Malty Goodness

Hello!
My name is Brooke and I'm Stephen's brother. We've been enjoying quality beer since the microbrew invasion hit Charlotte, NC. Oh what a wonderful day it was. There wasn't a specific day but there was a day that we went from Stroh's to Gaelic Ale (not that Stroh's doesn't have its place in life). There is no substitute for "fire brewing;" however, I prefer to think I'm in the "enlightened group". For those of you who have never heard of Gaelic Ale, do yourself a favor: write it down, leave the computer right now, and go find a 6 pack. You will then realize that "fire brewing" is not the end all of brewing.

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Olde Beere

For all of you out there who are interested in homebrewing, I came across this the other day. It is a book written in 1736 called The London and Country Brewer. It is a guide to the ingredients and techniques in brewing - in 1736. It's all pretty cool and Free!!! thanks to Project Gutenburg. I do suggest you check it out.

The whole thing kind of reminds me of a beer I didn't review but photographed, Samuel Adams Brewer Patriot Collection.

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Saffron?

I am a lazy shit. I have two new beers to review - Dale's Pale Ale(tasty) and Midas Touch(interesting), but I can't get around to reviewing them because listening to iTunes and getting materials together for a college application is more important. Shyeah Right!

Truth be told, I have enjoyed both of these beers a little too much. The Dale's especially. The Midas Touch grew on me like mold on bread a Magic Hat No. 9; not the tastiest at first, but after you have a couple, does it really matter? Don't get me wrong here, but the Magic Hat No. 9 could taste like bong water and it would still sell because it's a hip-stoner-grateful-dead-follower kind of beer.

So, anywho, Try Dale's Pale Ale(in a can no less) and I'll try to give my two cents on it tomorrow. Think about trying Midas Touch from Dogfish Head and don't be fooled by the saffron in it(yeah, I was like "What the fuck?").

That's all for now.

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Mmmmm...Beer

I quit smoking!

Not likely the best way to start a blog but hey, I'm looking for support here. So anyway, it's kind of hard to drink beer and not smoke, at least for me, having smoked for 13 years.

I am not a journalist nor will I ever claim to be. I am not a professional beer drinker unless one considers I spend(almost) as much time drinking beer for enjoyment as many people do working.

But this is blog is called the beer idiot. I know a few things about beer but when describing it, well, I tend to be fairly simple(good, bad, hoppy, malty, fucking gross). For starters, I don't like wheat beers, that's not to say my opinion cannot be swayed, but, I am not too big on overly sweet beer. I love beer that puts hair on my chest(stouts, scottish ales, porters).

But, I digress. Onto the first beer!

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Duvel: Belgium

For anyone who has only experienced American beers, here is a little intro into Belgian beer: For a country about the size for Connecticut, they have approximately 125 breweries. Can I get an 'Amen.'

Duvel is a Belgian Ale meant to be served in a fancy schmancy Duvel ale glass. However, seeing as I didn't have one and wasn't going to purchase one, I went with a stemless red wine glass from Crate & Barrel(I already owned one). This type of glass still allowed me to swirl the beer, smell it, and chug enjoy.

The first thing I noticed was the wonderful champagne-like head on the beer. Being an idiot, I'm sure this came from the bottle conditioning, but none the less, gave the beer a wonderful first sip. The aroma was much different than the taste. With a slightly hoppy and sweet aroma, I expected something along the lines of a Paulaner Munichen but was surprised. The taste was slightly sweet with notes of spice(cloves and such). It was also wonderfully crisp.

Rating 8.5/10

Enjoy!

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