Johnstown Pub Golf

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Steph

For Christmas, Jack and I headed in to Johnstown, PA. Friday night we all decided that we would do a pub golf tournament to celebrate! I kind of put together the score cards (copied them almost exactly from Rob’s last birthday pub golf) I thought they looked tough!

At every bar, every “hole,” you can choose from an eagle, birdie, par, bogey, and double bogey.

An eagle (-2) would be a tough shot or drink that nobody really wants to do (4 Horsemen, Double Tequila Shot).

A birdie (-1) a little easier (Belgian beer, So Co shot).

Par is a real beer, mixed drink, or wine.

Bogey (+1) would be a light beer.

And a double bogey (+2) is a non alcoholic drink.

Anyway, we started at Lisa and Dave’s for Hole 1 with Gin and Tonics and Lemon Drop Martinis for the Eagle and Birdie.

(Unfortunately, there isn’t much beer drinking this night. I don’t usually drink liquor, so I didn’t play every hole so that I could stay slightly less drunk.)

Here we are making our way to the Haven, hole #2.

The eagle was Mike’s Choice! and he called it All Bad. The girls did the So Co shot. Yes, I did a shot.

Up next, Hole #3 was the Boulevard Grill. The Eagle was a 4 Horsemen and the Birdie was the Weyerbacher Triple, which I believe is the Merry Monks Ale at 9.3%abv. I think most people went for the Weyerbacher Triple. It was the only good beer on the pub golf score card. Mostly because the Boulevard was the only bar on the menu that had a decent beer selection. We spent a little more time on this hole because nobody wanted to rush drinking their beer.

It was soo good to have a beer! Haha! After having just one mixed drink and one shot I was dying for a beer! The Merry Monks Triple was delicious! Everything you want in a triple. Beautiful dark golden, hazy orange color. A bit citrusy, tasting a bit of the alcohol, but you know that there’s more than you can taste! And a really rich almost creamy mouthfeel.

We needed a picture to showcase our wonderful golf gloves! Everyone came with great costumes! I was impressed!

I think I must not have taken pictures at Hole #4, the Southmont Gardens. But while I was there, I had a Magic Hat #9.

Hole #5 was Murphy’s. I took the double bogey on this hole and got a coke. I needed to sit one round out. Plus I didn’t feel like getting the Long Island Iced Tea. We also all got pizza to stabilize out stomachs.

Next we had to take a little hike and head down to Dively’s, everyone opted for the Eagle which was a car bomb! I think this is the defining picture of the night!

We were all starting to feel like Bobby and so we headed back to Lisa and Dave’s for the final hole!

After another round of gin and tonics and lemon drop martinis we tallied up our score card and (no surprise here) Redbeard won! Dave came in second!

Tara and Lisa tied for third place!

And Bobby got the participation award!

Nobody got lost, died, or even threw up. Successful night!

6-pack and Underwear Secret Santa

Posted on December 28, 2011 by Steph

Every year my favorite Christmas party is undoubtedly the 6-pack and underwear secret Santa gift exchange. One person is elected to assign who gets who, and you let them know your beer preference and underwear size.

So once you open your gift you get to guess who gave it to you, if you guess wrong, you put on the underwear (over your clothes). Once everyone guesses you can guess again and if you get it wrong, you then have to give them a lap dance (rated PG)!

Needless to say, we don’t usually take a lot of pictures as people do not like them to get out. But here are a few of the tame ones from the night, and of course I had a few beers!

I started off the night with a Gulden Draak (dark triple) by Brewerij Van Steenberge of Belgium at 10.5% abv.

I don’t drink this beer very often, but when I do its almost overwhelming! Its got great dark fruit flavors, raisins and cherries. Moderate carbonation, almost like champagne. A rich, almost creamy mouthfeel. A bit of Belgian yeastiness, peppery, and warming with the alcohol. A fantastic beer!

Jack got some underwear this year that he can actually wear!

Mark got some Vienna Style Lagers!

Ben got Delirium Noel and some sailor undies!

Liz got a pony!

And I had another beer! I grabbed one of Jack’s Dominion Baltic Porters!

I guess I didn’t get any pictures of my gifts, but I got Pittsburgh Steelers underwear and a mix and match 6-pack of porters (which you will be seeing on here shortly). I luckily guessed my secret Santa, Rob! I based my guess on the beer choices I received since I couldn’t base my guess on the undies, everyone knows I’m a Steeler fan!

Dinner at Liz’s

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Steph

Friday night we went over to Liz’s place in DC for a relaxed dinner. Trevor and Ryan came too. Trevor brought the good cheeses and Ryan brought the good beer!

Liz made a really good dinner, but I especially liked her Vermont family recipe for mac and cheese! It was delicious!

While she cooked, I helped shred cheese and got started on some beers Jack brought. I had the Dominion Baltic Porter by Old Dominion Brewing Company of Deleware 7% abv.

This is an odd pose, but Jack said I didn’t hold the beer up high enough in the first picture to see it.

Anyway, this is one of Jack’s favorite go-to beers and he picked it up at the store to bring to Liz’s. We also have 12 more at home in the fridge!

Roasted malts, chocolately, a little burnt, and low on hops. It al blends very well. Not too extreme for a Baltic Porter and a great easy winter sipping beer.

Next up, I had one of the beers Ryan brought, he came to the door with a big box with multiple 6 packs inside! I spied the Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout by Brooklyn Brewery 10% abv.

Incredibly chocolaty, incredibly malty. Not too thick of a mouthfeel, a bit dry toward the end. A slight hint of vanilla and a bit boozy at 10%. Ryan knows my type of beer and picked this up especially for me! Thanks Ryan!

After dinner I tried another beer that Ryan brought since I’ve never had it before! And it has an interesting story and I love a beer that has a story!

I had Censored, a Rich Copper Ale, by Lagunitas Brewing Co of California 6.75% abv.

The story behind the name is that it used to be named the Kronic but apparently people too offense to the name because it referred to weed. And so they slapped a censored bar over the name instead of changing it, you can still kind of see the word Kronic peeking out from behind it.

A little bit of life-advice on the side of the bottle.

Thank you Liz for dinner, Trevor for the cheeses, and Ryan for the beers! You guys know how to make it a simple and awesome night!

Homebrew by Andrew and Kristen

Posted on December 16, 2011 by Steph

Sunday morning we went over to Andrew’s for a birthday brunch! Yes, it was still considered morning but Andrew suggested I try the homebrew that he and his girlfriend, Kristen, made.

I got to try the Winter Brew that they made, and I though it was really good!

Poured nice and dark but not entirely opaque. Hints of orange and cinnamon, well spiced for a winter beer. Low on the hops and big semi-sweet malt flavor. I couldn’t believe I was drinking beer with breakfast, but it actually went really well with bagels and lox, pancakes, and fruit. A very nice sipping beer! I even finished Jack’s when he wasn’t looking!

Thanks for letting us sample the homebrew!

Happy Birthday Kristen!

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Steph

Friday, we got to celebrate Novak’s birthday and she had a fun night planned for us!

We all met up at Bowl America, about 30+ of us, and bowled 2 games.

Competitive bowling ensued. Along with lots of shit talking and drinking. They did have a few beer offerings at the bowling alley, as Novak found out (she had to drink for every strike!) but I did not partake. Go ahead, call me a beer snob, but I was waiting for the good stuff, or at least the slightly better stuff. haha!

Awesome birthday idea!

And Jack and I baked again! This time we made special LSU cupcakes for Novak! (Fail, I somehow didn’t get a picture of them. My icing skills were much improved with the aid of a zip lock bag!)

After bowling, we headed back into Clarendon and went to Spider Kelly’s.

It was packed! We had a large group but we managed to get some seats in the back and of course more beers!

It was so crowded at the bar, and the bartenders were so busy I couldn’t ask what beers they had, I had to choose by what I saw on tap. Which wasn’t much. I figured maybe they would have the Sam Adam’s Winter and all I got back was a Sam Adam’s. meh. I guess I was too hopeful. Haha, ok, I’ll still review it. I got a Samuel Adam’s Boston Lager from the Boston Beer Company of Massachusetts, 4.9% abv. A little hoppy, a little grassy, easy sipping.

This next picture is a shout out to Ryan, who didn’t know I had a beer blog! But now I’m sure he’s a loyal follower! haha!

Ok next up, I ordered a Brooklyn Brown Ale by Brooklyn Brewery in NY at 5.6% abv.

This was a decent brown ale, but I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, once you are used to drinking much darker beers, browns seem watered down and not intense enough. A mild nutty flavor, hints of caramel and chocolate. Lightly malty and lightly roasted. But I think its probably the best beer they had available.

The party was a blast! Here I am either getting mauled by Novak or getting a lap dance from her, I can’t tell! It was fun either way!

And to finish the night I ordered a Guinness. I suppose I shouldn’t be making that face. Guinness is pretty good. I think I was just disappointed with Spider Kelly’s beer selection. They do seem like they do more mixed drinks there, maybe I should have branched out?

At the end of the night, around 3am, Jack and I were convinced by Ryan and Voltaire to hit up Silver Diner! I was starving again by that point so it was a great idea!

I had an awesome night, Happy Birthday Novak! I can’t wait till next year!

Football, Beer, and Baking

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Steph

Thursday night we went over to Chris’s house to watch the Steeler vs Browns game. Chris was super nice in giving us his house keys because he would be in class and not get home till half time. So since we were playing the Brownies we thought we would make some too!

Pardon my language! We could not find zip lock baggies anywhere in Chris’s house so we had to make due and improvise. Yeah, the lettering was kind of a disaster. And the game was almost a disaster, but we pulled out a win and I could sleep easy for the next 11 days.

We also had the Rogue Double Chocolate Stout by Rogue Ales of Oregon 8% abv, given to us by Jared when he came over for meat pie night. Thanks Jared!

This beer poured so dark, unable to see through it at all. Of course tasted like chocolate! Dark, roasted malts. Bittersweet chocolate, very creamy. The flavor is so tasty and delicious. Is there alcohol in this? A little warming and bitterness (in a good way) at the end.

Also, cool bottle. It’s been staring at me from the back of the fridge for about two weeks and I couldn’t pass it up any longer!

Saturday Part 2

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Steph

After napping and re-charging we headed back out to National Harbor to meet Steph and Adam, and another couple for dinner and drinks.

We watched a tree lighting at the Gaylord Hotel and then headed out and walked over to the Irish restaurant, Harrington’s, for dinner.

They had the usual beer offerings, tons of Guinness and Guinness mixed beer drinks, but I spied a Chimay Premiere (Red) by Bieres De Chimay located in Scourmont Abbey in Belgium 7% abv, on the menu and had to get one!

The Red is considered a dubble and is a very easy drinking beer. Dark fruits and caramel. Belgian yeastiness. Sweet but not syrupy. Light on the hops. I prefer the Chimay Blue, but I’m happy that the Red is randomly popping up on more menus around town!

Next, with my dinner, I ordered the Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout by Samuel Smith’s Brewery, UK (England) at 5% abv.

Maybe it is just me. Have my tastes changed? I usually enjoy this beer. It’s a pretty good beer. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy this beer, but I felt like I expected more from it. Malty, sweet, light chocolate and toffee flavors. Thinner than I was expecting. The oats start to come through a little in the end. Light for a stout.

After dinner we headed back to the Gaylord Hotel to hear a jazz singer that Adam works with. They have a small bar area and it seems like they specialize in fancy drinks and don’t give a shit about beer. They had maybe two or three beer selections and I would rather not drink them. The place is cool, and the singer was awesome so Jack ordered me a vodka martini, dirty. (Not in a martini glass because I’m clumsy and will slosh it everywhere)

Yes, its official, this is me not drinking beer. Gasp! I had a good time though, I felt like a grownup sipping a martini and listening to jazz.

But then we were ready for something a little more lively, but still slightly musical and headed over to a piano bar, Bobby McKey’s.

Adam surprised me by ordering a giant beer tower! I think it was filled with Harpoon IPA. It seemed like every table around us had a beer tower. Thankfully they come with lots of cups!

We kicked the tower and Jack and I called it a night!

The Final Draught

Monthly Archives: December 2011