Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

My Friday sojourn to the highly acclaimed, world renowned Morris Beer Store brought me face to face with Gail, the Beer Store Maven. We briefly discussed the Walter Payton Pilsner and we opined on my comments of its lack of carbonation from last week's review. She said she'd call them to see if they perhaps had a bad run.

I mosied to the primo beer shelves and began ogling the stock. Hmm, that looks good. I might try that one, or that one. Then a small axon triggered in the deep recesses of my brain and one beer bore looking into. It was a recommendation from a friend at work who suggested it weeks ago. The price looked ok, so I picked up a sixpack of Smithwick's Imported Irish Ale brewed by the good people at Guinness. Gail remarked, "Oh. You're going to try 'Smittick's.'" Then I remembered the Wiki article I read weeks ago on this beer and this name.

"When pronouncing the name, the 'W' is silent. In Ireland, it is generally pronounced as 'Smithicks', 'Smitticks', 'Smidicks' or 'Smeth-icks'. The variation of pronunciations is mostly due to differing accent and dialects of the Irish. When ordering in the US, 'Smithicks' is the preferred method, while 'Smiddicks' is the most prevalent pronunciation in Canada." - Wikipedia

This is why Gail is the "Maven." She knows her stuff. I happily paid her the 8 bucks it cost and made my way home.

Saturday came all cloudy and cold here in corn country, USA, and I was glad to be inside. Spring? Bah! We're going right into 90 degree weather next week. Typical Illinois climate. When beer reviewin' time came, I snatched a bottle of Smittick's from the fridge, sat down at the Mac, and started enjoying life.

A popped cap and a sniff at the hole in the bottleneck revealed a very slight but pleasant scent that smelled like a well prepared recipe for beer. Not strong, not hoppy, perhaps a slight sweetness. No surprises on the horizon. I poured it into my beer reviewin' mug and the head rose up mighty and very thick like creme froth. The color is a dark amber, not quite brown but definitely reddish. Lots of micro-bubbles rose up from the bottom.

The first taste was almost silky to the palate and the flavor had a tinge of maltiness without being predominant. Successive sips accustomed the palate and initial maltiness blended into the great overall taste of this beer. There was absolutely no bitterness that I could discern. I'm surprised at how smooth this beer is. The second bottle was more pleasurable than the first. It's a downright delight to drink.

This beer has to be on the top ten lists of many beer advocates around the world. It's well rounded, has a thick creamy head which lasts to the bottom of the glass and a taste that just doesn't give up. This is one of the best beers I've had so far.

The SixPackTech ratings for Smithwick's Imported Irish Ale are:

Taste: A - A veritable treat for the tongue.
Smoothness: A - The tinge of malt will win your heart.
Drinkability: A - One round deserves six more.
Bang for the buck: B - A real treat with change back.
Wife's all-encompassing opinion: "I was expecting it to be bitter, but it's not. It actually tastes pretty nice." (Ah. Whatta woman.)

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

I was pretty much out of ideas as far as what to review on Saturday night. Since I had the time, I ambled up the beer shelf aisle at the highly acclaimed, world renowned Morris Beer Store and... wait a minnit. There's something I haven't seen before... Then it hit me. It's Spring. Brewers sometimes come out with a seasonal beer with a different take on one of their famous recipes. And there it was, as if to slap me in the forehead, New Belgium Springboard Ale. Made with oats, of all things. I was surprised at the price of $8.50 but Gail, the Beer Store Maven said that pretty much all the beers have gone up in price. I grabbed the sixpack and ambled out the door. When one has time, ambling comes easy.




Saturday arrived and the weather was nice enough that I took some time to gather and cut some firewood and set up camp out in the Manly Garage. The nights still get a little chilly. It felt so strange. Like trying to get back into the groove with an old friend after a long absence. After awhile, my ass found the old cheek ruts in the stool and I was home again. After getting a nice fire going in the ol' Sotz Super Stove, I settled in on my new MacBook and garage stool and popped open the first beer.




Into the mug it goes. Up comes a nice white head with medium to large bubbles. The liquid is a very light and a tad cloudy yellow with a smallish amount of micro-bubbles. I wonder if this is going to be a repeat of a bubble-less beer. The aroma it gave off was a pleasant beery smell, not heavy on any particular ingredient. The first taste gives forth a nice body and a nice smooth taste. Not overbearing in any degree. This beer is similar, but not quite, to others I've had from New Belgium. The feel in my mouth was one that left my tongue wanting another sip, ever so slightly dry. This is a nice well rounded beer with all of its assets in place and not overstated. It's smooth, flavorful and has "beer" written all over it. The head didn't dissipate, and hung around 'til the bottom of the mug along with the bubbles. This beer is great all the way through the sixpack.

I'd recommend snatching up as many sixers as you can afford of Springboard. Try it against a Blue Moon or a Fat Tire. You'll be hard pressed to tell the difference, but the difference is there, unique to this Springboard brew. This beer will make you smile and never even think about how much you paid for it. It's well worth it.

The SixPackTech ratings for New Belgium Springboard Ale are:

Taste: A- : Contender for the nectar of the gods.
Smoothness: A- : Like a freshly paved stretch of road without the tar smell.
Drinkability: A- : What? Only one left??
Bang for the buck: B- : A half a buck more for two times the taste.
Wife's all-encompassing opinion: - "Yeah. That's good. It's a lady's beer. With a bag o' chips or something salty." (We have something in common after all. Except for the lady's beer part.)

New site snippet

The new SixPackTech website is almost complete. One more graphic header, a php change and a coupla widgets and we're good to go. As frustrating as it is, I'm enjoying the challenge. Things are starting to gel.

Jeez, it seemed to take forever but it'll probably happen maybe next weekend, God willing and the creek don't back up into the toilet. If that's too soon for me to get everything ready, I'll postpone it a day or two. Measure twice; cut once. Don't worry. I'll still put up a sixpack of posts every day right here until then.

Hang with me, True Believers. The time is nigh approaching. It will be interesting.

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

Just a little heads-up for all you Brew Review readers: I'm going to change the rating method for brew reviews starting with this one. At first I thought I'd judge beer the way guys judge babes, on a 1 to 10 scale. But, if you think about it, is a beer rated as a 9.2 that much different from one rated at a 9.5? After frequenting the Beer Advocate website and reading their reviews, I thought I'd try their A through F rating system. It seems simpler and we can all relate to a school grade. Wouldn't you agree? Now, on with the review->

Ya know, I'm not an impulse buyer, or maybe I am. I'm a sucker for a pretty girl and fancy labeling when it comes to beer. That's why, on my Friday foray to the highly acclaimed, world renowned Morris Beer Store, I fell prey to Gail, the Beer Store Maven's suggestion that I try out a new brew they just got in. I listened to her pitch and then ambled over to the primo beer shelf to eye the goods. I decided to take her advice and, for review, I purchased a sixpack of Walter Payton Pilsner. It's brewed by America's Brewing Company, right down the road in Aurora, Illinois (don't pronounce the "s".) It's a part of good ol' number 34's Walter Payton's Roundhouse, a combo brew pub, restaurant, cigar and cognac bar, museum and historical landmark housed in a completely refurbished railroad roundhouse which was built in 1856. I was there for a company Christmas party a few years ago, and I must say, it's a really nice place. Hmm. Now they're brewing their own beer. Interesting.

So how could I go wrong? America's Brewing Company? America? Walter-frikkin'-Payton? The greatest football player in the history of the game? How much more manly can you get? I totally expected the labels on the bottles to have hair. One slight gee-that's-too-bad fact: the sixer cost 9 bucks. A little steep for my genuine Bob Vila Craftsman wallet (with built-in LED flashlight and combo-screwdriver.) But I went ahead and bought it anyway. For America. For Walter. For Da Bears. I liked the label too.

Right after Earth Hour on Saturday, it was beer time. I grabbed the first bottle while humming the Bears fight song in my head and situated myself at the computer desk. Tonight, I'll try a new vessel which Gail gave me. It's a giant 16 or 20 ounce beer glass with a Pilsner Urquell (never heard of it) label on it. I can dump the entire contents of a 12-oz. bottle into this tub and not worry about the head flowing out and drenching my mouse.

I popped the first cap and wetted my smell organ on the neck of the bottle. Nothing jumped out at my nose. The aroma was barely perceptible. Into the giant beer glass it went. The brew came up with thinner head and slightly larger bubbles. The color was a cloudy orange-yellow and lots of micro-bubbles clung to the side. The first taste left a slight tang while going down but it was not unenjoyable. The taste quickly faded and my mouth asked for more. As more tasting continued, the flavor smoothed out and was quite enjoyable. Soon, a mild citrusy flavor manifested itself and rounded out the taste.

But something happened. The head dissipated in a very short while and all the carbonation seemed to disappear. No bubbles. Hmm. Did it go flat? Maybe it's the glass that went flat. Maybe one of my kids ate his breakfast cereal out of it. Next bottle, I'll go back to the mug.

The second bottle goes into the mug. Once again, the head dissipated within minutes. The carbonation seemed to be at a minimum and got me to thinking if I wasn't merely drinking beer-flavored water. The micro-bubbles, albeit fewer than I expected, lasted longer in the mug but the bubble population dwindled towards the bottom of the mug. The taste, however, remained quite good throughout the session. This beer has a distinct flavor all its own and is a delight all the way down.

I wonder if this sixpack was a victim of an overlooked quality control inspector or a glitch in the bottling process. The beer has all the earmarks of a good, hefty beverage (taste, flavor, smoothness) but the flagging carbonation makes me wonder if I didn't get part of a bad batch. Alas. It hard to give this beer a bad rating just because of bubbles, but I feel the carbonation enhances the taste. I'll have to try it again in the future. It's really a great taste. I have to reserve judgement (R.J.) on this one until next time.

The SixPackTech ratings for Walter Payton Pilsner are:

Taste: (R.J.) Nice; sweetness aptly named.
Smoothness: (R.J.) Like a beer smoothie.
Drinkability: (R.J.)
Bang for the buck: C- A bit pricier than most.
Wife's all-encompassing opinion: "It's a bit bitter." (Here we go with the 'bitter' again.) "It leaves your mouth dry, like you want to drink." (Isn't that the whole idea?)

New site news

The new place is progressing slower than I had anticipated. There's always a mental glitch that arises when one thinks things are moving along nicely, then something comes up that proves that one doesn't know what one is doing. The one being me. Some things don't go as I'd like and then it takes a some time to do research to find out and get myself educated in the realms of Wordpress, Php and Css.

The theme I've chosen is a beauty but the author sold it to a company who has taken over responsibility. Any problems I have had are relegated to the "General Wordpress Idiot" section of the FAQs. But I've put too much time and effort into getting things this far with what I have learned to abandon it and start with a fresh theme.

I have a few more graphics to be made, a plugin to install and learn, a few files to copy over and then we're almost golden. The testing of the new place will be by me 'n' you, together.

There may be a thing or two that doesn't work quite right, but the general attitude and topical essence of SixPackTech will remain in the underpinnings. As we progress, so it is that I will learn.

I've wondered to myself many times as to why am I doing this. It's now costing me some scratch to host the new site, there's a large learning curve involved and I'm starting to feel like Albert in Wonderland as I try to make my way through all the file coding and gobbledygook that is pee-aitch-pee and aitch-tee-em-ell and style sheets.

I know why I'm doing this. First, this free Blogspot site allowed me an easy way to express myself and offer up some joy and entertainment to whoever came along and stopped to read my postings. I love doing this. Now we up the ante with a little savoir-faire, panache and perhaps some elegance with Wordpress and a hosted domain. It will be a challenge that keeps my brain working far better than any crossword puzzle can. Sudoku has no merit in my opinion.

So bear with me, true believers, faithful readers. Coupla two-tree weeks and we'll quite possibly be in our new digs. Yep. Point the DNS servers over and never look back. In the first week of independent dot com life, I will probably cultivate a receding hairline and lose a molar or two.

I want this to happen. It will happen. Warts and all.

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

Another Friday and I was surfing the beer shelves at the highly acclaimed, world renowned Morris Beer Store looking for a brew that Chrissy, the Princess of second-shift at the ol' warehouse, said that her dad likes better 'n St. Pauli Girl. There it was, top shelf, all decked out in a green garbed sixpack carry tote, Sierra Nevada. I understand they make several brews, wheat, pale ale and stout, but only the pale ale was sitting on the shelf. Therefore, the brew review for Saturday will be on Sierra Nevada Pale Ale brewed in Chico, California. Blew 8 bucks right outta my pocket.

The time approached for the ceremonial uncapping and sniffing ritual that accompanies these beer tastes. This one aroma is slightly different than what I've been expecting; perhaps it was the hops that grabbed my nose hairs first. But this is definitely beer. Into the mug it went and the first thing that caught my eye was the color. The brew was a distinct orange color but had all the familiar trappings of the thick head and micro-bubbles.









The first sip was relatively smooth and had a very robust flavor. The ensuing sips revealed a taste of "difference." It was something I couldn't quite wrap my tongue around but it was completely unique to other beers. It's not a bad taste; it's not too hoppy or too malty. It's just different. It seems as if different taste buds are being stimulated here producing this unique flavor. I can't call it good and I can't call it bad. Jeez, it's just different. After the first bottle, the malt in the brew became more apparent.

This beer is one that I wouldn't refuse if offered, but it's not really a beer with a laid back, cuddle-your-uvula taste. If I were to use some synonyms for this beer, they would be "different," "unique," "uncommon" but maybe "peculiar" would be stretching it a bit. Try a bottle or two and you'll come up with the same conclusions. My apologies to Chrissy's dad for my not agreeing on this beer but maybe his favorite is the wheat beer by the same folks.

The SixPackTech ratings for Sierra Nevada Pale Ale are:

Taste: 7.2 - yer not from around here, are you?
Smoothness: 7.5 - after the first sanding with 60-grit.
Drinkability: 6.7 - there's still some left?
Bang for the buck: 6.5 - a bit much for whatcha get.
Wife's all encompassing opinion: "Too bitter. It's got a funny something going on."

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

Today we're all Irish. So now what do we do?

Drink green beer? (There's work tomorrow.)
Corned beef and cabbage? (Gas?)
Shamrocks? (Hell, the lawn ain't even green yet.)
(Sham-rock: a fake stone?)
And what about the Italians? (Columbus Day?)
The Poles? (Casimir Pulaski Day?)
The Mexicans? (Cinco de Mayo?)
The Canadians? (...Anyone?)
Germans, British, Cubans, French, and others. What day are we all Russian? (Every day when we're driving to work.)

Whatever. Enjoy the day and don't do anything stupid. - FCG

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

Friday came with a special meaning. It was the first of 5 remaining vacation days which I'm taking before I lose them on my anniversary of hire. I decided to take 5 successive Fridays in a row. This allowed me more time for my visit to the highly acclaimed, world renowned Morris Beer Store and perhaps a brief chat with Gail, the Beer Store Maven. She greeted me at the door. The store was empty. We talked about the Brew Reviews and she made some recommendations. I took some mental notes. I decided to go with a brew endorsed by a friend at work, and picked up a sixer of Negra Modelo Dark Beer.

The Mexican guys I work with all prefer Modelo to Corona but some have said that the Negra Modela will get you drunk too fast. Well, I'll be the judge of that. I bid Gail a farewell and wended my way home and stashed the brew in the fridge.




It seemed to take forever for Saturday night to arrive and finally, the time came to have beer. And a little enjoyment to boot. I popped open the first squatty body beer bottle. A sniff at the neck revealed almost nothing. No way to judge if there's a surprise inside or not. But that might be a good thing. The brew poured out and revealed its dark color. Not as dark as, say, Coke, but a little darker than an amber ale. The head came up in moderation, not too tall but nice and thick. Once again we have the larger bubbly cling-ons and the micro-bubbles (lots) rising from the bottom.







First taste revealed a bit of maltiness but a smooth flavor. The hops taste is barely noticeable. The succeeding sips became more enjoyable and smooth as the drink was drained from the mug. By the time the first bottle was halfway gone, the slight tinge of malt fit right in and became an integral part of the overall flavor. This beer, albeit darkish in color, is nowhere near the taste of Guinness. The beer does have a darkish taste but it's not the primary quality of this brew. It's almost like the aftertaste you experience in your mouth about 10 minutes after you popped a Hershey's Kiss. Not sweet, but borderline sweet-malt, if such a condition exists.

This beer is a good choice if you want some balls-out smo-o-oth with taste thrown in the trunk. Don't let the dark color fool you. Have a taste of this dark Modelo and you will be just as amazed as I am how many unique, delicious tastes and tangs there are in beer. Negra Modelo is a numero uno in my book.

The SixPackTech ratings for Negra Modelo Dark Beer are:

Taste: 9.3 - a subdued fiesta in your yap.
Smoothness: 9.5 - like dark STP without being thick.
Drinkability: 9 - Uno mas, por favor.
Bang for the buck: 7.9 - pony up a little more as an investment.
Wife's all encompassing opinion: "It's too beery." (Ya see what I'm up against?)

New site update

I've taken it upon myself to try to publish six posts a day (in keeping with the "six" part of SixPackTech) here at the "blogspot" site, and because I'm such a stickler for detail, it usually takes up a good chunk of my time to post before having to go to work during the week. The weekends are, like everyone else, what I look forward to because that means that on Sat., all I do is write the Brew Review, update the babes and work on the the new Wordpress-based SixPackTech, not in that order.

So how's the new site coming along, anyway? Recently, I've been billed another month's rent on the hosting service and I've been pounding away at the keyboard in the Wordpress admin pages, all the while trying to wrap my head around PHP, CSS and Plugins. I gotta get my buddy, Eric, to generate one more header graphic in Photoshop. Make sure the archives work. Get the SixPack Faves put in their place and functional. Then a final inspection. But I must say that things are very close to completion. Prolly, about 93% done.

Soon, I will shit and get off the pot. I figure that once the new place is about 97% or 98% complete, you, the readers may just forgive any of the rough edges that remain to be smoothed out in the remaining 2% of my learning process.

Then I'll point the domain name server over to the new site. When that happens, the cord will be cut, and the feces will impact the ventilation device. I'm sorry that I can't be more specific on a cutover date, but I'm a detail oriented kinda guy and I just don't know yet. Everything has to be just so (did someone just say "anal"?). The search engines will have a field day at my expense. Over time, I may get more good readers who like what I do. I'll leave the old site up for a few months, just in case.

Please bear with me. It's gonna be great. You will be as impressed as I am with the new design. It'll be the same SixPack stuff served up in a different, graphically enhanced package. I can hardly wait.

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

Friday begat my jaunt to the Morris Beer Store for a review specimen, and it turned into a lucky day, indeed. Gail, the Beer Store Maven was stirring about behind the register. I sauntered over to the primo beer shelves and eyed the transient residents all nicely lined up for my inspection. I slowly proceeded in baby steps to the end of the aisle and then checked out the cooler. Hmm. All very interesting, but wait! I had a brain zot and suddenly my older thoughts about getting anything from Sam Adams would be most opportune. Back to the shelves and there he was. On the top shelf sitting next to a beer probably made in Fredonia or Bulgaria. There were about four different versions of Sam. I didn't want to have Sam ruin me for life by choosing some completely unknown, so I chose a sixpack of Samuel Adams Boston Lager for review on Saturday night.

I went to the counter to pay $7.29 for some Sam, and Gail asked if this was the beer I was going to review. I just had to smile. We chatted briefly about beers and websites and window signs. I walked away with a nice feeling and a nice sixpack. I'll talk about the Morris Beer Store in future episodes of this seemingly endless saga.

When I pulled into my driveway, I noticed that there was a package at the front door. Ah. The "Acrobots" have arrived. I bought three of these posable mini-figures from ThinkGeek.com for decoration on my computer desk. In a moment of impish devilry, I decided to pose these guys with Sam and see how how it goes with the readers. Sound off in the comments, Readers.





The time had arrived and Sam was calling.

I popped the first cap on the first bottle using my special Bob Vila Craftsman 50th Anniversary, zinc plated, combination decapper, nail puller and paint can opener, and took a whiff of the contents. A light tinge of beer, meaning no surprises, no skunks and no disappointments. But it's early.









Into the mug went Sam and the foam came up to say hi, all thick and rich. The brew below showed as a brownish red and had an ample amount of micro-bubbles rising up inside. Not too many clingons on the side of the mug, but we'll check in on them later (could be my mug at fault.)

The first swig yielded a nice smooth taste with an overall malty twang to it. Not too malty as to be overwhelming though. This beer is a nice change of pace in the taste department. In spite of (or because of) the malt flavor, the beer is surprisingly smooth, sip after sip. It kind of reminded me of a European beer. The thick, creamy head on it hung around like that neighbor that drops by just to say hello for a couple of hours while you're in the middle of a garage project. One swig into the second bottle and my taste buds have made up a nice room for this special guest. Still smooth, still a tad bit malty, but a nice combination of flavor.


Buy this beer for a pleasant change of pace. If you have older relatives who have roots back in a European country, offer them up some Boston Lager. They'll feel right at home and will grant you favorite relative status forthwith. Count the number of favorable comments you will get about this beer. You'll lose count after the first bottle.

The SixPackTech ratings for Samuel Adams Boston Lager are:

Taste: 8.4 - a new coat of varnish for your tongue.
Smoothness: 8.9 - beer on ball bearings.
Drinkability: 8.6 - Hangs in till the final bell.
Bang for the buck: 8.3 - change back to buy pretzels.
Wife's all-encompassing opinion: "It's not bad... but it's dry. Doesn't seem to perk up the saliva glands." (Note: Wha??!!?? Pfft!)

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

There I was, cruisin' the premium beer aisle at the Morris Beer Store, when this babe caught my eye. A blonde in what looked like suspenders, holding in outstretched arms, four frothy mugs of beer. The St. Pauli Girl beckoned. I swear the graphic on the sixpack container winked at me. Being a pushover for a pretty girl, I grabbed the six smiling sisters and proceeded to the check-out. 7 bucks plus tax. Not bad.

Uh oh. When I got home, I noticed that the St. Pauli Girls came in green bottles. Sheesh, don't they know what prolonged exposure light does to beer? Too late now. I had my reservations about this review, but they were short lived. Tonight's review will be about St. Pauli Girl Lager. Brewed in Germany, imported right to Chi-Town.

When beer drinkin' and reviewin' time finally came around, I decapped the first bottle and couldn't resist taking a short snort of the aroma. Hmm. Not much there in the aroma department, but there was definitely a slight beery tinge to what I took in.








Into the mug she went and a nice white head arose. The head settled down and stayed, looked at me as if to say, "Well?? Whaddya waiting for?" and had the consistency of shaving cream. Large bubbles clung to the side and a nice mixture of large and microbubbles rose up from within. The reddish yellow color was the giveaway that this beer would be full of flavor.

The first sip was pleasant and tasty. Not bitter, not sweet but sort of in between. This brew was quite tasty on the first sip. As I added more sips to my stomach inventory, the taste became more apparent and bold. It leveled off to a very charmingly pleasing taste. This beer taste slowly became an orgy of flavor in my mouth. The more sips that went down, the more my taste buds screamed for more. Wonderful, just wonderful.

This is another one of those beers you should have on hand for special occasions, or to treat yourself after a thoroughly rotten day. The taste of this beer will bring you right out of your torpor and morosity. (Is that a word? "morosity?" The state of being morose?) Regardless, this St. Pauli Girl is one babe I'd like to have around more often. (Wonder what her mom looks like...)

The SixPackTech ratings for St. Pauli Girl Lager are:

Taste: 9.5 - a party for your palate.
Smoothness: 9.5 - if there was a German kiss, this is it.
Drinkability: 9.5 - your entire anatomy will want you to have another.
Bang for the buck: 9 - even your wallet will thank you.
Wife's all encompassing opinion: "It's not bitter! It's not bad at all. This is a beer that I could drink."

Feb-yoo-ary. Glad it's over.

We've been through 29 days of the same crap. It has nothing to do with the weather. Well, maybe a little, but it's really the news announcers, degreed individuals, executives and other seemingly knowledgeable people mispronouncing the name of the month.

Just like hearing the President say "nuke-yoo-ler" over and over, it seems that the vast majority of Americans mispronounce the month and say "feb-yoo-ary".

I've had it. I've quit correcting people because it does no good. People always frown when I do and I just can't understand why. I'm just trying to help. The heck with them lummoxes for another year.

It's finally over. Ol' feb-yoo-ary will be gone by the end of the day. Good riddance! And take all yer cold, snowy, windy weather with you. How can the shortest month of the year take almost an infinity to end? Let us all welcome March. One syllable, five letters all wrapped up nicely and neatly in a small package.

Next year, I hope to champion a new cause. I shall call it, "Put the 'brew' back in February!" (patent pending) Isn't that nice? Beer and a bad month in one. They both need each other.

Watch for it next year on an Internet near you.

Moving the site (update)

The new SixPackTech.com is coming along rather swimmingly. I'm up to my nose in learning new stuff. This week yields a new header graphic (my new buddy, there at the left will be part of it) and the addition of a user forum. Although moderating a forum could be a bitch.

I'm almost comfortable with the structure of the file system on the hosting service, but updates to existing software packages leaves me a bit befuddled. I'll have a new email addy hosted on the site and I still have to look into how that works. WordPress is a little daunting but is quite learnable. I keep drilling into my own head, "Patience, patience, patience!" Good things come to those who wait. I hope I don't do anything stupid right after a Brew Review. Hmm. Maybe I should. Na-a-ah!

I want to have everything we have here at the .blogspot place to be present at the new place and I haven't quite decided on what to do to smooth things out and still have a few new features. The WordPress import feature will (I'm told) migrate everything from the old site - posts, comments and whatnot over. But no pictures. (Foo!) I'm a little unsure as to how smoothly cutting the cord will go in our case.

The only thing the user will see is the new decor. Everything under the hood, the stuff for me as admin dude, will be new. I think there will be a bit more HTML involved on a daily basis but I'm up for the challenge. I tuck my copy of WordPress for Dummies under my pillow at night and it seems to help. But I develop a flat spot on one side of my head every morning.

The Archives feature at the new place is something I'm unfamiliar with as yet. Other stuff like the BlogRoll, RSS feeds, widgets and backing up the database is all new territory for me. It will come, though.

I don't think anyone out there is more excited about putting up a new, graphically great, feature-laden website than I. But right now I think, from my own standpoint, that we're about 90% there. The babes are there, the voting is in place and the familiar USB sixpack is there. There are a few minor details yet to iron out. I just have to learn how to use this iron.

Stick with me guys. Yer gonna love it!

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

The choice of brew tonight is based on a snippet of conversation I overheard at the Beer Store (not FSL) a few weeks ago. A guy was asking if they had a beer called Shiner Blonde. He said his father-in-law was in town visiting from Texas and that Shiner was the guy's favorite beer. He walked out with two sixpacks.

On my visit there for a review beer last week, I asked the counter lady if they had any Shiner Blonde. She scoured the shelves and coolers but came up empty handed. She offered me some paper and a writing utensil and asked me to write it down. "We could probably order it," she said. "Oh, and put down your phone number and we'll give you a call when it comes in." HUH? Do businesses still do that anymore? Hell, I was impressed! I wrote down my vitals and paid for the sixer of Harp Lager, which I reviewed last week.





On Wednesday of this week I took a call. It was the Beer Store. I was floored. The Shiner Blonde had come in and there were some already being chilled awaiting my patronage. By Friday I had the test specimen in my possession. This week's review will be on Shiner Blonde, brewed in Shiner, Texas.

So here it is, Saturday night and it's beer night. Good ol' noche de cerveza. I'm going to dispense with all the initial sniffing and smelling and bottle tasting and just dispense the contents of the bottle right into the mug. Let's get it on! Into the mug it goes and up comes a white foamy head with rather large bubbles clinging to the inside. Large bubbles is rarely a good sign, aren't it? (sic) The head dissipated quite rapidly. Is it the beer? Is it my mug?




Let's have a taste. Hmm. Not the big whammo that I was expecting. A little tasty. Not very bitter. It has a rather thin taste to it almost as if the brewer didn't let it cook long enough or ran low on one of the ingredients. By the time I downed four sips, the head was gone. The remaining liquid reminded me of a large urine sample. With bubbles. C'mon. It just looked that way it didn't taste that way. Of course I'm going to have another. Eight bucks is too much to spend on beer to just give it away.

As I popped the second bottle and dove in, the taste became more apparent. It's really not bad. But the taste seemed to get bored quickly and fell asleep until I jarred it awake with the next sip. This beer's taste could be the equivalent taste to say, MGD in Texas.

All in all, this beer is drinkable but not memorable. If I was offered this beer I'd drink it again. It's not a waste on your taste buds. It's just not the party you'd expect from a premium beer. This beer is like a large suitcase containing only a few tees and two pair of underpants.

At eight bucks a six-pop, I'll skip over it next time I want something sapid and sudsy.

The SixPackTech ratings for Shiner Blonde are:

Taste: 6.5 - am I missing something?
Smoothness: 5.5 - Perrier with bubbles.
Drinkability: 6 - I guess I'll have another, then I have to go.
Bang for the buck: 4 - twice the price for half the taste.
Wife's all encompassing opinion: "It's barely a beer."

Moving the site. (An ongoing endeavor)

While all of us have been beavering away at our jobs, myself included, I've been striving to implement changes to this site which will allow me more independence in the overall format of its presentation. A month or so ago, I bought space on a web hosting service with the hopes and aspirations of customizing SixPackTech more to my liking. Things are progressing, although the adverb "swimmingly" doesn't enter into this equation.

The site has been, and still is under the aegis of Google's Blogger platform. That's why your title bar in your browser says "sixpacktech.blogspot.com" when you finally land here. Haven't noticed? Look up at your address bar now. It's the "blogspot" part that I just feel doesn't ring "pure" to a website. I own the site name "sixpacktech.com" and just have it redirected to the blogspot spot. Now I have plans to cut the Google umbilical.

With that in mind, I have purchased space on a web host and have spent time figuring out how things work over by dair. Not easy, not hard, but it takes some effort. I've made friends with the hosting service and my directory layout. The web host is just one part of the over all picture.

Understand that, like you, I have a full-time job, with a slight quantum shift; I work the afternoon shift. I get up around 10 AM, shit/shower/shave, and then hit the Mac with my first cup o' tea. A quick visit to get the news from my bookmarked Mac sites, then it's off to post on Blogger. Off to work at 3 PM and home again at one in the morning. Straight to bed. The only in-depth time I have to spend on the site is the weekends.

The software "blogging" platform I've chosen for the new site is Wordpress. Many, many aspects of Wordpress are so simple. Many others are not. Plugins, the way posts look, photos in posts, etc., are subjects of learning at this stage. And there's the "I/me/mine" thing.

I've selected a theme. A three-column spartan type with masthead graphics. After messing with other themes, I've chosen the one I've chosen and I'm too far into it to abandon it for some schlep stock website theme. I've spent the last eleventeen weekends learning the nuances of CSS and PHP. It's coming to me, albeit slowly.

As of right now, I'd say that I'm about 75% of the way to cuttin' the cord. I have to cogitate importing the old site posts to the new (and suffering the loss of pictures), site stats and something called SEO, or search engine optimization.

When I started this place back in July of last year, it was on a whim. Then I got to enjoy it. SixPackTech has become a welcomed hobby, a filler for that unknown void I had in my life. Sometimes I wonder if I'm becoming obsessed with it. Nah, There's always the beer. (And the Blue Collar Brew Review). Ya see?

I hope to update you guys on my progress from time to time. Some of you couldn't care less, some of you probably can't wait. My hope and aspiration is to make SixPackTech a daily destination bookmark.

Stick with me.

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

I was back at the ol' beer store Friday, going over the shelves like I've done so many times in the past, and I remembered that each week my eye kept catching on this one distinctive sixpack down on the bottom shelf. After scoping out the cooler and making some mental notes, I gravitated back toward the shelves where my eyes on again descended on that sixer. Made by the same folks who brew Guinness. My first thoughts were that I'd have to drink this beer with a spoon, remembering what Guinness tasted like which I had about 10 years ago. I decided, what the hell, and snatched it. At the register, I dutifully submitted my 8-bucks plus tax for Harp Lager.

A friend at work had recommended this beer earlier. He said it was probably one of the best beers he's ever had. Knowing him and his preferences for beer, I can rest assured that brew review will be quite worth it.


The time had come. The review is afoot. I freed the cap of the first bottle and input the aroma. It's a nice beery smell. Definitely beery with no obvious mystery present. First sip from the bottle yielded a good strong beer flavor, a little bitter and a lot of body. Like that babe we all have in our lives. This brew is definitely a man's beer considering the bone stock taste of it. I'd surmise that this beer is like a middle of the road Chevy sedan with a sleeper 454 engine. Plain on the outside, lots of punch under the hood.

Then the dump-job into the mug. It comes up with a nice white, thick head and a grunch of medium-sized bubbles clinging to the sides and micro-bubbles proliferating throughout. The first mug taste let me know the taste had settled down into a wonderful laid-back but flavorful zest. As my buds acclimated themselves to the new environs, the happiness came came out. Each sip was one I relished and, once swallowed, had me wanting another. This beer is very good, having melded just the right bitterness (hops) with maltiness. The first bottle was gone before I realized it. That's OK, got 5 more where that came from.

The next time you have the guys come over for some poker or to watch that action/thriller/car chase/shoot'em-up on your 27-incher, have some Harp on hand. It's great beer. It's "guy" beer. If your babe asks for a taste, limit her to bottle tastes only. Keep as many for yourself as you can.


The SixPackTech ratings for Harp Lager are:

Taste: 9.6 - as close to perfect as you can get.
Smoothness: 9.3 - slick as an oil-soaked garage floor.
Drinkability: 9 - better get more than 6; they'll go fast.
Bang for the buck: 8 - a bargain considering the great taste.
Wife's all-encompassing opinion: (after first sip from bottle,) Grimacing, making hand-puppet gestures towards her mouth, "Ohmigod!" (Then she took another sip from the bottle,) "it's got a..., it tastes..." (I intervened offering her a sip from the mug,) "Now that's not bad. Not bad at all." (All told, she had a record 6 sips of this beer.)

Dodge Challenger at ChiTown Auto Show

In an amazing design coup, the boys and girls at Dodge have come up with what looks like a winner. The 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8 was unveiled at the Chicago Auto Show. Check out this great pictorial.

Perhaps the auto makers finally get it. Give the people what they want, not what you think they want. This car is a beauty with retro lines reminiscent of the muscle car era of the '60s and '70s.

GM has been working on a retro looking Camaro but they seem to be dragging their feet bringing it to light. Someone there needs to find their spine and make a decision to release it to manufacture.

The Dodge boys, on the other hand, have of late come out with some new design schemes that push the market. The Plymouth Prowler and PT Cruiser have bucked the system and were big splashes when they first came out. The Charger is also a sweet looking automobile.

I hope to see the new Challenger hit the streets real soon. I also hope that Chrysler doesn't keep reproducing the same Challenger body design for the next fifteen years like the've done with the pig-nosed Dodge trucks. That truck was a smash hit years ago when it first came out. Now they're bloody everywhere, boring, mundane, and a symbol of Redneckism.

Now let's see how long it takes Ford to wake up.

Saturday Night Blue Collar Brew Review

Tonight's Brew Review features something special. It's a local Wisconsin beer, Point Beer. Brewed in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. Ever hear of it? Why Point Beer? Well, lemme tell ya. I have never, ever seen this beer sold in Illinois until this very day.

Back in the '80s, when I was working at the nuke plant, there was an influx of new troops who have been hired into our shop. They were recent graduates from a tech school in the upper midwest. Some were from Michigan's Upper Peninsula (the U.P.) and some were from Wisconsin. The guys from Wisconsin eventually came around to talking about their local beer, that being Point. There was a time when a couple of guys had vacation time and were going back to visit the land of cheeseheads and asked if we'd like them to bring back some Point. Money changed hands, and soon thereafter, they returned with about ten cases (10 cases!) of Point to seal the deal. I got mine and polished off the case by week's end. I remember that, at the that time, the beer tasted pretty damn good.

Today, I'm strolling around the Morris Beer Store (FSL has fallen out of favor) looking for a brew to review. I was thinking about something from Sam Adams or Shiner Blonde, which I've heard a little about. When I ambled over to the small cooler filled with specialty brews and exotically named concoctions, I saw and old sight. A sixpack of Point Beer! And it's cold! My nostalgic memory banks went into flux. I snatched that bad boy and as I walked up to the counter, I wondered how it would go over as a subject for the Brew Review. What the hell, let's do it. 6 and half bucks for a sixer of bottles and I caught myself smiling as I climbed into my truck.

Now it's time. I'm going to go through the usual ritual. Pop the cap and take a smell. The aroma is a little different than what I was expecting. There's definitely hops and malt and other beer stuff in there. Now for the first swig from the bottle. It's mild. A hint of hops and malt but not quite tasting like our local brews. There's no exotic sweetness or curveball taste here like the other premium beers I've had, just very pleasant tasting beer but with a bit of back-of-the-mouth maltiness that sets it off nicely. This is nice.

Into the mug it went and the head came up thick and white with the brew below showing its tradition yellow beer color. The bubbles are predominantly large with a small minority of micro-bubbles ascending. The taste smoothed out once it got "mugged" and the hint of maltiness remained in the back while the rest of the flavors settled down. And, surprisingly, the head settled down too. By the time I got down to half a mug, the head was nearly gone. Can't blame the beer, though. I don't know what goes on at home when I'm at work. Some kid may have grabbed the mug to drink his Instant Breakfast out of.

The overall taste of this beer is unique and very good. Very pleasurable once the second one starts going down. The beer has a taste differential over the local beers of midwestern Illinois. If this beer were more readily available in these here parts, I'd definitely drink it more often. This one's a winner... if you can find it. Buy this beer when you find it.

The SixPackTech ratings for Point Beer are:

Taste: 9 - a song sung in your mouth.
Smoothness: 9 - mild as a pretty girl's whisper.
Drinkability: 9 - "Rack 'em up, 'Sausage'!" (The Hustler; 1961)
Wife's all-encompassing opinion: "That's not bad. I can deal with that."
Bang for the buck: 8.5 - premium beer for the working stiff.

Incidentally, The Stevens Point Brewery is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. To commemorate the event, they have throw-back labels on their bottles, showing the different label styles from different periods. A nice touch. Visit the brewery website.

Cheeseheads. Those lucky bastards!

It's me, every girl ever

Knock knock, Oh Hi, how's it going? It's me, every girl ever. I'm really looking forward to this date. I know I don't look nearly as good as you remember me being, but that's because when we met, it was really dark and you were drunk. C'mon in.

Let's start off with that unavoidable tour of my incredibly typical post college girl apartment.

You'll notice that I purchased everything that Ikea and Pier One ever produced.
There's my decorative birdcage over there...even though I don't have a bird. And there's my gay wicker basket, with bamboo poles in it. I don't know what that thing's all about, but I bought it anyway . Hey! check it out! I've got more candles than a Roman Catholic church. Doesn't it smell like hazelnut?

If I were to light all my candles at once, you could see my apartment from space.
I really love candles. C'mon into the living room... Oh, I see you have met my cat there. His name is: Freddy paws jr. Why don't you pet him, and act like you like cats, even though you don't. Oh! He took a little swing at your eye there...he'll do that. Hey! let's go check out the kitchen.

Hey! look at my refrigerator. there are pictures all over it. Look at all these pictures of me, and all my equally vacuous friends from college. We were so crazy. you could tell we were really good friends, because our faces are all pressed up against each other like that. And check it out! We're holding up alcoholic beverages in every single picture. That's to prove we were partying. College was so fun! Of course I don't talk to any of those girls anymore, 'cause now they're all bitches. Let's go back into the hallway. Hey! before we leave, I'm going to go into the bathroom for about ten minutes, for some mysterious reason. Why don't you go sit awkwardly, in my big, stupid, round, overstuffed chair over there, while you wait for me. It's like you're sitting in a hug.
Be right back................................

Sorry that took half an hour. I don't know what the hell I was doing in there. LET'S GO!

WOW! thanks for opening my car door for me. I'm totally going to blow that meaningless gesture out of proportion, and delude myself into thinking you're a really good guy, because that's what I want to believe.

Well, here we are at the restaurant....no thanks waiter, I don't need to see the menu, just bring me expensive things. Hey! I know, while we wait, I'll tell you about my unspeakably boring job. I hate my boss! He's a JERK! I might get another job, maybe doing hair, or as a nurses aide.

Now let's talk about my family. I love my family. I want you to love my family. I want my family to love you. I want you to play X-box with my semi-retarded brother Aaron, that would be so darned cute.

WOW! I can't believe I ordered all this food! I have no intention of eating ANY of it. No thanks waiter, we don't need a box, just throw it out. Hey! I've got an idea. Let's go to a bar and have an after dinner drink. It'll be GREAT! It'll be just like the way we're drinking here, only louder and we'll have to stand up. C'mon!

See! Isn't this better? Oh Hey! What a coincidence. there's a group of my friends that I KNEW was going to be here. Let's go over there so they can" judge" you. Hey! I have to go to the bathroom for half an hour again, for some reason. You can stay here and talk to my "unbelievably" hideous friend, Jewel. She's so ugly, that as a child she had to trick-or-treat over the phone. Talk to her. She has a job, and a family that she wants to talk to you about too!............... Be right back.

I'm back! Sorry I was gone for three hours,... there was a line. I want to go home now.

Well, here we are at my door again. That was really fun for me and not for you.
You should pretend like we're going to do it again sometime. Maybe I'll see you at target a few months from now, and we can avoid eye contact, because you never called me. Now here, have this awkward good night kiss, that's as empty as my soul. (smooch). Good night.

(Contributed by Superfly-TNT)

Ya don't know whatcha got 'til it's gone

The Internet. The GLORIOUS Internet! The fount of knowledge and the availability of a plethora of information. At any given time. Anything. At the press of a key. Always available. Like tap water. Electricity. As long as it's available. What happens when it's gone?

Allow me to tell you my story. Friday, at 12:12 p.m., CST, my Internet service shit itself. No warnings, no bells nor whistles, it just stopped mid-sentence. Just one flashing light modem light. SERVICE NOT FOUND. Crap!

My Internet, my wonderful Internet, stopped in the middle of visiting my first Mac news site of the day on Friday. It took me about 20 minutes to realize it. I went into normal, routine troubleshooting procedure - reboot the modem. Nothing. Completely disconnect and reconnect. Nothing. Just the third of four lights flashing. Taunting. "Neener, neener!"

What the hell am I gonna do now? And what will happen to the Blue Collar Brew Review and the babes of the week? This was a most unfortunate event in that I've requested and been granted a day off from work on Monday. I had planned on spending three entire days working on the website host tweaking and modifying the code and style sheets of what will become the new SixPackTech. In addition, just to rub salt in every wounded pore, I took delivery of a new refurbbed MacBook fresh from the Mothership, Apple, Inc. The overtime hours I worked helped immensely in hastening my purchase and the long weekend would allow me to familiarize myself with the nuances of the new machine. But like the asteroid that struck in Tunguska about a hundred years ago, I find myself living in a vast cavity devoid of any outside stimuli.

The only thing I could do was to set up Internet camp at my son's house and do the review there. There will be some distractions, to be sure. My 4-year old grandson will be attempting to break the world land speed record in a confined space, and the gathering of friends for UFC Fight Night will be invading any remaining space. I decided to tough it out. It was the only thing I could do.

I had to set up on the diminutive kitchen table and share space with the HP PC, stereo receiver, and photo printer. There was barely enough room for my beer mug. Amid the din of camaraderie, occasional outbursts of fight fans and the lap sitting grandson, I was able to connect wirelessly to the 'Net, enjoy a new brand of brew and post the Blue Collar Review.

Super Bowl Sunday was passed with an indulgence into the newspaper funnies and crosswords. The Big Game came and it wasn't long before we partook of Mom's world renown homemade Reuben sandwiches. By half-time, it was back to my son's wireless wonderland for another post and the immersion into high definition TV football.

The thing that gets me is my need for this Internet thing. I am amazed at how much I depend on the connection. I am now more aware of the little questions that pop into my head from time to time begging for answers. What is the capital of Chile? What is the Ort Cloud? Will it snow tomorrow? How many feet in a furlong? How tall is Mike Ditka?

I'm certainly not feeling any physical withdrawal symptoms yet but there is most assuredly a certain emptiness; a daily commodity that I must do without. Something that I have taken for granted for so long has been put on hiatus for three days. I'm surviving thanks to my son and his wireless connection. It is, however, kind of a pain in the ass to pack up and move. Away from the comfy computer chair and desk. What if my son lived in Arizona? What if all of ComCast suffered an outage in my city? What would I be like then? A quivering mass of shapeless, foaming protoplasm? A cranky curmudgeon whose main entertainment is kicking dogs and terrorizing children? Nah. I'd probably pass my time with a game console or some other gadget.

This has been somewhat of a mental ordeal for me. I find it odd and somewhat amusing that I'm thinking these thoughts and how it's affecting my mental well-being. I can't believe I'm telling you guys all of this. Tomorrow, Monday, the cable guy is coming out to my house to hopefully rectify the situation. I'm planning on spending the entire day behind the keyboard and mouse. I hope that the poor sap that comes out to my house doesn't get attacked by the Internet junkie that lives there.