BEER (and apparently, WINE)

[Steel General]

I'm not much of a beer drinker, and this may have already been mentioned, but I have heard nothing but good thinkgs about 'Fat Tire'

[LordVreeg]

1999 Pio Cesare Barolo Ornato reserve.
Took about an hour to open up in the North End of Boston, but licorice and current notes tying into the tannins ansd berry notes once it finally opened.  Ending with a nearly sour fruity note mixed with a hint of coffee.  If anyone offers you a bottle to share, kill him and drink it all.

[Nomadic]

If anyone offers you a bottle to share, kill him and drink it all.

Rofl!

[Acrimone]

Vreeg-  that Barolo sounds really good.  

My wife and I had one of our favourite Italian wines the other night: 1997 Arigolas Turriga from Sardinia.  It was our last bottle of the '97, just a few months past absolute prime, I think, but well-balanced.  The fruits started bright and sweet in the front of the mouth, and turned dark and luscious by the time you got to the back.  Tannins were almost completely integrated, giving it a really nice, velvety body.  Floral notes on the nose, with hints of pepper.  Cherry-Raspberry fading to Plum-Blueberry on the palate, with custardy notes that I usually associate with viognier.

Delicious, at any rate.  Now we have to drink the vastly inferior 1999's that we have.  But they're still tasty.

[LordVreeg]

Vreeg-  that Barolo sounds really good.  

My wife and I had one of our favourite Italian wines the other night: 1997 Arigolas Turriga from Sardinia.  It was our last bottle of the '97, just a few months past absolute prime, I think, but well-balanced.  The fruits started bright and sweet in the front of the mouth, and turned dark and luscious by the time you got to the back.  Tannins were almost completely integrated, giving it a really nice, velvety body.  Floral notes on the nose, with hints of pepper.  Cherry-Raspberry fading to Plum-Blueberry on the palate, with custardy notes that I usually associate with viognier.

Delicious, at any rate.  Now we have to drink the vastly inferior 1999's that we have.  But they're still tasty.

97 vintage in italy will go down as one of the best ever.  Mark my words.
Acrimone, try some Umbrian Sagrantino.  KNOCK YOUR SOCKS OFF and the world is yet to discover it.

[Moniker]

Kansas City has an excellent microbrewery that is on the verge of mainstream called Boulevard Brewery. The Boulevard Wheat, and a number of other seasonal beers they brew, are effing excellent.

We puyrposefully adapted a ponykeg refrigerator and tap through our granite countertops whenever we did our kitchen remodel to have Boulevard on tap between the lady and I.

[LordVreeg]

[blockquote=Moniker]We puyrposefully adapted a ponykeg refrigerator and tap through our granite countertops whenever we did our kitchen remodel to have Boulevard on tap between the lady and I.[/blockquote]
That's classic.  Really.
Someday I will figure out why the Beer at the RockBottom Brewery in Denver tastes better that the Boston version.  Maybe the altitude???

Goose Island brewery is great, for those visiting Chicago.

Cantine del Notaio, Aglianico del Vulture (Basilicata, Italy) 'La Firma' 2003...Aglianico, as I have notated before, is one of the great unknown values in the world.  Spicy, sometimes complex, but worth twice what you pay generally.

[LordVreeg]

Paradigm Cabernet 01.
Still a little young, very red ruby color with no browning yet,
missing leather and pepper taste I look for, so started off on the wrong foot for me.
Niced nose and decent legs, has a bit of an unexpected floral scent.
Current and a nice oky finish saved this, but something of a disapointment.

[Slapzilla]

I thank all that is good in the world that I live in Seattle where you can't turn around without hitting a coffee joint, a Thai resaurant or a 'micro' brewery.  I live just two short blocks from Hale's brewery.  15 blocks from Jolly Roger.  A 20 minute drive takes me to Pyramid brewery across the street from Safeco field-the home of the Seattle Mariners (my true temple of worship).  Got a place about 20 minute walk/stumble from home called Brouwer's.  A pub that serves somewhere around 45-50 belgian beers on tap (including Gulden Draak, Mr Tales).

I wish I could develop a real taste for wine though.  I like it but I have a hard time telling the difference between 3 Buck Chuck Cab and the Paradigm Cabernet 01.  I can tell you the island in Indonesia our coffee was grown and how far up which slope Kilimanjaro that coffee was nurtured into delectable perfection, but I'm jealous of you wine guys, man.  I've tried to be taught with an open mind and a patient teacher but dammit... I guess I'll just have to settle for Elysian brewing's Dragonstooth Stout.

[LordVreeg]

I thank all that is good in the world that I live in Seattle where you can't turn around without hitting a coffee joint, a Thai resaurant or a 'micro' brewery.  I live just two short blocks from Hale's brewery.  15 blocks from Jolly Roger.  A 20 minute drive takes me to Pyramid brewery across the street from Safeco field-the home of the Seattle Mariners (my true temple of worship).  Got a place about 20 minute walk/stumble from home called Brouwer's.  A pub that serves somewhere around 45-50 belgian beers on tap (including Gulden Draak, Mr Tales).

I wish I could develop a real taste for wine though.  I like it but I have a hard time telling the difference between 3 Buck Chuck Cab and the Paradigm Cabernet 01.  I can tell you the island in Indonesia our coffee was grown and how far up which slope Kilimanjaro that coffee was nurtured into delectable perfection, but I'm jealous of you wine guys, man.  I've tried to be taught with an open mind and a patient teacher but dammit... I guess I'll just have to settle for Elysian brewing's Dragonstooth Stout.

A---Beer is cool.
B---All things in their time.  There are tens of thousands of differnt wines made yearly, and thousands of Vintage wines that change every year.  
I have to say that creating wines and a wine system in Celtricia really was fun and helpful in learning about it.  I have a whole wine culure, including grape varietals and wine areas etc.  I make sure that these proffessions are in every town.

Cooper: Someone who makes wooden barrels, casks, and other similar wooden objects.

Garagiste: One who makes wine in a garage (or basement, or home, etc.)'"in other words, an amateur wine maker. Also used in a derogatory way when speaking of small scale operations of recent inception, usually without pedigree (and typically located in Bordeaux).

Négociant: A wine merchant who assembles the produce of smaller growers and winemakers and sells them under their own name. Sometimes, this term is just a synonym for wine merchant.

Oenologist: Wine scientist or wine chemist; a student of oenology. A winemaker may be trained as oenologist, but often hires a consultant instead.

Sommelier: A person in a restaurant who specializes in wine. He or she is usually in charge of assembling the wine list, educating the staff about wine, and assisting customers with their wine selections.

Vintner: A wine merchant or producer.

Viticulturist: A person who specializes in the science of the grapevines themselves. Can also be someone who manages a vineyard, which includes making decisions about pruning, irrigation, and pest control.

[SDragon]

Bleh. Just had my first Old Fashioned. Don't get me wrong, it was decent, but is all that fruit really necessary?

[LordVreeg]

hey, something has got to keep the bitters on the shelf...

[Ishmayl-Retired]

I actually like an Old Fashioned every now and then, but it's got to be made right.  I prefer to make it a little differently from the typical recipe of orange slice, tons of sugar, packets of bitters, and a few ounces of whiskey.  Try it with 2 parts whiskey, 1 part Reed's Extra Ginger Ale (spicy), and a tiny bit of grenadine (like at most, an ounce).  It's got a bit of a kick if you have the right amount of Reed's.

[LordVreeg]

level 5 alchemy, by ISh...

[LordVreeg]

2000 Leoville Las Cases really not ready to drink yet.  I am really dissapointed in that I should have waited to open this beauty.  It shows great promise, and for the rating I got 2 bottles for great pricing, but I can tell that I got a hint of what is yet to come.

Very Tannic, and unbalanced, even after being open an hour.  Fruity, but almost a little sour with newness.  A little of the earthy taste mixed with a dark chocalte tase showed up midway through each taste after a whjile, but I had to go looking for these flavors.