DerekRx

Backseat of After Deck Flight Gun Top Burn at Carowinds yesterday, still the best ride in the park and among the best rides in the whole ex-Paramount chain.

Wow, it's been awhile since I posted, not that I haven't had anything worth mentioning or anything We'll do this in reverse order for a change, from present to past. and I can't let TPR's avid beer drinkers come all this way but not join us, so we'll end this post with some very special guests; Elissa's parents, enjoying some Cask Challenger Special Bitter and Scottish Ale! Elissa's dad then followed it up with some Wilder's Hefeweizen and a Shade Mt Oatmeal Stout, both not pictured because he enjoyed them too much and I couldn't get a picture before they were gone But here I hold a Hoppy Monk, a mighty fine Belgianish Pale Ale that's refreshing yet hoppy on a summer day As is the norm, arriving on a Sunday means you're bound to be disappointed by something or another being kicked, but there's still some great stuff to behold. Though it does really hurt when one of the kicked is their awesome IPA Finally Nicole and I end where the TPR East Coast trip sorta did, in Central PA near Knoebels, but for us it was at Selins Grove Brewing, in um, Selinsgrove, PA (duh) As usual, Stone doesn't disappoint. Nice chocolate , roasted malt, caramel, rum raisins, oat, coffee and pine flavors with a touch of smoke. Stone's latest, their 12th Anniversary Ale, a Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout is next on the agenda A good bit of alcohol, but also a lot of good sweet caramel and toffee malt with some dark fruits and hops, a nice English version of the barleywine style Fresh from Joe comes Duck-Rabbit's Barleywine This is one beer that has seen better days. Pretty much all the big hoppy has died, leaving just a monster of malt and alcohol As this year's batch is about to be released, better enjoy the last of 2007's Big Hoppy Monster from Terrapin It may have been best by June, but it's still tasting quite fine and hoppy another something I discovered while going through my collection downstairs, Clipper City's Loose Cannon Not sitting for too long, so it's still pretty awesome and loaded with that San Diego West Coast vibe of beer Such a nice not-too-hot summer evening, may as well enjoy a bottle of Alesmith IPA that I forgot about for the last 4 months

Yes, let's have PETA buy Sea World and set all the animals free, thus helping some of the endangered species come one step closer to extinction. Bunch of goofballs...makes me want to watch that episode of South Park dedicated to them and their beliefs that all animals are as hippy and about coexistence as they are. We didn't name them Killer Whales for their killer good looks, doofus! As for Newkirk, she could be useful for holding my umbrella-ella-ella-a-a-a. Right now it just gets lost under the seat in my car.

Phoenix at Knoebels, excellent rides as always.

^I believe you are correct. Falafel hearts Toxic Waste, The Jonas Brothers are Toxic Waste, therefore Falafel hearts The Jonas Brothers, thusly and hence. Nice report that I pretty much agree with in regards to Fahrenheit and The Boardwalk. Kind of makes me want to go back to Hersheypark sometime real soon.

No theme this week, just good stuff that I've either never had, or just haven't had in a while. Finally a Middle Ages beer that doesn't taste like butter! Good citrus rind, nuts, caramel, chocolate, and cinnamon notes combined with a nice bitter dryness of grass and roasted malt. This bottle didn't last long and we'll end with another new brew for me, The Duke of Winship from Middle Ages, a Scottish Ale that has lots of porter qualities This is just about as fantastic as a barleywine can get. Nice caramel, raisin, and bread flavors with a bombardment of pine hops and alcohol warmth. Thinking local, time to try another Scratch 4 from Troegs since I haven't had any in a long time. This thing ruled. Lots of caramel, banana, cocoa, fruits, and bready yeast. I'm surprised it took me this long to get this stuff, as it's brewed not too far away another new thing for me, Weyerbacher's Slam Dunkel, a double dunkleweizen I was happy to try this since I love Terrapin, but it wasn't that great. Not much Rye in it and just a little bit of smoke, almost like a liquidized mini smoked kielbasa sandwich. First up, a gift from Joe; Terrapin's Side Project #2 RoggenRauchBier, a combination of Rye and Smoke styles

I figured I better do an update from last week and the weekend before I end up having a post with 150 pictures like Bubba! One last fill while we wait out the rain. This time I got the pilsner and Heath the dunkel. Wish it was easier to get Swashbuckler beers, they're awesome and got a great variety for only being opened on weekends from Aug-Oct. who else do you know that can swallow swords and juggle at the same time? may as well watch the sword swallower while we're here, he's pretty awesome Time to refill. Me with the Wetlands Wit and Nicole a sangria Bring on the Joust! After walking around and seeing some shops and such it was time to take in a show While Heath enjoyed the Lanner Pilsner I started out with the Danny Boy Dunkel (weiss) This place just keeps getting bigger and bigger. Now offering a different wheat AND seasonal every week in addition to the staples It's about time we get some more Swashbuckler goodness brewed right from there Saturday marked the opening of the Pennsylvania Renaissance Fair again for the year, so we decided to go on Sunday a nice tamer hoppiness of grapefruit, lemon zest, peppery hops, and earth all with a good light grainy bread and honey backbone Finally, Sierra Nevada's Anniversary Ale 2008 I should drink this more often! Great banana, orange peel, coriander, clove, pepper, apple, ginger, and bread flavors. But at 10% it's no wonder I try to hold off Been a while since I opened up a bottle of Troegs Scratch #3, a tripel luckily it seemed to be ok. Nice bitter cocoa and dark fruits up front followed by smoke and charcoal, cream, and espresso. Lots of bitterness and abrasiveness, just like licking asphalt After hearing about how Heath's bottle of Kuhnhenn Road Rash went bad, I decided to stop cellaring mine and hope for the best Holy crap is this stuff smooth! Tastes just like a liquid vanilla creme brulee with flavors of butterscotch, vanilla, caramel, roasted malt, chocolate, lactose and a bit of alcohol warmth that Southern Tier is known for Next up, Southern Tier's newest bad boy, the Creme Brulee Imperial Milk Stout Excellent stuff with a good hoppiness to go along with nuts, caramel, chocolate, roasted malt, coffee, and spices I started out with something that I got from Joe, the Terrapin India Brown Ale

If this ride does have a single rider line, I hope Cedar Fair is a little smarter with it's placement with it this time around, unlike with Behemoth and Maverick. Waiting through 97% of the queue and then 2 trains away from riding having the break off for single rider doesn't seem like a smart decision.

On Sunday I finally had a chance to get together with two guys I hadn't seen much of this year yet, (and who haven't shown up in the beer thread in like forever!) Tom and Adam. Heck, I hadn't seen Tom since last October and Adam I hadn't seen since April at Busch Gardens! Time to alleviate that by spending some time doing what Tom taught us to appreciate quite well, drinking microbrews while hanging out with great friends. while I enjoyed the Sly Fox Jasper Maibock, sweet and fruity with a nice bit of honey and grass. A fun day with some great guys, can't wait to do it again (hopefully much sooner!) last, but certainly not least, some Dock Street Rye IPAs for my buds at The Drafting Room with our dinner. Hoppy and spicy! but Tom was apparently introduced to awesomeness when he finally tried the Chimay Cinq Cents. Holy butterscotch and caramel! They were all good, the Dock Street Satellite was nice and roasty with a nice coffee flavoring as well I was going to go with the Southern Tier Creme Brulee but they kicked it the night before, so I also went with a sampler; Dock Street Satellite Stout, Chimay White (Cinq Cents), and Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter. The whole place was very cellar feeling, but WATCH OUT FOR THE BUS!!! This is a Schoolhouse after all. We were able to find seats at the bar, and we found beers we wanted, so we hung out. Tom got the Atwater Vanilla Java Porter while Adam enjoyed a sampler consisting of the Victory Wild Devil, General Lafayette Matrimoniale, and Vanilla Java Porter The bar is really nice, yet cellar-feeling, and is right on the other side of the cooler that also feeds the bottle shop and with this notification IN the bottle shop, we figured we may as well attempt to enjoy a round at the bar itself the bottle shop is in a totally different area than last time, and had some real winners for us, some of which you shall see upcoming in this thread in upcoming weeks Afterwards we had a little impromptu stop off at Ron's Schoolhouse Grill. We'd visited before a few years ago and they were talking about altering the bar, but we never stopped in for more than bottle shopping at the time. Well, now the remodeling is apparently complete and though you can't see it in my Mug Club Mug, a Hefeweizen for me, sans lemon which it really could have used. I used Adam's head as a lemon wedge instead since it no longer tasted like hair product. The selection was so good, we stayed for another round; Tom the Bourbon Wee Heavy and Adam the Raspberry Wheat The restaurant seating area is much smaller than any of the other Iron Hill's I've visited so far, but it apparently has lots of ghosts! a look at the bar area since we hadn't shown this place yet and we were all only too happy to enjoy the Bourbon Vanilla Porter on Nitro. Wow what awesome vanilla notes! every Iron Hill has a different brewer and taplist excluding the staple beers Just up the road it was time for even me to finally make it to a place I hadn't not been, Phoenixville's chapter of Iron Hill meanwhile I just stuck with the Phoenix Pale Ale. Looks like Tom wanted in on the action. Ppphhhhoeee Nix! Adam was happy to get the Black and Tan, consisting of the Phoenix Pale Ale and O'Reillys Stout Tom went with the Royal Weiss for a Summery treat We could have stayed longer, but we had other stops, like this one just up the road at Sly Fox in Phoenixville So many options for me to choose from to accompany my Kolsch, but I decided upon the Hop Devil spicy BBQ pork sandwich (not shown, duh) and Tom was pleased to enjoy some Uncle Teddy's Bitter on Cask with his Storm King glazed pork with sweet potato fries all proud of their new BBQs, we all got some form of it for lunch. A buzz(cutt)ed Adam went with the Brisket in Storm King maple glaze to go with his Mad King's Weiss but it still has a big crowd, even early on a Sunday! People must really like good beers served at a nice looking bar The new place looks a lot different than the old, with finished hardwood floors, booths, and brewery decor. First up, the newly refurbished Victory. I had been here since the change, but the others hadn't been here in quite some time

I saw it for the first time over the weekend, and while I think it was good, I'm not sure I liked it as much as Batman Begins. 1. Seemed to just drag on 2. Didn't care for the ending 3. Other villains rushed, just stick to one per movie. 4. Gotham City didn't really look like Gotham City, it looked like...Chicago! 5. Bale's raspy Batman voice got old by 20 minutes into it 6. Rachel Dawes, ugh! I really enjoyed the main storyline between Batman/Joker and the Harvey Dent stuff was ok, but the whole love story, special secret weapon, and Two Face just kept dragging the movie on. And just when you think it's never going to end, they wrap it all up in like 1 page of the script.

Time to finish up IPA week. more of a British style than a West Coast style, but you can still taste all the great West Coast hops they used. Lots of citrus with a nice caramel and bread backbone and a lightly bitter pine finish. and finally we end back in California with Firestone Walker's Union Jack IPA Lots of citrus. Citrus good, very refreshing in the summer next up, something I'll send to Joe soon, Troeg's Scratch #12, an IPA. Also the same brew as The Drafting Room's 14th Anniversary IPA but my presents are quite exciting, and will be reappearing in the beer thread sometime soon! Thanks a bundle, Joe! packing peanuts are messy Oh goodie, a nicely wrapped gift from Joe. Let's see what we've got just as I finished drinking the last of my Hop Shortage, a package arrived from Georgia not an overload of hops, but still quite fine Terrapin's Hop Shortage Ale was next on the agenda, the first of their side project series

Yeah, it sure is. We drove by Blue Diamond Park on the way down Friday night and intended to stop off on our way home on Sunday, but I missed the exit since Garmin never showed it as a park. Upon driving by we saw no signs of life at all, and after arriving home we checked the website to find our thoughts to be true, the park isn't opening this year. Once again Delaware is roller coaster-less.

^The Pier and Trimper's are like 1 block from each other. Baja is pretty much on the same latitude, but on the other side of the bay from them (Highway 50, I believe). Jolly Roger at 30th St. is 2 blocks over from the Boardwalk and like 30 blocks north of the other two parks. I would suggest parking by the beach for the lower 2 (or walking there if your hotel is close enough) and then driving to Jolly Roger and Baja. Both of those have free parking and large enough lots.

After going to Dogfish Head, seeing so much participation here this week, and receiving a nice gift from my boss on Monday, I decided to make it another themed week. Time for IPA week, here's the first half the week thus far. While no Pliny, it's much better than the ImPaled. Good citrus notes with a strong biscuity backbone and a nce earthy finish more New York brews, Ithaca's Flower Power IPA just a little bit of hop presence with a bitterness coming from something else. And again as with mostly every Middle Ages brew, an odd buttery finish. Middle Ages ImPaled Ale was next and wow is it ever fantastic. lots of citrus flavors followed by a honey and biscuit backbone and a nice blast of pine and spicy hops in the finish. Sadly it doesn't appear that this brew will make it to PA anytime soon with the high gas prices. must drink fresh, ok. got it as they like to mention over and over again with cute little sayings on the bottle and unlike some other Russian River beers, this one you shouldn't age Wow, this stuff is pretty freaking fresh! Last week my boss went out to NorCal for business. Since he didn't take me with, he decided to bring me back some goodies, like a bottle of Pliny the Elder!

After Trimper's we headed to the Jolly Roger parks, of which there are two, the Pier and 30th St. Both parks work together with the same tickets system, so we grabbed the $15.99 1-6 wristband good for all the rides and included some mini golf as well. and so, our weekend of credit whoring and dark ride exploring had come to a close. Next time we'll spend more time on the beach and playing mini-golf, assuming Ocean City doesn't get devoured by Wacky Worms first! too many intense wacky worm rides left us riding this one in the front. The best thing about this credit was the price, $1.50 per person! Cha-ching! a Wacky Worm! I hadn't seen one of these in like a mile Besides mini golf and lots of go cart tracks, they've got something else quite rare to find in Ocean City finally, on the other side of the bridge into Ocean City we run into our last stop, Baja Amusements Jolly Roger's Treasure Course was pretty good. They also had a Jungle Course we can't leave Ocean City without first playing at least 1 round of mini golf and a tipping bucket kids area more newer slides It seems that Jolly Roger's Waterpark, Splash Mountain is the big draw here, with lots of newer style slides the mirror maze even included arrows on the ground to tell you where to go. Where's the fun in that?! this dark ride was also closed at the moment, which was a bummer because I think it could have competed with Morbid Manor and Jersey Junkyard as worst dark ride ever another Gravitron but we didn't ride it due to the 1 operator per 3 rides thing going on at the moment This may be the slowest flume ride ever! even the ducks don't want to swim in there! time to take a ride on Malaria Falls not sure how long this ride will stay put though, this place seems to get the coasters from traveling fairs and keep them for only like a year or two. The ride looks newly refurbished, now complete with LIM brakes New for 2008 is this Wildcat that is believed to have come from Bell's again, back row's most intense yay, a wacky worm! the rides area is very carnival-like, plopped down on gravel The original Jolly Roger is on Philadelphia Ave at 30th St a look at the beach before we head to the other Jolly Roger park since we were in Ocean City, we had to get some Thrasher's Fries we also did the dark ride, Morbid Manor, which was right up there with the Jersey Junkyard as a really bad dark ride. The "coolest" part was that all the props were metal sculptures...all like 6 of them A little rain was approaching, so we tried to hurry through the pier, which was easy since there wasn't much we really wanted to do here other than the Looping Star our first, but brief stop, the Pier just in case you forgot where we were

On Sunday we took the 40 minute drive south to Ocean City, a place much bigger and touristy. With a really nice big beach, long boardwalk, 1000s of hotels, and plenty of bars, restaurants, and more mini golf than anyone could possibly play in a summer it's easy to see why Ocean City, Maryland is such a popular summer getaway. But we're here mainly for 2 things, 1 the dark rides, and 2 the credits, of which Trimper's has the better selection. everyone knows Wacky Worms offer the most intense ride in the back and before we go, better get Nicole's last credit at the park, the first of many Wacky Worms and the always dizzying Zipper after riding the Haunted House a few times and getting our money's worth, we decided to enjoy some more rides, like the Freak Out the cars were a little uncomfortable on your spine, but they looked cool it mixes old tricks like rotating barrels, horns, water stunts, blacklights, and things that jump out before the lights turn off with newer props. Lots of action and it didn't seem like anything wasn't working and up on the actual boardwalk is Trimper's Haunted House, a great old Bill Tracy dark ride tucked away off to the side is a mirror maze and even included a slide finale another small funhouse type ride that rocked back and forth like Noah's Ark Nicole almost died on the rotating wheel more cool old school things at Trimper's include a funhouse nothing too brutal, but not smooth as a baby's butt either which happens to be a boomerang time for another coaster, the only "permanent" model in all of OCMD, Tidal Wave this is one neat little walk thru and seemingly with more pirate theming lots of twists, turns, dark areas, and slanted floors our next stop was Pirates Cove, which just blows the one at Waldameer away still one of the most brutal and uncomfortable designs ever Trimper's Rides, located really close to the pier opens at 12, so we went there first, and rode the Toboggan for the credit also at Jolly Roger at the Pier is a Ripley's museum, definitely stamping Ocean City as a tourist trap in the distance you can see Jolly Roger at the Pier, which doesn't open until 1pm after finding parking fairly easily for a Sunday late morning, we took a little walk on the boardwalk, much longer and wider than Rehoboth's

I had first visited Ocean City for its coasters 2 years ago, but went before Memorial Day and half the things weren't opened yet for the year. Being that they were all just run of the mill carnival coasters I wasn't in much of a hurry to get back, but with Trimper's contemplating closure because of high property taxes I figured this would be a good time for me to get back there, not so much for the coasters, but for the dark rides, and to take Nicole with for some more shore fun. Our first stop would be Rehoboth Beach. We were going to stay at a friend's place down there, but they had plumbing issues a few days earlier and decided to put us up in a hotel instead. Rehoboth Beach is like a Cliffs Notes version of everything associated with the shore; it's got everything from beach, boardwalk, amusement park, hotels on the beach, mini golf, restaurants, bed and breakfasts, etc but it's a heck of a lot smaller than other places like Ocean City or Wildwood. and watching some kites on the beach and we'll end our time in Rehoboth with a walk on the boardwalk coconut for me and fluffer nutter for Nicole and yet more funky flavors but with all these flavors how can you pass it up! another must stop place for us is the Ice Cream Store, which seems odd since we're both lactose intollerant That night they had a band playing in the Grand Pavilion at the center of town. Just a really cool old fashioned vibe Such was our visit to Funland, which is also very affordable. We got 48 tickets for $12, and rides like the Haunted Mansion cost 5 tickets. Quite affordable for the amount of fun we had here you can see another spot where the Haunted Mansion briefly steps outside time for us to cuddle up! The Cuddle Up is also a good family ride, and offers a different style ride than regular tea cups They've also got a Gravitron that we would see little 3 year olds walking off of and loving it going green, instead of being powered by gas or electricity, this ride runs off the power of yams New this year is the Moser Superflip, taking the place of the Chance Chaos the bumper cars are also very favored since it appeals to a wide audience. You hear that, Six Flags?! The place is very popular once the sun starts going down more kiddie rides that I don't think have changed since I was a kid coming here! there are a few areas where it ventures outside, attracting more people passing by time for our venture on this well themed dark ride much like Peter Pan, this dark ride is suspended. And they'll let the whole family ride together if you can fit and this dude will keep you entertained while in line with his ride spiel Finally 6:30 comes and the ride opens. As you can see, it's very popular and the queue is always full, though the wait isn't bad at all so until 6:30 comes around, we may as well have some eats at the towns only brewpub and one of the largest growing microbreweries in America, Dogfish Head But the main reason we're here is for the Haunted Mansion, one of the best dark rides still around. Most of the rides open at 1, but this doesn't open though until 6:30pm But a few rides are out in the open. There isn't a roller coaster here, mainly just kiddie rides, though there are a few more thrilling rides for the rest of us Some rides, like the carousel and a good amount of the kiddie rides, are covered by the main building Funland is Rehoboth's little amusement park on the boardwalk One of the gotta eats while in Delaware is Grotto Pizza, some of the best pizza ever The surf was pretty crazy that weekend and I managed to kiss the ground on more than 1 occasion. I think I still have some sand in my ears! Our hotel for the stay was right on the boardwalk, just a few feet from the beach, and on the northern more quiet side of the town. Only thing we didn't have was a pool. Welcome to Rehoboth Beach

^Looks like a fun weekend, wish we coulda joined you, but we had another plan,....Rehoboth! and to end, instead of getting a 60 Minute IPA which I had a sufficient amount of earlier, I decided to try something new to me, the Chicory Stout. Unique in that it combines Chicory coffee , chocolate, and roasted malt with odd things like licorice root and St. John's Wort. Pretty good and low in abv too you should think of me if you ever end up going upstairs It's a pretty small place, even with an upstairs, and really gets crowded once the sun sets during the summer months Before it's gone I better grab the exclusive Ryehoboth Rye Ale, on Nitro! Smooth and refreshing, easy to drink, and packing in some good spicy bread flavors and a hint of hops. Went well with my crab and sweet corn chowder and tuna steak on tap we see some usuals and even a brewpub exclusive. But sadly, no summer brew Festina Peche, it was gone for the season as Nicole found out. Dogfish Head Brewings and Eats, the original. Located on Rehoboth's main strip Getting back in Rehoboth we needed some food. So, let's have a walk down the beach to visit Dogfish Head Brewery's papa and finally trying the Palo Santo Marron was worth the drive. A really different flavoring, which Dogfish Head is known for It's kind of a bummer that they don't have more on tap to select from for your beer samples, but we were happy with our 60 Minute IPA and Indian Brown Ale and now its time to taste some of the beers we learned about today finally we finish up with the bottling line I'd so quit my job to work in the Dogfish lab joining the other fermenters seen here here are some of the newest fermenters, helping to increase production next up, we see the fermenters. First, the wooden ones used to make Burton Baton and other oak aged beers, and the one in the very back, Palo Santo wood used to make Palo Santo Marron. they were actually working on a Saturday, getting ready to brew up some tasty 60 Minute IPA here we see where the grain silos come into the building through the wall behold, the brewing process! next, a visit to the Brewhouse, where the magic happens here we see the brewing system for the first batches of beer and its bottling line. first stop, a history of Dogfish Head, including its first kegging line and the now retired Sir Hops Alot, Dogfish's revolutionary hop adding device let the tour begin! with tours every hour on weekends, as one tour lets out, the next one is ready to begin and here's what we can enjoy after the tour today after checking in, Nicole is armed with her Dogfish tokens for free samples after the tour or check out the merch for purchasing after the tour while waiting for your tour to start, you could enjoy a game of Bocci I wonder if this will fit in the trunk of my car? outside you'll see random things shown in Dogfish Head ads over the years here you can see the big ole grain silos that feed the brewery its malty goodness home of the beer thread famous Dogfish Head! So, after about 30 minutes of driving, we found ourselves here in Milton, Delaware. After battling the violent surf for a few hours, we were in need of safer ways to spend our time We were supposed to stay at my coworker's beach house, but they had a plumbing problem a few days before and decided to put us up in a hotel, on the beach. Not a bad view to wake up to

This past weekend we headed for the shore, and since we were passing right by it and stopping for dinner there would help us avoid some traffic, we went to The Drafting Room again. But I decided upon the lobster since we were heading to the shore. While I had a tough time picking a special of the day as they all looked great Nicole couldn't pass up the French Onion soup Since I was driving and didn't want something too high in abv, I went with the Brooklyn Keller Helles, a nice summer session with a good combination of fruit, honey, and pale grainy malt flavors Nicole went with the Left Hand Haystack Wheat, served without a lemon (but she added the one in her water) The website hasn't been updated for quite some time, so here's the current style of the month, Wheat beers, and the tap list Back again on a very crowded Friday evening, good thing I made reservations

One of Ocean City, Maryland's plethora of Wacky Worms.

Nice to see more participants this week! This weeks random beers, which has most of the stuff coming out of New York, but ending with an early Christmas in July since I'll be away tomorrow. Pretty good stuff with a nice sweetness along with flavors of banana, plums, bread malt, Christmas spices, licorice, and just enough alcohol to make this one a "special occasions only" brew and finally, for Christmas in July, time to enjoy the bottle of Gouden Carolus Noel that I got from Heath back at Christmas Not bad stuff, just fairly average, and once again having lots of butter notes. Back to New York and Middle Ages' Grail Ale, another amber ale The smirk-o-meter suggests this one aged pretty well so far. Lots of caramel malt sweetness and fruit flavors along with a touch of chocolate, coffee, and smoke. Purchased back on release day in January, I think it's finally time I open up a bottle of Baltic Thunder from Victory, using Heavyweight's Perkuno's Hammer recipe, slightly altered This one lived up to its name, and was a pretty hopped up Red ale Ithaca's Cascazilla was next Although purchased back in March, this one was now past its prime, and ended up being mostly a drain pour First up, Buffalo's own Flying Bison Barnstormer Pale Ale

This week I decided to go with another themed week, so it's time to enjoy some brews from Michigan, all of which was picked up on our venture out there back in April. even though this beer is a couple of months old, it still isn't holding back any of the great hop flavors. Great powerful bitterness with just enough sweetness from the honey. Perfect way to end our Michigan theme. Our final stop will be Bell's in Kalamazoo for some Hop Slam, one of the best IPAs there is another good brew that is a little different than most tripels. Packing lots of citrus flavors like orange and pineapple along with the typical banana and bubble gum tripelness We pass by Marshall on our way back to Grand Rapids, so let's have some of Dark Horse's Sapient Trip Ale hey hey hey, this brews packing raisin, plum, chocolate, molasses, spices, nuts, roasted malt, and even some citrus flavors Heading out of Detroit we'll visit Ann Arbor and Arbor Brewing for their Phat Abbot Dubbel this Belgian tripel does a fantastic job at hiding its alcohol while not being stingy with flavors. Banana, apples, spices, honey, yeast, all good just a size comparison between a normal bottle and the Eisbock bottle since we're in Warren already, let's head down the road to Dragonmead and their Final Absolution raspberry jelly, caramel, chocolate, prune, brown sugar, and some pretty high ABV at 12%, this sucker is packing. Luckily it's only a 6oz bottle! up next brings us closer to Detroit with Kuhnhenn's Raspberry Eisbock, one of the top rated beers in the world loaded with red raspberry flavor along with a touch of malt and even a hint of grassy hops, this has summertime dessert written all over it We'll start out in Grand Rapids with Founders and their Rubaeus, a raspberry ale

Yesterday at Morey's Piers for Coastin' By the Ocean, probably the best park event ever! so instead it would be Great White, which was just running average during the day, but you can't beat the location! I was hoping it'd be Great Nor'Easter since it's much more rerideable with the new trains and the lights package looked great at night, but it was DDM when we were in that area EDIT: D'oh! Forgot we went back and rerode Doo Wopper on our way to the Lu'au

This week's brews. Maybe I'll start another themed week next week. didn't really look or taste like a typical wit though, but it did have lots of fruity flavors like nectarine, apricot, orange blossom, lemon, honey, and toasted grain to make for a nice summertime brew and to finish, Swallow Wit from Middle Ages in Syracuse Nothing extraordinary, but it did have some nice flavors of chocolate mixed with roasted malt, coffee beans, molasses, and a touch of lactose. Almost like an Imperial Milk Stout, but it hid its alcohol quite well Arcadia's Cocoa Loco, a stout pickup from back in Dark Lord Day Not as good as it was on tap, but this beer sure does have lots of grass and pine flavors with a touch of toasted grain and biscuit to help balance it out a bit May as well stay with the hop theme now with a can of Surly's Bitter Brewer another excellent DIPA from those SoCal peoples. Packing in lots of pineapple, grapefruit, tangerine, caramel, biscuit, and pine with a little touch of alcohol warmth, I could just imagine sitting on the beach watching the surf crash and the sun set into the Pacific A beer I picked up at Union Jack's and couldn't wait to open, Port Brewing's 2nd Anniversary Double IPA This one didn't disappoint. Good flavors of molasses, nuts, chocolate, toffee, roasted coffee, and citrus hops. Ithaca's Nut Brown Ale was next on the agenda It was just ok for a red ale, not much hop flavor to it, nothing really exciting but flavors of malt, smoke, and grapes Red Tulip Ale from New Holland

I was going to propose in front of Wonder Mountain at Canada's Wonderland, but I knew we wouldn't be at that location until after riding Behemoth and didn't want to risk losing the ring on the ride. Plus I figured the metal detector may have picked it up, thus ruining the surprise. So instead I went with a restaurant, much easier.