Tag: Beer

Going out

I don’t understand the appeal of “going out” on the weekends. It’s one of those things like eating an entire casserole dish of mac and cheese in one sitting. It starts out exciting, is fun during the middle and then begins to suck. You spend time putting on make up and doing your hair, or whatever the male equivalent of that is.

The party doesn’t start until 10 but you find yourself dozing off at 6 so you put on some music and try to get pumped up for a fun night with your friends or co workers. Then you get to the bar or party and things seem cool. You catch up with your friends, get a beer and get the lay of the land. So far people seem to be having a good time. There’s a few people you know and then others you don’t, but the idea of making new friends is fresh and exciting. You boldly walk up to a group of people and start talking. Of course your dazzling wit immediately charms everyone and they begin to fall in love with you just like everyone does. Then the night goes on and people around you begin to get more drunk and soon your obscure Quantum Leap references aren’t landing like they did an hour ago.

So you return to the friends you came with only to find one of them is having an ex boyfriend situation and is crying in the bathroom. Another two hours are gone helping her and it’s already time to go home. The lights go on and everyone starts to pair up like they’re salmon needing to spawn before their short lives are over. You have a boyfriend so you just collect your belongings and head home.

Of course when you get home you realize you haven’t eaten since 5 because your night usually ends at 11, so you make yourself a snack, which ends up taking another hour and before you know it, it’s way later than you were intending staying up, and you still have to take your makeup off and go to bed. It’s not like it was in college, when you knew most everyone at the local bar and didn’t have to stick only to small talk for four hours. You also find yourself getting tired much earlier than you did three years ago. So not only are you tired and hungry, you’re thinking about your mortality and how age is a real thing that’s coming to get you.

Maybe some day I’ll get the appeal of a night on the town, but for the time being I would rather have my friends over for pizza, beer and a board game or movie. That is my natural habitat. Now, I don’t want anyone to get the wrong idea. If you love going out and getting dressed up and meeting new people and going to new places, get on with your bad self. I will join you for the first hour or two and then make a sneaky escape back to my couch.

Beerview: Double Mountain IRA

Beerview: Double Mountain IRA

I like beer, and I like to try new beers. I’ll tell you about the good and bad ones I find. I am not qualified an any way to talk about beer, but I’m going to anyway.

I love this beer. I’m not even going to play coy because I really love it. It has a well-rounded, full-bodied flavor that goes with anything. I had it for the first time with Vietnamese food. It paired surprisingly well with peanut sauce and tofu that I had to try it with a burger and of course it was perfect there too.

Double Mountain is a relatively small brewery in Hood River, Oregon and I didn’t expect such big flavor to come from them. I realize it isn’t fair to assume that a brewery in a smaller town can’t produce big flavor, I’m from Fort Collins so I really should know better, but it’s so nice to see such unique flavors coming from the mountains.

The first time I had this beer, with a delicious peanut curry stir fry, my dad tried it and liked it so much that he switched beers with me. He had a pale ale at my suggestion because that’s what he tends to but he really liked the this Red. Why? Because it has a flavor unlike any other red out there, or unlike any beer out there.

I can’t recommend it enough, so go out and get some so I can stop pretending to be your friend. We obviously don’t have anything in common until you’ve tried it.

Rating: Five fucking pints. (Like there was any question)

I’m back baby!!

Beerview: Rolling Rock

Beerview: Rolling Rock

I like beer, and I like to try new beers. I’ll tell you about the good and bad ones I find. I am not qualified an any way to talk about beer, but I’m going to anyway.

I realize Rolling Rock is a little different than what I normally review, but sometimes you want a casual cheap beer for a football game or just to hang out and enjoy. In my eyes, it’s the best of the worst, I put it in the same category as Bud or Coors Light. Honestly I probably can’t tell them all apart, but everyone has their favorite cheap beer and mine just happens to come in a green bottle.

The thing with beer is people have really strong opinions on it. I have friends who will defend Pabst to the death, while I feel like it’s drinking a piece of bread, in a bad way. Other people actually spend money on Miller, while I liken it to drinking melted butter. These people seem crazy to me while they have in turn bashed my beloved drink of choice.

It’s unclear why people choose the beer they love since they all pretty much taste like water. Maybe it’s regional, although I think even people in Milwaukee make fun of Milwaukee’s Best, and I’m from Colorado but I’m not Team Coors. Maybe it’s the color of the can, how well the pop tops, or if it effectively shotguns.

Like most things in life it all comes down to personal preference. It doesn’t make sense to argue over which is better because at the end of the day it’s all water and hops, even if it can turn the can as blue as the Rockies. I’ve found with beer that people are going to drink what they’re going to drink regardless of how hard you try to convince them yours is better. That’s why I am now and will forever be Rolling Rock’s number one fan.

Rating: Three tall boys

Beerview: Elysian Bifrost Winter Ale

Beerview: Elysian Bifrost Winter Ale

I like beer, and I like to try new beers. I’ll tell you about the good and bad ones I find. I am not qualified an any way to talk about beer, but I’m going to anyway.

Winter is coming, and bringing dark, rich beer with it. Elysian Brewing Company from Seattle is never one to shy away from full flavors, and Bifrost is no exception.

Though it boasts citrus flavors on the label the thing that hits you in the face is the hops. It is a full flavor that will warm you to your toes on a frosty night. This isn’t a beer to enjoy a lot because it’s 7.6%, so be wary of drinking too many.

Overall this is a really solid beer to carry you from Fall to Winter.

Rating: 4 pint glasses

Beerview: Mirror Pond

Beerview: Mirror Pond

I like beer, and I like to try new beers. I’ll tell you about the good and bad ones I find. I am not qualified an any way to talk about beer, but I’m going to anyway.

Deschutes’ Mirror Pond is not a new beer by any means but it is one of my favorites. I’ve sort of forgotten it in my attempt to try every micro brew in the greater Portland area, but I revisited it tonight and it’s like talking with an old friend. It is full-bodied and warm. I once referred to it as a beer that tastes like a bar, maybe because it actually tastes like wood, but this is the beer to drink if you want to feel like you’re having a night out without leaving your couch. Drop some peanut shells on your floor, light a cigarette, and you’ve made your own personal bar.

Drink it in a glass.

Rating: 4 pint glasses