Brewnotes » Food & Drink

Belgian Wit

Ben Brouse — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 21:51:11 +0000

This brew has been in the works for quite some time. It is for my neighbor, Dick, who is a pretty zany guy. When we moved in, I started getting him hooked onto “better” beverages. It has been both fun and entertaining.

Lately, one of Dick’s favorite beers is Hoegaarden; aka, that refreshing orange-flavored beer. This was a special batch as he was able to join me for the brew session (#53). It is really just Jamil’s recipe but I tuned it a little for my system.

Wine Spectator’s Best Baltimore Restaurants

Ben Brouse — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 18:54:29 +0000

This article from the Baltimore Business Journal caught my attention. “Three restaurants — Della Notte Ristorante, the Black Olive and Capital Grille — earned the Best Award of Excellence. The ranking is the second-highest award dished out by Wine Spectato”

Am I the only one who thinks Wine Spectator missed quite a few restaurants with excellent wine lists? Some of the entries on the overall list are questionable at best. Just my $.02.

The wit and what that has been left behind

Ben Brouse — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 20:44:51 +0000

Via Stan Hieronymus – Pierre Celis has died. He brought wit, AKA “Belgian White”, back from the dead in the form of Hoegaarden and the now defunct Celis Brewing in Austin, TX . Thank you Pierre – well done mate.

Giving up food for Lent

Ben Brouse — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 20:31:26 +0000

No, I wouldn’t even think of trying this myself, but this interesting nonetheless. He is giving up all food and attempting to live solely on beer. Check out this link for the full story.

"Three hundred or four hundred years ago, a group of Paulaner monks in a Bavarian region had made a stronger beer in a town called Einbeck and they called it bock. The monks started making a stronger beer, a double beer, called doppelbock," Sorensen said. "The story goes the monks would give up eating and literally would drink this ‘liquid bread’ to sustain them through their Lenten fast."

Maryland Direct Wine Shipping Law Problems

Ben Brouse — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 14:27:10 +0000

It allows 18 shipments per year, but Maryland citizens are only allowed to buy wine shipped directly from wineries. The bill does not allow people to buy wine from retail outlets or auction houses.

Sorry everyone – you aren’t going to be shipping in that hard to find beer.

More details here.

Maryland Wine Shipping Bill Passes

Ben Brouse — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 20:02:55 +0000

Hooray – some of my civil rights were actually restored today. Maryland has finally done what 37 states have previously recognized.

It’s clear that this bill isn’t everything that everyone wanted, but it represents progress and I’m glad to take it. With that said, I still feel that the distributors are entirely too strong in this state. Short and simple – their lobby killed the effort to be able to buy wine from any retailer.

UPDATE: More info here.

Wine Shipping to MD Update

Ben Brouse — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 22:59:35 +0000

Considering that Sen. Joan Carter Conway was instrumental in not allowing the bill to get out of committee last year, this is great news.

Via CNBC…. “Sen. Joan Carter Conway, D-Baltimore, on Thursday told lobbyists and two lawmakers during a gathering in a Senate committee room that a bill to legalize direct shipping would be passed.”

Conway later states the obvious…..

"We’re going to give you something," Conway told the group. "It might not be something you’re all going to be happy with."

Stay tuned.

Lifting the ban of wine corkage in MD

Ben Brouse — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 13:48:22 +0000

This article from the BBJ says that Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Frederick County all support this effort. I’m all for it, but doubt it will get the traction it needs to really happen.

The simple fact is that the restaurant association is against this because this is cutting into their highest profit margins. It is a reality that restaurants charge 2-3x the wholesale cost they are paying for liquor, wine & beer.

Freezing Weather and Corny Kegs

Ben Brouse — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 01:03:26 +0000

Just a small note that it isn’t wise to leave a full Corny keg of sanitizing liquid outside during freezing weather. Yeah – it’s ruined.

Are Beer Categories Bullsh*t?

Ben Brouse — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 23:23:30 +0000

Stephen Beaumont has a great post today – Lessons on Beer Style From Keef

The BA’s categories do work well in the role for which they have been fashioned, specifically to provide medal categories for the Great American Beer Festival and the World Beer Cup. But in using them for anything beyond that purpose, we’d be wise to recall that one person’s jazz is another’s blues

My take: beer categories are a good reference point so that we can communicate about a beer. Outside of that context, they really are bullsh*t – right up there with the 100 point rating system on wines.