Funny, I'm drinking a bottle of the 90-minute IPA as I read this, which is also excellent. Very strong and hoppy, but if you like IPAs, great stuff.

My nearby store has bottles of the 120-minute, which sells for $9.99 for a 12oz bottle and suggests letting it age for a while before drinking. I'm considering picking up a couple to stash away somewhere.

I just can't get myself to really like the ultra hoppy beers like IPAs. I don't know why. They're OK with certain foods, but I'm a pussy when it comes to drinking them by themselves. Maybe I just haven't gotten over that particular hump yet when it comes to beer tasting.

On another note, I attempted my first half and half last night using Harp Lager and Guinness Extra Stout. The "pour it over the back of a spoon" trick didn't work and I ended up with a 24 oz. mug of dark beer. I had a digital camera all set up and everything. Bleh. It was still fun drinking it though.

Was the guinness nitro? I think that makes a difference.

I'll try it the next time then.

Someone told me about the 'pour it over the spoon' trick with Guinness. What exactly is it supposed to do?

It's for black & tans specifically. You want to get the Guinness to rest on top of the already-poured ale. The Guinness definitely should be nitrogenated (this makes it slightly lighter than the carbonated ale), but the spoon is just there to gently and evenly distribute the Guinness over the surface area of the ale. The Guinness is slightly lighter and thus will float, but not if it's poured into the glass from a height. Then it'll all just mix.

I usually will eat something with the first one to take the bite out and then drink the second solo. That said, I'm drinking the 60 minute IPA right now without food...and it's definitely a slow sipper.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_and_Tan

The most common Black and Tan in the United States uses Guinness Draught (not Extra Stout) and Bass. The Guinness is "layered" on top of the ale, taking advantage of the fact that Guinness is carbonated (nitrogenated) with a (lighter gas) mixture of nitrogen (N2 28g/mole) and carbon dioxide (CO2 44g/mole), versus Bass being carbonated with only CO2.

Well, went to Dinosaur BBQ (Rochester) this weekend and noticed they had a Brooklyn variety I've never heard of before -- Monster Ale. It was excellent.

Though I don't remember much of that night, it kinda tasted like Rogue Dead Guy Ale, with a bigger, yet not obvious, kick. Also had a few DGAs with my ribs and brisket. I'm hoping I can find some of it again.. somewhere.

Had the Rochefort Trappist 8, can't wait to try the 10.

This may be a long shot, but does anyone have a Three Floyd's Dreadnaught they'd be willing to trade? I've never been lucky enough to snag one and last week at my all time favorite ale house I heard that Three Floyds is pulling out of the east coast.

Anyway, if you think you might be able to help, let me know. We can work something out.

If you want to make a nice black and tan (or crown float using cider) don't acually float it off the back of the spoon. Instead, bend a nice large spoon a bit and pour the top layer into the concave bowl of the spoon with the tip meeting the glass at a shallow angle. The slower the second layer is introduced to the mix, the happier it is. Oh and always wait for the stout to settle first or you'll never get a nice layer.

Although black and tans never really hit it big up here, I've poured a few thousand crown floats I imagine back when I was bartending. If you've got a nice glass and layer it well, give the glass a bit of a kick as you place it and you also get a pretty funky swirl effect that keeps going for a good while. Just don't do it for the brits, they are fussy about such things.

You will eventually!

My boss was over in the US for the Great American Beer Festival in Denver and brought back a selection of his favourites for a tasting session. Thirty different beers to taste in an afternoon on a weekend retreat. Tough stuff.

Some of the serious highlights which some may know already:

New Glarus Belgian Red
This was a gold medal winner and was absolutely stunning. Huge cherry hit in both aroma and flavour with a tartness that was beyond what you can normally find even in strong belgian lambics. Had a dry finish, but with a tiny sweetness at the back of the palate. I've heard that its only available in Wisconsin, but I'm probably wrong.

Hoegaarden Julius
This stuff is like normal Hoegaarden on roids. 8.5% abv, but it drinks like a beer half that strength, and for such a light style, it amazingly doesn't have an overbearing alcohol flavour. The best thing is that being Hoegaarden, its a more common name and thus widely available.

Four Peaks Hopsquatch Ale
This was a seriously strong (10%) Barley wine. It had a monumental hop/citrus aroma with strong fruity flavours to back it up. Sour lemon, grapefruit came through with a massive bitterness that would probably be way too much for most people. If you're just getting into the really hoppy beers- leave it for a year or two.

Also- for those in Australia/NZ, there's a new beer being made by Lion Nathan (the Tooheys mob) through Knappstein winery in S.A named Knappstein Lager. Its very good when its on form, but has been a bit patchy of late. I thought i'd mention it since its one of very few widely available real premium lagers*.

Cheers.

*Disclaimer- Its a mate/fellow brewer who's producing it.

As an Australian living in the US, I have to say I love this thread -- lots of interesting "local" beer ideas to try out... However, it's rather sad that the majority of my drinking these days is a 12-pack of Corona from the Mexican taqueria/liquor store across the street, purchased mere moments before the raid starts :D The other officers have only recently discovered that my ready checks conveniently conincide with a quick dash to the refrigerator once my current beer runs dry...

The ABV was certainly noted on their selection sheet. :)

I had the 2005 and really can't get how smooth it was for such a high ABV. I talked to the Bartender who said they obviously get it through their rep. but he did say he's purchased it at my local Beers of the World before. Whether they will have it in stock, I kinda doubt.

I think this thread belongs in the Benefactor's forum :D

Finally. I just got home with the Samuel Adams Brewmaster's Collection Mix Pack and a 6-pack of Sam Adams Double Bock.

I'm very excited.

Just finished off my own Brewmaster's Collection Mix Pack - the Black Lager was my definite favorite, though the fruitier Hefeweizen was also very good. Still haven't had any luck finding the Double Bock in local grocery or wine stores, though.

One of my mates already picked up the beer for the game this weekend. Plenty of great stuff in stock to help me deal with it when Grossman inevitably and singlehandedly throws away the valiant efforts of his teammates. :(

This year's novelty beer will be as follows:


It's a Black Sheep English pale. I've had it before. Don't remember liking it much, but whatever. I can down a pint of anything after I've had a few good somethings and I figure I'll probably just start grabbing for anything if Manning starts to have a good day.

The Black Lager I've tried before and liked it very much, but the Double Bock was new to me. (Very tasty btw.) Boston Lager I've had as well of course. It's the Honey Porter and the Scotch Ale that I'm really looking forward to trying. The former I've read makes a damn good chili ingredient, but I don't see myself using one of my two bottles for something like that. The Brown Ale I suspect will taste like pretty much any other brown ale, but I'm a big fan of the style (especially Newcastle and Samuel Smith's) so it's not like I won't enjoy having it.

Surprisingly, I've never had the Boston Ale. You can occasionally find it sold as a six-pack around here, but I always end up getting something else.

The Holy Grail Ale is a gimmick, but still drinkable. Buy it for fond memories of castle Anthrax (and your bottle collection), not as something you expect to be any more than average beer.

I'm going to brew a dunkelweizen tomorrow. I hate that it takes a month after brewing for the beer to be ready to drink, so I'll have to satisfy myself with the hefeweizen I made after Thanksgiving, which has turned out to be quite decent after aging for a few weeks.

I had a Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout and some De Koninck (winter) both on draught last night...both very very tasty. I really liked the De Koninck and I'd recommend that to anyone that can find it. It'd also been a while since I had the Chocolate Stout...I can still taste them :)

This weekend there is a beer festival going on in Syracuse for those who are interested. It's being held at the NYS Fairgrounds.

http://beerblog.genx40.com/archives/...nybrewfest2007

A bunch of my favorites are going to be there: Ommegang, Brooklyn, Chimay and others. It's only about an hour or so away from me, but my only problem is how I would be getting home. :)

And speaking of Ommegang, I had the Three Philosophers last weekend which I *think* is just their Abbey Ale with Cherry Lambic added. I have no idea what a Cherry Lambic is, but it was pretty good.

3P and Rochefort 8 go really well with a good cigar, IMO.