Hala Kahiki

Love the Rivertowne Fish!

I'm a crazy man: when was the last time I popped two posts in one day? What can I say, the possibility of privatization of the liquor stores -- and the end of the Case Law! -- has me giddy. So I did the weirdest thing I could: I popped this can of Rivertowne Hala Kahiki pineapple beer that was in the fridge (a sample, a freebie).

What the hell! Hey, I had a grapefruit radler last week that was strangely appealing, so who knows? First thing to know: I really like fresh pineapple, one of my favorite things to eat. Second thing to know: I really like Rivertowne, these are cool people.

How is it? Well...I'm gonna finish it, because it's not bad...it's not sucky sweet, and it does taste like pineapple, but there's a nice light ale finish...but I don't think I'd order it at a bar. It's just not beery enough; more fruit than fruit beer.

Unless...it was hot, and I was in the mood for a tiki drink, in which case, this would be perfect. Because that's the third thing you need to know: I have a secret lust for good tiki drinks. That's me, at the Cotton Blossom Lounge, in Lethbridge, Alberta, sipping a concoction of rum, blue curacao (forgive me), pineapple juice, and apricot brandy. It's southern Alberta's best indoor patio; trust me.

Voodoo Love Child

The hits just keep coming... Voodoo Love Child was my selection to break my fast tonight. Woof, baby! Look, I really like Voodoo's Gran Met. It's a deftly handled tripel. VLC takes Gran Met and ages it on cherries, raspberries, and passionfruit. It's all there in the nose, a refreshing, spritzy fruit presence. Drinks scarily light for 10%, too. The fruit doesn't overwhelm the tripel, but it's clearly there. First fruited tripel I've had, I think. Like putting tripel in a bourbon barrel, not something I'd think of doing, but I'm kind of glad Matt Allyn did. I'll probably drink more Gran Met than VLC, but as Cathy said, this would be nice on a summer night as the fireflies come out.

My thanks to Dan & Jon at TheFullPint.com for permission to use their scan of the label.

Wacko, in haste

Had to take Thomas to a softball game recently, and I couldn't help noticing that we passed the Hulmeville Inn just before getting to the field. The weather was threatening, but the fields were busy, so I dropped him off and whipped down the road...to the grocery store. I had errands, and I was being responsible!

But when the provisions were packed in the Passat, and I cruised back to the field, the game was still going on. I figured, sign from God, and headed Hulmeville-ward. I'd already had a beer just before I left (didn't know I was going to be the driver) so I had to go session-strength -- and wasn't that a cruel joke, since Our Favorite Sales Rep, Suzanne Wood, was there with a cask of Sly Fox 113. God, that hurt. I averted my determined-to-be-responsible eyes and perused the taplist. Hmmm...Magic Hat Wacko. The beet beer. 4.5%. Gotta do it.

Well, it was clearly beet-influenced: it poured red/pink, kinda like my fingers after I've been making borsch. I was just taking my first sip when the Hulmeville's reigning Alpha Beer Geek, Steve Hawk, tapped my shoulder. Hey! Oh. Yeah. I have a glass of Wacko. That's okay, Steve says, I understand, I had to try one too. Yup. So I sat down with Steve and his fiance (I'm sorry, honey, but I'm pathetic with names), and his prop manager, Rob Strigel (Rob's the guy holding the picture of Steve), and got stuck into the Wacko.

Not a lot to say. Wacko falls into that category of Magic Hat beers -- Circus Boy, Humble Patience, Participation Ale -- that's just kinda there. It's got a bit of earthy sweetness, a fresh aroma, but nothing really interesting except the color. It drank easily enough, but I sure would have rather had a Brawler. There's a low-alc beer with something to it. Wacko just didn't have a lot. I don't understand why a 'summer' beer has to have next to no flavor.

Anyway, when I had about an inch of Wacko left, Thomas called. A thunderstorm had blown up; could I come get him? Sure, I said, where are you? Under the flagpole. Okay. I tossed the Wacko back, said good-bye to everyone, and headed up the road...and thought, under the flagpole? In a thunderstorm? I called him, and said, where am I picking you up? He laughed, and admitted he'd realized how dumb that was just about the time he'd hung up. He was at the snack bar. We went home, and I got a bottle of Sam Adams Lager with dinner. Ooomph.

Stopping at Stephanie's

I had a Malt Advocate staff meeting today, up in Emmaus, hammering out the editorial schedule for much of the coming year (and there's some good stuff coming up, too). I begged off having lunch with the staff, I wanted to get home to the dogs.

But...I realized that Maud was good for a little longer, and the day was a little beautiful, and I was a little thirsty, and the Passat was a little close to Doylestown. And I'd been meaning to check out Stephanie's Lounge for quite a while now. So I went. (Nothing personal, MA staff! (Besides, I know John understands at least...))

Wow. Why didn't one of you tell me about this place? Not a lot to look at, and not very big inside, but good God, 36 taps and only three of them mainstream (soon to be replaced, too), with three Ommegangs, two Founders, Chimay White, three Fuller's... Damn. And if that's not enough, they have over 500 bottles. Really, supported by a bottleshop operation just around the corner (connected internally, so anything you see in the shop you can get in the bar).

I finally settled on a Founders Cerise, cuz it's just out and I wanted to try one. Good call: solid semi-sour cherry with good beer backing, refreshing, interesting, even intriguing. Reminded me a lot of a lighter-weight New Glarus Belgian Red. (And wouldn't you know it; there was a sample bottle of Cerise (and a Kentucky Breakfast Stout) waiting for me at home. Thanks, Founders!)

Food was okay. I had a cuban panini, and it was competent, but not inspiring like the Cuban at Sly Fox -- I think because the pork, the mustard, and the pickle weren't quite up to snuff. The pressed bread was great, though, and if they can get the other components at that level, they'll have it. (Ought to be doing more with roast beef and horseradish, with Kelchner's just up the road; the mind boggles.) The menu's changing soon, going with a lot more appetizers, which should be a fun thing with these beers.

But the beer! Damn. Sorry to keep saying that, but I just can't believe this place was tucked away not half an hour from me and I had no clue! I blame you people for this, I do!

To: You -- From: Shiner

I got a sample sixer of this year's Shiner Holiday Cheer and didn't get a chance to try it right away. Gotta admit: I figgered, ho-hum, another damned spice beer, what's the rush. The retro labeling (the cap, in script: "To: You -- From: Shiner." Very nice) Shiner has been using lately, along with the red and green and cream color scheme, was luring me on, though, and I finally succumbed last night.

I poured it without reading a thing about it, brought it up to my nose, and whoa! There was a strong aroma of ripe peaches, and something else underneath, a kind of cookie-nuttiness and spice. What the hell was this stuff? I took a sip, and the mouth was full of peach -- my second favorite fruit, after pears -- and that cookie thing humming in the background.

What the hell is this beast? I finally got the label and the letter and looked. It's a German-style dunkelweizen, flavored with Texas peaches and roasted pecans. Well, I'll be dipped. As my mom said, it's not something I'd drink all night, but it does make a delicious change of pace. Bet it would be great with duck or goose, too. Cheers, Shiner!

By the way...in case anyone was wondering, I messed with the photo to try to get it to look like the early 1960s snapshots I remember from my parents' photo albums of when my sister and I were growing up. Upped the flash, did a B&W wash on the background, and fuzzed it just a bit. What do you think?