Sunday, October 21, 2007
FREE BEER FOR LAPTOP'S RETURN
Never had a Croucher, so I don't know if I want a lifetime supply. But this New Zealand brewer will send you some if you know what happened to their laptop.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
A Carolina Blonde
OK, the Florida blonde who lives in my house is great and I have no complaints about her. But I found another blonde I like too.
If you happen in your travels to find yourself changing planes in Charlotte Douglas International Airport, I recommend a Carolina Blonde. I thought it was going to be lame because on the menu it says it's Carolina Brewing's "American light beer." (That said, I'm not sure why I ordered it). But I'm glad I did. I was pleasantly surpised. (Maybe I just wanted to tell the waitress that I would like a large blonde).
It's bitter - which I like in my beers. Has a slight spiciness. A nice floral finish. Not worth a trip to North Carolina, but if you're there, seek out a big blonde.
If you happen in your travels to find yourself changing planes in Charlotte Douglas International Airport, I recommend a Carolina Blonde. I thought it was going to be lame because on the menu it says it's Carolina Brewing's "American light beer." (That said, I'm not sure why I ordered it). But I'm glad I did. I was pleasantly surpised. (Maybe I just wanted to tell the waitress that I would like a large blonde).
It's bitter - which I like in my beers. Has a slight spiciness. A nice floral finish. Not worth a trip to North Carolina, but if you're there, seek out a big blonde.
The Germans are Coming, The Germans are Coming
The best place to go for beers in Boston might be Jacob Wirth Co. When you think of Boston, you think of Irish immigrants, and Portuguese, and Italians in the nawth end. You don't usually think of Germans.
But there was at least one German immigrant to this fine New England city and he founded a hell of a restaurant.
Jacob Wirth's has a daily beer special, which always makes me interested in a restaurant, and it has a magnificent selection of beers.
It's in the theater district - you can walk it from downtown or the Commons.
I first had a Magic Hat Hocus Pocus, a beer made in Vermont.
http://www.magichat.net/
It immediately loses points because it was served with an orange, and that made orange dominate the smell.
This is a summery English ale, made with wheat and Centennial hops. It would be refreshing on a hot, summer day, but it's a bit sweet.
On the Beer Eye scale, I'd give it a 4.
Wirth's has a decent selection of lambics, including Lindemann's Pomme, which you don't see that often, and has a whole lot of regional beers that are hard to find outside of New England. The place gets additional points for having Naragansett on tap. I didn't even know they still made it. It's not all that good, but it's a classic.
After the Hocus I had a Spaten Maibock on tap, which was the beer of the day.
http://www.spatenusa.com/
Maibocks are supposed to be served in May (or Mai). This beer has a nice golden color like a Czech lager. It has a slight sweet (malty) flavor at first, and a hint of floral hops flavor, but not too overpowering. In fact, not too much of anything. In my notes that night I wrote: "pedestrian, light beer." If you like flavorful beers like I do, beers that say, "HEY, YOU'RE DRINKING BEER," you can skip this one.
On the Beer Eye Scale, I'd give this one a 4.
I finished my evening at Worth's with a Whales Tale Pale Ale, partly because I like the rhyme and partly because this beer is made in Nantucket and so you can't go to Massachusetts and leave without trying it.
This beer is all over Boston - but hard to find elsewhere. Which is nice - the thought of truly local beers makes me warm and happy. As they say at Whale's Tale, "nice beer, if you can get it."
This is also an English-style pale ale, which I'm not as fond of as American style ales or India Pale Ales. Some reviewers have said this beer tastes like biscuits. I'm not sure I agree - but I'd like to try those biscuits.
Actually, I probably wouldn't like them, because I don't really like this beer much. Here's what I wrote in my notebook while I was drinking this "pale ale."
"Pretty dull beer. Not very hoppy. Not very pale." BORING.
Beer Eye Scale: 2. I think that's the lowest ever - although stay tuned, I had a beer in Chicago that will be worse when I get around to reviewing it.
But there was at least one German immigrant to this fine New England city and he founded a hell of a restaurant.
Jacob Wirth's has a daily beer special, which always makes me interested in a restaurant, and it has a magnificent selection of beers.
It's in the theater district - you can walk it from downtown or the Commons.
I first had a Magic Hat Hocus Pocus, a beer made in Vermont.
http://www.magichat.net/
It immediately loses points because it was served with an orange, and that made orange dominate the smell.
This is a summery English ale, made with wheat and Centennial hops. It would be refreshing on a hot, summer day, but it's a bit sweet.
On the Beer Eye scale, I'd give it a 4.
Wirth's has a decent selection of lambics, including Lindemann's Pomme, which you don't see that often, and has a whole lot of regional beers that are hard to find outside of New England. The place gets additional points for having Naragansett on tap. I didn't even know they still made it. It's not all that good, but it's a classic.
After the Hocus I had a Spaten Maibock on tap, which was the beer of the day.
http://www.spatenusa.com/
Maibocks are supposed to be served in May (or Mai). This beer has a nice golden color like a Czech lager. It has a slight sweet (malty) flavor at first, and a hint of floral hops flavor, but not too overpowering. In fact, not too much of anything. In my notes that night I wrote: "pedestrian, light beer." If you like flavorful beers like I do, beers that say, "HEY, YOU'RE DRINKING BEER," you can skip this one.
On the Beer Eye Scale, I'd give this one a 4.
I finished my evening at Worth's with a Whales Tale Pale Ale, partly because I like the rhyme and partly because this beer is made in Nantucket and so you can't go to Massachusetts and leave without trying it.
This beer is all over Boston - but hard to find elsewhere. Which is nice - the thought of truly local beers makes me warm and happy. As they say at Whale's Tale, "nice beer, if you can get it."
This is also an English-style pale ale, which I'm not as fond of as American style ales or India Pale Ales. Some reviewers have said this beer tastes like biscuits. I'm not sure I agree - but I'd like to try those biscuits.
Actually, I probably wouldn't like them, because I don't really like this beer much. Here's what I wrote in my notebook while I was drinking this "pale ale."
"Pretty dull beer. Not very hoppy. Not very pale." BORING.
Beer Eye Scale: 2. I think that's the lowest ever - although stay tuned, I had a beer in Chicago that will be worse when I get around to reviewing it.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Well, they couldn't satisfy Bill Gates either
My most recent wanderings in search of good beer took me to Cambridge (Click and Clack's fair city), MA, where I found myself at John Harvard's brewhouse, a few strides away from the great seat of learning that carries John's name (actually all he did was leave $375 worth of books to the school and they named it after him - and then the books were lost in a fire - I could do that).
John Harvard left us a pretty good university at his death in 1638 from a consumption, but alas he didn't leave us such a noteworthy brewpub.
The name of the place should probably be more like John UC-Davis's or John Seton Hall's or maybe John Bowling Green State's. Something adequate, but not truly outstanding.
Most of the beers were pretty Big Ten instead of Ivy League. I first had the Provision Ale. The guy who wrote the menu envisions it as something like what John Harvard enjoyed on his voyage to the New World aboard the Hector. It has hints of caramel and is pretty smooth, but overall, not so remarkable that it's worth a special trip - certainly not across the ocean on a sailing ship. And I don't imagine Harvard enjoyed ale on the voyage over so much as depended on it. His whole family had just died of the plague and he was running away from all that mess. If you're in the Boston area, Cambridge is cool, so go in if you're thirsty. The growlers they sell are quite nice-looking anyway.
On the Beer Eye scale, the John Harvard Provision Ale rates a 6.0
I also tried John Harvard's Pacific Coast IPA, which was much better than the Provision, and was better than say, the Plague.
If you like strong pale ales, you will find this an above-average one, and if like me, you like flowery-tasting beers this is one worth trying the next time you get admitted to Harvard. It's got a hint of bitter orange flavor, which detracts a little, but overall this copper-colored concoction is, as Harvard might have said, 'most pleaseing to th' tongue and good for cureing all sortes of mal humours.'
On the Beer Eye scale, the John Harvard Pacific Coast IPA rates a 7.8
John Harvard left us a pretty good university at his death in 1638 from a consumption, but alas he didn't leave us such a noteworthy brewpub.
The name of the place should probably be more like John UC-Davis's or John Seton Hall's or maybe John Bowling Green State's. Something adequate, but not truly outstanding.
Most of the beers were pretty Big Ten instead of Ivy League. I first had the Provision Ale. The guy who wrote the menu envisions it as something like what John Harvard enjoyed on his voyage to the New World aboard the Hector. It has hints of caramel and is pretty smooth, but overall, not so remarkable that it's worth a special trip - certainly not across the ocean on a sailing ship. And I don't imagine Harvard enjoyed ale on the voyage over so much as depended on it. His whole family had just died of the plague and he was running away from all that mess. If you're in the Boston area, Cambridge is cool, so go in if you're thirsty. The growlers they sell are quite nice-looking anyway.
On the Beer Eye scale, the John Harvard Provision Ale rates a 6.0
I also tried John Harvard's Pacific Coast IPA, which was much better than the Provision, and was better than say, the Plague.
If you like strong pale ales, you will find this an above-average one, and if like me, you like flowery-tasting beers this is one worth trying the next time you get admitted to Harvard. It's got a hint of bitter orange flavor, which detracts a little, but overall this copper-colored concoction is, as Harvard might have said, 'most pleaseing to th' tongue and good for cureing all sortes of mal humours.'
On the Beer Eye scale, the John Harvard Pacific Coast IPA rates a 7.8
What I'm Doing Here
In the immortal words of Doug McKenzie (or was it Bob?): 'Ok, eh. So, like, this is the show eh.'
This is a very simple service I'm providing here. I like to drink beers. You might too. When I drink good beers, I'll tell you about them and try to help you decide whether you would too, so you don't have to waste your hard earned shekles buying bad ones. I hope to impart some general beer wisdom too, because I want to leave the world a better, and beer-smarter, place than I found it.
WHAT I'M NOT DOING HERE:
I'm not telling you per se what beer you should drink or shouldn't drink. If I like a beer, that's my opinion, based on my taste buds and my particular feng sh-whatever, I can't spell that. You might not have the same taste, and if you want to waste your life drinking Coors products or some other swill, that's your perfectly legitimate choice. I'm just offering you a broader perspective and a chance to expand your horizons.
This is a very simple service I'm providing here. I like to drink beers. You might too. When I drink good beers, I'll tell you about them and try to help you decide whether you would too, so you don't have to waste your hard earned shekles buying bad ones. I hope to impart some general beer wisdom too, because I want to leave the world a better, and beer-smarter, place than I found it.
WHAT I'M NOT DOING HERE:
I'm not telling you per se what beer you should drink or shouldn't drink. If I like a beer, that's my opinion, based on my taste buds and my particular feng sh-whatever, I can't spell that. You might not have the same taste, and if you want to waste your life drinking Coors products or some other swill, that's your perfectly legitimate choice. I'm just offering you a broader perspective and a chance to expand your horizons.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)