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Straub Brewery, St. Mary’s, PA
Straub Beer

I should have known better. It just says “beer”. Not “lager”, not “ale”, no nothing. It is supposedly made with “Pennsylvania mountain spring water”, as if that’s a great reason to drink this beer. I should have known better, but I didn’t and I gave in and picked up a six-pack. What it is: an average pilsner. What it isn’t: a better beer. Supposedly, as the bottle claims, this beer has been “handcrafted since 1872”. If this is the kind of beer that was consumed in 1872, I’d be disappointed in our forefathers. Yeungling is from that same time period, and that is actually drinkable. Yes, true, Yeungling is rather rough around the edges, but it is cheap, it is drinkable, and it has character. And what did the Straub Brewery do during Prohibition? (Sorry, that’s just a curiosity type question that most people do not care about.) Straub Beer is an average pilsner, plain and simple. It has the color of cat piss, but does sport a very creamy, snowy white head. It has the same slightly roasted flavor that most pilsners have, with minimal hop bite and no astringency to speak of. Strangely, there is no aftertaste, nor is there really any bitterness. Really, outside the roasted flavor and the carbonation, there isn’t much difference in flavor between this and water. This beer really does remind me of PBR or Strohs in flavor characteristics. It is not a bad beer, per se; it just isn’t a very good beer. They do lay the claim that they are all natural, with no added sugar, salt, or preservatives – that’s cool. And they are one of the only beers that has nutritional information about their beer, not only on their website, but printed on their bottles, too. For those reasons, I would drink this beer again. Yes, I wouldn’t mind drinking Straub Beer more often, because it really isn’t offensive in an “average beer” sort of way, but I must admit, they lost points for being as expensive as one of the microbrews, but without the bang. If I want cheap beer taste, I’m not going to put down expensive beer coin.

M!dd13m4n’s rating – 2.5 Pints

Tags: Beer Review by Midd13m4n
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Last week a girls’ high school basketball game gained national attention after one team beat the other 100 to 0. The Covenant School in Dallas destroyed the Dallas Academy with a one hundred point shut-out. Since then, The Covenant School’s administration issues an apology regarding their schools victory, the coach then issued a statement say he disagreed with the school’s apology and as since then been fired from his stance.

There are many factors of this story that have my interest. This is high school level of sport competition. This is the time that winning and playing your best starts taking as much precedence as good-sportsmanship. Good-sportsmanship is important, but you can crush a team and still be good sports about it. (I did not witness any of the game so I can’t really comment on what transpired in that respect).

My real problem with this situation is the administrations reaction. I feel that the winning coach, Micah Grimes, acted in the best interest of his school’s program and his players. His team should not be ashamed of winning. His team should not be ashamed of winning by that margin. I sure as hell hoped that he put in his 2nd string for some of this, but even if he didn’t, he has (at least) five players that can say to a college scout “I was on a team that shut out a team 100-0″. These player should not have to sacrifice their stats because of an under accomplished team.

I feel that the only way for bad teams to get better is through perseverance and playing teams better than you. Mr. Grimes could have done something to curtail his victory, but if he was hired to win games. Next weeks game could be the toughest game of the season and slacking off his players for a weaker team might have hurt his team’s chances in future competitions.

Should he have been fired? Should he have tried to make it 103-0? Tell us what you think.

Tags: Rant by DaVe
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Last weekend, I had the opportunity to crash a party at a local college campus. I knew several of the people throwing the party and they invited me down to have several beers with them. As always, the party had a theme; it was a “traffic light” party. Along with serving Jell-O-shots of green, orange (amber), and red in color, people were also instructed to dress in green, yellow, and red. People who dressed in red were to be in committed relationships or not interested additional attention. People wearing yellow were in unsure personal situations. Finally, people wearing green were, as they say, “open for business and ready to go”. To me, this clearly sounds like an idea a guy would come up with, particularly a guy who doesn’t want to deal with working the angles to find out whether a particular young lady as a boyfriend or not. The number of guys wearing green did not surprise me – women need a reason to hook up, whereas guys just need a location. What absolutely amazed me was the number of women wearing green. Nearly half of them! Where’s the fun in that? Where’s the challenge? Where did my youth go??? My gawd, am I THAT old?!?!?! When I was in college, there were three types of women: those in relationships, bitches, and whores. The first group is self-explanatory. The second and third groups have a very subtle difference: whores sleep with anyone (including DaVe), and bitches sleep with anyone (including DaVe) but me. In college, I knew lots of women in relationships and a lot of bitches. No whores. Not a one. For me to see so many young and attractive women prancing about in suggestive attire simply ADVERTISING that they were on the take was almost as intoxicating as the Jell-O-shots. And then I realized something; I realized something that I intuitively knew back in my college days: the only baggage that alcohol has is (maybe) a hangover the next day. And that is why Midd13Man drank so much in college, and why Midd13Man drinks so much to this very day: wine, bourbon, and beer are far more forgiving and forgivable mistresses. So, once again, I was the scary guy in the funny hat standing in the corner drinking alone. As always, it was much safer there, and for as many things that change, there’s some things that stay the same.

Drink more!

Tags: Rant by Midd13m4n
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Two Brothers Brewing Company, Warrenville, IL
The Bitter End Pale Ale

On the back of this bottle, the two brothers of Two Brothers Brewing Company, Jason and Jim Ebel, claim that they “specialize in rare and seldom-brewed beer styles”. That’s really quite odd because this beer tastes almost exactly like Dogfish Head’s 60 Minute IPA. That is a very good thing in my book, although I did say “almost”. It is not quite as smooth or as velvety as 60 Minute, nor is it as citrusy. It isn’t as astringent or as bitter either. The Bitter End features a very yeasty aroma and a beautiful dark amber brown color. Strangely enough, this beer comes out of the bottle very flat and doesn’t show much of a head, even after being poured incorrectly. The flavors are not quite as intense as 60 minute, almost flat by comparison, however the general flavor is still very sharp compared to most other beers. Generally speaking, the two beers are very similar, but The Bitter End is just a pinch less satisfying, primarily because the flavors aren’t quite as balanced as 60 Minute. Do not get me wrong, this is a very good beer, however the flavors just doesn’t jump out and grab your attention like they do with 60 Minute. All other features are generally the same, with the very hoppy citrusy flavor, some bitterness on the aftertaste, and the 5.2% ABV. A good beer, yes. A rare beer, no. That’s OK – I wouldn’t mind more beers that like this. As a matter of fact, I know where I can get more right now.

Side note: Their web page gives me extra comfort (sorry, no bonus points for the beer though). It really looks like something DaVe or I would throw together. That is not an insult to them – it homage to the fact that this is a true microbrew, with a micro budget but huge ideas. The pictures tell the whole story. You’ll see. I think I’m going to have to take a trip to Chicago to visit these fine fellows.

M!dd13m4n’s rating – 4 Pints

Tags: Beer Review by Midd13m4n
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Unless you have been living under a rock here in America, you probably know by now that today is Inauguration Day for the new president. Barack Obama is being sworn into office today at 12:00 noon (EST). Regardless of your political views (Democrat, Republican, Independent), today is a historical day; the first African American President to be sworn into office.

Here in America, we have enjoyed something that many countries have often not had the luxury of enjoying. We enjoy the political process that lends itself to a peaceful change of power. When leadership changes occur in many other countries, it is often accompanied by violence and bloodshed.

Coup d’état’s are often the only way régime changes occur in some countries. Unfortunately, often the new person is worse than their predecessor. Tanks, bombs and bullets are not a good way to elect a leader.

I’m sure there are some people that get worked up over the political process here in America, but in the end most respect the decision of the masses and move on with their life. Support the ones you like, oppose those you do not, but always respect the office they are appointed to.

Change has come. I guess with time and patience we shall see what we change to… Good luck President Obama.

Tags: Rant by DaVe
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Now that the Super Bowl is nearly upon us, and the two teams that will be playing for the title have been decided (Steelers and Cardinals, for those of you living under a rock next to me), let the hype and spin begin. As if sports do not have enough drama and excitement in and of itself, the media are certainly going to be turning the crank to generate as much water cooler talk as possible, attempting to work the viewing public into a frenzy. In all four major American sports leagues there is always the possibility that any team can win on any given day. (Side note: No, America, NASCAR and arena football are NOT considered a major sports leagues – one is merely a derivative sport, leeching off the popularity of its older, wiser, richer cousin the NFL; the other is simply a bigger money version of a DC resident’s daily commute. Yes, America, the NHL is a major sports league, despite the fact that 90% of people south of the Mason-Dixon line and west of the Mississippi River couldn’t tell the difference between a slap shot and a bourbon shot, and 75% of people in cities with NHL teams couldn’t tell you the name of the team. I do blame Gary Betteman, NHL commissioner for those atrocities, but that’s another rant for another time). So really, there is no need for the two weeks’ worth of analysis and hype by the media – the boys can just play the game and demonstrate for all of us who will win. Alas, though, that will take patience. Yes, it is the same LACK of patience that caused this most recent presidential campaign to last nearly two years, and for many of us to be in political ticker overload, getting hourly updates as to which candidate burped, which v-p-wannabee ate the chicken instead of the prime rib, and what the latest mud-ball controversial comment was uttered. Besides, as everyone knows, it is not the main event that people are concerned about; it is the commercials that will have our collective attention. About half the people who go to those Super Bowl parties are women, and typically speaking, women care less about the game than they do about the commercials. Those of us who cannot stand football will most certainly pay attention only to the ads. The game has officially taken a back seat to the product placement and the money it generates. So, all in all, it does not matter one little bit which quarterback follows his game-day routine of eating a 4-egg omelet in under 30 seconds, which running back has the ailing groin, or what the expected point spread will be. The main attraction cares not for the score, because it is not about who wins or who loses or how the game is played, but how much money is generated. The true winners will be those companies that have the successfully popular and oft talked-about TV spots. Indeed, the water-cooler conversations will continue about the commercials long after the game and its opponents are forgotten (and in your case, NHL, the entire league). Once everyone realizes that the game is irrelevant compared to God Money, we will be better off and we can finally dispense with the distractions of bonus babies and big egos. We will then be able to focus our full attention on beer and all the other wonderful products as God Money intended.

Drink more!

Tags: Rant by Midd13m4n
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