763. Rhinegeist Cougar (Q♣️)

Light, crisp and refreshing.  

This was a good choice to drink while sitting out in the sun by the Ohio River. Not too full bodied to make my stomach feel heavy in the warm temperature. 

Super simple, nothing special, but perfect for right now. 

And very happy to check off the Queen of Clubs in the Bicycle Series. 

762. Hofbräu Red Lager

The main attraction of Caitlin and I's Newport visit was my favorite stomping ground Höfbrauhaus. I didn't even know that a Red Lager was something they brewed.  So, I knew I needed to add a new Höfbrau beer to the site.

It's a really good quality lager, and does have a little extra flavorful punch to it. Very drinkable, and the exact flavor that I expect from a red. Really enjoyable to drink. 

761. Ei8ht Ball Brewery Tarnished

Pretty bland offering again. 

Not sure how long they have been open, but I'm not sure they have their water balanced properly.  This is a common problem most breweries have on their first year of operation. It was especially bad at Tow Yard back home. 

It's not terrible, but it does have the chalky after taste that I don't feel should be there in a golden ale. 

760. Ei8ht Ball Brewing Prodigal

Caitlin and I took a day trip to Cincy to hunt down some Ohio beers for the Bicycle Series of the website, and stumbled across a microbrewery in the back of Party Source - called Ei8ht Ball Brewing.  We decided to sit down and give them a try.  

I asked the handle-bar-mustached bartender what their most popular and his favorite beers were.  They turned out to both be the American Pale, so I gave it a try first.  

Very standard and bland APA.

Dry and bitter flavors are present but in the subtle way I expect from an APA.  Nothing special, but not awful either. 

759. Evil Czech Clayton Bigsby White Stout

This beer is AMAZING!

I ordered it because of the name - being named after one of my favorite Dave Chappelle sketches was a huge draw for me. And the beer delivered.  Looking like a simple ale - this beer packs a big punch of flavor. Stouts aren't my thing, but the flavor is there. And the white chocolate included gives an amazingly smooth after-taste. I am a huge fan of this beer!

758. Bloomington Kirkwood Cream Ale

Very standard.  

Tastes like every other cream ale. 

Easy to drink. 

Nothing sets it apart. 

(For the record, it does not suck, it's fine)

757. St. John Malt Brothers Mr. Coconuthead Porter

Not the best coconut beer I have ever had - but it's still really good. The Porter is very dry and bitter up front, but the coconut flavor does creep in the back very well.  It's tasty, but nothing I'm dying to drink again. At the same, I would gladly drink one, if it was around.

First I've ever heard of St. John Malt Brothers - and they are from here in Indiana.  Going to have to make an attempt to try some more of their beers. 

756. Breckenridge Avalanche (A♣️)

Beer #756 begins a new Series we are going to be doing on this website. 

This past week, Caitlin bought me a deck of Bicycle playing cards that feature 53 breweries on them. (http://www.shopbicyclecards.com/Craft-Beer-P291.aspx)

Tonight, as we sit down to watch the Pacers game, we chose the Ace of Clubs and found a Breckenridge beer to check off the deck. 

Avalanche is a very standard amber ale. Nice and standard flavors. Exactly what an amber is expected to taste like. 

755. Outliers BlauMachen

A pretty high end Pilsner. 

Quality flavor, but nothing exceptional. 

Enjoyable, albeit a wee bit dry on the back end. Still light and crisp and easy to drink. 

Side note: Very good beer lacing!

754. Upland Barrel Chested Barleywine

A very nice aroma, with a very bourbon taste to it. The beer itself is a little drier than I tend to prefer, but it is still very solid quality. Good beer, but nothing I am too impressed with on the flavor-side. 

753. Sierra Nevada Otra Vez Gose-Style Ale

Not as enjoyable as the Gose earlier. No sour-lemon flavor with this one. The grapefruit is okay but I know from previous beers that cactus is a flavor I just don't enjoy. 

752. Flix Brewhouse Mario Gose

Good representation of the Gose-style. Lemon flavors are good but not overpowering. Light and refreshing. I enjoy this.  Their best beer I've tried tonight. 

751. Flix Brewhouse Umbra Chocostout

Moderate flavor. It's dry, like it should be. But I feel like a lot of the chocolate flavor is lost because of how dry it is. It's a very minor hint in the aftertaste. Still an okay stout, but doesn't stand out. 

750. Flix Brewhouse 10 Day Scottish Ale

75% Completed!

Been wanting to come here for a while. Caitlin and I decided to have a Date Nigt and watch "The Breakfast Club" here. So, naturally, new beers are being tried. 

Pretty standard Scottish Ale, nice dark and flavorful malts. Maybe a little too thin for what I was expecting. But still drinkable. 

749. Goodwood Walnut Brown Ale

My first beer from Goodwood. 

Amazing flavor up front, but a really bad after taste in the back end. The beer smells wonderful, it's just disappointing. 

748. Indiana City Citizen's Right Barleywine

Definitely a full bodied beer. Think as I drink it, and a lot drier than I tend to prefer. On the back end, some really enjoyable - almost fruity - flavors begin to kick in and counter the dry beginnings. Not as good as Beast of Laurey's, but still a very enjoyable beer to sip on. 

Let's Have Some Real Talk about Shane

So, if you came to this website in the first ninety days of 2016, you saw a nice long post about myself, my battle with alcoholism, and how I had decided to go sober.  The main motivating factor for this was an incident involving myself and my girlfriend's family - and me turning into a full-blown raging doucheasaurus.

In the heat of the incident, the fights, and the embarrassment; I made the quick decision to go sober.  Getting hammered drunk caused both the incident and ensuing fight - so, I felt that I needed to cut it from my life completely.  It was a decision that I made, and was never asked to do.  I reached out to a friend, and began going to AA.

As far as AA went - it didn't turn out to be exactly what I expected.  I seriously was just looking for a support system to remind me things are okay.  What I found, was a very pressure-filled and "cult-like" environment that didn't suit me well.  I was told, "You have to go to 90 meetings in 90 days".  Well, my schedule didn't really allow that.  I work a full time job, have a significant other, and have other things in my life that I have made commitments to.  Fitting in one meeting a day wasn't an option, and I felt like I was being judged for not making that happen.  Also, the more and more I read about the steps, the homework, the parts of life that they wanted to discuss - these were personal things not related to my drinking, and perhaps things that I wasn't ready to address or want to talk about.  In my attempt to try and stay sober, WHY do you feel the need to discuss my sexual history?  The two things are not connected, nor mutually explicit.

"Read this many pages a day"
"Write out this list"
"Go to this many meetings"

It felt like school and homework - not what I wanted when I signed up and started exploring.

So, what did I do?  I spent ninety days sober.
I spent ninety days, every day, making the choice - I don't need a beer today.  I don't need any alcohol today.
I spent ninety days discussing a lot of relationship problems and issues that I have had repressed for many years.  Many of the factors that led to Caitlin and I's fight on vacation, stemmed from mental problems and inadequate feelings that I had come to live with over my life.  Many problems with past relationships had led to a massive amount of distrust and feelings of resentment for anything that took focus away from me in the relationship.  I've always been narcissistic, but these were even deeper self-centered-feelings that caused major issues.  It was also made abundantly clear that I am a very emotional drinker, and I need to avoid alcohol when in emotional situations.  Luckily, during those first ninety days, I had two or three moments of extreme frustration or anger - that I did not allow to push me to drinking.  I have found a desire to be a responsible alcoholic, and avoid making the decisions that I know to be toxic.  In this time, it was also made painfully and bluntly aware to me; that I am no longer twenty-one.  While it obvious that I live in disillusion of Peter Pan Syndrome; I need to grow up and be responsible when it comes to my drinking.  I am far beyond my years of partying all night, every night, rinse and repeat.  Manchild, I am.  Alcoholic Twat Waffle, I do not need to be.

I know I painted a very bad picture of my experience with AA.  I went for four straight weeks, once a week, every Monday night.  These four meetings actually really helped me, when listening to other people's experiences and seeing how they ended up where they were at.  I saw lots of similarities that opened my eyes to a lot of the things that I had been doing in my own life, and seeing these things anew; it allowed me to open up discussions with Caitlin that helped us strengthen our relationship by tearing down some of the walls I had set in place.  After lots of very progressive conversations, Caitlin and I found ourselves in a much healthier and more enjoyable relationship than we had been for the past year.

And yet, I still chose to not drink.  For ninety days.  Having a beer was brought up a few times, and she asked me if I wanted to go somewhere, or do something, or if I wanted to buy something for home.  And I kept putting it off, and saying that I just didn't feel it yet.  I didn't need or want it yet.

As my 90th day approached, Indiana City (which is still my favorite brewery in Indiana) was releasing their Mimi's Tabernacle: One of my favorite beers of all time, and the beer that made me a regular at their establishment.  So, I went out of my way to acquire a bottle, and then let it sit in my fridge for nearly two weeks, until I hit that 90th day of sobriety.

And I celebrated ninety days of sobriety, by sharing a bottle of Mimi's Tabernacle with my Amazeballs Girlfriend, who supported my decisions and right to chose from day one.  She never demanded a stay sober, she never called it a deal-breaker if I drank again, she supported me the whole way.  We sat around watching the Pacers game, drinking Mimi's, and just having a wonderful evening.  I didn't announce it on Social Media, I didn't post a picture, I wasn't going to brag about drinking one of the greatest beers ever - Nope.  My sobriety died a small, quiet, painless death in my living room with the love of my life supporting me.

I then waited an entire week to even consider touching another beer.
Seven whole days.  It didn't bother me.  It didn't consume my thoughts.  I wasn't even worried about when i was going to have another beer.  Until my Facebook and Twitter blew up with National Beer Day.  If not for this "holiday" - I probably wouldn't even be drinking tonight.   I'm going to enjoy one special beer tonight, in celebration, and then wake up tomorrow and go about my new life just as happy as I am as I write these words.

The journey to 1,000 beers has started again.  New Beer later tonight.

744, 745, 746, 747 - Catching Up

With all the holidays and traveling, I feel behind on a couple of beers. 

744.  A couple of days before Christmas, my brother brought me a Goose Island Bourbon County Barleywine for us to share. It was delicious!

745.  Picked up a Hollandia in Roatán.

746.  Drank a Belikin in Belize. 

747. Drank a Sol in Costa Maya.

743. Two Brothers Atom Smasher Octoberfest Lager

It's a little late for an Oktoberfest Lager, but it was on draft and I've never had - so, let's do this. 

And we're doing it. 

It's an Oktoberfest lager. 

There is nothing special about it - but it does have some good flavor to it. I could drink a bunch of them, but I also wouldn't go out of my way to drink this one. The recipe is solid, the flavor is tasty, but I have had better.

742. Two Brothers Northwind Imperial Stout

It's a little more dry than sweet - for my tastes. I've opened up to stouts and enjoyed quite a few - but I tend to prefer the sweeter ones than the dry. This has some good flavors, but I'm not a fan of how it leaves my mouth so dry. It does go down very smooth, though. 

741. Celis White

Pretty simple and refreshing standard witbier. I could drink a ton of them, but nothing stands out about this one. 

740. Sam Adams Chocolate Bock

In 2013, Sam Adams did a Cherry Chocolate Bock. It was beer #423:

http://www.shanedrinksbeer.com/2013/11/423-sam-adams-cherry-chocolate-bock.html

I feel like this beer is the same recipe minus the cherry. This is a fine beer, very smooth and no bitters. Lots of chocolate flavor, just a little dry in the end. 

739. Sam Adams Holiday Porter

It's an okay Porter. 

Some nice chocolaty notes in the drink. It goes down pretty smooth, but it is severely dry on the back end. Not one of my favorite things I've drank. 

738. Sam Adams Sparkling Ale

If Sam Adams made Miller Lite - this is what it would taste like. Same light beer, similar flavor with maybe a little extra to it. Definitely something on the back end. So, it's blah. Nothing special at all. 

737. Three Floyd's Cherron Gose

Stayed with the sours for now - this one has a far superior flavor to it. Much more sour and lingers in the back corners of your mouth. It's not the best flavor - it calls itself cherry, but I don't really get much cherry flavor. It's just more of a generic sour flavor. It's good, it's enjoyable. I could drink a couple.

736. Sam Adams Kosmic Mother Funk Grand Cru

Very subtle sour flavors that hit the back of tongue when you drink, and then sits on your tongue once the drink is gone. It's interesting, sadly not that great. Had hopes for something a little better. 

735. Sun King Rathskeller Amber

I really wanted to save this beer to try AT the Rathskeller - but it didn't happen. I ended up Sun King and needed something new to drink. 

It's good - but a pretty standard Amber. Nothing new or exciting. Great flavors, but nothing that stands out. 

734. Indiana City Peppermint Candy Cane Shadow Boxer

So, there is no name for this Firkin Beer. 

Shadow Boxer in a firkin with a bunch of Candy Canes.

The smell: AMAZING!!!

The drink: tastes like Shadow Boxer. 

Aftertaste: Lots of peppermint in the aftertaste. 

It's ok. Nothing special - but interesting. Happy to try it during this holiday season. 

Rachel, pouring the beer from the Firkin...

733. Indiana City Double Uddercut

I'm late to the game on this one. 

Really wanted a bottle of it, but they sold out fast two weeks ago. Finally got to drink one at the brewery. It's a nice and sweet beer. Good flavors, smoother stout than normal with that milky sweet flavor. Not something I normally would drink a lot of, but enjoyable. Glad I tried it. 

You KNOW you LOVE that SEXY artwork...  Don't you?  Yeah, I knew you did. And you should - if you have any common sense. Because...

732. Stone Mutt Brown Imperial Ale

Very full and quality beer here. 

Tastes much more like a stout than a brown ale. The high gravity is noticeable and make some of the flavors stand out. Heavy chocolate and toffee flavors (which lead to the Stout flavor...).  Some fruit aromas, but none in the actual flavor. Goes down smooth, basically no bitterness at all. The standard quality I expect from Stone - finally with a low bitterness I can enjoy! 

731. New Belgium Eric's Ale Wild Ale

Nice and fruity mild sour ale. Not too sour on the front or back - with lots of fruity flavors. Smooth and no bitters. Enjoyable. 

730. Black Acre Saucy Intruder

Pretty standard and decent beer - nothing too special. I like the rye flavors, but it still is pretty heavy on the bitter hops. It's not bad, and the rye upfront makes it a little smoother and easier to handle. Nothing special, and nothing I would go out of my way to drink, but it's ok. Just ok.

729. New Belgium Salted Caramel Brownie Brown Ale

This is a beer that I have been excited about for a long time. It's taken a while for me to track down both the beer and the ice cream - I refused to do one without the other. Tonight, it finally happened. 

Brown Ales are my favorite, so tend to be the most picky about them. This one is really good, but not one of my favorites. It is the high quality that I expect from New Belgium, it has an amazing aroma that gets me ready to drink it - then things get confusing (but not in a bad way).  The full body starts really dry with some bitterness - I'm assuming this is to represent the salted flavor, it's quickly replaced with a nice and flavorful brown ale that I really enjoy, and then I get a nice long and lingering caramel flavor in my mouth. It's a nice and sweet finish to the dry start - until that bitterness bookends itself and shows up again to crush the caramel and leave me craving another drink to get that dry feeling out of my mouth. Overall, it's really enjoyable and I won't have a problem knocking out this six pack with the ice cream to go with it. 

Speaking of the ice cream - it is exactly what you would expect from Ben and Jerry's.  A nice and delicious base with some large chunks of brownie and lots of swirls of caramel. I think they did something to the brownie pieces to give it a salty flavor. My only question now: do I put some scoops of ice cream into a pint glass and make a Beer Float???

728. Magic Hat Wilhelm "Scream"

Very full bodied and flavorful - but light on the pumpkin. I get some sweetness and some spice but not the bitterness. Goes down smooth and is pretty enjoyable for someone who doesn't like pumpkin.

Drank at my buddy Samir's house, so this was provided by him.  

727. Against the Grain The Brown Note

Really good and enjoyable brown ale. Nice flavors, very full body with no dry bitterness at all. I could drink a lot of these and enjoy them. 

Miller showed me this beer online a long time ago, and it turns out he made it his mission to get them at Joe's. 

726. Sun King Tip Off

It's a good beer, but I wish it was better. It's smooth with some really malty flavors, but it's not great by any means. I could drink a lot of them, but there are many other beers that I would rather be drinking. 

725. Stone Stochasticity Project: Your Father Smelt Of Elderberries

Very different beer, not my typical thing. It's dry and bitter up front but then mellows itself out into some fairly tasty - but somewhat muted - flavors.