I sat down to work on taxes around 9:30pm tonight. Now it's 11:30pm, I've only started to figure out what my tax liability is, and I'm already three bottles deep into a six-pack of Fat Tire. Oops.

Drinking before bed is bad, but drinking only a few beers before bed (so few that you remember falling asleep) is perhaps worse. However, there are several scenarios in which I think it makes sense:

• You have just completed some extremely long, frustrating, complicated, time-consuming, etc... task, and are simulatneously overcome with joy and dog tired.
• It's a weekend night.
• You are camping. This counts five times more if it's winter and snowing or below freezing and you have a spring bag and no tent.
• Its a 24 hour bike race, or any multi-day race really.
• It's your birthday either currently, or in a few hours.
• Your dog ate your bed.
• You've exausted all other prayers and dances for snow/surf.
• They had growlers of 2003 Stone IRS for sale that day.
• And I'm sure many, many more...

Good night!

Last weekend my wife Jessica and I along with friends Ben and Liz made the short drive up to Solana Beach to eat lunch at Pizza Port. In the past five years that Jessica and I have worked (and often times lived) in separate states, I can't recall a single reunion in San Diego that did not include at least one trip to Pizza Port. One of the main reasons for this is the world class beer they serve on draft.

Last weekend we sampled a pitcher of a Scottish Ale, then another of Pale and Jessica (who hates and fears hops with a passion) sampled a glass of Belgian ale. All very tasty, all excellent complements to Jessica and my personal favorite pizza: cheese.

With over a decade of trips to Pizza Port (and some of the larger breweries around San Diego) I have to say that Pizza Port in Solana Beach has retained its goodness while many others lost their appeal.

Rock Bottom La Jolla is another staple, and is perhaps our most frequently visited brewery in all of San Diego. Despite being part of a multi-state chain of restaurants, the La Jolla brewery puts out some seriously awesome beer. If I recall correctly, the master brewer studied chemistry at UCSD, and managed to transform all of that knowledge into fantastic beer recipes, especially when it comes to special beers. Hands down, RBLJ consistently puts out some of the most drinkable and interesting specialty beers around.

So what is next? Alesmith!! I have only begun to sample what they have to offer, but so far the quality of their beers and the low-key relaxed atmosphere of their tasting room have me very keen.

Celebrating the end of September and the begining of winter with a nice and rich Rogue Imperial Russian Stout:

A few days ago, Jessica and I went back to the Beerhive Pub where we met up with Elyse to have a few drinks. The night got off to a rocky start when we sat down at the bar and the bar tender asked us for IDs. I had left my wallet at home and figured that a new bar in SLC would not want to take the chance on me. So, I crutched out, we drove home, picked up my wallet, drove back, and sat down again with proper identification.

I can't say that the greeting by the bartender was all that friendly. In fact, the first time that we sat down we waited for about five minutes before he came over and immediately asked for IDs. The second time we sat down he checked out IDs and then left and returned with menus. Given how slow things seemed to be I guess I expected a little more interaction. For example, the pub is only a few weeks old, so how about telling us a bit about it? Anyway, a minor detail.

First, we tried a North Coast Old Rasputin and Deschutes Obsidian Stout both great beers, although I prefer the Old Rasputin to the Obsidian due to its more complex flavor and much smoother finish. Old Rasputin is the kind of beer that is subtle in all the right ways. Compared to some of the other Imperial Russian Stouts (IRS) I have tasted, it is much smoother with a better finish and really nice complexity.

Next, I had a few different IPAs: Boulder Beer Co. Hazed & Infused, and a Full Sail IPA. The Hazed & Infused IPA had a really great aroma. It was so crisp and bursting with Cascade and Centennial hops. The taste on the other hand was too sweet for my liking in an IPA. The Full Sail IPA was better balanced, but lacked in aroma compared to the Hazed & Infused.

After the IPAs I switched over to Belgian style beers and finished the night off with a North Coast Brother Thelonious and a Chimay Red. I was really impressed with the color of the Bro.Thelo. It was a rich, deep red that would erupt out of the glass when held to the light. The Chimay was fantastic as always.

Overall, I would rate the pub average. They had several very nice beers that I have not found at any other pubs, but could probably get at the liquor store. However, it seemed that many of the beers listed on the menu were not actually available. I think this is by far the single most irritating experience at this kind of bar. This was reason #1 why I a got fed up with The Bayou. I was really hoping that things would be different at the Beerhive, but they were sadly the same. I don't want to blame the pub for this, because knowing our ridiculous beer laws in this state it could be due to limitations with the Dept. of Alcoholic Beverage Control. However, why not have a dynamic menu? Or even use one of the several flat screens to show a list a beers on the menu that have sold out. I know it sounds like a minor issue, but we had to try four times before we asked for a beer that they actually had. After a while it gets frustrating. It's not the lack of availability that gets me, but the fact that you have to pick two or three backups when you go to order a beer off the menu. The Bayou half solved this by having a separate seasonal menu with items that were of limited availability. Still, I think dynamic menus would be a better solution. Make it fun!

Besides the issue with availability, the Beerhive is a fine place to get a drink. We didn't try the food, but I'm typically not inclined to order food at pubs that serve items from a neighboring resturant. I'd rather just go to the restaurant to eat and then drink at the pub after. In the case of the Beerhive, the food comes from the Vienna Bistro which has been around for a long time, serves good food, and last I recall was on the expensive side.

In terms of cost, you certainly wont save any money going to the Beerhive, but that is par for the course regarding SLC boutique beer pubs. The only comparison I could make between the Bayou and the Beerhive was that the Bayou serves AVBC Deependers Porter for $7/22oz and at the Beerhive it was $9/22oz. It did seem that some of the other beers they served were less expensive that the Bayou, so I would say they are roughly equal.

The ice bar (a 4-inch-thick bar of ice that runs the length of the bar) is a nice feature, and actually useful for some beers. I tend to drink too fast to get much benefit from it, but it seems like it would keep a nearly full beer at a good temperature. As the glass gets closer to empty, the ice actually makes the beer too cold, so I would recommend removing your glass from the ice bar once it gets down to 1/3 full. I bet it is also really nice for mixed drinks.

When we first went to the Beerhive, I was hoping to find a better version of the Bayou that had more selection, better availability, and a shorter wait time. What we found was a pub similar to the Bayou without its own restaurant and an atmosphere more like an upscale bar than a pub. I'll for sure be coming back, but I don't see the Beerhive taking much business from the Bayou (unless they get Stone on draft in which case I will be there every night, seriously).

One thing that the Beerhive has going for it is a high demand for quality beer in SLC which has exceeded the capacity of the Bayou on the weekends. I'm sure much business will come to the Beerhive.

An article on the examiner.com reports recent results from a study of 1,700 women reported in the journal Nutrition (abstract). The study found that women who drank even a modest amount of beer (less than 12 oz per day) had stronger bones than non-drinkers. From the article:

Beer has high amounts of the mineral silicon which slows down the thinning process of the bones.  Silicon is found in the husk of the grain that is manufactured to create the beer.  Some researchers even believe a moderate intake of beer is better than consuming milk for calcium to prevent bone loss.  So sit back and enjoy a pint or two to ensure healthy bones!

Like so many other studies of this kind, the results are hard to interpret without knowing more about the 1,700 subjects. For example, it tells us that there is a correlation between these women's habits and bone thinning. However, it does not necessarily imply that beer is the key factor. Any other behavior that is correlated with beer drinking could also be a factor, perhaps even more important. For more information about this, check out the other related articles from google news.

In preparation for brewing a new barley wine tomorrow, Jessica and I shared some great barley wines from the Pacific North West: Alaskan Barley Wine, and Deschutes Mirror Mirror:

We both found the Mirror Mirror to be generally better tasting than the Alaskan. However, both were very good examples of the style.

Had a chance to try the Ola Dubh (Black Oil) two nights ago with my Dad. From the label:

Ola Dubh (for "Black Oil") is so named because it is gloopy and viscous. This limited release has been matured in casks from Orkney's award-winning Highland Park distillery to add complementary whiskey notes to what is already an amazing brew. It is chocolaty with a roasty bittersweet aftertaste.

The 16 reserve is so named because it is aged in barrels used for making 16 year old single malt whiskey. It really does pour like viscous black oil. It had a nice aroma, and the barrel aging was readily apparent.

From a story on MetroNews comes the news that the state Senate in West Virgina is getting close to passing a bill that would allow the sale of beers in the range of 6% to 12% ABV. Currently, West Virgina is one of only three states that limit the sale of beer to those below 6% ABV (Alcohol Laws of the United States by State).

I just came home from walking my two dogs around the neighborhood and had this strong thirst for a beer. This got me thinking, and I realized that beer and doggies seem to go hand in hand. There is nothing better than relaxing with your canine friends after a long day of work and tossing back a few beers. So, I thought that others might have similar opinions on the matter and typed "dogs and beer" into Google which yielded these results. Nearly all of them were about feeding beer to dogs and weather or not it was "safe." The Onion had a pretty funny (although questionable ethically) article about testing if a dog liked to drink beer, but perhaps one of the more interesting responses was from this page on WikiAnswers

Do dogs like to drink beer?

While I've met lots of chocolate Labradors named Guinness and yellow Labradors named Molson, even these dogs prefer to drink water over beer. Dogs can be severely affected by alcohol. Yes, they will get drunk, and they may even like the taste, but without the hope of getting laid or even being able to talk to others of their own species, I can't imagine it's very fun. Dogs are like children that way; they've got enough exuberance and imagination to create their own euphoria. Remember, dogs drink out of toilets and muddy swamps when they are thirsty in an attempt to hydrate themselves, so it would be dangerous and self-defeating if Guinness, the Labrador, drank excessive amounts of alcohol - it's severely dehydrating and could damage his liver or even make him sick. We find that this occurs more frequently in dogs living in fraternity houses, among young college kids that think such puppy abuse is "cool" and "funny." Might I remind you that most rapist and serial killers were animal abusers first? I rest my case.