Monday, May 08, 2006
Derby Weekend!
What a weekend it was on the beer front. I have 7 new beers to write up among other things. On Friday I went home and cooked dinner (a healthy salad topped with tofu) and opened up a new bottle.
143) Ybor Gold Gaspars Porter - This was a porter with chocolate and coffee overtones. Not as medium bodied as most porters, this one ran a little lighter. Though it is from Florida so I imagine the weather doesn't really inspire one to make heavy beers.
Saturday I met up with Big Daddy Cal at none other than the OTB. It was the 132nd running of the Kentucky Derby. As I usually do with this race, I just bet the horses that have the worst odds in hope of getting lucky. There is just too big a field to really predict what is going to happen. Lawyer Ron and Brother Derek really got screwed with their post positions. I don't even think any horses have ever won from that far out. Had they been closer I think they could have challenged Barbaro. I didn't win any money this year but I didn't spend much either.
After placing our bets we headed over to the nearby Ginger Man to watch the race and have a few beers.
144) Franziskaner Hefe-Weissbier - This was really quite spectacular. Has a much deeper gold color than most hefeweizens. All the desired characteristics one could want in this style are here and they each stand out in their own way yet blend together to make one hell of a beer experience. Very refreshing!
145) Youngs Special London Ale - Strong and hoppy. Good malt character in there too but I think the hops were the dominant player here. But this was quite a spectacular beer. Went down very smooth and the alcohol sneaks up on you.
We debated at this point whether or not we should keep drinking. Later that evening we were scheduled to meet up with a group to do some karaoke.
We decided to drink on!
146) Reissdorf Kölsch - Ok, so we just went for one more before heading out. Only the 3rd kölsch style beer I have had. This was a pretty refreshing beer but I probably should have had it first out of this drinking session of 3.
On the way to the karaoke place, where you can rent a private room just like in Lost in Translation, we started singing Rockwell's "Somebody's Watching Me" and "She Drives Me Crazy" by the Fine Young Cannibals. It was decided at this point that the karaoke theme for the night would be "the 80s."
The karaoke was a good time and we made everyone sick by singing songs like "Glory of Love", "Bad", and "Love Shack".
We were hungry afterwards so we went down to the West Village and tried to get into the Spotted Pig but the wait was 75 minutes at 10:30 pm. Walked over instead to the Corner Bistro and had a bistro burger. Good stuff. Very tasty and very messy.
At the Corner Bistro, I had another opportunity to have a new beer!
147) McSorleys Black and Tan - This is now contract brewed by Miller. It was probably the worst stout I have ever had, but it was only $2.50 and it washed down the burger.
Sunday I took the LIRR out to Long Island to pick up my car. A massive crack had mysteriously appeared on the windshield last week so while I was in Orlando I had it replaced.
Having to take the train out there is a real pain in the ass. I can't believe I used to do that as a commute. Then waiting for a cab is also an awful experience. Luckily it was slow so I got one quickly.
My mom had went to Whole Foods the other night and picked up a few beers for me to aid me in my quest. Help always comes from those who love you most.
Went over to Jeff's house to watch the Mets and Jose Lima get their asses kicked and we shared a bottle of:
148) Ruddles County - Yup, we both went to Ruddles County and drank up all their beer. Suckas! Actually no this is an ESB from England. Bitter and hoppy but not the best ESB. I'm still in love with the Fullers which tastes like candy.
Sunday night over dinner I opened another bottle that I had in the fridge:
149) River Horse Hop Hazard Pale Ale - This beer comes out of New Jersey and its an American Pale Ale (APA). I got a hint of coffee notes on the back end. That was a surprise. I wasn't a huge fan of this beer.
So that in a nutshell was my weekend. The next beer is somewhat of a milestone for the year so I'm going to try to make it something a little more special. However, I won't have any beer tonight. After all that eating and drinking this weekend my body needs a rest.
149 down and 216 to go so I am 40% done for the year and yet again I have a huge lead.
Coming up this week at the Collins Bar is an event to celebrate the arrival of Rock Art Brewery in NYC. I'm debating but I should be up for that.
143) Ybor Gold Gaspars Porter - This was a porter with chocolate and coffee overtones. Not as medium bodied as most porters, this one ran a little lighter. Though it is from Florida so I imagine the weather doesn't really inspire one to make heavy beers.
Saturday I met up with Big Daddy Cal at none other than the OTB. It was the 132nd running of the Kentucky Derby. As I usually do with this race, I just bet the horses that have the worst odds in hope of getting lucky. There is just too big a field to really predict what is going to happen. Lawyer Ron and Brother Derek really got screwed with their post positions. I don't even think any horses have ever won from that far out. Had they been closer I think they could have challenged Barbaro. I didn't win any money this year but I didn't spend much either.
After placing our bets we headed over to the nearby Ginger Man to watch the race and have a few beers.
144) Franziskaner Hefe-Weissbier - This was really quite spectacular. Has a much deeper gold color than most hefeweizens. All the desired characteristics one could want in this style are here and they each stand out in their own way yet blend together to make one hell of a beer experience. Very refreshing!
145) Youngs Special London Ale - Strong and hoppy. Good malt character in there too but I think the hops were the dominant player here. But this was quite a spectacular beer. Went down very smooth and the alcohol sneaks up on you.
We debated at this point whether or not we should keep drinking. Later that evening we were scheduled to meet up with a group to do some karaoke.
We decided to drink on!
146) Reissdorf Kölsch - Ok, so we just went for one more before heading out. Only the 3rd kölsch style beer I have had. This was a pretty refreshing beer but I probably should have had it first out of this drinking session of 3.
On the way to the karaoke place, where you can rent a private room just like in Lost in Translation, we started singing Rockwell's "Somebody's Watching Me" and "She Drives Me Crazy" by the Fine Young Cannibals. It was decided at this point that the karaoke theme for the night would be "the 80s."
The karaoke was a good time and we made everyone sick by singing songs like "Glory of Love", "Bad", and "Love Shack".
We were hungry afterwards so we went down to the West Village and tried to get into the Spotted Pig but the wait was 75 minutes at 10:30 pm. Walked over instead to the Corner Bistro and had a bistro burger. Good stuff. Very tasty and very messy.
At the Corner Bistro, I had another opportunity to have a new beer!
147) McSorleys Black and Tan - This is now contract brewed by Miller. It was probably the worst stout I have ever had, but it was only $2.50 and it washed down the burger.
Sunday I took the LIRR out to Long Island to pick up my car. A massive crack had mysteriously appeared on the windshield last week so while I was in Orlando I had it replaced.
Having to take the train out there is a real pain in the ass. I can't believe I used to do that as a commute. Then waiting for a cab is also an awful experience. Luckily it was slow so I got one quickly.
My mom had went to Whole Foods the other night and picked up a few beers for me to aid me in my quest. Help always comes from those who love you most.
Went over to Jeff's house to watch the Mets and Jose Lima get their asses kicked and we shared a bottle of:
148) Ruddles County - Yup, we both went to Ruddles County and drank up all their beer. Suckas! Actually no this is an ESB from England. Bitter and hoppy but not the best ESB. I'm still in love with the Fullers which tastes like candy.
Sunday night over dinner I opened another bottle that I had in the fridge:
149) River Horse Hop Hazard Pale Ale - This beer comes out of New Jersey and its an American Pale Ale (APA). I got a hint of coffee notes on the back end. That was a surprise. I wasn't a huge fan of this beer.
So that in a nutshell was my weekend. The next beer is somewhat of a milestone for the year so I'm going to try to make it something a little more special. However, I won't have any beer tonight. After all that eating and drinking this weekend my body needs a rest.
149 down and 216 to go so I am 40% done for the year and yet again I have a huge lead.
Coming up this week at the Collins Bar is an event to celebrate the arrival of Rock Art Brewery in NYC. I'm debating but I should be up for that.
# posted by Nick @ 10:18 AM 
