Cut Weekly Consumption of Alcohol to a Quarter Pint? Oh, Hell No!

In order to cut the rates of cancer, liver disease and other drinking related disease, English busybodies researchers are suggesting that the government say that consumption of alcohol should be limited to a quarter of a pint of lager a week.

Really? A pint a month? I'm lucky to get a pint to last 45 minutes!

Drink Beer, Fight Obesity!

Johnan Auwerx, head of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale in Lausanne, Switzerland, has found a miracle molecule called nicotinamide riboside (NR) that can help fight obesity, lengthen your lifespan AND improve muscle strength without side effects, says an article in the Times of India. It has also been found in milk and other foods.

Working with Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, his team found that mice on a high-fat diet that were fed NR gained significantly less weight - 60 per cent - than mice eating the same diet without NR supplements.

And none of the NR-treated mice indicated that they were developing diabetes, unlike the untreated mice.

Mice which were fed with NR supplements over a ten-week period showed better endurance performance than those who were not.

They were also in better shape - and this was confirmed by observations of their muscle fibres under the microscope.

The article ends by saying that they don't know how much you would have to drink to get enough NR to see results.

Probably far too much at one sitting than I am capable of.

Free Website Advice For Brew Pubs

Please put your operating hours and address on the front page of your site! It's getting directions either much easier or lets me know whether to bother visiting you. I'm talking to you Rofle Brewing, bitter Creek Brewing and Steam Plant Brewing.

We drove by each of them on Sundays only to learn they were closed.

Northern Lights didn't have their hours listed either, but we lucked out.

Why Bubbles Fall in Guinness

Sometimes, scientists should probably not spend too much time contemplating the beer they are drinking.

A group of Irish mathematicians attempted to explain why bubbles in a pint of Guinness (naturally) fall when bubbles in a pint of lager, say, rise.

After hours of complicated math, they determined that it depends on the shape of the glass. When poured down the center of a cylindrical glass all the bubbles will rise together. But when poured down the center of a regular shaker pint glass or the ubiquitous Guinness tulip glass, the bubbles in the center rise to the top, causing a pressure imbalance which pulls the bubbles on the sides of the glass down to the bottom of glass and into the column of rising bubbles.

I think that's how it works. Maybe you could get a clearer explanation here or here.

Rye Wit

I make no secret of my love of Freetail Brewing Company. Likewise, the Rye Wit is my favorite beer that they produce.

Taken the day before Memorial Day.

The "Best" Way to Cook Brats

SeriousEats.com's Food Lab spent a lot of time grilling brats, and have come up with what they call the best way to them: Simmer them in an aluminum pan on the grill.  Brilliant!

There are also links to home made sausage recipes. Om nom nom.

Shiner Wins Down Under

The Australian International Beer Awards awarded silver medals to Spoetzl Brewing Company's Shiner Light Blonde in the American Style Lager category and Oktoberfest in European Lagers; and bronze medals to Shiner Kosmos Reserve in the American Style Amber Lager category, and Shiner Ryes & Shine in the Amber/Dark Lager category.

Glenwood Springs Brewing

Rockyard Brewing Company

Great Hopyard IPA!

Big Texan

Guest Post: JackHawk 9000 Titanium Bottle Opener Sunglasses

Skip Chapington, a humble, debonair, ascot-sporting gentleman, introduces the JackHawk 9000s as the greatest invention in the past 100,000 years. Watch the video here.

We have seen bottle openers incorporated into shoes, belts, hats, but never before have we seen bottle opener sunglasses.  The JackHawk 9000 – Titanium Bottle Opener Sunglasses ($90+) are exactly what you think they would be: sunglasses with bottle openers on either arm.  The frame is made from the same material as the SR-71 Blackbird spy plane, and the polarized lenses are coated with Iradium to reduce glare and improve scratch resistance.  Essentially, these sunglasses are indestructible and will ensure that you alway have a means to open your cold brew.

First Stop: Eola School

I can't go to Midland without stopping at Eola.

"Leavin' On A Jet Plane. . .", Not Really

I will be heading for Satan's house in Midland tomorrow. Which, of course, will include a stop in Eola for lunch. On Saturday, we will begin the long, long drive to Seattle and the National Homebrewers Conference.

As usual, you can follow me on Facebook, Foursquare, Untappd, or Twitter and see where I am. Though, I guess Twitter would be best.

See everyone in Seattle!

More eBay Fodder

Get your PayPal accounts loaded up! Here comes a future auction!

Press Release:

(San Jose, CA) – Gordon Biersch is readying to release a new, limited-run big-bottle brew in a handful of markets nationwide. The Imperial Pilsner Brau (IPB) 750ml “big bottle” is the first in a series of rare, specialty brews to be released throughout the year, each of which will have a limited production of just 4,000 or fewer total cases. The brews are expected to appeal to the modern beer connoisseur as well as wine drinkers seeking an alternative beverage option.

The 750ml bottles will retail for approximately $8.99 at specialty grocers and liquor stores.

Markets where the beer will be available are:

•          Los Angeles
•          San Diego
•          Phoenix
•          Atlanta
•          Baltimore
•          Washington DC
•          Dallas
•          Honolulu
•          Las Vegas
•          Kansas City
•          Miami
•          New Orleans

Let's see how long it'll take for the "connoisseurs" to snap up a case to resell on eBay.

Source

Five Wives Vodka rejected in Idaho

Ogden's Own Distillery, maker of Five Wives Vodka, has been selling their product in Utah since December. Recently, the Idaho State Liquor Division refused to allow an Idaho distributor to sell the product because the name was offensive.

Idaho does allow the sale of Polygamy Porter from Wasatch Brewing, however that product does not fall under the purview of the State Liquor Division, according to Director Jeff Anderson. (Although, a Google search reveals that, according to the Brookston Beer Bulletin lists the State Liquor Division as the agency that gives label approval in the state. If anyone can clarify, please do so in the comments.)

The controversy has spawned a Free the Five Wives t-shirt. Head on over there if you're tired of silly alcohol laws.

Sratchin' Hippo Beer Review

I originally encountered this beer at the Big Texas Beer Fest back in April. Satan's friend in Midland sent this to me, along with a couple other Adelbert's Brewery beers. I drank the Golden Ale with Satan and didn't record my thoughts. On this occasion, I made the time to review the beer.


Appearance (0-3): Pours up a hazy orange/amber with a dense, rocky, tan head that lasts forever. 3 points


Aroma (0-4): Faint malty aroma. 2 points


Taste (0-10): Starts off slightly sweet *malt and some caramel), with some spice notes and a hint of hop bitterness. High carbonation. (High enough that when I loosened the cork cage, the cork popped out with a bang!) Medium high mouthfeel. 8 points


Overall Impression (0-3):  Well, abiding to my rule about local availability, I give this a zero. Having said that, if this were available in the local market, I would have given this a 3, making it an 18 point beer. 0 points


Total: 15 points

San Antonio IPA

San Antonio IPA was brewed by all the San Antonio area breweries for San Antonio Beer Week, which was May 12-20.

This is Freetail Brewing Company's version.  I was hoping for more of a West Coast pale ale, but this is still tasty.

Dry Hopping Nate's The Dankness

My Apologies

For those of you that notice this kind of thing, I skipped a post on May 28.  Yes, I did have a family reunion this weekend. And yes, I did go with Satan to the National Cemetery in San Antonio so he could visit a couple of his buddies interred there. But the reunion was Saturday, and the trip to the Cemetery was on Sunday.

I just didn't do a damn thing on Sunday.

Sorry.

So in the next few days, I'll make it up to you with some beer photos.