June 17, 2005
Blue Paddle
Last week we went a-lookin' for some of the excellent St. Arnold Summer Pilsner. Sadly, we couldn't find any, so we sampled some Blue Paddle, another Pilsner brewed by New Belgium Brewing out in Colorado. They're probably better known for there Fat Tire beer, but I liked the pilsner quite a bit more.
Posted by stan at 12:52 AM
June 10, 2005
Modelo Especial
Sadly, the Era of Cheap Mexican Beers is rapidly coming to an end, I'll remember it fondly...
Posted by stan at 07:14 PM
June 05, 2005
Summit Hefeweizen
Sara & I sampled this Hefeweizen from the Summit Brewing Company while in Chicago last week. I'm not a big fan of this type of beer, but Sara seemed to enjoy it thouroughly.
Posted by stan at 03:55 PM
Summit Hefeweizen
Sara & I sampled this Hefeweizen from the Summit Brewing Company while in Chicago last week. I'm not a big fan of this type of beer, but Sara seemed to enjoy it thouroughly.
Posted by stan at 03:55 PM
May 21, 2005
Pacifico
Posted by stan at 10:39 PM
March 19, 2005
Freckled Mexican
Sara and I invented a new drink tonight, the Freckled Mexican, which is half Guinness and half Tecate. When I drink one, it makes me feel tougher than a boll weevil in a sugar jar.
Posted by stan at 10:38 PM
March 05, 2005
Bohemia
We've temporarily suspended the Era of Cheap Mexican Beer to sample a kind of expensive Mexican Beer.
Posted by stan at 02:03 PM | Comments (1)
March 02, 2005
Speaking Of Beer
Speaking of beer, Sara brought home some Lamar Street Pale Ale from the local Whole Foods the other day. Turns out that our old friends at the Goose Island Beer Company brewed up this selection but sells it under Whole Foods' brand. Apparently, they're not sure the fine folks in Chicago are ready to go off the organic deep end with their beers just yet. Anyway, it isn't bad, though it falls short of my beloved Sierra Nevada Pale.
Posted by stan at 09:00 PM
Fancy Lawnmower
Thanks to a prolonged sale down at the local Rice Epicurian Market, we've been sampling more products from the fine St. Arnold's Brewery. I recommend the Fancy Lawnmower. Best part is, if you collect a bunch of empty six-pack carriers and bring them down to the brewery, you get free stuff .
Posted by stan at 07:39 PM
February 09, 2005
Good Old Boddingtons
I've always enjoyed a nice cold, creamy Boddingtons Pub Ale on tap, but it is just as good out of the nitro can and has become a staple in the nohatnocattle refrigerator over the last few years. It has taken a bit of a backseat lately during the current Era of Cheap Mexican Beer, but I think it has an inside track on being selected as one of the wedding reception beers in May.
Any suggestions on other beers we should serve?
Posted by stan at 04:04 PM | Comments (3)
January 21, 2005
By Royal Permission
We drank this Thai beer at the excellent Erawan Thai restaurant on San Felipe the other night, it was about as good as you'd expect a Thai beer to be. Apparently you need permission from the monarchy to be solidly mediocre in Thailand. Luckily for this blog, no such permission is required here in the good ol' USA.
Posted by stan at 09:05 AM | Comments (1)
January 17, 2005
The Patron Saint of Brewers
At a reader's suggestion Sara and I sampled St. Arnold's Elissa IPA & Amber Ale. I like hops, but the IPA was pushing it with me (the website says only about 60 IBUs, but I find that hard to believe).
The Amber, on the other hand, compared favorably to my old friend Stone Pale Ale. It reminded me of the good old days, back at Anam Cara in Boston with my best girl, a Sox playoff game on the big screen, two plates of mac and cheese with sausage on order in the kitchen, ah...
Continuing on the bright side, it turns out that the Elissa, a 19th century tall ship, happens to be docked right down the road in Galvaston, which we'll have to pay a visit to some day soon. I worked within spitting distance of the USS Constitution for a month though, not sure it can top Old Ironsides.
Posted by stan at 12:12 PM | Comments (1)
January 14, 2005
The National Beer of Texas
Posted by stan at 09:35 AM
January 13, 2005
Lindeman's Kriek
Lest we get too excited with the Era of Cheap Mexican Beer, Sara & I sampled Lindeman's Kriek, a black cherry lambic from Belgium. The verdict? Well, it sure smells nice, but it is just a little too sweet for my taste, I prefer the Framboise.
Posted by stan at 08:36 AM
January 10, 2005
Cheap Mexican Beers
I am really starting to enjoy The Era of Cheap Mexican Beers. The PBRs of our neighbor to the south.
Posted by stan at 10:52 AM
January 07, 2005
La Carafe
Somebody beat me to the punch on this topic, but oh well.
Posted by stan at 09:25 PM | Comments (1)
Texas' Sam Adams
Posted by stan at 09:59 AM
January 04, 2005
Carta Blanca
If you're like me you went through a frighteningly long John Steinbeck phase from junior year in high school to freshman year in college, because nothing makes those years more special than constant reminders of the plight of the downtrodden. And perhaps the phase was so deep that you even tortured yourself by reading The Log From the Sea of Cortez, which was about the terribly dull marine biology survey of the Gulf of California in Mexico that Steinbeck took with his old buddy Eddie Ricketts. Here's a typical passage:
"Found another tidal pool. Three sea anemone, four sea cucumbers, eight star fish. The sickly sweet smell of the mangrove trees permeated the air"
And so forth. There was also a lot about how the commercial fishing industry was hurting the ecosystem, true enough. Anyway, for such a dull book there are still two things I remember pretty vividly. One is the mention of a town called Puerto Escondito, which is on the southwestern coast of the Gulf of California, I think. I just rolls off the tongue, I never forgot it for some reason, in fact I think I might have mentioned it as a possible honeymoon destination. The second thing I remember is that the beer they both liked and drank during the voyage was Carta Blanca. At some point I pestered my father to pick some up, it wasn't very good as I recall.
So then, what did I see at the grocery store the other day? That's right, a giant quart bottle of Steinbeck's favorite. I figured I had to give it another shot, it can't be bad if they sell it by the quart, can it?
Posted by stan at 10:40 AM | Comments (1)
The Anatomy Of A Black & Tan
After watching me consistently botch my black and tans every visit to my parents house in New Hampshire, they mercifully bought me one of those clip-on thingamabobs that distributes the Guinness nice and neat like.
The thingamabob packaging also suggested that we try making a Black Velvet, which is Guinness and Champagne, but I think I'd rather jump off a bridge than try that.
Posted by stan at 10:06 AM
December 06, 2004
Intriguing
Three Philosophers Quadrupel Belgian-Style Ale from Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown. I can't decide if a bubbly blend of caramel and cherry would be delightful or repulsive.
Posted by stan at 04:26 PM
November 14, 2004
Black & Tans
Sara & I headed up to NH this weekend to visit my parents and enjoy a couple frothy beverages.
Posted by stan at 11:18 PM