Alcohol in the news; foods to drink with beer

From the Buzz

The best foods to drink with a brewski

Beer is a drink that could, and should, be used on many different occasions. Varieties of beer differ on a number of levels such as bitterness, alcohol by volume and ingredients included. With flavors that vary on such wide ranges, beers and food should be paired in ways that complement each other.

Starts out nice.

One way to do this is by matching beer and food by their country of origin.

Also good...

Try pairing a Corona or a Dos Equis with some chips and salsa, or a Pacifico with some tacos. The slightly watery taste of the Corona and Dos Equis won’t overpower the spiciness of your choice of Mexican food, and the Pacifico’s smooth taste makes it easy to enjoy many in a single sitting. A lime wedge is popular with all three of these beers.

uh...

For the distinct flavor and aroma of a Guinness, the famous Irish beer, some sausages would go perfectly.

um...

Beck’s, perhaps the most popular German beer in the U.S., is a dark beer with a strong flavor. Try a bratwurst with sauerkraut to go with the dry and slightly skunky taste of a Beck’s beer. Also meshing well with German beer is a giant pretzel; salty foods work well with almost all beers.

well...

Of course, there is always the sports bar food that goes fantastically with some good American beers. A Sam Adams, Coors or bottle of Busch pair well with a juicy cheeseburger, buffalo wings or heaping plate of nachos. A Chicago style hotdog seems appropriate to be paired with a Miller Lite or Old Style, the sponsored beers of the Chicago White Sox and the Chicago Cubs, respectively.

It's basically an article pairing food with crappy beer. The only beer mentioned in the article that is even interesting is Sam Adams.

But, it's the buzz; so what do you expect, a quality article?

Alcohol in the news; Eagle Rare at Seven Saints

from the Buzz

Eagle Rare at Seven Saints

Seven Saints does whiskey so, so damn good. One of the things that makes them way up there for whiskey in CU is their reserve barrels. They had a hand-selected barrel of Buffalo Trace that then became their own Seven Saints reserve, and next on the list is Eagle Rare. So I could have a basis for comparison, I gave their regular 10 year a taste.

Eagle Rare is a bourbon owned by the Buffalo Trace Company, which also makes a whole slew of other whiskeys. It doesn't have a whole lot of rye in it, so it has a lot of sweetness and toasty, warm flavors instead of the spice and bite of high-rye bourbons.

The color in the glass is a warm, golden amber color. The nose has a toasted caramel scent with some burnt leafy, oak qualities and some citrus. The drink starts sweet and woody and kinda spikes into this grain and charcoal flavor that's done incredibly well. Then the drink blossoms into a sugary, vanilla sweetness that coats the whole mouth at the end of the drink. It develops lightly but lingers with a very sweet finish.

Overall, it was a little sugary sweet for me in the finish, but with a few drops of water, some of that was subdued, and it became a fantastic whiskey. It's very sippable and offers some great flavors.

Good review, and it's a good whiskey. Eagle Rare is one of my favorites, probably because of the sugary sweet finish.

Alcohol in the news; Two India Pale Ales

From the buzz

Two India Pale Ales

This week I plan on focusing on two IPAs that I happened upon at our local watering hole: Seven Saints.

The first goes by the name 2X IPA by Southern Tier Brewing Company. This brew is a prime example of an IPA done right; it runs at a solid 8.2% ABV and is very smooth with subtle tones of bitterness. This beer has a clean finish and doesn't leave any filmy residue like most ultra bitter beers do. The 2X IPA is two times the fun of most beers coupled with a high alcohol content and flavor; it's a brew to be revered.

The second brew, Stone IPA, is another wonderful beer that stands at 6.9% ABV and is much better suited for the seasoned IPA drinker and favors the bitter-lover in all of us. This is a very bitter beer that leaves a dry, filmy residue that helps the overall flavors of the brew to linger on your palate and allow you to enjoy this IPA a while after your last sip.

By all means, I was satisfied by both beers quite reasonably, but I must give my final accolades to the 2X IPA by Southern Tier for finding a way to cram both high alcohol by volume and tons of flavor into one bottle. So cheers to good beer and amazing sliders (gotta love Seven Saints!)

Odd statement in the third graph, "much better suited for the seasoned IPA drinker and favors the bitter-lover in all of us". That really doesn't make much sense, is it for the seasoned IPA drinker, or all of us?

I find it hard to compare a double IPA to a single IPA. Doubles have more malt and usually are more balanced, singles have a tendency to have more hops forward profile. (Pales sometimes can be the most bitter, as there is much less malt used).

Alcohol in the news; Taste the Skittles rainbow

from the buzz

Taste the skittles rainbow

Jello shots, martinis and more: Vodka is a versatile liquor that blends well with almost any mixer. But it’s Friday night and nothing seems to match the thirst you have built up after a long week. The solution? Infuse your vodka with skittles.

Skittles, a rainbow of goodness in a bag, have been found to add a little extra something missing from just plain old vodka. Those fruity little morsels are comprised mostly of sugar and dissolve with little effort, passing on their flavors into your drink of choice.

For special occasions, you can separate into special color combos: Illini orange for game day, green for Unofficial, red for Valentine’s Day, etc. You should also apply to the team that has to fulfill the rider for Ozzy Osbourne (see: Wayne’s World II).

Alcohol in the news; Mickey's hand grenades

From the buzz

Mickey's hand grenades
A drink that makes you think

The beer of choice for me this week is not technically a beer but one to be noted. Mickey’s is a malt liquor that you can find at most stores in the most common form of a 40 ounce green bottle. However, a smaller, less widely known, form of this beer can be found at about every other liquor store you go to; they are called hand grenades.

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They come in six-packs and twenty-four packs and literally look and feel like little, glass hand grenades (hence the name). Now, aside from this delicious and highly alcoholic drink,

There's no real description of flavor, smell, or color, just about the things under the cap.

Alcohol in the news; Salsa: not just for chips!

From the Buzz

Salsa: Not just for Chips!

Maybe you’re shy, or maybe you’re the last person in the world who would go out on a Wednesday night, but you can still lead a partner you’ve never met before to the dance floor and put your hand on his or her waist and start shaking and spinning to salsa music.

“On the dance floor, you can be whoever you want to be,” Juan Atkinson said.

Juan is the DJ for Salsa Night at Radio Maria on the dinner side.

Atkinson spends his days as, he admitted, a shy, stressed-out PhD student in physics. But on the dance floor, he’s someone different.

“When I dance — poof — everything goes away,” said Atkinson, a DJ at Cowboy Monkey’s salsa night. “When you’re dancing, it’s you, your partner and the music, and that’s it. Nothing else.”

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Along with its close cousins, meringue and bachata, salsa dancing can be found almost anywhere in the world, and people from all over the world are dancing it in CU. Atkinson, who moved to Champaign from Mexico for school, DJs or teaches salsa three nights a week: Wednesday at Cowboy Monkey, Friday at Highdive, and Saturday at Radio Maria.

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Atkinson said this makes joining the scene easy and to check out some salsa nights — they’re listed on the Facebook group Champaign Salsa — come without biases and “feel the music.”

“Here, the spirit is always welcoming,” he said.

The Salsa Champaign Facebook group

Alcohol in the news; Laphroaig

From the Buzz

Laphroaig

Scotch is separated by regions. This week's whiskey, Laphroaig, is an Islay scotch. This means it comes from an island, Islay, off the coast of Scotland. The ocean air the whiskey ages in gives these scotches a flavor some have described as seaweed-like and can often be responsible for strong iodine notes in the scotch. The strong use of peat is also a distinct characteristic of Islay scotches.

Iodine, can also be called medicinal, or phenolic (bandaid).

The drink has a light, golden color in the glass. The nose is smokey and sweet, almost mesquite in the sweetness. I would describe the drink as thin, and the development short. The scotch is aged ten years, but it still had a youngness to it. The heat of the drink hits early, and it has a lot of salt. There was a sweetness to the smoke that was detected in the nose that made it really pleasant in the finish, which seemed to stick around for a while.

Alcohol in the news: Prichard's Double Barrel

From the Buzz

Prichard's Double Barrel

Another good whiskey article by Jeanine Russell.

Prichard’s Double Barrel is one of the more interesting whiskeys I’ve encountered. It’s interesting because of the flavor, the aging process, and its classification and what it says about how we classify whiskeys.

The bottle says it’s a bourbon, and I think that the formal laws on the matter allow it. At Seven Saints, I tried it on American/micro-brew night because it’s on that part of the drink menu. It’s distilled in Kelso, Tenn., but it has a lot of bourbon flavors, and it is barreled like a bourbon. I’ll let you decide what to call it, but American seems like a safe bet depending on how strictly you feel about bourbons being from Kentucky rather than about the process of making it.

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I love drinking this whiskey. It does not do cinnamon flavor, rye flavor or oak barreling flavor best of all, but I still like it all put together. It does not stand out, but it somehow creates a drink I enjoy immensely.

Alcohol in the news; Emerald City packs a brunch

From the Buzz

Emerald City packs a brunch
Emerald City Lounge's bloody Mary ups the bar at brunch

Bored with the usual Bloody Mary? Consider going to Emerald City Lounge for brunch this Sunday. With its fiercely furnished, yet comfortable bar and quality services, its brunch has become increasingly popular.

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Emerald City’s brunch is open every Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It generally provides a simple breakfast buffet with fresh fruits and homemade muffins and cinnamon rolls. Besides the expected egg dishes, breakfast meats like bacon, sausage patties and sausage links, French toast, sausage gravy and biscuits, hash brown or some type of potatoes, they also have an amazing build-your-own Bloody Mary bar.

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The Lounge’s hearty brunch costs $9, and its customized Bloody Marys cost $4. They plan on offering a more upscale brunch for Easter and Mother’s Day, which would include more traditional brunch/lunch items. Reservations are allowed.

So, that's another brunch option in CU. It was mentioned before in their One-on-One with the buzz.

Alcohol in the news; The Jameson 12 Year Reserve

From the Buzz

The Jameson 12 Year Reserve
A light Irish whiskey

Jameson is probably the most iconic and identifiable Irish whiskey. Irish whiskeys are, yeah, from Ireland. They are made from grains, mostly barley, and they must be aged for at least 3 years in oak casks. They are also characterized by being rather light and easy to drink, which may also be why you know Jameson. As far as whiskeys go, Irish is a very drinkable type. This is probably a generalization on my part, but I've noticed that I don't find as much complexity in Irish whiskeys as I do with bourbons or scotches.

Irish isn't necessarily my favorite style of whiskey, I'll go for bourbon or scotch before Irish.

This week I tried the Jameson 12 year Reserve, and I found that it surprised me. The 12 year is a blend, meaning it is a combination of different whiskeys, and the youngest of the blends is aged 12 years. It has a medium amber color and a lot more smoke flavor in the nose than I anticipated. The beginning of the drink is smooth and light, kind of thin, and then the flavors open up. There is a sherry-spiced flavor in the middle, and the finish is pretty quick and much like the start of the drink.

Again, Jeanine does a great job in describing the whiskey. There's color (amber); smell (smoke); mouthfeel (kind of thin); flavor (sherry and spice); and finish (quick). Hits the five main things you need to know to describe a drink.

The last graph is about a mix that is available at Seven Saints called the River Fin.

Good article.

Alcohol in the news; A winning ber from Victory Brewing Company

from the Buzz

A winning beer from Victory Brewing Company
The Golden Monkey is definitely a beer worth trying

My monkey turned golden when I came into contact with Victory. Victory Brewing Company that is, and their beer named the Golden Monkey is the supreme treat I speak of.

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The aftertaste had subtle bitter overtones with a robust sweetness to follow. Standing at a 9.5% ABV, this beer overshadows all of the IPAs (though I am aware that this beer is a Belgian Ale) I have tried with special attention focused on ABV and the amount of bitter overtones during the aftertaste. Some IPAs, or particularly bitter beers, leave a filmy, dry, cotton mouth partially due to the high alcohol content (or high yeast content because extra yeast is added late to a beer to increase alcohol percentage), but the Golden Monkey is a tasty treat that tingles the soul as the alcohol takes effect shortly after a beer or two.

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My only concern with this beer is tied very nicely to my last point; the extra yeast that is added to increase the alcohol content. Now, although the beer’s bitter overtones are drowned out by the sweet fruity aftertaste (creating a unique balance), the extra yeast used to increase alcohol content gathers at the bottom and, if you’re like me and have an issue with texture, can pose something of a problem when enduring the last few sips. But of course, I drank every last drop and felt every bit of tipsy after two.

Ok, lets discuss bottle conditioned beers. Bottle conditioning doesn't necessarily provide a greater amount of alcohol. Bottle conditioning is usually done to provide the carbonation to the beer. It makes the beer alive, and does increase the ABV, but it won't be significant enough to alter the listed ABV of the beer.

You can't just add more yeast to make a beer have a higher ABV, that's not how it works. So, how does yeast work? You've probably heard Andy say that yeast: eats sugar, pisses alcohol, and burps carbon dioxide; that's true. But, yeast is a living organism, so once all the sugar is eaten, the yeast will die. Also, yeast strains are bred to produce certain flavors. Alcohol (even though they piss it out) is poison to yeast. When beer gets to a certain concentration of alcohol (ABV) it will kill the yeast. There are yeast strains that can produce up to a 20% ABV (if all you are doing is mixing sugar with water). These aren't really great yeasts to use with beer. (At Friar Tucks, the higher alcohol yeasts are something like "Rocket Yeast"). The higher ABV yeasts are normally used for making distilled products; not the initial fermented product.

So, if you brew a beer, and add the yeast, you will have an initial period of the yeast eating the sugars, this is the primary fermentation. When the beer stops bubbling (CO2 escaping)(usually about 2 weeks), the beer is normally removed from the dead yeast, and allowed to sit for a bit longer (secondary fermentation). The ABV at this point doesn't go up significantly. If you add more yeast to this product, you will not significantly raise up the ABV of the beer. At this point, most of the sugars have been eaten, and the alcohol will kill any new addition of yeast. In order to add more yeast, you would have to add more sugar, but that's an inefficient way of doing it. It's more efficient to continually and gradually add more sugars to the fermenting beer, and have your yeast evolve in the vessel, than to just add more sugar and more yeast.

Yeast in the bottom of the bottle won't hurt you. If you don't like it, don't pour the bottle aggressively, and don't try to get every last drop out of the bottle.

The rest of the article was good, although there could have been more description of the flavors. He hit the appearance, smell, flavor, mouthfeel, and overall impression. Granted, there's some misinformation, but he's getting better. But he should reduce the adjectives, and focus more on nouns.

Alcohol in the news; Fire Station makes a name for itself with drinks and pizza

from the Buzz

Fire Station makes a name for itself with drinks and pizza

During my four years at UI, I have seen many restaurants come and go. With a revolving door of eateries and bars, what separates the goners from the go-to’s? Simply put: allure. The new pizzeria and bar Fire Station has just that.

Located on the corner on John Street between Fifth and Sixth, Fire Station opened its doors to campus in February. It offers a variety of tasty dishes and delectable drinks. The business is a small chain based out of Pekin, Ill., known as Firehouse. The name was changed due to the confusion that would inevitably ensue with Firehaus located right around the corner. As of now, the chain has only just infiltrated the collegiate market, starting at UI and Illinois State University.

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The most unique feature of Fire Station is its state-of-the-art liquor system. You may be wondering why certain bottles are mounted on the wall behind the bar top. Each bottle is rigged to a dispenser that a bartender uses to pour your drink. Regardless of how long they hold the button, each drink will get exactly 1.5 ounces of liquor.

“No watered down drinks here — you get what you pay for,” Fries said.

Alcohol in the news; Rogue Oregon Single Malt whiskey

From the Buzz

Rogue Oregon Single Malt Whiskey

An American whiskey with a fruity flavor

I need to start this week's column with a plug for Seven Saint's Whiskey Wednesday. Most of the whiskeys that I try are sampled there. For 50% off a select type (Micro-American/Canadian, Irish, bourbon, scotch) for the week, it's an unbeatable deal and a great way to try some new things without spending $8 on a drink you may not like. Plus, my waitress is a friend from high school, Mary, and we are able to talk casually about whiskey, which she and the other servers, know a lot about and are alway super helpful.

Seven Saints Whiskey Wednesday is an awesome deal.

This week (Micro-American/Canadian) Mary suggested I try the Rogue Oregon Single Malt whiskey, and I am glad that she did. This was the sweetest and most light whiskey I've tasted.

I had this on Wednesday as well, and it was about as smooth as anything I've ever sipped.

The beginning of the drink has a lot of lightness, an opening up of banana and honey flavors. The middle really shows off the toasted grain taste, and the end has a lot of real banana flavor. The first part of the drink is really organized, but the end loosens and lets the sweet, fruit flavors come through.

I wasn't really looking for the banana flavor, but I just couldn't get over how smooth this was. You've probably seen comedians joke about how "smooth" a beverage is, this one actually is. There isn't a hard edge to it. It just flows. If there's ever a whiskey that I could probably chug, it'd be this.

My friend Brad got to try it as well. We didn't get our glasses from the same bottle, and there was a distinct difference between the two. Mine was the top of the bottle, his was the bottom. Both were great, but I thought the top of the bottle was better.

Mary told me to expect banana, but I didn't really anticipate how distinct it would be. Overall, a surprising drink and a good introduction into American whiskey, which is interesting to see the ways micro-Americans define themselves against bourbon and Jack Daniel's which have controlled the American whiskey market for so long.

Mary is awesome. When looking for an American Micro whiskey, (or how to tell it's not bourbon) just look to see where it's made, and if it says bourbon. Additionally, don't look for a rye. If you aren't sure, then go to Seven Saints for Whiskey Wednesday, the lineup for March is:

March 2: Irish
March 9: Bourbon and Rye (my favorite night)
March 16: Scotch
March 23: Canadian and Micro American (like the Rogue)
March 30: Irish

Alcohol in the news; Seven Saints new weeknight special calls to all beer drinkers

From the buzz

Seven Saints new weeknight special calls to all beer drinkers

...Seven Saints is excited to bring it to the community via Brewsday Tuesdays. This weekly event features two beers available at affordable prices.

Andy Borbely, general manager of Seven Saints, started Brewsday Tuesdays as an opportunity to showcase a broad beer portfolio.

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Borbely chooses the weekly features based on several factors, primarily seasonality. However, he also makes selections based on what catches his eye. Most recently, Borbely found himself infatuated with Duchesse De Bourgogne, a Flemish sour ale.

“It is in no way seasonal but in every way awesome. More people need to know about this beer, so we need to do it,” Borbely said.

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Cheap quality beer, low-key atmosphere and an attentive staff? I’m about to stop writing this article and head back.

buzz columnist and beer aficionado Ramine Nimrouzi joined me on a Tuesday eve to give me his educated opinion on the brews that held the spotlight.

Then there are reviews of Smuttynose Robust Porter, Great Divide Hibernation Ale, and Guinness Stout.

There is a beer for any kind of connoisseur on these wonderful Tuesdays. Take a trip out to Seven Saints — these deals won’t last, but the taste will surely linger on. Cheers.

Alcohol in the news; Leinenkugel

From the Buzz

Leinenkugel: A good price for these good beers

Leinenkugel is a phenomenal brewing company that I have thus far neglected due to its commercial availability; however, I was feeling like a spring time beer in this cold, cold, icy weather. So I turned to their spring sampler pack which is twelve beers for about thirteen bucks. Good deal, I say!

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The 1888 Bock is their seasonal spring beer and was by far my favorite of the pack. Maybe it was the single digit temperature or the “slick as rick” ice covering the streets of our sweet city but this beer warmed me up but just enough to endure the frigid winds. The 1888 Bock is a bold beer with drinkable qualities, a good aroma and a smooth finish; there is no doubt that this beer rings in the spring with its strong foot forward. This one’s only being made until March so get ‘em while they’re hot! Though not really, no one likes warm beer. Speaking of which, it is suggested to be drank at a solid 48 degrees on the F scale. Not too sure how many people put thermometers in their beer but if you are the type to look for perfection, well, go out and get one!

I've put a thermometer in a beer.

1888 Bock is ok, but it's leaving town. If you want to get one on draft, you'll have to hurry. It's currently being replaced throughout CU by Summer Shandy. I'm sure bottles of it are still available at most beer stores.

Alcohol in the news; Take a trip down Knob Creek

From the Buzz

Take a trip down Knob Creek

Knob Creek is a bourbon produced at the same distillery as Jim Beam .While I will never write a review of Jim Beam, I think it does good work for what it is, and the distillery puts out a lot of good whiskey. They also make a few other small-batch high end bourbons: Booker's, Baker's, and Basil Hayden's. Knob Creek being my favorite out of them all.

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The bourbon is a medium amber color in the glass, and the nose gives off some spice as well as some maple. The drink starts with a little bit of bite from the charred oak, and the finish is long, with a lot of caramel flavor. The end of the drink develops a roundness which makes Knob Creek a great sipping bourbon and a really enjoyable experience.

Once again, Jeanine Russell creates a great article on a review of a whiskey.

Bars in the news; Places to wine and dine this Valentine's Day

From the Buzz

Places to wine and dine this Valentine's Day

And the CU area is a good place to start if you’re looking to celebrate. Everywhere from the bars (Seven Saints) to cupcake shops (Cakes on Walnut) to restaurants (Radio Maria and Jim Gould) is delving into the holiday and offering a little something for everyone to enjoy.

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Radio Maria offers a romantic setting, with a twist in cuisine by presenting a special tasting menu on the Friday and Saturday preceding Feb. 14, in addition to the actual holiday. Radio Maria’s holiday menu will feature a mix of ethnicities for your palette.

The menu is priced per person ranging in price from $55 to $90 per person — with or without regular or premier wine pairings. Corn chowder “ravioli,” Angus New York strip, lobster shumai and flour-less Gianduja chocolate cake are just some of the featured dishes. With a menu that features a myriad of flavors and handcrafted décor, Radio Maria is the place for a romantic and creative Valentine’s date.

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Another alternative to the typical Valentine’s experience is that at Seven Saints. Sticking to their roots — cocktails and whiskey — the bar is taking a more relaxed approach to celebrating where, general manager Andy Borbely said, “the décor is very nice and the offerings and the selections is very nice but, you know, people can come in on a date and dress up or you can just come in in a T-shirt and jeans.”

The bar and restaurant will feature its regular menu but also some “date-friendly” cocktails and beers which are tailored to match some of the restaurants regular desserts, like the Southern Tier crème brûlée, (“a huge lady-friendly dark beer,” Borbely said) and the crème brûlée cheesecake or the raspberry chocolate martinis and chocolate cake.

Alcohol in the news; Maker's Mark Bourbon

From the Buzz

Maker's Mark bourbon

Maker's Mark is easily distinguished for its red, wax seal on every bottle. Each and every bottle is hand dipped in this wax, and it gives Maker's Mark a distinct identity in the whisky aisle. And yes, the makers of Maker's Mark use the Scottish spelling "whisky" instead of the American "whiskey" as a callback to their Scottish heritage.

This is a good article on Maker's Mark.

Whenever I am introducing a friend to bourbon, I always go with Maker's Mark because it's so smooth and even-flavored, but it is still delicious. It isn't overpowering, but it gives a good introduction to what bourbons are like without being intimidating.

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The nose of Maker's Mark is sweet, with notes of caramel. The first smell of the bourbon gives a good indication of the drink: nothing too sharp. The drink starts with a lot of vanilla and as it progresses gets some oak flavor towards the end. It has no bitterness and almost no spiciness to speak of. The drink may even be described as short in that there is not a lot of flavor progression, but I mean that in a good way. It shouldn't seem like the drink is underdeveloped. Instead, done well in its simplicity.

Nice writeup of a whisky. The author provides nose, taste, feel (not in the above graph), and overall. The only thing that's missing is appearance.

Alcohol in the news; Johnny Walker Black Label

From the Buzz

Johnny Walker Black Label

It seems the buzz is going to be starting a whiskey column. Cool.

I love whiskey — all of the whiskeys. I like the sweetness of bourbons, the smoke of scotch, the way Canadian whiskeys blend in cocktails and the smoothness of Irish whiskeys. I come from a long line of whiskey lovers, too. Russell’s Reserve makes an excellent rye whiskey that my family takes immense pride in even though we have absolutely no affiliation other than the same name. There are so many components and so much history behind whiskey that make it such an interesting and complex drink-turned-hobby and collection. But mostly, I like sharing whiskey and talking about my favorites.

With this column, I’m going to write about — loosely, review — one whiskey a week. My first: Johnny Walker Black Label. It’s one of my favorites because I can drink it neat. It’s not so rough that I need ice or so light that I am left wanting. At around $30 for a bottle, it is also one of the best for the money or for those looking to breakthrough into the world of scotch.

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Black starts light at the tip of the tongue. It’s sweet in the way of vanilla, and as it finishes it opens up, showing spiciness and smoke. The peat develops through the end, but there is a definite overall smoothness to the scotch in a well-structured and intentional way.

It is not smooth for lack of character. Nothing jumps out harshly. Instead, the flavors roll and develop slowly and evenly through the drink. Because Johnny Walker Black Label is a blend, it acquaints the drinker with different regions of scotch in one drink. The peat and salt of the Islay region scotches compliment the sweetness of the Speyside region. It is all sewn together.

The beauty is really in the following drinks, though, where you become more familiar with the scotch, and as it airs, its flavors will change slightly.

I've recently been able to start enjoying whiskey, so I look forward to keep reading these reviews.

Alcohol in the news; Mirror Pond Pale Ale, a western find

From the Buzz

Mirror Pond Pale Ale, a western find

There is no better way to spend a winter vacation than at the base of a 12,000 ft mountain in the depths of the Colorado Rockies. Waiting for friends, I decided to wet my palate in a local bar where I stumbled upon a superb American Pale Ale.

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Mirror Pond Pale Ale is a twenty award-winning, clean finishing, sweet and malty beer that certainly lives up to its reputation... They produce eight beers on a regular basis and have three seasonal beers; thus far I have only sampled the one I speak of above, however, the smoothness of the pale ale assures me that any of their brews will stand as an outstanding craft.

You can't get it around here. Deschutes is very good. If you know someone on the west coast, Deschutes makes for a good trading beer. Beers that we can get locally but they can't (routinely) include Goose Island, Great Lakes (if you go up to Chicago), 3 Floyds (again, go to Chicago), Hoppin Frog.

If you do start to trade and want to get their best offerings, look for Black Butte or the Abyss, but be prepared to give up some of your best bottles for them.

If you would like to purchase Deschutes beer, here's a Colorado beverage store Total Beverage, that will ship. Shipping isn't cheap. The cost for shipping is around the same price as the bottles of beer, so a case of beer being shipped is very expensive. Ensure it's beer you really want. Bottletrek also carries west coast beers.