November 2011

Bar Trivia Nights

The best night of the week.

I really like trivia nights at local bars. There’s something about drinking beer and answering questions that gives you a perfect combination of drunk invincibility, brashness and an excuse for why you missed ten questions in a row that you probably should know. It also makes you feel smart, maybe, and usually you can win some stuff. Plus, your faith in humanity is restored because there’s a whole legion of people who would rather answer esoteric questions about defunct NBA teams, rather than putting on beer goggles and trying out lame pick-up lines.

Broke Ass Wine

If It Ain't Broke... But Then, It Is

I just had a few glasses of Broke Ass wine with my Thanksgiving dinner, and a few more the day after. The whole idea of Broke Ass is that it's supposed to be a good wine at a bargain price. I suppose it is actually worth the price- about $4.00- but it didn't impress me.

 

Now, I'm the furthest thing from a wine snob. I used to drink Wild Irish Rose on a regular basis, and I've even been known to drink Mad Dog 20/20- not that would I ever do either of those things again. So I don't think anyone could say that my standards are just too high here. I know how to enjoy a good cheeseburger just as much as a filet mignon, and I know how to enjoy a bargain wine in its context.

Lagunitas Imperial Stout

The Name Is So-So, The Stout Is Good

Lately, I've been developing a real taste for a good beer with a not-so-great name- Lagunitas Imperial Stout. Why do I think the name is not so great? Because this is supposed to be an example of an “Imperial Russian” style of stout, which historically would have been a British beer made for export to Russia, and the name is evocative of neither Britain nor Russia.

Two Buck Chuck

Charles Shaw Wine From Trader Joe's

 

Trader Joe's “Charles Shaw” family of wines, fondly known as “Two Buck Chuck,” probably represents the best value in wine in the United States. If you pay anything less than ten dollars for wine you can usually expect to get something that tastes like alcoholic vinegar, but you can sometimes pay four or five times that much and still be disappointed.

Old Rasputin

Russian Imperial Stout

When I first opened a bottle of Old Rasputin, the term “Imperial Russian stout” was a new one on me. Since when did the Russians make stout, after all? It turns out that they didn't make it, but they did drink it.