Celebrator Doppelbock Rocks

I don't do a lot of reviews but I have to make an exception. This beer has been a favorite of mine for quite some time although it's been a while since I've actually had it, until last night. I went to an annual beer tasting last night with friends. It's informal and everyone just brings beer and we grab at will the ones that look interesting. Not all of my friends like great beer - my best friend thinks Corona is a treat. Don't get me started.

But Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock is quite simply amazing and even if my pale tasteless ale drinking friends don't see it, those of us who love beer (and yes, a few of my other friends actually do) couldn't get enough of this brew last night. There were only a couple bottles brought and we were treating them like gold. I am a true fan of Bocks - especially the Double Bocks. There were a couple of others brought and I also tasted a dark wheat beer which was intriguing.

But Celebrator is top notch. The beer has a beautiful clear hazelnut brown color and is oh so smooth with a thick and creamy head. Now imagine drinking a caramel iced coffee with a little bit of fruity chocolate. Add small bubbles that add to the silkiness of the brew and you've just described Celebrator. Shoot, even on Beer Advocate with over 1,700+ reviews it receives an A. Just go get yourself a bottle of this beer and keep some around for special occasions - you will be happy you did!

Top 100 Value Wines

If you've read this blog for any amount of time, you'll know that 1. I'm not a huge 'follow the ratings' kind of drinker. Ratings are subjective and completely depend upon the palette of someone I don't know. In other words, I don't blindly buy a wine because it has 92 points. And 2. I'm cheap. I stand firmly in my belief that great wine doesn't have to be expensive.

So it's crazy that I'm personally so thrilled to see this list of wines. But I really feel that this list is a departure from most ratings and is truly more in alignment with today's wine drinker. We're a little more knowledgeable about wine in general, know that great wines come from some obscure places and want the best bang for our buck.

The official start to the list is "...Wine Enthusiast 100-point scale is high in relation to its price (a very precise formula we keep to ourselves, but 88-points and $10 are approximate yardsticks), it merits a Best Buy designation. Only about 5% of the wines we review annually merit this designation, and what you’re seeing on these next pages is a very elite grouping drawn from that already limited group. Enjoy, shop wisely, drink well, give thanks."

Brilliant! I glanced through the list and there were already a good dozen I want to buy right now. Don't take my word for it - go check it out for yourself here.

Beer, Graffiti and Brilliance

It's wonderful when businesses understand that they are responsible for their own community but it becomes Brilliant when they bribe their community to care. That's just what Rogue Ales is doing... they have adopted 2 city blocks in Portland and are hosting Thursday clean ups - and afterwards they'll give you free tastings and a tour. They are even stepping it up one more notch by hosting a Graffiti Cleanup After Dark - yep, complete with glow in the dark goodies and cleaning supplies. I love everything about these ideas.

Go to the Rogue's website to find out more details and to check out their beer (fab!!) here.

Great American Beer Winners

WoooHooo!!! Our small town of Temecula California now has a winner of a brewer. Congratulations to Black Market Brewing Company for their GOLD winning Rye Beer (out of 32 I may add). There were quite a few winners from Southern California - a lot from 3 locations of Pizza Port (San Clemente, Carlsbad and Ocean Beach). Also included were Stone Brewery, Karl Strauss, Taps, Port Brewing (San Marcos), and Eagle Rock (LA). I'm so proud of our SoCal showing at the festival and if I couldn't be there in person, at the very least I can visit these breweries and taste their award winning beers. How many people can say that?

Click here on the festival site for your complete shopping list...

Brewery in Temecula

Well, real estate sales went down and craft brew sales went up so it appears that this Temecula Entrepreneur switched gears at exactly the right time. I love that owner and brewer Andrew Marshall is doing something he truly loves with a business plan that looks like it will survive the tides. Enjoy the video below and then go to the Press Enterprise for the full story. Hopefully permits will be allowed soon to be able to purchase the beer directly from the brewery.

Drunken Cows for Dinner

Food trends make me giggle but this one has me curious: cows are being fed wine for 60 days as part of their diet. Evidently these particular bovine become chattier than your typical cow after their daily treat of red wine blends, although they prefer the sweeter varietals. Inspired by pigs being fed beer (how did I miss that story?-beer bacon! Yum!), the liter of wine isn't enough to make the cows tipsy but they are very relaxed. Evidently relaxed cows make for some tender eats. It's more expensive than regular sober beef but those who are cooking and eating it agree that the extra cost is worth the quality of meat they are experiencing.

For the full story from CBC News click here.

Wine Bra

I cannot really say much about this find... it's a sports bra that holds an entire bottle of wine in it - with a handy drinking straw. Really? Holy hot shaken wine! You can buy one here at BaronBob.com (search for the Wine Rack) for $29 AND your boobs will instantly increase from a size A to D. Of course the more you drink the smaller they become but then, perhaps you care less as well.

P.S. While you're here, they also sell The Beer Belly which holds 80oz of beer for $34.95. They've got ya covered!
EAVB_YRLPGEBGMI

Beer Archaeology

When I was in college there was a semester when I seriously considered majoring in Archaeology/ Anthropology. When I read this article I was saddened that I never followed through with it. I mean why did I not foresee analyzing leftover beer from the bottom of ancient clay pots? It's brilliant! And of course the maverick brewers at Dogfish Head have taken their quest to brew beer from things other than water, hops, (yeast) and barley to the extreme by digging up a 9,000 year old recipe from the Neolithic villiage of Jiahu, in Henan province, Northern China. While this instantly brings to my mind the words unsanitary and chunky (don't ask) (oh and yes, I use the same words for Lambecs, thus why I'm not a big fan), modern brewing practices have cleaned up the process a bit.

The ingredients are certainly unique "In keeping with historic evidence, Dogfish brewers used pre-gelatinized rice flakes, Wildflower honey, Muscat grapes, barley malt, hawthorn fruit, and Chrysanthemum flowers. The rice and barley malt were added together to make the mash for starch conversion and degredation." I have no idea what it's going to taste like but I'm looking forward to giving it a try. It is expected to hit wholesalers the third week of August and then to the stores a few weeks after that. For more information go to Dogfish Head here.

Chocolate and Spice

My girlfriends look at me with deep doubt when I order a dark beer but once I explain that there is nothing better than the deep rich caramel chocolaty goodness of a true stout their interest is peaked. And no, I'm not talking Guinness -why do people automatically assume that is the definition of a dark beer?

I'm talking about Imperial Stouts, barrel aged and wine refined infused with coffee, spices, cherry, vanilla beans. This is a sexy beer. Ready... "They're the crowd-pleasing Cabernets of the beer world—heavy, boozy quaffs with popular flavors like chocolate, caramel, and spice. Think German chocolate cake in a bottle, doused in alcohol." -The Atlantic

So I'm not the only one who feels this way... Rate Beer gave 25 or it's top 50 spots to Imperials. The best article I've found recently giving full stats is the one I quoted from The Atlantic above. I highly recommend you go convert yourself by reading it and then experimenting with some, what did the author call it... "German chocolate cake in a bottle"? With names like Bells Bourbon Barrel Double Cream/Expedition Stout and Foothills Sexual Chocolate Imperial Stout (read of review of this beauty at The Beer Fathers, referring to this beer as "It’s so smooth I can’t stop drinking it. It’s like chocolate milk for adults") what is there not to love?

For a list of the top Imperial Stouts go to RateBeer here. You won't be disappointed.

Blarney and Biodynamics

Kissing the Blarney Stone in Ireland is one of the popular traditions I won't be taking part in. Why? Because locals pee on the stone to punk tourists. Seriously. Yuck. But it's supposed to bring you luck the way biodynamic wines will bring you a sense of global accomplishment as if drinking the stuff will endear you to the green movement. I admit, I thought Biodynamic wines were indeed better than simply organic wines as it takes the entire process of growing and turns it into a lovely Maypole dancing event filled with ancient methods that are better for soil and stem.

That was until I read the latest blog to hit the wine blogosphere entitled aptly Biodynamics is a Hoax. Really? I read through all of the posts, but one of the comments really brought it home for me.

If you ever see somebody doing surgery on a roadkill deer, it’s probably a biodynamic farmer. “In terms of its forces a deer bladder is almost a replica of the cosmos...” So you pull over to the side of the road, remove the deer’s bladder, stuff it with yarrow flowers, hang it from the eaves all summer, bury it for the winter, then dig it up and put it in your compost pile in the spring so that the compost can “inhale the cosmic energy.”

To their credit, the biodynamic types do tend to spend more time paying attention to the food they’re growing than most other folks. And the quality tends to be better as a result. So it doesn’t bother me much that they use astrology to decide when to plant and harvest. If the Scientologists want to grow tomatoes organically and can get Tom Cruise and John Travolta to spend all their waking hours picking hornworms off the plants, I’ll be happy to eat the fruit that’s produced. But please don’t tell me that the tomatoes are better because they’re Thetan-free.

Hmmmm. Food for thought right? In looking into the methods (like using actual lead as a fertilizer for roses) I'm still confused. When my husband who has studied umpteen hours (Masters in Botany with certifications and CE up the ying yang) about fertilizers told me that the flowers organic farmers use to help keep pests away is more toxic than the chemical versions I get even more confused. Of course he could just be telling me this so I don't buy the more expensive organic veggies...

In any event, here's my conclusion for wine. Drink what you like. Drink copious amounts and perhaps someone will do a study on you to see the effects of the chemicals used prior to the long process of turning grapes into alcohol. My goal is to get picked for that study.

Designer Canned Beer

If I were to tell you that real women drink beer from a can, does your little snobby beer nose crinkle just a little? Mine TOTALLY does because good craft beers don't come in cans. You're probably drinking PBR right? No offence to PBR-I've been known to enjoy me an ice cold one from time to time. Cans are lighter creating a smaller environmental footprint if that makes you feel a little better about opting for this container. Besides, you can drink our of a can on beaches and rivers for summer, places where glass is typically shunned.

But good quality beer doesn't come encased in metal, right? Like screw top wine, the beer industry is changing with the times. There are about 80 craft breweries right now in the US that are selling canned beer with 20 more in the pipes. 80% of the states are represented but Colorado takes the award for having 16 breweries with cans (lots of fishing folk there that appreciate hanging their beer in the river to staw cold) and California (WooHooo!) chimes in with 7.

For a detailed list by the guys who actually took the time to research and put this all together, please go to BeerNews.org here. In the meantime, don't judge the can so quickly anymore. It is very possible for Real Women to drink real beer from the can.

I Want a Beer Cellar

"Honey, I want a beer cellar" was the phone call I made today. My husband responded that we already have a beer fridge in the garage and that was just going to have to suffice. But today I read an article about a man in Pasadena who has a beer cave in his backyard. He raids it only twice a year showing much more restraint than I would have (thus the reason why my fridge will do). Read the full article from the LA Times here.
Believe it or not, there are many beers that could do with a little aging and there are beers that are made specifically to age.

Turning basements, garages and bedroom closets into beer caves is the latest twist in L.A.'s growing beer culture — one that increasingly revolves around collecting, trading and, yes, waiting, with patience once ascribed only to wine drinkers. Some of the collections cost several thousand dollars too.

This year alone, dozens of California brewers will release specialty beers that crank up the alcohol percentage and punch up the spices (everything from figs to juniper berries) to create flavors that age. Many sit for months in the same oak casks used for whiskey, wine or brandy, earning followings among even Scotch drinkers. Brands with names such as Decadence, Old Stock, Angel's Share and Consecration hit the market in small batches, only to be snatched up for private collections, as if they were Impressionist art.

Just like wine, Stone Brewery launched a 12 year campaign of beers to do just that with one special beer released each year ready to be cellared. I HIGHLY recommend you check out their story at the Stone Brewery site here. I love the initial video they did on the project. I've written about these beers before because, they're great! The problem is of course that I keep buying Stone's Vertical Epic beers and then they last about a month of me storing them before I have to open it up to try.

See honey - that's why I need a beer cave!

Top 10 Places for a Real Woman to Avoid on Vacation

Vacation... the winter dull-drums bring to mind topical palms gently blowing while cabana boys bring a never ending supply of drinks with little umbrellas in them. And then there are these places... the Top 10 Most Sober Cities in the US.

Most Sober Metro Areas % Who Don't Drink Heavily
1. Provo-Orem, Utah 99.4
2. Idaho Falls, Idaho 97.9
3. Hickory, N.C. 97.8
4. Ogden, Utah 97.5
5. Brownsville, Texas 97.2
5. Fayetteville, N.C. 97.2
5. Raleigh, N.C. 97.2
5. Wichita, Kan. 97.2
9. Cheyenne, Wyo. 97.0
9. Farmington, N.M. 97.0

Did you cross them off your list? (Were they even on the list?)

Don't panic... I've got you covered because here are the top 10 Booziest Cities in the US you can add back onto your list - it's in photo format and I'm proud to say that one of them is where I live. It's like it was meant to be... Click here to find out where these cities are from U.S. News.

Fake Pinot Noir Scam

Today my Google Reader sent me 114 posts about this wine scam of over 18 million bottles of Pinot Noir. Those 18 million bottles were sold as Red Bicyclette to E&J Gallo here in California, less than 20% of the number of bottles that actually were released. This red blend from Languedoc, France consisting of Merlot and Syrah sells for half the price as the "pure" Pinot Noir from the same region. Six have been arrested in the scheme and about a dozen vintners have been fined heavily for their participation.

I love that the reason they were actually caught wasn't because some wine genius tasted the wine and thought that is wasn't quite right but that the exports from the Languedoc-Roussillon area far exceeded historic levels and what is a physically possible amount of pure Pinot Noir.

Now Red Bicyclette sells for about $9 a bottle and can be found in general stores as a maintenance wine. The brand in no way tries to be anything fancy or even high quality. Wine snobs wouldn't dare touch the stuff as cheap Pinot Noir is an oxymoron. It's a hard grape to work with and will usually be worth spending a little bit more on. At this price point the importers probably tasted it and could tell there was a little bit of another grape in there to tame the Pinot - but here in the US, as long as the primary grape is 75% of the formula, the wine can be labeled as that varietal.

Honestly it's not surprising. I've written about counterfeit alcohol before and I will do it again. For me it's not the scam itself that makes me mad, it's the attitude behind it.

Jean-Marie Bourland, a lawyer for Sieur d'Arques, did not rule out an appeal. "There is no prejudice. Not a single American consumer complained," he argued. Pierre Dounac, lawyer for three defendants including Ducasse's director Claude Courset, argued that his clients had done no harm as they had delivered a wine with the characteristics of Pinot Noir.from Yahoo News

Americans will drink anything and Pinot is trendy and hot right now is the message being sent. I sincerely hope that the wine region will not be damaged much as they do export some amazing wines but really? We may be stupid enough to buy a $9 Wine - heck we even gave it a few awards. We just ask that you be honest about the label and don't insult us when you lie. The average wine drinker would still probably buy it for it's cute name.

Light Wine

I don't even know how to start explaining the idea of making a low sugar, low calorie wine. We've been bombarded with horrible tasting low calorie beers for a while now (see my old post about that abomination here), but I thought wine would be a little safer. I was wrong.

This wine comes from France where they have developed grapes that grow naturally with a lower sugar content bringing the glass count to a whopping 60 calories. It not only is nearly sugar free but also touts a lower alcohol level.

"We are targeting a population that is very conscious of eating and drinking healthily. They also want to watch their weight and also don't want to lose points on their driving license if they drink," explains Claude Vialade, one of the vintners behind "So Light".

The DMV thanks you.... and evidently there is no taste difference between this and a higher alcohol version and they expect to sell MILLIONS of bottles.

I'm not going to be one of those sales. I really don't want gimmick wine. I just want great wine - is that so much for a Real Woman to ask for?

Read their sales pitch here at WPTV.com and let me know what you think...

Maxim's Top 25 Beers

Next to the lingerie photo spread of Amanda Bynes is a three page article listing the top 25 beers in Maxim Magazine. I'll be honest with you - I haven't read the actual article. I tried to read it online but they only have 5 beers listed there and urge you to go buy the magazine in stands. In lieu of this, I read the list on A Blog About Beer here.

I'm not sure what their criteria were but I have to say it's a really random collection of beer, some of which I wouldn't have placed on the list. Pyramid Hefeweizen - not my favorite and don't even get me started on Bud Light Golden Wheat and I am 100% sure that Sexual Chocolate (Imperial Stout) – Foothills Brewing was only picked for its name. Have you read Maxim? Definitely the name. Now my husband is a typical guy who isn't too picky about his beer and he likes that Bud Light Golden Wheat. With 20% of the beer listing being canned instead of bottled, it leads me to understand that perhaps this list caters to the typical guy who just likes beer.

It also struck me while going through the list that there weren't a lot of dark beers - are they not fashionable today? Or is it that women can better appreciate the chocolaty flavors of a Porter (there was 1 porter on the list). Go check out the full list at A Blog About Beer here or the partial list at Maxim.

Strike at Anheuser-Busch

Unions. I have such mixed emotions about the power they wield, especially when it comes to strikes that prevent beer from going out. Anheuser-Busch is restructuring its InBev operations in Europe as part of their cost cutting efforts spurred by the major growth it has taken on in the past several years. It was to be expected right?

A Belgian union official said it was calling on the company to withdraw its restructuring plan, which would cut about 800 jobs in Europe, including 263 in Belgium. “We will continue with the blockades and will discuss whether to intensify our action,” he said. -From Real Beer

I get it but let me put it this way - Belgium might run out of beer!!! OK really? They might run out of Stella but out of beer? Disaster is brewing when the supermarkets stop carrying a popular band of beer?

The company employs about 5,700 people. The plan will mean 303 jobs would be lost in Belgium, 386 in Germany, and 42 in the Netherlands. They are also discussing 150 early retirement packages and 70 new positions as part of a restructure. It's necessary to restructure because beer consumption in Belgium has dropped 20%.

Angered by the job losses, union members took 10 managers hostage at the group's Jupille brewery in eastern Belgium last Thursday, but the executives were released unharmed the following day, according to the newspaper.-From CNBC

Now supply trucks can't get in and the beer can't get out because of blockades. What do you think? Justified strike or justified restructure?

Green Wine Standards in California

Going green has become a shallow tag line in many businesses. In California, the wine industry is starting a modest certification program that will help standardize exactly what being a "green" winery really entails. From soils erosion to energy conservation, wineries are invited to rate themselves on 227 practices. To qualify, participants need to meet 58 prerequisites or have a plan to meet them within a year.

This list is not daunting and should be an easily accomplished goal by many wineries. Some are complaining that indeed the list is too simple and that the goals should somehow be loftier.

Seventeen companies volunteered for a trial run, a list dominated by such major industry players as Gallo, Diageo and Constellation but also including smaller properties like Cooper-Garrod in the Santa Cruz Mountains and Honig in Napa Valley.

Still, the current standards are so modest that some in the industry wonder whether they will have a real impact, especially in selling to overseas markets, where strict sustainability certifications like EntWine Australia have been in use for years. Several other California efforts, notably the Lodi Rules program, are already ahead — both in specifics and in conducting outside audits.

A quick look at the baseline requirements reveals the potential for tougher standards. Requirements on water use are vague, requiring only an annual test of water quality for decision-making purposes and some basic water planning. Soil fumigation is allowed so long as there's testing to ensure a problem.

I'm glad that there will be some less arbitrary way of defining a green winery - small steps lead to great things! To read the full article from the SF Chronicle click here.

Beer Week in San Francisco

SF Beer Week 2010 ain't your grandparents' Beer Week. We've got more gizmos and doohickies than a barrel of pickles (or something).

At least that's what the writers from the San Francisco Brewers' Guild say. It looks like an amazing event with locations all over the giant San Francisco Bay Area. I think the Valentine Beer vs. Wine looks fun as do all of the other events - there are over 50 events! I can't even begin to tell you about them but you can go to their site SFBeerWeek.com here and check it out yourself...

Facebook Vitamin Water

A true sign of our times is when a social media platform is used to create a product. Vitamin Water has just launched a new Black Cherry-Lime Facebook flavored drink with Caffeine and 8 other nutrients. Now you can hydrate, take your vitamins and connect with thousands of others on Facebook all at the same time.

What do you think about it - a social experiment gone right or wrong? See their fan page on Facebook here.

French Counterfeiting New Zealand Wine

In China they are counterfeiting beer but in France, something more ironic is happening. A French winemaker was caught trying to pass off his fine French product as a trendy New Zealand wine. That's funny.

But in a humiliating blow to Gallic pride, winemakers have been accused of trying to pass off their bottles as New Zealand produce to cash in on the popularity of brands from down under.

A tribunal in Australia has ruled Loire Valley-based firm Lacheteau labelled its sauvignon blanc Kiwi Cuvee in a nod to the quirkily-named New Zealand and Australian white wines.

Now note - the label does somewhere say that it is a French wine... but the marketing is clearly a knockoff of New Zealand wines which are outselling French ones even in France. For as fiercely as the French defend the "terroir" of the wine, claiming that the region and area each wine is produced is special and protected, they are also noting that their wines are simply being out-marketed in the world.

Jeffrey Davies, a Bordeaux wine expert, said that there was a "nasty irony" about a French producer muscling in on New Zealand's success and it was a sign Kiwis had "beaten the French at their own game".

"I don't know whether this reflects a superior quality among New Zealand sauvignon blanc or their ability to better market their wines."

I am a bug fan of many French wines but their industry continually cracks me up.

To read the full article click here.

Counterfit Beer in China

Evidently there are breweries selling fancy bottles of beer to bars in China, like Corona and Budweiser, that have been refilled with cheaper lagers (is it possible?). The companies responsible for such devious behaviors even go the extra mile to cook the beers once re-bottled to disguise the taste difference. Bar goers don't normally notice any difference.

There is very little in China that cannot be counterfeited – that includes beer too, as the Xishan Bureau of Commerce confirmed on Tuesday when it raided a rented space behind a cement factory in the Majie area that contained more than 20,000 bottles of fake Budweiser and Carlsberg beers.

The secret behind the scam: taking a big, cheap bottle of local Kingstar Beer, splitting its contents between two smaller Budweiser or Carlsberg bottles and a bottle-capping machine to fix caps to the top of the bottles. The total time it takes to increase the Kingstar's value up to ten times – ten seconds.

Evidently, counterfeit alcohol is quite common in China as are many food products, beer just one of many things that can be faked. Even many of the finer hotels carry bogus bottles of premium booze. So what to trust? How about your tastebuds, as long as you don't get sick from that extra bacteria in your drink...

For the full news article, click here.