Not so... Brilliant!

I will not tell a lie. I think ole Abe Lincoln said something similar. Or maybe it was George W. Whoever said it, I'm sure it was for a far more profound reason then me saying it. See, I have thought about hijacking a rig full of beer a time or two.

(swirly dream effect)

There I am cruising down the highway on a hot summer day. The top is off the Jeep Wrangler and the sun is making my forehead feel like a George Foreman grill. Suddenly, off in the distance... I see it. No, it's not a mirage. It's the real deal. An 18-wheeler full of ice cold brew. And I ain't talking about the craptacular swill inside a silver bullet either. Oh no... this is good beer. Instantly clips from all those many action flicks I've watched over the years - one's that involve jumping recklessly from a car onto a moving big rig - flash through my head. Oh ya, daring duo type stuff. Stunt man crap!


(swirly dream effect fades... back to reality)

But dreaming and doing are two vastly different things. Take for instance the gent who drove a truck into the Guinness brewery located on the banks of Dublin, Ireland's, River Liffey. He calmly pulled in to the loading dock area, hitched up a fully loaded trailer containing 180 kegs of Guinness, 180 kegs of Crudweiser and 90 barrels of Carlsberg lager... and simply drove off into the sunset. Or, since it was Ireland - to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Oh wait, the pot of gold was already attached to his rig! Well, minus the Crudwieser that is. Surely the lad did something noble with it, like... tossed 'em into the Liffey.

Nevertheless, this "master plan" succeeded. Somehow. Gotta give him props for being so bold. Brilliant!

* Thanks for the news lead, Larry!

Vote Early, Vote Often

Friends, Beer Geeks and Confessional Goers... lend me your mugs. I come to buy beer, not drink it!

(snicker)

OK, I've extended the poll question another week. I really need your input folks... so get into that voting booth (which ironically looks like a confessional) and lemme know what you think about the slogans. Would you buy a cool T-shirt or some other nifty nick nack sporting such a sexy saying?

Christmas Comes Early

I hope all my fellow Beer Geeks had a wondrous Thanksgiving. If you're like me you ate too much, drank too much, and watched too much football.

Wait a second... how the hell can the words "too much" ever be associated with any of those things?! ;)

So did anyone "man up" and venture forth to the malls on Black Friday to do some Christmas shopping? Again, if you're like me - you most certainly did not. Sorry, but I do all my shopping online. Dubba dubba dubba dot "buy it online" dot com baby! While "shopping" (from the comfort of my leather office chair, a steaming cup of java nearby) I happened to come across two fantastic beer items. One you can buy right now, the other you can dream about having - if/when it comes out.

Introducing... the roughly $4,000 "Device." Thanks to Popular Science staff photographer John Carnett, even the saddest of Brew Mixologists (that'd be me) would be able to brew and serve their own homemade beer. It took John several weeks to build what he calls "The Device": a stainless-steel two-cart brewing system that starts by boiling extract—concentrated wort, or pre-fermented beer—and ends with a chilled pint.


Oh sweet mother! With this thing even I could make a drinkable home brew. Unlike my fiasco earlier this year with the "Beer Machine." Granted, it's not being mass produced - yet, but you can bet your sweet bippy (what the hell is a "sweet bippy" anyway?) that someone somewhere will pony (keg) up the cash to buy the rights to this grand piece of machinery.

Check out how John assembled this beast:



I have problems tying my shoes some days. If I were to attempt to build this contraption I'd probably blow up my neighborhood. I think I'll stick to buying beer in bottles. Better yet... those new 5 liter mini-kegs. Cuz the fine folks at Hammaker Schlemmer have come up with what has to be the coolest beer related gizmo I've seen so far this year. May I present... The Countertop Beer Cooler and Tap! Wooooohooooo! Hallelujah! Are those angels I hear singing?

At a mere $299.95, this bad boy holds a 5-liter keg and has an integrated tap that lets you pour draft style beer at home! Guys like gizmos and flashing lights, and this thing has an array of LCD lights that display the exact temperature, while allowing true Beer Geeks to adjust the temp from 37 to 53 degrees. A pressure gauge regulates the CO2 content and even lets you alter the carbonation! It comes with an instructional DVD, tapping and cleaning kits, three 16-gram CO2 cartridges, and an overflow tray. To order one, clickety-click on over to Hamm-Schlem and order one here!

If you'll ecuse me... I have to go update my Chrismtas list and inform my better half of this newly found item of joy!

Until next time... keep the beer cold! Ya never know when I might stop by!

Beer Bong!

Sorry for the quick shot (thus the reference to the beer bong in the title), but to say I've been busy this last week would be a gross understatement. Let's get right to it shall we?

1) I hope all my fellow Beer Geeks and Confessional visitors have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Be sure to pair up a few good brews (maybe some you've never tried) with the turkey, stuffing, pumpkin pie and green bean casserole!


2) I've changed the Poll Question - it's a bit more specific as to my end goals for the slogan. So those of you who voted, please vote again. Plus, I've extended it until the end of next week.

3) I still have every intention of putting up the (now very much belated) Halloween article. I just need to get around to completing it.

4) Still working on a way to best host the Real Men of Genius radio spots. They're coming!

Until next time... Zivjeli!

And the Award Goes To...

Me.

I know! Can you believe it?!

I woke up this morning to find that this little beer blog of mine has won an award. Check it out:

Most of the time we bloggers do this (to borrow a phrase from my pal the Beer Philosopher) "for the love of the game." Meaning, we do it because we love the subject of our blogsession, not for awards and money (well, sometimes the money). Receiving kudos from fellow Beer Geeks is always great, but getting accolades from someone completely outside the realm of the subject for which you are blabbing, a site that actually reviews other blogs... well, that's just downright AWESOME!

In this case the blog review site Your Relevant has deemed Confessions of a Beer Geek worthy of your precious free time. Here's what they had to say about the site:

Confessions of a Beer Geek gets the honors this time with their amazing blog dedicated to the world of beer. We find this blog to be of some incredible use to beer enthusiasts and casual beer drinkers alike. We would like to present the Golden Glasses Award to them for their great achievement.

For me this truly legitimizes the site. Not only that, but it makes me want to be better, faster, stronger... oh wait, that sounds like I want to be the Bionic Beer Geek. ;) Seriously though, thanks for the kudos and I hope ya'll stick around on this crazy beerwagon for what's to come.

And remember... "Confession is good for the soul. Along with a good beer or two." (Ya, that's my new motto. How do you like it?)

More Beerelated Tid Bits!

New TV feed (located on the sidebar): Check out Craft Beer TV presented by Flying Dog Brewery.

New Beer Site: If you haven't stumbled across the Beer Drinkers Guide To Colorado, check it out ASAP! It's a hot new multimedia site dedicated to all things Beer (of course), but specifically Colorado Beers. Plus, they've got a way cool product coming out soon that's long overdue - an actual fold up Beer Map that you can stick in your glove box! HELLO! Based on my expeirence the site is best viewed with Internet Explorer. It seems to have some issues with Firefox (my browser of choice).


I received my CD containing 140 of the Bud Light Real Men of Genius ads. With any luck I'll have them posted here (incrementally) in the next few days.

Oh To Be a Cicerone!

You may have heard the term Cicerone (pronounced sis-uh-rohn) thrown about lately. But what is it, and more importantly - how the hell can I become one?!

Check this out, taken from the latest Left Hand Brewing (makers of some delish beer, including my fave - Milk Stout) Newsletter:

Anyone can call themselves an expert on beer. But when you, our friends, want great beer, sometimes you'll need help from a server who really knows beer flavors, styles and brands. You'll also want to buy from a place that understands proper storage and serving so the beer they drink will be of the highest quality. Too often great beer is harmed by improper service practices.

That being the case, Ray Daniels, a veteran of the US Beer Industry and current President of the Craft Beer Institute, as well as a friend of ours, has developed a program to ensure that consumers receive the best possible beer and enjoy its flavors to the greatest extent possible. It's called the Cicerone Certification Program. To facilitate this, those who sell and serve beer need to acquire knowledge in five areas:

• Beer Storage, Sales and Service
• Beer Styles and Culture
• Beer Tasting and Flavors
• Brewing Ingredients and Processes
• Pairing Beer with Food

To encourage participation by those with various interests and ambitions, the program offers three levels of certification beginning with the simplest and building to the most complex and demanding:

1. Certified Beer Server
2. Certified Cicerone
3. Master Cicerone

What is a Cicerone?

The word Cicerone (pronounced sis-uh-rohn) has been chosen to designate those with proven expertise in selecting, acquiring and serving today's wide range of beers. The titles "Certified Cicerone" and "Master Cicerone" are protected certification trademarks. Only those who have passed the requisite test of knowledge and tasting skill can call themselves a Cicerone.

What is the origin of the word "Cicerone"?

Cicerone is an English word referring to "one who conducts visitors and sightseers to museums and explains matters of archaeological, antiquarian, historic or artistic interest." For beer, a Cicerone will possess the knowledge and skills to guide those interested in beer culture, including its historic and artistic aspects. "Cicerone" now designates a person with demonstrated expertise in beer who can guide consumers to enjoyable and high-quality experiences with great beer.

What is a sommelier?

The word "sommelier" designates an expert wine steward. Twenty or thirty years ago when beer was much simpler, those whose primary expertise was wine could fairly claim to know a great deal about beer. But today the world of beer is just as diverse and complicated as wine. As a result, developing true expertise in beer takes years of focused study and requires constant attention to stay on top of new brands and special beers. While it is certainly possible for someone to be expert in both wine and beer, the only way to prove that is by examination and certification in both fields. Only those with the title "Certified Cicerone" or "Master Cicerone" have demonstrated their expertise in selecting and serving fine beer.

How is a Cicerone different from a Beer Sommelier?

A Cicerone is a tested and proven expert in beer while beer sommelier is a self-designation that can be adopted by anyone. Because there are no criteria for the title of beer sommelier and because those who use the title have not subjected their knowledge and skills to an independent examination, consumers and employers can't be sure just what a non-certified beer server knows or how they treat and serve the beer.

For more info, check out www.cicerone.org. We raise our glasses to Ray and the Cicerone Certification Program!

Beer me!

Added 2 new media feeds to the site: beergeekTV and The Beer Report podcast.

Check 'em both out!

911 - I have an Beermergency!

OK, I love my beer, but...

From NBC News


It may have seemed like an emergency at the time, but a Connecticut man is now regretting his call to 911.

The man, 35-year-old Brian Poulin of Hebron, was arrested Sunday after police said he called 911 several times and asked them to bring him beer. Hebron was charged with disorderly conduct.

Police said he called 911 numerous times and told the dispatcher he was out of beer and asked them to pick up more for him. Poulin was transported to Windham Community Memorial Hospital after officers arrested him at his home.

Police did not say what he was treated for.

He is scheduled to appear in Superior Court in Rockville on Nov. 20.

Men Created Everything

Face it... we did. (wink)

Seriously though, since I'm having issues with Bud's "Real Men of Genius" radio ads here's another Bud commercial to keep you occupied.

Real Men of Genius Update: I've got a CD containing 140 (of the roughly 170) of these bad boys coming my way, which I should have in the next week. From there I'll transfer them to a server and get them online ASAP.




* Thanks for passing this along, Larry! Much obliged.

Hail the Ale!

Beerade Thirst Quencher.

I knew it!

According to Professor Manuel Garzon of Granada University in Spain, beer can help someone who is dehydrated retain liquid better than water. Furthermore, he claims that the bubbles in beer help quench thirst and beer's carbohydrate content can help replace lost calories.

For the full details, go here.

Cool Runnings

Now THAT'S a beer fridge!

* Thanks for passing this along, James!