Category Archives: Drinks

Beer, soda, and other fun fluids you put in your mouth.

May 14, 2014 · 12:40 pm

Idris Fiery Ginger Beer

Idris Fiery Ginger beer is an English soft drink made with ginger extract. The slogan Try me if you dare!! I don’t normally take orders from sodas, but I decided to accept this challenge. I bought a 330ml can, cracked it open, and took a sip. I didn’t like it. I took another sip. It tasted a little better. I took a few more sips and it became more enjoyable. But I still didn’t like it by the time I finished the can. I guess I don’t like ginger beer. It’s not half bad, but it’s not good. I won’t be getting Idris Fiery Ginger Beer anymore. It’s all yours, England.

Critically Rated at 8/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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May 12, 2014 · 12:25 pm

Cinder Cone Red Ale

Cinder Cone Red Ale is a craft beer made by Bend, Oregon’s Deschutes Brewery. It pours a dark rusty red color with a thin off-white head. The nose is floral and citrus hops, toffee and caramel malts, and dark fruits. It tastes of citrus and floral hops with a little resin, bready malts, caramel, toffee, and spice. There is a lot of flavor and personality in the brew, so it’s kind of surprising when you find out that it only has a 5.3% alcohol content. It’s a great choice for when you want to enjoy a microbrew without getting too fucked up. All in all, this is one of the better red ales that I’ve experienced. I’d get it again.

Critically Rated at 14/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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May 11, 2014 · 12:22 pm

Drink Token

I go to a dive bar a few times a week where the bartenders will occasionally give out drink tokens to thirsty patrons. A drink token is a token for a free drink. They might give them away during Happy Hour, for special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries, or if you gave them a particularly good tip. Drink tokens are a precious commodity, especially in a city where a beer costs five to six bucks for a pint. You could redeem it right away, but it’s better to save it for a rainy day. Sometimes you really need a drink but you don’t want to pay for one. That’s when you bust out the drink token and quench your thirst. But remember that you still have to tip even though the drink is free. A dollar or two will suffice. Just because the drink is free doesn’t mean you can be cheap.

Critically Rated at 12/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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May 11, 2014 · 12:21 pm

Union Jack IPA

Union Jack IPA in an American India Pale Ale from California’s Firestone Walker Brewing Company. It’s a better than average IPA that pours a nice orange-amber color with a fluffy white head and nice lacing. The aroma is tropical hops, citrus, and bready malts, but it’s muted compared to other IPAs. It tastes great. Lots of citrus hops, tropical fruit, a hint of pine, and a malty undertone. It’s sweet, it’s bitter, it’s dry, and it’s delicious. It’s pretty malty for an IPA, which gives it a lot of balance. Factor in the 7.5% ABV and you have yourself quite a brew. I would get it again, I would drink it again, and I would suggest it to anybody looking for a nice India Pale Ale or craft beer.

Critically Rated at 13/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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May 9, 2014 · 8:56 am

Excessive Stirring

I was lounging in the break room the other day, trying to relax before my shift started when my coworker came in with a cup of coffee. She sat down right next to me, poured some cream and sugar into her cup, and began to stir. Clink clink clink. She stirred it some more. Clink clink clink clink clink. And she stirred it some more. Clink clink clink clink clink clink clink clink clink. Clink. Clink. Clink clink clink. I glared at her and told her, “I think you got it, you can stop now.” She slowly looked at me and gave it another clink out of spite. I had to bite my lip to keep from slapping her. It was perfectly fine and evenly mixed after the first stir. There was no need for a second round of stirring, and definitely no need for a third round. There’s no excuse for excessive stirring. Not now and not ever.

Critically Rated at 6/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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May 4, 2014 · 1:12 pm

Chia Sweet Peach

Chia Sweet Peach is a chia and juice smoothie from Naked. Chia is the trendy new superfood these days. Yeah, it’s the same chia you know and love from Chia Pets. Only this time it’s in a smoothie, 10,000mg of it, along with peach juice, orange juice, mango juice, and apple juice. It’s delicious, fruity, and healthy for you. It’s great breakfast beverage. And it helps to eliminate hangovers. You know you’re not going to stop drinking, so at least be prepared by keeping one of these in the fridge. You’ll thank me when you wake up with a throbbing head.

Critically Rated at 13/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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May 3, 2014 · 9:02 am

NightTime (beer)

Petaluma’s Lagunitas Brewing Company consistently brews amazing craft beers, and they’ve done it again with NightTime. NightTime is a limited release American Black Ale with an 8.2% ABV. It pours a dark brown, almost black color with a thin tan head. It has a mellow aroma of citrus hops, pineapple, mango, and pine. The taste is a nice balance between citrus and pine hops and roasted malt, with some spice and maybe a little rye. It’s bitter, sweet, smooth, and dry. Black Ales aren’t my go-to brew, but NightTime is a very solid and enjoyable beer. I would get it again, and then I’d get another bottle after that. Then I would try a different beer. Life’s too short to stick to only one.

Critically Rated at 13/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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May 2, 2014 · 10:02 am

Sock Knocker (beer)

Sock Knocker is an Imperial India Pale Ale from the Coronado Brewing Company in Coronado, California. It pours a golden orange color with a thick foamy off-white head. The aroma is mostly pine and citrus hops. I also get grapefruit, orange, orange peel, and malt. The taste is as you would expect. It’s hoppy. It’s bitter. It’s delicious. There’s a lot of citrus, pine, resin, and a little malt creaminess. It’s 8.5% alcohol. It’s a satisfying craft IPA, but it really won’t knock your socks off. They lied to you.

Critically Rated at 12/17
Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 30, 2014 · 1:52 pm

Julian Hard Cider Cherry Bomb

I’m not much of a cider drinker. I prefer craft beers. But I will still drink a cider from time to time to mix things up. Today I decided to mix things up. I got a Julian Hard Cider Cherry Bomb from California’s Julian Hard Cider. It’s a premium American hard cider with cherry flavor. It pours a deep blood red color with a minimal white head with very mild carbonation. It almost looks like cranberry juice until you notice the tiny bubbles. It tastes like cherry pie filling. It’s sweet, sour, and very satisfying. Plus it has a 6.99% alcohol content which is nothing to scoff at. Simply put, this will get you drunk. And it tastes like candy so you won’t notice that you’re getting drunk until its too late and you can’t find your phone. This is a good cider. I still prefer beer.

Critically Rated at 12/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 29, 2014 · 1:52 pm

Pine Mountain Pilsner

Deschutes Brewery & Public House is one of Oregon’s best breweries, and they have a lot of good breweries in Oregon. Pine Mountain Pilsner is a crisp and refreshing spring release, perfect for day drinking. It pours a clear golden yellow with a nice frothy head. There’s not much of an aroma compared to a stout or IPA. I get hints of hops, grass, spice, some florals, and a little pine. The taste is of bitter hops with a light malt flavor to balance it out. There is some grass, pine, bread, and spice. It’s very smooth and drinkable. It has a 5.2% ABV so feel free to have more than one.

Critically Rated at 13/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 21, 2014 · 9:55 am

Hoptologist DIPA

Hoptologist DIPA is a Double India Pale Ale from California’s Knee Deep Brewing Co. It pours a dark hazy copper color with a fluffy off-white head. It has a rich malty aroma with citrus hops, tropical fruit, grapefruit, bread, caramel, banana, pine, and musk. Not old man musk, more like attic or basement musk. The flavor profile is hoppy, malty, and dark fruits. I get pine, citrus, grass, resin, and bread as well. It has a nice balance between sweet and bitter. You won’t even notice the 9% alcohol content until it sneaks up on you. This is a very satisfying beer, but I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re not a fan of IPAs. It’s too intense for some palates. It’s not one of the essential IPAs to drink before you die, but it’s worth trying if you come across it.

Critically Rated at 13/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 17, 2014 · 11:06 am

Black Coffee

Black coffee is the term for a regular cup of joe. No sugar, no cream, just plain coffee. Cream and sugar makes the coffee more drinkable, but it also makes it so you can’t taste the nuances in the flavor profile. Black coffee is how coffee is supposed to taste. It’s the real deal, the way that coffee’s been consumed for centuries. It’s how your grandma drank it. It’s how the cowboys drank it. And it’s how you should drink it. You won’t impress anyone by drinking a mocha or a cappuccino, but drinking a black coffee will. Order a black coffee when you’re in a breakfast meeting with your boss and you’ll get that promotion you’ve been gunning for. And if he doesn’t give it to you, you can throw the coffee in his face.
Critically Rated at 15/17
Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 11, 2014 · 9:46 am

Undercover Investigation Shut-Down Ale

Lagunitas Brewing Company presents Undercover Investigation Shut-Down Ale, a limited release American Strong Ale. It really is a strong ale too. 9.7% ABV is nothing to scoff at. It’s a very enjoyable craft beer. It pours a reddish copper color with a tan head. The aroma is mostly floral and citrus hops, but I get hints of grass, caramel, pine, pineapple, and sweet and bready malts. The taste is mostly bitter hops, but it’s balanced nicely with grapefruit, orange, lemon peel, pine, sweet malts, caramel, burnt sugar, and spice. It’s deliciously bitter with an IBU of 66.6 (so I wouldn’t drink it on a Sunday if you’re the religious type). It’s a limited release so you should get on it while you have the chance. Buy a six-pack and thank me later.

Critically Rated at 14/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 9, 2014 · 1:41 pm

Hoppy Daze (beer)

Hoppy Daze is a Belgian Style India Pale Ale from California’s Coronado Brewing Company. It pours a golden amber color with a large white head. It has a predominantly hoppy scent with aromas of cloves, Belgian yeast, citrus, and light malt. I like how it tastes. I get a lot of herbal and citrus hops, honey, spice, coriander, bready malt, pine, and pepper. It’s a satisfying Belgian IPA and a good craft brew, but I wouldn’t call it a great beer. If I ever write a list of my top hundred beers, Hoppy Daze wouldn’t be on it. It would make the top two hundred though. I drink way too much beer.

Critically Rated at 12/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 7, 2014 · 12:36 pm

Undead Party Crasher (beer)

Undead Party Crasher in an American Imperial Stout brewed by Clown Shoes in Ipswich, Massachusetts. I’ve never even heard of that brewery, but I was lucky enough to come across a bottle at a liquor store in Las Vegas. The label is what originally attracted my attention. There aren’t too many beers that have zombie apocalypse-related artwork. I really didn’t have a choice, I had to try this beer and I’m glad that I did because it was pretty damn good. It pours a dark brown, almost black, with a thick tan head. It has a rich roasted malt aroma with coffee and chocolate notes with a little vanilla. The taste is of roasted malts, coffee, chocolate, mocha, vanilla, molasses, a little smoke, and a dash of spice. It’s a very smooth and creamy stout and it’s very drinkable. You can’t even taste the alcohol despite the impressive 11% ABV. I haven’t had the chance to try any other beers from Clown Shoes, but Undead Party Crasher made a great first impression on me. I will be on the lookout for their brews from now on.

Critically Rated at 14/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 5, 2014 · 5:50 am

Voodoo Doughnut Pretzel, Raspberry & Chocolate Ale

Voodoo Doughnut Pretzel, Raspberry & Chocolate Ale is an American Brown Ale from Oregon’s Rogue Ales. Rogue is known for interesting and unique brews, and this is one of their more extreme offerings. It pours a dark brown with a creamy tan head. It has an intriguing aroma with chocolate and toasted malts, vanilla, raspberry, caramel, and coffee. It smells good, but it tastes even better. It’s sweet, chocolate, and you get the sweet and tangy sensation of raspberry, but and a hint of pretzel. It’s slightly salty and has bread/biscuit thing going on. It’s unlike any other brown ale I’ve tasted. You actually see the cocoa powder clinging to the side of the glass as you drink it. It has a decent 6.75% alcohol content and it makes for an excellent dessert beverage. I wouldn’t want to drink more than one though. It comes in a bright pink bottle with a gingerbread man-like voodoo doll on the label. It stands out on the shelf and that’s hard to do these days. This is a good beer and worth trying out, but I don’t think it will become your favorite beer.

Critically Rated at 13/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young

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April 1, 2014 · 12:25 pm

Brewers Association’s Top 50 U.S. Craft Brewing Companies

The Brewers Associationjust came out with its list of the Top 50 U.S. Craft Brewing Companies. This isn’t my list but it’s worth sharing.

1 Boston Beer Co. Boston MA

2 Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Chico CA

3 New Belgium Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO

4 Gambrinus San Antonio TX

5 Lagunitas Brewing Co. Petaluma CA

6 Deschutes Brewery Bend OR

7 Bell’s Brewery, Inc. Galesburg MI

8 Duvel Moortgat USA Kansas City MO &

Cooperstown NY

9 Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn NY

10 Stone Brewing Co. Escondido CA

11 Matt Brewing Co. Utica NY

12 Harpoon Brewery Boston MA

13 Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Milton DE

14 Shipyard Brewing Co. Portland ME

15 Abita Brewing Co. Abita Springs LA

16 Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Paso Robles CA

17 Alaskan Brewing Co. Juneau AK

18 New Glarus Brewing Co. New Glarus WI

19 SweetWater Brewing Co. Atlanta GA

20 Great Lakes Brewing Co. Cleveland OH

21 Anchor Brewing Co. San Francisco CA

22 Long Trail Brewing Co. Bridgewater Corners VT

23 Summit Brewing Co. St. Paul MN

24 Oskar Blues Brewery Longmont CO

25 Full Sail Brewing Co. Hood River OR

26 Founders Brewing Co. Grand Rapids MI

27 Rogue Ales Newport OR

28 Victory Brewing Co. Downingtown PA

29 Ballast Point Brewing Co. San Diego CA

30 Ninkasi Brewing Co. Eugene OR

31 Southern Tier Brewing Co. Lakewood NY

32 Cold Spring Brewing Co./Third Street Brewhouse Cold Spring MN

33 Flying Dog Brewery Frederick MD

34 Odell Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO

35 Stevens Point Brewery Co. Stevens Point WI

36 Bear Republic Brewing Co. Cloverdale CA

37 Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe Eureka CA

38 Left Hand Brewing Co. Longmont CO

39 CraftWorks Restaurants & Breweries, Inc. Chattanooga & Louisville TN/CO

40 Breckenridge Brewery Denver CO

41 Karl Strauss Brewing Co. San Diego CA

42 Blue Point Brewing Co. Patchogue NY

43 Sixpoint Brewery Brooklyn NY

44 BJ’s Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc. Huntington Beach CA

45 North Coast Brewing Co. Inc. Fort Bragg CA

46 Uinta Brewing Co. Salt Lake City UT

47 Allagash Brewing Co. Portland ME

48 Saint Arnold Brewing Co. Houston TX

49 Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. San Jose CA

50 21st Amendment Brewery San Francisco CA

 

I’ve tried beers from twenty-two of these breweries, and that’s not bad. It’s not impressive, but it’s definitely not bad. I’m pretty happy that a few of my favorite breweries made the list. I’ve been going to 21st Amendment for years, and I’m pleased that they were able to crack the list and gain a little more exposure. I’m a big fan of Bear Republic, Stone Brewing, Ninkasi, Anchor Brewing, and Lagunitas, so seeing these breweries make the cut just reaffirms my taste in craft brews. I like Sierra Nevada, but I’m really surprised to see them so high on the list. Stone and Lagunitas make much better beers with a lot more variety. There are a few breweries that are decidedly overrated and undeserving of a place so high up on this list (Rogue Ales and New Belgium, I’m looking at you). There are a lot of breweries that I can’t wait to experience and Critically Rate. This isn’t just a list of top U.S. craft breweries, this is a bucket list. And really, no Russian River brews? No Pliny the Elder? No Pliny the Younger? Seems like a pretty incomplete list to me.

Critically Rated at 12/17

Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Youngurl

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