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Monday, January 12, 2009
Monday, January 8, 2007
A Close Encounter of the Beery Kind: My "Visit" to the Flying Saucer
I desperately tried earlier to post this blog in real time during my abduction episode, but my PDA's browser somehow let me down... Or was it a force field of some kind?
Not unlike the character Roy Neary in Close Encounters, I have been tormented the last few days by an unrelenting "signal" from afar. This signal has been beckoning me, occupying my thoughts and certainly influenced some of the planning for my latest business trip.
My current business requires me to visit Charlotte, NC, and as always, before I go anywhere, I check the Beerfly section on http://www.beeradvocate.com/. I always come away with some good ideas for my evenings on the road. This time it means being abducted by an unidentified flying object (that serves fantastic beer) so it's no problem...
Beerfly suggests I visit The Flying Saucer Beer Emporium near the UNCC campus. I am happy to discover that one of the nations better beer-bar chains has a location near UNCC, although it does not surprise me due to the fact that they seem to always locate near a university. The Flying Saucer (Herewith TFS) now operates eleven locations from Texas to North Carolina.
TFS is not a perfect beer bar, however. There are many smaller independents that really do it better, but we are talking "chain" here. The typical location features over 60 beer taps and a good selection of bottles to boot. TFS typically serves all the beer too cold, but they do proclaim loudly that "Amateurs request a frosted glass". The staff provides good service, but are not typically very knowledgeable about craft beer. The fact remains, however, that they have been able to continually expand locations and remain successful after 5 years in the business. Being in the land of "King Tobacco", this location allows smoking. I defend a business's right to operate the way they see fit, but as a patron, I would tend avoid smoking establishments if given the choice of an alternative. But This the Saucer! I gotta go!
Tonight is $2.50 pint night. That is a really good deal at today's beer prices. This included almost all of the draft selection. After my chicken sandwich, I quaffed a couple of pints, but I was not satiated. I migrated towards the specialty section of the menu. I also helped a few college kids pick a tasty pint. After my Rochefort 10 and my Bush (oops!) Scaldis 12, (both are strong Belgian Ales) it was time to leave.
If you are in an area that is served by a Flying Saucer location, I urge you to give them a try. Even a Beer Snob like me awards points for effort...
Suds: Great beer selection, Always serve with a clean glass, Wine list, Pub food, Friendly and earnest staff.
Duds: Smoking, Beer is served too cold,
Website: www.beerknurd.com
Taste Beer!
Not unlike the character Roy Neary in Close Encounters, I have been tormented the last few days by an unrelenting "signal" from afar. This signal has been beckoning me, occupying my thoughts and certainly influenced some of the planning for my latest business trip.
My current business requires me to visit Charlotte, NC, and as always, before I go anywhere, I check the Beerfly section on http://www.beeradvocate.com/. I always come away with some good ideas for my evenings on the road. This time it means being abducted by an unidentified flying object (that serves fantastic beer) so it's no problem...
Beerfly suggests I visit The Flying Saucer Beer Emporium near the UNCC campus. I am happy to discover that one of the nations better beer-bar chains has a location near UNCC, although it does not surprise me due to the fact that they seem to always locate near a university. The Flying Saucer (Herewith TFS) now operates eleven locations from Texas to North Carolina.
TFS is not a perfect beer bar, however. There are many smaller independents that really do it better, but we are talking "chain" here. The typical location features over 60 beer taps and a good selection of bottles to boot. TFS typically serves all the beer too cold, but they do proclaim loudly that "Amateurs request a frosted glass". The staff provides good service, but are not typically very knowledgeable about craft beer. The fact remains, however, that they have been able to continually expand locations and remain successful after 5 years in the business. Being in the land of "King Tobacco", this location allows smoking. I defend a business's right to operate the way they see fit, but as a patron, I would tend avoid smoking establishments if given the choice of an alternative. But This the Saucer! I gotta go!
Tonight is $2.50 pint night. That is a really good deal at today's beer prices. This included almost all of the draft selection. After my chicken sandwich, I quaffed a couple of pints, but I was not satiated. I migrated towards the specialty section of the menu. I also helped a few college kids pick a tasty pint. After my Rochefort 10 and my Bush (oops!) Scaldis 12, (both are strong Belgian Ales) it was time to leave.
If you are in an area that is served by a Flying Saucer location, I urge you to give them a try. Even a Beer Snob like me awards points for effort...
Suds: Great beer selection, Always serve with a clean glass, Wine list, Pub food, Friendly and earnest staff.
Duds: Smoking, Beer is served too cold,
Website: www.beerknurd.com
Taste Beer!
Friday, January 5, 2007
My 2006 Holiday "Beer Snob" Moment
Ok I admit it (isn't it already obvious?) I am a Beer Snob...
It was Christmas Eve and as usual we celebrate at my inlaws with a very traditional Italian X-Mas feast. The highlight of the meal is spaghetti with calamari sauce. The are many other fantastic selections of lightly fried seafood, vegtables and don't forget desserts.
I usually try to an interesting beer that will match up. Two of the Bros in law usually enjoy whatever beer I bring. We usually also have a Chianti or other dry table wine.
Before we left the house to go to the feast, I realized that the only decent bottle of beer that I had to bring was a Caracole Ambree that I had hoped to cellar. It already had 2 years on it but I thought that I should not go empty handed. I was ready to sacrifice it to the spirit of Christmas with the family.
This year I was surprised to see that My B-I-L came with 2 bottles of a great Sicilian wine called "Pinnochio". I turned him onto it after having it at a "Wine Shop" tasting at the Capitol Market. Unfortunately, the other B-I-L was laid up with a major head cold and was not there to help quaff down anything, leaving Alberto & I to do the work
I got as far as opening the cage on the Caracole (Yes! It's corked!), then beer snobbery set in... There was no way I was going to open this particular bottle in such a scenario where it would not be the star of the show. There was also a strong likelihood that I would wind up drinking most of it myself, due to the wine being there as well.
A beer like this one is meant to be shared. It also should really be a great match to the food that is served along with it. Today was not the day, so I discretely twisted the cage back in place and stealthily removed it from the table.
We wound up splitting a bottle of Edmund Fitzgerald Porter with some chocolate desserts.
The Caracole will have its day!
Taste Beer!
It was Christmas Eve and as usual we celebrate at my inlaws with a very traditional Italian X-Mas feast. The highlight of the meal is spaghetti with calamari sauce. The are many other fantastic selections of lightly fried seafood, vegtables and don't forget desserts.
I usually try to an interesting beer that will match up. Two of the Bros in law usually enjoy whatever beer I bring. We usually also have a Chianti or other dry table wine.
Before we left the house to go to the feast, I realized that the only decent bottle of beer that I had to bring was a Caracole Ambree that I had hoped to cellar. It already had 2 years on it but I thought that I should not go empty handed. I was ready to sacrifice it to the spirit of Christmas with the family.
This year I was surprised to see that My B-I-L came with 2 bottles of a great Sicilian wine called "Pinnochio". I turned him onto it after having it at a "Wine Shop" tasting at the Capitol Market. Unfortunately, the other B-I-L was laid up with a major head cold and was not there to help quaff down anything, leaving Alberto & I to do the work
I got as far as opening the cage on the Caracole (Yes! It's corked!), then beer snobbery set in... There was no way I was going to open this particular bottle in such a scenario where it would not be the star of the show. There was also a strong likelihood that I would wind up drinking most of it myself, due to the wine being there as well.
A beer like this one is meant to be shared. It also should really be a great match to the food that is served along with it. Today was not the day, so I discretely twisted the cage back in place and stealthily removed it from the table.
We wound up splitting a bottle of Edmund Fitzgerald Porter with some chocolate desserts.
The Caracole will have its day!
Taste Beer!
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Are beer drinkers really the crux of the DUI problem?
I am usually behind any reasonable program to educate people against drinking and driving. With that said, I was a little insulted by the latest publicity stunt pulled off by the Bennington Vermont Police Dept.
They have decided to employ "Profiling" this holiday season by distributing beer glasses emblazoned with the Bennington Police Department logo. A friendly reminder to all of us heathen beer drinkers, the scourge of society, to not drink and drive. Why not wine glasses which are smaller, easier to drink and contain the same amount of alcohol as a beer pint, or the cocktail glasses that deliver the strongest dose of alcohol per serving?
This is just one more example of the ongoing bias against beer and beer drinkers in our society. Why does it exist? Did we earn it? Even the big three US brewers apparently think the same way about us. Look at the way they market to us. They use mindless sophmoric characters, dogs, twins, bikinis and of course it's less filling so drink more!
So, I guess since beer has been the drink of the common man for over 6000 years, and common men are the perpetrators of DUI, then we earn the scrutiny? That is the internal logic that must be going on in the minds of the police in Bennington.
The money would have been better spent on simple education about body weight, relative alcohol strength in beer, wine and cocktails. I find that most adults do not understand simple alcohol by volume, nor do they know how many drinks of certain ABV they should consume for their weight. Then there are those who just know they are hammered, like Mel Gibson, who was drinking a bottle of tequila (not Tequiza) when pulled over and arrested for DUI recently.
The offense is DUI, not DUIB (driving under the influence of beer). It is a serious issue in this country, and it can ruin lives. Singling out beer drinkers on this issue is short sighted and ignorant of the real issues.
Taste Beer!
They have decided to employ "Profiling" this holiday season by distributing beer glasses emblazoned with the Bennington Police Department logo. A friendly reminder to all of us heathen beer drinkers, the scourge of society, to not drink and drive. Why not wine glasses which are smaller, easier to drink and contain the same amount of alcohol as a beer pint, or the cocktail glasses that deliver the strongest dose of alcohol per serving?
This is just one more example of the ongoing bias against beer and beer drinkers in our society. Why does it exist? Did we earn it? Even the big three US brewers apparently think the same way about us. Look at the way they market to us. They use mindless sophmoric characters, dogs, twins, bikinis and of course it's less filling so drink more!
So, I guess since beer has been the drink of the common man for over 6000 years, and common men are the perpetrators of DUI, then we earn the scrutiny? That is the internal logic that must be going on in the minds of the police in Bennington.
The money would have been better spent on simple education about body weight, relative alcohol strength in beer, wine and cocktails. I find that most adults do not understand simple alcohol by volume, nor do they know how many drinks of certain ABV they should consume for their weight. Then there are those who just know they are hammered, like Mel Gibson, who was drinking a bottle of tequila (not Tequiza) when pulled over and arrested for DUI recently.
The offense is DUI, not DUIB (driving under the influence of beer). It is a serious issue in this country, and it can ruin lives. Singling out beer drinkers on this issue is short sighted and ignorant of the real issues.
Taste Beer!
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Blues Etc. ("BEER BAR REVIEW #1)
I have been to Blues Etc. a few time since they opened in the old "Chef Dan's" location. It is one of the better beer bars (and a pretty good wine selection) in the Charleston area w/ at least 15 bottled micro brews, 20 or so bottled imports and a few surprises on tap. Kay the bar manager is actually a former wine sales specialist with a respect for beer. She is trying to do it right, and Jay the owner is willing to do what it takes to get the right products in.
Blues Etc. is first, a restaurant with pretty decent food. I am here to talk about the bar...
The bar is "non-smoking", which makes for a good place to hang out and actually taste what you are drinking. A few notable items on tap are Appalachian Ale from WV Brewing, and Cold Trail Ale from Mountain State Brewing in Thomas. Cold Trail tastes like an underwhelming version of Kolsch style beer. I would classify it as a "transition beer" to convert macro lager drinkers.
Another tap space is taken by Harpoon "IPA", which is an OK beer, but by no means has kept up with the "Hophead" movement in this country.
Of course, Blues features the obligatory Guinness and Bass taps for making "Black & Tan".
My Fav's on the bottle list include Ayinger Altbarisch Dunkle, Great Lakes "Edmund Fitzgerald" Porter and Shiner's 97, a nice Schwarzbier (Black Lager).
The bar staff will always give you a cold glass with your beer, they are amply stocked with room temperature beer glasses when asked to provide one. Kay also keeps many of the bottles at "back room" temperatures instead of freezing them tasteless.
Overall It's a decent place to go for a beer.
Highs: Good beer selection for CRW, Friendly & knowledgeable staff, Free music, Great wine selection
Lows: Really not a late night bar (closes at 11pm on weeknights)
Blues Etc. is first, a restaurant with pretty decent food. I am here to talk about the bar...
The bar is "non-smoking", which makes for a good place to hang out and actually taste what you are drinking. A few notable items on tap are Appalachian Ale from WV Brewing, and Cold Trail Ale from Mountain State Brewing in Thomas. Cold Trail tastes like an underwhelming version of Kolsch style beer. I would classify it as a "transition beer" to convert macro lager drinkers.
Another tap space is taken by Harpoon "IPA", which is an OK beer, but by no means has kept up with the "Hophead" movement in this country.
Of course, Blues features the obligatory Guinness and Bass taps for making "Black & Tan".
My Fav's on the bottle list include Ayinger Altbarisch Dunkle, Great Lakes "Edmund Fitzgerald" Porter and Shiner's 97, a nice Schwarzbier (Black Lager).
The bar staff will always give you a cold glass with your beer, they are amply stocked with room temperature beer glasses when asked to provide one. Kay also keeps many of the bottles at "back room" temperatures instead of freezing them tasteless.
Overall It's a decent place to go for a beer.
Highs: Good beer selection for CRW, Friendly & knowledgeable staff, Free music, Great wine selection
Lows: Really not a late night bar (closes at 11pm on weeknights)
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
"The Gazz" picks up my "Bubbly" post
My Blog on "Bubbly" for New Years has not only been accepted by The Gazz, it's running as a front page feature on the web and I am told it will be printed as well!
This really makes me happy! I hope to be able to keep posting articles like that one, which appeals to the average person with some curiosity about beer.
The Beer Snob Blog is a place where I can rant and rave and also provide some interesting information on the subject of craft beer, but the Gazz posts need to be designed to capture attention and promote interest in beer without some of my self serving rants and discussions on beer in my brewery.
Check out the Gazz article at: www.thegazz.com
This really makes me happy! I hope to be able to keep posting articles like that one, which appeals to the average person with some curiosity about beer.
The Beer Snob Blog is a place where I can rant and rave and also provide some interesting information on the subject of craft beer, but the Gazz posts need to be designed to capture attention and promote interest in beer without some of my self serving rants and discussions on beer in my brewery.
Check out the Gazz article at: www.thegazz.com
Monday, December 25, 2006
"Beery Booty" for Christmas
Well it's Christmas morning. The wife and kids made out pretty well with clothes and makeup and all that kind of stuff. Our really good friends from Florida sent a few packages as always.
I opened mine to find a pair of brewing related books. One is a classic called "Designing Great Beers" by Ray Daniels, of which I already own a well used & tattered copy. I may see if the Library would take a copy to add to the meager collection of beer related books they offer.
The other book is sure to become a classic, It's called "Brew Like A Monk" by Stan Hieronymus. I have borrowed this one from friends during the year to read on one of my many plane flights.
"Brew Like A Monk" has always struck me a silly title, but you cannot judge a book by it's cover for sure. For anyone interested in Trappist and Abbey style beer, this is a must read. The book tries to deliver something to every reader, whether you are a brewer or just a beer geek. Every reader will come away with a basic understanding of these great beers, who brews them, and what makes them so wonderful. The brewer will be able to come away with many new ideas for recipe formulation as well as new techniques to employ in his or her home brewery.
There is a noticeable scarcity of ready to go recipes in this book, and I say that is a good thing. There are plenty of recipes already on the web. Good brewing books always provide information along with basic brewing science as to allow the brewer to formulate recipes; much like an episode of Alton Brown's Good Eats does this for food science.
You can find "Brew Like a Monk" and many other classic beer style books either on the web or at a nearby home brewing supply...
I opened mine to find a pair of brewing related books. One is a classic called "Designing Great Beers" by Ray Daniels, of which I already own a well used & tattered copy. I may see if the Library would take a copy to add to the meager collection of beer related books they offer.
The other book is sure to become a classic, It's called "Brew Like A Monk" by Stan Hieronymus. I have borrowed this one from friends during the year to read on one of my many plane flights.
"Brew Like A Monk" has always struck me a silly title, but you cannot judge a book by it's cover for sure. For anyone interested in Trappist and Abbey style beer, this is a must read. The book tries to deliver something to every reader, whether you are a brewer or just a beer geek. Every reader will come away with a basic understanding of these great beers, who brews them, and what makes them so wonderful. The brewer will be able to come away with many new ideas for recipe formulation as well as new techniques to employ in his or her home brewery.
There is a noticeable scarcity of ready to go recipes in this book, and I say that is a good thing. There are plenty of recipes already on the web. Good brewing books always provide information along with basic brewing science as to allow the brewer to formulate recipes; much like an episode of Alton Brown's Good Eats does this for food science.
You can find "Brew Like a Monk" and many other classic beer style books either on the web or at a nearby home brewing supply...
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