| Author |
Topic: BEER |
MikeMills
Cool Runner |
 posted Feb-24-2006 10:55 AM
   
quote:
Originally posted by randymar:
You're up, Mike.
I'm on it. It may not be today, but I'm on it...
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RunMonkey
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 10:59 AM
quote:
Originally posted by MikeMills:
"Not that I'm philosophically opposed to drinking beer while sick, I just think I'd miss out."Yes! I've literally stood poised while sick with an opener resting on the cap of a beer thinking "should I?.... should I???"
I have a 'job' interview in a couple of hours (and I use that term 'job' loosely, believe me) but afterwards I'll come home and just on principle break out the last of the UFO or the Lost Sailor. I will report back on its immune system boost or lack thereof. I know lots of people love stout but I haven't gone near it since college, it sort of has been relegated to that corner of my experience where Jagermeister now resides. Like, it's just more trouble than it's worth. The thing about stout, for me, is that there's nothing about it that suggests 'thirst quenching'. It has the texture of melted ice cream. What are the appropriate times for drinking stout? What foods does it go with? I can be sold on these things!
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MikeMills
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 11:22 AM
quote:
Originally posted by RunMonkey:
What are the appropriate times for drinking stout? What foods does it go with? I can be sold on these things!
Some stouts are actually great thirst quenchers if they're not too strong and they're nice and cold. Honestly, Guinness come to mind in that respect - it's restrained enough and dry enough to do the trick. But overall, no, they're not really thirst-quenchers. I think of them as cool-weather or rainy day beers, but there's not really any rule - except find a GOOD one. I'm sure randy and LT have ideas, but off-hand I can think of: Rogue Shakespeare, Sierra Nevada, Coopers, the infamous Brooklyn Black Chocolate (although I don't think that's a dry stout)... I have to run to a meeting myself. Any others anyone?
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 11:23 AM
It's that tongue lacquering qualty of stout that keeps me away from it when the outside temperature is above 50°. It seems so right that Yards Love Stout, althought available year round, is especially good in mid-February, when the NJ weather can be either brisk, frosty cold; or just plain damp and dreary.Stout is nearly the polar (pun, intended) opposite of UFO, Hoegaarden or other summery ales, which I just can't get into after the first frost. I can't even think about Mexican beer if the thermometer drops below 80°.
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 11:36 AM
quote:
Originally posted by MikeMills:
Any others anyone?
Victory Storm King. It's an Imperial Stout so it's loaded up, ABV wise. It's nicely hopped as well. It's not the thick gummy stout you're thinking of. It's light, flexible, yet powerful and dangerous. It's a heavily armed ninja IPA; a van loaded with weapons, packed up and ready to go. Heard of some gravesites, out by the highway, a place where nobody knows. It's HopDevil in a holocaust cloak. ------------------
Life is Short ... Make Fun of It. 400 Beers
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MikeMills
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 11:39 AM
quote:
Originally posted by randymar:
It's HopDevil in a holocaust cloak.
Man, you should write for beer labels. Is there a job for that?
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MikeMills
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 11:46 AM
quote:
Originally posted by randymar:
It's not the thick gummy stout you're thinking of.
Err, I wasn't thinking of anything. Actually I've had it - remember? And if it's anything like Old Rasputin or Sam Smiths, I probably still wouldn't describe it as thick and gummy. Full, yes, and still dry, but with a burnt, tangy sweetness. I definitely think of Imperial Stout as a holiday drink - tastes amazing with Chritsmas Pudding.
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 11:52 AM
quote:
Originally posted by RunMonkey:
What are the appropriate times for drinking stout?
Unfortunately, March 17th, between 4PM and early March 18th, is amateur hour for Guinness drinkers - much like May 5th is amateur hour for tequila drinkers, and January 1st is amateur hour for drinkers in general. You'll get every "F-me I'm Irish" wannabe out there saying how many pints of Guinness they've put down, not realizing that, in spite of it's dark colour (that "u"'s for you, Mike) and heavy body, Guinness (Original / Extra Stout - Draft) is actually a lighter beer (4.3% ABV) than Sam Adams (ale: 5.1% ABV, lager: 4.9% ABV) at probably twice the price.
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 02:03 PM
quote:
Originally posted by MikeMills:
Err, I wasn't thinking of anything.
Well, that's nothing new. Sorry. I'd didn't mean you, you, necessarily but more like you, you and RunMonkey (RM??? We have to talk. I was here first)
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RunMonkey
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 02:36 PM
Lost Sailor's delightful! It smells like roses, tastes like apricots and burnt matches and has the texture of.....root beer. With that, I've exhausted my language for beer. I had a pint with a sandwich of my favorite cheese (Cotswold), which I'd grilled panini style, eg. squashed beneath a cast iron pan. With two green sicilian olives. I don't know that I'm ready to speak for the immunological boost but as lunch, I highly recommend it. Now, I'm going to nap and see if the whole combination cures the common cold. Re. the stout thing--I can see how a dark and stormy day would lend itself to a dark and stormy beer. Maybe as long as the day matches the weather of a beer's nation of origin you have a good match (for example, not wanting Mexican beer unless it's 80 or above)...I'm already thinking of exceptions, but it might work as a rule of thumb.
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 03:25 PM
quote:
Originally posted by RunMonkey:
... smells like roses, ...
Be careful when and where you say that ... I've heard it was one of the Troll's nicknames.
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RunMonkey
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 04:36 PM
quote:
Originally posted by randymar:
Be careful when and where you say that ... I've heard it was one of the Troll's nicknames.
You're right, I forgot...but I think that one is past and banned already. Also, it really did kind of smell like roses. I thought it had a floral nose and really had to think about the specifics there. And I bet she doesn't hang out in the beer thread. One of the nice things about the beer thread is its absence of trolls and nutritional dogma. OK...update: I don't think chicken soup has to worry that beer will be replacing it as the home remedy of choice for colds. I had both today and the chicken soup definitely has more anti-cold symptom properties than beer. The beer, after the initial pleasure was past, made me feel a little congested and dehydrated. Too bad. But I gave my all for science.
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MikeMills
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 04:45 PM
Simple solution: add some beer to your soup. I've done it - it's bloody terrific (how's that for nutritional dogma?)
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RunMonkey
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 05:00 PM
quote:
Originally posted by MikeMills:
Simple solution: add some beer to your soup. I've done it - it's bloody terrific (how's that for nutritional dogma?)
Aww...yer just messing with me. But I put beer in chili. And I used an ale while cooking mussels once. That was a mistake--bitter & gross.
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MikeMills
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 05:09 PM
quote:
Originally posted by RunMonkey:
Aww...yer just messing with me. But I put beer in chili. And I used an ale while cooking mussels once. That was a mistake--bitter & gross.
Not messing with you at all. Beer in chicken soup (home-made) is a natural combination. I've found there are few things on a stove that a splash of beer doesn't improve - although yeah, muscles would probably work better with a little wine and... what, some cream maybe?
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La Tortuga
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 09:23 PM
quote:
Originally posted by randymar:
I'd didn't mean you, you, necessarily but more like you, you and RunMonkey (RM??? We have to talk. I was here first)
Don't fret there - although we have called you many names, I do not believe that RM is one of them.
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La Tortuga
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-24-2006 09:26 PM
quote:
Originally posted by MikeMills:
Not messing with you at all. Beer in chicken soup (home-made) is a natural combination. I've found there are few things on a stove that a splash of beer doesn't improve - although yeah, muscles would probably work better with a little wine and... what, some cream maybe?
Here is how they are served at The Thirsty Scholar - they are really good. Thirsty Scholar Mussels
Skillet roasted mussels in an exquisite fiery cream sauce fully surrounded with toasted crostini [This message has been edited by La Tortuga (edited Feb-24-2006).]
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RunMonkey
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-25-2006 08:24 AM
There's a French(?) recipe for mussels with saffron and cream, but I've never had it....it sounds lovely, as does the recipe above, but if I'm eating mussels it's generally because I think of them as a 'light' dinner, so I just melt a little butter, saute a little garlic and onion, throw about a quarter inch of cheap wine into the pan, add the mussels, put on the lid, and steam a few minutes until they open. Serve with bread and a salad. We never ate food like that when I was growing up (we were a meatloaf household) so that still seems kind of exotic to me whenever I make it. I will try using beer more when I cook. My preferred method of using beer in the kitchen goes more like this: Open beer. Drink beer. Cook. Drink rest of beer. Repeat as needed or appropriate.Also, re. cooking with beer -- as noted above I generally don't use the best and brightest of wines to cook with -- I go for cheap -- not cooking wine, but whatever's in the sale bin at the ghastly aforementioned Liquors 44. (I really think that 'don't cook w/wine you wouldn't drink' is crapola--you cook all the subtlety and complexity out of it anyway.) What beers are good to cook with? Do the same principles apply? Also, I sometimes freeze leftover (it's rare, but it happens) wine to cook w/it later--could you do the same w/beer? Maybe if I let it go flat and then froze it?
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-27-2006 08:40 AM
quote:
Originally posted by La Tortuga:
Don't fret there - although we have called you many names, I do not believe that RM is one of them.
I am specifically referencing the initials "RM", LT.
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La Tortuga
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-27-2006 09:16 AM
Nooooooooooooo - I see that you both have the same initials - we just never call you RM.I won't list all the names that we have given you, but I am sure you can think of a few.
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-27-2006 09:22 AM
Yeah, you don't ever just "RM" me do you???
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La Tortuga
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-27-2006 09:26 AM
Hey Ocean Boy - how was your week-end?
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-27-2006 09:27 AM
<<< This Just In >>>Fridays in March at Redbones = FOOD!!! Join the Redbones crew for shucked-to-order oysters and pair the bivalves with a craft brew from 6 - 10 pm every Friday in March.
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La Tortuga
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-27-2006 09:43 AM
Fantastic - and look what they are pouring!Belgians:
La Chouffe 10.5oz Local & Regional Brews:
Cambridge Saison
Sixpoint Smoke My Porter
Gritty's Black Fly Stout
Victory Hop Wallop
Middle Ages Wailing Wench 10.5oz IPA
Southern Tier IPA
Berkshire Raspberry Strong Ale 10.5oz
Cambridge Winter
Allagash White
Dogfish 60 Minute IPA Ciders:
Original Sin Cider Brews From Other Places:
PBR
Sierra Nevada Pale
Young's Chocolate Stout
Stone IPA
Bass
Guinness
Avery Ellie's Brown
Paulaner Hefeweizen
Lagunitas IPA
Eku 28 10.5oz
Redstone Sunshine Nectar Mead 10.5oz
Leipziger Gose 10.5oz Blends:
Black Velvet - Guinness & Cider
Snakebite - Cider & Bass Edited to bold the ones I am really excited about - had a few minutes on my hands? [This message has been edited by La Tortuga (edited Feb-27-2006).]
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randymar
Cool Runner |
posted Feb-27-2006 03:02 PM
quote:
Originally posted by RunMonkey:
Lost Sailor's delightful! It smells like roses, tastes like apricots and burnt matches ...
May I be a nosybody for just a minute here??? Forgive me for asking, but did you ever wear braces??? Did you ever light a match on said braces??? I knew a girl in high school who did, and would. Kissing her was quite ... interesting.
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