For this months’ Session, the topic was chosen by Gail and Steve of Beer By BART. Those entusiastic urban rail rail fans chose the topic of travel for their topic, and I can’t say I’m surprised. BEfore tackling travel, let me just give their site a quick plug. For those lliving in the Bay Area, their site is a great tool to get around and drink beer without driving. Hopefully, when our North Bay rail gets going, someone will do a little Beer By SMART. More »
July 3rd, 2009 | Tags: brewpubs, The Session, travel | Category: Brewery/Pub, The Session | Leave a comment
Every other Thursday, Brewed for Thought and BetterBeerBlog are teaming up for a piece called Hopinions. We will alternate who picks the topic and trade emails on the subject, two apiece. This week my topic came to me while drinking a recent beer for the Beer of the Week. More »
July 2nd, 2009 | Category: Hopinions | Leave a comment
Lately I’ve been prepping for the onset of middle-age by spending more time with a book. This started with the camping trip I just got back from when I decided it was tiome to read Pete Brown’s Man Walks Into a Pub. Well, that was a couple weeks ago, and I just got around to finishing the book, so now it’s time to share my thoughts. More »
July 1st, 2009 | Tags: Man Walks Into a Pub, Pete Brown | Category: Literature | Leave a comment
Normally, I just write whatever comes to mind, quality be damned. Now that I have a paying job to write a column for the Northwest Brewing News, I’ve find myself actually contemplating the words I expect the public to see. So facing the first deadline of my “career,” I have found little time to actually devote to my loyal readers. In response, I’m going back to my roots, with a stream of consciousness type post. Enjoy! More »
June 29th, 2009 | Tags: Brown, Brown Shugga, cask, Cens, Censored Ale, Green, Green Flash Brewing, Imperial Stout, Lagunitas, Le Freak, Man Walks Into a Pub, Pete Brown, pilsner, real ale | Category: Literature, New Arrivals, Personal, Tastings | Leave a comment
It seems as if the trend in drinking among “the youth” is to mix your alcoholic beverage with more and more highly caffeinated products. Sure, rum and coke is essentially the same thing, but a Jaeger-bomb is another beast altogether. Now, the trend comes to our favorite beverage beer in the form of the Mateveza line of ales. More »
June 27th, 2009 | Category: Beer of the Week, Tastings | Comments (1)
Did anyone hear? Michael Jackson died on Thursday. Now I know this isn’t news, but I saw a comment on Twitter:
What’s all the fuss? He died a year and a half ago. http://bit.ly/cX5vF #fb
Now, I realize as a beer geek, I have to recognize Michael Jackson the writer as the superior of those carrying the MJ name, but the real person in me has to object. To avoid confusion here on out, I will refer to the Michael Jacksons in question by their nicknames while determining which truly is superior. More »
June 25th, 2009 | Category: Personal | Leave a comment
Yesterday I spent the afternoon over in Petaluma. The mission for the day, identify beers we would want to stock at a new bar featuring 30 taps and a lot of bottle storage space. More »
June 23rd, 2009 | Category: Brewery/Pub | Comments (4)
Every other Thursday, Brewed for Thought and BetterBeerBlog are teaming up for a piece called Hopinions. We will alternate who picks the topic and trade emails on the subject, two apiece. This week Pete’stopic was inspired by the recent National Homebrewer’s Conference in Oakland. Thanks to the conference, this session of Hopinions is coming to you a few days late. More »
June 22nd, 2009 | Tags: Homebrewing, Hopinions | Category: Homebrewing, Hopinions | Comments (1)
Yesterday, I found myself sitting on a friend’s patio right around noon and feeling something that has been rather absent in Santa Rosa this year: oppressive heat. It was barely noon, but it was pushing 90 degrees. It’s getting top be time to put away the heavy stouts and reach for something lighter. Good thing Deschutes has their Twilight Ale ready for us to quench that summer thirst. More »
June 19th, 2009 | Tags: Beer of the Week, Deschutes, Deschutes Brewery, Twilight Ale | Category: Beer of the Week, Tastings | Leave a comment
A few weeks back, a friend of mine came to visit from the East Coast and brought a little gift. It was a sampling of beers from Starr Hill in Crozet, Virginia. While I’d never heard of the brewery, I was anxious to try the beer. It’s beer after all, right? More »
June 17th, 2009 | Category: Brewery/Pub, Tastings | Comments (2)
