Avery Mephistopholies - Passes the stout hole test.

Avery - Mephistopholies

Avery - Mephistopholies

Starts out innocent enough, tastes like a great stout. Full body, roasy and chocholaty. Can't believe the 16% isn't showing it's head. Great smell, like that walking into a coffe shop aroma, but beery. I'm content, good job Avery!

Wait a minute... The beer is warming up, I'm getting kicked in the face by the alcohol content - the beer got HOT! wow, this is now tasting like stout liquour. Not so sure about how much I like it anymore... Still smells good though! I'm going to have to investigate the rest of the series now... Still not sure what I think of the beer, such a drastic flavor change from cold to warm but definatly and interesting brew.

Alaskan - Baltic Porter

Alaskan - Baltic Porter

Good stuff, everything I think a porter should be!

Samuel Adams Utopias

Samuel Adams Utopias 2005 # 06985

http://www.samueladams.com/world_of_beer.aspx

This was a birthday present to myself a couple years ago. Since I'm on vacation I decided to start new years celebrations a little early.

It smells like pure alcoholic sugar! I still can't believe this is a beer. It smells like brown sugar and pineapple with a vanilla caramel twist. It's heavy and thick, the sweet aftertaset lingers a bit. This beer is uncarbonated, one of the few that can get away with it, and tastes more like sherry than beer. It's very sweet, with surprisingly little alcohol bite considering it's a little over 25% (naturally fermented, not distilled!). I'm tasting so many things I can't pick them out. Molassas, vanilla, malt, caramel, not picking up any defined hop taste yet, but there is so much going on in this beer. It really redefines what beer can be, a truly groundbreaking beer experience. I'm at a loss for what else to say about it!

Boulder Beer Company - Hazed and Infused

Boulder Beer Company - Hazed and Infused

http://www.boulderbeer.com/

Had this at Pizza Pipeline, wow that place has changed! This beer boasts of being "unfiltered and dry hopped" but in reality its kinda meh. On par with Deschutes cascade ale. I'm not smelling or tasting the dry hoppiness, but its definitely got a little more kick than your average ale. Good beer, just fairly average tasting when compared to what's avalible on tap in the area.

Pabst Blue Ribbon

Pabst Blue Ribbon

Good drinkin' beer. Clear, crisp, light, high drinkalotablity. Something cold and wet to quench your thirst. Great for drinking games and mindless tasks. Not much more to say.

North Coast Brewing - Scrimshaw

North Coast Brewing - Scrimshaw

I like North Coast, and I hadn't tried this one yet. Its a pilsner, light clean almost sweet. Kind of a nice change of pace from all the heavy beers I have been drinking. Smells like fresh roman lettuce, that is, no real apparent smell other and a kind of fresh clean water smell. That came out being harder to describe and overly wordy than I expected... Its still bubbling pretty good, maintains a small head throughout the glass, yet it doesn't taste overly carbonated. Leaves a bit of a dry malty sweet taste on your tounge. Good drinking beer, kinda spendy though

Diamond Knot - Ho Ho

Diamond Knot - Ho Ho

Winter/Christmas beer offering from Diamond Knot. Had it on tap at the Up and Up with a slice of Rudy's pizza, mmmmm. It was tasty, like a malty dark amber porter ale winter beer. Kinda tastes like the love child of snow cap and dead guy ale.

Kona Brewing Co: Fire Rock Pale ale

This is a summer beer I found in my beer fridge so I figured, what the heck. Not terribly great for an Ale but it's very drinkable. It has a light brown amber (almost orange) color and a light Hallertaur finish. Slight malt flavor but not as light as a wheat beer. Overall it isn't terrible but it's not great either. I'd recommend it over many others.

Ayinger: Celebrator Doppelbock

"Finest Bavarian Double Bock Beer"

Hailing from Aying, Germany and brewed by Privatbrauerei Franz Inselkamer (I thought it was a funny name so I wrote it down), this bock tastes like many others I've had. Stong estery flavors, mild peatiness, and a brown, clear body. It was a bit sweet for what I envision a bock to be though its smokeyness was on par. I sipped and enjoyed this beer, would have been good with vanilla icecream. Not really my favorite beer but worth a try.

www.merchantduvin.com
www.ayinger.de

Redhook Double Black Imperial Stout

Redhook Double Black Imperial Stout

Fails the Stout Hole Test.

I agree with munkey 1, it smells like IPArter. Which smells like hop flavored coffee. I like the smell. First sip is kind of bitter, a lot like black coffee like the name claims. Nice and roasty with a decent mouthfeel. But with the first sip it's also evident that this is not an imperial stout. Weighing in at 7% its got some balls, but this is more of a coffee infused dark amber than an imperial stout. Being a Washington brewery they should know that we're a bit spoiled when it comes to beer. Don't get me wrong, it's good, no weird flavors, very drinkable with a smooth finish and honestly I’ll probably pick up another bottle soon. Redhook has another solid beer here, but it lacks the intricacies of a real microbrew stout. I know I'm being picky... but I’ve got a thing for imperial stouts. Guess I’m trying to say - Good beer, just labeled wrong. Try it for yourself.

Dogfish Head: 90 Minute IPA, 120 Minute IPA

Starting with the 90 Minute IPA I guess is the logical thing to do. It poured very clear with an amber color. It's clarity and color are missleading as the body is fairly heavy. It is a bit sweeter than I like but not terrible. The hops weren't too strong and I didn't smell them right away, but about 4 inches away I caught it. It isn't too hoppy but fairly balanced with it's reasonably thick body. Not terrible for an imperial IPA but I think it shouldn't be so sweet. Not sure if I'd drink two of them back to back, but overall a decent beer and I'm glad I had it.





Holy moly. 20% ABV, 120 IBU, and 450 calories per bottle, this 120 Minute IPA sounds crazy on paper. I'm so glad I drank this after the 90 minute. This drowns the 90 Minute. At my first sip I was hit in the nose by the alcohol vapors and knocked in the back of my head with its huge presence. Like many heavy beers this has a maple flavor that accompanies its huge body. Claiming a Plato of 45* (1.180 SG) this beer is the thickest I've ever had besides Utopia's. It poured with a subtle head and clings strongly to the glass. Halfway through the glass I could really smell the maple/mahogany coming out just sniffing the beer. And here a week before christmas, fruit flies have found my beer. I really wasn't expecting this beer to be like this as I hadn't done any research on it at all. I don't think I'd get either of these again but I'd really recommend you at least try it.

Black Boss Porter

Black Boss Porter

Found it on sale and I remember Munkey 1 liked it.
Its thick for a porter, smells really sweet, like boiling maple syrup and the adhesive on envelopes after you lick it. First sip is very smooth, but its got a fake McDonald's milkshake kind of taste that hits the roof of your mouth and kinda lingers. Not sure what I think of it. The sweetness dies down after it warms a little, I'm liking it a little more now. There is a dark chocolate like bitterness that's starting to pick up towards the end of the glass. Interesting beer, defiantly different but I don't think I'm going to be getting another bottle.

Lazy Boy - Mistletoe of Bliss

Lazy Boy - Mistletoe of Bliss

A lot like the Old Jubilation from Avery, just a bit heavier body. Not bad, but again nothing really stood out. Another very drinkable winter amber. I think this would be great in a 6 pack. I'd say it tastes like Copper hook, but beerier in a good way.

Redhook: Double Black Imperial Stout

Poured black with a nice tan head. I seem to be on kick with these lately. I love beer. Back on track, this one is very drinkable for an imperial. Has a very subtle coffee presence for boasting as such. So do drinkable and imperial go together? Meh. For RedHook this beer is the best they have if you consider ultimate flavor and impressiveness. It is as sweet as a stout should be, with an added extra density. Fairly thick mouthfeel accompanies a good.... stout..... flavor. If I were you I'd go for it. It was a good beer overall. Like I said before, not as imperial as I would expect but a good beer considering the source.

Wtf? It tastes really similar to Brew Munkey's IPArter! I just did a back to back tasting of our porter versus their stout. RedHook's stout is, well, stouty. Our Porter is definetely "portery", and not as sweet as the stout (for obvious reasons, or definition) yet both contain the same mouthfeel. Bring a bottle of DB sometime and I'll show ya.

Avery Old Jubilation Ale

Avery Old Jubilation Ale

Avery's winter offering. Good, but nothing special. Very middle of the road. Not sweet, not bitter, medium body, smooth finish, not too carbonated. One of those beers you sit and drink with friends and forget you're drinking a beer and just enjoy the company you're with. Its got everything it should, I'd call it a winter amber.

EizenMunkey

EizenMunkey, Mmmmmm I miss it.

A neat picture from the brewing process I found.

So far, the EizenMunkey is the strongest, thickest, darkest, other adjectives ending in "est", estyest beer we've brewed/made. On par with Samuel Adams Triple Bock, but better tasting. Yeah, I defiantly miss it.

Dragonstooth Stout - Still excellent

Had another bottle of it last night. This stout never disappoints, always very tasty.

If you haven't tried it yet I don't know what's wrong with you.

Rogue: Imperial Stout

This is a thick beer not for the feint of heart. Thick, heavy body, and tan head, this beer sits very heavy on the pallet. Not an overwhelming maple presence accompanies this one as many other imperial stouts do. This beer has a great smokey yet sweet flavor to it as well. Being that it is so thick though with such a high abv (11%), I'd recommend this as either a sipper or a one glasser. Good beer!

Rogue: Imperial Stout

Munkey 1 and I shared this after the Oaked Tard Munkey. It was an excellent beer but unfortunatly it did not follow the Tard Munkey very well because it was fairly bitter.

Slight coffee chocholate smell, medium full body, nice dark dense head. Starts out smooth but finishes kind of bitter. Muted alcohol presense. The bitter aftertasete is still there and kinda gritty, not sure whats going on there. I would have liked a heavier mouthfeel for an imperial, more like the double dead guy.

I suspect this beer would be better when drank on its own with a sweetish desert, like burnt cream. I'm reserving final judgement until I can give it a second review.

Oaked Tard Munkey

Oaked Tard Munkey, 13 months old.

Beer pwn fluorescent light, rar! Passes the stout hole test, as if there was any doubt.

Smells like molasses and maple syrup, it smells thick if that's possible. Clings to the glass, side note: this beer stained a thermometer while it was brewing. The first sip is a magical overwhelming sensory journey for your taste buds. First taste is sweet chocolate maple syrup on pancakes. Next an oaky vanillaish that blends into a velvety thick mouthfeel. Little bit of carbonation on the end I think is masking the high alcohol (14%). Smooth finish, I can't believe I'm not tasting the hops, this brew is well over 100 IBU's. This is a dangerously tasty and drinkable beer!

Budweiser: American Ale

I know what you're thinking. Being unemployed has not forced me to drink this as a last resort to my clutch on alcohol. Rather it is an experiment on one of the largest most consistent breweries in the world. The experiment is if Budweiser can live up to the name it has chosen for this particular brew. Particularly it's description found on the label that I will quote,

"Carefully brewed with barley from America's heartland and cascade hops from the Pacific Northwest, this rich, amber-colored ale has robust flavor and a distinctive, hoppy finish."

It is very sweet, I can't tast any of the hops it boasts of. It looks and almost tastes like a watered down amber bock. But worse. If I were you I wouldn't get it. Ever. Better than regular budweiser? Yes. Jeez this beer just isn't great at all. I had to force myself to drink the last of it and wouldn't call this much of an ale.

Suggestions?

We need your help for our upcoming "The best of the worst!" review.

So far I'm thinking we need:
Bud light
Bud
PBR
Coors
Coors light
Miller High Life
Bud lime
Miller chill
Busch

Anything else we need to include?

Thanks for the help!

EDIT: Rainer, Olympia, Budweiser w/clamato, Milwaukee

Chicago Brewing (Vegas) - sampler

http://www.chicagobrewingcolv.com/

Hooray, a microbrew cigar lounge in Vegas! Feels like Washington, the beer is cheapish, cold and tasty.

Blueberry Vanilla Wheat - Ick. Not a big hef fan, don't really like fruit beers. Too foo-fooy and sweet for my taste.

Weizenheimer Wheat - Blah standard wheat beer, not good not bad. Better than a lot of the crap I have been drinking on this trip.

Ramblin' Reck Amber Ale - Good stuff, would give our amber a run for its money. Its kinda dark for an amber, good malt backbone.

Old Town Brown - Meh, its a brown ale. Like the Hef, not good, not bad.

Hardway I.P.A. - Mild IPA, but finally some hops! I was going through withdrawls.

Black Star - Dry stout, guinessy tasting without the dirt feel or aftertaste. Pretty good.

All Nighter - Good light ale. Drinkable with lots of beeriness. We ended up getting a pitcher of this.

CBC Belgian Dubbel - Wow! an excellent belgian, I'm impressed! Sweetness balanced well with carbonation.

2008 Double Bastard

2008 Double Bastard

This year's seems thicker than I remember, but as always a good beer. Hoppy, malty, thick, with an alcohol hotness on the back. Not much else to review, stock up while you can.

Look for a 2007 vs. 2008 review. And possibly a 2006 vs. 2007 vs. 2008...

Pabst Blue Ribbon: Light...?

What can I say, I'm on a roll. BrewMunkey_A better get HIS roll on if we want to get our 200 beer review by new years. So, PBR - Light. I will be the first to admit that I have drank the piss out of the regular stuff. The light seems to be a little sweeter than the regular if I remember correctly. I don't have a side by side comparison to do at the moment and it has been a long time since I've had the regular. This lager seems to be a slackin on the drink-alot-ability factor too. I've had a few of these by the time I'm writing this and my opinion hasn't changed. Maybe PBR needs the "thinkness" to keep it's appeal. There really isn't much else to say about this lager. Not that I was expecting too much else but a friend brought an 18 pack over so I had to try it. Tune in later for our AMERICAN LAGER REVIEW!!!

Brew Munkey: IPArter

Oh here we go. Pours thick, tan thick head, black body that just fills the mouth. Consistently my most favorist porter ever. It has a deep almost mohagony, maple flavor but maintains a high drink-alot-ability. The black malts really come out on this one. A very good beer if you like porters. And did I mention the hops? This batch boasts 18oz of hops per barrel and brings some serious flavor. Better get yours before we go pro.

Rogue: Sharktooth Ale

I'm not even gonna take a picture of this one. It was just like the other one. Seems like they were trying to make a lager? This is not why I buy Rogue beer. It is super light, very crisp body, no head. It has a Bavarian Hop spiciness to it, tastes citrisy and spicy. That's about it....

Rogue: Chinookie Ale

Well this is an odd one. It doesn't happen very often that I think a Rogue beer is blah. For starters, it poured very light, white thin head, and was see-through! I actually had someone ALMOST pour their wine in it cause they thought it was BERINGER White Zinfidel! Uncharacteristicly sweet, this has a sharp bite that quickly fades to, "what was that?". It's not that it was terrible, it just wasn't what it could be, or what I expect. If they were trying to be a light beer, they did a good job? Meh, just not my favorite.

Rogue: Younger's Special Bitter Ale

At my first sip I really didn't know what to think. Ale? IPA? Lager? A couple more sips and I was hooked on this ale. It poured a very clear, light golden colored beer. The hop presence is not very pronounced but very well balanced for how light the body is. The reason I put lager on the potential list is because this beer finishes so amazingly clean and has a great light bubbly mouthfeel. Kudo's to Rogue for another good beer.

This is a dang good beer!

Deschutes: Jubelale

Deschutes does some great stuff. Funny story, I spent 1st and 2nd grade in elementary school in Bend Oregon.

So here we go. Light airy head, sudo-thick, deep clear red body. Finishes a little heavy on the palet but not as much as some. Almost a deep amber taste with a hint of smoke. Do I need to be more objective? I don't know what else to say about this beer. It is good, I like it for what it is. I think it is a little above average for amber's but not as drinkable as some. The 6.7% abv lends a welcome bite and complements its heavy palet. Not sure if I would change anything about it, but maybe a little more malt and chocolate would be nice. Like Brew Munkey's Amber.....

Smithwick's - irish amber ale

Smithwick's irish amber ale.

Had this on tap at the Nine Fine Irishmen restaruant in the New York-New York hotel. This is one of our favorite pubs in Vegas, good food, good drink. No exeption here. Smooth and creamy, nice malty irish ale. Not really much of a smell, smells almost like guiness. Very drinkable, easily the best beer I've had so far on my trip. Now I'm looking forward to my after dinner cigar - Padron 1926. Might have to get a pint to go... Thats another awesome thing about vegas, something about wandering around anywhere and being able to smoke and drink, I'm bathing in sin and I like it! (can you tell I'm not broke yet?!)

Paco's Homemade Ale

Paco's homemade ale. Sahara hotel.

So, last time I was in Vegas the beer selection was poor. Fortunately things have changed some. We just got to the hotel, tired, annoyed and hungry we found the place with the shortest wait. On the menu was the standard mexican restaraunt beers and this one. So I had to try it.

Its not bad, tastes a lot like Redhook Copper Hook. Good balance of body, malt and hops. Nothing special but a lot better than the Corona or Bud light I was expecting to have to settle for. Went very well with deep fried buritos. Gotta love Vegas.

Rogue: Warrior Ale

This is not an ale! This is a porter through and through. Dark tan head, black body, thick chocolate and brown malt tones, light finish, and what could be sweetness has been transformed to a great burnt porter chaulkiness. What this beer lacks in exuberant flavor and pazazz it has made up in a decent drinkable porter er, I mean ale?

Raven Mad Imperial Porter

Bridgeport Raven Mad Imperial Porter

I would have walked right by this one if it didn't have 3D glasses. Yep, 3D glasses. Looking at the bottle the raven pops out and looks like it's attacking the dude's eyes. Scary stuff. But the beer, not so scary.

Pours strong with a thick head. Smells meh. First taste is sweet, followed by a smooth roasty beer taste. Ok, 3D glasses and it tastes good, I'm happy. The rest of the beer was uneventful, but in a good way - I was able to just kick back and enjoy a good porter, doesn't get much better than that, unless it can be viewed with 3D glasses. Surprisingly, not many things look different in 3D...

Side note: dogs do not seem to like wearing 3D glasses.

Carlton and United Beverages: Sheaf Stout

I had my doubts going in but this is a good beer. Imported from Tansmania Australia, this black bodied stout has a deep chocolaty flavor, white head, light carbonation, and a nice light mouthfeel. It poured very black and blocked the light entirely from my LED flashlight
and a LASER POINTER! This was a little misleading since it had a lighter body than say Deschutes Obsidian Stout. I was unsure as to whom made it cause the name on the bottle sounds more like a distributing company than a brewery. I'm going to read up on the Australian brewing practices and maybe post later. It was under $4 for a 23oz bottle and it was worth it. Also worthy of note was its impressive Stout Hole Test (it passed easily).

Stout Hole Test - North Coast Brewing, Old Rasputin

Old Rasputin - Pass!

Stout Hole Test - Elysian Dragontooth Stout

Elysian Dragontooth Stout - Pass!

Stout Hole Test - Great Divide, Oak aged Yeti

Oak aged Yeti Imperial Stout - Pass!

Delirium Tremens

Delirium Tremens

http://www.delirium.be

Had this on tap at the Copper Hog. Citrusy and a little sour, but in a good way. Seemed a little flat for a typical Belgian beer. Light body, not as smooth as I was expecting. Overall I'd describe the beer as being restrained and balanced. It was tasty, but this time of year I really prefer stouts. I think I might have to revisit this one in the spring.

Lagunitas: IPA

This IPA is a good one. Very clear body, light mouthfeel, flowery hop flavor. It's a little sweet but very subdued compared to some IPA's. Lagunita's traditionally has great IPA's and have never lacked in the hop arena. I would have liked it to be a little thicker but that's why lagunita's have other beers!

Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout

Results of the "Stout Hole" test below

Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout

First thing I noticed is that I can see through it. Hmmmm I think Munkey 1 and I are going to introduce a new stout test. I call it the "Stout Hole." You know, like black hole, but with stout instead of black... come on, I'm trying to be witty....

Moving on

I remember this beer being better. It tastes like a sweet reheated cup of coffee. Its got a little funk on the end of the pallet that I don't remember it having, I'm a little disappointed. Smells ok, kinda like my coffee grinder. Its pretty thick, definatly has a presence on the tounge. I'm going to have to try it again later in the season, I could have sworn I really liked this one last time I tried it.

Deschutes: Obsidian Stout

Stouts are great. This one pours very dark, tan head, big body. Heavy black and chocolate malt flavors cling heavily to the mouth. Sweet like a good stout should be, this deep malty goodness rises up from a deep porter feel to complete the package. Good beer over all, leans a little towards the porter side, but shouldn't all beers?

Pyramid: Snow Cap

MMM snow cap. One of my favorite winter warmers. Solid pour, great head (I just kinda like saying that to get my girlfriends attention...) and a portery stoutish sweet malty smell. Nice and thick, but not too thick. Alcohol is just present enough to let you know its there. This one is smooth and malty without the weird sweetness the wassail had. I guess I like how balanced this one tastes.

And its a bargin! Under $3! Go try it!

Michelob: Amber Bock

I don't know about anybody else, but 5 years ago I thought this was the best stuff in the world. Fortunately, we all grow up.

This beer isn't terrible for Michelob, it has a light body for an amber, darker medium brown body, white light head, and a hint of magnum. It's a little sweeter than I like but has a fair bit of malty presence. It leaves that sweet malty taste on the palet similar to some of the traditional lagers. Almost as if you take PBR and add some amber qualities with a smokey taste just a smidge.

Overall it's not a bad beer. Bring it to your lager drinking buddies and see what they think. It is a great gateway beer! If they can drink this as opposed to lagers then there might be a chance.

Full Sail - Wassail

Full Sail - Wassail

http://www.fullsailbrewing.com/wassail.cfm

The winter seasonal's are arriving!

Dark amber, almost porter looking. Nice head, nothing pronounced in the aroma, but it smells tasty. Wassail starts out tasting pretty malty, then there’s some weird sweet taste I can’t place, followed by a smooth bitterish finish. Silky body, can’t think of another beer like it. Makes me wonder what they did… Malt takes up more of a presence later in the glass, almost starts to taste nutty. Not bad, I think I’m going to stick a few in the cellar. Mmmm aged Wassail, that brings back some memories…

I can haz crowbar

To the idiots that break into cars…

According to Ebay, the stereo you attempted to steal from my car in good, used condition goes for under $20. In stolen and broken condition I imagine it would be worth less than $1. I’d like to recommend that you at least attempt to make stealing a car stereo worthwhile. I really hate feeling like I got taken advantage of for nothing. Makes me feel cheap. Here’s an idea, why don’t you set yourself a minimum profit margin you’d like to make on each stereo? Maybe target only stereo’s that are worth more than a few hours work paid at minimum wage?

No?

Ok, look at it this way: How long did you spend trying to crowbar my stereo out of my car’s dashboard? Looking at the amount of damage, we’ll say ten minutes. For all that work you probably got $1.50 to $2.00 worth of change out of my ash tray. You didn’t even manage to get the stereo you came for! You might want to consider a different line of work...

10 min = $2.00 Not too bad, at this rate you’re making $12.00/hour. Still a pretty terrible wage considering all your job hazards. And I’m sure crowbar insurance isn’t cheap.

Now, how long did you spend running from the police? How about hiding before you were able to “work” again? You don’t seem very intelligent, maybe one to two hours before attempting to steal again?

120 min = $2.00 Oh. Well. Now not so good, you’re down to $1.00/hour. To put that in perspective: Minimum wage = $8.07/hour. Peeing while on the clock = ~8 minutes, you just made $1.07 taking a wiz! And, as an added bonus, the police don’t have your finger prints and are not actively looking for you!

Bottom line - your deficiency in economics is going to cost me $500 out of my pocket and might raise my insurance rates. All because you wanted a $20.00 car stereo. WTF. I would have given you $100 and then called the cops if you would have agreed not to unleash the wrath of the crowbar on my car. That’s 500% more than you came for and a fair sporting chance at getting away from the police!

Ok, now that we’ve covered economics, let’s touch on technique. Well, more correctly lack of technique. It looks to me like you only brought one tool with you, a crowbar. To be successful you’re going to need a few more tools. Don’t worry, you can probably steal them from your girlfriend. As I see it, a bare bones car audio theft kit should include: 1 clothes hanger, 1 flat head screwdriver and 1Philips screwdriver. Now, never actually having stolen a car stereo I’m only guessing, but, it seems to me that a good car stereo thief would get into and out quickly without damaging the item he’s trying to steal.

Let’s walk through your approach.
Use crowbar on door, try to pry door open. Door won’t open, pry harder. Swear, pry some more. Take off gloves, try to pry window away from door frame, fail. Get crowbar, pry window back, insert fingers (leave finger prints), swear. Pick up crowbar, pry window back, wedge crowbar into window gap, grab window and pull. Unlock door (just breaking the damn window with your crowbar would have been easier for both of us). Put gloves on passenger seat, get crowbar. Rummage around vehicle. Use crowbar to ax away the portion of the dash above radio. Loop crowbar through cup holder pull on crowbar like you’re starting a lawn mower. Attempt to remove radio from dash with crowbar. Wedge crowbar between faceplate and radio. Rarrrr! Crowbar pwn’s radio! - Break faceplate off radio. Use bare hands to rip remaining dash parts away from top of radio. Attempt to remove radio with crowbar like you’re digging for clams. Damage remaining portion of radio. Crowbar gear selector away from dash. Remove ash tray with crowbar, send change flying all over car. Have A.D.D. moment, pick up as much change as you can. Remember that you came for the radio, pick up crowbar. Remove offending section of the dash below radio with crowbar, turn on windshield wipers. Jamb crowbar between side of radio and dash, pry. Swear. Pry harder. Swear more. Try prying radio out from the bottom. Swear, kick dash, kick crowbar. Hear your buddy make a birdcall, grab crow bar, run. Buddy makes fun of you for not being able to steal a car stereo.

Now let’s run down the scenario using the tool kit we talked about earlier.
Slide coat hanger between door and window, unlock door. Pry up edge of center consol trim with screwdriver, gently tug trim piece free from center consol. Use screwdriver to remove screws holding radio to dash. Gently pull stereo free from dash, unclip wiring harness, quietly walk away from vehicle. Buddy is impressed how quickly you stole stereo that is still functional.

Next time you’re in the area, stop by. Just go ahead and start crowbar-ing things, that way I’ll know you’ve dropped by. And if you can convince me that I shouldn’t hit you in the head or groin with my demo-bar (it’s a huge crowbar, you’ll be jealous when you see it), we can do a comparison of techniques and see who gets the stereo out first. Winner gets to keep the losers crowbar and gets a free 5 minute crowbar rampage. I hope for your sake you can run faster than me and my crowbarz.

Browar Witnica: Black Boss Porter

First influence was maple porter goodness. Poured thick, black with a hint of brown, light brown head, medium/thick body, not a classic porter but good. Sweet with a lighter body than you would expect. It's drinkalotability was decent and I'd gladly drink another. The classic chalky chocolately porter flavors were subdued and in its place was a mild complex maple flavor. Very reminicent of Samual Adams Tripple Bock though not as thick or strong in its flavors. It could have been labeled a stout though its black color lent easily towards its porter label. Brewed in Poland, its a good beer and cheap enough that you should try it.

http://www.browar-witnica.pl/pages/en/products.php

Old Rasputin Imperial Stout

http://www.northcoastbrewing.com/beer-rasputin.htm

Old Rasputin, always a good choice. This beer has never disappointed me.

Rich, thick, bitter chocolaty roasted goodness. Just about the perfect imperial stout.

Not much else to say, If you haven’t had this one yet there’s probably something wrong with you.

Double Dead Guy Ale

Rouge - Double Dead Guy Ale

HA! I found a bottle! A friend of mine shared a bottle with me over labor day weekend - Its awesome!

Brewmunkey 1 and I will probably be doing a comparison of this to normal dead guy ale. Look for the full review on it then.

The Dissident

Deschutes - The Dissident

Curiosity got the better of me... again... maybe its the waxed top... Anyway, I tried the new offering from Deschutes this weekend.

Its brewed with wild yeast, kinda weird, is this a lambic?! Pours normal, looks like an amber or a brown ale but the smell is wayyyyyy different. It smells almost like sour apple candy... Ok, well only one way to go from here, first sip... yep its sour, but not like I was expecting, phew. It tastes more like a flemish sour ale than a pure lambic.

Side note - this beer does not go well with mexican food.

Got back to the beer after dinner, ok solid beer, a little heavier than the flemish, not quite as lemonady refreshing as the flemish and a little more tart. For me I'd like to drink this as an after dinner pre-desert beer.

I liked it, but not enough to add to my cellar.

Big Bear Black Stout

Bear Republic - Big Bear Black Stout

Finally had to try it... More R&D?!

Pours nice and thick. Short dense head, smells like carmelized coffee. Smooth texture, medium body, sweetish finish. I like how the roasted taste and smell is balanced by a sweet carmelized surgar and molassas taste.

Good stout, I'd put this one up there with the Pike and Elysian stouts.

Great Divide - Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout

Another imperial stout... We'll call it R&D before I brew my next one.

I've had this one before, first time I tried it was at the Seattle international beer festival. Great stout, I like the oaked version even more than the normal one.

It smells like vanilla molassas and has a nice dark dense head. Pours pretty thick, but supprisingly doesn't cling to the glass like some other imperial stouts. The first sip is a velvet carpet ride of flavors, initialy there is a sweet syrup taste and feel which blends into an oaked roasty coffe flavor and finishes with a smooth sweet kiss of alcohol. Mmmmm time to just kick back and enjoy the moment.

Elysian: Night Owl Pumpkin Ale

PUMPKIN ALE IS HERE!

Elysian is one of my favorite breweries. This beer is light orangy in color, light body, not hops to speak of, but plenty of spice! This is a great pumpkin beer and a good ale. It slacks a little on the pumpkin taste but it more than makes it up with flavor. The alcohol presence is mute and it's not overly done like some beers. An excellent balance between pumpkin, spice, and beer have been achieved here.