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

Today I 'ave been mostly eatin' steak and kidney pie and drinkin' Rodenbach Flanders Red Ale.

Small world. I had Rodenbach Grand Cru, A red sour ale today.

I believe that was one of Michael Jackson's favourite beers

)You know I mean the Beer Hunter, not Wacko Jacko, right?)

http://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A29019369

Today I 'ave mostly been drinkin' Live Oak Liberator doppelbock.

Well, it is Lent after all

Today I 'ave mostly been drinkin' a bottle of 2011 Stone Old Guardian barley wine, the Belgo version brewed with Belgian yeast. Oh my horsey god, that is so good.

Today I 'ave mostly been drinkin' Thirsty Planet Wandering Wood smoked porter, made with malt smoked at Stiles Switch BBQ and Brew.

I've mostly been drinking a local beer called "Rocket Ride", which the brewery describes as "kinda like a brown ale, but not really, but also it's at around 8%." Then I went down the road to the "fancy" pub and had a bottle of Monk's Cafe Belgian Red Sour and a Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale and now I'm heading home to get on the bicycle and head to my local... while I can.


Wait, how was the Barbecue?

Ooh, Monks Cafe. I love that stuff.

That wasn't actually any Barbecue, ie, meat - the brewery took their malt to the BBQ place where it was smoked, then they made the beer with it. It's not the first time Thirsty Planet have done this - last year they did the same thing with Franklins.

What's the name of the brewery (brewpub?) that makes Rocket Ride?

Well, for better or worse, I lost a long post I'd composed. Probably for the better.


The brewery is called Galactic Coast Brewing. They're located in the outskirts of the town I where I went to high school, Dickinson, TX.

http://galacticcoastbrewing.com

They're really small. They have kegs in maybe a dozen or so bars in the area so far. (They were featured in a reality show on Destination America channel called King of the Grill, yet another reality show based on a custom builder. Galactic Coast brewing was featured in the pilot episode "demanding" to have a Space Shuttle shaped BBQ pit built in a week. The truth was, the owner of the brewery was pals with one of the main producers of the show. By the time the episode finally aired, the brewery owners were very worried they might not even have their licenses by air time.)

So far they've got a couple of decent beers. One the call "Sneaky Blonde" which is self explanatory. They also have one I like called Rocket Ride, which they describe as "like" a brown ale. They have a couple of others, but those are their main two products.

Once they get quality control down a bit better, they might have a chance of expanding. Their Sneaky Blonde is really good when the fizzyness is right. Sometimes it's over carbonated and sometimes it's flat.

Last night I 'ave mostly been eatin' chicken hearts.

Speaking of which, have you ever heard Bill Cosby's classic Chicken Heart routine?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhwF2d8QyvU

Not until today

Just think... there they are in your freezer... beating very slowly...lub dub... lub dub... lub dub... lub dub...

By the way, when I was a kid and listened to this album, here is what I imagined the Chicken Heart to look like.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Gossamer_restored.jpg

Ha!

Today I 'ave mostly been eatin' malt loaf an drinkin' Lagunitas Undercover Shutdown Ale.

Cake and beer don't often go together well in my opinion and experience, but there are certain beers that can work will with certain types of cake. Beers that have a strong malt profile (good with malt loaf, obviously) will usually pair well with cake, like mild ale, barley wine and doppelbock, but malty beers that also have a lot of hops - the American strong ale type of beer, like Arrogant Bastard, will go well with the right kind of cake (not Victoria sponge... definitely not Victoria sponge), as will Undercover Shutdown. The cake needs to be not too sweet and of a heavy nature. Fruity - lots of sultanas and currants and raisins. Preferably home made.

Tonight I 'ave mostly been watchin' Slap Shot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dANdPhs3Ilo