Beer Madness! 54 (12)Honkers v. (1)Yards IPA
(12) Goose Island Honkers Ale
v.
(1) Yards IPA
Yards comes into this game with a lot of advantages. They are a high seed playing a low seed and Honkers comes into this game with a lot of distractions. Their program is in turmoil after the surprise announcement that their coach will be stepping down after the president decided to join a power conference. I can see this working one of two ways. Either Goose Island comes together to send their beloved coach out a champion and they go on a run, or the pressure becomes too much and they quit on their coach like the Vols.
Say It Ain’t So
Oh Goose Island, how we love your tasty beverages!
You’ve brought us the delightful Bourbon County Stout. A beer that’s so big and boozy, it’s tough to get through just one.
You’ve brought us the 312. A beer that’s light and crisp and perfect for a hot summer day.
You’ve brought us the Sofie. Full of flavor and spice.
Now you’ve brought us sadness… via Beer News.org
AB-InBev? Really? How could you? How could you do this to us?!? You were so good to us! We were so good together! Like mac and cheese or peas and carrots, like Bennie and the Jets or Simon and Garfunkel (well, maybe not them). Noww you’re just going to be a part of machine that pumps out the beers that we all hate.
It’ll never be the same.
/frowny face
-Tonzi
Beer Madness! 35 (4)Weihenstephan Hefe v. (12)Goose Island Honkers
(4) Weihenstephan Hefeweizen
v.
(12) Goose Island Honkers
Remember the scene from Notting Hill where Julie Roberts says she doesn’t get the obsession with breasts so Hugh Grant lifts up the covers to check them out? No? Really? Anyway, I was going to use it to make a very witty and cerebral point that while the “a vote for Honkers is a vote for breasts” campaign might originally seem simple and childish, but we are talking about breasts here, so it’s actually quite a compelling argument. That said, the Honkers is going up against probably the finest Hefeweizen in the bracket – and one of the best out there – and there’s always a chance people will actually pick a beer on taste. Based on the beer selections I witnessed last night during St. Patrick’s day, I think that’s unlikely, but if it happens, Weihenstephan wins in a landslide.
Beer Madness! 7 (5)Victory Prima Pils v. (12)Goose Island Honkers
(5) Victory Prima Pils
v.
(12) Goose Island Honkers
Will Victory come up with a victory in the matchup against one of Chicago’s finest? It all depends if Victory’s hubris (I mean really, victory and prima in the same name?!?) will make them fall victim to the classic 5-12 upset. Goose Island has one thing going for them and it is a very good thing: Honkers. When beer drinkers (i.e. men) hear this word they think of breasts and breasts are glorious, but will this give them the edge to be victorious? I believe so! Remember a vote for Goose Island is a vote for breasts! Go Breasts!
Beer Madness! (An ode to ale, college basketball, and day drinking)
You are probably an American or living in America. (If you are not, please click this link.) Since you are an American or have had America thrust upon you, then I am sure you are aware of the big month-long amateur sporting contest that begins this week. This contest is a great opportunity to gamble and to slack off at work while doing research* for your impending gambling binge. The great thing about this implicit endorsement of wagering on the physical performance of 19-year-old boys, is that everyone can participate and anyone can win.
Your college is not represented? Fill out your bracket predicting the 1st round demise of your hated rival. You don’t know the difference between a box-in-one and a box of shit? Fill out your bracket based on which mascot would win in a fight. You know more about college basketball than Dick Vitale and Bill Raftery? I guarantee your bracket will not win. Karen from accounting is going to win because she likes Kansas State’s purple uniforms.
In honor of this great gambling orgy, J Street Beer is doing you a favor. We have combined your two favorite things into one great thing. Alcohol and gambling. Together at last! That’s correct, we are hosting our inaugural J Street Beer Madness Super-Brew Tournament For The Ages (JSBMSBTFTA, for short). Over the next few weeks we will whittle our 64 brews down to one supreme beer champion. View the bracket below and then vote on the individual match-ups. The voting will be for a complete 24 hour period and each match-up will coincidentally be voted on during the same day as the corresponding match-up in that other tournament that everybody in your office will predict better than you. When we get to the excellent eight final beers, J Street Beer will have head-to-head taste tests to determine the winner.
On to the match ups…
Brew Review-Goose Island Dominique
Good ol’ Goose Island. They make some great beers. The 312, the Honkers, the IPA, and of course the Bourbon County Stout.
Dear Goose Island, if you can find it in your heart to send me a Rare Bourbon County Stout, I will forever be in your debt.
I recently had the privilege of trying their new Dominique. This one’s listed as a barrel-aged wild ale. Does that seem crazy to anyone other than me? It’s like two sides of the spectrum. Doesn’t the barrel aging mellow out the beer? Isn’t the wild yeast going to counteract that? Are my taste buds going to be destroyed? Is my brain going to pop?
Well, luckily (for most of us), my brain didn’t pop. The Dominique pours a deep bronze, almost orange color. The aroma is quite interesting. The first thing I noticed was dried cherries. It’s very spicy, tart and tangy in the aroma. The taste was quite amazing. There’s a lot going on in that little glass. It’s spicy and fruity, a slight sweet maltiness, tart and tangy, those dried cherries pop up again, and the bourbon booziness shows up at the end.
It’s really hard to explain all the flavors and aromas. It’s a very surprising and delicious beer. Just be aware that all those tastes and aromas are likely to put your taste buds into a frenzy.
It’s only on draft, so check the taps!
-Tonzi
Rating:
Brew Review-Goose Island Sofie
I need a beer. The fall season finally arrived with intriguing new TV shows and new episodes of our favorites, but alas Comcast is the bane of my existence. Unsurprisingly there is a service outage and I’ve already watched everything on the TIVO – what am I to do?!?
Well that’s an easy question (especially since I already answered it), I’ll drink some beer. I decided to grab Goose Island’s Sofie, a 6.5% ABV Belgium style ale that is “80% Belgium style ale blended with 20% Belgium style ale aged in wine barrels with orange peel.” Interesting, but will these flavors actually show through in the beer?
Best of Washington – A Beer-trospective
I lucked out and was able get into the Washingtonian’s Best of Washington Party yesterday at the National Building Museum. First off, I want to say, I love going to any event at the National Building Museum. Have you ever been in there? It’s beautiful. Huge pillars, a central fountain, all inside the place.
Anyway! The premise behind the party is to bring 30 of Washington’s best restaurants under one roof and have them show off all their fancy foods. This premise is a fantastic one. I like a lot of great food in one area. But, this is a beer blog, so my food ramblings will be short.
A Trip to Hopleaf
I had the pleasure of making a trip out to Hopleaf in Chicago. A place considered by many to be one of the best beer bars in America. I gotta say, it was pretty sweet.
Initially, it looks like a hole in the wall. Not a huge entrance, just a small sign letting you know it’s there. The front bar fits only about 50, so you’ve gotta get there early if you want bar space. The dining area to the back is surprisingly large. Likely room for another 80 people. The bare brick walls are lined with old Belgian paintings and beer signs.
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