Flying Dog-Double Dog

Whooo. Don't know what I was expecting this beer to taste like, but my preconceived notions are were all wrong. It weighs in at 11.50%, so there is no question it will knock you on your ass. This is a Double Pale Ale, witch is a style that I don't think I've ever had. The beer smells of citrus, hops, and a little malty. It tastes complex. There's a strong bitter hoppyness with some malt and a slight fruitiness. The finish is bitterly rough. I wouldn't mind trying another one sometime, that is if I didn't need my taste buds after.

Dogfish Head-Raison D'Etre

I picked this up in one of those mix and match 6pks. It has a strong sweet aroma with notes of raisin(of coarse) and malt. The brew is nice and medium bodied. The taste resembles the smell but has some light hints of coffee and is quite malty. Overall not one of Dogfishes greatest beers, but not bad at all.

The Hops Are Comming

I put in my order for hop rhizomes. Rhizomes are little hop roots that you plant and hopefully will sprout. I have Willamette, Nugget and Cascade variety's coming. They should ship within the next week or so. The trellis poles have been built and the holes have been dug, I just need to cement them in and screw everything together. The pic doesn't do it justice. But is should look great when done. Spring cannot come soon enough.

Bottling

I really enjoy the hobby of home brewing. The thing I hate is bottling. It's such a tedious process. This last round was especially tough because I was doing two brews in one day. The mild ale will be ready in a week and Double IPA will be ready in 2 more months. I hate waiting that long, but from the taster I poured myself it will be damn good. Maybe it's time to think about kegging???

The Lost Abbey-Lost & Found Ale

This is the first Lost Abbey that I have gotten my hands on and it's damn good. Lost & Found is a Dubbel that is brewed with raisins. As you can see in the pic it pours a chocolate brownish color. It has a big raisin malty taste. There are some hints of cinnamon and brown sugar there too. It weighs in at 7.5% and is quite drinkable. I can't wait to try the rest of their lineup.

New House New Brews

Well I have officially moved into the new house. One of the first things I did after getting semi situated was to start a few new batches. I did two in one day. the first is a mild ale and the second is a big double IPA. I did both at once because the IPA is going to take 3-4 months before it's going to be ready. While I was brewing the second batch of the day, my new washer and dryer were delivered. The delivery guys asked what I was making, so I told me beer of course. They looked at me quite confused. I think they thought and still think I was making meth. Oh well, the mild will be ready in a month or so.

Palmer Place

I've been going to this place for years. It's always the same thing. A good burger and the frustrating confusion of actually trying to order a good beer. The web site says they have 225 beers. There's no F#$%ing way. I usually have to pick three different beers to order, because they will only have one of them if I'm lucky. Its not like I'm ordering some weird limited release Belgian either. Just something local and good. Also the servers have no idea what there serving. I asked for a Northwind the last time I was there and of coarse they were out so the server brought back a taster of and IPA??? I'm done with this place until the beer garden opens up. Maybe i should just give up on Palmer's all together. Irish Times has a better beer garden anyways. Sorry everyone this rant is long over due.