Rugged One

A couple more Southern selections the other night. By the way, I've now got the Nikon back from being repaired, so I'll no longer abuse your eyes with pics from my crappy, old Canon. Not a bad effort but one that just falls short compared to the 420. Round 2. The Atlanta Brewing Co. Red Brick Peach Tree Pale Ale. There certainly is something extra in this one! Once again, a seriously solid Pale Ale from Sweetwater. The Sweetwater 420 Extra Pale Ale.

A sampling of some more stuff from down South. Blech! I didn't care for this one too much. Just too sweet in the finish with a mix of nuttiness and fruit that just didn't work for me at all. Next up, the Atlanta Brewing Company's Red Brick Ale. Their flagship brew and an English Brown Ale. Not bad. Pretty hoppy up front but seemed to lack a nice malt backbone to smooth it out. The Kashmir IPA from Highland Brewing in Asheville, NC.

Something new from one of the best of the Southern craft breweries. While it doesn't seem nearly as aggresively hopped as the label suggests, I did really dig the nice citrusy tang that is better than most other IPAs. Good stuff! The much ballyhooed Sweetwater IPA.

Something new from one of the few highlights of the Garden State beer scene. Faint hints of herbs, spices, lemon and wheat. Seems kind of light and flimsy for a Saison. I think this works better as a Summer Ale and we'll leave it at that. The Flying Fish Farmhouse Summer Ale. A summertime Saison.

As far as I can tell Bubba, the Wake N Bake doesn't have a contamination problem. It's always poured that weird fizzy head and the off flavors could be from the fact that it's from last winter. I'll break out a bottle myself soon and see how it's doing. I've never had any problems with any of their other products. See... Whooo, wheee! I forgot how strong this was! Double the hops. Double the malt. Double the taste! Wow, just a fantabulously pungent beer. Makes me wish I had more than one bottle. Lastly, one of my favorites from Terrapin. Their Spring Seasonal, The Rye Squared. Awesome as always! I really love the hops/rye malt balance. Very nice. I'll have to pick up another sixer of this when we're back down South later this fall. Time for some fresh Terrapin Rye.

Dipped into some Brooklyn goodness while finishing up some packing tonight. Very nice but much too malty and sweet to be considered an APA. This would be nice during October playoffs though. And since this weeks sweep of the Mets by my Fighting Phils got me thinking Pennant Race, I'll try something dedicated to a former NY team. The Brooklyn Pennant Ale 55'. A pretty solid Hefe with refreshing hints of banana and clove. I much as I liked this one, I would still suggest you search out the even better Brooklyner-Schneider Hopfen-Weisse collaboration beer. One of my favorites of this summer. The Brooklyner Weiss Beer. Ooooooh. Shiney.

^ I love the name Jobber's Canyon. That's one of the better brewpub one's out there that I've heard. So the other night I decided to get into some beers from a early favorite of mine when I first got into the craft beer scene. Otter Creek Brewing in Middleberry, VT. Since then, we'll let's just say that their beers haven't quite held up but bolstered by my recent visit up to Vermont, I decided to dabble into a couple of their summer offerings. But heh, in the end it actually ended up working as just a plain ole' tasty Summer Ale anyway. And damn, isn't that Otter cute? Time for something new. The White Sail Belgian Style Ale. Actually "Belgian Style" is the operative word here as I thought it failed pretty miserabley at that. Actually this is just an excuse to break out my cute-as-hell Otter glass. Ah, isn't he adorable? The 'Otter Summer Ale. Now made with real Otters!

Last night, in preparation for another bout of insane BACT Attack Extreme this weekend, I thought I'd kick things off with a little Nor Cal goodness. Aaaaah. Fantastic! This was supposed to be a "off" year for the Bigfoot but I wouldn't know. The hops seemed to have aged nicely to meld with that distinctive Bigfoot yeasty/malty chewiness. And don't forget that hot alcohol finish. Yowzas! But I'm not done yet. Got to get the ole' liver primed with some 2-a-days this week! Next up, we'll stick with Sierra Nevada and a bottle of 06 Bigfoot Barleywine. And it's very nice! Just a ton of Cascade hops in the aroma and taste that reminds me a lot of their Celebration Ale. Good stuff! First up, the Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale. Celebrating 27 years of yummy beers. Unfortunately, the timing on this seems off because of recent sad circumstances.

Well it's once again time for my buddy Greg to make his way up from South Carolina for a visit this weekend. On Saturday we decided to make a visit up to Harrisburg and Troegs. Greg really enjoys the Troegs when he's up visiting and hasn't been to the brewery since their remodeling last year so a vist was in order. But first, lunch at a new to us establishment that only about 5 minutes from the brewery... Greg and I finish up with some Troegenator (amongst other stuff) before taking off and ending another fun visit to Troegs. Today, it's off to Selin's Grove Brewing and Knoebels so look for pics from Derek or I soon... The new Dead Reckoning Porter was being fully represented now at the brewery. Complete with all new swag for it as well. You know it's busy at the brewery when they do the first tour and this is still the amount of people left behind to hang out and drink free samples. It's a Belgian Triple this go around and was pretty darn quaffable. They still had some Scratch #3 left. Better get me a case before it's gone. Yeah, back at Troegs! While Greg finished up with a Troegenator and another Naked Elf, I end things with a Hopback Amber. Wow, I forgot how good this was! The food here was decent consisting of mostly Irish style entrees and other pub grub style stuff. Here I have a corned beef reuben. I opt for the always awesome Summertime treat of some Dreamweaver Wheat. Greg enjoyed the Mad Elf so much last time he was here that he naturally has to go for the Naked Elf on this trip. Kim says "Finally a Troegs beer that I can drink 3 of and not feel a thing!" They even have a special non-alcoholic Ginger Beer that Troegs brews specially for them. As well as some other heavy hitters like Dogfish 90 Min and Stone Ruination on the other beer engine. I like this place! One of our reasons for stopping by was McGrath's is considered to be the "unofficial" beer bar of Troegs. Since you can't buy a pint at the brewery, this is someplace really nearby that you can along with some food. And they had some nice choices too. The place was actually a lot nicer than I had expected. Lot's of Irish Pub theming (but not overdone like some places) and a really nice bar area with more dining room in the back. McGrath's Pub. Conveniently located right in downtown Harrisburg and more even more conveniently just down the street from where I work.

Back to the light summer drinking last night with something new from Great Divide. Wow, definitely different but in a good way. Lots of tangy citrus character and sweet crispness makes for some tasty drinking. The latest year round release from Great Divide. The Samurai Ale. Brewed with rice and weighing in at an easy drinking 5% ABV.

^ Looking good Juggler. You'll be up to Imperial Stouts in no time! It was cool here again yesterday, so I thought I'd get into another new to me Stout. Ooooh. I like it! Nice medium body with a silky sweetness the whole way through. A nicely drinkable Stout! The Boonville Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout.

Post # 666. Bwahahahaha... I love you! Finally, it's one of my personal favorites from Avery Brewing. The Mephistopheles Stout. Weighing in at a whopping 16% with a big, beefy body, deep notes of chocolate and coffee, and a lingering hot finish, this beast of a stout definitely isn't for the faint of heart or palate. Ahhhh. Very nice. Fairly smooth, sweet, and malty with a nice dry bitterness to the finish. This should go over nicely as their Fall beer. First stop. The latest seasonal brew from Troegs. The Dead Reckoning Porter. I tasted this as a single batch release the first time I ever visited the brewery but didn't remember too much about it.

Mmmmm. Dogfish Head goodness tonight. Aaaah. Quite tasty! Very similar to their IPAs, this is very good for the style. I took my time with this one and it balanced out quite nicely as it warmed. The Shelter Pale Ale. One I actually haven't had in awhile.

^Sweet! Another Frank Zappa beer! I'd go post your Omaha queries in the Midwest forum over at BA or do a search for past questions in that forum. Beer nerds are just like coaster nerds over there. They live to answer questions like those.

^ That's awesome! I guess it gives new meaning to the term "alcohol abuse".

Since I couldn't make it the DuClaw release last night, Kim brought a little DuClaw home to me. And to make the experience complete, fresh DuClaw jambalaya. Nice and spicey! Ah, so that's why Kim was so willing to pick me up a growler. She wanted some too! I'm glad we got some more of this. Good stuff! Although last night's release was actually the Sawtooth Whit Beer, I actually requested more of the 13 Degrees Hefe before it was gone for the summer. Go figure. Sawtooth sounds like a good growler fill for next weekend. Best wife ever!

Keeping it somewhat local with tonights Summer Sipper. Mmmm. A perfect summer thirst quencher. Fantastic notes of lemon, clove, and yes, you gotta have the bananas in there. Another extremely well done beer from Stoudt's! It's Stoudt's Summer Seasonal. The Weizen. A Bavarian style unfiltered Hefe Weizen.

More summer drinking last night. Wow, quite the tasty summer treat! Creamy, sweet, and with a touch of orange, it makes me wish I had more than just one. The Anderson Valley Summer Solstice. A "Cerveza Crema" or Cream Ale.

Well with Operation "Save Money Until Labor Day" in full swing, Kim and I decided to keep it simple Saturday and just go to the movies. Of couse we couldn't help it that we wanted to see the new Harry Potter movie in IMAX-3D and that it just happned to be playing at the King of Prussia Mall. Oh darn, I guess we'll have to make a few stops on the way there. I end the night with this month's specialty. The Argyle Scottish Ale. Not really sure why they call this a Scotch Ale when they describe it on the board as a Brown Ale and that's pretty much what it tasted like. Light and malty with a faint spiciness and great drinkability. Ooooh. Quite interesting... Lots of citrus flavors that mingles with the light hoppiness to create a somewhat perfumey taste of both. Of course I've got to try last month's specialty first. The American Dream IPA. It's one of those specialties that all of the Rock Bottoms brew and put on as part of a chainwide promotion. After enjoying our movie, we headed over to the mall itself, which means a stop at Rock Bottom. I finish up with an always reliable Prima Pils. Some people don't like this because of the weird aroma/taste imparted from the Czech Saaz hops that are used but I really dig it! Kim goes all spokesmodel with her slice. We haven't actually eaten here in awhile, so we decided to split one of their fantastic pizzas. Kim's quite thristy herself and goes for the draft only Mad King's Weisse. All is not lost though, as they did still have some of a special limited batch still on. The Sunset Dunkleweizen. Quite good, with some real subtle cherry flavors that I really enjoyed. Alas, it wasn't to be as they just ran dry on Friday night. I'll post a blurry description for Bubba since he was asking about it. Wait, what's that on the board? Their Kolsch?!! You got it! Right down the road at Victory. Next stop and "Gee, can you guess where we're at?" I keep it local and opt for the Sly Flox Slacker Bock. Quite the tasty little malt bomb from Sly Fox! Hmmm. I wasn't really feeling the board on this trip. Good thing I only planned on stopping in for just one anyway. First stop. The Drafting Room. Even though it was nice out and outside seating looked tempting, we headed inside to the Drafting Room itself.

Something new for me tonight from a sort-of local brewery. Hmmm. Not bad. Pretty heavy on the chocolate and coffee character with a fairly hoppy finish. The body was pretty light though and didn't hide it's alcohol very well toward the finish. Kind of like a lesser version of the Storm King Stout. But heh, that's not too bad of a thing! The Peg Leg Imperial Stout from the Heavy Seas line of Baltimore's own Clipper City Brewing.

Not only has fresh Three Floyds product made it's way back into PA again but so has their fantastic summer seasonal. The hoppy American Pale Wheat Ale, Gumballhead. What can I say? Excellent as always! Just a huge initial blast of fresh hop character that balances more as it warms, with the wheaty sweetness and lemon zest. People claim that they have actually tasted bubblegum in there. I haven't. Yet! Yeah, we're going to have to go with a big ol' double dose of the Gumballhead tonight. It's got some pretty cool packaging too! Featuring art from the Gumballhead the Cat comic, created by a local Chicagoland artist. Screw the overpriced bombers! It's now available in convenient six-packs. Sweet!

^Yeah, definitely a looks like a bad bottle of the Moylan's IPA. Too bad too, as it's great stuff. That head looks out of control. Here's what the bottle that Derek & I shared back in March looked like:

Tonights beers. By the way, if anyone can tell me or recognizes what the hell is up with the lines running through my pics, please let me know. Wow, very impressive! Tons of sweet accents of coffee, chocolate, and caramel is both the nose & the taste. Probably one of the best Porters I've had in awhile! Next up, something new I picked up in Vermont. The Black Bear Porter from Stone Coast Brewing in Portland, ME. Notice the Sunday River (their former name) on the label. First up, some more of the Brooklyn Lager. Having just had a bottle of it on Sunday in Brooklyn, I can't believe just how much more fresh (especially in the hop department) this tastes out of the can. Good stuff!

Nice pics Ted! It look's your experience with Mt. Olympus had all of the fine points that our last 2 trips there did: 1. Brutally hot Midwest weather (and we were there in June!)- CHECK! 2. Lazy, apathetic employees in the stations that often don't care about their own safety, much less yours.- CHECK! 3. A kiddie coaster that you can't ride, despite the fact that there is no height restriction and you know plenty of people who have.- CHECK! 4. Employees on golf carts that nearly run you over every 10 minutes. (OK, you didn't actually post a pic of that but I'm assuming it happened).- CHECK! Awesome! You guys truelly got a first-rate visit here! Seriously, this is one of those places that really has to be experienced first hand. Kim and I just shake our heads and laugh at everything. We can't wait to go back next year! I loved Hades when we rode it back in 05. I'm not sure how it's been keeping up. Like you said, a hot/dry summer won't do a woody any favors. Did you guys get a chance to ride the go-carts at all?

Mmmm. Founders. Guess what? It's still fantastic! Pours pitch black with just tons of burnt chocolate/coffee rye taste and a nice hoppiness. Kind of like an Imperial Stout mixed with an IPA. These guys just don't dissapoint! The Founders Black Rye. I had this on tap in Boston back in February and absolutely loved it.