While beer shopping, Carol had chosen a beer to share with the Tiki Gal. This was a momentous occasion because, as I've mentioned before, Carol and the Tiki Gal do not like beer. They do take a sip or twelve of whatever Dale and I are drinking but they do that just to contribute their opinions to the beer rankings (and we may have cured that problem on Friday night - more on that later.) On February 13, for the first time ever, Carol and the Tiki Gal had an entire beer - that they shared - of their own. The rating is entirely theirs.
Pete's Wicked Strawberry Blonde
Color: Strawberry blonde.
Skunkiness: 0 skunks of course. The girls wouldn't drink a skunky beer.
Taste: Mild strawberry flavor. They couldn't determine if the beer was hoppy or malty.
Comments: I was impressed that the girls got through their half-a-glass each. I could tell that their enthusiasm for finishing the beer was waning with each drink. I don't think Dale and I have to worry about hiding our beer from them just yet.
Rating: 5 pint glasses on Carol's scale of 1 or 5.
I mixed a drink the Tiki Gal and I had been working on for a few weeks. I wanted to concoct a drink that tasted like the orange-vanilla ice cream pops I had as a kid called Creamsicles. Over several weekends, the Tiki Gal and I had tried various combinations of things before getting something close to what I wanted. We did find that although Bailey's Irish Cream is good when mixed with orange juice, it does not taste like a Creamsicle. The finished - and as yet unnamed recipe - follows.
Orange-cream-vanilla thing
Color: Creamy orange.
Ingredients: 4 oz. orange juice, 1 oz. cream, 1.5 oz. vodka, 1.5 oz. vanilla liqueur. Place all ingredients in a shaker with ice and shake very well. The drink should be slightly frothy. I haven't tried this, but this drink would also be good served frozen. Put all ingredients in a blender with one cup of ice and blend well.
Taste: Like a Creamsicle - a mixture of orange sherbet and vanilla ice cream.
Comments: My philosophy of mixed drinks is that the liquor should add to the flavor of the drink but should not overpower it. That is why this drink contains vodka instead of rum or Bailey's or any of the other things I tried. The vodka adds alcohol content without overpowering the orange-cream-vanilla tastes.
As we settled down to play cards, Dale and I were excited to try a new beer. I like most beers, but I'm drawn to the more hoppy or more malty beers of the beer spectrum. Some of the beers in the middle of the spectrum are good too but they don't seem as complex as the beers on the ends. With that in mind, Dale and I tried a beer from the far right - the hoppy end - and made a couple of startling discoveries. First, the rating.
Samuel Adams Hallertau Imperial Pilsner - "An Intense Hop Experience"
Color: Light gold and a little cloudy. The cloudiness is probably the chunks of hops floating around in there.
Skunkiness: 0 skunks. Really, the skunks didn't have a chance.
Taste: Hops, hops, hops. The Tiki Gal took her usual small sip and said it tasted like that taste you experience after you've ralphed everything in your stomach and all that is left is stomach acid but you keep throwing up anyway. I'm betting Sam Adams won't use that comment on their promotional materials. Also, Dale said it tasted like you had just stuck your tongue up a monkey's butt. We didn't delve too deeply into why he would know that but, again, not a ringing endorsement for this beer.
Comments: Not only did this beer taste bad, it was so hoppy that it coated your mouth and throat with a stinging, slimy substance. My throat was sore the next day and I think it was because of this beer. Needless to say, we will not be having this one again.
Rating: 1 pint glass out of 5. We would have gone lower but the beer was at least interesting. We will be talking about it for years to come.
This beer made me rethink my fondness for hops. I ended up drinking the whole thing but, wow, I was wondering if it was a good idea about halfway through. The hop flavor was completely overpowering. There was no hint of caramel or malt or anything else. On the positive side, I think this beer broke the girls' habit of trying our beers. One sip of this thing and I thought they were both going to be sick.
To recover, Dale and I had a much better beer.
Samuel Adams Irish Red
Color: Golden red.
Skunkiness: 0 skunks.
Taste: Slightly hoppy with caramel flavors. A beer with better balance than the Imperial Pilsner.
Comments: I think we would have rated Old Milwaukee very high after the previous beer so we had to temper our enthusiasm somewhat.
Rating: 3.25 pints.
We had just poured our next beer when Dale and I left the room for a bit. Carol and the Tiki Gal thought it would be really funny to switch the beers we were about to drink with another glass of the Imperial Pilsner. When we came back and sat down, I thought the color was odd but tried it anyway. Imagine my surprise when the stomach acid - monkey butt taste hit me. The girls thought this was really funny, however. They may get a special ingredient in a future mixed drink, I think.
Our last beer of the night was one of our favorites.
Spaten Optimator
Comments: See previous entries for ratings. I highly recommend this beer.
Rating: 4.5 pints.
The card games turned out pretty well for the guys. I won Cutthroat. The girls squeaked out a one point win in Pitch on the very last card of the very last hand and the Tiki Gal is still crowing about it. Dale won Oh Hell! in a landslide.
Carol was able to get tickets to the Jimmy Buffett concert in Dallas for all of us. We are very excited because we will be on the floor for the first time - on row twenty! Expect a detailed account of the concert and our experiences with the Parrotheads in April.
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