hogan873

I usually don't drink beer during the week. I tend to hold off until thr weekend, but this list and these discussions are making me lean towards having one tonight. I have about 3 or 4 in the fridge that I've never had before, so maybe I partake and rate it. Besides, there is a football game on tonight. I think it's a requirement to drink a beer while watching football.

I've enjoyed Sam Adams Cherry Wheat in the past, but I haven't had it in a few years. Unlike some other fruit beers, the cherry didn't dominate. Leinenkugel's Berry Weiss is a good example of fruit overpowering a beer. Way too sweet. The Cranberry Lambic, however, is damn near a drain pour for me. Last time I tried it I tasted almost a spoiled flavor. I haven't had it since. I've tried one Lindemans Kriek cherry lambic, and I thought it was quite good. Sweet, but not overpowering. Still not a beer I could drink a lot of.

QUOTE (Milkman delivers @ Dec 28, 2010 -> 11:52 AM) If it's insanely good, why only a 3.9/5? I should have elaborated. The scoring is broken down by aroma, appearance, palate, flavor, and overall. Then the site gives a score on a scale of 0-5. The way it works out, even the beers with the absolute best average score are about 4.2 or so. The highest rating I've given a beer is 4.1...and I think that was Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout.

New Belgium's 1554 is insanely good. I personally gave it a 3.9/5 on Rate Beer. It's so easy to drink and has fantastic flavors. Bittersweet chocolate and coffee. Spotted Cow is one of my favorites. I think one reason why I like it so much is that it's only available in Wisconsin. So, I don't spoil it by drinking it all the time. I'm in Wisconsin 4 or 5 times a year, mainly for my daughters' Irish Dancing, so I'll drink it on tap up there and take home a 12-pack. I'm counting down the days until I can partake...only 2 weeks from Friday.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Dec 28, 2010 -> 10:19 AM) For all of the people up north who have never tried, Shiner is a great, great beer. I've had Shiner's Bock, Hefeweizen, Blonde, and Black Lager. I thought they were al decent, but the Bock is one of my favorites. Smooth, easy to drink, and pretty tasty.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Dec 28, 2010 -> 09:28 AM) My understanding is that a Black & Tan is still the same Guiness and Bass, but that in Ireland they typically drink a Half 7 Half which is all Irish - Guiness and Harp. I've never heard of Smithwicks being used. You're right about a black and tan in the US. However: In the Republic of Ireland a Black and Tan is normally made from a half pint of Smithwick's topped off with Guinness. This version is also sometimes referred to as a "Blacksmith" or a "Light and Bitter". During the summer months stout drinkers may order a black and tan due to its lighter texture. Likewise ale drinkers may order a Smithwick's with a Guinness head. This is an ordinary pint of Smithwick's with the last inch or so topped off with Guinness. That was taken from Wikipedia. Before reading this, I was going by what someone told me (an owner of an Irish pub), and it made sense to me since Smithwicks and Guinness are both brewed by Guinness.

Smithwicks is good. Apparently a true black and tan is made with Smithwicks and Guinness...probably because they're both brewed by the same company. I've had black and tans made with Harp, Bass, and Smithwicks, and I'll say that it is pretty damn good with the Smithwicks. There are so many beers out there, and you can find pretty good selections at places like Binny's. But, it amazes me how many there are that I've never heard of. I've reviewed almost 400 beers at Rate Beer, and there are people on there that have reviewed over 5000. 5000 different beers? Wow.

This list is going to make me thirsty! Gumballhead is one of my favorites. It's the wheat beer of wheat beers. I reviewed it at Rate Beer and gave it a 3.7/5. Straw-colored with a fine white head. Powerful aroma of banana, bubblegum, and spice. Lively and spicy on the palate. Leads to a very tasty wheat beer. Malt, yeast, bubblegum, and pepper. Slightly bitter aftertaste. A delicious wheat beer. I agree about Red Stripe. What the hell? But, like knight said, you haven't seen anything. There are some odd choices on there. However, people have different tastes in beer. I've had people try a beer that I thought was fantastic and they did everything to keep from vomiting. I'm a beer snob, but I'll drink Miller Lite at a party, and in the summer I have no problem picking up a 6-pack of it for chuggers after cutting the grass.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Dec 28, 2010 -> 02:05 AM) Brian Bannister? Gulp. Maybe? Please no Bruce Chen. I actually think Freddy would be a good option. He's got decent stuff for 4-5 innings. I'd take Freddy, too. My concern is that he might actually get a decent amount of cash...maybe upwards of $4 or $5 million. However, I thought he would have signed by now. I'd be okay with Freddy for 1/$3 million.

Next list idea: Favorite and least favorite lists.

QUOTE (Milkman delivers @ Dec 27, 2010 -> 10:24 AM) I gotta be honest. This was just a terrible list idea. We probably could've done 2 or 3 other lists in the time it's taken for this one. I agree that we could have done more lists, but I think once we get rolling we'll get some good conversations going. I won't complain about lists taking time. I worked with knightni and flasoxxjim on geting the info on the beers. It was a lot more time consuming than I thought it would be.

It's gonna be good. There should be some good discussions generated by this list. I know that beer snobs like myself and Jim will have plenty to say.

For those with younger kids, I took my kids to see Tangled on Christmas Eve. They loved it, and I was actually entertained. We saw it in 3-D, and I would say it was worth it, but I know others who took in the 2-D and said it was good, too.

Merry Christmas to everyone here who loves the Sox as much as I do. Here's to you and yours.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Dec 20, 2010 -> 02:18 PM) I can't like a deal in which we give a non-elite relief pitcher 3 guaranteed years. But I like it as far as 2011 goes. Just have to pray after that. I suppose it could turn into a Linebrink nightmare, but we can only hope that doesn't happen...and pretend we never heard of Scott Linebrink.

QUOTE (justBLAZE @ Dec 20, 2010 -> 01:08 PM) What was reported long ago is now official. Finally. Crain to the Sox 3-years, $13 mil. $4 mil in '11. $4.5 mil each in '12 and '13. - Doug Padilla I like the deal. Hopefully Crain will do for the Sox like he did for the Twins...especially against the Twins!

Finally watched the last episode of The Walking Dead. What a great series. I hope it's as good with an extended second season. So what did the doctor whisper to Rick towards the end?

When I saw the thread title I thought it was going to be another "why did we acquire Peavy?" or "he's always hurt" threads. What a pleasant surprise. Certainly we should all be concerned if he doesn't return to form, but I like the guy, and I like his attitude. I'm on board with the Peavy is a bad-ass club.

I didn't even have to think about this one, and it seems like the consensus it what I was thinking. Obviously being a Sox fan and watching the cover-your-eyes and cross-your-fingers show that was Bobby Jenks last season leaves me clicking to vote Crain over and over until my mouse broke. But, what would an outsider think? What would a Red Sox fan want? We saw Jenks struggle, and we threw things. And we saw Crain come in and handle our batters. So, for me (and seemingly many of you) it's an easy vote. But a lot of that vote is based on emotions.

Good luck to Bobby in his new Sox. He's going to be under a lot of pressure in Boston. I hope for his sake he pitches better than he did this past year.

My wife and I watched season 1 of Modern Family on DVD in about a week then started in on season 2 on the DVR. One of the funniest shows on TV. Last night we watched the episode about the chirping fire detectors when Phil lost it and started hammering them off the wall. I couldn't stop laughing when he yelled, "I just detected your ass getting kicked!"

On paper, this team is better than last year's team. The lineup is much better, and the starting pitching is about the same...better if Peavy comes back healthy. And the bullpen looks fairly solid right now. Konerko will most likely not repeat 2010, but he could still be a .270, 30 HR, 90+ RBI guy. Buehrle may actually be better, as someone pointed out he was a bit unlucky at times. Realistically, this team should be a 90+ win team. A lot will depend on how Alexei, Gordon, and Rios come out of the gate.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Dec 16, 2010 -> 01:19 AM) If the Sox truly need to save money, I'd trade Jackson for prospects to somebody and let Sale start. Then sign Freddy for one mill or somebody of that genre. I think Jackson will be a big part of the rotation this year, so I doubt he's going anywhere. Plus, there's already some question about Peavy, so trading Jackson leaves them with three solid starters...not good enough. As far as Freddy, he'll get a lot more than $1 million. I could see him getting 2 years for $7 or $8 million, or one year for upwards of $5 million.

This is the best I've felt about this team in a while. The offense looks downright imposing, and the starting pitching could be quite scary...especially if Peavy comes back healthy. The bullpen is the only concern right now, and the Crain signing makes it a little less concerning. One more quality bullpen arm and this team should easily compete for the AL Central and even the AL.

I don't know. MLBTR is saying the offer is in addition to the Crain deal. I guess we'll have to wait and see. If it's in addition, a salary dump trade has to be coming soon.