Professor Beer

"Some miners (in the town where he started his journalism career) would have 20 pints after a hard day in the mine. Now that we sit behind computers all day, this is down to 18 or 19 pints."
-- Michael Jackson (No, not the singer.)

I enjoy learning about and, of course, drinking all kinds of beer.  I'm happy drinking beer, be it from homebrewers, microbreweries, craft beer breweries, or even the mega breweries.

Recently I've been especially partial to lambics, and some of my other favorites tend to be stouts, Scotch ales, and IPAs.  However, if a beer is way too hoppy or bitter, I probably won't like it.  I also find wheat beers to be fairly hit-or-miss, and I am generally skeptical of them, though there are many excellent ones.

Ruination 10th Anniversary

Creation: Ruination 10th Anniversary
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Masterminds: Stone
Location: Escondido, California
ABV: 10.8%
Hops: 50/50 Citra and Centennial
Availability: If you didn't get one I'm Sorry... Seriously...
Drinkability: Changed my life... Just like the first one. Drink up! 

Served Cold: right out of the fridge with a Hoppy nose that Enter the Dragon punches you in the face. Pours with a... To hell with describing it...

This beer is like the hot girl in high school that was the outsider that only dated college guys. She wore a leather jacket, smoked cigarettes, rode a Harley and didn't put up with anyone's shit. Every guy wanted to date her but no one had the balls to ask her out.

The first taste is akin to the afore mentioned angsty teenage badass girl walking up to you in chemistry and planting a kiss on you that's right out of Letters to Penthouse. The resulting fireworks display that goes off to the sound of Ozzy's "Crazy Train" montage in your head is only rivaled with the Chuck Norris round house to the face you just recieved right after she pulls away. Bully for you...

Post mortum: Ruination is the beer that I compare all hoppy IPA beer to. This being the 10th Anniversary bottle, they kicked up the malt and hops, went from 7.7% to 10.8% ABV. Hoppy, citrus fruity, bitter till the end... At one point I saw Asgard and heard Odin laughing at my side, Valkyrie's and all. Hand to God. Be forewarned.

O-Dawg: *5.0 heads

*add half head when serving fresh off the tap

Sublimely Self Righteous

So... nothing is better than a beautiful day, a wonderful cigar and delicious beer. Stone does nothing but impress. Self Righteous was darker than I had expected, starting off with a sweet caramel flavor. It had a thin layer of head even with a slightly less than delicate pour. The head was sweet, nutty and slow to completely go away.

Like some of the other Stone products, it is complex with a great balance of malt and citrusy hops.The sweetness set off the dark bitterness of my Kristoff cigar perfectly, giving me an excellent balance of sweet and spiced.

A lot of people don't like to drink darker beers on warm summer days, but Stone makes such a well balanced brew, that it is great no matter what time of year. The hops give it a nice light flavor that works anytime of the year.

This one gets a 4.

The Scene: Shallo's

Yes we like beer. Yes we like reviewing beer, but I am The Big Guy, so food is up there too. Plus I know you don't all just sit around drinking by yourself at your house. Bars are where the beers lives, so that is where we go. I like to find spots with great local beer and tasty local food. Shallo's totally hit the spot this time.

On the outside this bar looked like some generic strip mall eatery, but once you get in, there is more character than you can shake a stick at. This place is full of classic bar woods, brasses and neon signs.

This bar had old world wood paneling with tin ceilings and rustic decor. It looked like the sort of bar that the guys from Cheers would be happy to hit up. We ordered some food and some beers. There beer list is outstanding. They have plenty of local beer as well as fantastic micros from around the US etc. They have a large draft list and an even larger list of bottled beers that are available.

The food we had was also great. We started with the nachos and fried pickles. Nachos were fantastic. Very tasty and not too spicy (since the wife doesn't like it when they get too hot). The pickles however were a bit greasy leaving fluid in the bottom of the basket. The flavor was still excellent but the ones on the bottom were soggy at best.

As a good ol' Indiana boy, I had to try their pork tenderloin. This is one of the sandwiches that I like to use to benchmark for a good bar. Shallo's did not disappoint. The tenderloin was huge. The breading was crisp and spicy. The bun was fresh and soft. I had fries as my side and they were also very good. They also have a few items on the menu that have swamp sauce on them. This sauce is smokey and a bit spicy. It has an excellent flavor.

The beer list was longer than most wine lists at fancy restuarants. There are probably twenty beers on draft, which is not epic but totally acceptable. Their bottle list is so big they have it organized by type and then on the back by country. Anytime you need two methods of searching you know it is a helllova list.

I give it a 3 for the food.

All in, I give it a 4 for the beer menu.

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Introducing O-Dawg

They call me.. Tater Salad... No wait O-Dawg! aaaAAAhhhhhhhhh!

Besides throwing in the off cuff movie quotes to random YouTube favorites (This suit is so tight!) I am a beer lover at heart. I'm the fraternity brother buying a sixer of Red Seal as opposed to the case of Natty Ice... The friend who slowly and deviously turns you on to craft beers! ::worries hands together and pets hairless cat:::

Weapons of choice are hops... Big hops... 30 minutes... 90 minutes... Hops to the point of Ruination and back! Complex porter/stouts to Barely Wines. Belgians to Russians. My guilty little pleasures at the moment are Sours.

Breweries that I trust, and when I say trust I mean can honesty grab any swill they brew and be satisfied with my purchase:

• Nationally: Stone, Founders
• Indiana: Three Floyd's, New Albanian
• Indianapolis: Flat 12

Want me to change my opinion? Make me a believer in your beer.

R.I.P Warbird, may your Shanty Irish Red Ale live on long past your reused brewing tanks at Triton Brewery...

So Metal

Beer + Metal = Awesome

HE'BREW Origin Pomegranate Ale

This is one of my all time favorite chillin beers.

It has a wonderful malty taste that is full and rich for an amber ale. The pomegranate is just enough to give it a refreshing edge, and it finishes with just enough hops to give it a slight bite. The nice thing is, it doesn't have some of the heavy handedness of other high proof beers that can make it hard to drink more than one at a time.

If you are planning on having people over for some food, this is an outstanding beer with a nice vinegary or spicy pulled pork. If the BBQ is too sweet, it may be overwhelming.

Buy the bomber (22 oz bottle) because you are not going to want to drink just one.

I give it a 4 1/2

D.O.R.I.S the Destroyer

D.O.R.I.S the Destroyer Double Imperial Stout

This beer looks like motor oil as you pour it of the bottle. I'm not-gonna-lie, I was getting a little aroused.

The head was small, but the flavor in this glass was huge. I was hit with a ton of sweet malty goodness. It had hints of chocolate, caramel and coffee. It finishes with a strong showing from our friend hops. This is a complex well rounded stout.

I will say the 22 oz bomber was practically a full serving of desert. The heaviness and sweetness would make it tough for even a guy my size to put more than one or two of these down in a sitting.

I plan on adding vanilla ice cream next time. I think this would be a great stout float.

I give it a 4.

Introducing: The Big Guy

They call me The Big Guy because I am big in every way. Tall, substantial, loud and overbearing. I love my beer, and I can drink my weight in it.

My preferred beers are maltier, European style beers. I love the dark sweetness of a stout or a scotch ale. I like some hopped up beers, but only when there is decent balance. I need to taste more than just hops. I also tend to stay away from wheats, shandies and other overly sweet summer beers. I am perfectly happy to sit down in 90 degree weather with a porter as long as it is cold, it doesn't need to be light.

My favorite domestic lager is High Life, the Champagne of Beers. At the end of the day I am just a good ol boy who likes to try new things.

In my spare time, I do a little home brewing. My favorite homebrew is the WFW, a Scotch Ale I have been working on for few months.