Wisconsin Goodies

In lieu of having something interesting to write about, I thought I’d do a little, “na-nah, na-nah, a boo-boo, looky what I got,” instead. So here’s a look at the goodies that were carefully selected and gently transported over the border from our fair neighbor, Wisconsin.


Thank you, Wisconsin.

So you don’t get the idea that we just take and not give, rest assured Wisconsin was happy to add some portion of our roughly $185 purchase to their tax revenue.

I need a beer…

…a good beer, and in a very bad way. After only 2 days of our 4 in Mexico, that was my exact thought.

The all inclusive we stayed at served only Dos Equis, both the regular and amber varieties. In all fairness I’ll admit that Dos Equis amber is one of my preferred Mexican beers, along with Negro Modelo. However, when a mediocre lager is the only halfway palatable choice, it gets old fast. Really fast.

So by the time we were boarding the plane home I was so desperate for something resembling the beloved, flavorful, enjoyable craft beers I’ve apparently gotten spoiled on that I almost asked the flight attendant what their beer selection consisted of. Then I thought better of it. Knowing that she would rattle off a list of undesirable macros as my hopes for something worth paying for dwindled was more disappointment than I could bear as I kissed the sun and warmth of the past few days goodbye.

Instead I sat, dreaming of getting home, getting some dinner and picking something from our modestly stocked beer fridge (time for runs to both Cellar’s and WI) to cure my four day forced fast from the beers I love.

Disaster Narrowly Avoided

After grabbing a beer out of the beer fridge earlier this week I noticed that we were dangerously low on beer. Really, there was only 1 bottle left (ok, that doesn’t include the 3 cases Mag picked up for New Year’s Eve but that doesn’t count because I’m not supposed to touch that stash). So on my way home from work I decided I had no choice but to make a quick run to the liquor store. That liquor store being Cellars meant I was setting myself up for some ridicule and I wasn’t disappointed. I missed the beer tasting they hosted last weekend and that wasn’t going to be allowed to slide by. However after some good natured ribbing I got plenty of good input on the many new things they had since I was last there. In the end I picked up Dark Horse One- an oatmeal stout ale that is nothing like the locally famous One from Surly but excellent in it’s own right. I’ve had plenty of oatmeal stouts that often feel light in the stout area. Not so with this one! This is a full bodied stout that rivals the other two of their line up I’ve tried- Crooked Tree IPA and Black Bier. If you see any Dark Horse in a liquor store, pick it up! You won’t be disappointed. The other one I picked up was Sam Adam’s Imperial Pilsner. I’m not generally a pilsner fan but add “imperial” on there and at the least I am intrigued. Sam Adams may no longer be one of the small guys but this is an outstanding beer, regardless of the brewery that produced it. I told the beer gurus over at Cellar’s I might be back tomorrow and after picking up two four-packs of excellent beer there’s a good chance our beer fridge will once again be in the dangerously low category by tomorrow morning.

Tyranena happenings this week

I thought about bending the rules a bit on MN Beer and posting these two tidbits of information that came from Tyranena via their newsletter today but figured all the cool people check this blog regularly anyway. So if you're not planning to find a place to watch the Pack and the Cowboys Thursday night or will be in Edina Friday evening you can find Tyranena at these places.

November 29, 2007 - Beer Dinner at Rascal's in Apple Valley, MN beginning at 6 pm. Located at 7721 147th Street West, Apple Valley, MN - 952-431-7777.

November 30, 2007 - Tasting at France 44 in Edina, MN, from 4 to 7 pm. Located at 4351 France Avenue South, Edina, MN - 612-925-3252.

The Dog Days of Summer- Drink Some Dog

Last weekend, on our way to a night of games with friends, we stopped by our local Cellar’s in Eagan. As always we got some great information from the guys that work there as we were selecting our poison for the night. Mag and I each selected a new one to try, both of which happened to be made by Flying Dog. Mag’s choice was Double Dog Double Pale Ale (only in a 4 pack) and I chose Road Dog, a Scottish Porter. Double Dog is a big beer, coming in at 85 IBUs and 10.5% ABV. Take time and slowly enjoy this big, full beer. Road Dog is more along the lines of your standard beer in alcohol content however the label has a great little slogan “Good Beer No Shit.” Yep, somehow these lucky Dogs slipped “shit” by the label Nazi’s that usually catch things like this. Both are great beers worth picking up next time you need some Dog.

And as a side note- THE GREAT TASTE OF THE MIDWEST IS LESS THAN 3 WEEKS AWAY…YAHOO!

Unemployed Never Tasted So Good

Well, okay, technically I'm not unemployed since I'm still on someone's payroll and won't really have any days where I'm not on someone's payroll before I start my new gig, but it's fun to say I'm unemployed. If I hadn't expanded my waistline to the point where my pants don't fit during our trip to Chicago, I'd probably be more inclined to spend my week off between jobs in a pickled stupor at my local favorites. As it is, it's 5 P.M. on my first day off and I'm only now having my first beer. For shame.

Our local Cellars continues to do a great job in carrying interesting craft beers. The other day I picked up three six packs from a joint I'd never heard of before, nor seen in MN - Barley Island in Noblesville, Indiana. The brews I bought were Dirty Helen Brown, Blind Tiger Pale, and Bar Fly IPA. I had the Helen and the Tiger on Saturday, but frankly I was a bit toasted by then and don't really recall if I enjoyed them. I'll have to rectify that. The IPA is pretty damn good. It's got tons of bitter hop flavor and sufficient aroma to not disappoint. It's a bit on the bitter side in the after taste though (duh, no sh!t sherlock).

And oh yeah, New Belgium is now available in MN once again. Yippie! I don't care much for Fat Tire, but I do enjoy several of their other beers.

Finally, I did try the new Miller product, Chill or Chelada or whatever the hell it's called. It was pretty good. I'd certainly drink one of these green beasts before any other Miller beers. Anyway, it's worth checking out - especially since it isn't being rammed down our throats by Miller's marketing thugs...at least not yet anyway.