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SHOWNOTES
00:00-Show Intro
03:39-Mailbag
14:22-Discussion Segment: Food and Beer SCIENCE!
64:27-Lightning Round
85:41-The Last Shot
87:40-Show Close
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For those of you who missed the live show or couldn’t tell what anything looked at due to faulty camera work, I just happened to take some pictures that evening and thought I might show off the hotness in a better light. Enjoy!
John and Hilden work their magic
Then there’s Moe
John crushing yet another can
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In downtown Philadelphia, down an narrow hidden alley, sits the oldest continuously-run pub in the city, McGillan’s Old Ale House. It’s one of those places that immediately hits you with its charm the moment you walk through the doors. Dimly-lit with wooden beams lining the ceiling, McGillan’s is the quintessential old-time tavern. My wife and I walked through the doors and were immediately greeted by the bar’s owner, who told us to sit wherever we’d like. We chose one of the tables near the fireplace and took a look around.
Lining the walls were the typical bar decor: old pictures, sports news clippings, and a seemingly random collection of antique nick-nacks. But looking through the menu, we discovered that this building contained a boat-load of history.
From their website:
Shortly after the Liberty Bell cracked and long before ground was broken for City Hall, McGillin’s Olde Ale House threw open its doors. Its beer taps have been flowing since 1860 — making it the oldest continuously operating tavern in Philadelphia. McGillin’s has outlasted Strawbridge’s, the Civil War and even Prohibition.
Hit the link for a few photos.
Trappist beer is a special thing. There are seven breweries in the world that carry the official Trappist seal, and every single beer they brew is a masterpiece. All of these beers are brewed by actual Trappist Monks in monasteries. They have to have something in exchange for that vow of celibacy, right? Well, I don’t know if I would trade carnal relations for these beers, but they sure come a close second.
Six of the seven Trappist breweries are represented here. The seventh monastery, Westvleteren, couldn’t be with us today because they only sell their beer out of the monastery… in Belgium… damn. You can get their beer on Ebay, but I think it works out to a little over $100 for a six-pack of 11.2oz bottles. Another thing to note about Westvleteren is that they brew the #1 rated beer on the planet, at least according to the ratings on beeradvocate.com and ratebeer.com, the two most popular beer sites. When I get to try the Westy 12, I’ll let you know how it is…
I have picked out one beer from each brewery. From Koningshoeven, the quad is the only one I’ve tried. Rochefort does an 8 and 6, but the 10 is the best. Chimay has a white and red, but the Blue is my favorite. Westmalle has one or two others, but the Tripel is the only one I’ve had. I believe Orval and Achel only make one beer apiece. I’m sure I’m wrong somewhere in this paragraph; I’m just too lazy to research.
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For those of us with prior responsibilities, Midwest Gaming Classic was not an option. What could be more tempting than a room full of free pinball? Craft beer, of course! While many of you were traipsing around the Milwaukee area soaking in all things geek, I went to the 2nd annual Firkin Fest beer festival at the Happy Gnome in St. Paul on March 21st, accompanied by my wife and sister-in-law. I even brought my camera this time!
The first thing one has to think about when going to a beer festival is getting home. So we rode the bus there, ensuring we would be extra hungry for the event by getting a contact high at the second stop. We also arranged for my sister-in-law’s boyfriend to pick us up. The kids were at Grampa’s house, so we were set for a day and night of nonstop drinking of great beer.
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Mmm…beer…
A year ago, my wife got me a subscription to Draft Magazine, and every month since I get a serious case of the thirst the moment it arrives in the mail. Draft has expanded my beer horizons by recommending some of the best beer I have ever had the pleasure of drinking. Hell, it was Draft that first introduced me to Westmalle after they made Westmalle Dubbel the first beer to score a perfect 100 in their magazine. And I’ve lost track of the number of times they’ve mentioned Surly in their magazine, which certifies them as experts in my book.
Draft covers nearly everything a beer-lover could ask for. In addition to beer reviews (my favorite part of the magazine), they also tour cities highlighting the local beer hot-spots. They interview brewers, bar owners, and chat up the occasional celebrity about their favorite beers, and there are often recipes complete with beer-matchings. The most recent issue (pictured) lists the top 200 beer bars in the United States, broken down by region. Among those listed are local Twin Cities restaurants like The Blue Nile, Bryant Lake Bowl, The Happy Gnome, and an old favorite of mine and Hilden’s The Muddy Pig.
Draft Magazine is an indispensable resource for beer connoisseurs and for those looking to learn more about beer. Check out segments of the magazine and sign up for a subscription here.
Well, once again the gift of beer has been bestowed and we are obliged to show off just how cool our podcast listeners can be. You can hear the full effect this killer brew had on us if you listen to the latest episode of Drunken Gamers Radio, but before you listen just take a moment and LOOK at that awesome beer!
From the Wikipedia article on the Rochefort Brewary:
“The brewery is located inside the Abbey of Notre-Dame de Saint-Rémy, near the town of Rochefort, and has been brewing beer since 1595. There are approximately 15 monks resident at the monastery. The monks are very secretive about the brewing process, and the brewery is not open to the public, therefore much of the information publicly known about the brewery comes from only a few sources.
Like many strong Belgian beers, those produced at Rochefort age well and can be cellared for at least five years whilst maintaining quality. Each of these beers is brewed to the same recipe, with the only difference being the alcoholic content. The water for the beers is drawn from a well located inside the monastery walls.
As with all other trappist breweries, the beer is only sold in order to financially support the monastery and some other good causes. The monks will not increase production based on demand or profit motives, but only enough to support themselves, resulting in a fairly limited supply of beer availability. In practice, there is currently no shortage through regular channels.”
I don’t know about you but the past two weekends have proven that monks make GREAT beer. Once again, our sincerest thanks to Thom for his gifts of not only awesome beer but some great glasses with which to drink them. You, good sir, are simply too kind.
For those of you who listen to the Drunken Gamers Radio podcast, you may recall that we received a generous gift from one of our listeners.
Here is a picture of the awesomeness that Thom sent us! Behold the glory that is fine beer. Thanks, Thom!
I love beer from Stone Brewing. They make beer that punches your tongue in its throat. Today I’m writing about three of their beers. If you’re lucky, you can find them where you live.
I first found out about Stone from one of my old bosses. Tom was really into wine and cooking, as was I, and he enjoyed good beer. He traveled a lot and told me of a beer named Arrogant Bastard by Stone Brewing, which was, “off the charts.” Fast-forward to two years later. In May 2007 my wife was returning from a trip to Boston and she brought back two bottles of beer. She went to a beer store, asked what was good, and that she was buying a gift for a hophead. (I’ve since expanded my taste, but I do still love a hop bomb). The beerman, bless his anonymous soul, gave her a bottle of Stone Ruination IPA and some local Boston drek.
When she came home she gave them to me and I said, “are you FUCKING KIDDING ME?” She had no idea that I wanted to try some Stone.
The half hour the beer spent in the fridge passed way too slowly.
Ruination was a godsend. It absolutely blew me away with the power of the hop plant. It was the beer that sent me on a quest for bigger beer and converted all of my taste buds to look for beer as a hop delivery vehicle. I knew at that point I would have to look for any Stone beer I could find and try them all.
Fast-forward again to Summer 2008. My cousin was getting married in Las Vegas and it was a good excuse for my wife and me to take a break from the kids. 2008 was the year I became a full beer geek and so I was on the prowl for beer that I couldn’t get in Minnesota. I logged on to Beeradvocate.com at the hotel and looked for good beer on tap on the strip. Two bars popped up, The Burger Bar and Pour 24. Both were within easy walking distance, which was fortunate since they were the only two bars on the strip that served good beer.
Arrogant Bastard at 10 AM is a sin, but damn, it’s worth it.
My first taste of Arrogant Bastard came from a plastic cup from a block of ice at Pour 24 in NY, NY. Not the best of circumstances, but it was still amazing. See my review under better circumstances in the first Beer Talk. Later we discovered the Burger Bar in Mandalay Bay, which was a much better venue for beer. It was a restaurant that actually served beer in the correct glassware (for the most part) at the correct temperature. There I had Ruination and Stone’s IRS on tap. It was about as close to a religious experience as I’ve ever had.
At that point I knew I had to take some home with me. After a couple of days of whining to my wife about how eating out was so expensive and we really should just eat at McDonald’s, I convinced her to take a cab with me from the strip on a 15 minute cab ride to Lee’s Liquor’s, the closest beer store that sold Stone. It cost $45 for the cab ride and another $35 for the six bombers (22 oz bottles) I picked up.
The cost was worth it until I found out literally ONE WEEK LATER that Wisconsin had been carrying Stone for about two weeks… I live 15 minutes from the border… shit.
OK. You’ve been to your local beer store, looked at the selection of strange labels on the imported beer wall, grabbed one, thought better of it, put it back, and then went on over to the cooler to pick out a Heineken. You congratulate yourself for trying something that’s not Budweiser.
Meanwhile, the beer gods cry.
If you really love beer, or want to develop a taste for some great beer, you’re going to have to take some risks. Taking risks also means you will eventually try beer that you will not like. The good thing about trying bad beer is that no matter what, it increases the range of your palette and that’s never a bad thing. Take heart, though: there is a reason all those strange beers are on the shelf. Most of them are good… really good.
The following four reviews are for beer from the same brewery. If you’ve been to a decent beer store, you’ve most likely seen these on the shelf and thought that maybe the Liberace lookin’ guy on the bottle just wasn’t for you. I’m here to tell you that just because someone looks like Liberace, it doesn’t mean he can’t make awesome beer.
Reviewed in no particular order, all drunk from an official St. Bernadus chalice.
St. Bernardus Pater 6. Belgian Dubbel. 6.7%ABV. Brouwerij St. Bernadus NV.
Pours dark amber when held to the light.
Smell has sweet malt, mellow incense, and rye.
If you have ever attended Catholic Mass, you will recognize the incense taste and smell. It infuses the beer wonderfully. The cloyingness of the incense is balanced perfectly by heavy caramel and rye. The mouthfeel is light and dry. Intense carbonation prickles on the tongue.
This beer is very well balanced. New complexities keep rising as the chalice is drained. It is very surprising that even though the beer has so many sweet characteristics, it is never cloying.
A word of caution: do not drink this after coffee. It tastes like barf.
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