988. Mission Brewing – Pipe Dreams IPA
Well, another birthday weekend is wrapping up, and it’s been a pretty good one. Last night, we hit the Oktoberfest celebration at Destihl Beer Hall, and I spent a good chunk of today tackling some projects around the house and in the yard. Now that the dust is settling, I’m finally kicking back in front of the TV, catching up on some computer work, and decided it was the perfect time to crack open a beer I’ve been looking forward to....
987. Pizza Port Brewing – Swami’s IPA
It’s Labor Day weekend, and oddly, I find myself at home, by myself. With my kids off at college, and my wife out with her mom, I can sit on the deck and enjoy a beer. Admittedly, this blog has suffered the last few years because of my kids activities, and I’m hoping to keep things going now that they’re off at school. When I went to San Diego several weeks ago, I wanted to grab some beer from Pizza Port. When I...
986. Mission Brewing – Shipwrecked Double IPA
A few weeks ago, I was in San Diego for work and bought some local beers to enjoy while watching the sunset over the bay from my hotel. This beer was part of a mixed pack of IPAs from Mission Brewing, and it made the trip back to Illinois with me in my luggage so I could enjoy it here on my deck. It’s been a busy last few weeks, moving my son to his new apartment, a conference in Chicago, and moving my daughter to college for her...
985. O’so Brewing Co. – King Louis XIII Imperial Barrel Aged Lager
In an attempt to try to make a little extra from this beer blog I’ve been writing for the last 15 years, I decided to sign up for some affiliate programs. One of the programs I tried was The Rare Beer Club. When I joined, I got a very nice note from them along with a couple of rare beers, including this one. This one looked very unique, being a barrel aged imperial lager, so I was eager to try it. I’m looking forward to...
984. Alaskan Brewing Co. – Smoked Porter (2013 & 2014)
Since it’s been a while, I dug into the beer cellar to see what I could find. These to were sitting there, and I decided to go ahead and try both at the same time, side by side. This is one of those beers that – when I started my craft beer journey – was legendary. It was award-winner and was the pinnacle of smoked beers. Part of it’s legend was that it was one of those beers that was hard to get your hands on....
983. Rogue Ales – Dead Guy Imperial IPA
For our Halloween party each year. I usually pick up a few cases of commercial beer for people to drink instead of my homebrew. Since it’s a Halloween party, I usually try and get beers that fit with the theme. So, usually one of them is Rogue Dead Guy Ale, but this year I found this Imperial IPA version and went for it instead. And since it’s been in the beer fridge for a couple of months now, I figured I’d better...
Great Gift Ideas for Beer Lovers
If you’re looking for something for that beer geek in your family, and are considering a nice beer drinking shirt, then here are more than a few ideas. If you are the beer geek in the family, perhaps you could leave this list lying around or leave it up on your computer screen for someone to find. Great Craft Beer Well, the most obvious gift for the beer geek is beer. If you’re not familiar with craft beer, a good rule...
982. 4 Hands Brewing – Incarnation IPA
It’s been nearly a year since I’ve taken some time to sit down a taste a beer and write my perceptions of it. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m getting so close to 1,000 beers or because I’ve learned that I’d rather drink the beer than sit and do a critique of it. With the holidays here, I’m hoping to reach the 1,000 mark soon. I picked up this beer about a month ago, when I went back to...
981. Hop Valley – Stash Bandicoot Hazy Imperial IPA
Work has been crazy busy the last couple months, and fortunately, we’re headed into the holiday slow time. I took the day off today and helped get the house ready for the holidays. So now it’s time to chill and grab a beer. I also realized that it’s been a while since I’ve posted, and I need to commit to getting finished with 1000 beers in the next few weeks. We bought a bunch of beer for a Halloween party a few weeks ago, and had a...
980. Epic Brewing – Quadruple Barrel Big Bad Baptist (2018 Rare Release)
It’s been a rainy couple days, but I was able to get some work done outside today. I am working on rebuilding the deck behind my bedroom. I got things cleaned up right before it started to rain, and came inside to chill. I decided to grab a beer out of the beer cellar and picked this one. I think my sister gave me this one for Christmas a few years ago. On the label, it says it is an imperial stout, aged in whiskey and rum...
979. Russian River – Salvation Dark Ale (2012)
It’s a long holiday weekend and we’re finally getting some much-needed rain. My brother-in-law is in town, so we’ve been doing a lot of stuff with my wife’s family this weekend. However, everybody is out doing their own thing this afternoon, so I have time to pull this long, anticipated beer out of the beer cellar. I picked up this beer on a visit to Seattle in October 2012. Unfortunately, this was one of the...
978. Perennial Artisan Ales – Savant Blanc
My son and I just got back from golfing with friends and I decided to try to cool off with a beer. My beer cellar has mostly imperial Stouts, but I found this one for a hot afternoon like we are having today (it’s been over 90 degrees all week and we’re having a bit of a drought). The bottle says this beer is bottle conditioned and was bottled in July 2015. I think I got it from my dad or sister as a Christmas present and...
977. Atwater Brewery – Mint Double Decadent Chocolate Ale
It’s been quite a while since I’ve sat down and written one of these reviews on a beer. I think I’ve mentioned before how it’s tough to truly enjoy a beer when you’re sitting there critiquing it, searching for flavors, and writing a review. However, I’m so close to getting to 1,000 beers that I need to force myself to complete my quest this year! My sister brought this back for me from a trip she...
976. Great Divide Brewing – Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti
It has been ages since I’ve sat down and been able to complete another beer review. I’ve tried several times throughout the year, and something always pops up. Back in February, I changed jobs again, and this new gig has been keeping me very busy. We’ve also done several college visits for my son, who is a senior in high school. We also took a big trip to Italy for our 20th anniversary. With everything going on,...
975. Full Sail – Sanctuary Belgian Style Dubbel 2010
It’s New Years Eve and I thought I’d crack open a few beers. After starting the night with a couple IPAs, I thought I’d dig into the beer fridge and see what I could find. I had a craving for something a little malty, and I’ve been sitting on this beer for over a decade now. When I was an intern at Full Sail Brewing in 2010, I helped John Harris brew this beer. They also had the first batch of this beer on hand...
660. (Updated) Goose Island – 2016 Bourbon County Brand Barleywine
I’m appreciating that with my new job, I’m off work for the next two weeks. Today, I was able to get some housework and raking done, and now it’s time to relax. I decided it’s time to start cracking into more beers in the beer cellar, and I’ve had my eye on this one for a while. After 5 years of aging, I figured it was time to crack it open. Location: Poured into a snifter style pint glass at my home in...
974. Rockwell Beer Co. – Blackberry Plum Polymath
Our family spent the morning delivering poinsettias for church and then we picked up some gingerbread house kits for the kids. Now I’m settling in to watch football on this chill weekend. A couple months ago, I went to St. Louis to visit my dad and stopped by Rockwell to see my fraternity brother who is the brewmaster there. I left with several new and interesting beers to try. This was one of them. Location: Poured from the pint can...
973. Rockwell Beer Co. – Foeder Bock Doppelbock
Several weeks ago, I went down to St. Louis to visit my dad, and help my cousin move into his dorm at Washington University. We then picked up Pappy’s BBQ for lunch and stopped by Rockwell for a beer, and to see my fraternity brother who is the brewmaster there. I got a chance to catch up with him for a bit and he grabbed a few beers for me to bring home. As the weather here cools down, I thought this would be a great fall beer to...
972. Rogue Ales – Dead Guy Ale
We had our annual Halloween party this past weekend, and as usual, we bought a bunch of beers that related to the holiday, including this one. As I was cracking open this beer tonight, I wondered if I had taken the time to review this beer yet. I was a bit surprised that I had not, because I think it was one of the first craft beers I’d had, and was my introduction to the flavorful beers brewed by Rogue. Location: Poured into a...
971. Rockwell Beer Co. – Velour Tracksuit IPA
It’s been a while since I’ve taken the time to sit down and really sip on a beer. I started a new job about three months ago, so it’s taken a while to get into the swing of things. A few weeks ago, I went down to St. Louis to visit my dad, and help my cousin move into his dorm at Washington University. After we moved him in, we picked up Pappy’s BBQ for lunch and stopped by Rockwell for a beer, and to see my...
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