jglazer75

I'm not really that concerned with what a beer is "meant" to be or the trouble and/or effort a brewer went through to make it or why he/she made it - it should stand on its own without context and without explanation. Lots of brewers "mean" their beer to be good, and it isn't. Sour beers are "meant" to be sour, if you don't like sour things, explaining the intention doesn't make it any better. Modern hefeweizens are "meant" to be served with orange or lemon slices, but I don't like stuff in my beer - does that mean that I'm drinking hefeweizens incorrectly? I guess I'm not advocating that you only buy IPAs and DIPAs for cellaring. But I am suggesting that there is some value in cellaring them - that they do, in fact, change and sometimes for the better - or at least equivalently different. Yes, the hops, particularly aroma, degrade over time. But bitterness degrades much more slowly with little noticeable difference (especially in DIPAs) 2 or even 3 years down the road (a lot of the reason for this is that our palates can't really differentiate above 75 IBU or so, so 100+ IBU is often functionally equivalent). And, yes, hops can be a bit like tannins, especially with less filtered IPAs, the vegetal properties really come out and hops can taste like steeped tea. The hop aroma disappears, but often the malt aroma comes out, again without losing much of the bitterness. So, it becomes different, sometimes better, sometime not. My only point is this: Try it. See if you like the results - maybe you will, maybe you won't. I often like the results. You don't. We disagree. The only point of my post is that there are some of us, whether you find me crazy or not, who do cellar some IPAs on occasion. And, frankly, I don't know a single brewer of quality beer that would be offended.

I'm a big fan of cellaring IPAs and DIPAs (especially) actually. Two things to note: 1) it's easy to mask poor brewing skill with a lot of hops, by cellaring an IPA it clears out much of the "bombast" and reveals the "true beer" underneath the IPA; in my opinion, if an IPA can cellar well (admittedly the malt qualities shine through, and hops change) the brewer has done his job of creating a balanced, well-crafted beer; 2) the hops quality certainly changes and they become less "alpha acid" bitter and over-the-top, but much of the bitterness will remain and the grass notes and a "tea-like" quality comes out, I like this change and often IPAs and DIPAs become much more "old ale" or "strong ale" like. One of my personal "aged favorites" is the Great Lakes Lake Erie Monster. So, take that for what it's worth.

Tom Bullock's "The Ideal Bartender", written in 1917 and one of the primary sources for cocktail recipes (check out the introduction by George Herbert Walker, Grandfather of George HW Bush) lists quite a few "alcohol and egg" recipes, called "flips", including this one: Ale Flip: fill an ale glass nearly full 1 teaspoonful bar sugar (simple syrup) break in 1 whole egg; grate a little nutmeg on top and serve the drink with a spoon alongside the glass.

This weekend I made a spinach and goat cheese beef roulade with Goose Island Harvest that turned out pretty well. Made a surprisingly good pan sauce. Sorry, no pics

One problem that's starting to come into play here in Wisconsin is the fact that keg lines just aren't kept as clean as they should be. So, not only do you have the false "freshness" issue, but add to that stale and clogged lines, diacetyl flavors, and any number of other problems raised by unclean lines and it makes for an inferior "keg" experience in beers in which you would really notice a difference. Otherwise, as others have mentioned, I think (properly maintained) kegs aren't necessarily "inferior", but because of low demand kegs simply weren't an option for these small breweries. Until demand requires it, it just isn't feasible or cost-efficient for Rodenbach to ship a few kegs to the US; it is far easier to just ship bottles. With premium beers gaining in popularity, the demand for these beers is starting to justify kegs. (granted, Rodenbach is big enough, but look at a brewery like Loterbol which simply couldn't justify sending kegs of its product to the US where it may, or may not, get sold).

Second all the cast-iron fried entried, but I like mine with cheese, and I found that the best cheeseburger cheese is (drumroll please): <a href="http://www.dibruno.com/Detail.bok?no=88">Cahill's Irish Porter Cheddar</a> No, I wouldn't recommend it for everyday use, but it certainly makes a damn fine burger if you happen to have it on hand.

While I don't make it a regular occurrence, I have been known to do this. Usually somewhere where we don't have reservations and they might be a little booked (there's almost ALWAYS another empty table) but we decided too last minute. Emergency situations so to speak. For the most part I'll either wait or leave, especially if I'm in a city that has plenty of other options. Anyway. It happens. It works.

Not sure who the cook is, but we were fond of Crazy Water on S.2nd Street. Reminded me a lot of "Spring" in Chicago.

I will second this comment. I have a Global Santoku which is honestly the single greatest knife in the history of the universe. And, no, there is no discussion on this point. If you don't agree - tough. That being said, it is light. Which is great for throwing at people who bother me while cooking, but not so great for butchering small animals. For that I use a heavy crappy chefs knife that I keep barely sharp; that's its only purpose - to butcher small animals. Everything else I can do with the Santoku. I have the Global paring knife and the Global Santoku; if I had a heavy duty Global butcher's knife and bread knife I'd be set. In other words. It will do everything you want, except butcher small (or large) animals.

Another vote for The Spice House from me.

While the food was great, I can't recommend Mader's - I just can't justify the prices for German food. Yeah, it's good, the service is great, etc. etc. etc. But at the end of the day, you're just eating sauerbraten and it's really hard to justify $25 for a plate of saurbraten. (although it did last for about 2 days afterward).

I eat the official food of the truckstop and road trip: BEEF JERKY. Here in the upper midwest, it's dirt cheap, you can get a large package for about $2.99 or so. Good stuff. If I could just muster up the will I'd make it from scratch. But alas, no gun and no time.

Around here "with au jus" is common terminology. Aaaaargh!!!! ← I recently saw a tv ad (or a radio ad) for some fast food place that is going to offer a beef sandwich "With Your Choice of Flavored Au Jus's" - I'm trying to figure out how the "jus" of a beef would be anything BUT beef-flavored.

I love the idea of Chicken Fried Chicken with Shrimp. That sounds awesome.

I'm a little leary about some of the GLAD stuff. I love them for sandwiches and stuff that doesn't leak, but I'm afraid that my soup will end up all over the inside of lunch box if it gets knocked around and turned sideways and upside down. Though a ziplock freezer bag INSIDE of a GLAD container is not a bad idea ....