cleaning house, going corporate

Well, not quite corporate but I have big plans for a new blog. A brand new blog. Big plans. Have no fear. This one won't go anywhere. It will be mainly a repository for bad poetry. The new blog will be focused exclusively on Beer and Fish. Hopefully it will be exclusively Fancy Writing but I can't promise anything on that score. I'm definitely going to take it upscale though. Only post the best writing and photos. Quality over quantity. 18 year old biddies from Connecticut that drive daddy's Range Rover over slam pigs, as MB Pell might say. Get my own domain name. Make it respectable.

My brother, java juggernaut, Knight of the php, HTML pimp, said he can help me with all the hard stuff, like, you know, the code. I'm pretty excited about it actually. A radical new idea in the world of blogging sure to awe and impress, daze and bewilder, confuse and obfuscate. I'll be honest, it might be pure shit, but right now, in my head, it is the coolest thing I've ever thought of. Hopefully it will happen in the next month or so.

But in the meantime...we drank a bunch of hoppy beer Wednesday over at Y-to-the-niv's house.

Courtney was making venison and trout stew for her dogs. I am not kidding.



After six hours of drinking things deteriorated quickly. The once academic conversation collapsed in a fit of political rage and flying spittle. "The president of the IMF is, in fact, the devil. He skewers African children and roasts them over dung fires on the open savanna, slurping gristle from their bones, smearing his lava countenance with the fat of their millet fed bodies."

But we did manage to try some interesting beers from all over this fair nation of ours.

Mishiwaka Hop Head: this beer is from Indiana and I don't really like the labeling very much. The beer is pretty average. The palate is dominated by a harsh piney bitterness.

Hoppin' Frog IPA: I'm pretty sure this was the IPA and not the double IPA, but I could be wrong. This beer drives a rusty iron spike through my tongue with a large sledge hammer. Not a huge fan. Had it once before. Same opinion.

Founder's Pale Ale: skunky.

Ale Smith X: interesting hop character. Smooth, glassy, citrus.

Bear Republic Racer 5: a sunny, shiney Lake Tahoe fills my glass as I stand on the porch looking through fir trees. I had this beer for the first time in Lake Tahoe a couple years ago and was really quite fond of it. I still am.

New England Brewing Sea Hag IPA: this beer comes in a can. I love that. Good hop character. Big. I think pale ales from a can, e.g. Dale's Pale Ale, always taste bigger to me than they do from a bottle or a glass.

Highland Brewing's Imperial Gaelic: the truly incredible Dr. Sean O'Connell gave this very rare beer to me last Spring. This is Highland's anniversary beer. It was bottled in one liter swing top bottles. It's a big beer at 8.7% abv. Best nose ever? Warm, whole grain bread delivered in a basket made of fresh hop bines. Big barleywine-esque palate that is extremely malty and sweet up front but finishes abruptly with a strong hop bitterness. Excellent.

Moylan's Hopsicle Imperial Ale: what a stupid name. A skinny ice dancer falls. Her skate lacerates her tongue. She has a huge bruise on her ass.

Two Brother's Hop Juice: not a great name. Mellow compared with the others. Malty with a pleasant hop flavor. I like Two Brothers.

Founder's Devil Dancer: offensively hoppy. Talk about lacerating. But this beer comes prepackaged with a goopy salve that one can apply to the salty fire. However, take heed of the goop. It will suffocate you.

Dark Horse Double Crooked Tree IPA: I had this beer a couple years ago and loved it. I still love it. A malty mountain climbed with fresh hops in hand, spilling, crushed underfoot releasing pleasant resins.

Lagunitas Sneak Release Undercover Investigation Shut-Down Ale: what a stupid name. Good beer.

The beers. Click for bigger.



Other beers.



Yaniv with a glass from his new favorite brewery.



Chris with broom.



Rockit's Famous Pizza.



Phil discussing politics in his typically calm manner.