Return of Friday Night Beer Fights!!!!!!

As the weather warms and I get more in the mood to drink outside on these semi-warm (OK- basically freezing) nights, I start to think of ales, IPA's, and other lighter beers to spend the evening with. Tonight, I planned on watching my beloved Duke Blue Devils advance to the Elite Eight in my garage. As the temperature is supposed to get down to 38, I'm going to instead enjoy the game from the comfort of my living room.

During that time, I am going to be settling the new Friday Night Beer Fights Main Event:

Beer #1
Brewer Name: Bear Republic
Web Site: www.bearrepublic.com
Beer Name: Ricardo's Red Rocket Ale
Beer Style: "A Bastardized Scottish style red..." (Their description; not mine)

Appearance: Dark Reddish brown depending on the light. Brown when not in direct light- red when you hold it up to the light. Clear but hard to see through unless you have a light behind it due to the dark color. Nice, consistent lacing on the glass as well.

Smell: Smells carameley like a scotch ale- yet has a hint of hops to it as well.

Taste: Halfway through the second glass, I'm happy with it although this seems to fall into more of a cold-weather ale then a light summer beer. You can definitely taste the Scotch background although it is almost a "scotch light" as it definitely doesn't compare with some of the stronger Scotch ales I've tried this winter. Alcohol content is 6.8% so not as high in alcohol either. Overall, pretty smooth and I will definitely buy this again. Kelly tried some and said "uh, uh, too like something..." I wonder why she hasn't started a blog of her own. OOOOOhhhhhh- I just got called an A-h**e. Not very nice treatment for the blogging royalty... I thought I was an A-lister by now. I'm going to call my agent.

Mouthfeel: Nice, medium feel to the beer; slightly watery but close enough to not disturb me.

Overall rating: I'm pretty happy with this and am almost disappointed that I have to end this bottle. I have that nice, warm feeling in my stomach that signals that the beer is doing it's job. Good stuff. 4.0 overall.

Beer #2

Brewer: Charleville Vineyard Winery and Microbrewery (St. Genevieve, MO) Hometown drinking- always a plus.
Web Site: www.charlevillevineyard.com
Beer Name: Tornado Alley Amber Ale
Beer Style: Amber Ale

Appearance: Medium Brown, Light Red; very clear.

Smell: Very fruity. I am not surprised that this comes from a vineyard. I can't put my finger on the actual fruit. Kelly says orange; I say more of a cranberry/ raspberry odor to it.

Taste: I'm saying pretty good. It has a very fruity during and aftertaste that probably will be either like it or not proposition for most drinkers. Kelly does not like it at all but I appreciate that they are trying to make a very light, summerish type of ale that can be enjoyed while you mow the yard, run a marathon, play some jarts, etc.

Mouthfeel: Not surprisingly, not much here. A fairly light beer with little to no lacing on the glass. As previously mentioned, a nice spring, summer beer to drink during a leisurely round of golf or playing on the beach (at Creve Couer park- wait- that's Busch Light, sorry.).

Overall: I'm going 4.0 on this as well. A very, nice, light beer with a fruity during and aftertaste. I can see myself sitting on the front porch with a 6 pack of this as I watch the kids kill each other (I mean play) in the court. No DFS calls please.

And, for the first time ever, we have a tie!!! The only thing to do is to purchase another beer by each brewer and double-down like Mikey in Swingers!!! This fight isn't over. We'll be back after another trip to Friar Tuck's!!!

To be continued...

GO DUKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010 World Cup Primer

Here is everything you need to know for the 2010 World Cup.

Here is the FIFA 2010 World Cup homepage:

http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/index.html

First, and most importantly, the USA's group schedule and local times:

6/12 1:30 PM ENGLAND
6/18 9 AM Slovenia
6/23 9 AM Algeria

That England game is on a Saturday and I say we all head to a bar or find a house with hi-def big screen and start about 10 AM so we are rowdy when the game starts. If the US can draw that game, we should make it out of the group with no problem. The USA is currently ranked 18th in the world and Slovenia and Algeria are 27th and 32nd, respectively. The big thing the US has going for them is experience. Neither Slovenia or Algeria played in the 06 World Cup. Hopefully, the US won't be nervous and will come out and own those two teams.

As for the other games, here are the ones in the group stage that look to me like can't miss games:

June 17th 1:30 PM France/ Mexico Battle of two heavyweights although France is going to be easier to beat this year in my opinion.

June 22nd 1:30 PM Greece/ Argentina The Greek squad will be hard to beat. The Argentinians may have the group locked up by the thrid match. If not, this one will be a can't miss.

Any match in Group G. This has got to be the Group of Death. Brazil, to me, looks to be down a little unless some of their young guns step up. I don't think the Ronaldihno crew can get it done. Ditto with Portugal as they are collectively a little older (unless either manager chooses younger sides for these nations). If either one of those two slip up, this group looks wide open to me.

Any game Spain plays provided:

A) David Villa is healthy. If he is, the two pronged attack of Fernando Torres and Villa will be fed constantly by Xavi and Andres Ineista. Add in the best goalkeeper in the world and you have a recipe for the trophy. Spain will be the team to beat if they are healthy. They are ranked #1 in the world right now and the only team that will be able to outgun them (in my mind at least) are The Netherlands who may be my pick to win it if Villa is hurt. If you like attacking soccer, you can't go wrong watching either Spain or the Netherlands.

Players to watch: No surprises here. Christiano Ronaldo (Portugal) and Lionel Messi (Argentina) are the two most dynamic and exciting players to watch in the world. The next tier of players includes Wayne Rooney (England), Fernando Torres (Spain), and also Wesley Schneider (the best during game, long-range passer in the world- Netherlands) will be exciting to watch.

Predictions:

Really have a chance: Spain, Argentina, Netherlands. I'm leaving Brazil out as I think they are overrated and it will show here. The Italians can't be counted out either; especially if the ref allows them to swan dive all over the park (see 2006).

Middle of the pack: Germany has an outside shot at winning if they get a few lucky breaks. I don't think their defense is good enough to stop the top-tier teams like Spain or Argentina. England fall here as perennial international no-shows Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard need to step up and control the midfield for a change in order for England to have a chance. Rooney needs to continue his out of this world form as well. If the US gets knocked out, I'll root for England but I don't think their chemistry has ever been level due to the enormous rivalries and hatred between English clubs.

Dark Horses: Usa has a slight chance (and I mean very slight; if a lot of really good oiffensive teams get knocked out and they can grind it out in the final, they could win. I like the Ivory Coast as well.

Either way, let's get together and watch as many games as possible. It's always a great summer when the World Cup is on.

New Beer Rating!!!

Friday night, the Goosefather and I took the wives out for a night on the town. We were supposed to head down to The Tap Room (home of Schlafly's) for oysters and stout. That was absolutely packed so we headed to Lafayette square and sampled the fare of three different spots. The first place we tried was The Lafayette Fire Company #1 bar and grill. There we had a new beer which goose and I decided to rate. Here are the details:

Brewer: Abita Brewing Company
Beer Name: Turbodog
Beer Style: Dark Ale
Price: ? $4 each for a 16 oz glass at the bar- about the norm.
Website:

http://www.abita.com/

Appearance- (Lighting was low so I could be lightly off but it looked dark brown; slightly cloudy. May have had a reddish tint to it but that could be the lighting as well.)

Smell: The smell to this was sweet. It had a definite berry odor and didn't smell at all like an ale to me.

Taste: The taste started out smoothly with a noticable black licorice tinge that quickly faded into a slightly hoppy aftertaste. Definitely not your average ale.
Overall, it was just a little too weird although Goose has had it in bottles and says it was better. I'm going to compare/ contrast when I can. Leigh said that the taste was fruity with a slight hint of "cherry toe-jam" at the end.

Drinkability: I am intrigued enough to try it again for sure. I think if the different tastes weren't so prominent, I may be inclined to drink it a little more. Maybe the bottle takes the sting out of it.

Overall Score: 3.5 from the tap. Hopefully a little better out of the bottle. Goose gives it a- oops he didn't give me a final score. Goose, feel free to comment and I'll add it in.

If you are looking for something off the beaten path, this would be a good place to start. Both of the wives enjoyed theirs and neither complained of it being too dark or beery so give it a shot.

Movie Reviews; Hurt Locker, Precious, Angels and Demons, Inglorius Basterds

It's been a while. The wife has me slaving around here so I can't even drink beer. I did sneak in some movie watching though. I saw these films and figured I would let everyone know what I thought of them:

THE HURT LOCKER

This film is about the addiction to war and danger that soldiers can develop as the remain in combat. Jeremy Renner stars as a bomb defuser in the Iraq War. He had defused something like 875 bombs since arriving and as the film progresses, we see that he is reckless, crazy, and more then a little bit of a hotshot; although he does still maintain some connection with other human beings at times. This split personality causes problems for everyone but him as we see through the film.

The cinematography was outstanding. It was truly a beautiful movie and the scenes and set locations perfectly complemented the ever-growing mood of dread at what will happen as the film progresses. Kathryn Bigelow deserved the Oscar as this film was close to perfect. Easily in my top 10 of the 00's (I have to go back and amend my list- bye bye Bond flicks). As I am one of the 12 people on Earth who didn't see Avatar yet, I'll have to wait until seeing that to really judge which was better although I'm going to lean toward someone who's film is really filmed; not generated on computers.

Overall, I would give this a five out of five with no reservations at all. For anyone who is familar with Stanley Kubrick's work (The Shining and Full Metal Jacket in particular), I would love to hear if you thought that Bigelow models her sets and shots after him. I certainly thought so as it kept popping in my head as the film went on.

PRECIOUS

Possibly the most depressing film ever made, it is still very good and clearly makes it's point. We meet Precious who has everything (and I mean everything) go against her in life. She is kicked out of High School and heads to an Alternative School where her life is changed. Without giving anything away that isn't in the trailer, the acting is phenomenal, the screenplay is razor sharp, and the film's low budget doesn't hold it back too noticeably. I would have preferred some more elaborate sets and some more thought into the setting, but I'm sure the low budget was to blame.

Overall, I'm saying 4.5 out of 5. The actors (particularily Monique) were fantastic. The screenplay was outstanding as well. Go rent it as long as you don't mind feeling like you have been kicked in the nuts for two hours straight. (Really, go rent it- it's good.)

Angels and Demons

Ron Howard's second installment in the Dan Brown book adaptions was a tremendous improvement over the first. The pacing and plot development were more structured and cohesive and the film did not have the ten or twenty minute dry spells that DaVinci Code had. The rest of the movie was up to par; nothing great although Tom Hanks did get rid of his 70's porn haircut. (No pun- but thank God!) The rest of the acting was acceptable but nothing memorable. If you like the books, rent this on a night when you really don't want much substance; just a plot twist or two that follows the book.

Overall, a 3 out of 5.

INGLORIUS BASTERDS

Quentin Tarantino takes some fairly large liberties with history to accomodate his latest cast of memorable, off the chart lunatics in Inglorius Basterds. The Inglorius Basterds are a group of Nazi hunters during WWII who will stop at nothing to intimidate the Nazis by their violent actions toward them. Brad Pitt is perfect as the leader; Christolph Baltz is better as the German Jew hunter they are pursuing. The film is set up as a play with each change in venue and plot becoming it's own "scene." Don't let this fool you as it is a much more linear story than Pulp Fiction or Kill Bill which were nothing more than plays for the big screen. Tarantino's fantastic storytelling and direction elevate this would-be middle of the pack film to respectability but it falls well short of the other films nominated for the Best Picture in 2010. If you are a Tarantino film, rent it ASAP as it reminds the viewers of his other films. If you didn't care for Kill Bill I or II or Pulp Fiction, I would probably stick with something a little more realistic. (The Hurt Locker for instance).

Overall a 4 out of 5 but I enjoy Tarantino's quirky way o0f filmmaking that tends to not be the road most taken.

Please reply with your opinions of these films. I would love to hear what others thought.

Bigwallabowski

Friday Night Beer Fights Epidode Four (posted on Saturday)`

OK. I was too tired to stay up and drink all my beer last night but I did have one. And, I'm drinking the other right now. So, without further ado, here we go:

Brewery: Avery Brewing Company, Boulder, CO
Beer Name: Salvation Belgian Style Golden Ale
Style: Belgian Ale
Price: 4.99.

Appearance: Um, pretty much Gold colored, clearish ale. Nice foam, a very pleasant look overall.

Smell: Slight fruit (mostly peaches) with an even slighter smell of skunkiness.

Tatse: Typical Belgian taste- on overpowering fruit taste at the beginning followed by a skunky taste at the end. This beer was definitely toned down though as the extremes seen in previous rankings (see week 2) were not nearly as harsh as the true Belgian ranked then. It still had the same general bloodline although not as fruity and nowhere near as skunky at the end. A much pleasanter, mellower version of a Belgian ale. Probablyu good for someone to start on and it does not carry the heavy price tag of a Duvel or other premium Belgian.

Drinakbility: Overall, fairly high if you like Belgian beer. I have tasted enought to know that as a whole, I'm not a fan. That being said, if I were to pick one, this would be up there; especially adding in the lower price.

Overall rating: 4.0. As far a sBelgians go, this one is more accessible for the vast majority of us Yanks across the pond. When you want a good Belgian beer, go to Colorado...

AND BEER #2:

Brewer: Moylan's, Novata, CA
Beer Name: Kilt Lifter Scotch Ale
Beer Style: Scotch Ale
Price: 5.99

Appearance: Cloudy; burgandyish brown; not as dark as a lot of scotch ales.

Smell: This beer has very little smell to it. Sort of weird as scotch ales usually have a fairly strong odor. the little bit reminds me of grapes but I've been drinking for 3 hours now so I may be slightly tainted.

Taste: I rated two other scotch ales in FNBF1 and they were polar opposites. This falls somewhere in the middle. At a kilt (or hopefully skirt) lifting 8%, this beer is nothing to mess with. That being said, it has no overpowering rubbing alcohol taste like the Dirty Bastard did. But, it is definitely stronger then the Schlafly's. The end product is a very solid, strong, full, smooth beer with good flavor and aftertaste. If you want to drink a 6 pack, go with Schlafly's. If you want a glass or two before bed, this is a better choice. Especially during the winter when a little stronger brew is preferred.

Drinkability: High, as long as you are not drinking a lot. Not a social beer as it will have you kareokeing Lady GaGa (along with your version of the choreographed dance routines) after about the third one. If you look anything like me, that is probably not a good thing.

Overall rank: 4.5- a very strong yet drinkable beer that does wjhat it sets out to do- taste good but get you enough alcohol to lift your kilt.

BY THE WAY: I tried the Moylan's Tipperary Pale Ale as well and it was outstanding. I rated it at 4.75 but that may go up after the next time I drink it. I am going to link my beer ratings on my web page to this blog next. Bookmark it if you go to the liquor store. It's going to be a no frills; ratings only for easy viewing on your phone. If anyone wants my comments about beers that have not made the blog, I have them in a word document. Email me at bigwallastyle@yahoo.com

Word.

And the winner in this national imitating international beer battle is:

Scotland!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! from Moylan's although I think everyone should try the Avery; especially if you haven't tried Belian ales before. It's a good starting place.

Top 10 Movies of 2000's

Every decade, I compile my own Top 10 lists of movies and CD's. I'm still pondering the CD's. Here are the movies in reverse order.

10. Quantum of Solace: Not the tenth best movie (by far) but the best two Bonds ever (along with Casino Royale) make it a must in my list.

9. Tie: Wedding Crashers/ Old School: Both are comedic best-in shows. They are close enough to be listed as a tie. Vince Vaughn is the man and the Wedding Crashers scene on the stairwell is the funniest scene in any movie- ever.

8. Babel: Four intertwined stories that all come together at the end. Not a new concept but the best of the bunch in my opinion. Brad Pitt (yes, that one) gives a great performance in a movie with few other stars. Truly, a thought provoking movie that applies to everyone, everywhere.

7. 21 Grams: Great actors, fantastic story, the first movie which makes no sense until 2/3 of the way through that really worked for me. Very underrated but worth every second; especially if you like Naomi Watts..

6. The Royal Tannenbaums: If you even remotely appreciate dry humor, Wes Anderson is the master and this is his best.

5. The Dark Knight: The best comic book movie ever. Nothing is even close.

4. Lost in Translation: I love this movie. I have watched it about 30 times and I marvel at the simplicity of the story with the powerful message that it has. A fantastic film that would have won the Best Picture if LOTR had been any other year.

3. Lord of the Rings Trilogy: Nerdiness at it's cinematic best. The best fantasy book adaption ever. Beautiful scenery, locales, masterful acting from actors that were not very well known up to that point.

2. No Country for Old Men: The Coen Brothers dramatic masterpiece. Twists, turns, memorable characters, a usual Coen Brothers barebones setting that becomes it's own character. (By the way, if you haven't seen Miller's Crossing, you MUST see it as well. Contrasted with No Country, it's easy to see their brilliance 17 years ago.

1. The Departed: Scorcese at his best. Fantastic characters, action, dialouge, and camerawork make this the best movie of the decade.

Invitations

There are two things coming up that I want to invite everyone to:

Friday, March 19th.
Schlafly's Oyster and Stout Festival.

Goose, Lori. the wife and I are heading down to the Tap Room (see sidebar for links). Goose for the oysters, all of us for the beer. Hours are 5-9 and I'm betting we get there at about 6 or so. Check the Schlafly's link for more info.

Saturday, April 3. 6:45 AM
At my house, on FSC or Sentanta, Manchester United plays Chelsea (#1 and #2 in the Premiership) square off at Old Trafford to decide (or at least greatly influence) who will win the Premiership this year. They meet twice a year, this is the second. If you need a comparison, think middle September Yankees/ Sox when they are about a game apart. Or Cubs/ Cardinals in May before the Cardinals pull away and lock up the race by mid-August. (Sorry Scrubs fans- wait, no I'm not sorry at all.) Cubs suck.

If you are interested in heading over to the house at 6:45 AM Saturday morning, let me know ahead of time. If weather permits, I'm game for watching the game in the garage, BBQ, firepit, whatever festive ideas we can come up with. Oh, and pre-breakfast drinking... By the way, if you show in a Chelsea jersey, I would not plan on passing out because I may defile it with urine as you sleep. Actually, count on it. And add mustard, and tar, and feathers, and glue.

Both should be fun. Spring break is the last full week of March so let's get it going.

Tom

Two New Beer Reviews!!!!

OK. I had two new beers on Saturday at Dewey's Pizza in Chesterfield. Which, by the way, was excellent. We had a 1/2 Bronx Bomber and 1/2 Southwest BBQ Chicken. Both were excellent and the BBQ chicken was pleasantly spicy.

www.deweyspizza.com

In my life, there are two pizza joints that you have to eat at:

Shakespeare's in Columbia:

www.shakespeares.com

and, being born and raised in St. Louis; Imo's. The trip to Dewey's made me think that a 3rd may be added to the list but I need much more extensive testing.

Anyways, back to the beers:

I actually had a bottle of this earlier in the week but I tried this from the tap:

Brewer: Magic Hat Brewing Company, South Burlington, Vermont
Beer Name: #9 Not Quite Pale Ale
Beer Style: Ale
Price:

Appearance: Clear, light amber in color.

Smell: Hoppy, hint of apricot and perhaps peach as well.

Taste: The bottled version was much more bitter than the draft. The draft had a pleasant, smooth ale taste that led straight to an unmistakable apricot finish. The bottle's aftertaste was not nearly as fruity. Out of the tap, I would drink this until I took my skirt off and danced on the table. As for the bottle, my rating would be much lower as the bitter aftertaste was not nearly as good.

Drinkability: Bottle, somewhat low- not bad and at 4.6 alcohol, you could drink this by the pool and not worry about which direction was up after you dove in. Tap: Much better although I may have questioned my masculinity with repeated drinking...

Overall rating: Bottle 2.5, tap 3.0. Probably won't pick up a bottle anytime soon but would have another draft anytime...

Since I was worried about looking like Johnny Wier's "skating partner" while drinking the #9, I decided to give the Rogue Dead Guy Ale a try. Now, let me preface this. I have heard so much good about Rogue brewery and the Dead Guy Ale that I was almost scared to try it. I have read review after review, heard people talk about it, etc. But it was that or the IPA so I went Dead Guy. Luckily I was not disappointed...

Since I couldn't take a picture of the keg, here is their website:

http://www.rogue.com/

I'm adding it to the links on the right.

Brewer: Rogue
Beer Name: Dead Guy Ale
Style: Pale Ale
Price: ?

Appearance: Medium to clear amber ale. A rich, clear brown; looks like beer.

Smell: In the words of Homer Simpson, "UMMMMMMMMMMMMM." This is what beer should smell like.

Taste: Damn near perfect. Buttery, smooth flavor with very crisp ale aftertaste that doesn't last any longer then it should. Very impressive. Not too hoppy but enough there to know this isn't a beer that should be taken lightly. From my notes on the cocktail napkin, "Good full body, very little aftertaste, perfect bitter/ sweet balance. Awesome beer...

Drinkability: High anytime. This is a must have in my fridge and I will do my best to make sure they stay in business.

Overall Rating: It's hard not to give it a 5. I have always considered Schlafly's Pale Ale as the Benchmark and I'm going to pick up both next time I buy beer. Only after tasting both side by side will I be able to make sure it stands up against the 5. So, for now, I'm going 4.75 (although this may go up as I drink more). A can't miss, fantastic beer that should be in everyone's fridge.