975. Full Sail – Sanctuary Belgian Style Dubbel 2010
Dec31

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...

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938. Monkish – CaffĂ© Della Vita
Aug03

938. Monkish – CaffĂ© Della Vita

It feels like the first weekend of the summer that we haven’t had much going on. I’ve been editing video of the family cruise we took in June and am getting ready for a work trip to San Diego next week. In preparation for this trip, I decided to crack open this growler from Monkish from my sisters trip to California a couple months ago. She texted me from Monkish and this Belgian Tripel brewed with pistachios, vanilla and...

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928. Red Hare Brewing – Berry Belgian Waffle
Feb17

928. Red Hare Brewing – Berry Belgian Waffle

It’s been a pretty relaxing weekend, even though I got started on taxes and paid some bills. I’ve been drinking Hop Slam almost all weekend, but since it’s Sunday evening, I thought I’d grab something a little lighter. My friend Joe from Atlanta brought me this beer when he and I met up last year, so it’s been in my beer fridge for several months. It sounds like it would be good, and at nearly 8% ABV,...

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905. Sierra Nevada / Duvel – Hoppy Belgian-Style Golden Ale
May27

905. Sierra Nevada / Duvel – Hoppy Belgian-Style Golden Ale

It’s Sunday of Labor Day weekend and it’s sunny and hot outside. I went out to get the lawn water sprinklers ready for this evening and was ready to cool down with a beer after a little bit. This beer was part of the Beer Camp Across the World pack I received from Sierra Nevada. It’s their collaboration beer with Duvel, and the bottle says, “We’re combining elements of Duvel’s classic golden ale with Sierra...

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892. New Glarus – Wisconsin Belgian Red
Feb10

892. New Glarus – Wisconsin Belgian Red

It’s been a relaxing Saturday evening watching the Winter Olympics and helping my wife prep the stairs for a darker wood stain. I cracked open Odell’s Friek earlier in the evening, and so I thought I’d have this one to compare it to (since it’s also a cherry lambic style beer). I picked this one up a couple weeks ago when I was up in Minnesota and stopped on my way through Wisconsin to pick up a bunch of New...

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887. pFriem – Belgian-Style Christmas Ale
Jan07

887. pFriem – Belgian-Style Christmas Ale

It’s been a fairly productive Saturday, cleaning up the house and taking down Christmas decorations. I’ve already cracked open a 2012 Bigfoot from Sierra Nevada tonight, which aged nicely. Since we took down the Christmas trees today, I figured I’d crack open this Belgian-style Christmas Ale. I got this a few days ago from my friend Betty who lives in Portland. She picked it up at a fairly new brewery in Hood River,...

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822. Brasserie Dubuisson – ScaldĂ­s Amber
Nov04

822. Brasserie Dubuisson – ScaldĂ­s Amber

TGIF! I stopped on my way home and picked up a 4-pack of Founder’s Backwoods Bastard. It wasn’t cold yet, so I threw it in the fridge. It got me in the mood for a good beer and I decided to finally drink this one. It was sent to me by @BelgianExpert a while ago and I figure that at 12% ABV it might be good to put a little bit of age on it. The bottle says 18/6/2014, which I think might be a best before date. Location:...

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817. Blue Moon Brewing – Rounder Belgian Style Pale Ale
Oct06

817. Blue Moon Brewing – Rounder Belgian Style Pale Ale

I left my job at Advocate Health Care and am going back to work at State Farm corporate headquarters (were I left 2 years ago). I’m taking a week off between jobs. Today was a busy day of running errands, so to chill a bit, I thought I’d grab a beer from the fridge. My wife picked up a mixed 12 pack from Blue Moon several months ago, which is how I got this beer. Location: Poured into a pint glass at my home in...

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812. Trappistes Rochefort – 8 Belgian Ale
Jul04

812. Trappistes Rochefort – 8 Belgian Ale

It’s been quite a while since I last posted. I’ve been enjoying a lot of beers, but just not taking the time to sit down and write a review. By starting this blog, I’ve learned how much I enjoy beer, but how writing about every beer I drink is kind of inhibiting. I’ve also had several problems with WordPress, the blog platform this is built on, but I won’t bore you with that. Since it’s the 4th of...

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793. Founders Brewing – 2015 Blushing Monk
Dec06

793. Founders Brewing – 2015 Blushing Monk

We’ve had a really great day, relaxing, watching football, and introducing the kids to a few new Christmas movies, like Home Alone and National Lampoon’s Christmas vacation. While watching movies, I thought I’d crack open this beer, which I’ve been looking forward to trying. There’s something about raspberries and beer I enjoy, so I was glad when I was able to find this at our local Hy Vee grocery store...

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778.  Goose Island – Lolita (2013)
Aug22

778.  Goose Island – Lolita (2013)

This past Monday, I had to go back up to Mayo Clinic to see my cardiologist. the good news is that my heart is back to a normal size and I can start to ween off the medications (over the next couple years). The bad news is that he’s concerned about my weight gain and cholesterol. Admittedly, I’ve not been good about eating well this past year. He recommended I start dieting immediately, so I did. I’ve been very good...

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773.  New Belgium & Perennial Artisan Ales – Salted Belgian Chocolate Stout
Jun27

773.  New Belgium & Perennial Artisan Ales – Salted Belgian Chocolate Stout

It’s Friday, and it’s been a very bizarre day. The best part of it was that my wife passed a test and now we get to go to Boston this fall. We celebrated with a nice dinner out with the kids. After a quick trip to Lowes, to buy some baseboard for my weekend project, I decided to crack open this beer for dessert. I bought it a few weeks ago, because it looked good, and my friend Jonathan is a Brewer at Perennial Artisan...

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769. Abbey of Leffe – Leffe Blonde
May19

769. Abbey of Leffe – Leffe Blonde

I’ve been in a training session all day for work and got home a little bit early. Therefore, I grab my laptop to catch up on a little bit of work, and cracked open this beer, while enjoying the evening sun in the kitchen. I picked up this beer a few weeks ago, when I stopped at Fresh Market to get some sushi for my son. They had some interesting beers you could make a mixed six pack with so I got this one along with...

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738. Furthermore Brewing – Fatty Boombalatty Belgian White
Oct08

738. Furthermore Brewing – Fatty Boombalatty Belgian White

As I mentioned in my last couple of posts, I’m at Beer House Chicago and and had a couple of beers from Pollyanna Brewing Co, a new brewery in Lamont, IL. It was still pretty early, so I decided to stick around and have one more beer. Again, I was trying to find something local that I couldn’t find down in central IL. Although Furthermore isn’t quite “local,” it is from just north of Chicago, in Wisconsin. And,...

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727. Stillwater Artisanal Ales – As Follows Belgian Strong Pale Ale
Sep05

727. Stillwater Artisanal Ales – As Follows Belgian Strong Pale Ale

Today was my last day of work at State Farm Insurance, so my coworkers took me out for a nice dinner at Epiphany Farms Restaurant. I have some tremendous co-workers, and it was great to get together with them tonight. Of course they know I’m a beer geek, and I haven’t had too many beers from this brewery, so I figured I’d start the evening with this one. Location: On tap and served in a short tulip style glass at...

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678.  Samuel Adams – Thirteenth Hour Belgian Style Stout
Feb28

678. Samuel Adams – Thirteenth Hour Belgian Style Stout

I finished the Goose Island Night Stalker and was feeling pretty good. So, I thought I’d go out to the beer fridge and find another big Stout to finish off the night. It’s been that kind of week, and I think I deserve it. And, since were moving soon, I thought I’d get rid of some of the bigger bottles out of the beer fridge. I picked up this beer as part of a special three pack at Sam’s Club right before...

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666. Brewery Het Anker – Lucifer Belgian Ale
Jan31

666. Brewery Het Anker – Lucifer Belgian Ale

Well, here it is… The beer of the beast – number 666. So to mark this number, I went out and specifically bought this beer. I figured it was appropriate for the occasion, and safe – as it is, ironically, a Trappist monk brewed ale. I just had Russian River’s Damnation in preparation for this landmark, and it’s a good day to enjoy a few beers, since it’s a cold rainy/snowy day stuck indoors. The...

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665. Russian River Brewing – Damnation Golden Ale
Jan31

665. Russian River Brewing – Damnation Golden Ale

It’s a snowy and rainy Saturday afternoon, good for staying home and enjoying a few beers. As I approached the beer of the beast, #666, I was considering what I should have for that dark brew. This is definitely one I considered, but I thought it might be more appropriate to have it right now, signaling my impending damnation before I have #666. I picked up this beer during my trip to Seattle last year, and fortunately it...

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644. SanTan Brewing – Supermonk Belgian IPA
Dec28

644. SanTan Brewing – Supermonk Belgian IPA

It’s been another nice day relaxing at home over the holiday break. I’ve done almost nothing today, except watch TV, and catch up on a few beer reviews. Writing about beer makes me thirsty, so I reached into the fridge and grab this can that was sent to me by SanTan. The can says, “SuperMonk is a naturally hazy, Belgian style IPA. Notes of citrus and orange peel dominate the aroma. Upon first sip, happy bitterness...

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635. New Belgium – Lips of Faith Heavenly Feijoa Tripel
Dec11

635. New Belgium – Lips of Faith Heavenly Feijoa Tripel

As I mentioned in my last couple of posts, I’m out to dinner with my friend Joe, who is in town for work this week. We’re at Medici in Normal for dinner and a few craft beers. After dinner, I was looking for something flavorful and interesting to try as an almost dessert beer. I’ve had a few beers in New Belgium’s Lips of Faith series and felt like a sour beer might fit the bill. Location: On tap and served in...

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