Around these parts when people say Snoqualmie this is the image that is conjured up.  Feet and feet of snow shutting down the pass on I-90 east of Seattle in the Cascade Mountain range.  But there is another Snoqualmie in these parts now, and with any luck it will put far better images into your […]

There are lots of folks who want to brew beer for a living.  For some it’s a pipe dream, for others it’s an organized goal.  For the folks at Manor House Brewing, it’s a calling. This struck me like a ton of bricks when I sampled their Cannonball Reserve, a Belgian Strong Ale that absolutely […]

Well the folks at Avery have gone and done it again.  They have taken the flavors of the summer and bottled it for us all to get a taste.  I know what you are saying, how can you taste a season, and I agree it is difficult to explain, but I will try my best. […]

Well, as some of you know the picture above is the view off of my front porch.  You can see that summer is FINALLY here, as the grass is starting to turn a little brown even with being irrigated 2 times a day, and where it isn’t irrigated it is deep brown fire hazard type […]

Smug!  That is what I believe Stone has become with their newest offering, their black IPA that is aptly titled “Sublimely Self Righteous.”  Now the first thing I want to say, and I know you Stone defenders will not hear this, but I want to go on record as saying that this is NOT bad […]

Some folks are so competitive, it’s almost pathological.  The minute you see them you know you’re in for an earful of how great they’re doing, how much money they’re making or whatever their latest conquest or acquisition might be.  And don’t bother trying to top them – whatever you’ve achieved, they’ve done better, whether it’s […]

Sometimes the circumstances under which you first encounter something can make the difference between loving it or hating it. Pop music is a great example of this.  I can’t listen to the radio these days, because the music is all soulless corporate crap or garbled gangsta mumbling.  Of course my parents probably thought the same […]

Foxes are funny little creatures.  They do things that to the naked eye seem just outrageous, but there is a method to their madness.  I once saw a fox walk right past a rabbit hole like he didn’t even know it was there, when he got out of smelling range of the prey he doubled […]

I was reminded this weekend of how important it is to take time to just let everything go and truly relax.  I had an Avery Maharaja Imperial IPA and was transported to a place of quiet, peace, and tranquility.   It truly was an enlightened state.  See 4th of July weekend in my house is […]

It is truly a gift when you are pleasantly surprised at the end of a long, hard day.  Let me tell you a bit about my day yesterday.  I woke up in Twin Falls, Idaho.  I had traveled there on Tuesday for work, and had another day of meetings and plan development that lasted until […]

OK, so some of you have really been brow beating me for this post, so here it is, and it better be one of my best traffic’d posts ever, since you have all been clamoring for it.  This is a symbiotic relationship…I produce, you read…Got me?!  OK, not that I’ve got that little bit off […]

This brew I had the other night is from the smallest commercial brewery I have ever tried.  No doubt in my mind.  Maybe ever in the world.   Is a matter of fact I’m certain that many of you have greater brewing capacity than Aldergrove Brewery in Marysville, Washington.  It is a commercial venture located […]

Bulleit Bourbon has had to muscle around with the big boys to get respect and the shelf space they deserve, but in large part they have had success even though they are otherwise a smaller player in the bourbon scene.  They are crafted in small batches at the Diageo Distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky.  I however, […]

You might recall a few weeks ago we called upon the BW&B braintrust (you guys and gals) to help us come up with a few beers to recommend to my friend Jill.  She’s a big wine lover and was interested in trying some of the bigger, more complex beers that I go on and on […]

Don and I had the pleasure of taking part in an online tasting with Wild Turkey last night.  And while we both survived sampling the six beverages they provided, the “after party” nearly killed us (one of us more than the other).  Oh, and Don won the Ice War. But let’s start at the beginning.  […]