Well it’s the first weekend of the last couple of dozen without any football, unless you include the Pro Bowl, which I don’t.
I’m going to take full advantage of my freedom from football to brew up an Imperial Stout this weekend, which should be ready just in time for the next football season. If there is one – I can’t believe those greedy buggers can’t come to a labor agreement and keep the momentum going for the NFL. I side with the players, BTW. Don will probably call me a liberal, but it’s not the owners who can’t walk or feed themselves by the time they’re 50.
I’m also going to try out my first two selections from The Beer of the Month Club. Last year I was disappointed (to say the least) but this year my sweetie ponied up to the “rare” beer collection, and now I have a couple of very promising brews in the garage to try. Expect a full report next week.
What about you? Any plans to take advantage of the fact that there’s no football? Anyone dipping into their whiskey bunker? Are you watching the Pro Bowl just so you have an excuse to drink beer during daylight hours? Anyone brewing like me? As always, let us know below and have a wonderful and safe weekend!
NOTE: Hey, This is Don. I’m having a ton of fun making up beer names and tag lines! I’d love to see some more of yours. They’re quick, easy, and fun. So when you are done commenting about the Pro Bore, stop down at the next post below and give us your funny Beer name, Store that sells it and Tag Line. This is a hoot!
Beer & Whiskey Brothers 
Damn hippie.
So far I have a bottle of Lost Abbey 10 Commandments someone sent to me, and a bottle Long Trail Coffee Stout on deck. Not sure if I’ll have one or the other, or both over the course of the weekend, but I’m wild like that.
You’re an animal, Scott! I recall the Long Trail Coffee Stout is pretty good, especially considering the price. More of a Folgers vibe rather than Starbucks, but a nice beer indeed. Enjoy!
Since I have never in my life watched more than half a football game in one sitting, football never factors in to my plans. But the wife and I will be doing a beer field trip to visit a few new breweries.
Yay – beer travel! Enjoy it now before you procreate! Not to say kids aren’t cool, but they’re never fooled by my kids’ fake I.D.’s in the taproom!
We will be a childless couple. Parenting is not for everybody.
Well there you go! Enjoy the freedom, but ask yourself this, Evan – what are we going to do with all that extra money! 😉
that’s a “problem” i’ll spend the rest of my life trying to solve
I recommend sports cars. Nothing makes guys with kids happier than seeing some other guy without kids driving a Porsche. No really, we love it. Seriously. Not jealous at all. Nope, not one bit.
I’d say I’d rather spend it travelling to awesome places… But my job pretty much already pays for me to go wherever I want as long as there’s fly fishing opportunities there (a perk of working for a fly fishing company).
New Zealand man, go to New Zealand!
Since my brother’s engaged to a kiwi, I’m about to have places to stay down there. So yes, definitely in the plans.
They always say “it’s more fun down under!”
Jim, get your mind out of the gutter!
The bird or the fruit?
I have one bottle of Hopslam left. So, I’ll be drinking that. There’s also a chance that a local watering hole is tapping the last keg in town tonight. So, it might be all Hopslam Friday for me.
Beyond that, I have some new beers from Stillwater I want to try plus a 20th anniversary Schlafly Imperial Pilsner.
There will be no Pro Bowl here. I’m hoping to rack two beers (one a half-batch) to the secondary, but the cold weather is making fermentation a slow process.
If they’re tapping it, I’d hold onto that bottle In Case of Emergency!
My Two Hearted clone is also fermenting slowly. It’s approaching two weeks and still gurgling regularly. It’s not that cold, but who knows. Between being a slow starter and taking it’s time fermenting, this should be on relaxing beer to drink (if it ever gets done!).
Patience. I think every beer I’ve ever brewed has taken longer than expected. Waiting can do wonders. Also, after looking around, it seems waiting even a week after the bubbling stops won’t ruin the beer. I’ve read some things that prove yeast cannibalization to be a myth. So, take your time. My bet is that we’ll both be waiting another week.
My Plans involve Basketball and lots of it! Three games on Saturday! Jason is going (by bus) to McCall, Idaho today (a three and a half hour drive) Playing a game up there, and then driving back (by bus) afterwards. He probably won’t get in until around 2 am. Thankfully the roads are clear and he can actually drive himself now, so no more staying up all night to go and pick him up after the game. Then they turn around and have to play a home game Saturday night! Lots of Basketball!
So Drinking? I dunno. I’m still trying to work my way out of the doghouse. Perhaps something Sunday night, maybe after she goes to bed….
So you’ll be drinking Humble Pie out of a blender? 😉
zactly
Tomorrow is Belgium Comes to West Chester at Iron Hill. I’m ready.
Good to see you’ve steeled yourself to drink beer like a champ! 😉
That’s some clever photoshoppin’ there, changing the “WL” to “RE” in “BOWL”.
Nice to see you noticed. Only took a minute, too. I’m happy they made it so easy.
NHL All-Star Game. Far more exciting, and much less ego and jackassery, in my not-so-humble opinion.
As for the beer, I am drinking IPAs mostly, but its fairly chilly (for Florida) so I may grab some big stouts or porters.
You know everyone who’s not somewhere sunny has no pity for you, don’t you Sean? Like me, in NJ, under 30 inches of snow and ice from the past month.
“Wow, I need a light windbreaker today, better switch it up to porters!” 🙂
Sadly, my beverage of choice (more like necessity) this weekend will be Theraflu, which tastes absolutely awful. Ugggh. I hate winter!
I’d put it in a Glencairn glass and pretend!
Feel better, Dave. I agree that winter blows.
I just noticed how much that logo looks like a toilet seat cover!
I’ll be drinking Troegs Nugget Nectar and there Scratch 40 IPA I purchased at the brewery last week. Nugget Nectar season is my favorite beer drinking season. I’m bottling a belgian IPA tonight so I’m sure I’ll have a taste of that to see how it’s turned out.
You are a lucky man Luke! I love Nugget Nectar. One of my favs, but unfortunately I need to depend on the kindness of strangers (or my brother Jim, like that would ever happen!) to get a taste. Troegs doesn’t ship to Idaho. 😦
This weekend I have Hoptimum, Hop Stoopid, a local brewery’s black ale, Sierra Nevada Estate, Stone Vertical Epic 10, and various homebrews awaiting me. Sorry liver.
Apology accepted.
Signed,
Your Liver.
THE BEAST!!!
Had that for the first time last weekend and thought “Avery has done it again” – great stuff. Enjoy!
Tonight I picked up the Nogno Imperial Stout and Victory’s Baltic Thunder for later, but I am drinking Dale’s Ol’ Chub and a Victory Storm King.
One of the Bourbon Street stores near me has multiple bottles of Dragon’s Milk, Schafly’s 2008 Reserve and 2007 Reserve. What is the street value of those?
😉
If you cut those up and sold them by the ounce, the street value is astronomical – at least where I live (and as long as i’m around!)
Yeah, can we just skip this weekend and get to next. My boys are in the Superbowl and I couldn’t be more excited. I am having people over and wanted to have Pittsburgh beer but my options are Iron City sadly and well…we don’t need to expose people to that. There are some really neat little breweries in Pittsburgh but no distribution. I’m also bypassing Yuengling. I know Great Lakes is in Ohio but close right 😉 This weekend we’re having people over for some chili so it’s Avery Ellie’s Brown for me!
Nice to see your boys in the Big Game. Is Michigan close enough? They have Bell’s, New Holland and Founders, and I’m sure those Lions fans would be happy to help you root against those Packers!
My wife and I had a rare evening without the kids, so we had dinner at our favorite local restaurant. They had some great selections on tap, so I enjoyed a Breckenridge Vanilla Porter and a BBC Bourbon Barrel Stout. Delicious!
Dinner was good too.
Those are the EXACT selections I would have made as well, Chris. Sounds like a really nice time.
I’m finishing off a great ski weekend, where I enjoyed some Boulevard Double-Wide IPA, Goose Island Matilda, and several cans of Dale’s Pale Ale. Now I’m back in Denver, drinking a Mikkeller Chipotle Porter, which is proving to be the star of the weekend.
And yeah, that Pro Bowl logo totally looks like a toilet seat.
Prior to the weekend, I really didn’t know what I was going to drink but here’s what I ended up with:
St. Bernardus ABT 12
Old Rasputin
Bells Batch 10,000
Green Flash Brewing Double Stout Black Ale
I also found the new Knob Creek Reserve 120pf so popped that open and shared with friends.
HEy Greg, what did you think about the KC Reserve? Dying to pick one up myself. I’ll have to check the Liquor Store one payday!
Don – worth picking up. I like the KC amped up a bit and Beam did good with this release. I’ll be doing a review on my site in the next day or so.
Sounds Great Greg. I’ll be looking forward to that review.