I had a couple of 22-ounce bombers from Ballast Point Brewing Company that I drank last week, and I’m blogging my notes on the first this evening: Calico Amber Ale. It’s a decent beer, an American amber style that weighs in at 5% alcohol by volume… the American amber designation … Continue reading

Quick Thirsty Thursday report: today it was summer-themed beers. First up was Sierra Nevada’s Summerfest. Not bad, a hoppy, wheaty pilsner-style lager. Very crisp. Next, Pyramid’s Curve Ball. I liked this better than the Summerfest. It’s a Kölsch style ale, and they’ve flavored it with some not-quite-definable herb. Third up … Continue reading

I got a kick out of this 1905 Budweiser newspaper ad on Flickr; charming bit of ephemera. Did you know Budweiser is "Strictly a Family Beverage"? Nice. According to that ad, 130,388,520 bottles of Bud were consumed in 1904, with more "than three-fifths of this amount used in the homes." … Continue reading

Ever since I blogged about The Maharaja last month, I’d been dying to try it. Fortunately it showed up here in town at Newport Market and I was able to snag a bottle. Wow. The Belmont blog was spot on, this is one seriously hoppy beer. And strong; here are … Continue reading

Watch out for bogus beer deals: a Hong Kong tourist was charged $1251 (990 euros) for a pint of beer by an unscrupulous bar owner. The tourist, who was traveling alone, was invited to the bar by a tout who served him a beer and then said it would cost … Continue reading

Every now and again somebody posts a "Top X" beer list, and this week it’s from Forbes: The top 20 "Coolest Beers". The article itself is kind of beer-history-factoid boilerplate, but there’s a popup slide show (annoying!) that actually lists the 20 beers. I have to say I’m not overly … Continue reading

I’ve gotten behind on blogging my various beer notes (although even I have to admit blogging nothing but beer tasting gets tedious), so tonight I’m starting to catch up with Golden Monkey from Victory Brewing. It starts off looking innocent enough. But after I poured it into my glass I … Continue reading

Tonight, as promised, I drank the Heineken Premium Light from the press kit I was sent, and I am writing up the review. The premise, of course, is that this is a low-carb beer (with only 99 calories) that still maintains the full taste and smoothness of a "regular" beer. … Continue reading

As promised, here are some pictures of the packaging the Heineken press kit came in. It’s actually quite extravagant. The case it came in. Sturdy, lightweight, durable, and really cool. It’s slightly taller than a bottle of wine… I believe it’s a modified wine case. Inside. The beer is sitting … Continue reading

"Cassis" means "black currant" in French… that was the type of Lindemans lambic I opened up this evening. I didn’t do a formal note-taking tasting, because I just wanted to enjoy it without the analysis. (Notes will come next time.) It’s quite good. More tart and drier than the Framboise. … Continue reading