Local IPA for your belly

Had a couple IPA's last week at Craftworks in Seoul.  Nice lacing, as you can see. 

Coffee in Hanoi

Prepared via aluminum drip filter with condensed milk.  Tasted like chicory.  Hanoi was kinda like New Orleans.

Mysterious Vietnamese liquor

Vietnamese homebrewed liquor

After lunch along the way to Halong Bay I tried a shot of liquor from the bottle on the far right.

The taste was really bitter.  And I am still able to see!

I wouldn't have it a second time.  And worse yet, it apparently was made with bear bile.

Let's jumpstart this blogging thing

From Shanghai with MCL, at the best brewery in Asia.

California Sake

Sake with some friends. Good stuff - it's made in California so you can probably find it. Sesame leaf tempura was different. Then we had pork-wrapped vegetable tempura. Really good.

To Infinium and Beyond!

Sent from my iPhone

Happy Thanksgiving friends!  Wish you were here...

It's no summer shandy, but what is?

Winding down the weekend with Vietnamese brew and mandu.  Dig it!

Again with the pancakes?

More pancakes.  Still delicious.  The key thing is the sauce... for dipping.  Trying different combinations of soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, apple vinegar and wasabi.

Hopsecutioner My Ass

BarrytheBear ( Madison, Wisconsin ) D / 2.2 look: 3.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | drink: 2 rDev: -75% Another generous extra from jpmclaug. Thank you, Jason! I had this beer once in a blind tasting and I will attempt to review this with a fresh perspective. The previous results were, shall we say, unimpressive. Near amber pour with loads of fizzy carbonation. I can just sense a malt bomb coming. Ugh, here comes the caramel malt. What is more disconcerting is the unmistakable smell of vomit when swirled vigorously in the glass. Akin to riding past the trash dump while someone blows chunks onto your dashboard. Seriously, what the hell is going on here? Oh Hopsecutioner, if only there were an immediate and swift response by some necessary-at-times-like-these bureaucratic agency that came to your house, gave you a stern lecture, and permanently removed your moniker forever more. I want to be slayed by hops, not gently kissed by tangerine and manhandled by a filthy, groping malt monster. Why???? Argggghhh The mouthfeel is odd and strangely carbonated and this weird cloying sweetness and the feel of being sick pervades the experience. This is a fail for me.

Satyagraha, bitches

12 oz can into my Unibroue tulip. Pours a mega cloudy orange with a steady quarter inch inch that fizzes and pops at the center. When held to the fading daylight, evidence of yellow hues emerge. Legs go on forever and cling to the glass like a Chilean miner to his sanity. Too soon?

Massive tropical fruits on the nose along with unsalted crackers on the initial pass. A secondary swoop reveals something quite medicinal. It smells like a melding of cherry and menthol cough drops. Since the initial smell is quite enticing and the follow up is, um....less so, I'll split the difference.

Soapy pine, citrus, grass, and bitter with a mild though firm cracker backing. Firm cracker backing....sounds like the aspirations of a local politician in his bid for governor. But, I digress. Stupid barrage of campaign commercials! There's a mash of hops here that I wish profiled more of the tropical fruits and less of the soapy bitter grass. By no means unpleasant, but a bit of letdown after the initial olfactory salvo from the pop of the can. Seems somewhat haphazardly thrown together.

Medium bodied, bubbly and well carbonated, pops on the palate. Goes down quickly from the slick feel, but I'm not sure I'd feel compelled to work my way through another can at this time. No freshness date makes me wonder whether I got the true experience of this beer or not. The results are a mixed bag.

B+

Would he be as big a badass if he were Larry Fishburn? Discuss.....

Bomber shared with the wife - Larry pours foggy pale orange with a nice fluffy head. Just shy of what I find my IPA sweet spot for appearance.

Sweet and sour sauce coupled with orange. Slightly lacking in vibrance but not unpleasant.

Resiny and more sweet than bitter though a slight bitter nip pops at the finish. Citrus is fuzzy and present, though doesn't show in any major flavor. Orange would be the most dominant. Something about this profile doesn't fully grab me. Much like the smell, it's not unpleasant, it just tickle my inner IPA fan.

Mouthfeel is light in body and fizzy from the carbonation leaving a tingle on the tongue.

Drinkability is high though my desire to do so is not up to that level. B

What we'd have drank if we'd gone camping

Off to a howlingly unfunny de-b-u-u-u-u

Really wish more breweries released bourbon barrel aged beers in smaller bottles. This one fit the bill tonight. Nagging unpleasant thoughts began seeping into the frontal cortex as I was reminded of the qualms with this vintage. Sadly, we have confirmation.

Slightest hiss as the cork lamely puts up little resistance. Less than sludgy as the bottle proclaims. Quite flacid. Arise, damnit! Still watery look. Less than impressive.

Hot damn the nose is nice. Rich baker's chocolate, massive oak presence, and an inviting bourbon presence. Oozy vanilla and heat follow. So very woody.

Quite a little coquette here. With the appropriate carbonation this could be a real treat. Big league tannins from the oak and vanilla. The bourbon is large but not overwhelming. The heat is present but in check. Again, the wood from the barrel plays a huge role here.

The mouthfeel here is such an enormous letdown. The flavor profile would be well served by even a low, but appropriate, level of carbonation. But this is damn near flat. As a result the flavors just idle, waiting for the engine to drive them through.

Sadly, not very interested to finish this as it stands. What a waste of potential. The Tommie Harris of beers. B-

Breakfast at Northdowns