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Eric’s Beer Review Part II
This post continues the saga of how I spent one of the best days ever – otherwise known as International Beer Day. Belgium – Ahhh, the holy land of beer. For those that are unaware of the rich brewing traditions of this country, suffice it to say that the Belgian’s brew beer like the French make wine – with incredible enthusiasm and passion. Row after row of incredible beers beckoned me to try them. I wanted to avoid reviewing a beer I already tasted so after much careful thought and some great reviews from Total Wine I settled on the Sterkens White Ale. A white ale is essentially a wheat…
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Around The World In Six Beers (Or how I learned to love blogging)
Upon hearing that August 5th is International Beer Day I immediately told Krista I was hijacking her blog and rushed off to Total Wine to get some beers worth blogging about. International Beer Day. I just love the sound of that. It is like a holiday designed especially for guys. The ladies get Valentine’s Day, we get International Beer Day. Everybody wins! This really needs to be a worldwide holiday that everyone gets off. And it should be followed by International Hangover Recovery Day, which of course you would take off for as well. I will personally vote for either presidential candidate if they campaign behind this issue – I…
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All Hail The King
I thought I’d finish up the five days of St. Patrick’s Day madness with the king of Irish beers – Guinness. The beer itself comes in a gleaming black can with the instantly recognizable harp logo on the outside and a clever nitrogen widget hiding within. Many people don’t know it but the fine folks at Guinness actually invented the nitrogen widget. They did this so that the beers they sold in stores would match the quality of their beers when served in the pub. A brilliant concept – beautifully executed. When pouring a pint of Guinness Draught, the widget instantly turns the beer into an inviting tan froth. As…
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Murphy’s Stout
Today’s beer is Murphy’s Stout. Like the Wexford Irish Cream I reviewed yesterday, Murphy’s comes in a can with a nitrogen widget. When opened, the widget releases the nitrogen into the beer and turns pouring it into an event. The Japanese can keep their tea ceremony, crack open one of these and see what makes the lads in Ireland say, “if you’re lucky enough to be born Irish, you’re lucky enough.” So what happens when you start the pour? In this case you’re greeted by a dark, almost black beer with a not quite white head. The nitrogen bubbles in the beer begin to wash down the inside of the…
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Beer Fondue
Day four of my St. Patrick’s Day Extravaganza… Fondue! Every January fifth Eric and I can be found at the Melting Pot enjoying our anniversary fondue. It’s one of my favorite foods. I even tried to have a fondue party when I was in high school many, many years ago. It ended with a group of us girls dumping a pot full of half melted cheese in the woods. Silly us, we thought the cheese had to be cooked in the fondue pot over the little can of sterno. Yeah, kind of embarrassing to admit. This recipe is cooked on a stove and is almost as good as the Melting Pot’s…
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Wexford Irish Cream
Today’s beer is the Wexford Irish Style Cream Ale. This beer is draught style. For those unfamiliar with the term, draught style is an attempt to recreate the experience of pouring the beer into a glass directly from a tap and keg. This isn’t necessary for all beers, but when done correctly with the right beer it makes a world of difference. And Wexford does it up right. As the beer pours into my gleaming pint glass the nitrogen widget in the can works its magic. Magic may be too mild a word. With even a gentle pour the entire glass momentarily becomes a sea of swirling, creamy foam that…
