I love elaborate cocktails. I’m also more than a bit of a stickler when it comes to classics being done right (but that’s another column). And, I’ve come to find that I enjoy a nice low- (or no-) class dive when I go out drinking. This leaves me in a…
Beer: Indian Brown Ale Brewery: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Style: American Brown Ale ABV: 7.2 percent See also: Sierra Nevada/Dogfish Head Life & Limb See also: New Belgium/The Lost Abbey Brett Beer The Beer Judge Certification Program (the major authority that certifies and ranks judges for homebrew and commercial brewing…
Ring the bell, it’s time for Last Call, where JK Grence, bartender at Shady’s, serves up booze advice and recipes. Got a burning question for your bartender? Leave it in the comments and it might be answered in a future column. See Also: Trader Vic’s original Mai Tai, from yours…
Beer: Moa Imperial Stout Brewery: Moa Brewing Company Style: Russian Imperial Stout ABV: 10.2 percent See also: Sonoran FFF See also: New Belgium/The Lost Abbey Brett Beer 9 p.m., Sunday night. CSI has been called in to investigate a crime scene. Lieutenant David Caruso arrives at the taped-off Tempe home…
See Also: Last Call’s Gin Primer, How to Drink It and Like It There I was behind the stick a few days ago. A guest ordered a gin and tonic. I whipped up one for him, he tasted it, and pronounced that it was a darn fine one. I shrugged…
Beer: FFF Brewery: Sonoran Brewing Co. Style: Blond Ale ABV: 4.3 percent Forced Family Fun. Fine French Furniture. Feisty, Fearless Females. Full Frontal Fridays. The triple Fs can stand for many things, and though most are enjoyable (especially that last one), Sonoran’s summer release of FFF might be the best…
Welcome to Vine Geeks, where Brian Reeder and Pavle Milic of AZ Wine Merchants take the drinking game quite seriously. Pay attention — you might just learn something. If you’ve ever tried to order a nice bottle of French wine, or an interesting/different grape varietal, or one of many wines…
Tomorrow is Bastille Day, when the French celebrate the storming of the Bastille and kickoff of the French Revolution. You would think Americans would make a drinking holiday out of it. We already have St. Pat’s and Cinco de Drinko, so why not Bastille Day? Here’s why: The French drink…
Beer: Brett Beer Brewery: New Belgium Brewing/The Lost Abbey Style: American Wild Ale ABV: 7.5 percent A little bit of wildness is an indispensable quality. Consider the duo of Roger Murtaugh and Martin Riggs. Murtaugh tempers Riggs’ madness; Riggs pushes Murtaugh to do shit he thinks he’s too old for…
I’ve fallen under the spell of a classic summer beverage, the shandy. It doesn’t get much simpler to make: First, get some beer, not too dark; lagers and wheat beers work great. Then, get your hands on some sparkling lemonade or citrus-flavored soda like 7-Up. Mix together in equal parts…
Welcome to Vine Geeks, where Brian Reeder and Pavle Milic of AZ Wine Merchants take the drinking game quite seriously. Pay attention — you might just learn something. Penfold’s recently released the most expensive wine in the world. No, the bottle wasn’t signed by Thomas Jefferson, or forged by Hardy…
My pets know what they’re doing these days. The dog is currently laying spread-eagle on the tile floor, right in the fan’s path. The cat has all but taken up residence in the bathroom sink. And about all I want to do come 2 PM is lay on the floor…
Beer: Oarsman Ale Brewery: Bell’s Brewery Inc. Style: Berliner Weisse ABV: 4 percent To everything there is a season, and this applies to beer, as well. Whereas frosty winter nights can be thawed by a powerful stout or winter warmer, the furnace that we like to call the Arizona summer…
Welcome to Vine Geeks, where Brian Reeder and Pavle Milic of AZ Wine Merchants take the drinking game quite seriously. Pay attention — you might just learn something. Many times, I’ve needed to crack a bottle of wine and found myself without the means to do so — or so…
Beer is a big deal in the Valley. From tastings and tappings to pairing dinners and more, there’s a different beer event to attend pretty much every night. Every week, we curate upcoming brew-related goings-on and lay them out for you here. Your calendar will be as full of beer…
This time of year is perfect to pull out the big guns for refreshing cocktails. You can keep your frozen Daiquiris and Margaritas, I’m reaching for Negronis right now. You might remember a few months ago when we discussed the classic Americano. Think of the Negroni as the advanced version…
Beer: Imperial Biscotti Break Brewery: Evil Twin Brewing Style: Imperial porter ABV: 11.5 percent Greetings, feeble readers. If you were expecting to read a review from Zach today, TOO BAD! This blog has officially been taken over by Fach Zowle, Zach’s equally handsome but much more evil twin brother. Whereas…
Welcome to Vine Geeks, where Brian Reeder and Pavle Milic of AZ Wine Merchants take the drinking game quite seriously. Pay attention — you might just learn something. The question: What is Noble Rot? The answers: hilarious…
This week, the mailbag fell open to reveal a message/question in a bottle: “Help! We stocked up on tequila for margarita season. Now we’re already tired of margaritas and still have lots of tequila, what should I do with it?” Simple: Send it to your favorite booze blogger. Oh, you…
Welcome to Vine Geeks, where Brian Reeder and Pavle Milic of AZ Wine Merchants take the drinking game quite seriously. Pay attention — you might just learn something. This past week, a record 98 students took the test to obtain their Masters of Wine, trying to join the mere 298…
Beer is the perfect Father’s Day gift — namely because we’ve never known a dad to turn it down — but some thought must be put into exactly what you get him. Here are six beer suggestions for whatever type of dad your dad might be…
Beer: Anchor Steam Beer Brewery: Anchor Brewing Co. Style: California Common ABV: 4.9 percent I will admit that, when it comes to beer, I’m enamored with novelty — the fringe, experimental brews that challenge my palate and keep things interesting. But sometimes in the quest for limited-release, barrel-aged, quadruple-hopped, soured,…
