When it gets too cold for backyard deck sitting my wife, Barb and I go back to our cold weather routine of enjoying our pre-dinner Manhattans while listening to albums in our basement.
While our house was built in the 1920s, our basement isn’t one of those dank, low-ceilinged, subsurface spaces common in older homes and generally known in these parts as a “Michigan basement.” We use one room for a beer and wine cellar, another for storage and the laundry is in another. We set up the turntable and speakers in the largest room where there is also a small television set, an easy chair, an end table and a collection of exercise equipment.
It’s a fairly cozy space despite the fact that when Barb and I are listening to music we have to take turns sitting in the easy chair and on the exercise bike. If friends happen to stop over the seating options are the chair, the bike, the steps, the rowing machine and the carpeted floor.
After last May’s homebrew party, a small group of homebrewers came over for an after party on the back deck. When it began raining we moved to the basement. It was a fun night. I had so much fun in fact that I fell asleep in the easy chair. When I woke and went upstairs to remove my contacts I saw that I had a Primetime Brewers sticker plastered on my forehead. A picture was posted on the internet the following day.
My forehead wasn’t the only thing that got tagged that night. We now have both Primetime and Brewsquitos stickers on our exercise machines, on storage racks and on the furnace ducts. A couple of months after the party Barb found a Primetime sticker on a jar of stewed tomatoes in the freezer. A few nights ago she spotted another one on the hot water heater.
There’s probably a pretty good chance that we’ll find a couple more.
New and Returning Beer
- Alaskan Smoked Porter 2015 and 2016, $3.29/22oz - "Known as “rauchbier” in Germany, smoke-flavored beers were virtually unknown in the U.S. until Alaskan Smoked Porter was developed in 1988" (source).
- Dark Horse Plead the Fifth 2016 and 2017, $3.59/12oz - "Our Russian Imperial Stout is pitch black in color with a faint tan head that immediately identifies this beer as BIG. Aromas of dark fruits, chocolate, caramel and roast also make it even bigger. Roasted coffee and fruity chocolate notes are just the beginning of this beers complex flavor. You have the right to enjoy or remain silent" (source).
- Dogfish Head 120 Minute, $10.99/12oz - "Clocking in at 15-20% ABV, 120 Minute IPA is continuously hopped with a copious amount of high-alpha American hops throughout the boil and whirlpool, and then dry-hopped with another pallet of hops. Unfiltered and abundently hoppy, it's the Holy Grail for hopheads" (source).
- Great Divide Barrel Aged Gift Set, $34.89 - "As Great Divide prepares to enter a new chapter with their Barrel Aged & Sour program, they are offering a limited edition box set ($30) that includes a compilation of their Barrel Aged Classics: Hibernation, Old Ruffian and Yeti" (source).
- Great Divide Yeti Gift Pack, $28.99 - A three-pack featuring Oatmeal Yet, Chai Yeti and Barrel-Aged Yet.
- Griffin Claw Dark Passenger, $19.29/22oz - "If our beyond oblivious and flying buffalo stout had a baby...this would be it. Add some spices and you have a dark passenger. A tart blast with a rich sweet finish" (source).
- Griffin Claw Figure it Out, $2.39/16oz - "We had to beg Dan to make this and it turned out awesome! Coconut & Vanilla stand strong in this easy drinking Milk Stout" (source).
- Griffin Claw Flying Buffalo Barrel Aged Chocolate Raspberry, $19.29/22oz - No commercial description.
- Griffin Claw Flying Buffalo Barrel Aged Cinnamon Vanilla, $19.29/22oz - No commercial description.
- Griffin Claw Flying Buffalo Barrel Aged Coffee Stout, $19/29/22oz - "Bourbon-barrel-aged one year with coffee" (source).
- Griffin Claw Flying Buffalo Barrel Aged Stout, $19/29/22oz - "This award winning ale has a big malt profile with coffee, dark chocolate and coconut notes, accented with American hops. This ale was first brewed in England for the Russian Imperial Court. We add American hops to the recipe and dry-hop it for a more balanced profile" (source).
- Griffin Claw Oblivious, $19.29/22oz - "Our Oblivious Wheat Wine & Coffee beans aged in Bourbon Barrels for 9 months" (source).
- Odd Side Barrel Aged Rye Hipster Brunch, $8.09/12oz - "Rye Stout brewed with maple syrup, aged in rye whiskey barrels with coffee and bacon added" (source).
- Odd Side Falcon Punch, $2.39/12oz - "A \"super\ S.M.A.S.H. IPA! A single malt and single hop Imperial IPA. Made with Falconer's Flight hops and French pale malt" (source).
- Odd Side Hipster Brunch, $6.49/12oz - "It’s morning somewhere! This delectable stout has been aged in bourbon barrels with coffee, maple syrup, and bacon" (source).
- Odd Side Pretentious, $10.39/500ml - "Sour Brown Ale" (source).
- Omnipollo Shoutao, $4.09/16oz - "Shoutao Peach Slush IPA is an IPA brewed with peach and lactose sugar. Very limited" (source).
- Port Brewing Santa's Little Helper, $3.99/12oz - "Santa’s Little Helper, our Imperial Stout, starts with an emphasis on dark cocoa and roasted coffee aromatics. The finish lends hints of sweet crystal malt, warming tones of alcohol and a touch of hops, making a perfect accompaniment to leftover fruit cake and sugar cookies" (source).
- Short's Liberator, $2.59/12oz - "The Liberator was made as a 30th birthday gift to Joe Short. As a double IPA, this beast employs a sizable malt bill, but it is the crazy amount of hops added to the boil every 4 minutes, for 120 minutes, that really make this beer special. Fruity, floral, and piney hop flavors penetrate throughout the caramelized malt profile. The Liberator is a well-balanced, full bodied brew that has a bitter finish due to the post fermentation addition of lemon and orange zest" (source).
Video of the Week | 120 Minute IPA
Available for a limited tim at Siciliano's!
Cheers!
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