Hello again!

A summer under contract, a week without power and a two week roadtrip later, I'm back and have a few beers to share with you! Hope you have been well. I assure you that Paul is also alive, and probably even has a few beers to share. I'll do this in installments. Today's goes along with the pile of updates about my recent travels around the US. While my roadtrip companions searched for good gift shops to bring nice things back to their family and friends, I prefer to mark my travels by learning about new trees and trying new beers. My apologies to my family and friends. I do love you. Now I just know where to take you for a good beer should we ever travel together!

In Nashville
Yazoo Pale Ale: Really, really, really hoppy, bordering on tasting like a bouquet of flowers. So dry. My European friends did not like this at all. I liked it the more I drank. Very refreshing, smooth finish but holy hops, Batman.

Yazoo Dos Perros: Pretty malt-heavy brown ale. It was ok. I wonder if Yazoo does middle ground on the bitter to sweet spectrum of things? By the two I tasted, the answer is no.

Blues Brew: I can't find anything about this beer but I don't care. It wasn't about the beer, but where I had it. The beer was fine, whatever, kind of like an amber ale I guess, who cares. The BB King Blues Club was awesome. I've said it before, I know it's awesome because it's touristy, but I DON'T CARE. It's SO good! So whatever, I had a beer, got to keep the glass, beer was adequate, music was superb.

In Memphis
Lazy Magnolia Southern Pecan: Hearing the name made me think of pie, but that's not how it was. This was a pretty lightweight beer and I didn't get much pecan or nut flavor at all, just a plain brown ale. This was fine under the circumstances, the circumstances being that I was on Beale Street in Memphis, which gets closed off by police so you can just wander around with beer and listen to incredible blues bands. I was pretty overstimulated as it was, so I was happy to drink a relatively plain local beer at that moment.

In Chicago
Half Acre Daisy Cutter: Another very hoppy pale ale, but it was good. One of my travel buddies said it tasted like green tea. I'd disagree, but definitely had some kind of very fresh flavor going on... almost like grass, if that makes any sense. This has a very strong flavor but a very clean finish. I liked it. (Remember when I used to hate hoppy beers? I would have hated this beer once upon a time...)

Goose Island Green Line Pale Ale: After some deliberation, this was my second beer at Miller's Pub in the Windy City, mostly so I could compare two local pale ales. This was definitely a less severe pale ale, but still plenty hoppy and pale. I think I liked this one more because the first sip didn't completely punch me in the face. Still good though.

In West Virginia but not a local beer
Coopers Best Extra Stout: Not local as in Australia... but this was good. A little sweet, but good. I do love stout. It was like a sweeter Guinness. Very smooth and no particularly strong flavors that you sometimes find in stouts. Just stout.

Good roadtrip (3225 miles) and good beers (just these and a few assorted Miller Lights and Yuenglings).