Beer Rules

I've been noticing a lot more lately that beer snobs are beginning to heavily infiltrate the world of beer. The craft beer industry has grown so much in the last decade that suddenly I sort of feel like it might go the way of wine, which is filled with snobbish jerks that turn other people off to discovering great tastes. I personally follow a set of rules designed to make beer friends and get people into new beers, or stay with what they love. What do I care? We're all brothers and sisters in the wonderful nectar. I'd rather my friend drink beer I don't like than soda that I do when we go out. So, here are...

Cracker's Rules of Beer

1. The best beer is always free beer.

2. Don't talk down to people drinking what you don't like. What's it your business? Recommending some brews they might enjoy is acceptable, acting like you're above them because you like some special edition craft beer or something makes you an ass.

3. When a toast is made, always touch glasses with everyone.

4. Have a great toast of your own and make it your go-to toast. (mine is "here's to swimmin' with bow-legged women" for the record... from the movie Jaws)

5. If you go to somebody's house party, it is not acceptable to complain about their beer selection. See rule #1.

6. It is acceptable to complain about the temperature of your beer. But you should still drink it, Nancy-boy.

7. Never, ever leave beer in your glass or bottle. Formerly known as a pinger, it's just never to be done for any reason. By the same token... if you try a new beer, finish it.

8. No straws.

9. It is always an acceptable occasion to wear a shirt with beer on it. Funerals, weddings, work, mug shots... always.

10. Support your local brewery.

11. When visiting another city, support their local brewery.

12. It's acceptable to pay debts or give apologies with beer. Also, it's the best gift to give or receive. Any occasion.

13. If you die before you've done either a keg stand, funneled or shotgunned a beer... you've failed.

14. You should have a bottle-opener either on your keychain, attached to your cooler, on your fridge or in a very handy home location.

15. You should have your own cooler and take it everywhere. You never know when it will be needed.

16. Known you limits. Sure sometimes we all get smashed, but don't be that guy every time, or even regularly.

17. Always have beer in the fridge in case of emergency.

18. You should have at least 1 bar or pub where everybody knows your name.

19. Don't keep up with who buys how many rounds when with friends. It'll all be even when you're in nursing homes.

20. $20 taxi rides are still a helluva lot cheaper than $2,000 DWIs.

21. When getting a beer for somebody, always open it before handing it to them.

22. Beer before whiskey, mighty risky. Whiskey before beer, never fear.

23. Never check or ask about calories. If you're watching your weight, drink water.

24. Shaking up a beer before handing it to someone should be punishable by death.

25. Never bad mouth a homebrewer's beer.

Bucket List Add: Beer Biking in Amsterdam

Tourists cycle as they drink beer and sing karaoke on a beer bike in Amsterdam.

Party While You Pedal: Beer Biking in Amsterdam

I'd Tap That!

From GQ Magazine...

I'd Tap That! 50 Beers to Try Right Now
Drink your way through this list and you'll instantly raise your beer IQ

Best Beers To Try Now Wine + Cocktails: GQ.com

My Thoughts: Definitely some good beers on the list, many I haven't even tried and a few that made me scratch my head (Tecate?) because I wasn't that impressed by them. But it's a great cross-section of flavors and styles and I think if you weren't that up on your craft beer and you took the time over the next month and tried all 50 you'd definitely find some stuff you'll like. I'd love to be able to do that actually.

Here's some I really like and/or have had my share of on the list:

Oskar Blues Dales Pale Ale
Rogue Dead Guy Ale
Oskar Blues Old Chub
Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout
Stone Imperial Russian Stout
Stone Old Guardian
Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier
Bear Republic Hop Rod Rye
Orval
Founders KBS

Mama, There Goes That Man Again

Yes, another brew festival has popped up near me, so obviously I'm there. This time though I'm only doing it because the money is going to a good cause, St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital. I mean what better way for me to do my part? Any guilt from drinking too much will instantly be canceled out by the good feeling from... ah who am I kidding. If the money was going to a puppy farm I'd still be going probably. Thankfully, it does happen to be a really good cause.

Sadly, we just don't have many good beer festivals around here. We do have Little Rocktoberfest every fall, but it's really just a bunch of beer we can already get and a few brewers. We also have Foamfest which is sort of the same. I wish we could have a big brew festival with a bunch of beers from breweries we don't normally get, but I also want female mud wrestling to be an Olympic sport so what do I know.

This festival is new, and will be in Memphis on March 13th at Handy Park on Beale Street. It's called the River City Brewers’ Festival and will have two sessions: one from noon to 4 p.m. and one from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., followed by an after-party at the Rum Boogie Cafe just across the street. The festival is $30 and the after party will be free to beer fest attendees.

Local breweries Ghost River Brewing and Bosco’s will be participating and also big name breweries like Sierra Nevada, New Belgium, Samuel Adams, Leinenkugels, Yazoo, Lazy Magnolia, Schlafly, Abita and Victory. Sounds awesome. And let me not forget the usual souvenir mug.

This should hold me over until the Memphis Brewfest in April at Autozone Park.

My Earth Day Contribution

Introducing beer in a cardboard box

Some Tuesday Sci-Fi and Beer

I'm having a hard time believing we're already to January 19th. This month has completely been flying by. I had a hellaciously busy weekend with lots of stuff going on the whole time it seemed, and still do didn't everything I wanted. I made it out to a flick, The Book of Eli, finished my book Succulent Prey, started a new book by Jack Ketchum, spent some much needed time around the house, got out to a hoops double-header and visited a few of my favorite pubs. I also managed to get some running in on 2 days! I'm so constructive.

We had our best beer tasting yet as me and my palate pals went through 12 different beers on Sunday while watching football and eating pizza. I thought a Brooklyner-Schneider Hopfen-Weisse someone brought was the best of the bunch, with Great Divide 15th Anniversary Wood Aged Double IPA coming in a close 2nd. Other great ones included Laughing Dog The Dogfather, Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout, Moylan's Hopsickle Imperial India Pale Ale and Unibroue La Terrible. We had a boatload of great stuff. Our once-a-month or so gathering has gotten really good. Between all of us traveling and buying different stuff we always end up with a lot of great brews we can't get around here. Makes for interesting tastings.

Here's the brews:


And the results:


And it's Tuesday already so let's scan the new stuff list, and there's some great sci-fi releases out today in the DVD world. In fact I have no idea why they would release these 4 movies today with pretty much the same target audience. Let's start with the 2 CD releases that are intriguing..

* Eels ~ "End Times" CD (their 8th studio album)

* Pearl ~ "Little Immaculate White Fox" CD (daughter of Meat Loaf, wife of Anthrax's Scott Ian... includes guests Jerry Cantrell, Ted Nugent)

now the DVDs and game...

* Gamer DVD (sci-fi thriller with Gerard Butler and Michael C. Hall)

* Blood Creek DVD (horror thriller)

* Pandormum DVD (sci-fi horror with Dennis Quaid)

* Whiteout DVD (crime-thriller with Kate Beckinsale)

* Dark Void video game (X360, PS3)

The Science of Beer Vs. Milk

I don't know if anybody else has been watching this new show called It's Effin' Science, but it's actually quite interesting. Here's a couple of their bits on beer that I found pretty fun, one on how to freeze a beer instantly then one on how beer is better than milk for chug-a-lugging. Try this at your local pub of choice and get back to me.

Man's Best Friend(s)

You have to admit, this is a pretty cool idea for those who like to sit outside, camp, grill out or whatever with their dog in tow (me!!). Instead of just sitting there like a bump on a log or watching for you to drop a precious crumb of food, the little leg-humpers can "help" you open your beers! Read on...

The Best Dog Collar Bottle Opener!

Bark4Beer makes the world’s best dog collar: a retractable bottle opener and dog collar in one. That’s right, a bottle opener and dog collar in one. That means, no more searching for a bottle opener around your house, or at a pool party, bbq, or even at the beach — just call over your favorite four-legged friend. Add “fetch me a beer” to your dog’s bag of tricks. Our Bark4Beer dog collar makes a great gift for you, your loved one, fraternity brother, college roommate, hunting friends, tailgate posse and of course your dog. Bring out your inner party animal today.

Buy 1 today. Only $14.95 plus shipping.

Awesome.

Christmas Is Getting Closer

Well, I've got another beer dinner tonight, this one at Cregeen's Pub in Argenta. It's beer tasting Arkansas style and they're pairing wild game with the local brewery, Diamond Bear. Sounds awesome to me. If you wonder just how many of these beer dinner/beer tasting thingies I go to a year, the answer is as many as I can. Too bad there's 2 in 1 night tonight or I'd be adding another one, but this one looks better. Check out the menu:

Trout and Cheese - Diamond Bear Southern Blonde
Elk Salad - DB Pale Ale
Venison Wraps - DB Rocktoberfest
Duck Oscar w/ Roasted Potatoes - DB Presidential IPA
Blackberry Cobbler & Ice Cream – DB Paradise Porter
After Dinner Cocktail - DB Two Term Double IPA

I mean give me a break here, that's making my mouth water already. I do wish there were some possum or squirrel but you can't have it all I guess.

It's also happens to be the next to last day of new releases before Christmas, so things are getting a little thin. Not a lot of CDs out today and none that I'm interested in. No new video games I like either, but on the DVD side there are a few things of interest to me, so here's some Christmas gift ideas:

* Metallica ~ "Orgullo, Pasión, y Gloria: Tres Noches En La Ciudad de Mexico" DVD (recorded live in Mexico City... available in the Metallica store)

* The Hangover DVD (see blog here)

* Inglourious Basterds DVD (Quentin Tarantino's violent Nazi orgy... stars Brad Pitt)

* Taking Woodstock DVD (a comedy from director Ang Lee)

* Robot Chicken Season 4 DVD

Arkansas Beer News

There's a great story in today's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette about craft brew sales and more specifically the state of them in Arkansas. Lot's of good stuff on a couple of my favorite local beer companies... Vinos and Diamond Bear. Thought I'd share it...

Beer sales ail, but craft brews hop
Small brewers tap in to demand as giants find recession more bitter
By ALISON SIDER

LITTLE ROCK — It might be expected that sales of beer in general would be, well, flat in a recession. And they were in the past year.

But sales of craft beers made in small breweries increased in Arkansas and nationwide.

There are four craft breweries in Arkansas. One is Diamond Bear Brewing Co. in Little Rock, the state’s only production brewery. The others are brew pubs attached to restaurants, including Bosco’s, part of a Memphis-based chain.

Craft beers are still dwarfed in sales by giants such as Molson Coors and Anheuser-Busch InBev, making up only about 6 percent of the total market for beer by dollars, according to data from the Nielsen Co.

But craft sales increased by 12.4 percent in value and by nearly 9 percent in terms of case sales during the 12-month period ended Feb. 6, while total cases of beer sold fell by 1 percent.

Craft beers have expanded beyond their traditional strongholds in California, Colorado and the Pacific Northwest, popping up in unexpected places nationwide, said Paul Gatza, the director of the Brewers Association, a Boulder, Colo.-based tradegroup. Sales are growing fastest in the South and Middle Atlantic States, he said.

“The whole country is pretty much on board,” he said.

Russ Melton, owner of Diamond Bear, said the company’s 2009 sales volume increased 24 percent, to about 36,000 cases. And he expects bigger things. He is selecting a larger location for the brewery, in Little Rock or North Little Rock, one that will allow it to expand to at least 275,000 barrels. It opened in 2000 and is still at its original location on Cross Street in downtown Little Rock.

“We’re busting at the seams now,” Melton said.

Melton said the move is part of a long-term strategy to become a regional brewery. Diamond Bear signed on with Glazer’s Distributors,one of the largest alcoholicbeverages distributors in the country, this year and is now in stores across the state.

Distribution of Diamond Bear expanded into Mississippi this year and has plans to begin sales in Alabama once it is able to increase production in the new location.

Chris New, general manager of Vino’s Pizza Pub and Brewery at 7th and Chester streets in Little Rock, said tastes have gotten more sophisticated.

“We had the very first Guinness tap in the state of Arkansas. That’s everywhere now. But with that cultivation, you’ve turned people on to things like Englishstyle pale ales, and imperial IPAs,” he said, referring to a type of India Pale Ale.

New said Vino’s increased production of its beers byabout 10 percent in 2009.

“We do a holiday beer that’s got like seven spiced ingredients; those aren’t things people are used to. That’s where you cultivate a following. You’re getting people away from Budweiser, you’re getting them away from Miller Light.”

Last year, Vino’s sold beeron Friday nights at Arkansas Travelers home games. This year the restaurant will sell beer at all home games, but New said there are no plans for further expansion.

Kari Larson, an owner of the Hog Haus in Fayetteville, said that while she sells noncraft beers, the microbrews she makes account for about90 percent of beer sales.

“On the craft-brew side of things, [sales] have been fantastic,” she said. Larson opened the Hog Haus in 2004, in what was formerly the Ozark Brewing Co.

“I think it might be a little bit of a trendy thing right now. It’s forced us to be more creative and make some beers that we haven’t made before,” she said.

Legal changes in the past decade have made it easier to operate a craft brewery in Arkansas, Melton said. Laws that allow “native brewers” to sell beer and give tours on Sundays, as well as permit and tax regulation changes, have made Arkansas one of the most progressive states for small brewers, he said.

“Our craft brewers are Arkansas businesses, obviously, and the most we can do to help make them viable we try to do,” said Michael Langley, the director of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board.

This article was published 03/13/2010 at 6:22 a.m.
All rights to Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Restock The Fridge

Between all the bowl games and NFL playoffs and beer tastings and holidays and such I'd pretty much drained my usually solid collection of different beers so we hopped in the ride and headed to Missouri on Saturday. Temperatures were near the single digits so it was a pretty sure bet all I was going to do was lay around the house all day anyway and watch football, so what the heck.

One of the places we go is just north of Springdale, Arkansas as soon as you cross the Missouri border called MacaDoodles. It's an excellent store with a lot of great beer we can't get and their prices are great. They're a chain and they're opening a new one in Fayetteville, AR but it won't have the same selection, so it's only another 30 minutes on up to this store and well worth it. Here's a bit of what I picked up:

* Founders Breakfast Stout
* Founders Curmudgeon Old Ale
* Founders Backwards Bastard
* Laughing Dog The Dogfather
* Laughing Dog Alpha Dog
* Laughing Dog Dogzilla
* Lagunitas Cappuchino Stout
* Hebrew Jewbelation Bar Mitzvah Anniversary Edition
* O'Fallon Cherry Chocolate
* New Holland Ichobod
* Anchor Christmas Ale
* Ridgeway Reindeers Revolt Pint
* Ridgeway Pickled Santa Pint

... and some more, but I can't remember it all. I did escape with under $100 spent, so that's pretty good for me.


After leaving that little slice of beer heaven, we headed back down through snow flurries to Fayetteville for lunch at Hog Haus Brewing on Dixon Street. The building it's in is pretty awesome and I remember it being Ozark Brewing Co. but this was my first time to it since it's been Hog Haus Brewing. Lots of great woodwork and a beautiful interior adds to the good food and great selection of beer that they brew themselves. I had a Black Lager and a Java Porter and was very pleased with both. I'm going to have to get back up there and have more of their brews when I'm not having to drive a couple hundred miles immediately after.

I got back to Little Rock in time to get out to the arena and see Middle Tennessee blast Arkansas-Little Rock 66-52. The Trojans actually led at halftime but made only 14 f'n field goals the entire game! They're now 4-12 overall and 0-5 in conference. It's going to be a long season for us season ticket holders, but I'll still be there.

So Saturday consisted of about 450 miles of driving, a huge beer haul, excellent lunch, a college hoops blowout and the old faithful hot dog, nachos and beer at the arena. Good day. I also didn't feel as bad about laying on the couch all day on my lazy butt yesterday and watching football.

Should be another beer run next month though as we've probably got a tasting this coming weekend or next.

Fifteen Holiday Beers... And More!

I thought it would be a good chance to remind you of last year's post I did entitled "Christmas Gifts For Beer Lovers" as I know you want to make your beer-lovin' honey happy right? Mmm... honey beer. Wait, where was I? Oh yeah... gifts. And here's a little something you can add to that list if you don't see anything you like there. You can wrap your beer in one of these stylish beer sweaters! The Beer Sweater looks cool, but I guess it actually servers a purpose on those days when it's too cold to sit in the hot tub and expect your beer not to freeze over. Well, that's what I'd use it for anyway. That and just wanting my beer to look sexy cool at an outdoor party. I would even look for a matching sweater that I could wear for optimal coolness.

There are lots of good articles on holiday brews and such out there right now so I thought I'd share a few:

Fifteen Holiday Beers

The 10 (Most Interesting Belgian) Beers of Christmas

DRAFTMag.com is still rolling with their holiday beer countdown of 25 Holiday Beers. They're on Day 10 and have listed some great stuff already, but sadly I've only had a few on the list. Check it out for yourself:

Day 10: Pelican 2008 Stormwatcher’s Winterfest
Day 9: Michelob Bavarian Wheat Unfiltered Ale
Day 8: Magic Hat holiday duo (Howl and Winter Odd Notion ’09)
Day 7: Pike Auld Acquaintance
Day 6: Ayinger Weizenbock
Day 5: Affligem Noel
Day 4: Full Sail Wassail
Day 3: Anderson Valley Winter Solstice
Day 2: Lazy Boy Brewing Mistletoe Bliss
Day 1: BridgePort Ebenezer Ale

Also, here's a good story about a favorite brewery of mine, Sierra Nevada, and one of their awesome beers which I got a chance to try while I was in Las Vegas last week. Actually, it was made to taste even better as I got it at a pub inside Mandalay Bay, so not only did I get to sample a delicious brew that I'd been dying for, but I got to carry it right into the concert and listen to Metallica as the liquid nirvana was passing over my lips. Probably a good thing too as it's a high alcohol beer (10.2% ABV) so I was glad I didn't have to chug it at the door to the concert, so I could at least remember the show.

Sierra Nevada’s new beer: risking life and limb with Dogfish

Lastly, here's a story from the Wall Street Journal about Christmas Trees with a Twist, including one made of Christmas beers that looks really cool. Hmmm... perhaps I shall have my first tree this year...

Ghost River Brewing

So I toured yet another brewery over the weekend, my 1000th. Well, maybe it's just about 20 but I'm not really sure. When I win the lottery I'm going to tour every brewery in the country, this I vow. But anyway, this one was in Memphis and it's sort of new. I say sort of, because, well... it's not new.

It's called Ghost River Brewing and actually it's the gang at Boscos Brewery. Boscos is a restaurant and brewery chain with locations in Memphis, Nashville, Little Rock and Franklin, TN. They started selling some of their kegs at other places and needless to say, many restaurants were a bit reluctant to have a product with the name of another restaurant on it served to their customers. Understandably so. Now they've got a "brother from the same mother" so to speak in Ghost River Brewing. The recipes are tweaked a bit and the names will be different, but it's made in a brewery where some Boscos brew is also made (although most of Boscos beers are made on site at their restaurants... Little Rock for example). Personally I love the name and logo and think it's all a great move.


Here's a bit from their website:

In 1885, Memphis first tapped the now famous Memphis Sands Aquifer. Recharged by the Ghost River's fragile wetlands, the aquifer has supplied Memphis with a steady and consistent supply of excellent drinking water ever since.

Ghost River Brewing knows that "great water makes great beer." And some of the greatest drinking water on earth is available right here in Memphis, TN. Brewing locally guarantees that every handcrafted, full-flavored Ghost River Ale is the freshest beer available . . . and when it comes to flavor, freshness means everything!

Ghost River Brewing supports the Wolf River Conservancy by donating a portion of the proceeds of every barrel sold. Help Ghost River Brewing and the Wolf River Conservancy protect our local, natural resources and the quality of our famous drinking water.


The tour was about an hour long and very informative. It's well worth the time if you're in the area and love beer. We got a sample of each beer they had at the moment; Stout, Glacial Pale Ale, Golden and Brown Ale. Personally I found the stout the tastiest of the bunch but I love stouts so that's no shocker. None of the 4 were bad by any means and all were solid session beers I could drink regularly with no problem. They also are going to rotate I seasonal I believe I heard him say and they'd just finished off a Wee Heavy (replaced by the stout).


I noticed the beers all around Beale Street as we ran around, so it seems like they're off to a pretty good start. I think they said they'd been in operation on it since July 2008 or so. No plans to bottle yet as it's just too expensive for them at this point and they don't have the room. Who knows what the future holds. For now it's easy to find in Memphis though, and you know my rule about "When in Rome..." and their motto is "Think Global, Drink Local", so give 'em a chance when you're in the Memphis area.

Finally... A Practical Robot

Those rascals at Middlesex University have outdone themselves with what they're calling a "Heineken Bot", a beer serving robot. It takes a pre-programmed path along the bar and if you hover your hand over it's sonar-sensing head and place your sad, empty cup in its grasp it will dispense the sweet nectar to you. Brilliant! Suck on that R2D2, you useless tank of bolts.

It does my heart good to see great minds actually getting put to use on things that can be useful for this world.

Heineken Bot at Kinetica Art Fair 2010:

Five Cerveza-Spiked Dishes

Here's a link to a great article from Draft Magazine with 5 Cinco De Mayo themed recipes for:

• Salsa Borracha
• Chipotle-spiced brisket with polenta
• Beer & Jalapeno Mussels
• Espresso-Mole-Stout Wagyu Beef Cheeks
• 2-Beer Lamb Shanks with Fresh Fava Bean Pico de Gallo

Five Cerveza-Spiked Dishes

Get your cervesa on!

The Beer Cracker?

A few beer notes before I attack all the Vegas beer joints this weekend. Here's my Beer Lovers Guide To Vegas from earlier this year if you want to see where I can be found.

I finished my "Winter Beer Tour" at Old Chicago (15 Winter beers) and got a sweet t-shirt:


I finished it off with a Paulaner Salvator Dopplebock, an excellent rich and malty gift from those wacky monks, and a Rogue Santa's Private Reserve, a great holiday offering from the Oregon brewery. It was fun getting going on my Winter beer drinking by plowing through their 15 picks. The shirt (with my name on it) is just a bonus.

Also of note in the local beer news... Diamond Bear has their Two Term Double IPA out but I haven't found it yet. I shall not rest until I do! Well, I'll rest, but not comfortably.

Here's some more beer linkage for ya:

* Here's a great story on Winter Beers just up on MSN. I haven't had all of their picks, but of the ones I've had Sierra Nevada Celebration is a must every holiday season and Victory Storm King Imperial Stout is actually one of my favorite stouts of all.

* Speaking of Winter beers, here's my 12 Beers Of Christmas post from last year if you're looking for something tasty to help you stumble 'round the Winter wonderland.

*Here's another great article that was in my last issue of Draft Magazine that's now online. It's a list of their top 10 beers without medals at the Great American Beer Fest and it sort of blows my mind as several of my favorite beers, like Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale, Rogue Dead Guy Ale and Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA, are all included. How they've never won medals is beyond me. It's a good read.

* Scotland's BrewDog announced the release of the world strongest beer... a 32% abv brew. C'mon though, that's closer to liquor than beer. It's called Tactical Nuclear Penguin and although I love that name, I just think it's sort of silly. To each his own I guess. I would like to try it, but it doesn't sound enjoyable at all. Maybe interesting but not enjoyable. Here's a good article on it worth a read.

* Here's a neat beer quiz. See if you can beat my score of 5 correct.

* Lastly, Draft Magazine is doing their 25 Holiday Beers bit again and here's the link. They're only on the first one, Bridgeport Ebenezer Ale, so keep checking that link.

Who Do That Brew Do Like I Do?

WorldClassBeer.com is posting some pretty cool videos on brewing your own beer. As I've recently started (or re-started) brewing I found these pretty interesting and thought I'd share them. This one is a good starter with the basics of brewing beer from ingredients to the brewing process and below that is one on basics of beer styles. Maybe more to come.

For more modules and to use the interactive versions of any Beer U module, visit http://worldclassbeer.com and click on Beer U!



There are dozens of beer styles! This Beer U module recording covers the basics of those different styles.

13 Craft Beer Pairings For Thanksgiving

You know how I love my beer and I'll pair it with every food you can think of, so I was looking around for some cool Thanksgiving ideas and I found this cool video posted by HomeBrewVideos.com:



Get Your Free Beer Pairing Guide: http://www.HomeBrewVideos.com

We're all about Great Beer... Great Food, Great Friends, and Great Fun!

Before I tell you what I do, I would like to tell you why I do it. I believe that life was meant to be enjoyed with good friends, good food and good beer. If you're a foodie, and you don't know much about craft beer, you're about to take your love of food to another level.

I love brewing and tasting craft beers, and the only thing that makes craft beer better is pairing it with great food and great friends. That's what my HD quality video trainings are all about.

I also believe in supporting locally owned, independent businesses, to maintain a unique community character, provide continuing opportunities for local entrepreneurs, build community economic strength, and prevent the displacement of community-based businesses by national and global chains.

I believe that good craft beer is much more versatile than wine when it comes to food pairings, not to mention more affordable. Beer can be crafted in so many different ways to create so many different flavors, that it's the ultimate weapon for foodies.

I believe that the world of beer is open to anyone. As long as you respect beer and have the knowledge, you will be accepted into this club.

I believe that in order to truly appreciate and understand beer, you need to learn from the 5 pillars of beer knowledge: beer history, different styles, how to taste it, how to pair it with food, and how to brew it. To be a complete brewer, you need to have an understanding of these other principles.

That's what I teach at my website: http://www.HomeBrewVideos.com

It's The Great Pumpkin Beer, Charlie Brown

You may not remember it this way, but Linus had a good reason to hide in that pumpkin patch. What with Lucy pulling that damn football away every time Chuck tried to give it a boot, not only was he stressed out but probably had a severe back-injury before it was all over. Linus had a possible cure, and he was a beer brewer. Yep. And he wanted to make a pumpkin beer, of course to save until he turned 21. Because nobody drinks beer before they're 21. Right? And let me tell you if I got a f'n rock in my bag at every stop on Halloween I'd have started hitting the brew much younger too. So what's the best way to make a good pumpkin beer? Slaughtering the Great Pumpkin and using his insides to brew a batch. And so it began. Lucy drove Charlie to drink and it all started with pumpkin beers, possibly even causing the swelling of his giant noggin to the size you see now. Look like a pumpkin to you? Thought so.

Personally I really like pumpkin beer. It's a nice novelty and I drink quite a bit of it during the Halloween season, as you can look in my fridge at the moment and see. I went to the wonderful beer ratings site I use, BeerReviewsOnline.com, and looked up all my comments and ratings for some pumpkin beers so you can pick you own.

The ratings are over the last 4 years though, and my tastes have changed and continue to, but you'll get the picture. It should also be noted that a majority of them just begin to taste a like after a while. It's hard to get this style to really stand out. I look for a nice pumpkin flavor, good mouthfeel and a little bit of spice to make me happy. Your tastes may (and should) vary. But start here if you want.

And, being a big Halloween lover and jack-o-latern fan, some of the labels of these are just awesome. I'll post a few of those as they've some of my overall favorite beer labels.

I'll start with my current favorite:

Schlafly Pumpkin Ale
Rating: 8/10
A very nice, sweet caramel taste with slight alcohol hints... good cinnamon and nutmeg notes. Some bitterness too but all nicely balanced. A damn fine pumpkin brew from the St. Louis brewery.

Saranac Pumpkin Ale
Rating: 8/10
I found this to be a very satisfying pumpkin ale. Lots of flavor, big pumpkin spice.

Arcadia Jaw-Jacker
Rating: 7/10
The taste is a very nice spicey nutmeg and cinnamon combo, almost like a good pumpkin pie. I sort of wanted vanilla ice cream with it. Love the name and label. Solid pumpkin brew.

New Belgium Lips of Faith Kick
Rating: 7/10
A bit different, as the taste is sour/tart with a lot of cranberry but I thought a bit light on the pumpkin for what I was expecting. Had some spice but not overdone. At 8.5% ABV this one isn't for lightweights.

O'Fallon Pumpkin Beer
Rating: 7/10
I think they got the spice right in this one and just about the right amount of pumpkin so you can taste it, but it's not overpowering.

Samuel Adams Harvest Pumpkin Ale
Rating: 7/10
Nice pumpkin flavor with some spices, maybe cinnamon or ginger (or both?). Body was a bit thin perhaps, lowering my score a little, but this is a fine, easy-drinking pumpkin ale.

Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale
Rating: 7/10
I definitely got the pumpkin flavor from this one unlike some of the others. A bit of spice too.

Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin
Rating: 7/10
The pumpkin isn't overpowering as it all comes out much more spicy like a Christmas beer I thought. Good though. Hides the fact that it'll knock you on your butt pretty well. At 9% ABV, it's a big boy.

Dogfish Head Punkin'
Rating: 6/10
A nice mix of pumpkin and beer. It's got good spice to out weigh the sweetness. I sort of wanted more pumpkin flavor though. It's been years since I've had this one though in all fairness.

Southampton Pumpkin Ale
Rating: 6/10
Hints of spice but underwhelming.

Blue Moon Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale
Rating: 5/10
It really doesn't have much of a pumpkin flavor for what it's supposed to be. Not horrible or anything just doesn't stand out in the patch.

Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale
Rating: 5/10
Doesn't really have that pumpkin pie sort of thing I was hoping for. Didn't mind it too bad at first but as I got on through the bottle it just became really "meh" and bland.

Jack's Pumpkin Spice Ale
Rating: 5/10
Very average.

Not a big range of ratings, I know, but really if you make a decent ale and add some pumpkin and spices I'm going to like it somewhat no matter. And if you gave me a blind taste test on any day with all these lined up I might have totally different ratings, but I think I could pick out the excellent Schlafly and Saranac versions. The Kick would stand out too.

There are a whole pumpkin patch full of others that I haven't gotten to try. A quick look at BeerAdvocate.com says their highest rated ones are from Elysian Brewing, Selin's Grove and the Schlafly one I listed above. I'd love to try those top 2. One of the most often rated and highest at the same time is Souther Tier Pumpking, which I haven't found any where either. Here's their top 10:



So go! Seek! Find! Drink! And report back. And don't let Lucy fool you into trying to kick the football, even after a 6-er.

Finally... KISS Beer

When KISS puts out a product that really has nothing to do with music, I don't ask why I usually ask what took so long? I mean they have KISS caskets for the love of Gene! They have pretty much merchandised everything and I always hear some of their fans grumbling about it but I've just looked at it like they don't make me buy anything, it's my choice. So market the hell out of everything I say and I'll just pick what I like. Well I like beer. And I want this. Oh yes, I want this...


Their official description: KISS Destroyer Beer is an easy-to-drink beer in the best German tradition! A careful brewing process creates its great head of foam, nice flavor, and a balanced bitterness, like an original "Pils." The cool brew is available in both bottles and cans.

Brewed: Sweden
Alcohol content: 4.7%
Bottle: approx. 11.2 oz
Can: approx. 16.9 oz

And I realize that a canned pils from Sweden is probably going to taste like Gene Simmon's sack, but with the God of Thunder as my witness I shall have this and get plastered on it while watching KISS Meets The Phantom on my flat screen! In my KISS Army jacket. So shout that outloud.