Banning Bad Elf?

The state of Connecticut is trying to ban Seriously Bad Elf beer because—get this—they think the label might entice children to drink the beer. I kid you not: State wants to ban beer import because of elf on label: The state believes it would be really awful for kids to … Continue reading

Beer fights cancer!

Well, it does, but only a little bit. It’s really the chemical xanthohumol, found in trace amounts in hops, that appears to fight cancer. Here’s the full story from KATU News. "Xanthohumol is one of the more significant compounds for cancer chemoprevention that we have studied," said Fred Stevens, a … Continue reading

Beers for Halloween

Halloween is nearly upon us, and I’ve been thinking about appropriate beers for the season. This is becoming something of a series, since I’ve also written about Valentine’s Day beers and St. Patrick’s Day, and I’ll probably follow up with other major holidays. Anyway, the first beer the comes to … Continue reading

Back from Florida

We made it back from Florida over the weekend, missed hurricane Wilma by two days and otherwise had an uneventful time. Didn’t get to sample any local beer or anything, I’m sorry to say. Even worse, I could have had a chance to meet Chris of Hail the Ale!, but … Continue reading

Off to Florida tomorrow

Ah, we’re quite the travelers this year: tomorrow we’re flying out to Florida for a week. We’ll be visiting my wife’s grandparents near Fort Lauderdale and yes, taking some time to drive up to Orlando for Disney World. It probably goes without saying that I won’t be online much, or … Continue reading

Hop Trip

I picked up a 22-ounce bottle of Deschutes Brewery‘s Hop Trip this evening to try it out (I can’t believe I hadn’t blogged about this yet). It’s one of the brewery’s limited edition "Bond Street Brown" series, and it’s notable because it’s brewed with fresh picked hops. Lots of them. … Continue reading

Beer cheeses

The Pacific Northwest Cheese Project blog has a mouth-watering post on several regional beer cheeses: Rogue Creamery Soba Cheddar (made with Rogue Ales‘ Morimoto Soba Ale) and Windsong Farm’s Hefeweizen Cheddar and Double Trouble IPA Cheddar (made with beer from The Great Bear Brewing Company). I’m going to have to … Continue reading

Jubelale 2005

Jubelale 2005

Ahh, the 2005 Deschutes Brewing Jubelale is out! The theme this year is "an après ski party after a day of skiing on Mt. Bachelor," with a definite vintage look. Here’s this year’s artist: Andrew Sewall, a graphic artist from Pullman, WA drew inspiration from his youth spent in the … Continue reading

Boston 375 Colonial Ale

You gotta love traditional/historical beers (I do, anyway): here’s a review of Samuel Adams Boston 375 Colonial Ale, on draft only in Boston, that aims to emulate the kind of colonial beer that Sam Adams himself would have brewed. Pouring cloudy and deep-glowing amber, this unfiltered ale immediately imparts a … Continue reading

Pelican Pub’s GABF award

BeerAdvocate reports on a Great American Beer Festival item that I missed: one of my favorite (though least-visited) brewpubs, the Pelican Pub & Brewery, was awarded Small Brewpub of the Year. For the second time in six years, the Pelican Pub & Brewery was named "Small Brewpub of the Year" … Continue reading