoyed. Regardless, I don't seek out scotch often, I appreciate it for what it is, but an opportunity arose and when it comes to good drink I am always up for new experiences. Cedar Crossing Tavern in nearby Takoma Park Maryland was offering a tasting at their bar for anyone wanting to try a 27 year old Highland Park Scotch that was aged and bottled for a private party. I never would have bothered with this, except the suggestion came from my wife, and if there is any surprise that gets to me more than anything, it is when my wife wants me to go out drinking with her. Such invitations come around the frequency of the word "never" or "if at all".

Ah you my good woman of fine deed, I shall take you upon your offer of this! I said without hesitation. We made our plans and set to try this at the bar for a taste, and if we so desired to buy a bottle if we wanted.

I went in with some sort of anticipation, but the mood turned a little sour as the rain kept coming in. It seemed like it never stopped and the rolling gray for the past two weeks seemed to be a good presence that wouldn't give up. I sat at the bar, I was ready to take pictures, I was ready to make tasting notes. But somewhere in the back of my mind I just couldn't get motivated. I would have perhaps liked to take a picture for your perspective, but honestly you weren't missing anything in that. What was really missing was desire, instead of just the pursuit of something aged, highly cultivated and crafted, and perhaps really obscure.

As my wife arrived we ordered. The bartender pulled out two small Cognac snifters not unlike the ones I used to use. I say "use to" here because I have discovered what a Glencairn glass really does to a good whisk(e)y. In my thoughts I was thinking I should have brought mine, but going to a simple establishment as this, which had some happy hour folks in, and lots of swinging conversation, it did not make a good environment for tasting, or perhaps the rude stares I might get from patrons wondering, who does this guy think he is?? I sat my pen down, and just went for the tasting and figured I could go from memory later, and in hindsight it was the right decision.

In the end, long story short, I was put forth with a very aged scotch that felt wet. The nose probably couldn't get too descriptive mostly to the probably too tapered cognac glass highlighting the alcohol, but there was the typical peat and lots of wood, some faint cigar tobacco managed to come out. The palate felt thin, there was a strange sense of caramel not unlike a good bourbon but then the grass hit, and suddenly the finish lingered and felt like ashes from a cigarette tray. And it lingered loooooonnnnnggggg. It was still enjoyable but this did not by any means make me a bigger scotch fan.

I put my glass down, turned to my wife nonchalantly and said, "So what do you think?" since after all this was her idea. "It's really strong" she sort of grimaced, to which I sort of replied yeah well that might be because it's whisky... go figure. I kind of took a devilish grin, but she went with the anticipation of getting to try something without spending money on a bottle she may not have cared for. She has found good drink this way quite often, where as I have plenty of unopened bottles lying around my house to drive her crazy.

In the end, we had our tasting and left. I walked away sort of ambivalent thinking this didn't make me any more knowledgeable or crave scotch more. I did not mind Johnnie Walker Blue and Green (my wife is a fan of the green), but I was not getting in on the scotch train ride this time.

I don't know if another scotch tasting is in my midst anytime soon, but it's important to know going in what you enjoy imbibing and what sort of leaves you unimpressed regardless how aged or obscure a drink might be. I put my glass down thinking about a scotch fan who could have come in with a Glencairn and sat in a corner to really enjoy this in some comfort on a gray night that would warm themselves up. Sorry to say that person was unfortunately not me.

Wesvleteren arrives a chance to taste beer greatness?

2011-09-15T23:15:00.000-04:00

In the times I have spent imbibing, and specificaly drinking beer, there were many great brews that I came across. Going down the malt and hops road takes you on lots of interesting twists and turns, some places near, some far, and with that come many tales of greatness. There isn't a day that goes by that I hear someone usually raving about a beer, claiming it to be the greatest thing ever since sliced bread. Often times the beer is not where I am, it's from a brewery in some other part of country, and/or it has a limited release that is gobbled up with a low production. In many ways the hype of it increases the desire among many beer fans to want it even more. The beer is hard to get, and the rarer it is the demand starts increasing. The stories get bigger, the raves keep continuing. In the end it's like a snake eating iteslf into a vicious repeating cycle. The beer in the end, becomes in a sort of way.. a myth of epic proportions, one where it's great tastes seems hard or impossible to believe. In many ways the beer almost fits the mantra of, it must be good, because it's rare.

There are a few breweries in the world who have beers that fall into this category. There is one though that every beer fan finds out about and it basicaly seems to fit into a special category that no other brewery can classify. The brewery is simply known as Sint-Sixtusabdij van Westvleteren in Belgium, or as many refer to as just Westvleteren. This is a brewery run by trappist monks who have been making their beers since 1838. They only make three beers currently, each one placed in a very simple brown non descript bottle. The only way to differentiate each one is by the breweries distinct cap on top containing the brewery's coat of arms. A green cap is for their blonde ale, blue for a dubbel style refered to as simply "8", and one of their most coveted a yellow capped bottle containing a Belgian quadrupel style known as "12". The "12" or "Westy 12" as some refer to, has been written about not just by beer fans but also other well known beer writers. Many have refered to it as "the best beer in the world".

The fascination with Westvleteren is nothing new having been talked and coveted about for so long. In many ways the beers take on the great mythical proportions coupled with images of an old monastery monks, sitting around in robes making beer from their secret traditions. The reality is they are a solid brewery operation, and don't walk around in robes all the time, but take great pride in what they make. There is one unique issue that makes their beers coveted as well and herein lies the interesting character. Westvleteren beers are only sold in one place, the brewery itself and a cafe they own in Westvleteren Belgium. They are not even sold elsewhere in the country of Belgium (well technicaly read more below). The fact they have been written about as the greatest and also have an idilyc history with extremely limited distribution (the monks will only produce enough beer to support their monastery) makes them very special.

At some point every beer lover wants to have these beers, but how?

The result is with the demand many of the beers a "gray" market has appeared. Demand for these beers all over the world, has created opportunities for people to purchase them and resell them, many times for large amounts of money, very much against the monks wishes. The bottles within the local area aren't that expensive but have often been resold through other distributors for much more in ways that makes you wonder if it's really worth it. If you live in America like I do, getting the chance to try these beers requires some leg work and also some introspection. You can either spend the time to actually fly over and visit, or perhaps spend less money by finding them possibly through a distributor who bought some bottles, but is a small bottle to pay online from some distributor you don't know exactly worth it? The other angle though which most beer fans do though, is trading with other beer fans to get them.

Acquiring these three beers for me was quite an interesting journey. In many ways there has been criticism on both sides of the debate about Westvleteren beers. One is the obvious side of the monks who express succinctly for their beers to NOT be resold. The second is the side and criticism of the monks to make more beer to stop the heightened demand and prices thus making them more available and affordable. It's an interesting debate with no clear winners.

In the end, I've had many trips to Europe, but one right now is not in the cards anytime soon. Finding another beer fan, we exchanged some goodies and I have now my chance to try all three of these beers. The best thing was sharing appreciation of good beer with someone, instead of just handing over cash to someone who might have alterior motives and could care less about good drink.

Below are my thoughts on all of them first starting with the Blonde Ale. I had since purchased a chalice to hold these brews to see them in all their glory.

It was a long journey to get to this point in my imbibing life, a road that takes you many places and certainly ones that make it all worth it. Another road I hope to do someday, is to get back to Belgium not just to have this beer again, but to also return the bottles and say thanks. My imbibing thoughts are posted below. Cheers to you all!

Review of Westvleteren Blonde Ale

Review of Westvleteren "8"

Review of Westvleteren "12"

Beer that smells like my cat's litter box? Surely you jest!

2011-09-11T23:20:00.002-04:00

So I was pursuing my regular beer imbibing frolic, when I had discovered a unique bottle on the shelf deciding on what to purchase next, when a title sprang forth from a rather dull diamond looking label that I could not ignore. On that label simply stated the words written in phonetic jocular connotation as to not arouse suspicion but almost made so the brewers could have a good laugh. On that label was titled the words "Katz Pis".

Now right away I knew what this was about and thought it was pretty funny, but also knew that it would be a good opportunity to review it being a beer fan, and also a cat owner.

You see, the label refers to a bottle of cat piss, or more likely the idea that the beer will smell/taste like a litter box of your feline persuasion. Sometimes I thought for sure there might be a brewer at the place named "Katz" and this is his addition to glory but let's not go there...

The reality is that in the beer world, there are certain hops that will give of an aroma that many people will identify as urine. Or specifically a strong ammonia that smells like cat piss. Hence the name of this beer which is a single brewed hop beer of the Nelson Sauvign variety. The idea of a urine smelling drink is not knew, it's also particular common among some people who get a cat urine scent off of certain wines, particularly in my opinion, certain varieties of German Riesling's and Gewurztraminer and sometimes Sauvignon Blancs.

For me, I own two cats, and even before sharing their spaces I was more than aware of what cat pee smells like. I can honestly say I have never smelled a wine or a beer that smells like cat piss.

However, I went into trying this beer out hoping to find something interesting. What I got was something I truly did not expect. For more, watch the video review below.

Beer and Champagne, one great imbibing way to enjoy anew

2011-08-23T23:18:00.007-04:00

In the realm of imbibing we often think of Champagne or champagne like drinks (referred to as sparkling wine) as a way to celebrate. However, there was one version of bubbly I was not familiar with but after now being acquainted, I would love to try more of. That drink, is called Bière de Champagne, or Bière Brut, or simply put Beer Champagne.

Like Champagne, Bière Brut follows the method of methode de champenoise, but follows the beer styles usually of well.. whatever the beer maker wants. These two are traditionally Belgian and definitely bring Belgian Pale Ale styles to the table mixed with Champagne like great taste. This was also an occasion to celebrate, but bubbly doesn't have to be just for celebrating, there is no excuse to just drink bubbly on any moment that arrives.

I went and reviewed and checked these both out, having moved into my new home. It was without question, a blast. Watch the video to find out more.

Cheers!

Hitting a brief imbibing run while in Maine, brings a lot of fun, and a big lift to the spirit

2011-07-24T17:05:00.021-04:00

One thing about being on vacation is about relaxing. Nothing spells relaxing than having a nice good drink. I had been driving up to Maine from DC hitting a few beer places such as Portsmouth Brewery along the way, but a lazy Sunday provided an opportunity that was unexpected, having settled in and gotten comfortable with the in-laws.

Spending time with extended family, we went on a little farm tour for eating and drinking. Not giving a care in the world, sitting down in the back seat, I was allowed to let my mind just wander and think back as to what we would see and more importantly taste. Here I was truly not in the drivers seat, I was truly a lazy spectator with no expectations. Luckily I was going to find myself surprised.

Our first stop was Savage Oakes winery in Union Maine. As the list of tasting items was provided some items looked interesting and expected.

I get very suspicious of many small wineries, particularly ones that focus on fruit production and addition with their wines. For the most part it's catering to a different area, and the wine is usually not something I care for. Some of this was here, but not entirely.

The first wine I tasted though was George River, a sweet off-dry white made from Cayuga grapes. I expected typical sweetness, but also a sense of just bubblegum candy. What I got was anything but. My nose was immediately transported to sweet Rieslings and Gewürztraminer like style. Bursting with ripe sweet melon, but not cloying or sticky, even a body like a simple Pinot Grigio made for one enjoyable first sip, and quaff.

I'll cut to the chase. It was the best wine they offered for tasting. I turned to my wife and said this one is really good what do you think and she loved it even more. I am not much of a white wine sweet drinker but this one was plenty good enough for me, fancying my Alsacian Reisling and German Gweurz palate. Mentioning it to the store staff what I felt they said it was their best seller.

So much for not getting a good imbibe drink while in an obscure place. But like they say, but wait there's more.

My always entertaining hosts though were not done. There was another winery we were going to go to, but more importantly... they made spirits. It was here where I found a real treasure.

Sweetgrass Farm Winery and Distillery is located in Union Maine as well, not too far from where we were.

As the tasting list was provided, you could have 6 items, and I quickly dove into the four spirits which were Back River Gin, Cranberry Gin, Three Crow Rum, and Apple Brandy.

Back River Gin is London Dry in style but is added with the one ingredient essential to Maine and it's identity, that being Maine blueberries. Juniper in smell, with a fruity finish this was a real neat tasting gin. Dry with a real sharp finish, then finishing with a unique fruityness.

Cranberry gin was much like it's older Back River brother. Orange like and off pink in color, the cranberry gin had similar hallmarks but had an interesting mild carbonation feel, and had a finish tasting like very tight fizzy Italian orange soda.

The apple brandy I was quite curious about having enjoyed Tom's Foolery from Ohio. It did not disappoint either, taking a cue from a simple Calvados. Butter and cinnamon on the nose, light textured bringing the same notes from the nose to the palate.

All was going fine and well but there was one item here that stood out high and mighty and stories tall above the rest.

Described by the distillery, Three Crow Rum is a distilled rum made with top grade cane molasses fermented and distilled during the cold Maine winter for ultra smooth rum, aged in bourbon barrels.

First nose on this is an incredibly toasty brown sugar, literally browned and not burnt. The bouquet is complemented nonetheless with so much going on, hints of caramel, a huge nose of butter and butterscotch in particular and maple sugar, and buttered toasted whole wheat bread.

While the palate seemed a little thin, all the great notes on the nose come through in the taste not to be missed with so much variation, and an incredible buttery oak sensation on the finish.

I quickly snatched up two bottles of this, and if I knew I wasn't going to be bringing back many bottles of beer, I probably would have bought tonnes of this stuff. Nevertheless, gin, rum, and wine were all bought along a good event called Maine open farm days. I just wish more farmers could grow stuff like this more often. ;)

To see more check out my review below.

Return to Knob Creek brings joy, just bring out the pancakes!

2011-07-06T22:52:00.008-04:00

It has been awhile since I made a recent blog posting. My life has been turned upside down with selling my house, and in the process of temporary living and waiting to close on a new place.

In the meantime, I never forgot bourbon, more so... I never forgot the taste of Knob Creek, it's spicy finish it seemed, now what could better than going back and trying it with a Glencairn glass?. During my time I may not have been as active in drinking and tasting bourbon, but I wasn't one to slow down and read about what was going on.

Some time ago, I found out that Knob Creek released a special edition, in fact simply a "Single Barrel Reserve". Different from small batch for the obvious, but it was also higher proof. Having tasted it, the first thing with it's incredibly butter texture and hints of sweetness and giant honey bent my mind screamed only... "I want pancakes!!!".

A comparison had to be made. Bourbon had to be tasted. Drink and imbibing had to be consumed. Time was short, life is hard, everybody dies... not everybody lives. Having enjoyed regular Knob Creek, it was time to partake in this special edition. To see how it turned out watch the video below.

Cheers! and Enjoy!

Trip down memory lane with cocktail master Dale DeGroff

2011-05-16T22:30:00.012-04:00

Catching up again with events at the Museum of the American Cocktail, I discovered there was a special guest coming in to town that needs really no introduction.

In the history of cocktails, bartending, and drinking in America, there are a select few who managed to cultivate a craft when nobody was caring. They found and placed themselves in historic places (New York, New Orleans) either by choice or perhaps dumb luck, and worked in some famous locales. As the cocktail renaissance flourished and grew anew, they became the speakers and purveyors that all would begin to look up to. One such person I had the chance with others to meet was Dale DeGroff, former bartender of the Rainbow room in New York City, or as he simply said "I was just a bartender who got lucky."

Sitting in a small theater (the Warehouse theater to be precise) with an audience of about 30-45 intent listeners, Dale (or as he is known as "King Cocktail" ) spoke whimsically about America's past drinking glory, and then focused on his young days in New York City. As he mentioned stories of working in the famous Rainbow room, to all the NY gossip and shenanigans bartenders ran across, you would be riveted to a sense of place and pride. When you listen to Dale you realize people like this aren't just whimsical folk who have a passion, they are literally walking history books. Without question, Dale is what I call a living institution.

While watching Dale sip on his 4th 5th or I lost count of how much Cognac he was imbibing, we were presented with some cocktails and small snacks to enjoy courtesy of our hosts the staff at DC's The Passenger.

If there is ever a good excuse to know and learn about the history of cocktails, listening to Dale is a truly can't miss experience.

I strongly suggest that if you are a fan of true imbibing, and the care, history, passion that goes into good drink (cocktails for sure!) then you owe it to yourself to be treated to this mans stories.

Dale DeGroff has many accolades, most notably a 2009 James Beard award for Outstanding Wine & Spirits Professional. Check out his books and seminars if you have a chance (and website too). Cheers!

Kentucky Derby day means only one thing for imbibing, MINT JULEP TIME!

2011-05-07T21:20:00.008-04:00

Today is the running of the 137th, 2011 Kentucky Derby. While thoughts may focus on things of big winnings, fancy hats and dress, or the sense of Kentucky pride, there is one thing that stands out as a tradition that every person should enjoy on this day. That tradition is to enjoy a mint julep cocktail.

To me a proper one is very simple to make, but it takes some preparation and some right tools to get the job done right.

First get a silver cup. You will need this to make your drink ice cold and refreshing. It doesn't get any better than this. Second use crushed ice to give your drink a frosty kick and feel. Third gently muddled your mint inside the cup without dangerously bruising it or making a salad, and finally pick a good bourbon you like.

It's really that simple. Enjoy bourbon whiskey on this day it is a great time to be doing it, and no cocktail is more fitting for such a time. To learn more watch the video below. Cheers!

American Wild Ale - Pucker up for a beer imbibing drink

2011-04-16T16:16:00.003-04:00

"This beer is sour!!" I exclaimed when my wife gave me a beer she had in Belgium called a "lambic" some time ago in my imbibing early days of yore. Beer can taste like this? I said to myself, and in reality it can. There are varying degrees of sour beers out there of different sour levels and style. There was interesting properties about them, tart, viscous, fruity, vinous... there was much to explore here.

After some time, my road lead back to the heartland of America and away from Belgium to discover a style of beer called "American Wild Ale".

An American Wild Ale is a beer style that contains wild yeast, usually Brettanomyces, Pediococcus or Lactobacillus, which makes the beers sour, "funky" and musty. These are quite interesting and unusal to others, but to me quite fascinating.

Two particular wild ales I wanted to get my hands on are made by Russian River Brewing in California, one called Consecration and the other Supplication. Both are aged in oak wine barrels that held Cabernet Sauvignon wine.

So how did this turn out? Feel free to check out the video review below.

Cheers!

Returning to Owen Roe and finding out about my a.. b.. c..

2011-04-06T18:31:00.013-04:00

I love wine, and that goes without saying when imbibing good drink. I could not imagine my life without it. However, back in my exploring days of wine I found myself diving into bold reds seeming to find either jammyness, complexity, smoke, big tannins leaving much white wine in the background who often didn't share these characteristics. Sure, I would find out I loved Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, or the varying degrees of Rieslings from Alsace, even simple Vinho Verde from Portugal was a hit for me. But there was always one varietal that I never seemed to enjoy and that was chardonnay. I felt I could appreciate a good one, but I never could get much into so many of the oaky or ridiculously thick and buttery sensation that I felt. I soon learned to adopt a phrase I heard that was an inside joke among wine drinkers. You could call yourself and abc wine drinker. This meant, "Oh I am an A.B.C. wine drinker, I'll drink anything!"

Anything
But
Chardonnay.

And so my wine appreciation of chardonnay stayed like this for most of my life, until I went to visit Owen Roe. Owen Roe had been on mind for many years after trying some I think 95 rated cabernet (wine is scored on a 100 point scale) at a tasting I was at. Simply put for me the wine just was one of the best things I ever had, it might as well have been off the frikkin chart. To this day, I still don't know what year or varietal it was an I still kick myself for not making a note to remember it.

While visiting Oregon and Owen Roe, I purchased a case and decided on two bottles of chardonnay, the Columbia Valley 2009, mostly just so I could have something for my wife. I was enjoying all the other reds I was having and I figured well, they couldn't possibly screw this up for the chardonnay. Luckily I was right, when I got home and opened up a bottle a few weeks later I was floored.

Luckily I still had a second bottle and it seemed like I had to talk about this one, I just couldn't let me experience of this wine slide. It is aged only 7 months in the barrel in which 14% of the barrels are new French oak, the rest are neutral. The wine is only for sale in the tasting room, and is not that expensive.

This wine had this wonderful balanced buttery spice, almost like ghee. Small hints of oak, and citrus lemon and lime. In the mouth low acid with a good body, wonderful tolerable lime juice that isn't bitter on the finish, and soft velvet tannins. My only complaint... my first bottle was better. The second I opened up many months later and I think it lost some of its edge but it was still great.

Personal score:

First bottle: 93
The bottle I reviewed below: 91?

Hard to say I don't normally score wine, and I am not an expert but I'll never forget this wine.

Cheers and thanks Owen. OH and more importantly if you've read this far, please tell me a fav chardonnay of yours for the abc crowd cause I want another one!

KBS and more bourbon beer barrel goodness

2011-03-24T22:13:00.007-04:00

In the realm of craft beer, barrel aged beers specifically from bourbon barrels seems to be all the rage. Many are made, much of them seasonal and come out with much anticipation. Sometimes though, a beer will be released with a limited production and high demand, but also touted by many as the best ever. Often the production of how that beer is made seems to give it more mystique, and one beer that seems to be wrapped up in it is from Founders, called Kentucky Breakfast Stout, or KBS for short.

KBS, is a 2 year aged imperial stout, made to rest in bourbon barrels. Besides the fact that it sits for 2 years, the brewery mentions that the beer is actually "cave aged", because the barrels are actually stored in an old abandoned gypsum mine. Does that make a difference? Does that impart a certain flavor? A sort of I dunno what? Regardless, whatever Founders is doing they are doing A) something right B) making some dam good beer while doing it.

Watch the video review to see more:

Cheers!

Frolicking through Flanders... not red this time but old brown!

2011-03-16T21:49:00.007-04:00

Enter, new imbibing territory. Some time ago while discovering the world of beer I learned mostly from my wife who spent some time in Belgium, that beers could actually be sour.

I thought, no you're joking right? Actually it was a big eye opening experience to hear of beers from Belgium that are called Lambics, Kriek, Gueuze and so forth. These beers while being varied in their own right are almost always some degree of sour, and filled with wild active yeast to impart a dramatic taste and flavor. Many of them feel like crisp champagne.

I was given a style recently made by a small American producer in Utah named Squatters Pub Brewery, who made a beer called 529 in the style known as Flanders Oud Bruin. This beer was a one time brewing offering. A brown Flanders style ale in the Flanders Red tradition it seemed, to take on perhaps an American flavor? With that I cracked open my first Oud Bruin, and imbibing pleasure commenced.

Watch below to fine more. Cheers!!

Wandering back in Maine... revisiting the imbibing beer trail

2011-03-05T12:28:00.004-05:00

Last Christmas, I was up in Maine and hit a beer store in Waterville called Jokas. My intention then was to buy some local craft beer, and to partake of a simple winter weekend on the off chance I'd get to sit down and have a beer. Turned out my trip to the beer store was even a smarter plan than I imagined since a giant blizzard rolled in and I was stuck inside with nothing to do but well.... drink... Good thing I was ready.

However, when I returned back home to DC I was left with a beer on my mind that I saw on the shelves there that I didn't buy while I was up there. It had a cute little simple smiley face, on a tiny bottle... and it looked and reached out to say to me... you sir... with my plain simple label do not ignore my bland surroundings... please come and drink me.. I remember glancing at its purple ink and thought.. this looks really interesting, but having coddled bottles of Cadillac Mountain, Dogfish and Sebago in my hands the bottle sat. But somehow I never forgot about it.

The beer I am referring to is an Amber Ale called Zoe from Maine Beer Company. When I got home I actually researched it a bit and found that it was actually very highly received, and thus started really kicking myself for not trying it while I was up in Maine. In the end... I acquired some, with some help of a trade. After that, I got into my Maine beer imbibing mode below.

To see how the imbibing went, check the video below.

CHEERS!

Acquiring one of the most desired American Doubles, Pliny the Elder and Double Trouble Founders imbibing fun!

2011-02-19T12:31:00.005-05:00

In beer land, there is an American Double IPA that many try to seek it out. It is available year round, but only available mostly in California. If you live like I do on the East coast, your chances of finding the beer on store shelves are slim to none.

The beer is called "Pliny the Elder" from Russian River brewery. It comes in a very non descriptive bottle with a basic red dot logo which doesn't seem to leave a lot to imagination. However, it is the contents inside that are what is really important.

I put Pliny in comparison with another favorite brewery of mine, Founders and tried Double Trouble side by side. To have even more fun with this tasting, I slept on this and awoke the next morning and cracked open both bottles at 10:00 AM with a very rested palate having nothing to eat or drink for at least 14 hours. How did this turn out? Well check out below.

CHEERS!

When 70 degrees hits in February It's time for some light and crisp imbibing Pilsner joy

2011-02-19T10:48:00.006-05:00

We got some stupidly warm days all of a sudden here in my area. When that happens my mind turns to things of light air, crisp summer days.. and great things to imbibe on such as a great light beer. Nothing satisfies like a Pilsner to hit the spot.

I had some German style pilsner lying around. One is from Germany the other is an American made beer out of Pennsylvania called Victory Prima Pils. Both of these beers while being of the same style are VERY different from each other in taste and feel, but they would be just the perfect thing to imbibe on a warm summer day.

In my latest video I pair these two in a taste test for great tasting goodness. To see how it went, watch the video below.

CHEERS!!!

Finally a glass made for tasting whiskey, and how to christen it properly. Whistlepig does the trick!

2011-02-13T17:26:00.010-05:00

As I began tasting whiskey I sort of went with what I could get on hand to make it an enjoyable experience. I needed some small glasses with a little taper, and found some simple standard cognac/brandy snifters. They were inexpensive, and I could buy a few knowing that if I ever broke one I wouldn't shed a tear. As time went on and I ran around looking at whiskey, it was something I read about when tasting brandy that made me think I might be missing out on the tasting experience because of my glassware. The person said "When evaluating brandy never use a snifter, use a tulip glass". What??!? I thought.. you mean these so called glasses called "cognac/brandy" glasses should NEVER be used for as there name says... "brandy"?

Well it made me think if whiskey was the same. Certainly two revered products should be capable of a good glass right? So I was talking about my rye experience online with some very knowledgeable people on StraightBourbon.com, and on a lark someone pointed me to a Canadian Whiskey aficionado, and there stood in his hand on his webpage... something I hadn't seen before that was to me... very unique. What was that thing?! I asked myself.. and before I knew it I discovered he had in his hand a glass SPECIFICALLY for tasting WHISK(E)Y which is called a "Glencairn".

Long story short, I bought four of them finding a good online deal I think. Many times a single Glencairn glass can be a little pricey (not too bad), but also I would be peeved if I broke one of these (the glass is a little fragile). I am very excited to try the four glasses out on my next bourbon tasting, but I figured it made sense to evaluate it with something good. I used the glass while hunkering down and evaluating a bottle of Whistlepig rye whiskey, a 10 year aged straight rye whiskey made in Canada and bottled in Vermont.

The glass made some interesting surprises for me. To see how, take a look below at the video. Cheers!

A gin fizz and an egg are much fun to have together

2011-02-13T10:32:00.004-05:00

When I got into making cocktails, I always enjoyed using egg white and making frothy drinks. Unfortunately the by product of an egg white, is of course the egg yolk. I would stare at the white blob and say to myself, "Ok.. so what do I do with this now?" Well the reality is you can still use it in a cocktail, and a good way to show off an egg in a cocktail, is to make a fizz.

A fizz is a cocktail that has a standard base, mostly gin and lemon and some type of sweetener (simple syrup) with soda water. However, when you add an egg you can have three different types of fizzes. Adding egg white to a basic fizz makes a silver fizz, add only the yolk, and it's a golden fizz. If you add the entire egg you get a royal fizz. This is just a real basic fizz, and there are THOUSANDS of fizz recipes adding many ingredients. You can really go nuts with this type of cocktail in varying it.

This is actually a refreshing, but sometimes messy drink. It's fun to make a lot of froth and foam and feels like a good thing to have in the summer on a hot day. Watch below to see how to make one.

Amber waves of grain, a good amber ale beer is great to imbibe on

2011-02-10T20:56:00.006-05:00

Amber Ales seem to be an after thought to me in the beer realm, but after tasting 3 that were all very different (one that sort of sells itself as an Imperial Amber and feels more like an IPA), there might be more to this style than I imagined.

The three beers I pulled out were, Full Sail's Amber, Troegs HopBack, and Troegs Nugget Nectar. Placing HopBack and Nugget Nectar side by side in this tasting just seemed to make sense. They are both similar and sort of an evolution from one (HopBack) to the next (Nugget Nectar).

Full Sail was very different from both these, and it was beer that really grew on me the more I drank it.

To see more of what I thought, watch the video review below. Cheers!

Imbibing Orval and understanding how a proper glass makes a beer shine

2011-02-05T23:24:00.004-05:00

Sometime ago I was at a Belgian beer tasting hosted by Belgium native Bart Vandaele from Belga Cafe and learned a very important lesson. The proper glass for a beer from Belgium makes a big difference in your tasting experience. So much so that of the thousands of beers you could have from breweries each glass is unique.

I remembered this and when setting out to make my latest tasting I realized I never had an Orval glass to compare against my Leffe Blonde. So I decided to wait, and got one in the mail. That time was well spent and made a huge difference and impression on me in tasting this unique beer.

It's kind of hard to sometimes justify having lots of glassware, but it truly does make all the difference. To understand why, watch the review below of Orval and Leffe Blonde.

Hefeweizen beer battle, or how I like to butcher the German language.

2011-01-29T10:25:00.005-05:00

Hefeweizen. It seems to be one of those beers that has been sort of bastardized of late. People get a real skinny glass and throw a lemon in and that's it. Is there more to this than that? Turns out there is. First off... skip the lemon.

I can say that this isn't my favorite style of beer, but if you want to have a good one try one of the two I had here. Weihenstephaner is a product from Germany that claims to be the oldest brewery in the world. Reading the bottles on these was enough to make my head spin as I probably butchered the pronunciation of all the German language I could.

For comparisons I grabbed also a bottle of Edel-Weisse Mein Grunes from Scheneider & Sohn a green grenade sporting a USDA organic seal.

Turns out there was much imbibing joy to be had. These definitely feel like summer beers, so while there is loads of snow outside it felt hard to get into character. But for the price point for these beers, they just can't be beat.

Check them out. CHEERS!

American Straight Rye Whiskey to the RESCUE! Manhattan cocktail joy and drink

2011-01-28T15:59:00.009-05:00

In the realm of whiskey I was always confused about what "Rye" whiskey was. I grew up in Canada and it seemed like virtually all Canadian whiskeys were just referred to as rye whiskey. The funny thing is, everyone I knew and grew up with never drank it, the only people who did were just really old, and they certainly weren't my parents. It seemed everybody just drank beer, the typical macro stuff and not any craft beer cause the movement in those days wasn't as big as it is now.

When I got into bourbon, I started learning just about whiskey in general, and many bourbon fans also enjoy rye whiskey too. However, I soon learned that there was a distinction to what Americans call rye and what Canadians call rye. There are many distinct differences, but not to say that one is superior over the other all the time.

One of the most obvious things is that American rye whiskey has to contain a mash bill that is at least 51% Rye. There is no such stipulation or law for this in Canada for rye whiskeys. Some Canadian whiskeys hardly even contain any rye at all.

I was also realizing that many people like Rye in their Manhattans which is easily a favorite cocktail of mine. I normally have it with bourbon being such a fan, but as I started hearing people talk about all these great American ryes, I felt like I was missing out on something special.

So I grabbed three straight American rye whiskeys to compare against, and more importantly try them all in a tasting. The results and imbibing joy are all below.

Cheers!

Scratch another off the list, Imbibe Hour crashes DC's Churchkey for the Tröegs scratch night and nugget nectar goodness.

2011-01-25T20:44:00.019-05:00

How do I love thine beer... for let me count thy ways... For imbibing in DC special events make it more fun!

I headed down to one of DCs prominent beer bars called Churchkey, in nearby Logan circle as part of a special Tröegs Scratch night tasting.

Tröegs brewery is located in Harrisburg Pennsylvania, and they were offering a good promotion in DC at Churchkey to showcase their "scratch" series beers of playful American IPAs. It was a special treat because most of these on tap don't make it outside of Pennsylvania, but also because they were offering something else. They were also offering their famous Nugget Nectar beer from a firkin cask. IMBIBE HOUR TO THE RESCUE!!! I enjoy their doppelbock as well, and it seemed like a perfect excuse to go have some more Tröegs!

I first heard about the event through BeerAdvocate.com, a sight where I find much information on beers, and a place I stash all my beer reviews. The site is stupidly addictive, almost like Facebook but much more mature and organized. I never understood why I never got into it years ago when I first signed up being such an imbibing purist.

I had made arrangements to make sure I was going to be ready for this. I contacted the manager asking if it was okay to write about the event, take pictures... etc.. They were more than happy to oblige. I was told however that the beer wouldn't be kicked in until 6 PM so that staff could partake of some before hand. So I arrived about 15 minutes early and I sat at the bar at one of the few seats I could find. I was asked if I wanted anything and I said.. "Well.. I am just waiting until 6 for the Tröegs stuff... I heard you got a firkin of Nugget, true?" The server said "we sure do!" "Well guess I am waiting!" as I sat there twiddling my thumbs at the bar, not trying to suly myself and drink something amongst the 40 offerings on tap. Those minutes seemed to go by... real... sllooooowllllyy....

10 minutes to six the server seemed to relent and came over and said... well you want one? I hesitated... took the night in... and paused....

"Yeah sure!", HA he cracked before I did!

Nugget Nectar is another showcase and seasonal beer that lots of people get to go goo goo gaga over. It's pictured up in the left there next to Scratch #37 and #38. The brewery describes the color as straw/orange, but out of the cask it is an obvious copper/brown.

That wasn't the only thing though, I was all set on reviewing and tasting all these beers but sometimes Churchkey is a bit crowded but also a bit dark inside to judge a brews appearance. I got a fairly good spot, not the most optimal but at least one good place to review the beers. Unfortunately I noticed I was provided snifters. Snifters??? Is this not an American Ipa? What's going on here? In the end it turned out it was because I was only given samples. Man I wanted PINTS baby!

Some things were also not helpful. A patron next to me got his flatbread order, and for the next 4 minutes after it arrived all I could smell was salt and ham prosciutto. I had luckily got the first beers nose before this, but I was almost ready to call quits and give up thinking the environment wasn't going to be conducive. Luckily things settled down and it all came in after a short while.

I flagged down a server as I was cleansing my palate with some bread crust, a must I find sometimes when going between drinks to soak up other flavors and neutralize my palate. The bar on a Tuesday was surprisingly stupid busy. "Hey", I said, "can't you serve pints of this?" I asked. The congenial server apologized and didn't realized I wanted to nestle in on 2 pints at a time but that was okay. In retrospect it made the night a bit easier, and my liver was probably ready to jump for joy at getting a break. He actually came back with a pint of Nugget Nectar and said "Here ... this one's on me." WELL I'll take that for sure! and that joy is framed above.

I had much to say about these beers. They were all decent, some considerably better than others, and there were ones to me that I preferred even though many didn't fit the classic American IPA style. It was a good atmosphere and I got to sit next to another guy who wasn't that big of a beer drinker, but had certainly been to many pubs in England and felt right at home. I told him to grab the cask Nugget Nectar since so many people were ready to kill each other to get at it, which he jumped on. Long story short, the nugget nectar is a solid brew out of the cask, but it's personally not something that I think I would crave again even after having two of them that night. It is without question a beer everyone should try!

The night was nearly over when of course I remembered they were giving out glassware. "Hey!" I inquired, "you got glasses?!" I asked, and before I knew it, one showed up and then another server came by and said... why don't you take another. So there I had it... two Nugget Nectar pints to take home for keepsakes. Seems like the perfect excuse now... to get some Nugget out of the bottle and try some!

All in all... for Tröegs and Churchkey, it was a night of win, just like always. If you want to get a better idea of what I thought of these beers, see my reviews on BeerAdvocate.com here (this link).

Cheers to you all, and have some good brew!

American Strong Ale Battle, more big beers for big fun

2011-01-23T10:43:00.004-05:00

In the realm of beer, one category seems to defy explanation and that is the American Strong Ale. An American strong ale is sort of what its namesake implies, a particularly strong Ale like beer. This has become a sort of go to catch all category for craft brews that are high in ABV. It basically gives brewers a big blank template to essentially go crazy, many of the beers sometimes are stored in oak barrels, or they have specific ingredients that you wouldn't normally find.

For todays imbibing joy I brought out three heavweights to compare. The beers imbibed on were from Stone Brewery in San Diego Double Bastard, Great Lakes Nosferatu, and Lagunitas Brown Shugga, a strong ale with a large amount of brown sugar added. The results were some very good imbibing joy.

Cheers!

Slamming and chasing beer, and trying to understand the sheep mentality.

2011-01-17T16:35:00.008-05:00

I was looking for some beer of late to imbibe on and spending some time on BeerAdvocate.com as I usually do, just to get ideas of what was going on in the halls of beerdom (my reviews are under the username "smakawhat" in case you are curious). One day there was a thread titled Hopslam in DC in the Atlantic forum. I was confused by this, was this about getting beer and throwing/slamming them into townhouses in upper NW? or was this something else entirely? Well reading more it was obvious someone was wondering about the availability of a beer called HopSlam from Bell's brewery a seasonal release from Comstock Michigan and when/where to get it in DC.

HopSlam is an American Double Imperial Pale Ale or what many people refer to as DIPAs, big on hops and usually big on abv. Many people who are a fan of this style are refered to as "hopheads". Soon reading a couple messages it became obvious that this beer has a bit of a "cult" following, and people were posting messages about where is this? When is it coming? And then shortly afterwords with our hero checking and finding it quite often in the DC area, discovering the ridiculous price for this six pack of beer averaging about $23 dollars (our hero paid $25).

Well I am always up for trying something that people are raving about, but as a working man and having a cellar growing with beer that is hard to contain, forking over that much money for another 6 beers makes me start to wonder about my sanity.

It also poses a dilemma for me. When is a beer too much money? For some people this is an easy question, they might live in an area of low choice and availability, but with a lower standard of living and smaller prices (unlike DC). I had to pinch myself when I drove out this weekend to rural VA, pulled up some craft beer on tap (that was very good by the way) and only paying $4 bucks for it.

The thing about beer, is that ever since the craft movement began and took off, we've now got beers that are jumping up in price because of demand. When I picked up the hopslam beer I actually didn't see it on the shelves where I normally go. I asked someone who worked there if they had it, to which they replied "Oh yeah of course we got some in yesterday, we only allow one pack per customer, you just have to ask for it." The young woman who normally works in the wine section then went behind a door, and I felt like I was doing an illegal clandestine transaction... jesus I am just buying beer.

The young woman came back with a pack, and I remarked about the oddness about this. There was though a reason for this behavior. She told me, "people who come here know the beer and will ask for it, then we will go get it for them but limit the amount." Then she remarked one thing to me which sort of made wonder about the feelings about the human race. She then said that if they put all of the packs out someone will come in and buy ALL OF IT.

I don't know about you, but I love drink, and beer, but I particularly look at beer, even craft beer, as a great emancipator of the human condition. Everyone drinks beer (or at least I think they should drink good beer), and it belongs to everyone. It levels the playing field, you get together with people shell out a few small bucks and have camaraderie and anyone can join. It's communal, to some degree blue collar and should be good but also free of thoughts about superiority. When you jack up the price suddenly it makes me think you have to belong to some elitist super club such as trying to buy 97+ point rated wines...

So I had a lot of mixed emotions about taking this green pack home with me, and also forking over alot of money for another DIPA from Three Floyds Brewery in Munster Indiana for comparison. I've heard a lot about Three Floyds, and I actually almost like them just for their intricate bottle art alone. So once again I forked the wallet over and bought some Dreadnaught to taste along side Hopslam.

The results of how this went are all below: Cheers!

Big Beer is Big fun, and full of imbibing win.

2011-01-15T09:40:00.009-05:00

Several years ago when I arrived in DC I would often be in one of my favorite beer stores to pick up goodies during the December holidays. When one goes to the liquor store during these times, you find the usual things, lots of champagne (or some other sparkling wine), gift packs, glassware, but one time amongst all the celebratory stuff I saw in the beer section very large bottles. "Hey they stuck a bottle of champagne in the beer section by mistake what are they doing?" I though to myself. Then I looked closer and saw that this wasn't a mistake... these big bottles had familiar labels and were full of beer!

For many years I put off buying these items, always telling myself.. yeah I am gonna have to get one of these. Years would pass (and I mean MANY!), I would see the bottles in the stores and talk myself out of them every time. Finally I had to break down and do this and find an excuse to buy one of these (cause it would be hard to justify drinking this all to myself), and called up some friends and invited them over for a poker night.

The stage was set, and with much imbibing joy, we cracked this sucker open. This is a jeroboam sized bottle of Augustijn Blonde Ale a style of Belgian Pale Ale. I purchased it in late December, kept it in my cold basement garage and cracked it open about 4 weeks later. Storing these things is an issue because you want to serve and keep this at a good temperature. I have some tips if you are thinking about having one of these large bottles:

1) Make sure you have a big enough place that is perfect for cold/cool storage

The beer recommends 8°C (That's 46.4°F for us Americans) and that "seemed" to be what my unheated basement in DC would do on a typical winter day. This is also why I drink a lot of beer during this time, because I have plenty of room down there, it's dark, and it stays perfectly cool. However, this does not work for long term cellaring of bottles, because a typical temperature in July in my basement is about 120°F!! I did get concerned at one point cause we had some very odd days in December where the temperatures outside even got into the high 50s! but it stored and kept well. Luckily temperature changes didn't vary much, which always has me concerned cause I am convinced that really ruins beer fast (especially Belgian style made beers). Make sure you have enough room.

2) Put it in that dark cool place and DON'T MOVE IT AROUND, LEAVE IT until you are ready to serve it.

3) Opening

Get help... no what I mean is you can do this yourself but have someone ELSE around to probably hold your glassware. Two hands with everything always so another body is always good. Besides you're sharing this! Have kitchen towels ready, and a place to set the bottle DOWN. Now as for opening, as I've mentioned with corks... ideally TWIST THE BOTTLE while holding the cork to loosen it. Once you've done that then slowly with your thumbs go around the edges gently pushing the cork. DO NOT PUSH HARD OR YOU WILL BREAK THE CORK. Eventually the cork will start to give, the best feeling is when you feel the cork move on its own that way you can have time to be ready when it pops.

4) Aim

Seriously this is a no brainer.. but AIM away FROM YOURSELF. Have an idea of where the cork is going to go before you even begin opening, a big open ceiling is good. Don't aim in a room with lots of windows, lights etc... and of course DON'T AIM FOR YOUR FACE looking at the cork to see what is going on.

5) On pop

Once the bottle opens PUT IT DOWN IMMEDIATELY because it should gush and you will get your hands wet. If you hold it while it is gushing you will get your hands wet and there's a VERY good chance you will DROP IT which means... spilling it, or worse... breaking it.

And finally my most important tip for this..

6) HAVE FUN!! Share this with someone who appreciates good drink.

That's about it... to see how this drink and review went, check out the video below.

An evening in Roma, one drink at a time thanks to the Museum of the American Cocktail

2011-01-13T23:52:00.026-05:00

One of the great things about living in DC is that there is always a good excuse to go out imbibing. One of the perfect ways to do it, is to sign up for seminars with the Museum of the American Cocktail. The museum (MOAC), recently offered a very tantalizing opportunity I could not ignore, an introduction to Italian digestif and aperitif liqueurs/bitters and such and the cocktails you could use with them. Here anyone could come and understand the simple basics of all those odd sounding bottles that you see in the liquor store with weird names you probably have a hard time pronouncing. You could try their contents in the seminar (in a cocktail) without feeling embarrassed to buy a bottle that has the word "Aperol" on it, thinking that you're suppose to scrub your floors with it instead. (disclaimer don't buy it for that, drink it... trust me....)

The reality is these somewhat interesting sounding bottles have really great applications in some real simple drinks that anyone can make, and the seminar with the help of Gina Chersevani from PS7 you got to learn some basics and also how to make limoncello. (did I just quote wikipedia? for shame on me...)

Drinking digestifs, aperitifs and slugging down bottles of Vermouth seems to be a way of life in Italy. Much of that I read from Jason Wilson's book Boozehound as he pounced around the Italian countryside downing digestifs and bemoaning the lack of appreciation for these drinks in America. Cocktails in Italy are really not from the same mindset as they are in America, you just drink bitters and vermouth with a little bit of perhaps soda water and fruit, as common as grabbing a can of cola in the US. However, in America some of these ideas of drinking these spirits have crossed over here and been around for some time. Some things in life always translate well.

The evening first started off with a simple Bellini cocktail, but with a specific white peach puree from the Perfect Puree of Napa valley. Served in a champagne flute, it really did give a refreshing peach rind scent, and a feel of actually tasting peach fuzz. A Bellini is of course made with Prosecco, a type of Italian sparkling white wine. Next we moved to a very familiar cocktail which contains probably one of the easiest types of ingredients you could find and that is Campari, a glowing red/orange colored aperitivo.

Pictured on the left is a cocktail called the Americano (Campari, Vermouth, Soda water, lemon twist or orange wedge garnish). So far everything was familiar, and I was glancing around the room to see if anyone was going to notice the bitterness and perhaps wince a bit if they were not familiar with this drink. Campari is not really a strong alcohol drink it's ABV is only 25% (50 Proof), but just by itself it is quite bittersweet. In fact that was a familiar refrain from our host who was remarking that for some people (not all) that some of the things we would be tasting tonight you may not care for.

I'm actually a fan of these drinks but mostly in certain circumstances. I do associate them mostly with summer, and they are kind of lighter, but they are also really what their name sake implies.. they are drinks you have BEFORE or with a meal. A real great simple example is the grown up bolder brother of the Americano, a drink that has many variations called the Negroni. Equal parts gin, sweet red Italian vermouth, and Campari, it's a great palate cleanser and provides a good kick. Throw in some lemon peel/twist and you are good to go!

The Negroni is also a foundation for other cocktails mostly through the substitution of Campari. Take out the Campari... use green Chartreuse... and you have a Bijou a personal favorite of mine. Take out the Gin...keep the Campari... use a bourbon, and you have a drink I've never heard of called a Boulevardier. Bourbon? Did someone say bourbon! I have never actually heard of this drink and I currently have enough bourbon at home to make Kentucky embarrassed (or extremely proud). I think I am going to be making many Boulevardiers in the coming weeks... heck I am making one right now...

As my mind raced about which bourbon I should use first to go with this cocktail my concentration was broken as we were introduced to a guest bartender, Gina Chersevani. Dang it I am trying to think if Old Weller Antique or a more rye dominated bourbon would go with Campari! THIS IS IMPORTANT!! when suddenly a drink in a small plastic cup was placed in front of me which when that always happens, my mind suddenly calms down ... shuts up... and I say... oh hello lovely what do we have here?

It was quite obvious from it's large yellow color that this was none other than Limoncello a lemon style easy drinking liqueur. Limoncello is a real simple drink that is light, aromatic, and when made correctly, what I describe as lemon sunshine. This one was great. Upon tasting this I was asking myself how long has my bottle of Pallini in my freezer been sitting neglected and surrounded by frozen vegetables?

This however was not store purchased limoncello, this I soon discovered was homemade, and before I could think any faster a big giant tub was placed on our table which looked like a yellow aquarium, filled with yellow liquid and what appeared to be many dead Swedish yellow fish.

What it of course really was, as Gina explained, was the contents of how the limoncello was created. We were presented a recipe on how to make this ourselves, which in this form was lemon peel, steeped in vodka, and sometimes sweetened later with honey. It's a little more involved and not as simple as just that, but Gina with Italian flair and giant bravado took us through the steps of how to create this enjoyable drink. I was jealous of her lemon peeling skills, and I realized she was using more of a potato/vegetable type peeler and then telling us how to pull the fruit and not the peeler so you wouldn't get any pith. Pith... I hate that stuff and it is my cocktail nemesis. I always seem to get it and I realized that even just going to these seminars I always get some little 30 second tip from a presentation that makes my imbibing skills better. I was ready to pull out my potato peeler as soon as I got home and chuck my crappy channel knife into the garbage.

Gina is a blast to watch and listen to. She has that incredible Italian housewarming inviting charm, and gets excited about talking about cocktails. It's a romantic combination when you meet someone who is enthusiastic about creating drinks. Gina really does feel like the old high school classmate from way back that everybody knows and is friends with. She returns the favor without a big ego and with much affection.

Still Gina wasn't done. Our next cocktail was an Aperol Spritz or as Gina embellished vocally saying with perfect accent "Spu-ri-tza!" Suddenly I wasn't in DC anymore I felt like I was being transported to an Italian cafe somewhere. This was presented with a fresh bay leaf and rosemary (I still have lots of this around), and one of my all time favorite things in life..kumquats. Kumquats are a fruit that you eat WHOLE. A bowl of these was passed around which many curious on lookers didn't seem to know what to do with. You have to bravely just eat the thing SKIN and all because the skin is sweet, the fruit is really BITTER. It makes perfect sense to have these in a cocktail like this. I will admit though I could not get a taste for the Aperol in this drink but it's a great refresher! Aperol is as its makers claim, the #1 selling spirit in the country.

Gina still wasn't done. She came up with one of her own crafted drinks and we of course, were tortured drinking all this wonderful goodness. It was to showcase another spirit called Averna Amaro in a cocktail she called Latte di Cioccola ta di Basil. Upon pour my first reaction was it's almost like an Imperial Stout! Hooray Beer! Ok no not really, lets say milkshake for adults.

Composed of Averna, chocolate ice cream, whole milk, and basil ground up in a blender, its nose was strangely of malted ovaltine, subtle chocolate, and nice whiffs of fresh basil. This was a nice way to end the evening and probably the biggest hit of the night. I will admit though like the spritz, I couldn't get a sense of the base liqueur. However, luckily a bottle Averna was being passed around and Gina suggested for people to take a whiff (not a drink) of it.

Upon receiving the bottle and just glancing a nose off the cap which is usually not enough to really get a feel for it, it seemed like a mixture of molasses and chocolate. Very odd. However it was very tempting not to just grab the bottle and chug before passing it on to the next person which I am sure people would flip out if they saw me do it.

So once again, drinks in hand it was another evening of imbibing success. Heading out afterwords for dinner and drinks, I could only think of one thing after leaving the event unable to take the drink on my table home. Sometimes life is just bittersweet.

BIG American Double Imperial Stout goes to the test... with a Dane coming to the top!

2011-01-12T22:08:00.014-05:00

In the grand scheme of things, when it was time to have a good old Russian Imperial Stout... I know I could sit back and relax, enjoy some good simple ABV and enjoy the malty and sometimes big goodness. Then I realized stouts could also be big in ABV beyond my comprehension.

Enter two big giants ready to do battle on the American Double Imperial Stout beer war. Here we have Mikkeller Black (17.5 ABV), in it's standard form (don't get me into all those wax capped bourbon aged barrel variations of I could only dream about tasting..), against... an evil looking incarnation... a very silverly looking devil of it's own from Avery brewery... Mephistophele's Stout (ABV 16.8).

I tasted and compared both of these. This was great for a nice winter day as snow has been falling of late. Strangely enough, I actually prefer these high ABV concoctions to other big carbonated beers with lower ABV. Sometimes sipping these is like imbibing a great wine. One was truly great indeed! Can you guess which one?

Only way you can find out is watching below! (or try them both yourself!)

Cheers!

Calvados and the joy of apples in cocktails.

2011-01-08T14:13:00.007-05:00

Apples. One of those sort of fruits I take for granted. Not the biggest fan, they're just sort of ... there.. ubiquitous... everywhere.. can sort of just grab one anytime but... why for?

However, what if you could take apples and make something good... I mean REALLY good with them?

When I first had Tom's Foolery Applejack it was very exciting. Then I needed to compare it to a classic drink from France called Calvados, which is apple brandy made in Normandy. This particular producer I have here is Coeur de Lion from Christian Drouin and their Sélection grade. Now there were going to be obvious differences (one is more like whiskey the other is a brandy) but this is what tasting is all about!

Calvados has several grades of quality. This sélection grade is the lowest, and it is highly recommended for cocktails but is still a great drink on its own! From there the grades go from Fine, Reserve, VSOP, Hors d'Age, and then get into vintage year productions just like wines. Also... the prices of these really start climbing on top of it too!

To make things even more fun, I threw in some Eau de Vie de Pomme from Clear Creek distillery, aged 8 years in Limousin casks. Throw in how to make a Calvados cocktail, and you have a recipe for some great win. Watch the video below to learn and see more imbibing goodness!

Cheers!

The Belgian Tripel revisited...

2011-01-06T20:13:00.005-05:00

Enter Belgian Tripel (triple) land... or as I call it.. a road that needed to be driven once again.

Sometime ago I had a tripel (triple) from Belgium and I remember really enjoying it.

So it seemed like pairing to Belgian products side by side would do the trick.

Enter a yeast, big, somewhat odd, wicked wonderland, where one producer seemed to do better than the other.

Which one was it? Well you'll just have to try them yourself. My thoughts are in the video below.

Pop goes the cork and...

Cheers!

Smoke on the beer water! German rauchbier rocks my world!

2011-01-05T23:29:00.012-05:00

If you could bottle bacon in a jar would you buy it? I mean people all joke about how bacon is gods gift to creation, there is nothing more perfect than bacon right? Forget about Jones Bacon soda for a minute and lets get back on track.

What if you could make a smoke flavored beer, so perfect for grilled meats and sausage, bbq and what not, keep the abv low so you could slam it back but enjoy its big full body with or without a slab of babyback pork BBQ ribs... would this be possible? My friends... it is... and it is called Rauchbier or "smoke" beer (from the German word rauch meaning smoke).

The flagship producer and maker of this beer is a place that has been beechwood smoking this beer for centuries, Aecht Schlenkerla in Bamberg Germany.

This type of beer surprised me in ways I couldn't even imagine. Yes I knew it was a smoke beer but I had my doubts and many of them and the myths that come with it were shredded to pieces after tasting this fine beverage.

Watch the video below to find out... and make sure you grab a real Stein or an authentic glass and have a smoke beer (Rauchbier) for yourself too someday!

CHEERS!

BOCK MADNESS!! or how I got my German style lager fix!

2011-01-02T21:55:00.014-05:00

Sometime ago, I went and had a very evil looking beer that was decorated with what I can only describe as if Santa had been possessed by the devil. It was Tröegenator and it was referred to as a "Double Bock" beer made by Tröe gs brewery in Harrisburg Pennsylvania. This had me intrigued back in the day and I realized there is a style of beer called a Doppelbock.

Doppelbock really originated in Germany as a style of German Lager. Big in malts and ABV.

So I came across a German Munich brewed one as well named "Maximator" from Augustiner Brau in Munich and with two beers that sounded like they belonged in an Arnold Schwarzeneger action film... it was time to put them to the test!

But the Bock action didn't stop there! I picked up two other German style lagers which were very similar to their Doppelbock counterparts but they were actually Weizenbocks.

I grabbed two bottles of Aventinus, one that was their standard everyday fare... and the other which was bottled in 2007 and aged 3 years.

I thought this was a good comparison and a great way to appreciate this style and it sure was.

Details on how this bock fest beer drinking magnitude turned out are below. Watch the videos to find out more.

Cheers!

DOPPELBOCK BATTLE WHO IS THE BIGGEST "----ATOR"

Weizenbock joy of tasting Aventinus!

No fooling around! Tom's Foolery applejack is on the block

2011-01-01T11:43:00.018-05:00

Back in the day, applejack was what American whiskey was. Way before moonshine, bourbon, all that stuff.. there was applejack. As we moved away from colonial days, and into modern time, this spirit has still for the past 50 years been very much under the radar, but lately it has been sort of coming back. For decades there has always been one name synonymous with applejack and that was Laird's. Laird's boasts itself as America's Oldest Family Run Distillery.

At one point there were actually several producers of applejack, but as time went on Laird's bought them out, leaving themselves to be the only producer of this product. In most circles this would seam like a lecherous act bent on mass producing a product while giving up quality control. If anything it seems the opposite happened, specifically two things. 1) The company wanted to maintain it's love for this product as the premier producer 2) By consolidating the other applejack producers they essentially saved this spirit from extinction. So when you think of applejack you would think of Laird's... until now.

Spending some time with other whiskey fans and spirit connoisseurs, I heard of a very small family run distillery that was run by a husband and wife team. The name was Tom's Foolery and they are out of Ohio. Once again, the pioneering small craft distillery is making things happen. They have made applejack and I was lucky enough to get my hands on a bottle of this stuff. There are currently only 240 bottles of this made, because this is a VERY small producer. Their website is also filled with lots of historical information and techniques on how this product was made so check it out.

I do wonder though how long it was aged, my wild guess is that it wasn't aged very long, probably about 2 years max and that I think is a stretch (who knows)? I've asked the owners about this and hope they will respond soon. Regardless, for applejack this is a great time to celebrate, and this is also a great product. I tasted them both in comparison side by side, and to have even more fun I tried them both in a simple cocktail... the one that makes applejack a win, and that is a Jack Rose.

Please Note that some consider this NOT a fair comparison. It should be noted that the Laird's used in the comparison is blended applejack. It contains GNS (Grain Neutral Spirits). The Tom's is 100% applejack. Laird's does make a 100% applejack product but it's not as widely distributed as the blend. 65% of this Laird's product is GNS.

Check out the review, tasting, and Jack Rose cocktail below. CHEERS!

Who is the bigger beer bastard one could ask?

2010-12-30T00:03:00.009-05:00

In the realm of beer nothing feels better then when you grab something for the first time and it blows your mind. Nothing is more satisfactory when rumor and raves that you hear and read about a certain beer come to hit with full force and fruition, as all your dreams are realized and you hit what is essentially paydirt.

This is how I felt when I first had a beer from Founders brewery called Backwoods Bastard some time ago. I had it after discovering it on the shelf and loving to death their Breakfast Oatmeal Stout. It turns out this is a seasonal creation and very popular. A crazy ass bearded woodsman was on the bottle staring at me giving me the evil eye, as if to even dare me to consider the glory of this bottles contents. I grabbed a 4 pack, and then just for kicks I came back to the place 4-5 hours later to discovered that all of the bottles were gone. This is a brew that was desired.

However, I was also aware that Backwoods had another Scotch Ale called Dirty Bastard. Dirty is around all year where as Backwoods is a special limited release that comes only during November. My mind thought of the perfect thing to do. It was time to taste both these beers together and find out who was the bigger bastard! This was no contest... see below to find out

Founders Brewery Scotch Ale Bigger Better Bastard Battle!

GW whiskey, or stick it all in a bucket and see what you get.

2010-12-18T15:56:00.011-05:00

When I had made several bourbon tasting videos on my channel, I received a comment in jest from a user which was quite humorous. The subscriber who saw me taste about 4-5 bourbons said..

"Mix them all together and try them!"

I thought back to my youth when reading such a comment. As much as the comment was made in fun, it made me think back to my days and experience with alcohol and understanding drink. When you're younger drinking is like a chemistry experiment. You try this, you try that. After a while you try mixing stuff up in the hope of a great revelation. The reality is at that age you're forgetting everything that is good about the product and just looking for the easiest fix that will get it down your throat.

I bring this up because I was given a gift by someone who knew I was into bourbon and said "Hey I got this" I thought you might like it. I of course was very excited to take it on. What I received was a vatted American Whiskey that was made at Mount Vernon distillery. After asking around about this I ran into the person who actually had a hand in its fruition, whose name is Chuck Cowdery. Chuck is very active on the Straight Bourbon forum as a teacher of sorts. He actually wrote on his blog about the making of this whiskey which, (like the young man who asked me to mix everything), is a blend of multiple whiskey's all at once.

So... I decided to try it. And the results are as follows.

Cheers my friends and check out the George Washington party!!

American IPA goes to all out war for my good imbibing cause!

2010-12-16T21:16:00.014-05:00

When I first got into beer I soon discovered the world of American IPAs. Luckily I was blessed with being fortunate to discover that my first one I've had has still been my favorite and that is Dogfish Head's 60 IPA.

To be fair.. there is a lot of beer in this style. I really would like to find one that could top it or be just as good. So I set up on a hunt for my first war of an all out American IPA battle.

There was lots of win in this and that is the great thing about drinking American craft brew, there were many tasty ones to go and imbibe on. I paired four IPAs - Dogfish 60, Southern Tier IPA, Founders Centennial, and Great Lake Divide's Titan. Along with this group I also threw in a Hoppin' Frog Hoppin' To Heaven IPA from Akron Ohio, and also Sierra Nevada's Homegrown Estate Ale which is actually more of a wet hop ale. In the end there was much rejoicing. Watch below to see how!

Cheers!

Battle 1

Battle 2

Beauty this Christmas is in the eye of the beholder, or in this case, the Buddha's Eye

2010-12-12T16:56:00.012-05:00

The Buddha's Eye Cocktail is more than likely not an official type of Christmas cocktail but it might as well be. There is no candy cane, it's not a steaming hot buttered rum type of drink that you could associate with winter, there is no egg nog to be found.

However, for me the drink has this great green shade when matched with mint leaves for garnish that looks and reminds me of holly. Looks aside, and I am a sucker for emerald green... the second reason is that this was one of the first cocktails I have ever had when I was an imbibing youth, and it was during Christmas. It has a cool crisp winter breeze added by creme de menthe as if ice was to be forming on your breath. This is without question a winter drink.

The recipe came from a Julia Child cookbook that my mother had. I was kind of surprised that a drink would be in a cookbook. You may not have known how to cook but everyone knew who Julia Child was back in the day and the importance and respect she had for food. When I thought that suddenly a drink was mentioned by her it would have been something extraordinary, such as the 24 hours it takes to make Peking Duck or something... Drinks with alcohol weren't just simple, they could be works of art and elevated to a level of sophistication and importance.

I realized that when it came to drinking, thoughts and efforts mattered. Drinks could involve craft, they could have taste, drinks... WERE IMPORTANT.

My life has never been the same....

So I present to you this December, and no you don't have to have this just during Christmas, although it is a very winter drink... The Buddha's Eye Cocktail.

Going into battle with three Russians... the fun way!

2010-12-11T10:38:00.007-05:00

As the winter comes closing in, there is nothing much more enjoyable than drinking an imperial stout in the comfort of your own home. Warm and embracing, while the cold rages on outside, you can feel safe in its big embrace and darkness. Fireplace desired... but optional...

I went all out and decided on a three way Russian Imperial Stout battle between three different breweries all of which I have had good beer from and I consider good makers. The first was Avery's The Czar Imperial Stout from Boulder Colorado. It is one of their dictator series brews. The second was Oskar Blues from Colorado and their Ten Fidy, and last was Brooklyn Brewery's Black Chocolate Stout.

After having these I wish I could somehow breed and marry the best and remove the weak spots from all these beers to make the perfect stout. It seemed like you could genetically engineer a real good stout from all of these three.

Here is how the tasting went. Cheers!

Tripel battle American style

2010-12-10T12:25:00.007-05:00

One style of beer I've always enjoyed has been a Beligan Tripel. As I was out shopping for my latest imbibing beer fest I discovered that this was also a style that many American craft brewers have started making. I had a few Belgian tripels and always enjoyed their big bodies and sugary/malt like goodness. It was as if eating cake sometimes. How would American ones taste?

I settled on two, one from nearby Adamstown PA, the other from far West coast of Seattle. Stoudt's from Adamstown makes a Belgain Abbey Style Ale, and the Pike Monks Uncle is another Tripel described using many organic ingredients.

One of these beers should have been from a different planet hardly tasting like a Tripel that I've had before, but not in a bad way.

To see more watch and find out below. Cheers!

Another 7-8 year romp of bourbon fun, Antique and Baker's sing

2010-12-10T10:46:00.007-05:00

I finally got around to checking out the top end Jim Beam brands otherwise known as the Big Beams or the SuperBeams.

Much about selling whiskey has to do with packaging. Some whiskeys come in velvet bags, the Booker's comes in a wood crate as if it had its own personal little warehouse. Basil Hayden's is wrapped in a lot of paper with a ring that resembles a hoop from an oak barrel.

To me though it is what's in the bottle that counts and it doesn't take much to please me. Within this group there was one whiskey that just wasn't worth the time, but there were two that I really enjoyed.

To find out more watch the video review below.

Cheers!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3 the conclusion

APA battle, hopin fresh and also smooth to the finish line

2010-12-05T21:08:00.007-05:00

When I was down in Portland Oregon, I had something called "Fresh Hop Beer". Simply put, the abundance of great hops that exist in the nearby Willamette valley, are quickly gathered and made for beer within an hour. This is how they were done at Deschutes. So when I returned back home and saw Fresh Hop beers available to purchase I was excited.

A giant green bottle struck my face as if it should have been in the frozen food section, but there was no jolly green giant on this thing. I picked up a bottle from Great Divide of their "fresh hop" beer.

I was hoping to pair it with another fresh hop style, but couldn't find much. There were similar beers though in this style which is classified as an American Pale Ale.

I grabbed another APA but not a fresh hop for comparison, and I was glad I grabbed it. It's from Great Lakes brewery in Cleveland and it's called Burning River. It's excellent.

To take my word for it, see the review below:

Cheers!

7-8 Year Bourbon gang finally gets a taste.

2010-12-05T11:32:00.015-05:00

After some time I finally had a chance to review some more bourbon. I had several bottles of 7-8 years and needed to group them up. This was kind of difficult, because I wanted to compare certain ones, and I had also tasted and had some of the others.

I settled in though on Jim Beam Black, W.L. Weller Special Reserve, and 1792 Ridgemont Reserve.

I did want to pair up the Black with the Super Beams I have but decided not to.

Going back to 1792 was interesting. No I didn't have a time machine and did not go back to the inauguration of 1792 as Kentucky joined the union and became a state, which the name of this product borrows and adopts. I had this bourbon in the past which is a rye dominant but also a good amount of malt barley (I believe), and sort of never cared to remember it. I did finish the bottle but didn't seem enthusiastic in seeking it out again.

I am kind of glad I did try it again, cause I found things on it that I didn't discover before. I was a little bit more appreciative this time, although it might not be for everyone.

Finally, I threw in another product which names itself as the original "Wheated Bourbon". W.L. Weller is an inexpensive and 7 year aged wheat dominant bourbon and I think a very good value for the money. Nothing fancy, but just solid. It's price seems the most attractive thing about it.

To see how this tasting went, you can watch the video below.

Cheers!

Whisk(e)y Sour... take me home...

2010-12-05T08:58:00.016-05:00

If there is one cocktail that I could have an desire anytime for the rest of my life it is the ubiquitous, an simple whisk(e)y sour. Through numerous bourbon tastings I have a lot of left over whisk(e)y being asked to play with. It sits in corners, book case drawers (I am not lying when I say that), almost screaming pick me pick me!

The past turkey holidays of November are gone, and back then it never felt like I had time to sit and make a nice drink. Now with the pleasantries of personal time to myself, I think I have stepped on to, a perfect sour, and discovering the ultimate key to a good one and how to get it. The big key (among many) is froth (pictured to the left) from the egg white.

A good whiskey sour is fun to make, but many times it is hit or miss. I demonstrated one in the past using my Boston shaker, and as much as I like that big burly bastard, it's cumbersome, I hate cleaning it, and sure you can hear a million times from others, just twist or tap to break the "seal" in order to get your yummy contents out.

The reality is though, that seal... isn't easy sometimes. I don't care how you stick your glass in, or angle it, it doesn't matter. sometimes... daddy doesn't want to play, and you can't get your liquid goodies inside no matter how much you beg and plead. Other times you think you have it sealed, then start shaking, and you realize you gave yourself a shower cause the contents edged out "somehow" and are now all over your face (or if its really bad the guest you are making it for). One guy who like me has made several drinks with one said he has been behind bars numerous times, just hammering the thing like a construction worker. I agree with this sentiment and have been there. So I went back to sour land drawing board, and stumbled upon what I call a happy find. I need to use... the little bullet as I call it, my really small 3 piece shaker (pictured).

One thing I noticed is that the Boston shaker when doing the dry shake for the sour didn't give as much froth. You had lots of air and little contents in the shaker, and had to REALLY shake hard, but also much of the froth just coated the shaker and didn't come out on the pour. The success really worked when I used my really small 3 piece shaker for the dry shake, as I got foam and froth that could have been used for a bubble bath. It hit me, my Boston shaker was too big for this (or I didn't have giant paint can shaking arms I guess).

So who likes things easy... yup me... If you put the liquid contents in for the dry shake in a TINY shaker like this one, you will get monster froth, and you won't have to shake as long or as hard either to get it. Do however, pop the seal half way because the can will literally want to explode. Shake vigorously, when you feel the pressure, STOP, break the seal, and do it again for a little while for the dry shake portion. Who said making cocktails wasn't dangerous huh! That's half the fun!

I ended up grabbing the Rare Breed which had giant tobacco on the taste for this drink, but why not... it was a Turkey holiday recently so lets have a turkey right!? Use whatever whiskey you like. When the cocktail was poured for the second part, a massive head of froth came out leaving about a good solid size finger of bubbles. It looked like a real good beer. More importantly adding the killer fabbri amarena cherries sealed the deal, and the head made a perfect playground to drizzle some of the juice with red specks on top. Looks great, tastes even better. Enter cocktail win.

Here's some more detail on how to make this drink, it's a standard:

Ingredients:

2 oz of whiskey (use your favorite I have many) if you really like whiskey add 2 1/2 oz
1 oz of simple syrup (make your own)
3/4 oz of fresh lemon juice (not the FAKE STUFF, use real lemons, if you don't your sour will taste like ass) and DON'T USE SOUR MIX!
egg white from one egg

Tips:

If you haven't made this drink before, start with just 2 oz of whiskey, it balances the cocktail out and you may prefer it, more whiskey may make the other ingredients harder to taste
The ratio of sweet to sour here is 4:3 which is a common standard giving a decent tartness. Try this ratio first, if you like it sweeter, more sour.. then adjust
Crack the egg OVER your shaker so the white will fall in the glass, toss the yolk between the shell until all the white is gone. Do whatever you want with the yolk, maybe make a Golden Fizz, bake a cake, custard, feed it to your dog, garbage... whatever...

Directions:

Combine all liquid ingredients, with egg into a TINY 3 piece shaker with NO ice (this is a dry shake)
Cap and shake hard, when you feel the shaker expanding, pop it to break the seal, then shake again. You should have a big froth inside.
Open you frothy contents and add ice. Shake hard till its nice and cold (7-12 seconds).
Strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, pour fast, if you're like me, get as much froth out as possible by opening the strainer and getting the remaining goodness.
garnish with a cherry

And with that... you can have imbibing heaven!

Sometimes the season... just doesn't click for beer...

2010-11-24T17:45:00.009-05:00

When I am out looking for new things, sometimes I grab a beer style I don't normally buy. I do this because I am all for:
1) good beer, 2) new imbibing experiences.

I am a big fan normally of Belgian Tripels, and a style of Belgian Ales called Saisons (seasonals) was what got me curious.

I was in a store and saw a well known, obscure, not to mention "expensive" seasonal release known as Phantôme Hiver (winter). I decided to try it out, pairing another Saison known as Urthel with it.

The results and experiences below, probably will forever etch my memory... to never have this style of beer more than likely EVER again.

Watch to find out why:

This bird has fight in it, and Old Grand-Dad has a few tricks still up its sleeve

2010-11-23T19:10:00.008-05:00

I don't like old Grand-Dad. No honestly, I tried the 86 and found it weak and pointless, the 100 was marginally better but had a taste of cigarettes and ashes mostly. Looking in to Old Grand-Dad hadn't been fun.

However, many bourbon fans seemed to point out that the 114 (the last of the OGDs) was the best one and worth trying. Worth trying? I was skeptical. This whiskey nevertheless has been around for a long time. It had been taken over from National Distillers in 1987 by Jim Beam and the Old Grand-Dad has had a long history. When I thought back about it... it didn't seem right trying only 2 of the 3 and not all of them, so why not!

I had to make a comparison of course and the perfect one I though of was Fighting Cock brand made by Heaven Hill. It's a slightly lower proof bourbon at 103, and I always wanted to have it but couldn't find a reason. Now I had a perfect pairing to compare.

Both these bourbons tasted better when cut slightly to 95 proof. Their noses opened up and certain tastes came up. Fighting Cock I think is a perfect cigar bourbon, and the Old Grand-Dad when cut to 95, while being a bit too wet and not much body brings out a surprising honey finish.

To see more about it, watch the video reviews below:

Conclusion:

Hunting close to home, DC dusty hunt brings up treasure and history

2010-11-19T11:50:00.043-05:00

When I got in to tasting and enjoying bourbon and exploring it more, I discovered many people in the same boat. As times have changed and the Internet has made the world a smaller place, we can all get online in numerous forums to talk about our same joys. Those joys can be anything, cars, beer, paintings, movies, music... you name it there is an Internet forum you can find to talk about it. You can even get more specific... there probably is a forum for toy collectors, but I'll even take a wild guess there is a forum for toy DOLL collectors... even more how about toy doll babies? How did I do? I haven't googled it yet.. but I am guessing I am close... but I think you understand what I am saying.

There is a forum called "Straight Bourbon" I frequent often. I spend much time there reading up and talking with other bourbon imbibers, mostly reading than posting. It's a good community which on the Internet is rare. Luckily there aren't a lot of egos and jackasses giving their moronic opinions in the blunt form and justification of "you suck", which seems so ubiquitous on the Internet these days.

However, I discovered something that I hadn't heard before while reading the forum. Many bourbon fans were doing something called "dusty hunting". Dusty hunting? What is that I wondered? Suddenly my mind flashed back to Ted Haigh's Vintage cocktail book. That book was filled with numerous pictures of old bottles of liquor that he collected. They looked really neat I thought as he talked about ingredients made in classic cocktails that don't exist anymore. What if you could actually find these things?? and then it hit me... Old bottles in liquor stores are called "dusties" because they exist usually in old stores that have been around for decades, products that went on the shelf and never got sold. They went back in a box, or most of the time sat in a shelf somewhere never to be seen again... and normally... collected a lot of dust.

Before I get in to how I acquired these items, I will tell you about what I found first:

A simple bottle of I.W. Harper bourbon 80 proof including old Maryland tax stamp

small Hiram Walker bottle of Crème de Noyaux
small Marie Brizard bottled in France, Crème de Cassis 40 proof
small Marie Brizard bottled in France, Menthe (probably crème de Menthe) 60 proof
small half bottle of yellow Chartreuse (I love Chartreuse MAKE ME A BIJOU!)
Bottle of 20 year James Martin's Fine & Rare scotch whisky
small bottle of Dekupyer Creme de Menthe (probably white but since turned to yellow)
Large red ornate bottle of Trave cherry liquer a former Jim Beam product

All these items are unopened and contain their original existing contents.

These items were all found in a nearby liquor store in my area, sitting on a shelf, no joke... collecting a huge amount of dust (except the bourbon which is probably not even that old, and was in a packaged box to keep the dusties away).

I.W. Harper bourbon is no longer made anymore. This bottle is probably not that old and from talking to some bourbon hunters at 80 proof this is probably not their best product, since many hunters seem to prefer some of the higher proof Harper's that existed. However, that is up to personal tastes. It does have characteristics though of a typical dusty, particularly three things. One is that it has a paper seal on top. Two it contains a Maryland tax stamp. Three there is no "government warning" on the label.

Enjoy the bourbon? You mean people will drink this old product? The answer is yes.

Whiskey once taken out of the cask (barrel) and bottled never ages. Unless the bottle was maybe (and this is really stretching it...) sitting in the sun or perhaps exposed to extreme light and temperatures, the whiskey inside is unchanged and is drinkable. Whether it tastes any good is another story ;)

This is why dusty hunting is exciting for whiskey and particularly bourbon drinkers. This bottle of Harper is made (I think) from a distillery that used to belong to a company called Schenley. The label mentions Louisville Kentucky which notes that it came from the old Bernheim distillery, more than likely before it was acquired by United Distillers and Vintners (UDV) in 1987. To drink this whiskey (good or bad as it may be) is drinking a time capsule. Is it worth a lot of money? Probably not. Harper ironically in the day was a "gray market" bourbon, it was sold overseas in Japan for a high cost, but hardly distributed in the US and when it was it was not that expensive. Many people might recognize it, saying... that's what my DAD used to drink all the time...

Now you're thinking what about these other products? Well they are really more for the novelty but there is always the hope in my mind that you can find a product that is no longer made anymore that was used in vintage cocktails (such as bottle of obscure bitters). My mind flashed to being the Indian Jones of the cocktail world. I could find that bitter that no longer exists, or authentic Creme Yvette, resurrect it back from life to other fans and maybe someone could make it again by tasting it. My dreams were starting to get a little too big and grand, but one can still have joy and dreams right? Just for the record Creme Yvette is being made again...

So how was I going to find these things I thought? Well I did my research but also had a lot of misses. I started off... on the wrong foot

Finding dusties is a bit of a science, but mostly a lot of misses. I first tried it without thinking thoroughly first. To find these bottles you need to go to stores that have been around for some time. .

At first I didn't do this. I went off on my breaks in downtown DC usually during lunch hour to some of the downtown liquor stores. I went to one store that many times put overstocked items out on discount.

I saw the proprietor stacking bottles of wine, while I was eyeing the beer fridge. I figured this was a good time to ask him. I went up to him and said,

"Excuse me?" (he replied back yes? do you need help?) "Yes actually, I wondered if you had any old liqour bottles?"

He literally froze in his tracks as if the cooler went to liquid nitrogen and turned him into a block of ice. He stared at me (no joke) for about 3 seconds with icey eyes as if I was trying to score a bunch of drugs or something, then slowly opened his mouth saying...

"What....... do you.... Meeeeeann????"

I then explained that if he had anything in storage that had been around in the shop for a long time that he didn't sell. He then suddenly blurted out OH no naw we don't have any of that! Miss number one.

I realized that this store really wasn't a good candidate. As much as it put out old stock it couldn't sell, it was part of an office building. This didn't fit the profile but it never hurts to ask. I carried that same mantra to other stores in the area but stayed away from glass buildings. I had a feeling about some places near downtown in the gentrified neighborhood of Logan circle. Many of the old liquor stores still remain, but their original owners are gone, probably because they couldn't afford the property taxes as the areas real estate turned into condos and restaurants that now frequent the area. Logan circle used to be filled with prostitutes... those days vanished more than 10 years ago..

Trying my luck in these stores was no better, many of the stores were run by new immigrants who didn't have a clue what the heck I was talking about. I was beginning to give up... but I read that dusty hunters get LOTS of misses before they find anything.

My quest got more focused when I started thinking about my neighborhood. I bought a house 5 years ago, in a DC area that does not have a lot of the bells and whistles that many of the other gentrified areas of DC now have. There was a particular street not far from my house where a common characteristic of the businesses that adorned the sidewalk stood out. The sidewalk if you were to walk down it would repeat the same mantra every 3 blocks... it went... funeral home, check cashing place, box brick sized church, liquor store.. repeat.... There were lots of old liquor stores in my BACK YARD.

I'd occasionally walk to the closest liquor store from my house on the odd occasion out of necessity rather than desire. I would be disappointed knowing they'd never have craft beer, or decent wine stocked. I remember trying to talk to the Asian couple who ran the place who are nice people, but find myself repeating things too often. One time I was shouting numerous times at them behind bulletproof glass about beer they could get me. "FISH what you want a FISH BEER??" No I said "DOGFISH." "What's That! I got a Michelob Light.." To say talking and feeling customer appreciated was hard to accept.

Needless to say, a light-bulb went off when I immediately thought of one place in particular. A few blocks away though was another store I remember trying to go to in the past that was literally older than DIRT. I remember the first time I walked in to it with its wallpapered old posters barely hanging on of bikini clad girls selling weak ass beer, surrounded by glass and locked grated doors. It was a lot like the other places but I was amazed that the building was even standing. The remarkable characteristic of this place was that it contained the old phone number still on the building, and it had nearly NO lights turned on inside, it was like walking into a dungeon. The few bottles on the shelf sat behind in dark recesses, you could barely read the prices in the darkness surrounded by glass and stale air. It felt like a prison in reverse.

The place was run by a VERY old but polite man. I knew this place had to have something. I made my appearance after returning from work and asked him what he had inside.

He told me he'd look around. He went in the back and pulled out the Harper bottle and a few other things. I told him that I'd come back and to let me know if he found any old bottles of bourbon.

I returned again another day, and he let me back behind the glass wall that separated himself from his clientele, where it was easy to show off the dusty shelves. I bought the bourbon from the guy to give him some decent business (I felt like nicknaming him Gramps), but then inquired what my mind was telling me. You need to scope this place out...

"Do you mind if I look around for a bit!??!" I said enthusiastically.

"Naw sure, go ahead I got all night", Gramps replied, only seeming slightly annoyed.

I knew this place had buried treasure. I went looking around and found plenty of dusty things. What I told you about already was more than likely only HALF of what was there. I really got excited when I grabbed and saw the back label of what said "La Chartreuse est encore milleure si on la déguste très fraiche mème glacée".

I held this bottle in my hand shaking... then slowly... cocking my wrist dreaming of what I thought this bottle had to be. I was correct in my guess as I found a very old small half bottle of yellow Chartreuse.

There were others that I found. Marie Brizard products such as a Creme de Casis, and a Menthe product which I am guessing was creme de menthe which once was green but had now vanished and turned in to a gorgeouse blue color. The bottle contents resembled Windex glass cleaner, and I wanted to drink it RIGHT THERE.

There were some other finds, including an old Dekupyer bottle which I think once was clear but now was a yellow. I was stupidly in another world as I bought all these things, relishing and giving them new life and appreciation. My mind raced as to how long a bottle of James Martin's 20yr Scotch had been sitting on the shelf, its label browned and faded barely held on by scotch tape so old you could never get it off.

The other thing that struck me about the cocktail liquor ingredient bottles were how small they were. Back in the day cocktails were not the grand drinks that are served and shlepped in to peoples faces today. Back then cocktails were smaller, and for a reason. The drinks were small, they stayed cold, and you slowly savored them. You weren't served a 12oz martini and drinking its warm soupy contents for 20 minutes. You got probably a 4 1/2 oz glass at largest, and it was 3 wonderful sips to imbibe and finish with much joy.

I found a small bottle of what is Crème de Noyaux which at first got me real excited. For a moment I thought I found an ingredient that is no longer in production. Turns out I was wrong Hiram Walker still makes this product, but the bottle I had in my hand was not a pink/red color of its more recent sibling, it had turned to an almond brown. Or was it always this color to begin with???? The other thing about the bottles is that they had recipes on the back for cocktails. The Hiram Walker Crème de Noyaux was to be used back in the day for a classic cocktail known as... "The Pink Squirrel", an after dinner drink as for the few of us cocktail fans know about. I normally see this drink made with what is now called Creme de Almond.

I pulled the bottle out and showed it to Gramps. "Yeah Pink Squirrel" he bellowed out, "Yeah I remember back in the day when people use to make those all the time! At one point they were very popular" he mentioned while helping someone get a pack of Coors Light. The irony was not lost on me.

We sat and talked about classic ingredients as I pulled each one off the shelf. The irony is I could have been with Gramps all evening with the things he found in the store, but he wanted me out of there so he could do other things.

I paid the guy and took my first dusty collection home. I remarked about how I was excited to take the bourbon home. "So.. you going to stick that in Ebay!?!" he said.. "HELL NO" I said... "I am going to drink it if I can!!" I remarked enthusiastically... Who knows I like the bottle and its bronze hue so much I think I'll just keep it as is for when I stock my home bar again.

"Well yeah I remember that bourbon from times ago," Gramps remarked leaving with me some final words that will stay with me more poignant than ever.

"Nobody drinks bourbon anymore..."

Well Gramps I got news for you....

yes they do my friend.... yes they certainly do.

Winter can be warm, with a good seasonal spiced Ale

2010-11-18T23:19:00.009-05:00

Nothing beats beer sometimes. What has always surprised me the most about beer is how like cocktails, beer styles have just the perfect and right seasons. There are beers you should have in the Summer, beers in the Spring, beers in the Fall (Hello OKTOBERFEST!) and then a concept that was completely foreign to me... beers tailor made for a winter snug. Just like summer and winter cocktail drinks!!

There is a style of beer, spiced ales, which are known as Winter Warmers. These beers are spiced to some degree and have slightly high ABV, and are considered seasonal winter beers to have during that time. They are a great addition to curl up in front of the fire place, as your nose hits some possible malt, and tasty Christmas like spices.

Once winter disappears, these beers will be hard to find.

So how are they? Well I tried two of them. Fireside chat is from 21st Amendment Brewery in San Fransisco. Full Sail's Wassail is from Hood River Oregon.

Both are enjoyable, but I definitely have a preference for one over the other.

I don't know if it is winter yet where you are already, but I am getting a head start on the action! To find out watch the video review below of these two Winter Warmer beers.

One Beer.. One Scotch... Make that 2 Scotch Ales...

2010-11-18T19:57:00.008-05:00

Would you buy a beer of a picture of winged hat warrior with the title of "Skull Splitter" standing before you???

That is what I was faced with having to try this beer. Scotch Ales or as they are know as Wee Heavy, are a fantastic beer to imbibe on.

I decided to pair this beer with a Scotch Ale from Fordham brewery in contrast.

Another important note for trying out a Scotch Ale is to use a good glass. Scotch Ale's are wonderful to taste in a proper glass known as a Thistle. It is tulip bulb shaped and looks very much like a thistle, but it wont prick you.

So how are these Scotch Ales? Check them out for yourself below!!

Norwegian Beer Geek Breakfast

2010-11-17T19:47:00.012-05:00

Beer for breakfast. What a great idea.

Having tasted Founders Oatmeal Breakfast Stout was a revelation. After tasting it more and more and quickly finishing off my 4 pack, my mind ran crazily about the idea that there could be more beers like this. Perhaps there could be a category of "breakfast beer". The dream was not far from reality.

Enter the beer from Norway Mikkeller. Mikkeller is a Norwegian brewery and they had a product called Beer Geek Breakfast.

Now my mind raced to this bottle and the joy that I could enjoy coffee beer again in the morning! Would my joy hold up? Would this beer give me another sense of wonder?

Well the results are in the video below, watch to find out!

Review of Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast Oatmeal Stout.

Book Review: Boozehound by Jason Wilson

2010-11-16T22:42:00.023-05:00

When I first got in to cocktails and spirits, there were many sources I went to. Part of that had to do with moving to DC many years ago and reading the Washington Post. DC has been my home for almost a decade as I write this, and it has been an imbibing joy. One person who has made that much more enjoyable is the spirits columnist for the Washington Post named Jason Wilson. Many of his articles I enjoyed reading and still do as he writes stories about upcoming spirits and cocktails. I hold him personally responsible for making me like Plymouth Gin. That was a hard thing to do, since for many years I made many Gin and Tonics for my mother and never understood what the big deal was. I realized... there was much to learn (and no she didn't use Plymouth in them either...).

Jason has published a book called Boozehound, which I would describe as not a 'cocktail book' (although it contains recipes), but perhaps a first of its kind, a "spirit memoir".

Jason tells his tales in the past starting from his youth in Jersey with Sambuca, to traveling around the world chasing spirits of true Agave tequila, to great digestifs in Italy, to understanding rhum agricole and the wonder it can bring to a persons palate.

The book is not pretentious. A particular section I enjoyed a lot was about the "speakeasy" trend (or is it?) that has been happening with "cocktail nerds" and the conflicting feelings he has towards it. For many, the speakeasy trend has ushered in proper drinks and knowledge about how to drink and make true proper cocktails, but it has also created and elitist class and what I call a so called wine-snob effect. I can relate to this often myself particularly since I've been to many of the DC speakeasy places he mentions (there aren't many) and walked away with the same conflicting emotions.

The book is not a treatise on how one should seek out certain drinks, and that they should be forced to imbibe and like certain spirits. Jason walks us through many passages on his educational journey which many of us can relate to, the girl you fell for but wouldn't give you the time of day, the foreign bottle in your parents liquor cabinet and its mysteriousness, to finally breaking free making your own identity as a young adult, putting a drink/liqueur/spirit in your hands and tasting it... relishing it for the first time with joy.

That is part of the great experience in reading Jason's book. You don't just get his experiences of enjoying Cognac in France, or rustic adventures in Haiti, you get to relate and impart your own sense of joy of drinking and the places that your life took you along the journey. As many of the chapters conclude, a break in the action is taken with drink recipes. Some are standards, some are creations from other people, some are also his own, but they all make you reflect on what you just read with a sense of importance and make you want to drop what you are doing, and make the drink FIRST before you do anything further. A stinger is a simple great drink that is mentioned in the book, but when Jason suddenly gives a justification for a Stinger Royale (a stinger made with just a dash of Absinthe) after talking about his roaming in France you want to just drop what you are doing and make one on the spot.

Reading Jason's book was an incredible sense of deja vu and it should be for anyone who enjoys good drink. There were many places I had been in my life and drink was part of it, just as Jason's had been and that is the success with this book.

Boozehound isn't about drink, it isn't even about how to make drinks, or how to enjoy Cognac, or to understand why rhum agricole is a big deal. Yes that is part of it. But what Boozehound does so much for its readers is that it makes a memory of imbibing, without being grandiose, superficial or pig headed. Boozehound's greatest asset is that it connects the reader with the joy of drinking and imparts your own experiences with drinking on to his. When you read Jason's adventures as obscure, even outrageous as they might be, you're really experiencing your own joy of drink. This book isn't about him, it's about how the memory of drink, it's flavor, smells, texture, finishes, place in time of your life is so important, and why you drive and continue the same passions as he does.

You want to physically be there and wrap the glass in your hands, share his memory, and be there with him as you read the words, and dream of the tastes within the pages.

Cheap bourbon doesn't always mean bad, but tasting sometimes means dissapointment

2010-11-16T21:35:00.014-05:00

After having tasted some nice bourbons, I decided it wasn't fair just yet to start jumping in to some of the more higher quality ones that I have to analyze just yet. Yes I have had nicer tasting bourbons, but the reality is if I want to appreciate bourbon I know I have to start at the beginning, and in many ways pay my dues. As Chuck Cowdery who writes about bourbon in his book Straight Bourbon and advocates often about learning to appreciate this whiskey simply states... there are no short cuts.

I appreciated this whiskey some years ago when I first was offered some Lot B Van Winkle from a friend of mine who is from Kentucky. When he knew I was in to cocktails and spirits, he brought out some Lot B for me to try. Long story short, the appreciation I had that night is why today I felt compelled to examine this great whiskey.

That said, I knew that it was important to go back to some old school roots first. When I was getting in to wine, there was no point jumping in to real expensive bottles right away ramming my nose in to Chateau Lafite Rothschild, 100 year German Reisilings, or 80 year aged Portuguese Tawny Ports most regular mortals like us can't afford on a daily basis. You had to start from the ground up... not just because of economics but because ... you wouldn't appreciate what was worked for you without tasting the basics of what came before then.

I set out to just grab three common bourbons to try that I hadn't had before.

Old Taylor (A Jim Beam product and now being distilled by Buffalo Trace)
Old Grand-Dad 100 (An old brand that once belonged long ago to National Distillers and was taken over by Jim Beam in 1987)
Old Fitzgerald 100 (A historic brand that used to be distilled at Stitzel Weller Distillery, but is now Heaven Hill, makers of Evan Williams)

It was hard to pick some of the inexpensive bourbons. Many inexpensive bourbons are made by the same people. Jim Beam makes, Old Crow, Old-Grand-Dad, Old Taylor. Many of the other the distillers make several inexpensive bourbons as well. But the bigger problem when trying to find a good inexpensive bourbon was what I call the liquor litmus test.

My very first inclination when I see a large bottle of alcohol spirit, sitting in a 1.75 liter jug, particularly plastic... for next to nothing... I usually want to run away screaming. Many of these bourbons I described fit into this category, and give me visions of cheap college nights and drunken young adults giving way to reckless abandon. Not that I (cough) speak from experience... (cough, cough).

The reality is though, some inexpensive bourbons are from what I hear a good value. I can attest that Evan Williams 7yr is fine for what it is and in a blind tasting picked it as a favorite among other low proof bourbons. A real simple go to bourbon. I have also been recommended others, but many are not available where I live.

Still instead of diving in to some bourbons that cost upwards of 50 dollars and then some just now... there will always be time to do it... but there is no rush. However, many times... you have to just pay your dues. So before I get in to some other more so called "higher shelf" products, I'll grab some cheap half pints if I can first.

I know that in the future... I will be rewarded...

Watch below to see my review of these three bourbon whiskeys.

Imperial IPA battle, Scotland vs America!

2010-11-09T23:50:00.008-05:00

What was that phrase again of popular culture not so long ago regarding Scotland? If it's not Scottish... IT'S ****!!!

Well when I thought of Imperial IPAs I can say without a doubt that Scotland is not the first place I think of.

However, I was persuaded by some good inclination for some Imperial IPAs or Double IPAs as they are called and saw this on the shelf. "Oh this is quite good!" said the proprietor, it selling real well, pointing to the row that was nearly empty.

Intriguing packaging, and an in your face attitude. Does the Brew Dog Hardcore IPA measure up?

I paired it with another Imperial IPA I hadn't tried before and that was from New Holland brewers, trying their 2010 Mad Hatter which is part of their high gravity series.

So what happened? Was this a good worthy battle? Was this a cinch and no contest? Well watch the video below to find out more!

Bourbon tasting 3 means more joy!

2010-11-06T22:31:00.012-04:00

Bourbon. It's like the gift that keeps on giving.

I was overdue for another tasting, and set out for another one.

My group this time was actually a little tricky to put together. I did however manage to scramble producers that I thought were different with one exception.

I found a bottle of Old Forester and thought it would be perfect for this group. I never see that whiskey around here at all. Only thing is pairing it with Woodford meant I was having whiskey made by the same producer (Brown Forman).

This was actually a plus though, I did some research and found online that they supposedly have the same mash bill and yeast content. So trying them side by side was just right. Also I was set to throw in a bottle of Blanton's but I found Elmer T Lee instead which was cheaper. I really like Blanton's but I wasn't ready to fork over a lot of money again for it right now. I also discovered that Elmer and Blanton's are made by the same distiller Buffalo Trace. Super! I was set, I'd throw in my Black Maple which I had around for awhile... and imbibing joy could begin.

I present Bourbon whiskey tasting group #3, the video is below in 2 parts.

The tasted Bourbons were as follows:

Old Forester
Woodford Reserve
Bulleit
Elmer T. Lee
Black Maple Hill

The tasting notes are in the two videos below. Cheers!

PART ONE

Conclusion

One last imbibing trail ends as Turkey calls...

2010-11-05T22:02:00.032-04:00

Turkey is a land of contrasts. On one side, it is part of Europe, on the other side just across the sea of the Bosphorus begins the entrance to the Middle East.

In my life Turkey is a land that I have always desired to visit. For once I have completed an important journey that I have wished since I was a teenager.

However, as I have grown older... wiser... traveled and lived and breathed the cultures of many places, my desires and goals of just being somewhere have taken over from desires to enjoy the simple passions of food, wine... and... DRINK!!

Are there things worth drinking in Turkey? Well the answer is Yes... and the answer is .. uh No. More importantly I had to drop my preconceived notions about a predominantly Muslim country when it comes to imbibing.

Turkey is a "secular" nation although predominantly Muslim, and my thoughts came to several things when it came to alcohol. One, that there wasn't any to be had in the country. Two transporting it across the border (from Bulgaria) would be a problem. Three that they didn't make such things and were forbidden.

Assumptions are bad things, ignorance... far worse. More important is the joy of imbibing in Turkey.. and many times... alcohol ... is not even needed. Praise be... that all my assumptions.. were DEAD wrong.

Let's talk about the two simple photos I have presented thus far. In the first photo is a drink of HaRe liquor. HaRe is a brand of digestif liquor that is made in Turkey. They have several flavors, mint, orange... many others. The one pictured here that I tried grabbed my attention because it was almond. My first thought immediately went to Amaretto, the common liqueur associated with Italy. I know someone who is fond of Amaretto and this is the only thing that they drink. I make sure to have a bottle around when they drop by...

I was very curious to try this version, that was not of the Italian variety. So... what was this to be? A really bad copy? a sugary mess??? Far from it. HaRe almond is much lighter in body than Disaronno, but I thought it had a NUTTIER taste. It was easy drinking, thoughts of easy mixing, nutty goodness, without the big syrup bomb taste that some Amarettos have. I still think of it now...

As for the beer... Well.. they need to still work on it. Efes Pillsner is nothing to write home about. I've had considerably better... but more importantly... I have had WORSE...

The reality is the things that made imbibing enjoyable the most did not always contain alcohol. There were plenty of Turkish wines to explore, some were actually kind of interesting. Unfortunately there was not much time to research it, and some were just rather ordinary.

Living in America means no products from Cuba, and I saw Havana Club rum everywhere on my journeys (Hungary and Romania included). I made sure to try the light rum out neat, comparing it to my first big light rum tasting. In the end it's a very solid rum, seems perfect for mixing, but it so far has had the weakest easiest profile of any light rum I've had. Everything was soft and simple from texture, to light cane taste, a perfect go to rum.

However one of the things that people do associate with Turkey, is turkish coffee. I ordered some at a well known restaurant and got a good imbibing lesson. When you order Turkish coffee your host should ask whether you want it with or without sugar (orta), and it will be added in the preparation. You don't add it yourself when it is served.

The waiter kindly placed the cup on my table of which you see here where I already had some tastes. It had a much lighter nuttier taste than most espressos I've had, very enjoyable. Surprisingly though, it wasn't very sweet at all, which made me think that if I didn't have any sugar in this how incredibly bitter the coffee may have been.

I was also told by the waiter that if I ever order Turkish coffee I have to make sure there are bubbles on top. No bubbles on the top of your coffee when served, means it wasn't prepared right and will not be good.

I did make one mistake... The dregs of the coffee (unknown to me at the time) are left at the bottom of the cup, and as I was enjoying my coffee getting closer to the end I noticed grit. I wasn't sure if I was suppose to drink this, my first instinct was no. However, when it comes to imbibing I like to try anything once... just once, but I somehow thought maybe I'd culturally offend someone leaving hardly half a cup of coffee just lying on the table unfinished.

I kind of gleefully decided to take some more. My mouth was filled with an icky paste that went everywhere, which went in to every crevice of my teeth and mouth it could find, echoing the words.... you stupid ass foreigner.

Luckily I still had water in my glass and a quick rinse and a few gulps washed away everything. Had it not been there it probably would have been a nasty sight, particularly if I smiled at a cute waitress across the hall. The waiter came by and I asked if you were to leave the cup like that and he said yes yes absolutely! apologizing for not telling me earlier. He also said that the way you are to drink it is to take very slow sips off the surface of the drink, slowly... until you hit the grinds, thus as taking the coffee in layers, not by tilting you cup so much and gulping.

That was a very fun time let me tell you for imbibing, and a great lesson! But one thing sets apart all drink in Turkey, more than wine and spirits, more than coffee even. It is the life of the country... and a day should never go by as far as I am concerned in Turkey without drinking it. That drink is simply... tea, or as they call it çay (chai).

Chai is not like the chai you may have at an Indian restaurant. The chai served in Turkey is very similar to a basic English Orange Pekoe and it is everywhere. Chai jockeys as I started calling them go through the neighborhoods and businesses selling tea to shop owners, and anyone who passes by. Or you can just sit at a place and have it. Tea is even served on the ferries that go along the Bosphorus, and it's also dirt cheap.

The cost of a cup of tea can vary, but a standard one goes for about the equivalent of 50 cents to 1 US dollar. However, if you are in a touristy area they will charge you five times that amount. Unfortunately on one ferry trip when I asked for chai I was ignored and wasn't served, but that was just a weird exception.

Traveling through Turkey, watching people carry ornate glass trays like little pyramids, sitting with chai in hand, cupping hot glass and watching the lives of its citizens go by was probably one of my favorite memories on this entire trip.

I am pictured here just enjoying the time to sit at a small drink stop outside Istanbul university. One of the great things about imbibing is it gives you the opportunity to just sit, relax, and stop and smell the roses. That's why I like drinking.. That's why I imbibe.

PS - Turkish chai is a black tea. My guess of Orange Pekoe was a good one (not sure if it was 100% spot on still). Orange Pekoe is considered a medium grade black tea.

Imbibing in Romania... after leaving the Magyars..

2010-11-03T18:10:00.026-04:00

After spending some time in Hungary, Romania went by with a blur. Most of the time was spent just getting around from place to place hardly with time to settle in. Thus my chances for imbibing were far and few between.

However, I was in Sighişoara and there was a well known landmark. The old medieval village contains many famous sites that are UNESCO sanctioned, one being the house of Vlad Dracul. I am not going to spend details of who this person is cause I am sure you already know, but we were a bit tired and our thoughts wandered to the idea of putting our feet up and just having a drink. There was a place inside, and if we could ignore the Dracula figurine and reference to kitschy vampires that adorned the building we could at least relax and say well... we drank at Vlad's house.

I was told that in Romania you should have Black Beer. Black beer?? I thought? Sounds like a gimmick. What could be so distinctly different or unique about "black" beer? Well... really not much. I discovered on my travels that there were only two types of black beer. Both were literally identical to each other, cream colored heads, dark black in color, weak bodied, macro like produced. Not awful, but nothing truly different or memorable. They essentially tasted like typical Brown Ales without anything remarkable to write about. I was hoping I would be sinking my imbibing chops into something I never experienced beer wise... That... was wrong.

There are two known brands Ursus, and Silva. I suppose the Silva was slightly better not as alcohol palate tasting, but to say it was better than the other or a distinction that I would jump at the chance of ordering... that would be a big who gives a "****". Looking at the pictures the Silva has a lighter head color, if that means anything to you.

Ironically the most enjoyable and down right "whimsical" drink I had in Romania was courtesy of a cocktail that my wife ordered.

While in the Dracul house, kicking our feet up on tables that were too small... having to listen to techno music pumped in from a downstairs basement cafe that sold tiny pastries, we were presented with a menu that consisted of many items, but an interesting "Dracula" inspired cocktail was one that jumped off at us to sit back and relax and well... take in a drink as the rain came down.

Well... this tourist kitsch just doesn't get any more impressive than that doesn't it???

My wife ordered a cocktail inspired Dracula drink known as the "Vampire's Kiss". When my wife first ordered it, our waiter.. a rather young lad of barely 16+ years of age, came by and said sure, however then referencing in his best English then remarked, "I get other person... make it." He was implying that in this mode of sophistication that he could not make such a drink, which made me think he just never tried. He got someone else to do it for him in his panic of handling such a sophisticated production.

Nevertheless, someone else took care of business... while the young apprentice looked on behind the bar, as the older gentleman produced the libation. Not all the ingredients to the drink where disclosed in the menu, when I pressed for more information, I was told the drinks contents..... were a secret.

As I passed by while I consumed our appetizer of polenta I think called "mamaliga" consisting of a memorable piece of giant pork fat back, practically salt pork, we received the drink cocktail to imbibe on pictured here before you.

I must admit this cocktail that was made consisting of simple fruit juice, cheap vodka, and some basic wine, was very creative. There it was adorned with a giant impaling skewer through a lemon, as if blood (the wine) flowed on top hanging there in it's depths while the fruit sat juice sat on the bottom. There was even a flare to the skewer as if it commanded authority from Vlad himself.

Taste. Basic. Vodka, carton orange juice, cheap wine, not exactly high class ingredients, but the combination wasn't one that made you get out your gag reflex. No complaints, nothing sophisticated in palate, but a presentation worthy of applause and it felt like some thought really went in to showing this drink off that many cocktail purists here couldn't even touch. The drink seemed to have more eye candy appeal and thought in to it, then high glass ingredient cocktails I've had back home that looked just boring in appearance.

As we sat and finished our drink, I wondered if there was more I could do to imbibe in Romania.

Well it seemed like time wasn't going to give me that opportunity, or the research needed to find out. I did have some local cheap wine with dinner, but it consisted of a Merlot that was the equivalent of your typical Yellow Tail.

Not much to get excited about, but it will do the job when it's only 7 dollars a bottle (in a restaurant no less.. cheaper in the grocery store even more so).

Still.... there would be more imbibing to do, and lots to learn about when visiting another country I had poor assumptions about when it comes to drink. For the next country on the trip was Turkey... and some things ... just throw you for a loop and surprise you when you think the world Muslim and alcohol which when it comes to Turkey is a very ignorant assumption (Turkey is a secular nation, although pre-dominantly Muslim, however this blog is about the joy of drink, not about divisive politics and/or religion. The point is... the point is moot.). Turkey was a pleasant surprise for imbibing, and note even because of alcohol which yes Ginger... does exist there and is widely available! Guess what.... SHHHH... they even make their own!

Stay tuned...

Beer for breakfast! And not just because of oatmeal!

2010-11-02T21:48:00.016-04:00

I had been drinking quite a few Imperial stouts of late and was really enjoying them. I came across something that sort of caught my attention many times when imbibing beer. I saw many stouts listed as containing oats, and calling themselves Oatmeal Stouts. It was time... to become acquainted with such drink...

I settled in on Founders and a curious item that was called a Breakfast stout. I thought this was an odd product but if my love of espresso and beer was good this should be a match made in heaven.

The other item that I had to try for comparison and highly recommended to me was Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout from Anderson Valley. A large bottle consisting of a label picturing an idyllic mountain background, western lettering, and California produced roots even equipped with a sunny yellow bottle cap with the adoring words "Solar Powered Brewery".

So what's the verdict? Well they are both two fantastic beers but they are also dramatically different from each other. The Founders is one of the only "coffee-like" beers I have had thus far that I really REALLY enjoy. This is a coffee lovers beer, and ironically with the malt and hop profile on it, it feels like fresh HOT brewed coffee. This is no joke... a breakfast beer, you could have this first thing in the morning. The bitterness from hops, that Founders uses in all their beers, is used to balance the sweetness of the malts and also used as a natural preservative, so mentioned to me by Head Brewer Jeremy Kosmicki.

I was wondering if hops were really what I detected in Founders, but I was correct in thinking so. I emailed Founders about their great product and discovered that they put hops in ALL their beers.

Barney Flats is very different. Big sweet Ovaltine like nose, coming in with a big fruit berry finish, well balanced. Highly drinkable.

Don't take my word for it, see the video review below. CHEERS!

In Tokaji Hungary, Imbibing is anything but BORing. Part 3

2010-10-31T14:55:00.065-04:00

After some imbibing hell, it was time to go through imbibing nirvana. I had picked Hungary for my vacation because I "specifically" wanted to go to Tokaji's wine region. Hungary as I mentioned before is primarily a wine consuming nation. Bor, as wine is called in Hungary is also primarily white, but not all of it. In fact Hungary has been making white wine for centuries, and only started making red wine during the 16th century.

However, as there are many wine regions in Hungary to choose from, none is probably more well known and famous as the Tokaji region for its sweet wines particularly the ones known as Aszú. I could spend pages here talking about all the cellars I went to in Tokaji. There are several just within the town region, some are new, some aren't, but you can walk around from cellar to cellar trying wine till your legs fall off. There is also a wine bar nearby where you can just go to one place to have wine from several producers.

Contrary to popular belief, not all Tokaji wines are sweet they can be dry as well. There were 3 things that stuck out at me as I was visiting this region. One is that I was concerned going around to cellars and trying wine was going to break my pocket book. If anything it was opposite. Even the cheapest Tokaji wine is solid with a glass going for barely a few US dollar and it tastes anything but cheap. Secondly this was the first time I visited a European wine region and I was concerned that there would be a lot of pretentiousness and ego. This was not the case at all as producers let anyone taste their wine, many times giving it to me for free. Finally there was nothing NOTHING here that I tried, old, new, sweet, dry, cheap, expensive, that I found that wasn't worth consuming. There was not a single bad boring wine not worth tasting here, from going to a well established producer like Hétszőlő 1996 6 puttonyos Aszú, A Pincéset 1993 Aszúcencia, or visiting some persons small basement having wine out of a plastic jug.

It is hard to determine where to begin. Perhaps I'll mention an interesting characteristic. In the cellars of the hills there is a distinct mold that grows in the cellars that many believe creates a flavor to the wine. Also one of the other things is that the grapes used to make Aszú are made with botrytis grapes (a fungus), and those definitely impart a dramatic taste to the wine. Noble rot indeed!

As I mentioned you can have dry Tokaji wines, many are made with the Furmint varietal grape. In fact I had one of the most shocking dry wines here. I tasted a 1995 dry Furmint Vivamus Pincézet that had the nose of a caramel tawny port, but tasted like a great dry wine with acidity. In fact there are too many wines I had that I just can't talk about them all.

Wines had caramel, body, acid, mint, mango, butter, oak, floral notes, sugar, honey, hot pepper finishes, spice boxes, jam preserves, dried raisins, creme brulee, even Christmas fruitcake on the nose and/or palate. One of the Hímesudvar 2002 Aszú had legs so big that when swirled a concentric solid ring coated the glass, fell all consistently, and never even broke.

Wine is often served to you not just in the bottle but straight from containers, sometimes the barrels themselves. Often the proprietor will stick a long giant glass rod and siphon the liquid gold out for you, keeping their finger on the end of the rod and dispensing it into your glass.

Many of the cellars I went to had of course the distinct mold inside, but also they had another characteristic. Many people come and stick in the mold and walls many coins, some hang paper notes on strings, or leave other mementos of their visit. Soccer pennants was a common one I would see adorned on the walls, many of them hard to read as the mold would overtake them.

While first traveling in to Tokaji, the train goes by a very large vineyard which is part of Hétszőlő. Many times I went back here only having a hard time finding its tasting room. Turns out I was going to the actual production winery, and was directed to go in town to their tasting cellar which is the oldest in the town. In fact a Hungarian king was crowned inside its depths.

A young man who spoke the best English came out to talk with me about the companies operations. It was quite fascinating as he pointed out to me the bins of botrytis laced grapes, I could even eat them!

They were just finishing up harvesting, harvest time actually starts around early October and we were just coming to the end of it. I immediately then thought to ask a question, probably the one that makes the most sense when you visit any producer. "Did you have a good year?" which is what I asked, wondering if the harvest is going to produce really good quality wine. He mentioned to me that there was too much rain this summer and that they don't think it's going to be that great, however he did say they did have lots of fungus laden grapes, so those might actually be quite good.

I thanked the Hungarian guy who spoke English with a French accent about taking the time out to share with me some of the things going on at the winery. I hardly expected a big known producer to just do this with some ordinary tourists who were just walking around casually without a care in the world.

Hetzolo's wines are really good by the way.

That being said, I went to another cellar where something very interesting happened. We were just about done, stumbling back to our hotel, when we passed by a place and figured well why not we'll check it out. The wines were good, the place was messy. The cellar was filled with HUNDREDS of empty liquor bottles, everything from wine, to beer, to bottles of Bacardi. What is up with this place I thought? We were being siphoned wine from jugs which was quite fun, having a good time. Everything was inexpensive there was not pressure what so ever. Suddenly our host an older man, came to our table and placed a very old molded bottle on our table.

We had already been to several wineries, had enough wine at his place and I sort of quickly motioned him to stop pouring. He then spoke in his best English "mini" meaning he was just giving us a real small taste of something. And that something was really interesting as he pointed to the bottle on the table. He was pointing at the bottle on the table, and then our glass as to say this is what this is, please look. I glanced at the bottle and my jaw nearly hit the floor.

What he was pointing at was a 1962 bottle of Tokaji Aszú. I sort of sat there frozen. Did this guy just pour me a 50+ year old Aszú? I thought fast. Okay... the guy is old so maybe he did make this, check, but I didn't see him take this out of the barrel. Where was this magic wine coming from? He had to take it out of a barrel somewhere (which there were many in the cellar), but I did not witness this. The bottle didn't have a producers name on it. Was this fake? Regardless this was a gift he was letting me try, he wasn't asking me to pay for tasting it.

I stopped my paranoia and suddenly just got in to focus to taste the wine. I put behind all doubts and just took it in.

This is what it looks like to drink it...

And this is what it feels like after...

Having tasted the wine it was quite and experience. The wine had the bouquet of an incredibly caramel chocolate honey port. Taste was divine with the similar notes on the bouquet, but it had a certain acidity to it that ports just don't have, there was even some of trademark mold taste on it as well. This was unlike anything I have ever had in my life.

I am not sure though what happened. Is this for real??? I kept asking myself. There was a phone number on the bottle. How was that possible in 62? It was hard to get a phone in Communist times. Another producer when I asked him about how the vineyards survived during the Communist era told me many where flat out ripped out. What was going on here? Did the guy just buy basic port and put this in a barrel for a few years? Or was this hidden under wraps and continuously aged for decades with a label slapped on it later? I had to stop thinking about it and just enjoy the experience.

After all of that there was still much imbibing to consume the following day. I found that I really enjoyed the Sárgamuskotály and Hárslevelü varietals. Furmints were also just a good basic white wine grape, and a good Aszu is just spectacular (although tasting several of them can be a bit much, they are VERY sweet).

Probably though a good memory stood out on my visit which happened as my wife and I were making plans to leave our town and go on a long train ride to Romania.

We were stocking up on some food and drink for the train ride and walked into a store to buy some basic wine. It was in plastic giant 2L bottles and really cheap.

We realized that even the basic wines always offered a good time and a good place to be, whether its carefully crafted or just basically made. I think what got to me was that it seemed like making this wine that the people of this region inhabit seemed so effortless. Everyone just seemed to make wine and it was as if it was the easiest thing to do to such as putting socks on in the morning.

I wish it was so simple where I lived, and more importantly I wish I could do this so easily myself.

That said, the imbibing trip to Tokaji and also the imbibing portion of Hungary was complete. It was now time to go on to other lands and see what they offered.

Somehow I knew there was no place I was going between here and Istanbul that would produce drink better than Tokaji so I just had to sit back and enjoy the long train ride, and make my 2 litres of Muscat Tokaji last and last. It wasn't that hard really, you can do it elegantly....

Or just do it with reckless abandon...

Somehow I know Tokaji, I will be back. Can't wait for a return.

Wineries visited:

Benkö Borház
Hétszölö
Hímesudvar
Peter Csaladi Pincészet
several small local cellars...

Some of the wines imbibed:

2003 Benkö Borház Tokaji Szamorodni (purchased)
2007 Hímesudvar Tokaji Furmint
2007 Hímesudvar Tokaji Sárgamuskotály
2006 Hímesudvar Tokaji Kövérszölö
2006 Hímesudvar Tokaji Furmint
2003 Hímesudvar Tokaji Cuvée
2002 Hímesudvar Tokaji Aszú
2009 Hétszölö Tokaji Furmint
2007 Hétszölö Tokaji Hárslevelü
2007 Hétszölö Tokaji Sárgamuskotály (purchased)
2005 Hétszölö Tokaji Édes Szamorodni
2003 Hétszölö Tokaji Forditás
2001 Hétszölö Tokaji Aszú 5 puttonyos
2001 Hétszölö Tokaji Aszú 6 puttonyos
2001 Hétszölö Tokaji Muskotalyos Aszú 5 puttonyos
1999 Hétszölö Tokaji Hárslevelü Aszú 6 puttonyos (purchased)
1996 Hétszölö Tokaji Aszú 6 puttonyos
2004 Peter Csaladi Pincészet Aszú 5 puttonyos
2003 Peter Csaladi Pincészet Aszú 3 puttonyos
2009 Peter Csaladi Pincészet Hárslevelü
2006 Peter Csaladi Pincészet Sárgamuskotály
2003 Furminit (producer forget)
1995 Vivamus Pincészet Szamorodni
1993 Vivamus Pincészet Aszú 6 puttonyos
2000 Vivamus Pincészet Aszúesszencia
1999 Andrássy Pincészet Tokaji Aszú 3 puttonyos
2008 Babits Pincészet Sárgamuskotály
2006 Babits Pincészet Cuvée
1993 Tokaj Hills Pincészet Aszúesszencia
Giant bottle of Sárgamuskotály from Borostyán Pince non vintage
1962 unknown Aszúesszencia

If you want to share more knowledge of Tokaji and the wines from this region, please contact me.

Trip to Jupiter is cocktail nirvana!

2010-10-31T14:10:00.011-04:00

Having spent some time reading up on old cocktails I came across one of many intriguing cocktails in Ted Haigh's Vintage Cocktail and Spirits book. One of them immediately caught my attention for 2 reasons. Firstly, the cocktail was described needing specific measurements of a teaspoon. Suggestions were strongly mentioned in writing that coffee spoons, or just eyeballing it "wouldn't cut it". Secondly you would need one item besides gin, vermouth, and orange juice. You would need a special liqueur I have never heard of before called Parfait Amour. If you didn't measure this liqueur in the cocktail correctly, it would overpower everything.

Parfait Amour is actually a very interesting liqueur. It has a grape jelly bean quality, with marshmallows, somewhat orange-"y", and even a little licorice aftertaste. It does seem kind of well... "girly" but at 50 proof it can pack a punch. It is not to be taken lightly.

Here is how to make the great classic Jupiter cocktail based on Ted Haigh's suggestion. Try one for youself it's great.

Trip to hell and back but don't call this Hungarian doctor. Imbibing in Hungary Part 2

2010-10-29T16:21:00.028-04:00

As I was traveling around Hungary, and parts of Eastern Europe I began to notice something. Trips through towns, small areas, souvenir stands, even local grocery stores all seemed to carry an imbibing product that was ubiquitous. It was everywhere I went. Sitting on store and stand shelves stood bottles in the liquor section of a product that had a distinct mark. The mark contained a simple cross surrounded by a red background, it beckoned as some sort of medical cure all. AH HA! I thought this is something I must try, the bottle was intriguing, my mind raced about what would be inside. It's Hungarian made in Zwack, does it contain paprika? I was excited and figured it was some sort of digestif which it turns out I was correct. But what the contents included and provided to me was not what I was expecting.

Finally towards the end of my trip I set out and grabbed a small bottle to sample. I recommend that if you do want to purchase it in Hungary, do so out of Budapest because the prices of the product are cheaper. That being said, as days went by in Hungary the bottles kept calling out to me as if they knew I wanted it. Many bottles were also uniquely shaped. I settled on a standard round one which sometimes I would find decorated as a painted soccer ball. I came back to my hotel room all excited. Not bothering to ask anyone what it was, or research it, or what it tasted like, left me giddy and highly anticipating it. I put the bottle in my hotel fridge in the morning, and told myself it would probably be better cold and I should enjoy it after a nice day coming back in the evening, preferably after dinner. Ah I could come back after some sights, indulge the local cuisine, put my feet up, and then taste what was inside. I wanted to be surprised. And surprised is an understatement when I had this.

This is a bottle of Unicum liquor.

Unicum, is a Hungarian product made in Zwack (here is the company site link). It pours a very dark brown color out of the bottle. I looked at it. "Boy this sure looks like Jägermeister!" I thought. Which got me even more excited because I actually really enjoy Jägermeister. I already had joyous visions of myself carrying the product around Europe, occasionally stealing wondeful sips as I sat back on the train through the countryside. I took a whiff and it smelled like Jäger also, very herbal but one thing stood out. It was considerably stronger, and there was also a bitter smell. "Well..." I thought, "this should be fun!" I figured with much glee as I set forth placing a good solid few ounces in my glass, and placed a nice cool ounces of dark brown in my palate... swallowing in one big gulp. And the result and imbibing moment can be described as so...

This stuff... is absolutely AWFUL!!

"WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING?!?!?" I kind of yelled out loud to myself... One thing struck me instantly after quaffing this FOUL stuff. This is SOOOooo bitter that it makes medicine taste attractive. The herb like Jäger smell was completely gone, there was no sweetness, but only a massive bitter taste that felt like a really bad Angostura pumped up on steroids. I sat down on the edge of my hotel bed, to think about what abomination I just consumed, only to feel the bitterness lingering and LINGERING and NEVER going away. This stuff sticks around in your mouth FOREVER, it just gets worse. The logo on the bottle now reminded me of medicine that was suppose to be of the variety that it tastes so bad because it's suppose to fix that horrible sickness you currently have. Only drinking this will make you feel as if you just got Dengue fever. I even thought what could you mix this with? and my mind suddenly shuddered at how this "thing" would just overpower and dominate whatever you would put it in.

The bitterness felt so bad that in my wrecked mind I figured if I had another bit of it, it could somehow wash the bitterness and get past it and taste something. Doing so validated only one of the most useful phrases that I have known. The definition of stupidity, is to do the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results. I was REAL STUPID to keep trying to drink this thing.

This experiment WAS OVER.

Looking back and researching the product since being home they mention (like Jager) to serve this ice cold. Well it was in the fridge and not the freezer when I had it, but still I even have had cool and sometimes lukewarm Jager and I still enjoy it. I am not sure having it from the freezer would have made a difference. Their website also contained cocktail recipes which made me feel as I was looking at a horror movie. A sample of "Zwacktails" as they call them, made my stomach just cringe. Reading the ingredients for a "Zwackoff" included the Unicum with... Smirnoff Orange and a splash of Energy drink... Good friggin lord that sounds like the epitome of grossness.

Speaking of Energy drinks... why do people drink those things? I still don't get them they all taste horrible, and when I got to Hungary after surviving Unicum I figured a trip to Hell couldn't be worse. I was wrong.

I saw this hilarious looking can on store shelves. This is a "Hell" can of Vodka Energy drink. So... you have an energy drink laced with vodka at about 5% ABV. So what is the point of this? Is this for alcoholic marathoners or something? You're suppose to drink cheap vodka but then have the energy to maybe do the Boston marathon? Seriously... WHY?

I knew this was going to be nasty, one look at the pour and I was greeted with a fizzy head that disappeared instantly leaving a bubbling piss colored yellow glass. What is this? a fucking urine sample I am suppose to drink or something?

Worse is the smell. Sour apples, and... no joke... it smells like body odor. 20 day old sweaty gym socks.

Taste.. like a sacchariney typical energy drink, what vodka? you can't even tell it is there, is that a good thing? Not that vodka has any taste to begin with... What is this dysfunctional gimmicks angle? Frat parties I guess. Here you have a drink that basically cancels everything out, at 5% you probably couldn't even get drunk on this stuff, but spend more time at the toilet pissing like a racehorse after your 7th can. I gave the toilet the better benefit of the doubt and poured it all down the head. Poor toilet...

Actually the angle for this product wasn't that surprising. I remember back when energy drinks came out and trying one and hating it. They were of course not filled with alcohol either. However, one time I was taken out to a bar in Florida and I saw people ordering energy drinks with their shots. A couple of roided jocks were doing this (long story), and I soon discovered that people in bars did this so they could drink more... I also learned where I grew up that in Canada certain places caught on to this and local governments started banning the sale of energy drinks in bars.

That being said I sort of understand the appeal but once you get older the gimmick wears off fast. As you get older, you start appreciating alcohol for different reasons, mostly because you start realizing that drinking shouldn't be... a sport. We've all been there at some point (beer pong anyone?) but when it comes to true imbibing and joy, energy drinks are one thing I'll always stay away from.

There would be some even better imbibing in Hungary soon, but I would be staying away from these items. As I passed the grocery store isle at the Penny Mart in Tokaj I noticed other charming funny cans next to Hell which I thought about buying as fun souvenirs. One can was simply called "Don't Stop". I just said to myself, "Uh no thanks... I don't think I'll even start."

--------------------------------

Update: November 17th 2010

FDA Calls 7 caffeine-alcohol drinks unsafe...

Imbibe Hour hits the road in Hungary Part 1

2010-10-29T12:32:00.015-04:00

It was time for a vacation. I do like to travel and visit foreign lands and set out to Europe again but to areas I thought would be interesting and perhaps not peoples first choices (like France, Spain, England etc..). Interesting is putting it mildly how the experiences came out. There were some good, some bad, but all of it highly memorable. They also provided opportunities to imbibe (in particular one stop that was a key destination I had desired for its wine) and much to write about. More on that soon...

My first stop was Hungary, and I landed first in the capital city Budapest. Arriving jet lagged from New York I took a private arranged ride from the airport, being whisked away through old gray buildings with highly decorated columns, narrow cobblestone sidewalks, and crossing the Danube to the Buda side of the city over one of it's many gorgeous bridges. My wife and I arrived at our hotel and the imbibing commenced almost immediately.

In our hotel room was some basic dry white wine, nothing too crazy to write up about but it was certainly nice to kick back and drink something after such a long flight. However, the next morning we were given a complimentary gift of bubbly at our first breakfast. The picture you see above is of a very common bubbly called BB semi/dry from Balaton Boglár. This one is described as a medium dry sparkling wine (you can't call it Champagne of course...) and it was fairly good. Crisp, sweetness to taste but a little sweeter than I expected for a "medium dry" but even some fruit. It reminded me of Chandon actually but the bottles cost a heck of a lot less if you buy it at the store, and its probably a better value than Chandon. So far the imbibing conquest was going well, so what else did I run into?

Well Hungary has beer. Yup no kidding.. who knew huh? Of course it has beer and there were many macro-brews that seemed to be common. Dreher was the one I seemed to find all over the country. Dreher is a Pillsner. So how is it? Actually fairly decent. Good color, excellent head, some decent lacing, some possible wheat smell (that doesn't mean necessarily there is wheat used in the beer. I am not sure.) on the nose and very faint citrus, but it has that sweet fakeness and felt some sweet possible corn-like taste also in the palate to myself. Decent lacing, not too carbonated either there was some hop finish but very faint. For a macro produced beer this was actually ok, and it's also quite cheap. I'd grade it a B- maybe C+ slightly better than average.

There are many other beers that you could get at probably any sort of supermarket to imbibe on. Yes you can get basic alcohol at pretty much any supermarket in Hungary. It's one of the many reasons I enjoy Europe because it is so easy to imbibe there. Quite often in Europe, the beer and wine is cheaper than water (which you have to pay for in restaurants). It makes for interesting days when you're not drinking water that's for sure.

There were other things to grab that seemed to be abundant as well besides beer and wine.
One of the most interesting finds in Hungary fell in the spirits category, the classic Eau Di Vie, or specifically a fruit brandy that is common known as pálinka. Pálinka comes in many flavors and I tried several. Things is they were all pretty much similar at least the ones I had pictured here. Big burn, and the fruit component on pálinka seems to be more of an aftertaste after swallowing, not a taste you feel on the palate at all. Problem with that is that they all start to taste the same. However, the apricot pictured here had the most flavor, the others were all fairly marginal, and the Bodza (I don't know what that is I think it is Black Currant) I really found kind of bitter and not very pleasant to drink. Doing some research here at home, it appears pálinka comes in varying degrees of quality depending on the producer which there seems to be many. This producer pictured here I believe is Szicsek. Left to right is Blackberry, Peach, Apricot, Cherry and I think Black Currant.

So after a few days things were starting off well on the imbibing trail, but is this really all there is for Hungary? Of course not. What I did know before going is that Hungary is primarily a WINE consuming nation, and there will be more about that soon... but first I had to go through an imbibing hell here and back first. I did live (although barely) to tell you the tale. Stay tuned my friends and I will tell you all about it.

On the road to Bridgeport and Tugboat. The imbibing trail in Portland never ends.

2010-10-11T18:05:00.017-04:00

Leaving Rogue, my next stop was Bridgeport Brew Pub. I entered a really nice warehouse designed space, with hues of dark brown, friendly chatter, well dressed clientele, and a few families with kids. It was a very different atmosphere than the usual beer places I was at before, trying to emphasize perhaps some sophistication. Other places were more focused on beer, while here maybe you could get more?

Staff was gracious, and the place seemed more like a good restaurant than a place focused on making great beer. I can't comment on all the food but the mussels are fantastic.

Anyway, I sat down near the bar to look up and see a listing of the eight beers that were offered. The picture pretty much explains it all, here were all their beers on tap including a seasonal that was listed on the far right.

I decided to bite the bullet and try all eight beers. Considering that this was the fourth place I went out drinking I knew I had to watch myself. I did realize that I was probably not going to finish everything that was offered to me, but that's ok. The important thing was to get the taste of the beer and see how it measured up.

The imbibing results are as follows. Haymaker an Extra Pale Ale had a sour nose, very light bodied in taste and mouthfeel, with some bread on the end. It was average if I could say, the sourness threw me off. Blue Heron, a Pale Ale had a light copper color but no nose, and a small lemon taste to it. Ropewalker was a very closed bouquet virtually no nose on it of even hops or anything I could get. For me it was unfortunately not very memorable in taste. The IPA however was starting to make things a bit better. Orange smell, grapefruit finish similar to the Deschutes Inverson but not as strong. There were was no bitterness and little hops. I like to have just a little bitter but not too much in my IPA. The ESB however was fairly good, with a nice thick head, mellow taste and mouthfeel, actually a little creamy. That says a bit considering I am not an ESB fan, it wasn't bitter however. The porter is quite good, tobacco nose with some smoke. A roasty aroma in taste in the mouth with a decent finish. Hop Czar is an Imperial IPA, consisting of a good nose, hops, lemon, citrus. Taste continues those notes from hops to lemon to grapefruit in that order, and a slightly bitter finish. Quite a good one, the head though did not stick around. Last but not least was the seasonal Hop Harvest Ale, another fresh hop 1 hour beer. The nose on this was not very obvious, but it was similar in taste to the other IPA with grapefruit and lemon but hardly bitter at all.

In conclusion while there was some beer worth drinking here, I found most of the beers disappointing compared to other places I had been. "Ok we're done right?" I said to my colleague. "Naw man we got to go to Tugboat! You gonna finish that!?" he said pointing to my collection of hardly empty plastic cups. "Naw..." I admitted.. "Go ahead..."

As much as I was happy to get through the tasting, it was a good thing it took us some time to get to our next venue. I arrived at Tugboat having a hard time finding the place.

I was pretty happy though we found it, it is quite cozy inside, it resembles more of a coffee house with bookshelves and clientele looking like they should be having a latte instead of a pint.

Unfortunately, I was greeted nicely but with disappointing news. They only had one of their beers available, a stout. Well I figured I might as well have it. In the end it had a little molasses on the front nose, not much body or flavor in the mouth. There wasn't much of a head on it, it looked a little weak and perhaps past its prime. However at 14% ABV it wasn't too strong tasting, and had tastes of cocoa slightly, but also a surprising berry fruit finish. Too bad there wasn't a lot to to try here, but the female bartender was quite perky and enjoyable to be around.

Stealing spirits away from the brewery, acting like a Rogue in Portland

2010-10-11T15:20:00.015-04:00

Rogue brewery and distillery is probably one of the most well know beer places in Portland. In my time spent in DC I would see Rogue's beers all over on the shelves. I discovered they make spirits as well, and bought a light rum of theirs which I did in a blind tasting. In that tasting I picked up a tasty rum that had a nutty almost almond component to it. It was very good. When I discovered they made gin and whiskey I knew what I wanted to sink my imbibing teeth in to if I ever visited.

I arrived at the bar, and was greeted immediately with a drink. "Here ya go", said the friendly guy behind the bar, "This is our Chateau Wet Hop." he finished placing a glass right in front me waiting for me to consume. So how about that, you walk in to the place.. and they give you free beer. The Wet Hop Ale was very grassy on the nose, but was fairly easy drinking, nothing too excited to get crazy about.

Now of course I was not going to take advantage of this and just leave oh no... There was much work to be done. Rogue I find is kind of overwhelming cause they make so much stuff it seems. Their beer list is extensive, and it's charmingly displayed with a muscle made man in various forms of dress, and always with a prominent red star displayed. Many times I can never remember which unique bottle contains what. However, I remembered that I was really intent on having the spirits here. When I glanced up at the board looking at a good spirit listing, I saw gin, rum and whiskey calling out to me.

"I'll have the Dead Guy Whiskey", I remarked, highly anticipating having more goodness. I sort of caught the bartender heading for the beer taps and then pouring. No no.. I mentioned... Whiskey... Ah he said, and grabbed me a shot. The Dead Guy Ale just so you know felt like it had a blueberry nose on it a bit with that same profile on the finish. The bartender already poured it. So what was the whiskey like?

Buttery. A very good front nose, buttery in smell and taste, and finish. It's all I could remember from it, like eating a stick of butter with some sweetness. Very tasty!

I was with someone during this time, and he ordered us oyster shooters while pounding back our bounty. He his stouts, me my whiskey, when I suddenly realized that whiskey and oysters is NOT a good food pairing by any stretch of the imagination.

Luckily when you are at the source, you can always count on help. I quickly asked the bartender for a beer that was something local, something that you probably couldn't find on the East coast (where I live). He remarked, "Try the Northwestern Ale."

AH! Perfect. He poured a great red headed copper color beer, which I quickly plunged my snout into.

Cinnamon, which was a real surprise, with a wet hoppy-ness taste and some citrus flavor. Perfect for my oyster. This was a very pleasant beer and quite surprising. I don't think I've ever had a beer that had such a distinct cinnamon nose on it.

Still I had to focus. SPIRITS man... SPIRITS... you're here for the SPIRITS... oh yeah right. I realized though that I had to pace myself. I got my colleague to order the Spruce Gin. Smooth with a piney front nose and a lemon finish, not harsh, a great tasting gin.

By this time after Clear Creek, Deschutes, and now Rogue, I was getting my fill. "Hey!" my colleague mentioned, "I need to eat" so we headed off to Bridgeport for of course... more beer and imbibing. I glanced at my watch. It was only 1:30. oh man... the day is just getting started.

AW SHOOT, why I need to come to Deschutes more often.

2010-10-11T11:23:00.024-04:00

After having a morning breakfast of spirits (see previous blog posting), my next stop was to get some tasting and lunch.

When I first arrived in Portland I happened upon Deschutes by accident. I arrived early and had time to wait for my scheduled pickup, so I sat a nearby bar in PDX and ordered one of my favorite beer styles an IPA. It was the Inversion IPA from this brewery, and I had it on tap. It was a great beer and an explosion of grapefruit, and tasty hops. Woah! Welcome to Portland I'll say! Who are these guys? I certainly didn't hear or think of looking them up before I came.

Still the place lingered in the back of my head. I was sort of confused still about how to say their name. It didn't seem to role off the tongue easily, but the beer sure was memorable. After leaving Barista one morning I just happened to walk by their brewery just by luck in the Pearl district. Is this a sign? It was as if karma was telling me that I had to keep this place in mind. I glanced upon a perfectly hung neon sign jutting out at a perfect angle from the corner of a real nice brick building. Oh yeah, that's that place that made that tasty IPA I said to myself. Perhaps... I should... go here some time.... I made a mental note.... and walked away...

After my visit to Clear Creek I needed lunch and I wanted beer. When talking to someone the previous day, they mentioned they were at Deschutes and then started raving. DUDE they take hops from the field, in an HOUR and they are at the brewery and the make the beer right then and there man! There needed to be no more persuasion, the die had been cast. I was going to Deschutes.

I settled in and saw a great row of taps, and a beer menu that looked incredibly enticing. A sampler of six was available, and in many way I though about just getting three at a time so my beers wouldn't sit so long. But that's okay, the lunch time crowd was coming in, it was a little dark inside, somewhat noisy, there was no need to get super serious about this. I could enjoy the beer just so.

First was the Gluten Free ESB. I am not usually a fan of ESBs and the fact that this was a "Gluten-Free" ale had me confused. There were slight hops but a weak body and finish. I figured to try this one just out for curiosity of this "Gluten Free" concept, but in the end I have to say I actually didn't like this beer. In fact this was the only beer in Deschutes I had that I didn't want to drink. As I mentioned ESBs are not my thing (I did have a slightly better ESB at Bridgeport). That's okay I figured there were more. Next I had the Fresh Hop Mirror Pond, described from the menu as a staff favorite. This was pretty amazing. An apple like fruit nose with chewy hops, tasting of a squash body (much like Hair of the Dogs "Greg") nutty and a sweet finish. Finally things started getting good. Next was King Cone... oh man a nice wonderful slight smoke on the nose, transforming into pine (that was mentioned in the description and I agree with it). Citrus in finish but also has some resin and a lingering great hop taste. This was really impressive beer and much fun to be imbibing.

I was set on tasting the rest when suddenly someone approached me. "Excuse me?" I glanced up to see a young woman staring at me. "Oh hi!" I said... not sure what to say next, did this person work here? The young woman asked if I was a beer reviewer since she saw me across the room dunking my nose and writing notes. I told her about the blog and my writings, and she was from Napa and worked for a winery. We both loved the beer here and she felt the Mirror Pond also tasted like Schnapps. We shared great conversation about Napa and the Pinot Noirs here and had a nice chat. Hopefully if she is reading this she can send me her contact info of where she works. It was a nice chat.

Shortly after our conversation ended I sat to work on the next three beers. Summer's Gone Saison had a bitter nose, peppery as described and fruity. Is this a HefeWeizen? There was one on the menu and this sure looked and smelled like one. Tasting the beer it was lemony and also tasted like one. It was good it did feel like more alcohol perhaps than the Hefe so I guess this is it, but it sure felt like at first I was served the wrong thing.

Jubelale was next, dark and tasty agreed with the description provided, thrusting my pencil underlining hop bitterness on the menu, and detecting a faint anise in the aftertaste.

And with all that I finished with the Hop trip, perfectly as described with a fruit nose (couldn't pick that fruit out), and a chewy wet mouthfeel.

I settled back and took stock of great fresh hop beer much satisfied. I was set to leave when I just decided to take in the menu again looking up at the board above. Something jumped up at me that I had missed. "Cask IPA".

Shit... I was all set and packed away and ready to go (someone had called and I was meeting them shortly) when I realized I needed to try a sample. I quickly asked for it and then set to trying it out. Oh my god... a nose and taste loaded with hops, fruit, grapefruit, a buttery taste even some caramel. This had to be the only cask beer I have had that reminded of Bourbon characteristics, Butter, caramel, some oak... dear god it was good. I wanted a pint, a big friggin glass of this right then and there. Unfortunately I couldn't stay, and that was torture defined... right there. I have returned home since this write up, and I still think of that little glass sitting on the edge of the bar between me and the door, how I wish I could go back and fill it up right now. I still think about this place, I am thinking about it RIGHT NOW... and it's killing me. I want that cask IPA so bad. Somehow I will return for it and I will not ignore Deschutes any longer. Forgive me for not noticing you earlier for I have sinned, and I will come back to the chapel and repay in kind for not noticing you earlier.