h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

. . . was it 'Allah'?

. . . or 'ba jee zuz'?

Brewsters Blue Monk Barleywine, 9.9% abv - 100 ibu

The pour

Nice burgundy-ish mahogany colour with a two finger head. Bit cloudy, not much carbonation evident. Nice dense, if short lived lacing.

Aroma

Dark fruit-primarily plums and red grapes, possibly a bit of black cherry-and phenol.

Taste

Initial fruit flavour, then a maltiness seeps in, along with a bit of alcohol bitterness. A hint of fruit lingers a bit, leading to a clean finish. I'm tempted to age/cellar a bottle of this, along with (my current) Dieu du Ciel Solstice d'Hiver/Winter Solstice, Aley Kat's Olde Deuteronomy and Winnipeg brewery Half Pints' Burly Wine. At 9.9% it should age well.

Hmmm...

Well, my hidden posts were all back up in the morning with no comment.


I'm just going to work on putting all of your copious notes into the entry.

There!


Busy day again today: the deadline for submitting two items for the VAAA's 'xposition' show is this Saturday, so, this morning I went by with *three* and they decided to take them all.

Then this afternoon I went by Battista's again and it looks like I'll be delivering Calzone catering orders now and then.

And, I just noticed a call for submissions to the VAAA's show during the Works. I better get working: the deadline is May 4th.



I got a message from Taliesin the other day. It seems he's going to be in Edmonton this summer and wondered about a mini-meet. Perhaps it will be time for you and I to actually meet each other.


Of course, I'm planning a trip to B.C. this summer as well.

Just putting in my notes for Alley Kat's Alligator Blackened Lager.

Curiosity satisfying time(with one of my last bottles of Mojo A'Peel) I'd been subconsciously wondering how the vanilla & demerara sugar would pair with a couple options. First up that Stilton with mango & ginger. Hmm, that was a bit unexpected, the creaminess of the cheese was underlined more than either the ginger or mango being accentuated. The mango was actually, but only to a very minor degree(so minor as to be relatively insignificant). One that just occurred to me-the malt & hops doing their bit here, a couple handfuls of Kirkland rice cracker snack mix from Costco, The hops & malt really enhanced the rather subtle seasoning. But it seems I saved the best for last! My sweet tooth had me curious about a caramel-demerara sugar combo & for good reason. The Mojo A'Peel-or the sugar therein-really enriches the caramel filling in one of Kerstin's Fleur de Sel Caramels. A bit like coating the inside of the mouth with a good-quality caramel syrup!

Would you mind if I added that as an appendix to your notes on Mojo? Tomorrow?

I saw that a new post had come and I thought 'haven't we tried them all yet?!'

Oh, and. I ended up with a half bottle of home made Bordeaux type wine and a hastily prepared strip loin steak tonight -- a sudden craving likely related to my blood donation on Tuesday.

I like this idea, a university with a little macro-brewery. Seems it's being considered for a new students' union building at UBC.


http://www.canadianbeernews.com

It seems to me there's a university in the U.S. that has a brewery on campus and it offers a Brewmaster programme as well. The courses are available on campus (for a lot of money) or online (for a lot less money). The on campus version apparently also includes a tour of European breweries.

and, on a different subject: http://visualartsalberta.com/blog/?p=17480

Ah, ok noted*sticks up Postit note*.

However swinging back to the topic of alcohol. It must be the late afternoon light coming in my east-facing window. On pouring this Trois Pistoles I'm noticing a(transparent but)distinct burgundy hue. And I was right, it Does go nicely with this smoked Gouda, subtly accentuating the smokiness. And I rather doubt that the cheese has anything to do with it, but I Am-unlike the previous few bottles-picking up a vaguely Port/Sherry vinous quality as it fades!

I have a soft spot for the Chambly stuff.

Honestly I was only reasonably impressed with the Blanche de Chambly-really preferred Charlevoix's Dominus Vobiscum Blanche- & decidedly unimpressed with the Noir d..(found it too wishy-washy/watery). Trois Pistoles though...third time's the charm I guess!

(Just going on the 'Blanche' label there. )

I seem to remember liking the Maudite and the Fin du Monde.



I'm just about to slum it with a Lunch Pail Ale.

The Fin du Monde/End of the world was impressive(I've been meaning to get back to it, but *sigh*So many beers so little time!) The Maudite, to tell the truth only my first pint really impressed me. The next time I had one...30% less favourable reaction. Third glass..still less favourable. Why I tried it a month later I don't know, because I kind of asked myself what I ever saw in it. Of course by that time I had tried both the Schmaltz Bittersweet Lenny's & the Dieu du Ciel Spice Route, both of which pretty much blew it/Maudite out of the water, at least imho...Unibroue, calls'em as I sees 'em.

Just tried an older-Jan.-tamarind candy(no not Pulparindo-Rollitas Sabor Tamarindo). It comes in an essentially 4 inch cylindrical tube. Anyway, had a large bite just before taking a sip of the Ostiarius & it was like the tamarind sent out a brigade of cleaning ladies with industrial-strength vacuums-not a Trace of the cherry flavour!

I had one of those tamarind candies in my hand the last time I was in Tienda Latina (yesterday)! But I put it back in the box, figuring the ham torta was enough for my belly for the day.