Goose Island Brewery - I visited the Wrigleyville one - http://www.gooseisland.com/AgePage.asp?URLPage=/index.asp - Melissa helped me, but in the process two taps exploded over the seats, so maybe don’t ask for her.
Lincoln Park Lager – Vienna-style Lager – ABV: 5.4% - A deep red verging on brown hue. A smooth, malty smell that makes the mouth water. Medium bodied in taste, the malty taste does not disappoint from the aroma, with a lingering, pleasant mild taste. LR – 8.25
Honker’s Ale – American Pale Ale – ABV: 4.3% - A clear, amber color with an aroma that is near sweet, reminiscent of a fruit infused ale. I expected hops to have a stronger body, but instead this is a very light pale ale, with a near 50/50 ratio of hops and malts that leave a taste that is pleasing, but not distinct. A good any-meal beer. LR – 7.5
India Pale Ale – ABV: 5.9% - A mild straw yellow in color, there is a distinct floral/fruit aroma. It has a smooth body, with the hops providing a crisp finish. Disappointed that the hops were not easier to discern. LR – 6
Economy Ale – Brown Ale – ABV: 5.5% - A near mahogany color, with a really pleasing hint of oaky hops. A complex flavor that changes from first taste to a second burst of flavor to the aftertaste. Earthy overall, with a hint of caramel and spice. LR – 7.5.
Nut Brown Ale – Brown Alw – ABV: 5.9% - A really well blended mix of a deep red and brown, with easily detected roasted grains in the aroma. If there is an opposite of dry in beer (and I can not bring myself to describe one as wet) this would be it, with a nutty finish. Disappointing, almost watery. LR – 4
312 Urban Wheat Ale – ABV: 4.2% - A golden, yellow in color with only a faint smell. This beer has only faint tastes, where the malts only emerge in its brief finish. LR – 3
Mild Winter – Red Rye Ale – ABV: 5.6% - A slight red tinge is pleasant to the eye. Easily identifiable rye flavor with nutty undertones. The roasted barley gives the winter edge its looking for – easily drinkable by a fireplace. LR – 7
Extra Naughty Goose – Brown Ale – ABV: 8.6% - A deep, deep, deep brown color gives you the first hints that there is something waiting for you below the surface. The first sip drags you under with chocolate roasted malt flavors and warm after tones. The warmth this ale generates is reminiscent of brandy, but better (since its beer). LR – 8
Matilda – Belgium ale – ABV: 7% - A cloudy, muted yellow gives way to a delightful hoppy aroma. This is a GREAT Belgium ale, with the flavor hinting at citrus while being crisp in finish. A great picnic ale. LR – 7.75
Columbus Brewing Company - http://www.columbusbrewingco.com/ - Stella helped me, but this place was quickly packed
Ohio Honey Wheat – Blonde Ale - a pleasing honey yellow in color, and a sweet aroma – A touch of bitterness leaves a refreshing feeling of crispness upon first taste. LR – 6.5
Apricot Ale – The golden color is wan at best, but the apricot aroma is easily detected. The apricot flavor is not the over-sweetness of many fruit inspired beers, but still is the lingering taste left after drinking… LR – 5
Pale Ale – The aroma of this golden ale is muted hops. This pale ale gives the flavor of the hops, but without bringing in a strong finish. It is obvious that the basics of the pale ale were known to the brewer, but it does not seem like they knew how to make this good beer great. LR – 4
90 Schilling – Scottish Ale – The color is an attractive light red/brown in the light. The malt of this ale is almost sour, which gives an interesting start but a not completely pleasant finish. LR – 4
Columbus 1859 Porter – A deep, deep brown, almost black, with a faint roasted aroma. WOW – this is a porter with a kick. The roasted flavor edges on burnt, but in a good way that leaves you feeling like you are bearing witness to smoking barley. Distinctive in flavor, this is a unique porter. LR – 7
Columbus IPA – A cloudy orange in color with almost a hint of citrus in the hoppy aroma. The hops of this IPA are pronounced, but balanced and thoroughly enjoyable. A smooth brew, with even taste. LR – 8
Ohio Brewing Company - Akron, OH - http://www.ohiobrewing.com/
Server - Archie - Helped me at lunch time, not many people at bar - was willing to discuss beers
Verich Gold – German Kosch-style ABV: 5% IBU: 21 – You can smell hops upon seeing blond color of this dry ale – bubbles rising are reminiscent of champagne - The hops are not overpowering when tasted – more of a smooth malt flavor – LR - 8
Cardinal Ale – Irish Red Ale – ABV: 5% IBU: 25 – No strong aroma – very mild, a table ale that would probably go with any plain dinner of chicken or pasta. Finish is very light with a slight nutty undertone. LR – 5
Alt-ernative Amber – Alt-Style Ale – ABV: 5.4% IBU: 40 – A deep amber color – Dry enough that the residual flavor is a balance of the bitterness of the hops with a refreshing malty aroma that lingers in your mouth. LR – 6.75
O’Hoppy Ale – IPA – ABV: 7% IBU: 70 – Currently in the running in a Brew News March Madness Contest. The hoppy aroma of this brew is cut with a fruity undertone that can be detected upon first sips. The hops provide a bitterness that could be overwhelming to some, but walk a fine line, and end up being a near perfect balance. – LR – 7.5
Steel Valley Stout – Stout – ABV: 6.2% IBU: 35 – You can easily smell the roasted malt in this stout that is a dark brown in color. The roasted nature of the stout contains through tasting, but overwhelms a full perception of the different malts used which the brewer touts as the high point of this beer. LR – 3
Maple Porter – Porter – ABV: 6% IBU: 30 - a deep, deep red on the edge of brown in nature – Delicious – smooth, a definite hint of maple throughout the drink – really more of a dessert, but not heavy in body. LR – 8.5
My life is not exciting. Despite one of my best friends finding a way to document his thoughts and experiences in an amusing and (sometimes) interesting manner, I never thought that doing the same would really interest anyone. Yet, after visiting 170 college campuses in the past year and a half, and having way too much time on my hands, I have begun a personal national tour of microbreweries. I was finally convinced to start tasting and rating the beers (ok, didn’t really have to CONVINCE me about the tasting part). What follows from now on will be my evaluation of the beers i get to - they will include the brewery w. a link - the name of the beer server (so you know who to ask for) and a personal description of each beer concluding with a LR (Lowell rating).
Try at your own risk - I surely do. There are great ones, but god knows there are some bad ones.
And if anyone wants to start Scotch tasting, just let me know
My parents sent me this one… I thought it was very funny, so I pass it along:
I was having trouble with my computer so I called Richard, the 11 year old next door whose bedroom looks like Mission Control, and asked him to come over.
Richard clicked a couple of buttons and solved the problem.
As he was walking away, I called after him, ‘So, what was wrong?’
Def Leppard and Poison will be teaming up with Cheap Trick for their 40 City Summer Tour! Now, don’t kid yourself, there is no question RMTJ readers would SO go to this! Def Leppard and Poison! Cheap Trick as the headliner?! Come on! Tickets go on sale March 6th. Don’t miss out. Start lining up now!
80s kids rejoice! I know what I’ll be doing for this one. Sitting at home, happy I’m not there.
Eric Skarpac sent an email after running a half marathon (!!). It was seriously one of the funniest emails I’ve ever read, but I am even more impressed every time I read it that he got through a half marathon. 13.1 miles. Congrats, man.
Because Crocodiles are apparently unable to read street signs, Florida - exhibiting greater wisdom than A-Rod coming clean on his use of drugs - has decided it’s better to put magnets on the heads of crocodiles in an effort to keep them from wandering into heavily populated areas. You see, Crocodiles use magnetic fields for navigation, thus, screw them up with magnets and we’ll all be fine. Maybe they’ll go into geriatric homes instead…who can tell?
I think we need an expert on magnets to help us out here. Someone get Skarpac McHates-You on the line…
This week, the second group of twelve took the stage. If you thought last week was a rough week, this week was even tougher. Which makes picking a top 3 from this round even more difficult.
So, as many of you may know, my sister - aka JishSis - recently was laid off by her former employer in the financial sector (or as we here in New York like to call them “the evil soul sucking Satans from downtown”), but before she left, she started making plans for a small “world” tour. She was thinking about Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Singapore, Nepal, India and a few other places.
Well she’s gone now, but luckily, she’s keeping us updated on a blog of her own. Pictures and all! I highly encourage people to check it out.
Many of you may have seen this in the past few weeks. If you’re a Bruce Springsteen fan in the tri-state area, you especially may have been annoyed at this when Ticketbastard “ran out of tickets” and shuttled people over to their scalping site for the Boss’s upcoming concerts. Well, the CEOs of the largest ticket seller in the nation (Ticketmaster) and the largest concert promoter (Live Nation) were in Washington yesterday attempting to explain their intentions (to create a monopoly) in merging and how it will create LOWER prices.
Now, I’m no economist and I don’t disagree that we need a better method for doing these tasks, especially when Ticketbastard fees come out to be over 1/4 of the overall cost of the tickets you buy through them…unfortunately, I don’t see that changing under a merged company. No, this is a failure waiting to happen - plain and simple. I hope it doesn’t happen, and I hope we see actual protection of the consumer - which will be the ultimate test.
I’m so excited I could spit. My favorite line: “ending a turbulent five-year stint in which the former All-Star couldn’t lead his hometown team to a single playoff victory.” Even more exciting, it is possible that Starbury will go and poison the Boston Celtics as their backup point guard. Yet another reason why I love the NBA Salary Cap.
Also, love the magnanimity of giving back $2 million of his $21 million salary.
I came across the following commercial from Virgin Atlantic celebrating their 25th anniversary. I have never flown the airline, although I want to, but the commercial is a classic look at the 80s. Enjoy!
