World_Pivo back in the game

Pivo Terrorists' attack in China, aka the Middle Kingdom.

[Sagres, Portuguese dark beer with special discount in Macau. Score!]


[Yanjing, Beijing local brew, in Beijing, of course.]


[Australian beer in Beijing! I'm sure you can see the excitement in this photo.]


[I can't believe I didn't take a photo of Qingdao beer in China and had to tag Paulaner here instead. Not that Paulaner isn't worthy though. It rocks.]

[Ah so we did try Qingdao after all. With yummy food in Hong Kong... the accumulation of coolness.]

This is how bored Canadians get when having their ass frozen off...

A local brewing company says the time has come to find an answer to one of life's most perplexing questions: How long can beer sit outside in winter before freezing?

But hey, this is what I can find out in the middle of the blizzard in China in a few days!

Let's Play a Little Game

We have the English alphabet. We have a diverse array of beers.

Is there a beer name for every letter in the alphabet?


If you thought "X" was difficult, luckily Azerbaijan sports "Xirdalan" as its main brew.

A Belgian Classic

Kwak. Piece of art.

I Hope You're Happy, Jenny.

Is that better, or are you going to claim that it's in fact apple juice and not beer?

I can tell you that it is unpasteurized Polish beer. Mmm...

lambic

despite what some members of our community believe, i think lambic beers deserve serious consideration by pivo enthusiasts. they are brewed with wild yeasts instead of the usual cultured strains, so their taste is strikingly different from other beers. they are a bit acidic and have a dry finish. they also lend themselves to the addition of fruit during the brew, so they can make a beverage that is a bit sweet, fruity, and retains its dignity. this cannot be said for most other fruit flavored drinks.

i had a cherry one last night. i encourage everyone to seek out different styles and flavors of lambic beers and report back here on your impressions. most importantly, you can help settle an argument i have with jenny about whether it's a beer "that you can drink throughout a long night"

Public humiliation

I just realized that some people have defied the Picture Posting Rules of this blog. You can find examples in some previous posts. Tsk tsk tsk. I'm not going to say anything or impose any penalty, but I believe the power of reputation can restrict and help regulate people's behavior so as to secure their social statuses. That's all I want to say.

The Passion that Never Dies...

Almost two years ago, the face was lit up with joy when they first met. That moment, we believed in love at first sight.


Of course there is certain price to pay, for example burning your best student's exam paper during your affair. But we say no pain no gain.

And finally, after all these they've been through...


All respect Jerry. Have a great time. We'll all be there in spirit.

The Absinthe Ritual

After the first glass, you see things as you wish they were. After the second, you see things as they are not. Finally, you see things as they really are, and that is the most horrible thing in the world.

- Oscar Wilde describing drinking absinthe

How to drink absinthe.

A Reunion Filled with Beer

"Hey Jenny."
"Hey Kent. You finally made it. What took you so long?"
"I'll explain later. Ready to get drunk?"
"I thought you'd never ask."

It was 4pm and already pitch black. What better way to celebrate sunset than to drink much too early?

See the below blog post for visual details. Not surprisingly, I don't remember the names of any of the bars we went to.

Where are we meeting up next year, Jenny?

5 Bars and a Shisha Shed Later, She was Still Holding my Drink

Porter!

a pamphlet published in 1798 begins as follows:

To the PUBLIC

It has always been the fate of Persons, who, despising private interest, had no object in view but the public good, to meet with a host of enemies : prejudice, interest, influence and a thousand other obstacles oppose their endeavlours, and nothing but the conviction of truth could effectually secure their success. The author of this small tract, cannot ther fore expect to escape his share of obloquy and defamation, for exerting his small abilities to serve the labouring part of mankind, and, to render their situations more comfortable by a considerable reduction to their domestic expences.

what inflammatory, revolutionary idea is he to propose? read on...

The natural constitution of man, requires a portion of liquid aliment to assist digestion and nutrition ; and the hard-working branches of the Community receive from it support, spirit, and strength ; it is no wonder then, the ingenuity of man has exerted to produce liquors at once pleasant to the palate, reviving to the spirit, and productive of support. Gin, Brandy, Rum, Wine, Ale, Cyder, Mum, Perry, &c. &c. are proofs of the amazing invention of man to supply the defects of nature ; but, perhaps Porter for celebrity, universal use and estimation has not been equalled by any other liquor. The method of producing this beverage, and the ingredients of which it is composed, have been long kept an impenetrable secret ; if we consider the immense profits accruing from this secrecy, which perusal of this Treatise will prove incontrovertibly to any one, it will only be matter of wonder that any person should disclose it to the public ; and indeed had the author a private interest to serve, he could more profitably promote it by allowing the public still to be blinded, and the veil of mystery to remain unremoved from the art of Porter Brewing; but regardless of interested censure, or prejudiced dislike, he determines to exert his small powers, for the general benefit of society, and particularly for the lower classes.

The intention of this Treatise, is to induce the Tradesman, the Artizan, and the Mechanic, to turn their attention to the possibility of supplying themselves and families with a beverage much cheaper, and more nutritive than Porter, and yet retaining all its good qualities, and excluding its noxious ones. This may be done in the smallest families, in the smallest quantities and with the fewest conveniences, at little more than one-third of the present expence of Porter.

US & Canada beer

look at this website. if you happen to be travelling or living in a major city in the US or Canada, you can find good beer using google maps. if you are in europe, you don't have to look too hard.

hops

hops protect beer against contamination. they also improve the taste of the beer.

hops boiled for a long time add to the bitterness of beer
hops boiled for about 15 minutes give it a "hoppy" flavor, which could be many things depending on the type used.
hops boiled for just 5 minutes add to the aroma of the beer, giving it resinous floral aroma, somewhat akin to hashish.

these are two ounces of styrian golding hops

So, the evil wins this time?

I have mixed feelings after reading this. Sure I'm not religious and haven't been to a midnight mass for ages and I understand the church's concerns, but still... Is this a compromise? Couldn't the police do better than advising to change the time? What's next then?

Drunks force churches to cancel midnight mass

A growing number of Catholic churches are cancelling midnight mass and holding Christmas Eve services earlier in the evening due to fears of disruption from drunken revellers.

Clergy are also concerned about worshippers trying to make their way home in the face of the threat of street violence and drunken driving. The move is reported by the Roman Catholic magazine, the Tablet.

It said: "Gun crime, rowdy crowds leaving pubs and dangerous drivers have forced many churches to celebrate their first Mass of Christmas Day in the early evening of Christmas Eve. (Guardian)

Hero... or retard

A man nearly died from alcohol poisoning after quaffing a liter (two pints) of vodka at an airport security check instead of handing it over to comply with new carry-on rules, police said Wednesday. (news)

But he didn't die after all. I wonder which vodka it was...

frasier

hard cider and "amber" ale. unspoiled.

cost of beer?

here is some data on costs for all US commercial brewers in 1990.

value of beer produced: $47 bn
cost of malt: $616 mn
cost of grains: $280 mn
cost of hops: $40 mn
cost of cans: $2.8 bn
cost of bottles: $1.1 bn
cost of other packaging materials: $900 mn
brewery payroll: $2.378 bn
brewery maintenence: $1.12 bn
energy costs: $220 mn
wholesale payroll: $2.674 bn
advertising: $1.161 bn
federal taxes: $1.71 bn
state taxres: $1.72 bn

Source: Handbook of Brewing. 1995. Hardwick ed.

combined ingredient costs are less than almost every other line item!

new advances in brewing

Japanese scientists produce a tomato beer

Beer in a Plastic Bottle...

What will they think of next?