October 2004
HopDevil, Victory Brewing, Pennsylvania
Posted by on Sunday, October 31, 2004 in - 2 comments
A halloween scare...and what's scarier than the Devil? HopDevil, that is. • HopDevil has long been one of my favorite beers - indeed, it may be the beer that single handedly delivered me away from techno-swill permanently. It wasn't the first craft beer I ever had, but it was the first that …
Wychwood Brewery, Oxfordshire, England
Posted by on Sunday, October 31, 2004 in - 8 comments
All Hallows' Eve is well spent with samplings from the • Wychwood Brewery of Witney in Oxfordshire. I've enjoyed the charms of the Black Wych, and am currently squaring off with the Hobgoblin. We just had our first six trick-or-treaters, btw - 5:20pm. • Here is what the brewery says about the …
New York: Variety 12- Pack, Cooperstown Brewing, Milford
Posted by on Saturday, October 30, 2004 in - 10 comments
Another big buy from my trip a few weeks ago to the Party Source in Syracuse, NY. The case of this happy vista upon cracking the cardboard. Cooperstown Brewing is not actually in Cooperstown but is a proud cornerstone of the Milford, New York business community. • Like the Smuttynose case review …
Posted by on Saturday, October 30, 2004
Quick Note: Coopers Sparking Ale, Australia
Posted by on Saturday, October 30, 2004 in - 2 comments
Picked one up for $1.95 CND for 375 ml at the LCBO today. I would guess that this is what Canadian ales used to be - grainy more than malty, a rough edge to the hops but not cheap hops. Not flowery like an English pale ale and no corn or sweetness like in US versions. Balance as well with more … read more »
New York: Oktoberfest, Brooklyn Brewery, Brooklyn
Posted by on Thursday, October 28, 2004 in - leave a comment
A dedicated stand alone lager review. I am pretty much an ale man and most lagers I try are the last two or three bottles in one of those handy US variety 12-packs. Now that the Red Sox have won, however, I can once again let the new New Yorkness of my inner me come out and tell the world, I like …
Beer Hall of Fame
Posted by on Wednesday, October 27, 2004 in - 1 comment
I never knew. I never knew that, on one hand, there was no beer hall of fame or, on the other, that we needed one. The good folk of Frenkenmuth, Michigan didn't make it. Duluth bailed. The ever useful realbeer.com tells the story: • “In a press release, Beer Hall of Fame Project Manager, Joe …
Punkin' Ale, Dogfish Head, Delaware
Posted by on Tuesday, October 26, 2004 in - 2 comments
I don't normally go for the spiced pumpkin-based ales that come out at this time each year (I'm an old-fashioned malt & hops kind of guy), but Dogfish Head's offering caught my attention. First, it's Dogfish Head, which is practically synonymous with a quality beer experience. And second...it was …
Other Beer Blogs
Posted by on Tuesday, October 26, 2004 in - 6 comments
This here blog ain't the only place in the internets where folk can get into some yappetry about ales and lagers. Here is a brief survey of some of my favorites: • The Beer Church says it has over 100,000 registered members from 26 different countries around the world and sponsors charitable …
Lew Bryson on Beer
Posted by on Monday, October 25, 2004 in - 6 comments
I like the books of Lew Bryson and have relied on them during a few family trips we have taken into the States this year. Before you call the Chidren's Aid, one thing Lew does in his guides which make them valuable from the get go is his focus on the practical so the entry in New York Breweries … read more »
<i>NYT</i> on IPA
Posted by on Sunday, October 24, 2004 in - leave a comment
Interesting audio visual presentation from the New York Times some India Pale Ales. Follow the links as directed.
Anchor Brewing, San Francisco, California
Posted by on Sunday, October 24, 2004 in - 3 comments
I have been collecting a few bottles here and there to consider the style of some brewers we do not have ready at hand here in Ontario. One such brewer is Anchor of San Fransisco, Ca. - one of the cornerstone breweries in the micro revival. Here I have together the Libery Ale, an IPA regularly …
Arrogant Bastard Ale, Stone Brewing, California
Posted by on Saturday, October 23, 2004 in - 4 comments
This is a hot beer. Boozy. Good boozy. • But what would you expect from a beer who has its own URL at www.arrogantbastard.com and has "You Are Not Worthy" on the cap. Stone Brewing Company has a satanic theme going with its branding, too, that probably ensures that it will never be sold in the …
What Is Going On Here?
Posted by on Saturday, October 23, 2004 in - 2 comments
I have spent the last day transferring posts from our sister-station Gen X at 40 and I think I have most of the reviews, pub photos and book reviews. I am hoping I can attract a few other beer writers to join me here but for now it will be mainly me. Rumours are rife that my Server Lords over at …
Posted by on Friday, October 22, 2004
News About Beer
Posted by on Friday, October 22, 2004 in - 4 comments
NYCO, my correspondent in Syracuse, alerted me to this Syracuse Post-Standard story about Polish beer. Written by Quill and Tankard award-winning writer, Don Cazentre, a staff writer with the paper, it notes what is new in the local market. • What a radical idea. Certainly in Canada, we are … read more »
New York: Post Road Pumpkin Ale, Brooklyn Brewery
Posted by on Thursday, October 21, 2004 in - 2 comments
Now that the Yankees are out of the playoffs, I can admit again to my enjoyment of things New York...more upstate than anything but, as the City and upstate have a mutually vestigal relationship, there is much of the City to be found upstate. One great thing is the New York Times, another is the …
Variety 12-Pack, Smuttynose Brewing, New Hampshire
Posted by on Wednesday, October 20, 2004 in - 1 comment
Now that I have spent more than a year having made up with New Hampshire, I can enjoy Smuttynose as I should. These variety packs are great. They introduce you to a brewery's product for under 20 bucks Canadian, 14 US. Smart marketing. Good labels, too. The two old guys on lawn chairs on the IPA …
Stouts: Freeminer Deep Shaft, Gloucestershire, England
Posted by on Monday, October 18, 2004 in - 1 comment
Who can resist when one reviewer says: " Very possibly the darkest beer in the world." Well...I suppose lots of people who do not like dark or black beer. But for people who understand that Guinness is actually red, this kind of line makes an ale very attractive. • Freeminer Brewery is one of … read more »
Deuchars IPA, Caledonian, Scotland
Posted by on Saturday, October 16, 2004 in - 4 comments
India Pale Ale did not originate in from Scotland, though the Scots brewers were early adopters of most English styles as a matter of survival. This very light ale for an IPA has something of the Scots roast barley bite and a slight smokey yeast there as well as a very nice bright orangy flavour …
Best Caps, Cooperstown Brewing, Central NY
Posted by on Thursday, October 14, 2004 in - leave a comment
Was there ever a cheerier vision planned to met your eye upon the opening of your first case? Congratulations Cooperstown Brewing Company of Milford, New York.
Big Hop Bombs: Ruination IPA, Stone Brewing, California
Posted by on Thursday, October 14, 2004 in - leave a comment
Nothing but an ale most masterful could claim this name. 7.7%. Light wine. It smells like opening a bag of hops pellets and tastes like licking one out. This is a BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEG brew and meant to be. If you do not like hops this is not the beer for you. If you can not contemplate beauty in the …
Beer Store: Party Source, Syracuse, New York
Posted by on Tuesday, October 12, 2004 in - 5 comments
A week off and I wanted to do another run into Syracuse for some important research. My inquiries with the Homebrewers Digest had let me know that the two spots to check out for micro-brew selection were the Galeville Grocery and Party Source. Both are located on decent strips, the Old Liverpool …
National Six-Pack III: Labatt 50, Quebec
Posted by on Saturday, October 9, 2004 in - 8 comments
50. portland asked me to. And worst of all, this is actually a case...which I can never remember what they call in Ontario where a case is really a two-four. In Halifax, a case was 12. I don't know what I will do with the other eleven. A slice of lime won't even make it a Molrona as this is from …
National Six-Pack II: Wellington SPA, Ontario
Posted by on Saturday, October 2, 2004 in - leave a comment
Wellington Special Pale Ale or SPA. At the Beer Store for $10.50. From Guelph, Ontario. Can't say there are bad tastes in this brew. Then again, I can't say there is much taste at all. Not thin, no, it's got a medium-light body and the colour of light maple syrup and...that is about it on first …
