Ho ho ho holy moley. Ninkasi Sleigh’r is awesome!
I love winter time in beer land. More so than any other season, brewers seem compelled to pull out all their tricks and come up with new and fun beer concoctions. And because its so cold for most of America, they tend to be on the darker side, which of course makes Frosty a happy boy. Ninkasi’s winter brew, Sleigh’r, is no exception. Now, yes, I’ve been hard on Ninkasi in the past, but to be fair all their beer is just so damn hoppy. Imbued with all the narcissism only a guy with a beer review blog can have, I’ll go ahead and claim that they heard my cries, and have decided to make a brew truly worthy of my lofty praise. 
Either that, or they just mined the stream of awesome brewing they’ve always had. And struck gold, they have.
Sleigh’r is a Dark Double Alt, and its does its style proud. Super dark, super malty, and super yum. It has the great distinction of being one of the few 22’s I look forward to drinking straight through, regardless of the drunken consequences. As I froze my tukus off putting up Christmas lights the other weekend, just the thought that it was in the fridge warmed my bones.
It won’t be around long, so for those of you with a sense of taste (skylark: Alameda Papa Noel a 1? Come on…), pick some up, ditch the egg nog, and make Santa proud.
Naming a stout after a train can really go wrong: either by implying a certain coal-tar flavor (mmmm…burnt), or with a foreshadow to the effect the stout will have on your head after drinking. Lucky for me, neither apply to North Coast Brewing’s Old #38 Stout. Its more like a smooth ride down a track of air than the smoky clackety rumble its name implies. This stuff is good. Real good. Smooth, and “just right” flavorful, it puts to shame all the stouts that feel the need to brew themselves with some other flavor to mask the funk (Abyss excepted of course).
I wasn’t always a beer snob. In fact, I used to hate beer. But when I think back, I can always point to the one brewery that taught me that beer didn’t have to taste like urine (go keystone!). And that brewery was headed by the jolly, slurring, german guy who would pipe up on the radio, “its the best beer you’ve ever tasted, or my name isn’t Karl Strauss”. Now, its not the best beer I’ve ever tasted, but it is damn good, so I’ll give old Karl the credit and let him keep his name.
“Irish style”? You’re just inviting disaster by naming a beverage with alcohol in it “Irish style.” While of course they mean to refer to the excellent tradition of fine brews to come from Ireland, they’re risking providing fodder for the equally rich tradition of drunk Irish jokes. What’s the recommended serving method for “Irish Style”, cracking the bottle over some doof’s head in the pub? They should save the trouble of bottling it — just pour it straight from the bottles onto walls of buildings, about waist-high, during the St. Patrick’s day parade in New York. (I’m allowed to make these jokes, by the way, as I’m one of the 83% of Americans who claim Irish descent. Here’s my proof-of-Irish card.)
Brian is discussing. 
I wasn’t super excited about The Abyss last year. It was good, but not great. But then Doug tells me, “no you need to put it in the fridge for a year, and drink it when the new batch comes out”. I was skeptical, but now I just feel dumb that I didn’t store more than one. 
Hops-scotch and his betrothed joined us last weekend for some fun and frivolity so of course Frosty and I would be totally remiss if we didn’t start their Portland experience with some great beer! We decided to take them to the Bridgeport brewery downtown for some lunch vittles and of course some awesome beer. Hops-scotch ordered their Black Strap Stout while his wife-to-be and Frosty ordered Haymakers. I went for their porter.
Until today I had never tried anything from the Marin Brewing Co. Partly because my local store doesn’t offer too many from this brewer, but mostly because it is in the belgian ale section of the case. What I refer to as ‘Hellz NO’ territory.
I know deep down that the bartender was just trying to sell me the more expensive size, but when he handed me the gigantic glass of Upright #7, I was both appreciative and afraid. “Man, I hope this doesn’t taste nasty.” Perhaps I was influenced by the amazing 
Ivana Goodbeer 8:38 am on December 11, 2009 Permalink
We should leave this beer by the fireplace on Christmas Eve for the big man. Perhaps we’ll find a few extra ‘toys’ on the following morning!