Jesus Christ man, you can't recommend the Palo Santo to someone who doesn't know beer yet. Think back to when you were first starting out drinking beer, could you really have enjoyed Dogfish Palo Santo, or any beers of that ilk? Think Burbon/Rum barrel aged, imperial stouts, barleywine's, etc. You have to really love beer to enjoy those more... extreme brews.
Careful what you learn, cuz that's what you know. I might not be able to appreciate it, but I'm sure as hell going to try each of these brews. Thanks for the recommendations. Keep em coming (if you want)!
Try anything and everything from Dogfish Head. They make fantastic beers across the board. I miss being in the Maryland area as you could easily find a whole slew of their beers that you can't find elsewhere. I'm also a big fan of the beers from New Belgium, Fat Tire, etc. I've had a few of their beers and they've all been good. They're out of Colorado and seem to be fairly easy to find. Stone Brewery out of San Diego also makes some good beers. Most of these microbrews only cost a few more dollars a six pack. Definitely worth it in my opinion.
Give this a try: http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f25/man-i-l ... ein-14860/ It's very dry, so if you're looking for sweet, this probably isn't your best bet, but on the plus side, it is ~8-9% abv.
I had this last night: 'Bashah' is a Black Belgian Double IPA collaboration between Stone and BrewDog, and it's something worth trying if you can find it. There are very weird things going on with this brew. The hops are in your face at the beginning, but it finishes with this almost stout-like smoothness that I got very used to by the end of the glass. Just a heads up: it's going to retail at about $10-$12 per 12 oz. bottle unless you play nice with your local bartender and they give you a healthy discount.
I've been drinking well tonight. Well enough to forget that I haven't jerked off in 4 days and well enough to forget what little is left of my family. I'm a young guy, but my family is old, miserable, dying. So I drink this: Corpse Reviver #2 1 oz Gin 1oz Cointreau 1oz Dry Vermouth 1 oz Lemon Juice 1 dash Absinthe Few cubes of ice in a mixer, shake hard for 10 seconds, strain into a martini glass. This drink is just good. Like limoncello and licorice. The one thing I learned in bartending school and on Tv is that the drink needs to be cold. This is stupid. The drink needs to be cold, but it does NOT NEED TO BE WATERED DOWN. 6-8 cubes in your shaker will chill any drink down without watering it down. If you have a drink that is to be served "on the rocks" then fill the glass with ice, fill that glass with the liquor required then shake it IN that glass, not in a separate container. This is one I came up with: 3 oz apple juice (Simply Apple is fucking tits. No sugar, no additives.) 2 oz whiskey 1/2 oz apricot brandy 1 splash lemon juice 1 splash Applejack Dash cinnamon Mix in a coffee mug and microwave for 1 minute. If anybody has a winter Toddy drink, definitely share it like herpes in a hot tub.
I've never had these recipes, but I want to, and they exist in a drinking book I have, so... Hot Buttered Rum: In a mug... Generous tot of rum Maple syrup / whatever kind of sugar you like Fill with hot water Add small knob of butter to the top Add cinnamon stick / sprinkle with cinnamon Generic hot punch A lot of cheap red / port-type wine A glass or two of cheap (but French) brandy Some oranges and lemons Sugar Spices - cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, etc Water Put sliced fruit into saucepan, add wine and brandy and put on slow gas. Stir in powdered spices if you feel like it. As the mixture warms, stir in castor sugar and sample to your taste. Put kettle on. When the mixture in saucepan starts to smoke (I assume the author means "steam" here - don't heat the mixture up too high because you evaporate the alcohol), fill each glass half-way with the punch and fill the rest up with hot water. Polish Bison 1 teaspoon Bovril http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bovril 1 (adjustable) tot vodka Water Squeeze of lemon juice (optional) Shake of pepper Don't use good Polish vodka, obviously. "This is a very cheering concotion, especially in cold and/or hungover conditions" The book, by the way, is Everyday Drinking: The Distilled Kingsley Amis
I am going to some good friends Christmas Party in a little over a week and have been asked to bring a few different bottles of wine. I know nothing about wine because I would rather have a vodka drink but would like to bring some nice bottles. Can anyone offer some suggestions to check out?
I wanted a vodka martini after work today, so I stopped by the local boozery and picked up a bottle of this stuff. It is now my go-to brand. It beats the hell out of Svedka, which formerly held that title, and it cost me about $23 for a liter. Great recommendation, great bottle of vodka, especially if you're on a budget.
I tried this after a recommendation, possibly by LTMS, on the RMMB. I screwed it up the first time (I got impatient) and took off the top too early, but the next few months were pure bliss. I had eight 2-liter bottles going on at a time, each with different "brew" times (so different strengths). Best results came from apple juice, white grape juice, cranberry juice, and limeade. I also had successful results with those frozen, from-concentrate juices, specifically with the strawberry one. They give you two kinds of yeast, and I had absolutely zero luck with the fruity, weird one. The normal one was great though. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, needs to try this. It's like $25 total and the fun of creating your own shit alone is worth it. Also, it tastes awesome, and if you have patience (and are willing to wait two weeks) you can produce some really fucking strong stuff.
Hotel bartender here. A few weeks ago, my place hosted the Horror Hounds convention and one of my managers challenged us to create a drink recipe to fit the theme. Since Elvira was the headlining celebrity guest, she served as the inspiration behind my drink which I call a Witch's Tit: 1 oz. Voyant Chair liqueur 0.5 oz. Vodka 0.5 oz. Butterscotch Schnapps 3 oz. Half and Half Shake with ice and strain into a wine glass. Add a 0.5 oz. Grenadine float For a similar yet slightly stronger variation, use Green Creme de Menthe instead of Grenadine. Call it a Wicked Witch. These were a BIG hit with the convention customers. Sadly, Elvira did not come in to try one, but James Duval did and he gives his endorsement.
I don't know how easy it is to find, but it's hard to beat Tito's Handmade in terms of really solid vodka for the money. In Milwaukee, I can get a handle of the stuff for 25-30 bucks and it's definitely smooth enough for a vodka martini, much more so than Svedka. Unlike most other grain or potato based vodkas, this one's made from corn, so there's a little bit of a sweet finish. http://titosvodka.com/titos.html
I'll second Tito's. I put away a fair amount of vodka in my drinking days, and for the money, this stuff can't be beat.
Third. I love vodka (especially Titos), but I've never really cared enough to learn how I'm "supposed" to drink the good stuff. So I just fill 2/3 glass with vodka, the remainder with club, and cap it off with lemon or lime. Works for me.
This should help you out: http://cocktails.about.com/od/spirits/tp/whiskey_brands.htm. I'm curious to try that Crown Royal XR. Personally, I've never come across any whiskeys in that price range that weren't scotch. Johnnie Walker Blue, Cadenheads (aged 30 years!), Chivas Regal 25 and McCallan's 18 fit that description and won't disappoint.
As a drunken Kentuckian, I've been working lately to take better advantage of the local bourbon selection around me. I like a smooth bourbon that can be drank straight. Ain't got time for none of that fancy mixin' stuff. I'm sure everyone knows Maker's, but for the price I like this one better: Woodford Reserve is good too.
Ardberg makes incredible whiskey, as well. Worth trying, and there are some for decent prices as well.