Hey – I’m back! What a crazy week. And this week isn’t looking much better. But that’s ok; I’m not going to let anything get me down. Feist is coming to the Palace in two nights; the Cavs are up 2-0 and the Indians….well, the Indians. Oh well; at least I have two things going for me.
I was debating on what to write about tonight. My wife and I were debating who has the more acclaimed career – Will Smith or Tom Cruise – while shopping for mass goods at Sam’s Club. Ask me ten years ago and I would’ve said Cruise; so I thought I might dedicate a column to why I think Smith is the answer now. But then I saw the awesome new Heineken Light commercial and it put me in the mood to write about beer.
Why?
Well, something I haven’t had the chance to share is that Burger buddy Candis and I are doing the Winking Lizard World Tour of Beers. You have until the end of the year to drink their selected 100 beers. There are a lot of great finds in there, which I’ll be sharing with you as we dig in. And, I’m proud to say, we started February 29 and already have drank 41. The next dent will be Wednesday post Feist concert.
Another reason I’m in the mood is because of one of the Tour’s brewers, Sierra Nevada (they have three on the tour – Pale Ale, Bigfoot – the barley wine, and the stout). After trying Bigfoot on Friday, which was great (heck, it’s one of Michael Jackson’s favorites – the beer critic, not the singer), I was able to try their SummerFest - which is awesome, especially if you liked the ESB (Early Spring Brew).
Then, I saw them again, this time listed on my new favorite site Beeroftheday.com. The site was featuring the brewer’s Brown Ale – what? Sierra Nevada has Brown Ale? Where can I get this?
So, get ready; I sense a lot of beer posts coming. Check out the tour, join if you can. Check out the beer of the day site; subscribe to it so you can stay on top of the beers; and, if you sample any or have a favorite, be sure to post them here.
Hey, Benny. Stumbled on your blog via Twitter. Here’s what I can tell you:
1) Tom Cruise is more accomplished, but these days I’d take a Will Smith movie, hands down. Tom Cruise lost me somewhere around jumping on couches.
2) Sierra Nevada’s pretty good. New beer for you? Maybe it’s a regional thing or something, but SN’s always been pretty ubiquitous in my life. Although, as a half-Canadian/Upstate NY’er, I’m partial to Molson Canadian and Labatt Blue.
3) Seriously? 41 beers since Feb. 29? Seriously? I’m thinking you’ll get to 100 by the end of the year. I’ll be curious to see who’s “last picked.”
Love your stuff, man. Look forward to tuning in. Cheers!
Scott-
I have to agree with you on Will Smith; that was my take too. I just don’t think you can put Cruise over him.
As for Sierra Nevada; actually, I have been enjoying their Pale Ale for some time, but it wasn’t until almost a year ago when I realized all of their other great offerings. They are becoming one of my favorites.
I will continue to keep people posted on the beer run; thanks for checking in. I hope you keep coming back!
-Benny
Here’s my ideal beer week:
Monday: Dos Equis Amber
Tuesday: Blue Moon
Wednesday: Molson Canadian
Thursday: Hoegardden
Friday: Hefeweissen
Think I need a 12-step plan?
Hey Cuz, it’s Kreig. On your reccomendation I went out and tried a Sierra Nevada Summerfest and it was pretty good, no busch light, but pretty good none the less. Another good beer I had the other day was called Saranac Caramel Porter, if you ever see it you should give it a try. And hey, the Indians are gonna pull through now that JoBo is out and Cliff Lee is unstoppable.
Kreig-
I’m glad you took the recommendation. Checkout the Bigfoot if you get a chance. I stumbled upon a six pack at Kent’s Rivserside Wine Bar.
I have had Sarnac raspberry ale and pale ale, but not the caramel; I will keep an eye out for it.
I root for the uniform, my man. Players come and go but I am a Tribe believer. (It does help that one player that has gone is JoBo, tho).
Hope to keep hearing from you.
-B
Scott-
I have had all those days of the week; I have to say that I’d be most happy on Wednesday and Thursday – maybe Friday once I hear your preferred brand (Shiner? Sam’s?).
Nothing against the Dos, but it was all there was on a trip to Cancun (well that and Tecate – yeesh) so I got burnt on it.
No, you don’t need a program. You need to write a book on how to have a good week.
Just curios what Saturday and Sunday holds?
-B