OBF 2004 Notes sheet

Because I’m a big nerd who likes to keep notes on the beer that I consume, I’ve put together a small cheat sheet with all the beers being served at OBF this year. There are two formats available. A plain sheet, and my own sheet on which I’ve marked which beers I want to try. Its not that I expect the other beers to suck or anything, but I’ve identified those I want to try the most.

OBF Brewer Notes

Andy’s OBF Brewer Notes

Thai Chilli Porter

Another home brewer that I occasionally work with promised me a sample of his wares after helping him with some online courses. There was some delay, partly due to schedule conflicts, but he did deliver. The first of the 6 beers was a thai chilli porter, which he warned wasn’t very spicy.

I tried this one out last night, and it was very good. Credit to both his brewing and creativity – it was a very good porter in its own right – nutty, malty, and satisfying. The chilli wasn’t too evident or upfront, but ws more apparent in the finish and aftertaste. It was a very complimentary flavoring, and had the added affect of suggesting to your palette that you desired more.

Thanks Jamie!

Light Beers to Surpass Normal Beer sales

From RealBeer.com:

Drinkers of beers including Bud Light, Miller Lite and Coors Light consumed an average 5.7 beers in the past month, while consumers of regular beer drank five beers, Mintel reported.

Why do they drink more? My personal feeling is that light beer is completely unsatisfying (for starters). Light beer drinkers need to drink more to attain contentment. With less flavor, body and alcohol, you’re paying the same for less product and satisfaction.

I suppose you could argue that because the beer is “light”, you can justify drinking more of it. But by the time you’ve reached that point, you’ve consumed nearly the same number of calories.

Being a fan of ales, the calorie content isn’t the concern. Beer is part of a meal, and should be treated as such. Hell, Monks drank it instead of food during lent. (Nothing beats using Hell, Monks, and Lent in the same sentance)

So, to all the light beer drinkers out there, there’s nothing wrong with beer. Give it some consideration, drink it in moderation, a stop supporting these idiotic companies.

Alcohol's effects

There’s a story over at CNN on the long term affects of heavy drinking. It appears that heavy social drinking has the same neurological effects as clinical alcoholism.

There is a saying among some beer drinkers – 60 beers per month is still healthy. If that is true, its something to max out at. I think I’m still well within healthy range, but I’ll keep better track now. I don’t want brain damange.