Posts

Posted on

Review – Livewire Cocktails

Time to check out a new to me, bartender focused canned cocktail brand, LiveWire.

I started with Golden God who looks like a Doctor Who villain and has apricot, green tea and elderflower on top of Rye Whiskey and Brandy. GG pours white with a hint of taupe to it. Sweetened green tea hits the nose first. Both sweet and tart in flavor. Apricot reigns supreme here which leads me to believe that the brandy is a bigger player than rye. The brandy does show up after the apricot plays out. Not bad if a touch too sweet.

Tropipop is big, big on that candied coconut flavor. The pineapple comes in behind but is a clear second fiddle to the coconut. Coming in third is the rum. Which makes sense when you find out that Casa Magdelena from Guatemala is a blanco / light rum. I might have added a third flavor to tone down the coconut.

The winner is Golden God but both were a little too light on the abv and too sweet overall.

Posted on

Old Potrero 12-Year Christmas Spirit Whiskey

I have never been one of those Christmas in July people or Christmas in November person either.  But this Anchor adjacent 12-year California Whiskey has certainly turned my head based just on that nostalgic Our Special Ale style label.  Bet it tastes good to if the quality is near their gin.

Posted on

Decompose

With the rise of 4-packs came a rise in rings.  Thankfully most breweries are not using the translucent ocean killers as in years past but I still have a major league stack of the plastic snap ons and only one brewery that I know of that takes them back.

Screenshot

But now comes the Craft-Pak Versa can carriers.  They “use up to 50% less plastic than competitor carriers without compromising form or function. Plus, certified 100% biodegradable*, Craft-Pak Versa completely decomposes within months. This produces fewer emissions and creates less waste.”

I am hoping to see more of these on the market.

Posted on

Sports & A Beer – Caps and Aprons

I was going to talk about climate change and how that would affect attendance at sporting events but decided to tackle a far sexier topic. Player salaries.

I am A-OK with players fleecing team owners (especially if they donate some of it to charity). But the arcane rules and breaking the spirit but not letter of the law is a bit crazy now.

I got started on this because July 1st is Bobby Bonilla Day. Every July 1st until 2034, The New York Mets Baseball Club pays him 1.1 Million Dollars. Not bad to just pay that, you might say, except for the fact that Mr. Bonilla has been retired since 2002.

And once that contract finally expires, the Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Club will start paying Shohei Ohtani north of 65 Million a year whether or not he is playing for them or anyone. Deferred payments.

Not to pick on my least favorite sport of baseball. My Chelsea FC is addicted to 10 year contracts simply to skirt yearly wage bill limits set by the Premiere League in Britain. Also, just this year, my Portland Trailblazers made the final payment to a player who hadn’t ever suited up for them in a trade so long ago there was considerably less gray hairs on my head.

Every league is trying to promote parity even while some owners are parsimonious to the Nth degree. See Colorado Rockies and Sterling era Los Angeles Clippers.

No matter what salary caps you put into place or tax aprons you add, there will be a math guru finding a way around it. So how about let the owners pay what they want and if they hit a tax threshold, put that money into the local schools or homeless shelters or food banks.

For a beer, you can go one of two ways. You can buy something barrel-aged and exclusive or you can find bargain gems. Either way, I want you to fill out a six-pack roster within a budget of $50.

Posted on

Featured Review – Lough Gill Barrel-Aged Beer # 1 – Trinity

Back to Lough Gill based in Sligo, Ireland and the second of three big beers on three different barrel types…

On to Trinity! The Bourbon barrel-aged oatmeal stout. The bourbon comes through in the aroma and it was a particularly heady latte head on this variant. As with Spear, the biggest flavor component is a maple syrup note. Here though is a balancing caramel note. Trinity finishes a bit thin and very sweet. I am hoping that the last beer will cut down on that.

Posted on

New Oregon Brewery # 1 – Commensal Fermentation

Since I will be in Oregon at the end of the month, I thought I would focus on some new NW breweries to check out starting on North Williams in Portland at Commensal Fermentation. According to their website, “the archaic meaning of Commensal is the people you bring to your table…”

Screenshot

Forty Rules – “our west coast session ipa featuring Idaho 7 and Mosaic hops. Notes of tropical fruit, citrus, a little pine are present in this 4.2% beer.”

Row of Ducks – “our Kölsch-style ale with a gentle nod to tradition. Notes of red apple, cracker and honey are present in this 5.2% abv beer.”

Crazy World, Lotta Smells – “hazy double ipa, double dry hopped with Citra, Ekuanot, and HBC 638.”

Tatluhan – “our blond stout with coffee and toasted coconut, collaboration beer with Mosaic Taphouse and Kalesa coffee, in Portland, Oregon.”