Rugged One

I think that we're going to do this. We had planned a trip up to that area anyway. The price with the season pass discounts sounds good plus it's a great chance to take in PCW at a leisurely pace with all of the ERT. Unfortuantely neither Marineland nor Seabreeze is going to be open yet (or at least from what I saw of their 2005 calenders), so we might have to make a return trip up there to get those in.

Thanks to the recommendation of Adam the other day, I decided to check out the Cinderbock from Heavyweight Brewing. I really dig lagers and this one had a lot of interesting things going on with it. It had some nice malt and fruit flavors but the thing that really stood out is the smoke flavor that is present. Almost like a smoked meat flavor. Very unique but not unpleasant. The Cinderbock from Heavyweight Brewing Company. That goat is smoking for a reason.

To celebrate the new home for my beers, I cracked into a little something from the Middle Ages Brewing Company. The Wailing Wench. I actually wasn't sure specifically what kind of ale this was when I bought it, just that it was supposed to be hoppy. Turns out it's a rather hoppy amber ale. Tasted very similar to the Rogue Dead Guy Ale and trust me, that's a good thing. Gee, what a novel concept to sell a bottle of beer. A big set of hooters. Heh, it worked for me! The Wailing Wench from the Middle Ages Brewing Co.

I would like to introduce the newest member to our family. Our new beer cooler! Kim was getting more than a little annoyed by all of the beer slowly taking over the fridge, so we decided to get a dedicated one to hold all of our tasty libations. I didn't have room to fit all of my stuff but enough to at least hold all of the chilled ones. I had to keep the 22 oz bombers in the regular fridge. Hopefully with a buddy of mine coming into town next weekend we'll clear enough room to fit them in by Monday. One nice feature is the little shelf in the back that I can fit 14 "shorties" on. Definitley helps save some space. I didn't count how many bottles I fit in there but it sure seemed like a lot. Our new beer cooler. Now Kim can have her fridge back.

I'd have to say Rampage. When you first meet me, I'm kind of quiet and subdued but once I get warmed up to you, WATCH OUT!

The latest stop from the Otter Creek World Tour series. Mexico, and the Cerveza Cacao. This had an awesome aroma and taste of cocoa, as it is inspired by the ancient Aztec drink: xocolatl. Whatever the case, it was damn tasty and helped warm me up after fighting the snow home from work. Where will the Otter go next....? The latest stop on the Otter Creek World Tour. The Cerveza Cacao.

I've been wanting to try the CinderBock. It's one of a couple of Heavyweight offerings that I've been tempted by recently. I'll have to put it on the short list. Tried another new one that just came in this week. The Sierra Nevada 2006 IPA. This was a decent IPA but I think that in the future if I'm going to think Sierra Nevada and hops, I'll go with the Celebration. Sierra Nevada IPA 2006. Pretty much a step up from the pale ale.

Here's a pic of my old plate that I had in South Carolina. Of course while I had it, no one seemed to be able to figure out what it meant. One guy even asked me if it meant "Sister Lover"! I'm still not sure yet if I'm going to get another coaster related plate here in PA. If I do, it will probably be along the lines of something Knoebels related.

Schlotsky's all the way. BEST HOTSAUCE EVER!!!

Yeah, I'm realing digging the Naked Fish. It's probably one of my favorite DuClaw selections now. It's so good, that I think I'm going to head down there on Sunday and pick up another growler full. Allrighty, the Troegs Nugget Nectar has finally hit stores, so I picked up a six pack to see how it differed from what I tasted in the brewery sample room the other week. Surprisingly, it was quite different. At the brewery, it had a very citrus taste but was not very hoppy. In the bottle, it is the complete opposite. Some nice citrus accents with a big hop bite. As a matter of fact, this is probably the most hoppy beer I've experienced from Troegs. Which makes me very happy. Troegs Nugget Nectar. Hop Heads rejoice!

Well, it's that time of the month again. Beer release Wednesday at the DuClaw Brewing Co. This month's release is the Naked Fish Chocolate Raspberry Stout. This was a very light stout but damn if it wasn't good. You can definitely taste and smell the raspberry more than the chocolate. Everytime I would lift the glass to my lips, I was like "holy crap, this beer smells good!" So good in fact that I had three glasses while watching LOST. But heh, it's a growler and you have to drink it fast. Get Naked! Growler goodness from DuClaw. The Naked Fish Chocolate Raspberry Stout.

That's right. Dogs and good beers are truelly Man's best friends. More Great Divide goodness tonight. Great Divide Hot Shot ESB. Nice hoppy bitterness to this one.

Recap of Super Bowl Sunday. You would have thought that the Raiders and 49ers were playing, considering the theme of today's selections. By the way, just what is up with the little shorty bottles in Nor Cal? The one thing I will say is that there wasn't a bad beer in the bunch. All were very good. Heath says "I'm only rooting for them because your a fan honey. Now let's go watch the game Mr. Hopdevil!" Kim says "Go Steelers and go Nut Brown!" Packed up a PA party pack for the trip over to the parents to watch the big game. Scrimshaw Pils from North Coast. A decent pils. Had a sweet taste and was mildly hoppy. Pyramid Hefe. Nice taste of wheat and lemons. Even a little bit sour from the lemons. Not the best hefe but still pretty good. North Coast Blue Star Wheat . Very light but delicious flavor. I'll forgive the Cowboy's logo on the bottle. The Lagunitas IPA. Wow, this is an excellent IPA. It doesn't beat you over the head like some but instead has a real hoppy undertone to it. Reminds me of the Hopdevil. The Red Seal Amber Ale from North Coast Brewing. Another excellent amber. Started out with the legendary Anchor Liberty Ale. Awesome stuff.

Nice pics Wally. I especially like the fire place thingee you have out back. It looks cozy. Now how does one get invited to one of these shin digs? Knock on the door with a six-pack of Hopdevil!?

Ah man, I wish we could have made it. Looks like a good time was had by all. Just seeing Tom's bar alone would have been worth the trip up there.

Man, I wish I could be there partaking with you guys. I don't have 79 varieties but I did count 51 in the fridge heading into Super Bowl Sunday. Whoops, make that 50.... Now this is a stout I can get behind. Very drinkable. Sweet with accents of chocolate & vanilla and a very slight hop finish. I'm gonna have to hit this one again sometime. It's got a great aroma of chocolate. Let's see how it tastes... The Siberian Night Imperial Stout by the Thirsty Dog Brewing Company. I got a new doggie.

I saw this on dvd back in December. Quite a fascinating documentary. As for the R rating, it's mostly for a bunch of F bombs throughout it. If they show it again, I would highly recommend checking it out.

I felt like it was a decent episode this week, with a few laughs. It wasn't quite as funny as previous episodes this season but it didn't piss me off or anything after I watched it. The one thing I will say about the show since it returned is that it seems like they have been relying way too much on old pop culture gags for laughs. Those are fine once in a while but not all the time.

I saw this today when I went into my local place. I just had some of the 2005 not too long ago. Rather good stuff. Plus you have to love a beer bottle with a Sasquatch on it. Drank my last Weyerbacher Winter. This was an OK winter ale. Nice and malty. Weyerbacher does better though. Went back for some more Great Divide goodness. The Ridge Line Amber Ale. I love ambers and this was a good one.

Please change mine to "Beer Fueled Coaster Riding Machine". Thanks.

That Stone IPA is good stuff Tom. I've got a bottle of Ruination sitting in the fridge that I've been waiting to try. Stone hasn't disappointed me yet. Finished off my last Sierra Nevada Celebration tonight. Of all the winter brews I've had this season, I think that this was my favorite because it went in the total opposite direction of most of the others. Hoppy as all get out. Decided to follow up with a Sam's Oktoberfest. Had to balance out the hoppiness of the Celebration with some sweet maltiness. This is definitley one I'll be visiting with again next winter. Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale.

How about a Log Flume that uses Beverly instead of Water? You can even catch it in your mouth during the splashdown.

I'd be up for that as well. It's just a matter of me being able to get whatever Saturday in March off. I would be pretty cool to meet some of you guys on here. Speaking of Troegs, I enjoyed my favorite of theirs tonight. The Dreamweaver Wheat. Dreamweaver Wheat. Kind of appropriate that I'm drinking this before going to bed.

I'm glad everyone enjoyed the pics. I wish we had gone on the tour now so that I could have taken photos of the behind the scenes stuff as well for you all to see. Tried a new Belgium tonight. The Reverend, which is a Quad from Avery Brewing in Colorado. I'm not too much of a Belgium beer fan but I'm trying to get into them more and I have a few in the fridge that I'll hopefully be trying soon. This one was pretty decent. It had a taste of cherries and a nice malty sweetness to it. The wife actually liked this one and helped me finish the bottle. She's more of a wine drinker than I am and not a big fan of the overly hopped up stuff I usually drink. Say your prayers, it's The Reverend from Avery Brewing. Let the sermon begin!

Cram it in while you can Wally. I did the same thing when I was off at Christmas. So today was my first Saturday off of the new year and I didn't want to waste it. What else to do, than drive up to Harrisburg for some Brewery fun. We hadn't been to Troegs since last fall, so we figured we were due for a visit. While we were in the area, we stopped at one of the local beer distributors I like and low and behold, look what I found! A case of Lagunitas IPA. Bonus! It was a little pricey but I've been wanting to try it. All in all, it was another great lunch at the ABC! Next, it was time to dip into this months specialty release. The Zoigl Star Lager. This had a nice reddish color and a fine malt finish. Hoppy Trails IPA. This just went from seasonal to yearly and it deserves it. I very serviceable IPA. Here's a shot of the nice big bar and what's on tap. I think I'll start out with a..... The ABC also has an upstairs Belgium beer bar that I haven't been up in yet. One of these days. I really like the ABC because the place is just massive. It's one of these former abandoned factory buildings that got refurbished into a brewery and restaurant. It just feels like there is some massive kick ass brewing going on in here somewhere. Next stop, the Appalacian Brewing Company, right down the street from Troegs. ....until we said "screw the tour, we've done it a bunch of times before anyway". Just way too many people going on it. After finally being able to breath in the room, we bought some merch, got another sample, and headed out. ....and more crowded..... At this point it started to get more crowded.... A little too light for my tastes but it was refreshing and most importantly, it was a Troegs beer and that means that it was damn good! Next, I tried the enigmatic "Mystery Pils" that they had on tap. Let's give it a try. Kim asks, "Will I get my daily allowance of Vitamin C from this?" They also had on hand their Nugget Nectar, which is an Imperial Amber Ale. It is supposed to be more of a hoppy ale but I found it to be the most citrus tasting beer I've ever had. It actually smelled and tasted like grapefruit juice. The best part of visiting Troegs on a Saturday is of course the free samples in the tap room. First one I tried was this years Oatmeal Stout. Not overly strong for a stout but it had a great taste. We knew it was going to be a packed tour because of how crowded it allready was a full half hour before it was scheduled to start. Troegs Brewery in Harrisburg, PA. This is where the magic happens.