Westvleteren 12 - BEER 365!

We're about an hour away from the crush of people coming to the Beer Every Day Great Success Party. David cracks open our last beer, the highest rated beer in the world, the Westvleteren 12, a quadruple. I'll let the video do most of the talking.

It really is the smoothest quadruple, at 10.2%, I've ever had. There isn't a whole lot of complexity, but jebus it tastes so good and smooth. BAD BOYS rating, obviously. I'm a little high on the excitement right now, I can't believe this milestone is happening.

A cookie and a cake, the best of both worlds. THANKS TIFFANY!

A lot of people didn't think we would actually drink a different beer every day. Most thought there weren't that many beers available, to which I respond with:

or:

I don't really blame them for thinking this, it's a huge commitment and required focused dedication. And let's be honest, my longest relationship with a girlfriend is 6 months. 3 years ago. This year has doubled my longest relationship and guess what baby? It's still go'n strong. So whoever out there thought that I would date someone for a year before I drank a beer for a year, you obviously didn't realize I had my priorities straight. Zing.

A few people I'm especially thankful for, who experienced so many of the beers with us, are Karl, Tiffany, and Nick G. You guys were incredible this year and I am so proud and thankful that you are my friends. Karl is the most mentioned person on the blog besides David and is tagged in over 40 posts, nearly 1/9th of the beer we had this year, which if you consider the number of nights David and I were sitting in our apartment or having beers across town or countries from each other, incredibly impressive.


And, if I can toot my horn for a minute, I'm freaking damn proud that I've written about each and everyone one of these beers. Half of life, some people say, is just showing up. Well I showed up, drank a beer, and then chronicled my experiences. Too-tooot.

Having a blog is a lot of work, but it's also immensely rewarding. 14 months ago I had never thought I would be a blogger, but I really encourage everyone if that have a passion, to write about it. Take a picture every other day. Express yourself. Even if you don't share the blog, just go online and write about anything and everything, your life will change for the better. Anywho...

THE PARTY
So for our party, Karl orchestrated a blind tasting of five different beers from the year for David and I to compete with. I'll let the video I put together tell the tale of that and the overall party. About 25 people came to celebrate and celebrate we did. The evening was an amazing way to end an incredible year. I joked the next day with David, that even though we just finished drinking a every day for the last year, apparently, we can still party.

I'm going to post in the forthcoming weeks additional posts describing my year and what it meant to me. In the meantime, I put together a video slide-show of photos created from freeze frames in the 60 minutes of footage to hold you over in the meantime until I can edit the film down to an viewable duration.

This was an incredible year, thank you following along!

Slide-show below:

Tomorrow, David is going to take his first day off in 365 days from drinking a different beer, but I plan on continuing the experience until I reach a nice round number, maybe 400 or 425. And after that, I will absolutely still be reporting on beers and experiences. I can't just get enough.

Also, subscribe to the RSS feed above,or like our page on Facebook (to the right) to receive posts as soon as they are published.

Awesomeness prevails. Onward and upward!

Lagunitas Lucky 13 Altbier really hops to it

At Steingarten LA for a work drinks and my coworker Tiffany is here as well. She's starting her new foodie blog, http://eatyourheartoutla.com/. Check it out!

I saw on Steingarten's website that they hosted the Lagunitas brewery last night and so I'm pretty stoked to take advantage of their leftovers, which should be plentiful.

I really want the malty W.T.F., but that was a beer of the day earlier this summer. Nerds! So I pick out a style I've only tasted a few times, an Altbier, Lucky 13 ALT. I'm expecting nothing but hoppiness with a Lagunitas.

This 8.9% alcohol doesn't fit the altbier style conditions in the slightest, but I'm not complaining, especially since the alcohol is well hidden. Damn Lagunitas, I expected it to be hoppy but why you gots to make it SO HOPPY? I feel like a T-Shirt Cannon launched a wad of hops at my face while I was looking the other way - SMACK. Hidden past the overwhelming bitterness is a malt, sweet with caramel and light brown sugar. As the carbonation flattens, the piney bitterness becomes less pronounced and the brew becomes rather crisp and refreshing. Like those PSA's, "It Gets Better." This has more in common with a hoppy American Strong Ale than an Altbier, but it turned out pretty nice. ARMAGEDDON rating.

Mikkeller I Beat yoU sunsets a crazy and delicious 4th of July

Happy 4th o' Julie! This was one incredibly busy day that included dog sitting, bottling two home brews and entertaining people from 10am until 9pm. Only with the stamina gained through the spirit of Chuck Norris was I able to live through this day.

Nick G, Beth, AJ and Nic came over around 10am for some patriotic brunch. And by patriotic I mean coffee cake and Freedom Toast drowned in Vermont Maple Syrup. With Nic and Nick around I able to bottle both David and my home brews, which I've been dying to do because it's the highly experimental and unique, Sea Salt Caramel (Brewing Sea Salt Caramel). It was a wild brew day and I'm nervous about the taste, because I wasn't as OCD on keeping the temperature as constant as I have been in the past. Could this be my first bomb?

Hell no! This turned out perfect! My experience has made me aware that carbonating beer can lead to something completely different than what you taste during bottling, but this is pitch perfect. It has a heavy caramel flavor profile and the salt is at the right level. No weird ester or fruit flavors, which I was worried about because of the high percentage of Special B malt. The color is perfect, a dark brown reminiscent of caramel. This is one syrupy and dank dessert beer. I plan on cold conditioning three bottles in my refrigerator to experiment and the rest go in the beer closet to carbonate. David's Imperial IPA didn't fare as well however, it seems a little watered down. Hopefully carbonation will provide a fuller body. A big thank you to Nic and Nick for helping me clean and cap over 4 cases of beer in only 1.5 hours!

Tiffany and her crew brought over materials for bacon mac and cheese and jalapeno cornbread, as well as some phenomenal jello shots. Ridiculous right? Alyssa had some sort of jello shot contraption that allowed her to layer them. I may have had a handful...does that make me a super patriot?

 YUP

Meanwhile, I'm getting to work on my Blueberry Chipotle BBQ sauce burgers with fried onions. I don't cook very often, but with David out of town in Austria, it's time to represent the apartment. The recipe comes from an article in the LA Times food section last week, and it turned out delicious! Check this good looking son of a gun out:

I still have 3lbs of meat and a bowl of bbq sauce leftover, will I be eating burgers all week?

Many people came by throughout the day and I poured a bunch of home brew to treat everyone, including Heisenburg's Honey Wheat, David's Imperial Red, and my Summer's Blonde Intern. Thanks everyone for coming out!

While I didn't choose an American beer for the special beer of the day, I did drink a bunch of Bud Light and Jose Cuervo, which is strangely more American than you'd think. Right? Sure.

I bought 5 beers from legendary Danish brewer Mikkeller on Friday and I'll be damned if I don't get to drink them before David returns from Austria, which is when we start our 7 straight days of Rogue Brewing beer. With the spirit of Chuck Norris protecting me, I pour this hopefully delightful Danish Imperial IPA

Who wears seersucker shorts with a chuck norris shirt while drinking Danish beer? This guy!

I Beat yoU is an Imperial IPA that clocks in at 9.75% and smells incredibly well, the piney hops really come through. It is full bodied and has a toasted malt that balances nicely with the piney, herbal hops. Everything is so well balanced that you don't realize this is an Imperial IPA. The more I drink, the craftsmanship becomes more apparent. This is a smooth IPA. THE ROCK rating.


I hope everyone had a an awesome and fun 4th of July!

Port Brewing Old Viscosity is the finest motor oil I have ever drunk

The Older Viscosity was one of the better beers I've had this year. Rich and complex, it was aged in bourbon barrels for an extended time and the result was mind blowing. The younger brother of the Older Viscosity, simply goes by Old Viscosity and it's a 10% beer aged in oak barrels rather than bourbon. What will the difference be?

This smells like a dark, dank stout with lots of roasted barley. This isn't as syrupy and ridiculous as older viscosity, which is like drinking motor oil - motor oil made by Hershey's and Aunt Jemima's love child-- and I mean LOVE child. The roasted malts are pretty smooth and there's a hint of sweetness as you finish, which rounds out a very rich and dare I say...noble...flavor profile. It is pretty damn bold, I'm amazed they were able to make the Older Viscosity even more badass. This is delicious. BAD BOYS rating

Afterward, David and I met coworker Tiff out at Library Alehouse for a few more rounds....watch out for the BEER!!

Brouwerij West Belgian Blond 5 bids LA farewell for the weekend

After packing for my red eye flight to Chi-town to visit Sarah and Andrea, David invites me to join his coworkers for a beer at Library Ale House. He's preselected a belgian sounding brewery that actually hails from Paso Robles. They have a cool tap handle that's easy to remember:

The aroma is light and floral and it goes down easily. A very smooth blond that's full bodied and slightly sweet. This would go really well with food, especially fish or pasta. THE ROCK rating.

Tiffany soon arrives and she orders the Straffe Hendrik Quadruple, which we had last Saturday. Couldn't believe that a Belgian Quad is actually on tap! Now I'm off to catch a red-eye to Chicago, so excited!

The Bruery Trade Winds made with Thai Basil is seasonally amazing

Two years ago David, Nick and I went to the first LA Beerfest at Sony Studios (which has since turned into a shit-show) and amidst a hundred vendors, bumped into these two guys set up next to Fireman's Brew pouring two beers from "The Bruery."

I think the first beer we tried was either a Saison de Lente or a Rugbrod, but their second beer was a summer seasonal made with Thai Basil which was astounding. Our minds were blown and we had just crossed a threshold; in a very unlikely place we'd stumbled upon one of the best breweries in the U.S. 

Since then, neither David or I have tasted Trade Winds - until today. And we have a growler of the stuff! Two years later and we're having a homecoming for our threshold beer to The Bruery.

The Bruery's brewers are Promethean with many if not most of their beers and this one is an excellent example. Who woke up at one day and said, "hmm, I'm going to make beer with basil, thai basil to be exact." Truly Amazeballs.  The beer's base is a belgian golden ale, but instead of using candi sugar, typical for the style, they use rice in the mash to lighten the body and increase the gravity and then spice with Thai Basil. The result is a beer that is subtle and earthy, with a hint of spice from the Thai Basil, which is evident in the first sip. The result is a basic golden ale that's easily drinkable (too much so) and a complex flavor profile. Some might argue that this is like their Mischief, only better. For me, how can you pick between your two kids? Well, for my parents it's obviously me and not my brother Warren, but I made that easy. Here it's much more difficult :). BAD BOYS rating. 

Melissa R, Nick G, Lisa, Jake, Jenny and Tiffany are coming over to eat and watch the 3rd game between Dallas and Miami. I'm using this excuse to do a flight of my homebrews, as everyone except David and myself haven't had all three of my beers.

I love this, because I'm able to stand up and give a spiel about how each brew was made, funny tidbits, and how clever I think the names are (self absorbed much?). To my surprise though, Heisenberg's Honey Wheat, a winner at previous parties, is not the leading man here. My first brew, King Moonracer's Revenge made with clove, probably got the highest all-around rankings. Lisa's favorite was King Moonracer, Jake's the Red Headed Step-Child (because you just can't beat it), and Mel's was the Honey Wheat. The super hoppy Double Dutch Rudder (a belgian IPA, a beer where two different styles rub off on each other) and one of my personal favs, Jake loves but is probably too hoppy for the ladies' tastes.

Overall, everything but the Mavs loss was a great success! This entire weekend was filled with beer and breweries and great friends - another stellar weekend thanks to beer!

North Coast Old Stock Cellar Reserve Ale is best of show from the Whole Foods Barrel Aged Tasting

Forgoing our usual Friday excursion to the Surly Goat, Tiff and I head to a particularly special tasting at the Venice Whole Foods. Every Friday they do tastings but since December I've been haunting the Goat on Fridays. Tonight though, Whole Foods is serving 6 different barrel aged beers, and all are made with big, delicious complex malt bills and are over 10% alcohol. Old Ales, Imperial Stouts, Barleywines and DIPA's, I'm looking forward to these heavyweights. Looking back on my notes from the tasting, the degree of detail declines rapidly after each tasting. HA, I wonder why... 

Our first pour is a Great Divide Double IPA that is the only beer aged with oak chips, not barrels. It's a measly 10% alcohol. The smell doesn't correspond to taste, which smells like a Rose wine. The hops and alchol join forces and my sips finish sharply with a punch. The oak is evident, but it's an almost experimental mix of flavors. A good beer but my least favorite out of the other heavyweights.

Mikkeler, as our pourmaster Super Mike informed us, was a "gypsy" brewer who traveled from brewery to brewery making different batches of goodness. He must be some badass to make a living that way. I've seen his bottles but never knew his story or tasted the fruits of his labor. Brewdog is a very well known Scottish brewery. Together they made the Devine Rebel, which is a 12% Barleywine. It is sweet, alcoholic and rich with a light caramel undertone. I love this brew and would give it a Bad Boys rating if I was counting it as today's beer. Tiff loves it as well.

Allagash Curieux is an 11% Belgian Tripel, based on the same recipe we tasted as our first beer, but the Curieux is aged with bourbon barrels. I'm tasting the bourbon as it finishes, giving us a gentlemanly kick out the door. As the beer warms, the bourbon kicks becomes less gentlemanly kick and more a boot by a bouncer who's girlfriend you just kissed. It's a mix of two worlds and an interesting beer to try but not to sip on again, although I do hope to properly review it soon. For Tiff, the bourbon flavor is overwhelming and I see that being a problem for people who don't fancy bourbon as much as I do. 

North Coast Old Stock Cellar Reserve aged in Bourbon Barrel. That name illustrates how you announce a beer with authority! This is an Old Ale, like Hair of the Dog Adam and Bruery's Cuir, both of which are two of my favorite beers. Old Ale's are rarely made but are strong in alcohol and embody a wild spectrum of flavors not often found in beer (like leather and molasses). With this Old Stock, there is a wild bourbon smell and a rich caramel flavor notes. This is incredibly rich and complex, and the bourbon adds an even higher level of complexity which makes it the stand out thus far.  13.7% alcohol too! There is just a syrupy flavor that tickles my soul.

Practicing our portrait pose

Karl joins us for a late glass and already aware of the Old Stock, receives a big glassful. He's somersaulting over this beer as well. It's damn amazing. Turns out, it's rated in the top 5 for the Old Ale style.  Karl and I both discuss buying a bottle but choose to hold off. BAD BOYS rating.

The Bush de Nuits is pourmaster Mike's favorite out of the group. It's 13% too and isn't as complex as the Old Stock but is sublimely smooth. Different but just as amazing as the Old Stock.

The Older Viscosity David and I counted it during our trip to San Diego. Pourmaster Mike has been pumping everyone else up all night about it, saying "it tastes like motor oil!"
If motor oil actually tasted like this then I'd be dead for motor oil poisoning. Also fortunately, I think they're both out of my price range:
http://www.beereveryday.com/2011/05/san-diego-brewery-trip-sunday-and-port.html

Bruery Cuir 3rd Anniversary Ale is 14.5% of barrel aged incredibleness

I can't believe it's on tap! The Surly Goat has again proven to be my favorite beer bar in Los Angeles. The Bruery's 3rd Anniversary Ale isn't even available by bottle (and will likely sell off quickly) but it's here on tap. I recently paid way too much (north $30) for a bottle of Coton, their 2nd anniversary beer, to be shipped from Florida because it's unequivocally out of stock her. Still worth it.

The Cuir is French for leather. Every year The Bruery brews the exact same beer — an Old Ale fermented with our Belgian yeast strain - and every year the malt goes up by a pound, and then they blend it with a portion from the previous year. The Coton is one of the most phenominal beers I've ever tasted. So this beer is the same recipe, but blended with the most amazing beer ever and then blended with their 1st anniversary beer (Papier) which is the same recipe but has aged for 3 years...if you're not drooling, then I'm pretty sure you're an emotionless robot and possibly a Terminator - only with better taste in maids, ZING.

I'm DYING to have this.I'm missing The Bruery's 3rd Anniversary weekend over Memorial Day, so I'm incredibly thankful to enjoy this at the Surly Goat, which is easily my favorite beer mecca in LA.

So I drag Tiff over to the Goat to watch the Bulls and Heat game while enjoying a tulip glass of this old ale with the alcohol content of a glass of wine. Only there's more than a glass of wine in these tulip glasses. Party

Glory be to Jebus!

I'm fortunate to have a certified Cicerone (beer sommelier) and BJCP judge (national beer competition judge) behind the bar pouring tonight. Playoff Basketball, Anniversary beer, Bruery, beer geek, strong alcohol...my head's going to explode.

The Cicerone said they opened up a bottle of Papier when they received this keg, and it's just now hitting it's prime (2 years later). The Cuir, he touts, is the most drinkable right off the bat of the three brews.

My first sip of the Cuir reveals the barrel aging of this batch and the blends, as there's a 2x4 of pine hits my tongue. Next comes a big sweet malt and dark fruit flavor profile. As the beer warms up, I'm tasting the complexity of the profile, including brown sugar and dark fruit. I love how it opens up. I will say, that it's more of a Belgian Quadruple than a Coton Old Ale. Age may prove otherwise, however.

Tiff says it's explosively sweet, as kills the last of it. She's a pint sized gal, and the 14.5% without dinner is rocking her world. She's yelling at the Bulls on TV like a banshee, even though she's from Hawaii and never watches basketball. Me thinks it's extraction time to the nearest taco joint, post haste.

In finality, it's just so...COMPLEX! What else can I say? It's something else. The Bruery Anniversary beers are like the Godfather's; you kiss their hands in their presence and even on the day of their daughter's wedding, you're sweating asking them a favor. You are not worthy. BAD BOYS rating.

My Homebrew Heisenberg's Honey Wheat to celebrate my berfday

Today is my joint berfday party with Aaron and Tiffany! Turning 28 today, the year which legends are made, friendships created and my liver fatally destroyed. Still recovering from Aaron's All-Denim Party, Aaron, David and I head to Costco for liquor to make Fader-aids, which are Gatorade and vodka. Our guests will love us and they're vital to the distinguished game of Sloshball. 

This is my 4th homebrew and by all accounts, probably my best. This is coming from David as well as other friends. It's easily the most drinkable and perfect as a summer hammock beer, which was intentional. The irony of the situation, is that this was also the cheapest to make. I added very little adjunct malt to the recipe and it cost me a little over $30. My belgian homebrews cost over $50 in comparison. What made the difference was my decision to use Kolsch yeast, which provides a less tart flavor profile than an American Wheat yeast and clean, lager like finish, and also my dedication to keeping the temperature constant in my room, which was no small feat. I spent many nights freezing my butt off to keep the temperature in the room well below 70.

The beer itself is clean and crisp, with a tinge of sweetness from the caramel malts. It's something I could make and enjoy for the rest of my life and tweak the recipe very little. I plan on making this for every summer as long as possible. Here is the original link that explains the name (Heisenberg's Honey Wheat). This is a TRANSFORMERS rating because it's not a complex or astounding beer, but I think this brew is worthy of greater attention (perhaps a homebrew competition in the future?)

Birthday kids!

Sloshball is the game of kickball but played with cups filled with alcohol. It's a hilarious game. People trying to catch the ball with one arm, others trying to kick the ball (my every at-bat ended with alcohol on my face and up my nose - apparently I kick by throwing my arms up in the air), and people having to finish their cup as they round third, which also ends with a large amount of booze on their face.


It was an amazing birthday filled with body paint, booze and great friends! I thought it would be hard to beat last year's joint birthday party with my friend Natalie, also held on the beach, but this topped it! Wildly successful. Just amazing. Thank you to all my friends who came out!

Marin County Brewing Stout kicks off Aaron's All Denim Party

Tonight kicks off a birthday filled weekend and nothing says P-A-R-T-Y like an All Denim Party. Aaron B, the man with the largest Jewfro in three surrounding counties, is the genius behind the event and is celebrating his birthday tonight.

Berfday kids! Hide yo kids, hide yo wife, because I'm pretty sure that's a nip-slip on the left.

We had a wheat beer from Marin County the other week and it wasn't so tasty. If this one fails as well, my friends Mr. W Turkey and his fruity cousin Caprisun are going to follow the Stout down my gullet.

I take that back, this beer is awesome! It's everything I want in a stout. This has a rich aroma with dark chocolate and nut flavors. It's incredibly well balanced. If you like dark beers, pick this up at Whole Foods. You will be the opposite of disappointed. THE ROCK rating.

That's how we roll

A small part of the whole denim group parties on! Who knew people owned so many denim shirts and vests.

All I can say is, I quickly switched to hard alcohol and sooner rather than later, the party really got started. It was wild.

There is fairly long video somewhere of David and I dancing to WHAM! that will undoubedtly torpedo my political career and mostly likely hurt my friends, after they laughed hard enough to fall down after viewing my incredible dancing. PARTY

I went to sleep closer to sunrise than I planned to, but that was partially due to a 3am beach excursion and that I had to make a yeast starter (brew a small batch of beer for the yeast to grow) around 4am. Now I'll be all set for making beer beer on Sunday. Hell of a birthday weekend kick-off!

Pacifico celebrates Fifth de Mayo

To commemorate the Mexican army's unlikely victory over French Forces at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, Rush Street in Culver City isn't the most Mexican of places, but they do have drink specials and everywhere else is a packed with drunk idiots.

I arrive early and so I saddle up to the bar. Disappointed they didn't have Model Especial, I settled on a Pacifico Lager. Then something that's never happened to me in Los Angeles occurred; two women bought me a drink. Scratch that - two older women with Scandinavian accents bought me a vodka based drink that was served in a martini glass. How did I know they were Scandinavian? Because I'm a cultured individual. To quote Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, 'I have class coming out of my ass.'

So a woman bought me a drink and I'm thinking, Walker you must look really, rediculously good looking today. I mean, duh, thanks for the newsflash Brian Williams. We start conversing, and at one point I let them know I'm meeting other people. I discover that the blonde's name is Marlin, and I'm primed to make all sorts of clever fishing puns when she offers to buy drinks for the girls I'm meeting. Que? You want to buy drinks for girls too? Suddenly I'm not feeling so full of myself.

Guess what does the lovely woman named after a fish with a spear like snout or bill do for a living? She works for Absolut Vodka in Sweden. She then tells me all about the drink she bought for me, especially the vodka. When Tiffany and Jenny arrive, we do more Absolut Citron shots and then the Swedes down their martini drinks and bounce before everyone can get properly acquainted.

Looking back, this foreign lady got me liquored up, pimped out her business, and then bounced. Why can't I meet more women like that? She was, as they say, one in a million. HA.

One of the weird/awkward/fun moments of the evening came with the shot, in which Marlin and her friend serenaded us in a Scandinavian toast that was akin to The League's "Shiva" song...

...only it lasted longer than necessary and was in a foreign language, so we Tiffany, Jenny and I were left standing around uncomfortably as these Swedes raged on clapping and yelling a Swedish cheer during a Mexican holiday party. Totes funny.

If you haven't had Pacifico, chances are you were born in a hut on Nova Scotia. This beer isn't as pervasive as Dos Equis or Corona, but it's close. In the hierarchy beer, my personal opinion is that Corona is the Mexican Lager equivalent to Coors or Budweiser, Dos Equis is a little bit classier, and then Pacifico is a step above that. But they're little steps above each other, like steps built for little people, or leprechauns as the Boston Equality Group (BEG) calls them. In the realm of lagers south of the border, my personal favorite is either a Pacifico or a Modelo (negro or especial). If you in fact haven't had one, drink a Pacifico next time it's hot and sunny...and refrain from telling people you were born in a hut. TRANSFORMERS rating.