It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  I know it’s been a very long time since we’ve run a Hangover Thursday.  One of the biggest reasons is I just haven’t had the time to hang out at bars as much as I used to.  Drinking out at the bar is also way more expensive than sitting at home and cracking a few open with friends.  I went out to watch some hockey on Sunday and bought the most expensive bottle of beer I’ve purchased. 

The back of the Black Ops bottle reads:  Brooklyn Black Ops does not exist.  However, if it did exist, it would e a robust stout concocted by the Brooklyn brewing team under cover of secrecy and hidden from everyone else at the brewery.  Supposedly “Black ops” was aged for four months in bourbon barrels, bottled flat, and re-fermented with Champagne yeast, creating big chocolate and coffee flavors with a rich underpinning of vanilla-like notes. 

So every year Brooklyn does a very limited run of Black Ops and every year the beer is a little bit different.  I had a bottle from the 2013 batch which had an ABV of 11.5%.  I’m a big fan of Russian Imperial Stouts anyway, so I was very excited about this one.  So how was it?  The first thing I noticed was how strong the bourbon smell was.  I expected that smell to carry over to the taste but it didn’t.  What I got was a smooth chocolate stout up front followed with that bourbon kick. You tasted that 11.5 in the end, but it was never overpowering.

I don’t know that I’ll ever see a Black Ops in the wild again.  I enjoyed my first though. It was not my favorite stout but if the price was right I’d certainly pick up another bottle or two.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  I’ve been so busy lately I haven’t even had time to sneak off to the bar.  I do have a fridge full of beer that is going to be attacked this weekend so I can make up for it.  Today’s Hangover Thursday is all about mixing beers.  The Black and Tan is a classic but that isn’t the only time people mix beers.  It’s becoming more and more popular to have suggested mixed beer drinks on menus lately.   

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  I drank enough last weekend that I figured I’d let my liver have a break this week.  So my head is nice and clear this morning.  I am very excited because I’ve found out about Trooper Ale.  Trooper Ale is a collaboration between Robinson brewery and the band Iron Maiden.  Iron Maiden was a huge part of my life during middle and high school.  It still makes me smile every time I see Eddy, the band’s mascot.
 

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  I had a few bottles of Bass on Tuesday night, but I was so exhausted last night I couldn’t even look at a beer.  I know that’s a horrifying thought my internet friends but it really happened.  Regardless I came across some random beer news that I wanted to share.



One of the stranger stories I’ve seen in a while, a Vietnamese gang was counterfeiting Heineken and Tiger beer.  The gang was taking Heineken and Tiger and then mixing them with other, cheaper beer.  Once they had this new beer mixture they would sell it to restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City.  It was reported that they were selling less than 50 crates a day, but that still sounds like a lot of beer to me.


Dogfish Head is making it’s return to Tennessee, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Rhode Island.  Back in 2011 the brewery cut back it’s distribution areas to keep up with the demand.  Now they’ve managed to expand their brewery enough to start shipping to those states again.  At the moment they are still looking for regional sales managers and things like that.  Expect Dogfish Head in those areas by the end of the year!

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  I’m trying hard not to fall asleep at my desk after a night of Shadowrun followed by three overtime periods of amazing hockey.  Recently my mother in-law went to Scotland and Ireland.  She brought me back wonderful whisky and Guinness items; one of those items is the topic for today.  Seriously, this is awesome.


The Guinness Luxury Milk Chocolate Caramel Bar.   I was told about it before I saw it.  The package describes it as a chocolate bar with “a delicious caramel and Guinness flavoured centre”.  While I’m not a giant fan of chocolate I really enjoy both caramel and Guinness.  I’d had chocolate stout before, but never stout flavored chocolate.


It’s a fairly big chocolate bar divided into 12 squares.  It looks like any other chocolate bar with some kind of filling.  The only thing left to do is taste it at this point. So how is it?  After all this build up all I can say is that it’s okay. 


 The chocolate is good but the Guinness caramel doesn’t really taste like Guinness.  Instead it tastes like every liquor filled chocolate I’ve ever had.  Way more like whisky than Guinness.  That being said it isn’t bad, it just isn’t what I was hoping for.  Once I got around my expectations I did enjoy the chocolate bar, I probably wouldn’t buy another one though. I’m also still thankful that I was able to try one.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  Today for Hangover Thursday we’re serving up a song by the band the Rumjacks.  While it sounds like a happy Irish punk song it has a lot to say about some of the so called “Irish bars” that are out there.  You know the bar; they put an Irish flag on their sign, changed the name, and hope the cash comes rolling in.


The Rumjacks are an interesting group.  The Australian band is currently on an indefinite break after their lead singer was sentenced to 16 months in prison due to an assault charge.  Horrible luck for a band who was just signed to ABC Music’s imprint FOUR.   Regardless of their personal background the song is amazing and needs to be heard.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  My local bar has had a pretty good selection of stouts and porters lately which is always a good thing for me.  It’s odd because that isn’t what you normally see in May, but I’m not complaining.  I’ve been drinking a lot of Session Black at the house, it’s one of my favorites as the temperature here starts to climb. 


Take a close look at the amazing bottle opening in the video above.  Seriously, watch that device and remember it because we will see it again.  I mean I don’t usually have the need to open a case of beer all at once, but some people do.  As the video spreads across the internet you know someone is going to try to capitalize on it. A version of this device will be on sale soon.  Hell it might be on Kickstarter already. 


 I said that my local bar was stocking a lot of stouts lately.  I was happy to see Langunitas’ Espresso Stout; honestly I wish I had one of those in front of me right now.  Despite being weary of the name I also tried Dogfish Head’s Chicory Stout.  The licorice taste wasn’t too strong, but it isn’t something I will order again.  I like a lot of Dogfish Head’s beers but I wasn’t a fan of this one.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  I’m still on the Session Black train lately. With the NHL playoffs in full swing I’m planning on when I can plant myself on a barstool more often and watch some hockey.  Sure I can watch the games at home, but it’s more fun to watch them with other people.  It doesn’t even have to be my favorite team playing; the intensity of the playoffs makes almost any game fun to watch.


One of the larger chains of sports bars just made a pretty interesting announcement. Buffalo Wild Wings and Red Hook brewing are creating their very own beer.  Game Changer is described as “a premium craft beer that is designed to go perfectly with our flavorful wings while watching a game.”  Isn’t that descriptive?  It throws out a bunch of words without giving any actual information.  Luckily Redhook isn’t filled with corporate doublespeak and was kind enough to let people know that it will be a Pale Ale with an abv of 4.6%.


I’m not a fan of Pale Ales but I wish them the best.  If it is successful it raises a few questions.  Will Game Changer only be available at Buffalo Wild Wings?  Will bottles be available at other liquor stores?  Could you buy a six pack from the restaurant to take home?  BW3 already sells their sauces to take home, why not their own beer?  Will other restaurants follow suit and have their own craft brews?

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  I spent Sunday with a good amount of Session Black so I haven’t really picked up anything new to drink.  I’m also made plans to be in Memphis at the end of July.  So if you’re familiar with the area and no of a good bar in the downtown Memphis area Brandon and I would sure appreciate the tips.



If you’re in Colorado you’re about to get one of the coolest looking beer labels I think I’ve ever seen.  Grimm Brothers Brewhouse is debuting their new Maibock Lager on May 1^st.  The beer is named Maiden’s Kiss and the kickoff event will be at the World of Beer in Glendale, Colorado.  After that it should be available in Northern Colorado on May 3^rd.



I am far outside the Grimm Brothers distribution area so I can’t really speak to their quality.  I shouldn’t want to try a beer just because of the name or label, but obviously I am easily swayed.  It isn’t just their newest beer either; the entire line has brilliant names and beautiful labels.  I’m a fan and I’ve never even tasted it.  If someone out that way wants to send a few bottles to Florida I wouldn’t complain.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head?  I managed to have a couple of drinks over the last few nights.  Nothing to actually leave me with a hangover, but was a nice to keep me happy.  I stumbled across a video today promoting Carton Brewing’s newest beer, Carton of Milk.


It’s pretty obvious I’m a huge stout fan so I’ll be on the lookout for this one.  Some people dismiss session beers because of their low alcohol content.  While I love the high abv of imperials, some time it’s nice to know you have kill a six pack without getting yourself trashed.  If you’ve tried Carton’s beers please let us know what you’ve thought of them.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head? I know what you’re thinking. Just yesterday I posted that I was so busy that I wasn’t going to be updating for the rest of the week. Well this morning I had this awesome Brandy Alexander info-graphic waiting for me in my email. Apparently January 31st is Brandy Alexander day. So it’s Hangover Thursday and it’s Brandy Alexander day. I pretty much had to post this.




Now this info-graphic is made by hirethebarman.co.uk. I have no affiliation with the company. If you live in London and call the number on this image you can hire a bartender to come and work your parties. If you don’t live in London, you probably shouldn’t call them. They seem like a nice company, but since I’m too far away to use them, I can’t really say for sure. What I'm really saying is, we aren't getting paid to promote them; if you are in their area, use at your own risk.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head? I did all of my drinking earlier in the week so my head is pretty clear right now. Today I have two items to share. One of them is named stupid and the other looks like stupid fun.



The first item today is Coronado Brewing Company’s Stupid Stout. Part of their Crown Series Stupid Stout is an Imperial stout with a 10% ABV. I found it in one of the 22oz bottles but you may be lucky enough to find in on draft. It’s a really nice Stout too; it pours dark, there are hints of chocolate and coffee, and it hides its higher ABV well. At one point it was called Stoopid Stout, but there was a bit of a bit of a trademark brouhaha between three breweries where beers with names like Idiot and Stoopid all got changed.


The other item I wanted to talk about today is the Cap Zappa. You know that guy who likes to flick beer caps at the speed of light with precision accuracy? Yeah, I’ve never been that guy. I’m guessing the inventor of the Cap Zappa has never been able to do that either. The Cap Zappa is a bottle opener that lets you turn your bottle cap into a projectile. Surely shooting bottle caps at your drunken friends won’t end in more violence.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head? The New Belgium Brewery out of Fort Collins, CO has been one of my favorite breweries for a while now. Years ago my work had me living in a hotel far from home and I fell in love with Fat Tire beer. The company was 41% employee owned and the remaining was controlled by their co-founder and CEO. Well that’s all changed now and New Belgium is now 100% owned by their employees.



CEO Kim Jordan isn’t going anywhere; in fact the current company leaders are pretty much staying in place. New Belgium Brewing is expanding though. They are currently building a second facility in Asheville, North Carolina that is expected to start production in 2015. Now they just need to start selling it in Florida and I'll be happy.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head? I just got poured a healthy glass of mandatory overtime at work, so today is going to be a little short. Because I need an extra reason to smile (again, mandatory overtime) I’m sharing a clip that always makes me smile.



The scene/song is from the 1956 musical High Society. The movie has Cole Porter music with Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, and Louis Armstrong and his band. The movie may not be as good as the non-musical it was based on (The Philadelphia story), but I really enjoy it. The song above, “Well, Did you Evah!” always makes me smile.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head? In the past week I’ve had a number of great drinks. For Christmas dinner I had a bottle of Southern Tier’s Krampus. At another party we drank a large amount of hot Dr. Pepper, poured into a cup of lemon and rum. It was during the later drink that we discovered the video below. The video is from the BBC and is actually 3 years old. It was new to me this weekend, so hopefully it is new to you too.


I hate the beach. Sunshine, salty air, and tropical heat are not my idea of a good time. But now I find myself planning an island vacation. Not really, but I could probably watch monkeys stealing people’s drinks all day long.

It’s Hangover Thursday, how’s your head? Mine is clear this morning, I’m saving all my drinking for later this week when all the holiday shenanigans kick off. I might be brave enough to bust out the Tom and Jerry recipe this year but only time will tell.


Earlier in the year I showcased an artist who was making beer logos using the various factions of Game of Thrones. These types of designs are all over the internet and usually pop up on sites like Tee Magnet and Shirt Woot. I’m always divided on these things, I love the creativity in some of them but it is also strange to see someone selling things based on a licensed property that they have no claim to. Luckily I won’t have to feel bad when I enjoy an Iron Throne Blonde Ale.


Ommegang brewery has teamed HBO to create beer based on the Game of Thrones series. The very first beer, the Iron Throne Blonde Ale is going to be released in March. What else happens at the end of March? Oh yeah, the start of Season 3! This is an amazing tie in. Think of how many viewing parties are going to start off with people popping open a bottle of Iron Throne. It is going to be available in 750 ml bottles and on draft. They are currently working on sword-like tap handles. Game of Thrones tap handles. Does it need repeated one more time? Game of Thrones tap handles. That’s fucking awesome.

There are three more beers in the Game of Thrones line that are in the works. Ommegang is a good brewery though and they aren’t rushing this. The second beer won’t debut till fall and the other two beers probably won’t be released until the next seasons of the show are released. It’s a smart move, it shows they are actually thinking about the product and not just slapping new labels on existing brews.

A big thank you goes out to Carlos who sent me a heads up on this one.