Because it was too amusing not to try

I should know better, I really should. But somehow that doesn't stop my masochistic tendency of trying different low calorie Michelob drinks. The other night while in the supermarket picking up the classic single girl combination of Ben and Jerry's and beer, I decided to try something new. Something I hoped would be refreshing, or at least funny. I guess its sort of funny. Michelob makes something called 19th hole, which i think is supposed to be a classy series of mixed drinks that come in a can. I bought lemonade iced tea. It contains 4% alcohol by volume. And well, about 2% flavor by volume.This light beverage costs around 5 to 6 dollars for a 4 pack of 16 ounce cans. At least it has quantity on its side.
As for taste, Tyler, Kerri and I decided it tasted like something you would find in a half filled solo cup the day after a barbecue... with just a hint of dead fly.
It gets a 1/5 for tastiness, and a 1/5 for value. Again, very little value in these drinks, better to just make your own. The only redeeming factor for it is that when cold, and i'm thirsty, i will consume it.
Another winner, Michelob. Keep up the work, i suppose.

Why drinking then Whiskey isn't a good idea.

Remember the post about fireball? Well this little gem is from the same day. We are lucky I remember it. Leonard Kreusch Riesling. While I'm not normally a riesling person, due to their tendency to be cloyingly sweet and well, kinda gross, this one might make me change my mind on the whole low priced riesling category. I'm not sure who's bottle this was, Adam, Junior, or Kumar's, but it was darned delicious. Cheers to you good sir! Also, cheers for opening it when i needed it most.
Ok, back to the wine. This light wine is actually fairly dry, and at about 8 dollars a bottle, I'd say this would be great for a date or night of relaxed drinking. Not so much for when your friend (me) is on a bender. I'll give this wine a 4.5/5 for flavor :D! and a 5/5 for value. Mostly for resuscitating rieslings as a drinking and overall enjoyable drinking experience. Until, of course, I decided to drink more cinnamon whiskey than my poor liver could process.
Cheers!

When you aren't sure where or when....

I've still got something of a backlog of wines I have tried to get through. Sadly, however, I don't escpecially remember consuming this one. It was about 2 weeks ago now, but the wine didn't really make a big impression on me. The local supermarket was having a clearance sale making this, if i recall correctly, palatable wine about half or less of what it usually costs, at about 5 dollars for the bottle.
Also I didn't buy it, Mike, the now ex did. I'd hate to enjoy his choice, but it couldn't have been that bad. I always remember a bad wine. Ugh. The internet say this is a fairly fruity red for a noir, that goes down smooth. I'm going to agree for lack of opposition.
Wine. Drink it. 4/5 for taste (unremembered), 5/5 for value. I love a sale wine that i can enjoy enough to not complain about later. (thats 3/5 normally, i'd never spend more than 5-8 on this wine).

Ways to Celebrate getting Dumped

How do you celebrate getting dumped? I prefer the old fashion method of killing brain cells in a social situation with something delicious in a cup. The drink of choice yesterday evening was the ever loved Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey.

It has come up before, and it will come up again on this blog, since Fireball, AKA time machine, is one of my top hall of fame, best loved hard liquors. Originally "discovered" or at least the first time i tried it was on a mythical shenanigans weekend to Nashville. Later nick-named timemachine for its ability to transport you magically into the future, and somehow never with pants on. This drink makes its way to most social events and celebrations. Even for breakups. 

A bottle of fireball costs between 16-19 dollars at your local liquor store. It tastes just like the candy but packs a punch. You can drink it straight failure easily (that was the poison method last night at least) or you can mix it. My preference is in coke, mmm.... Its a 5/5 for awesomely yummy, and a 4/5 for value. Sadly, I have to shell out almost 20 bucks to enjoy the stuff. Worth it every time, though.

The photo below is odd and old, but I think it describes how awesome fireball is. 

Cheers! 

Take a moment to enjoy the times. And the cider.

I might be slightly behind in my blogging due to the wondrous stresses of graduate school and life in general (i'm talking about you! stupid, broken, car!). Anyways, a few weeks back, in celebration of the pre leaving event for one of the Denver-bound hero's, Derrick picked up a 6 pack of the not terribly overpriced angry  orchard cider. I've blogged about this brand before, when i picked up a 6 pack of the ginger apple cider. I might not be sure about whether or not I liked that flavor, but when it comes to plain old cider, i'm a fan. This was the Crisp variety, as opposed to the dry or ginger. Along the lines of a Woodchuck cider, this was sweet, almost soda sweet, bubbly and delicious. Nothing too classy, but its a good pick for some weekday drinking.
Also, their website (angryorchard.com) is mildly entertaining and has a long list of cocktails you can make using their cider. Mmmmm sounds like something i might have to try this fall. I only lament that to get local cider I have to drive all the way down to Indianapolis. Booo.
Tonight: Strong possibility of picking up a growler from Peoples brewing company!

Presents! :D

While I'm not usually a "buy me that! I need this! *tears off wrapping paper in a flurry of excitement" this wine could make me a convert. Stomps foot, demands more presents.
Mike brought back a bottle as an "I got to go to Italy nanananapoopoo" gift. We opened it up the other night while noshing on some awesome popovers for dinner.
He did good.
:).

This blended Italian Red wine is sweet without being overbearing or desert-like. For about 6 euro's in Italy, or 12 dollars online stateside you an enjoy this rather complex 2010 vintage. I would give it a 4.7/5 for taste. It came off a little bit on the sweet side on my first taste, but I warmed up to it after a glass, and 4/5 for value. It tastes much more expensive than it is. Always a plus!

Cleaning out the fridge Saturdays

What better way to spend a lazy saturday than helping "clean" out a friends beer fridge? After a nice, short, hot weather run, Mike and I returned and enjoyed a taste of his roomate, Nick's, Delirium Tremens. This belgian beer was unlike anything else I have ever tried. It was lightly malty, almost fruity, aromatic, and fairly high in alcohol at 8.5 percent. I'm no beer critic, but this was an experience. I'd recommend it, even though it is above the usual price range for my general consumption. I'm not sure exactly how much a 22? ounce bottle of this stuff runs, but its safe to say as it is Nick's, that its above 10 dollars. As a side note, this beer does not pour well at all. Each glass was over half head and took a while to settle down. Worth the wait at least, as this beer has been labeled the best beer in the world.

Next up was something that almost had me jumping up and down with excitement; Dogfish Head Chateau Jiahu. I've been waiting to try this since I read about it a few years ago. Based on an archaeological evidence of an ancient beer from China, brewers at Dogfish head tried to recreate beer history for everyone to enjoy! Its my two favorite things rolled up into one potable masterpiece; beer and nerdiness! I was not disappointed with the beer after years of hype, either. Chateau Jiahu is light, fruity, complex and sweet. Not a normal everyday beer, more of a fruity meade or beer wine combo. At 15 a bottle, this was not a great deal. It is novel and contains 10 ABV, so I'd be willing to give it another chance.

Later on in the evening we headed out to the local mosey down mainstreet. (Why yes, it was a long day.)  I enjoyed one of the few local Indiana ciders; Oliver Beanblossom. This is pretty much Oliver Winery's basic cider. Strangely, its cheaper to buy this bottle out at the bars than at the supermarket where they sell for about 5 dollars a pop. This one was only 3.75 cold and waiting for me at Chumley's. Not as good as Magner's or Woodchuck, this cider is still sweet and delicious. There is also a nice variety of different options available from Oliver. I know of the strawberry cider and blueberry. There may be a few others i'm missing, but try them! Better yet, go to the Winery and check out the tasting room. It comes highly recommended. If you go, try the blackberry wine! 

Overall, cleaning the fridge makes for a long, enjoyable day. Not for the faint of heart, however. Thanks Nick! I hope the fridge has been cleaned enough for you, at least for a while. I'm out, lots of back blogging to get to at some point, but happy Sunday in the meantime!