Observations and inanities by a second-shift assistant supervisor in the Puppy-Grinding division of the Evil Atheist Conspiracy® (our motto: "Sure it's cruel, but think of the jobs!"), your host, Brent Rasmussen.
Confession Time: Have a Brew! edition.
OK, everyone on the planet should know by now that the president is having a sit-down summit tomorrow, to have a beer with Cambridge police Sgt. Jim Crowley and Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.
But what you may not have heard was what kinds of beer each of the three men has already ordered.
In a stunning development revealed on NPR this afternoon, it was disclosed that President Obama will be having a Bud Light. (Lite? Gods, I don't drink that crap - why should I know how to spell it??)
I must admit, I thought the man had more taste than that. Oh well. Though I'm sure the GOP would get behind it, I can't really say it is grounds for impeachment.
But it made me wonder - if you were going to have a beer with the prez, what would *you* choose? C'mon, fess up!
I'd go with a local DC microbrew, if I could get a good rec from someone who lived there. Nice creamy dark ale. But if I had to pick a 'national' beer, I'd go with the New Belgium 1554.
What's yours?
Jim Downey
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Why didn't they drink American?
I do like this craft brewer's argument. Although a different article says that since it is brewed completely in the USA of USA ingredients, Bud Light "has all the red, white and blue bona fides necessary for admittance to the White House."
Malt Liquor!
The Bomb Malt Liquor
"The Bomb, baby, Bomb, baby, it makes your get your freak on!"
This was a fake ad from the Spike Lee movie Bamboozled. (Which absolutely rocked, by the way, and if you didn't see it, you lose all your Liberal Nerd Intellectual Honorary Black Man points.)
If the soul of modern advertising was the image of one man pretending to be another's friend, before stabbing him in the back and taking his wallet, this ad would be the soul of that soul.
As a Canadian Beer Snob...
I calculated it out and figured that, so far, I've had over two hundred different beers in my travels. The last time I was in the USA, I tried Pabst Blue Ribbon (as well as a handful of other Yankee beers), and though it's one of the more flavourful American beers, it still tasted like a watered-down Molson Canadian. Probably the best American brew I've had thus far was Sundog Amber Ale from New Holland Brewing in Grand Rapids, MI.
My recommendation: other than the standard Guinness or Crannog Ale Back Hand Of God Stout (which sounds appropriate in this scenario), I'd probably recommend a nice five litre microkeg of Warsteiner Premium Verum. It's the right mix of sweet and bitter - just like Obama's presidency thus far! Of course, I might be biased because I polished one of those off already tonight!
Of course, I could list dozens of other great beers that would suit the occasion much better than the "sex in a canoe" beer that is Bud Lite. Other standouts would include Newcastle Brown Ale, Hoegaarden, Stella Artois, Molson Dry, Alexander Keith's IPA, Pilsner Urquell, Anarchist Amber Ale, Furstenberg Pilsner, Czechvar, Kilkenney Cream Ale, Wychwood Hobgoblin Ale, etc.
What can I say - I love beer!
My Presidential Beer
Bottle of Smuttynose, please.
Intersingly, I'm drinking a PBR right now. Pabst Blue Ribbon. Years ago we used to buy it in the GIQ. Giant Imperial Quart. Forty ounces, if I recall. Eighty nine cents a pop at one time.
Goose Island for the Prez...
The prez should go with one of the Goose Island brews, which is in the Chicago area;
I tried this one in Chicago, not bad:
http://www.gooseisland.com/pages/honker_s_ale/17.php
As for me, well, I don't drink, but if I still did, I'd probably stick with my old standby, Shiner Bock.
Beer Stein-gate
I'd have an Olympia, a Pacifico, or a Lone Star.
Obama should have had an Olde English 800 Malt Liquor (yank their chain with an ethnic stereotype - that stuff will f*ck your sh*t up!), Gates a Mickey's Big Mouth (a little self-deprecation and the bottle makes a great water pipe), and Gibbs a Foster's Lager (big can for his overcompensation).
I'd also opt for an original Coors (I like mild beers) but I boycott them for their politics. I cannot stand light beers at all and Budweiser to me is skunk brew (just like Schlitz).
Friends don't let friends drink horse piss...
Friends don't let friends drink horse piss.
That's right, those Clydesdale are the real source of most of those cheap domestic brands!
Easy - Old Milwaukee in a
Easy - Old Milwaukee in a can....
Maybe that beer is politically connected
At least, that is the suggesion of one Chicago columnist this morning.
As for me, I don't like alcoholic beers as a rule. I'm more of a dark distilled spirits kinda gal. So mine would either be a Jamaican ginger beer (those have more of a bite than other kinds) or a nice foamy slightly bitter* root beer such as Sprechers. Or I'd see if I can get a friend to provide a few bottles of something homebrewed and lovely like coffee stout or blueberry melomel.
*Bitter root beers are better for floats, but that's probably the subject of a column on another site.
Blast from the past?
Suppose there are any cans of Billy Beer lying around the White House basement? They would have aged 30 years by now. Might have a nice spin to it.
Frank Moorman, skeptic
"what is the point of giving persons Freedom of Speech... if you then say they must not utilize same? And is not the Power of Speech the greatest Power of all? Then surely it must be exercised to the full." --Salman Rushdie
This one's easy
I'd have a 1634 beer from one of our local brewpubs by the name of Brewer's Alley.
Here's the press release on the beer:
“1634 Ale” was created by Tom Flores, master brewer and Maggie Lenz, head brewer, at Brewer’s Alley, a brewpub in Frederick, MD, following research of historic recipes and raw materials available in the early 1600s. “We used ingredients that would have been found in the austere conditions of early colonial Maryland,” said Flores of his rye-based ale recipe that includes malted wheat, molasses and caraway. Flores says caramel and dark malts round out the flavor of the “lighter bodied ale.”
Victory Ale
I liked that Victory Ale we had at the restaurant the other night in Alexandria! :)
Goose Island Honkers Ale
He's from Chicago, after all.
Maybe Obama really IS a Muslim!
If I wanted to give the appearance of drinking beer, without really drinking beer (for, say, religious reasons) I'd pick Bud Lite too.
There are a lot of imports I could chose from, and I favor Stouts and really dark Ales and Porters (though there are some nice Weizens out of Germany). I only like a few pale ales, and then only if I'm having a very bold, peppery cigar with it.
As for American lagers, I've really grown to appreciate Pabst Blue Ribbon. Laugh if you want, but it's a very tasty beer (by American standards), and it's 5% alcohol, which is a reasonable level at a very attractive price. I also like Samuel Adams Black Lager, and some of the other, smaller brews that we can get around here in Virginia.
Rob Miles
--
There are only 10 types of people in the world;
those who understand binary and those who don't.
American Lagers
I'm a dark ale/stout guy myself, but I have to agree with you on the Pabst Blue Ribbon. It is one of the best-tasting American lagers. Schlitz Malt Liquor is also an excellent lager, taste wise. It won a few years in a row (a few years ago before the "Ice" beers started winning everything) for "Best American Specialty Lager" at the US Open Beer Championship. Here's the 2009 rankings, and even this year they are #3 behind the Ice beers.
ohhhh brent
in a purely hetero way, i wish we could hang out (ha!) i'm also a big fan of ales and stouts. i'm an aspiring beer snob and have tried a lot. and liked to hear a lot of suggestions.
also, for the record, stone's imperial russian stout is phenomenally tasty.
I haven't seen a Schlitz around here in a while
Then again, I haven't really looked for it. I might have to pick up a six of those and try them again. I remember the good ol' days of Country Club Malt Liquor, and even Colt 45. You could get 'em cheap, and they'd get you pretty well blasted.
It's interesting that Mickey's made it as high as they did on that list. We used to drink those too because they were pretty cheap. I loved the grenade-style bottle, with the wide mouth. They were letting us drinkers "vent" long before Coors Lite.
Rob Miles
--
There are only 10 types of people in the world;
those who understand binary and those who don't.
mmmmm, beer
one of two really, both imports though, and depends on my mood, but Grimburgen's double ale, or a nice Samual Smiths oatmeal stout
Good for What Ales Yuh
I was just talking to a friend about that tonight. There was a something-or-other I used to drink in California, I think it was called Apricot Ale, and dang, I loved it.
Ah, here it is: Pyramid Breweries Audacious Apricot Ale.
Man, I love that stuff.
Alternatives
Bud Lite is a pretty sorry choice. If it were W I'd have suggested that he order an Arrogant Bastard.
If Obama wants something light the New Belgium "Skinny Dip" is good.
I think my favorite New Belgium is the 1554.
Funny to see you bringing up
Funny to see you bringing up 1554, that is a tasty brew. I definitely like it better than the other New Belgiums that always seem to be around.
As for the question, I'd agree with going for some local brew. Generally like the dark ales, though I also can be a fan of good Pale Ales.
capital city brewing co.
capital city brewing co. and the district chophouse (a steak house that also microbrews!!) have some pretty good stuff, but they don't bottle.
old dominion outta VA has some good stuff. as does wild goose, from MD.
personally, i celebrate Stone's entire catalog.
Well, the next time
I find myself out DC way, I'll have to look those up. Thanks, het!
Jim Downey
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Like Science Fiction? Read *or listen to* my novel, Communion of Dreams, for free.
right on man.
throw me a heads up and i'll buy a round.
Cooper's Pale Ale
imported directly from South Australia by Airforce One
At least . . .
. . . you didn't say "Foster's".
;)
Jim Downey
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Like Science Fiction? Read *or listen to* my novel, Communion of Dreams, for free.