The Ultimate 6er – The Beers of Metal

Please stop! I know the sound of beer cans smashing against the human skull is an invigorating sonic sensation but, I must digress, I’m not talking about the kind of beers you drink straight-from-the-can in a dark alley before the AC/DC metal show. I’m talking about the brews that make the true metalhead feel like a Viking rowing a giant battleship into war!

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Kona Brewing Co. – Koko Brown

26.7 IBU

5.5% ABV

What I went to Jungle Jim’s looking for and what I came home with were two completely different beers. Nevertheless, I was pleased with my choice. Kona Brewing Company’s Koko Brown is an ale brewed with coconut, and I absolutely LOVE coconut! Coconut candy, coconut shrimp, coconut rum…you name it, I want it. Unfortunately, I know a lot of people who don’t enjoy it as much as I do, so I don’t get to eat it (or in this case drink it) as often as I would like. Read More

Odell Brewing – Tree Shaker Imperial Peach IPA

On a Saturday in Fort Collins, a few of us PorchDrinkers brewery hopped, visiting New Belgium, Funkwerks and Odell. Lucky for us, a new beer debuted that day (April 6) at Odell Brewing, so it was a chance for all of us to try something new. The Tree Shaker Imperial Peach IPA is just as delicious as it promises to be.

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2013 Craft Brewer’s Conference: Take Two

A pair of us from PorchDrinking.com were fortunate enough to attend the 2013 Craft Brewer’s Conference in Washington, DC in March. Considering Erin and  I hold very different beer backgrounds (but are both beer enthusiasts nonetheless), here is my take (as someone who spends his 9-5 in the industry) on CBC:

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Samuel Adams’ 26.2 Boston Brew

It’s Marathon Monday! If you don’t know what that means, you obviously do not live in Boston. I suppose it’s known as “Patriots’ Day” elsewhere[1], but ironically, in the land of the Pats, the Boston Marathon is the main event. Imagine if Macy’s Thanksgiving Day was 20 miles longer in a city 1/20th the size of New York: things get a little crazy and crowded.

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Bluegrass Brewing Company– Horse Piss

Bluegrass Brewing Company– Horse Piss Beer – 5.0% ABV

Remember Opposite Day? When good meant bad, ugly meant pretty, and happy meant sad? Opposite day paved the way for things like “not” and facetious “no-ew-oh” remarks, and eventually to the consistent sarcasm of high school and the intentional irony of adulthood. Many people say that we are living in the Age of Irony. Irony is in; it is cool. If you get it…then you get it. John Deere hats are no longer worn by farmers, sons of farmers, or those who have ever actually rode a tractor, but by those that shop at the mall at Hot Topic. We are so inundated with irony that we now have to say “literally” when we are not being ironic or sarcastic or hyperbolic. (By the way, my personal pet peeve is when someone prefaces a comment with “literally” and then says something figurative. That is not hyperbole; that is stupidity.) Bluegrass Brewing Company’s Horse Piss Beer, which I assumed to be a wittily ironic name, piqued my interest then confounded my senses, making me realize (for the second straight review) that craft brewers should heed the warning that quite a bit comes with a name. Read More

Homebrew: Growing Your Own Hops

If you’re already brewing your own beer, you’re probably like me. You care about quality products and aren’t afraid to try doing it on your own and dabbling in new things. I love to cook extravagant meals and have dabbled in building furniture (including boss kegerators), growing a vegetable garden and growing my own hops.

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Awesomesauce- Letters of Note

My brother and I were lamenting the other day that people just don’t write like they used to.  Specifically, we were comparing letters from the battlefield or from across an ocean to the tweets and text messages of today. When the two are juxtaposed, the everyday ramblings of an 18^th century average Joe or Jane seem almost poetic in comparison to 140 characters on a screen.
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Unity Vibrations Ginger Kombucha Beer

As an Ohioan, this first week of warm weather makes me want to pop a bottle of champagne and celebrate the end of a long and cold winter (despite what the groundhog said otherwise a couple months ago). However, thanks to my brother who just came back from Grand Rapids Michigan, the brewery capital of the country, I think he may of found something even better… drum-roll please…Unity Vibrations Ginger Kombucha Beer!!!  Read More

Diving Into Drafts: Exploring Stouts

Beer.  I first met beer in May of 1995.  I was sitting on the tailgate of a red pickup parked at the beach, getting ready for a bonfire and someone … Read More

Ultimate 6er | Beer + Beer = Mixed Beer!

Have you ever found yourself agonizing over choosing between two beers? In some cases, the best solution is do get both and mix them. Perhaps you have heard of a Black and Tan ( Stout & Pale Ale), a Snake Bite (Stout or Lager with Hard Cider), or a Black and Blue (Stout & Wheat (Blue Moon)).  Most people associate these mixed beer drinks with Guinness + ____ , but there are some other great mixed beer variations out there. I propose to you this ultimate mixed beer 6er! Read More

Devil’s Backbone Vienna Lager

ABV: 4.9%

IBU: 18

As the age-old tradition goes, when the parents come to town, you have them treat you to dinner at places that are a bit (or a lot) out of your price range. I personally do not think this pasttime will ever fade, as my family loves exploring new places and sampling interesting eats, and (to be perfectly honest) I am always willing to let someone else pick up the check. As the fam visited the District this past weekend, I, of course, packed our itinerary with delicious prospects from new and old favorite restaurants. One particular gem is The Pig on 14th Street. As a member of the EatWell family, The Pig specializes in a more local, sustainable, and – when possible – farm-to-table approach to food. Beyond the merits of its laudable approach to sourcing ingredients, this place just makes a lot of very tasty, pork-filled dishes.

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Beer Trivia: A State Microbe for Beer?

Here’s a bit of bizarre beer trivia you can bring up the next time you’re drinking out on the porch with friends: have you ever heard of Saccharomyces cerevisiae?

It’s about to be Oregon’s new state microbe. Yes, microbe. While your state might have a state flower or bird or tree, the state of Oregon is about to officially recognize Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a yeast used in making craft beer, as the state microbe (not sure what benefits come with that).

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Kona Brewing Long Board Island Lager

This beer makes a real “paki” which is Hawaiian for ‘splash’ as my beer cap informed me in Snapple-esque style. Okay, perhaps not quite a “splash” so much as a relaxed and steady wave would be the best descriptor for the Kona Brewing Long Board Island Lager, coming out of Hawaii. You won’t catch this balance-challenged reviewer anywhere near a surfboard, but who doesn’t love an island state of mind? And this beer certainly embraces it. Read More

PorchDrinking Day at the Races Keeneland Tailgate

Join us this Saturday, April 13 in Lexington, Kentucky for a tailgate at Keeneland Racetrack.  We’ll be serving up beer from Country Boy Brewing and for $5 you get unlimited pours until the beer runs out.  Then enjoy a day at the race track.  We’ll be located at the Free Tailgate lot starting at 11 a.m. until the second or third race. We can’t wait to meet you there!

RSVP on Facebook so we can get an accurate count!

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Samuel Adams – Alpine Spring

5.5% ABV

18 IBUs

I am all up on spring beers. Why? Because I am ready for it to be warm. Seriously. It’s April, and it’s still in the 40s. WTF!? Samuel Adams Alpine Spring has been on the shelf for awhile, but I refused to buy it until it was actually spring. Well here we are, and it still feels like winter. Oh well, at least the sun is out…I guess? Read More

Beerstagrams 3/29-4/5

This week’s Beerstagrams are an ode to the return to summer.  It’s finally starting to warm up around these parts and we couldn’t be happier. It’s finally Porch Drinking weather once again.  This week we feature Sun King Brewing, Avery Brewing, Big Choice Brewing, Stone and Sam Adams

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Mikkeller Green Easter IPA

ABV: 7% | IBU: 100+

These Gypsy brewers are true ‘phantoms’ of the craft. For those unfamiliar with Mikkeller, these folks from across the pond in Denmark have made over 600 beers in a myriad of styles that are very aggressive and push the envelope of styles new and old. They venture the globe, partnering with others to craft sudsy treats for you and I. This time, with Mikkeller Green Easter IPA, they take on the West Coast IPA. And they do it better?!? Read More

Trillium Brewery

Beers of Boston – Trillium and me, the new guys.

I thought it would be fitting, given that it’s the spring and this is my first feature, to write about a new brewery. So, on what seems to be the first pleasant Friday afternoon of the year, my girlfriend Clare and I head on an “adventure” to Fort Point’s Trillium, the first brewery to open in “Boston proper” since Jamaica Plain’s Boston Beer Company, the makers of Sam Adam’s.

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Craft Beer Takes on the Capital: Brewers Association Craft Beer Conference and BrewExpo America

Last week, everyone from brewers and cicerones, to keg manufacturers and beer academics – over 6,400 of them – descended upon Washington, DC to engage in the annual Brewers Association Craft Beer Conference and BrewExpo America for a week of hard work and industry networking infused with a heavy dose of beer drinking and occasional mischief. This gathering differs greatly from the Great American Beer Festival, which is much more focused on the actual brews themselves, rather than the industry. The entire event hosts two main components: the Craft Beer Conference (seminar-based) and BrewExpo America (an industry trade show).

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