Ladies Drink for Free

It's back - and now it's legal. New York federal Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum threw out a case in Manhattan that claimed ladies nights discriminate against men by offering free or discounted admission and drinks. Attorney Roy Den Hollander brought the suit because he's tired of women getting things for free - and because he is just doing his part to reinforce the stereotype that men are idiots. According to CNN, Roy said the judge is a feminist.

We are big supporters of ladies nights. First, it means the bar will have ladies and, unlike Roy, we like the ladies. Second, it means more people drinking beer in the bars. And we like the drinking. Finally, if ladies drink for free on ladies night that means we don't have to buy drinks to get them drunk.

Roy, some unsolicited advice - go find a ladies night, have a beer (actually, have several beers), and talk to some of the ladies like most normal men. In your case, I'd recommend a fake name and probably lie about your profession too. If you are man, and we have our doubts, lying should be easy enough.

Boy Meets World

If the younger me and the elder me could have created this musical number I'd be spending less time in the cubicle...and more time on Dungeons and Dragons. I come from the Empire of Ismer!

Are You Ready For It?

Alright, so the National Football League opened its season some 10(ish) days ago but this was really opening weekend for us at DB. You see, some friends with little consideration for the sports interests of others decided that last weekend would be great for a wedding in New England (which it was - even though I am not a Patriots fan). You may have noticed that fall is sometimes in the air and the Oktoberfest's are on tap so it must be time for football...and apparently weddings.

Rather than trek down to the normal haunt for some action, we decided to make a run for the hills and see if there is a place to watch the Buffalo Bills while keeping an eye on the other 1PM (Eastern) games. What we found was the Pour House - a place that, upon entering, harkens one back to the days of yore when the city was in its early days. The Pour House is dark, cool, and real. They feature all the games and several fine brews. The Pour House has only one drawback, which is offering the typical football specials - $10 pitchers for Miller Lite and Bud Light. If they offered either for free I'd still pass. So it was - Sam Adams Oktoberfest by the pint. And I had one or two or...

The important news is that the good guys are 2-0 and you can find the highlights just about anywhere (like here). I had my brew and though it was a bit ugly the Bills are sharing first place with the vaunted New England Patriots. I guess they have to be "vaunted" until they at least lose a game.

Whatever you do please do NOT go to the Pour House. The staff, despite being overworked are friendly and efficient. Your neighbors at the bar are happy to chat about any team and any game and anything you're drinking. There's a good crowd but not a huge crowd. You can make a few friends but don't have to shout to be heard. Frankly, if word gets out you all will start going and ruin the whole experience for me. So really, find some place else to watch your football.

Perk-A-lator Stout

A friend at Gheorge reminded me that I should be focusing more on the homebrews than my cubicle requirements. So....it was just this past Labor Day making it the proper time to labor over the grains and pots to create the latest home brew - a coffee stout for the upcoming fall season. Aided by my trusty assistant (pictured left), we set to the brewing process. We are smack dab in the middle of the primary fermentation which requires a solid 2 weeks of drinking while waiting for the brew to age. Secondary fermentation is 3 weeks. The good news is that means enjoying Oktoberfests of all sorts. The bad news is that means this coffee stout takes a freakin' long time to brew - so my trusty assistant and I will be pissy if it tastes like skunk.

While we're waiting it's worth opening a cold brew and posting ingredients and particulars in the event our 1 or 2 loyal readers wants to know what poison was just sprung upon them. Follow us:

Original Gravity: 1.066

Ending Gravity: 1.020 (or something close to it)

Primary Fermentation: 2 weeks

Secondary Fermentation: 3 weeks

7.25 lbs Briess dark malt extract (dry)

.75 lbs Briess Crystal 80 malt

.25 lbs black malt

.5 oz Mt. Hood Hops, pellets (in boil 65 minutes)
.5 Mt. Hood Hops, pellets (in boil 20 minutes)

7 tspns Starbucks Sumatra Blend

1 tspn LD Carlson Irish Moss

1 tspn LD Carlson Gypsum

White Labs 004 Irish Ale Yeast

.66 cup brown sugar for priming

Steep black malt and crystal malt in 2.5 gallons of water for 21 minutes at 166 degrees F. Remove grains and bring to boil. Stir in extract. Re-establish boil and add .5 oz hops. Keep at steady boil for 30 minutes and add Irish Moss and gypsum. Boil for 15 minutes and add remaining hops and ground coffee. Boil for final 20 minutes and remove from heat.

Transfer to the primary fermenter and add water until 5 gallons. Cool to 74.7 degrees F and pitch yeast. Ferment for 2 weeks, move to secondary fermenter for another 3 weeks. Prime with .66 cups brown sugar and bottle for 3-6 weeks (since this is our first brew with this recipe exact aging after bottling is yet to be determined - stay tuned for details).

We "borrowed" this recipe from the book Homebrew Favorites - a gift from my trusty assistant. You'll find among the pages a tasty sounding Espresso Stout. Tip of the hat to home brewer Greg Kushmerek of Belmont, MA and his kick ass motto "Brew Free or Die"

Pints for Prostates

We at DB are always happy to promote a good cause - even if, like any self-respecting man, we would prefer a novacaine-free root canal to any thought of prostate exams. Apparently something like 1 in 6 of us on the male side can be at risk of prostate cancer. That sounds like a lot of men - and we need the numbers.

So, click on the picture and open your wallet. Then reward yourself with a nice cold beer. If you're over 40 and get tested please reward yourself with multiple beers.

How to Get Free Beer

Well, it works in Canada, eh.

Weed: It's Not Just for Smoking!

Tip of the hat to one Vaune Dillmann of the Mt. Shasta Brewing Company and his fight to make weed legal. The LA Times reports that while brewing out of his Northern California brewery, Mr. Dillmann created a bit of controversy with his bottle caps labeled "Try Legal Weed". Turns out Mt. Shasta is based in Weed, CA and, according to the Times article, the town of Weed has been playing off the double entendre in a variety of ways.

Cue in the fuzz; stage right (wing). While most people can enjoy the goofy joke without getting the munchies our friends at the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms didn't think it was funny. They did make a brief stink of the situation (pun intended) but in the end cooler heads prevailed. The Mt. Shasta Brewing Company's Web site states that the ATF now agrees that their label refers to the brand product and does not mislead consumers.

By the way, Mr. Dillmann is not some renegade brewer that wears hemp and listens to the Grateful Dead. Turns out he's a former fuzz himself.

We've never had a Mt. Shasta beer so can't tell you if they are good, bad, or otherwise. However, if you find yourself in Northern California or Southern Oregon do your best to sniff out some Weed beer. It's worth it if only for the opportunity to support a microbrewery and try something new. Besides, everybody's doing it.