March 12, 2012
A few months ago, Mom and Dad Sixpack invited Slouch and I down for a weekend visit. Unfortunately, Slouch was too busy with work*, and couldn’t make the trip. I decided that the second week in March seemed like a good time to get away from the cold, snowy, Kansas winter** in favor of sunny Tampa Bay. When I arrived, I realized that my choice had fortuitously*** put me in Tampa for Hunahpu’s Day, arguable the biggest craft beer event in the Southeast United States.
*Slouch is unemployed
**it didn’t even snow this winter
***ok, this is just a lie. I knew exactly what I was doing.
Armed with three mules (Mom, Dad, and Lady Jay) we arrived at the event about an hour before opening. I was a little afraid this would be a touch on the late side, but it worked out just fine. We scored the very last parking spot in the abandoned Sears parking lot across from the brewery, and got into the event about 20 minutes after the gates open. Getting there very early would have been a good time, but I had my parents’ attention span in mind. Read the rest of this entry »
4 Comments | 
Beer Culture, Beer Industry, Beer Marketing, Tasting Notes, WTF | Tagged: Cigar City, Hunahpu | 
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Posted by Herr Hordeum
January 10, 2012
W
ith all of the coverage of the 2012 presidential election, I began, naturally, to wonder: if the candidates were beers, what beers would they be? The knee-jerk reaction is to say, “They’re all Bud Light/Miller Light/Beer 30. Done. Let’s move on.” However, as a scientist, I oft feel the need to peer deep into the darkness of the unknown, even if the piecing together of dissociated knowledge will open up such terrifying vistas of reality, and of our frightful position therein, that we shall either go mad from the revelation or flee from the deadly light into the peace and safety of a new dark age (I also feel the need to blatantly rip off turn-of-the-century horror writers). Read the rest of this entry »
3 Comments | Beer Culture, WTF | Tagged: 2012 primary, Republican, santorum | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
December 31, 2011
This time of year, it is easy to be pessimistic about… well… everything. Over the last two months, society has just forced us to empty our pockets buying useless trinkets that none of our friends and loved ones really need (unless you bought them beer). New Years Eve is another opportunity to look back on how little you have really accomplished in the past year.
But “always look on the bright side of life!” over the past year, craft beer has continued to grow, and more craft beers from more craft brewers are available than ever before.
I ask you Aleheads, what were the bright spots in 2011, for newly released regular production beers? I don’t want to look back and think about rare limited releases and one-offs that won’t be available again, because frankly it makes me sad. And this post has been negative enough already. Although if a beer was previously released as limited distribution or a brew-pub test, but is now full scale, it counts too.
Read the rest of this entry »
9 Comments | Ale Factories, Beer Culture, Best/Worst, Tasting Notes, WTF | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
December 11, 2011
All we want to do is drink your beer
I had the “opportunity” to travel to Iowa last week, a state so boring I feel bad even making jokes.* In three nights we hit three restaurants and a bar that were nothing short of fantastic for food and beer alike.
*Ok, not that bad. It may be the only state more boring than the one in which I currently reside.
Zombie Burger
Ok, this is not really a beer bar, though none of us would go thirsty. It is a zombie movie themed burger restaurant, but it is awesome enough that Aleheads everywhere need to know about it. The place is full of zombie pop art, has about twenty or so cleverly-named burger options, (e.g. the Boomstick and the Juan of the Dead), and a milkshake called the Tallahassee (of course, with a Twinkie blended into it). The burger I ordered (named They’re Coming to Get You, Barbara) came between two grilled cheese sandwiches instead of buns. Yeah, I’m going to let that sink in for a sec. Oh, and there were also about ten taps including Bell’s Two-hearted, and 40 or so craft bottle options, which means it was solid on the beer front as well. Nice work, guys. Read the rest of this entry »
4 Comments | Ale Factories, Alehouses, Beer Culture, Tasting Notes, WTF | Tagged: Cold, des moines, zombies | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
December 3, 2011
A business should practice what they preach. This is true for any type of business, but most important for a brewery. Why a brewery? Because a brewery is the most important type of business of all. Because they make beer.
One a recent trip out to San Diego to visit significant-other-family, I had the opportunity to visit one brewery. The fact that I only go to visit one brewery is a shame. It is also a shame that my selections of Carlsbad Pizza-Port and Lost Abbey were overruled, for the simple matter that “no one had ever heard of these places” despite them being within a 30 minute drive. Read the rest of this entry »
5 Comments | Ale Factories, Alehouses, Beer Culture, Tasting Notes, WTF | Tagged: Arrogant Bastard, Stone | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
August 20, 2011
Of beer producing countries, the Philippines doesn’t end up high on many Aleheads’ lists. Perhaps because there are only two breweries (both macros), and perhaps Manny Pachiao just hasn’t marketed strongly enough to US markets. While the craft beer revolution hasn’t caught on yet in the Philippines, it wasn’t going to keep me from drinking beer for ten weeks.*
*if you were wondering why I had been absent for the site, here is the reason… ok, I know no one even noticed I was gone
Of the two breweries, San Miguel by far dominates the country, and their pale swill is found everywhere. They produce three widely available brews, and several more I never even came across, but supposedly exist. Read the rest of this entry »
3 Comments | Ale Factories, Beer Culture, Tasting Notes, WTF | Tagged: Balut, Philippines, Red Horse, San Miguel | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
May 26, 2011
When Left Hand released Fade to Black Vol. 2 last fall, my first thought was the classic Metallica power ballad. Yeah, I called it a power ballad. I figured the folks at Lefthand were classic metal fans but the phrase could refer to something else. About a month ago, when they released “Wake Up Dead” (an early song by Megadeth), and “TNT” (ok, if you need me to tell you who that is, you clearly aren’t old enough to drink beer), it was made clear: Left Hand enjoys the art of shredding. Read the rest of this entry »
2 Comments | Ale Factories, Beer Culture, Tasting Notes | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
April 24, 2011
A few weeks ago, I was in Tuscon, AZ for a wedding. While AZ may be (in general) a wasteland of of craftbeer, Deschuetes does distribute there. But apparently no one buys it, as a trip to a Whole Foods revealed great supply (and little demand) for one of the most coveted beers in the world, the Abyss Imperial Stout. Upon encountering such a find, an alert went out on the Aleheads listserve (you know you want an invitation to join…) and a suitcase was filled to send out to the other Aleheads.
One such Alehead was my brother, Slouch, which mean we are obligated to do a tasting note.
NOTES: Slouch Cave and Hordeum Ranch
Hordeum: Medium pour into a snifter.
Slouch: Aggressive, manly pour into snifter.
Hordeum: If you need to compensate…
STYLE: Imperial Stout
ABV: 11% Read the rest of this entry »
8 Comments | Tasting Notes, WTF | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
April 14, 2011
A few weeks ago, while my companion the Herr was lamenting the hardships of living in a state with poor distributional diversity as is his wont, I was in Juneau, Alaska. Drinking lots of beer. It was awesome.
For the uninitiated, Juneau is home to the Alaskan Brewing Company, famed in more propitiously-located parts of the Lower 48 for its smoked porter. Additionally, Alaskan is known for being on the forefront of brewing innovations that reduce their environmental impact (and such hippie nonsense was the theme of the business that had brought me to that distant shore). Naturally, a visit to this fine establishment was in order.
Read the rest of this entry »
9 Comments | Ale Factories, Beer Culture, Tasting Notes | Tagged: Alaskan Brewing Company, Green Brewing, Juneau | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
March 20, 2011
I’ve been into craft beer since I started drinking. But until recently, I just walked into a store, bought something I liked or sounded good, and that was about it. Since I began reading and then joined Aleheads, I’ve been putting a lot more thought into beer. Why do I like what I like? What are my favorite hop varieties? What new beers do I need to search out and try?
All of this takes me down the slippery slope towards obtaining the best beers in the world. The trouble is, with the explosion of craft beer, these coveted prizes can be difficult to obtain. Limited distribution, limited supply, huge demand. So this winter, I have tried to get a number of interesting and limited edition brews, most of which I have to drive an hour to Missouri to get. I failed to get Hopslam, Hoptimum, KBS, etc. Most of these beers didn’t even hit shelves here. They were bought up by distributors and liquor store owners and employees, or kept in the back for friends. Now I don’t have a problem with this practice, all jobs have their perks and this is pretty much the only one in the retail booze business. But the disappointment remained. Read the rest of this entry »
4 Comments | Beer Culture, Tasting Notes | Tagged: Goose Island, Night Stalker | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
March 5, 2011
I frequently complain about beer distribution here in the heartland. Well, I have one less brewery to complain about now, as Stone will begin distributing in Missouri next month. Yeah, I’ll still have to drive 45 minutes to get some, but better than nothing (and the silver lining of having to make a trip to the airport).
One style I have little access to here in the Free State is the American black ale/Cascadian dark ale/Black IPA/what-ever-you-want-to-call-it. Last week I was in the beer wasteland of AZ for a wedding. I stopped at Whole Foods and picked up a couple bottles to bring back, including Stone’s Sublimely Self-righteous ale. With thirteen syllables, it has to be good right? Perhaps one of the stupidest names yet coined by the fine people at Stone. Stone created this beer as their 11th Anniversary offering, and quickly added it to the year-round line. It has become one of the most well regarded and widely available brews in this fledgling style. After one sip, I can understand why. Read the rest of this entry »
2 Comments | WTF | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
February 3, 2011
Close your eyes (Figuratively. Keep reading.). It’s quiet. You’re warm, relaxed, floating. You take a slow, deep breath, and the scents of hops and yeast envelop you, a soothing balm to ease the pains of your hectic lifestyle. You open your eyes, and realize that you are soaking in a tub of warm, aromatic beer. Is it a dream??
If you live in the United States, it probably is. But if you live in Europe, it may be a reality. Read the rest of this entry »
1 Comment | Beer Culture, WTF | Tagged: beer spa, Drew Carey's nipples, eternal youth, sticky | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
January 30, 2011
In my continuing effort to review the entire Boulevard Smokestack series, I have now come to the Seeyoulator Dobblebock. It is customary for Dopplebock names to end in –ator, and it is clear that someone at Boulevard is an aspiring comedian. Apparently the homage to the Dopplebock tradition only goes so far, as I looked all over the bottle for the depiction picture of a goat, and disappointingly I found none.
So, I am a bit behind in reviewing this beer, as it is a fall seasonal. However, in Kansas all of the bombers sit on the shelves for years before anyone buys them anyway, so there was no real rush. A Dopplebock should last a while anyway. Read the rest of this entry »
1 Comment | Tasting Notes | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
January 16, 2011
Ah the Midwest, home of neutral accents and neutral beers. Yes, if the state doesn’t have a coast, a mountain, or a reasonable winter, then it seems to be home to truly bad beer. Anheuser-Busch, Pabst, Hamm’s, Blatz, Schlitz, Miller, Milwaukee’s Best (Milwaukee has certainly had its share of visitors. The French missionaries and explorers began visiting here in the late 16th century), Old Milwaukee (In fact, it’s pronounced “mill-e-wah-que” which is Algonquin for “the good land)… god, even Beer 30.
Boulevard is doing its best to break the stereotype, especially with the Smokestack Series. I was really impressed with the Sixth Glass Quad, but I wanted to wait to write about it until this years Bourbon Barrel version came out to do a comparison tasting. It was worth the wait. Read the rest of this entry »
Comments Off | Tasting Notes | Tagged: BBQ, Boulevard, Bourbon Barrell Quad, Sixth Glass | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
January 8, 2011
This beer is the secon
d in Left Hand’s Fade to Black series, which are strong, dark beers brewed to be served as the northern hemisphere days shorten. Since the days are now getting a bit longer I guess I kinda missed the boat on that, but oh well. It is still cold out, and strong, dark beer sounds pretty good to me. The first of this series, released in 2009, was an Export Stout. The 2010 offering is a Baltic Porter. I was somewhat tentative to try this beer, since smoked beers can be overpowering, and I have been disappointed by several Left Hand offerings. Read the rest of this entry »
1 Comment | Tasting Notes, WTF | Tagged: Baltic Porter, fade to black, Left Hand, metallica | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
January 1, 2011
Wheat wines are not a very common beer style, so I was pleased to see this offering from Boulevard at the local store. This beer is part of the Boulevard Smokestack series, an eclectic mix of high gravity beers ranging from American to Belgian styles with lot of twists and a healthy amount of experimentation. I recommend trying any you manage to get your hands on, and will review several in the coming weeks.
Like a barleywine, wheatwines are strong ales with a wheat component, as the name suggests. This beer has a great label with a bunch of wheat dancing with death, which is how nights of drinking high gravity beer should finish. The brew was aged in oak, and like most (all?) of the Smokestack series, bottle conditioned. Read the rest of this entry »
2 Comments | Tasting Notes | Tagged: Boulevard, death, harvest dance, wheat beer, wheat wine, Wheatwine | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
December 27, 2010
Slouch Sixpack beat me to the punch in posting the first Cigar City tasting note. Oh, and thanks for giving Mrs. Sixpack credit for sending those two 750 ml bombers your way. Who do you think picked those out???
As Slouch mentioned, Cigar City is a relatively new brewery that has exploded into the US craft scene with innovative high gravity and barrel aged offerings. Except for their Maduro Brown Ale series, pretty much the full line falls between 7.5–12% ABV, so the focus is big beers and big flavors. In homage of Tampa’s cigar producing era prior to the Cuban embargo, a rotating selection of their beers are aged in Spanish Cedar (the Humidor series), in addition they also use oak and sometimes infuse with other ingredients during the barrel aging process.
On a recent trip to visit family, I had the opportunity to visit the Cigar City tasting room, which is conveniently located near the Tampa airport (so it can be the first place you visit after landing and the last place you visit on your way out; book tickets appropriately).
Recently, the Cigar City tasting room was granted final approval from the local government, after a long battle and threats to close its doors. It seems some city council members had concerns about the effect of a brewery on the community.* Driving to the brewery I could see their point. I would really hate to see a top notch, innovative business drive down property values of the sewage treatment facility two blocks away and those wonderful big box stores across the way hawking crap built in China.
*or donations to their re-election campaigns and/or pocketbooks. This is Florida after all. Read the rest of this entry »
6 Comments | Ale Factories, Tasting Notes | Tagged: Cigar City | Permalink
Posted by Herr Hordeum
A few months ago, Mom and Dad Sixpack invited Slouch and I down for a weekend visit. Unfortunately, Slouch was too busy with work*, and couldn’t make the trip. I decided that the second week in March seemed like a good time to get away from the cold, snowy, Kansas winter** in favor of sunny Tampa Bay. When I arrived, I realized that my choice had fortuitously*** put me in Tampa for Hunahpu’s Day, arguable the biggest craft beer event in the Southeast United States.
