Rugged One

^ Your'e killing me Ted! Can't wait to get back to the Burgh and it's wonderful beer bars. By the way, that Mad Elf was from a stash from the back of my beer fridge. One of these nights, I'll do a comparison between this years and lasts to see if I notice a difference. They supposedly tweak it each year. Tonights selection is one I've really been looking forward to trying (and a style that I'm really growing fond of), the Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout. Mmmm. Nice but not overpowering aroma and taste of coffee to this one, although it was slightly bitter. Very smooth and drinkable even though it had a little more alcohol on the end than I would have liked. That doesn't detract though from what is a very

^ Just an FYI dude. You may want to check out the first post of the first page of this thread.

Nice pics from last nights festivities Derek! Thanks for the update to let us know you made it home OK. I think the highlight for me yesterday was The Beeryard. Very cool place. Sorta small but they had a some really unique stuff. And they make their own variety cases too! That along warrants future visits. Went with a new to me IPA tonight. The Two-Hearted Ale from the much hyped Bell's (formerly Kalamazoo) Brewing. And well, lets just say I look forward to trying more from them! Lots of good stuff going on with this one. Decent (but not overpowering hops), nice citrus undertones, and a sweet malt backbone to even things out equals a very solid IPA!

^ It's funny how I had you check out Beer Mart as a backup. And they actually came through! Can't wait for some vanilla oakiness this weekend. Luckily Derek helped brighten up an otherwise sad beer day for me. For those of you who may actually enjoy reading them, you know that we head down to DuClaw in Baltimore every month for their beer release. Unfortunately, there won't be a trip report for this month thanks to the torrential rain we had in the area this afternoon. We got has far south as Hunt Valley, MD and said screw it. Flash flooding and car wrecks everywhere. And we missed a good one too. Probably the best release of the year. The Devil's Milk Barleywine. Oh well. Hopefully we won't get stuck in a snowstorm on the way down for the Black Jack Stout release next month. The good news was that I at least got to get to my beer place and pick up some new stuff. Including some of this years batch of Mad Elf... It seemed pretty on par with last years release. The cherry really seemed more pronounced than I remembered and it hides it's 11% ABV really, really well. The Mad Elf by Troegs. Complete with new package redesign.

Change any CCI that runs G-trains to PTCs.

Felt like something hoppy tonight and boy did I get it! The Weyerbacher 11th Anniversary Triple IPA. The Triple IPA is somewhat of a rare style and I was really looking forward to this one but I think even I got more than I bargained for with this. Insane hops throughout, the malt barely keeps things in check. At 11%, there was definitley more than a little alcohol present but even that was overpowered by the hops. Things toned down somewhat as it warmed but man this was one rough customer. Definitely one of those beer tasting experiences you remember! Savor this one my friends, as you don't see it often. The Hoppy Heath Face! Say hello to extreme hoppiness. The Weyerbacher 11 Triple IPA.

In case anyone's interested, here's a link to the recently released trailer. Only this ones a little different. It has the Venom footage at the end. http://gorillamask.net/spiderman3venom.shtml

Yeah, Adam's finally posting his honeymoon pics! Doesn't Epcot just rule? Tried my final Oktoberfest of the season tonight. The Brooklyn Brewing Oktoberfest. This one was a little hoppier than I expected. Still very nice and a great way to end the season!

Adam, that picture of Mark and Amanda with their beers is hilarious. I guess that's what househunting will do to you. Glad to see that you all had a great time. Tried another Oktoberfest import. The Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest. My oh my, this stuff is quaffable. Great example of the style. If only I had gotten a 6er of it instead of a lonely single.

^ Look above Wally. We allready had it Friday night. I must say, that Derek and I both agreed that it was one of our top beers of the year. Picked up something new yesterday. A case of Double Bastard 06. The Oaked Arrogant Bastard is sitting in the back at the beer distributor but can't be sold yet until the new 12 oz bottles are approved for sale in the state of PA. Hopefully soon. Oh yeah!

^Perfect for you all. I wanted to finish my song!:'> That's all right, I'm allready working up my set list for Eastcoaster.

^^ Hmmm, interesting Adam. So I guess it was your beer crazed brain that we have to blame for this controversy! So I guess the beer is meant to be hoppy. Weird. I'll probably crack into your bottle sometime this week to see if I detect anything different between the two. What better way to celebrate the end of October and Halloween itself, than with my final bottle of pumpkin ale. And I have to say, I think this is my favorite. The Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale. Have a safe and scary Halloween everybody! The Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale. Just big and bold and pumpkiny and spicey and delicious. Mmmmmmm!

Nice pics from Jolly Pumpkin Derek. Good job wedging it in there right before the wedding. Tuxes and all. A true BACT ATTACK! With October nearly wrapped up, I figure I need to start hitting more of these Oktoberfest styles I have sitting around. Tonight, it's the Paulaner Oktoberfest. I think this is my favorite of the imported styles I've had so far. Not as dry as some of the others. Rather sweet up front with a nice hoppiness at the end. Good stuff!

Slimer, looks like he's coming right for you in that pic Adam! I'm still sweating it from that near sliming on Thunderhawk. Glad to hear they finally opened the 2 Beemers by the end of the day. I wish we could have stuck around longer. At least to see Derek rocking that sweet head warmer!

Tried yet another Oktoberfest last night. The Victory Festbier. This is a really tasty one too. Very sweet and malty. Yum!

Decided to take a break from the pumpkin ales tonight and get back to the Oktoberfests. The Spaten Oktoberfest to be exact. This one seemed a littel dryer than some of the others I've had. Just a little sweetness at the beginning with some hoppy bittterness at the end. Pretty good.

The 11th Anniversary was good. It was the first time that I had tried a porter from them. I'd like try some more dark beers from Sam. The Parade of Pumpkin Ales continues with tonights selection. The Dogfish Head Punkin Ale. I really like this one. Definitely meatier than most. Swet maltiness and spices up front on this one. I just wish there was a little more pumpkin and a little less alcohol taste to this one and it would be perfect. The Dogfish Head Punkin Ale. So different, IT'S PUNK!

Back to the Pumpkin Ales. Tonights's selection seems to be a real favorite around here. The Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale. This is probably the one to beat when it comes to actual pumpkin flavor. Also some nice spice notes present. My only gripe about this beer is how thin it is. Very, very light. That aspect definitley makes it the most quaffable of the ones I've had. The Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale. Definitely earns the "Pumpkin" in it's name.

^^^^I'll let Kim know you liked the pic Nicole. When she really doesn't like something, she lets her tongue do the talking. ^ ^Yeah, we had figured that they would be up in their new digs by the time we were there, considering that they were in the process of moving when we were last there back in May. Sh*t happens though sometimes. We really enjoyed the old location the last 2 times we visited. It was small but had a nice vibe and was a pretty cool place to have a pint. It really looks like the new location will give them a lot more room though and a classier look. As for Ybor Gold, they actually had it at the M.J. Barleyhoppers. Kim pointed it out but I skipped it because I knew nothing about it. If I had known it was "Ted Approved", I would have given it a shot. More pics from Florida. Day 3 took us to Epcot and their wonderful Food & Wine Festival. Of course, when we're involved, it naturally becomes the Food & Beer Festival. Wow, just an overall great day at a great park! We'll most assuredly be back. We end the day with a pre Illuminations dinner. Had to go back to Germany for a brat and sauerkraut, along with a full helping of the 11th Anniversary Porter. Sampling the 11th Anniversay Festival Porter. Pretty good. And Kim agrees! Cant beat free samples of Sam! The seminar was cool as they actually taught you how to taste your beer, no merely trying to sell you on Sam Adams. I think that they overall did try to sell over craft beer as a whole, which was cool. While waiting in line, they have a whole "History of Sam Adams" display set up for you to read. Of course, it was eventually time to do the History of Beer in America seminar. Later, I had a Sam Black Lager to go along with my first time sampling of escargots. It was interesting. Kind of like eating mussels. We skipped getting anything at the Great Beers of the World booth. Nothing really jumped out at us. I really liked the Kirin tap at the Japan booth. Of course, when enjoying Oktoberfest, you have to have the obligitory giant pretzel to go along with your Beck's. It's because of the absolutely awesome brat and sauerkraut on pretzel rolls that they sell there! Was it because they had Beck's Oktoberfest on draft? That's a pretty decent reason but no. Easily the highlight of the Festival for us was the Oktoberfest booth. Why? ...while I'm all smiles with my Oktoberfest. Kim samples the awesome Cherry Wheat... Special thanks to my buddy here pouring me my Sam Oktoberfest. He forgot to charge me for the souvenir mug and said "fuggedaboutit"! Thanks dude! Lot's of very good Sam Adam's products on the agenda. Of course, this was the only booth that mattered. I think Kim and I played it smart by putting a certain amount of money on a gift card. Once it was gone, it was gone. I'd hate to see the bills for the people using their room keys to charge. You order at the register and then pick it up at the window. It was a Saturday, so naturally there were long lines all day. For those that have never been, the Festival basically involves these booths, representing different countries foods and wines, set up around World Showcase. They had this little thing called the Food & Wine Festival going on in World Showcase. Back to Epcot, a park we had only previously spent a few hours at before. It was nice to finally spend a whole day here, as it really is a great park.

^ Ah, come on Nicole, don't tease us like that. BTW, the Cherry Wheat is awesome! ^^ Glad you and Ellen enjoyed the ABC, Adam. Did you ever get to try the Major Hops? That's one of my favorites they brew there. Time for some more Florida pics. Day 2 of our trip took us to Busch Gardens Tamprica. After a few hours in the park, we took a side trip over to Ybor City for a beer break before heading back to the park for Howl-O-Scream. And then followed that us with a Sam Oktoberfest, which they had on special. Can't beat that! I start out with a Franziskaner Hefe. Good as always. It was OK. Pretty decent selection of foreign stuff. I wish they had had a little more on the American Craft side though. Well after that, we still needed some beer, so we headed across the street to an M.J. Barleyhoppers. He told us part of the deal with buying this property was that this outside porch area be included. Should make for a nice beer garden area. The whole thing should be really nice once they open. We ran into head brewer Dave Doble outside of the buidling, who nicely chatted with us for a few minutes. He explained that the delay was due to the brewing system taking 3 X the cost and time to move than they had originally thought. It's not freaking open yet! As a matter of fact, we just missed it by a little over a week. The grand opening is tonight. Hmmm, something doesn't look right... Well here we are at Centro Ybor, home of the brand new location of the TBBC. We next headed to Ybor City, first passing the old home of the Tampa Bay Brewing Co. It's not here, so they must be open in the new place, right? Right? I then decide to get creative and mix the two. It tasted exactly like you would think it would. I sent Kim to get some Tilt because the line was shorter. You can see what she thought of it. I feel compelled to give the Bareknuckle Stout a another go. Still not rock'en my boat at all. I get greedy and start double fisting some more of the Jack's Pumpkin Spice Ale. They only had one line open for samples, which of course eventually became a really big line for samples. Uh oh, not another Busch Hospiltality House!

So this weekend, Kim and I were supposed to go down to the parks in VA but at the last minute decided not to, opting to just hang around the area instead. Saturday, we hit up a couple of beer spots and then had an impromptu meetup with Adam and Ellen at Hersheypark In The Dark. ...and the happy newlyweds. Aren't they cute? After Hersheypark in the Dark, we all headed over to Red Robin for some late dinner. Sam Oktoberfest was of course the beer of choice for myself... I enjoyed the Hop Nouveau so much, that I drained another. We'll be back in a few weeks when they have the pumpkin ale on again. Kim enjoys some of their homemade rootbeer. A fresh hop harvest ale made with 62 pounds of hops, picked right there on site. Straight off the hand pump, it rocked! That's right. It's this years batch of Hop Nouveau! Next stop, back to Selinsgrove Brewing. See those hopvines above the archway. I wonder what those could have been used for? ...which went nicely with my seafood pizza for lunch. I then had a Kiponafest... Their October release is the Pennypacker Porter. They had some decent stuff on tap. Started things out with some lunch at the Harrisburg ABC.

Tonight's pumpkin ale get's things back on track. The Wild Goose Pumpkin Patch Ale from the former Frederick Brewing (now Wild Goose after being bought by Flying Dog). This is a good one. Nice dark orange color and spicey pumpkin aroma. Starts out good with a nice blend of pumpkin and spices that sticks around through the finish. Very sweet maltiness on the back on too. This is a very good pumpkin ale. I think this has limited availabilty right now. I know my place in Maryland only got in a single case of it. If your in the Mid-Atlantic region and see this at your local place, grab it! The Wild Goose Pumpkin Patch Ale. Like pumpkin pie in a bottle!

Time for another pumpkin ale tonight. The Post Road Pumpkin Ale, brewed by the Brooklyn Brewery. I have to be honest, I didn't care for this at all. Very thin body, I could hardly tell the pumpkin from the spices, and worst of all, it had a hoppy finish. Now normally I don't mind this at all in my selections, but NOT IN MY FREAKING PUMPKIN ALE!!! Just not my cup of tea. The Post Road Pumpkin Ale. This one could hit the road as far as I'm concerned.

Thought I'd get around to putting up the pics from our recent 4+ day trip down to central Florida for the Halloween stuff. Normally Kim and I go down just for Halloween Horror Nights and BGA's Howl-O-Scream. This year we decided to add on a couple of extra days to check out the Magic Kingdom event and the Food & Wine Festival at Epcot. Of course everything was great but who really wants to hear about how the parks were? You want to see what beers I drank, right? I'll try and put a new batch of pics up this week whenever I can. We flew in early Thursday morning and headed straight to SeaWorld. Then it was off to the Boardwalk at Disney for some dinner before heading to the Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party at The Magic Kingdom. and myself, the hoppy Red Ale. Then we switched it up. Greg the Oktoberfest... At my recommendation, Greg goes for the Rocket's Red Ale. Their Oktoberfest was on for the fall, so naturally I had to try it. the Big River Grille and Brewing Works of course! After Seaworld we headed to the Boardwalk for a pre-Disney dinner with my friend Greg and his girlfriend at... This one kind of grew on me, as I had it multiple times on this trip. Definitley more spice than pumpkin. The fall seasonal is back on. Jack's Pumpkin Spice Ale. While I check out the organic Stone Mill Pale Ale. Probably the hoppiest thing I've ever had from AB. Kim tries the new Wild Hop organic lager... They had a couple of new things to sample. Yeah, we're back at Seaworld and it's lovely Hospiltality House!

With Fall in full swing and Halloween fast approaching, I'm going to give this week's selections a theme. Pumpkin Ales! Yes everybody's fall fan favorite. I've got six different ones chilling in the fridge and I'll profile a new one each night this week. We'll kick the week off with the original, that put pumpkin ales back on the map in 1984, from Buffalo Bill's in Hayward, CA. And it's an OK one. Nice balance between the pumpkin and spice flavorings. Good taste up front but the finish is kind of lacking. A little too watery. I'm interested to see how it stacks up against some of the others this week. Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale. The original Pumpkin Ale but how will it stack up?