A Good Beer Blog

November 2012

Does Noting Particular Flavors Have Value?

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , - 22 comments
Stan is doing a series of hop focused posts triggered by the release of his new book For The Love of Hops. My copy is on order. His post yesterday has had me thinking about representations of taste. Are they useful? Practical? The whole thing reminded me of one of these, a late '80s era graphic …

Day 12: More Gifts, More Photos And More... Swiss!

Posted by Alan McLeod on in - 5 comments
Day twelve. Day twelve of the seventh annual Xmas beery photo contest. Who would have thought we would have ever made it here. On a Tuesday. In late November. When so much else is going on. Big news? A new set of photos of course. First up is Atis Rektins of Latvia who was visiting Switzerland …

Not Beer: Cherry Tree Hard Cider, Original Sin

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , - 1 comment
Still sick. When you are sick you can skip taking your own photo when blogging about something. I found this NY state product over at Bear World in Watertown, NY a month or so ago. There's a definite move towards plenty of hard ciders if their shelves are anything to go by. Seeing as they serve a …

Day Nine: Your 2012 Yuletide Beery Photo Prize Update

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Saturday morning. I am pretty sure this is Contest day nine. Or C9 as we refer to it around the house. Twelve to go in the 2012 Xmas and Yule, Hogmanay and Hanukkah Beer Photo Contest. I've been rooting through the truck of swag that's been sent my way over the last while. Clothes, books … read more »

Who Supports Knowledge About Good Beer?

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , - 3 comments
I read this year someone arguing that brewers needed to support good beer writers. I agreed. Then I found out that what that translated to was buying more ads in established periodicals. I didn't agree. Point missed. One of the great things related to beer I have experienced not only this year but …

Figuring Out Spaten Beer's Place On Picadilly

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , , - 10 comments
A fun bit of twooting today as a tangent on a tangent led to the confirmation that there was a bar or restaurant of some sort in late Victorian London. BB found this photo. This ad was provided care of Martyn while ATJ wondered why there was a dedicated German beer palace in the heart of London … read more »

Day Six: A Head Cold, Jealousy And Hop Receipts

Posted by Alan McLeod on in - 4 comments
Home with a cold and the prospect of another US Thanksgiving that does not include me. The drag of living on the border is knowing people are having more fun just over there. Craig and 10,000 other beer bloggers, beer columnists and 2:45 minute local morning show guests consider what beer goes … read more »

Day Four: The First Photos And Prizes... And Stuff

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , - 3 comments
Hey! Send your entries and prizes pledges to beerblog@gmail.com!!  •  It's always quiet at the beginning of the Yuletide Beery Photo Contest. The calm before the blizzard. In addition to Jerry Davison's photo highlighted over the weekend, we are up to four entrants so far. Joining Jerry is Chris …

Book Review: Shakespeare's Local By Pete Brown

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I finally reached the last page of Pete's new book about London's south bank's George Inn this afternoon. I originally thought I would rip right through it in one sitting but backed off when I realized how much I was enjoying the ride. You can go elsewhere and find out what the book is about but …

NYC Not Yet Dividing Good Beer From Soda Or Booze

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , - 6 comments
While I am not a member of the anti-neo-prohibitionist movement¹ it is always interesting to consider where drinks, law and health intersect. And interesting it is to compare the approach New York City is taking with sugary soft drinks compared to the harder stuff.  •  In September, New York City …

Day Two: Links, More Rules And "What's A Crap Photo?"

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , - 1 comment
It's a busy day over here. I have backed up beer and beer book notes I would like to post. If I have the time I would post about the great post over at Max's which builds on a comment he left at Jeff's on Thusday. I would also like to go over the amazing work Craig has been doing in the great … read more »

Day One: And So Begins The Seventh Contest...

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The first two entrants were from Norway and New Zealand today. Guess which submitted the bit of a photo above. Pledges are coming in but I have not hit them up hard enough yet. Who them? Them. That's who. The folk with gifts who've not had their tight wee knobbly fingers pried from about them. Or …

Book Review: "... Opening A Nano Brewery" By Dan Woodske

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Sometimes you pick up a book from Amazon to fill up up the basket to the point of free shipping. I think this one was like that. I mean I am not thinking of starting a nano-brewery. If Jordan is right, we are facing a nano-bubble of nano-brewers. What will that sound like when it bursts? Ping …

Cheery Xmas Photo Contest 2012 Rules... And Orc Threats

Posted by Alan McLeod on in - 8 comments
Nothing says Christmas like rules and regulations. Forget the sugar plums. Forget the reindeer prancing on rooftops. It is all about a tightly woven set of terms and conditions which may get you a trifling treat sent in the mail from a brewer, beer writer or another supplier of beer related swag …

When A Bear Drinking Beer Wasn't Even The Party Trick

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , - 4 comments
Having a name that can be translated into son of the man who turns into a bear in battle can give you a soft spot for a story like this one:  •  Wojtek grew up among the men, who fed him condensed milk from an empty vodka bottle and later honey, marmalade and syrup. The large bear lived in a tent …

Albany Ale: Factors Framing Colonial Life And Purpose

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , - 5 comments
More books showed up this week. See, as Craig has recently described, Beverwijck - or what is now Albany - was founded in the 1620s. In emails back and forth, we've been discussing and testing ideas around the meaning of brewing and the community in the 1600s and the 1800s. We have sorta skipped …

Is There Anyone More Interesting Than Simon H Johnson?

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , - 7 comments
I like helping people. Say what you like, I am a people person at heart. I helped people today. I have been helping people so much this week, I have snapped at an old pal in my business life and been living on five hour sleeps. I made a lamb sausage curry tonight, too. So it is with some … read more »

Quebec: Mons Abbey Dubbel, Belgh Brasse, Amos

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Ah, Canada. Nothing like having to travel the 25 miles south from the Thousand Island Bridge border crossing to get your hands on a bottle of beer from the next province to my east. But the bit of the province to the east that is about 400 km due north of here. You see this all the time. Canada …

Do Canadians Need To Drink To Like Hockey?

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , - 3 comments
You know the line. You don't really have to have fun to drink? Or is it the other way around? Anyway, that is what I thought of when I read this bit of press release in the form of a newspaper article about the way the NHL professional hockey league strike has affected one mega-brewer's sales …

An Apology And Thoughts About My Lawn

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , - 1 comment
It was with relief and pleasure that I was able to share emails with Jason Fisher of Indie Alehouse in Toronto today after our strong disagreement over the weekend. Others have suggested that, on one hand, I was well out of line and, conversely, entirely in the right but it still was not a good …

Election 2012: Decision Day Central - Beer Edition

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , - 8 comments
I was reminded over at this blog's formerly bigger and formerly bigger sister station that time was people live blogged elections. Frikkin' Twitter and Facebook took that ball away and ran away home. As Jordan barely squeezed in yesterday "...difficult to provide universally applicable guidance in …

But Which Spenser Would Not Be The Fool?

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , - 8 comments
Jordan posted an excellent taking up of the exploration of ideas around junkets last evening. Earlier in the day he and I had a very good exchange on the topic and I assured him that the point was that this was very much that - an exploration. It interests me because in my other areas of life …

Session 69: So What's Not Perfect So Far?

Posted by Alan McLeod on in - 4 comments
Jorge of Brew Beer & Drink It asked us all, for this edition of The Session, to write about this: "...what would you change to lead us into the Perfect Beer World? or how do you describe the Perfect Beer World?". Like Stan, I was struggling with the topic until I read a few entries posted earlier …

Can You Make Wild Beer In A Vineous Mono-culture?

Posted by Alan McLeod on in , , - 8 comments
Like most things, Canadians are about half a decade behind so it is no surprise that a group of Ontario brewers have decided to take a kick at wild beer or that some in the Canadian media reacted to the invitation as if they had no idea what was going on in the wider world of good beer. Which is …