My Favorite Beers

Mac & Jack's African Amber - This full-flavored Amber is easily my favorite beer. It has a dark, somewhat muddy, golden-amber color with a decent frothy head. It's slightly carbonated and has a great aroma. You can taste the clean hops and its unique fruity/citrus flavor. It goes down smooth and is well balanced, not overly bitter at all, just enough to give it a little kick. Also, this beer will knock you on your ass. One of these is like drinking 2-3 domestics like Bud or PBR. For those of you unfamiliar with this beer, it's not available in bottles; you can only find it on tap.
Mirror Pond Pale Ale - This Ale is orange-bronze in color, and has a small, lightly golden head. It has a wonderful balance between the malts and hops, and goes down real smooth, even for a Pale Ale. A nice choice for someone who doesn't want anything too heavy, but still wants to feel and taste his beer.
Pyramid IPA (India Pale Ale) - The IPA is an excellent choice, with its golden-orange coloring and thick white head. It carries a heavy, wonderful aroma, dominated by the hops, citrus, and even pine. You can spend minutes just sniffing it. It has a clean, hoppy taste to it, with a slight bitter aftertaste. This is a real easy beer to drink, something I pick up when I can't get a Mac & Jack or I want a six-pack for a decent price. A good back-up beer.
Fat Tire - An Amber Ale by New Belgium Brewing, Fat Tire is one of the best beers around and has replaced the Pyramid IPA as my second choice of beers, when I can't get my favorite Mac & Jack. This Amber pours nicely and builds up a decent head, which does tend to fade quickly, but it does leave some nice lacing. It has a light smell that compliments its golden-orange color. The taste is what sells it, though; it's crisp and smooth at the same time, a pefect blend of hops and malt, with little to no aftertaste. The perfect beer to drink with a nice pizza or Italian dinner.

More to come!

How To Pour The Perfect Beer

It's important that you know how to properly pour a beer into a glass in order to truly appreciate the full flavor of the beer. Here's how to do that...

Step One - Here's an easy one; you have to make sure that your glass is clean. If the glass is dirty, any residual dust from being left out for too long, oils from improper cleaning, or leftovers from the previous beer may hinder proper head creation and the full flavors of the beer from coming through.
Step Two - Make sure you are holding the glass at a 45° angle as you pour the beer. Aim for the middle of the glass, and don't be afraid to pour hard.
Step Three - When the glass is about halfway full, bring the glass straight up. Continue pouring the beer in the middle of the glass. This is important; it will bring about the perfect frothy head, which releases the aromas of the beer and makes the beer look good! Also, as you finish pouring, add a little distance between the bottle and glass; this will help produce the proper size head, which should be at least an inch.

Use The Proper Glass

As important as pouring is, it's a mute point if the beer is not poured into the proper container. There are several types of glasses available for the various types of beers available. By using the proper container for the whatever beer you are pouring, you bring about subtle changes in the beer's color, flavor, and aroma. Everything becomes more pronounced and it becomes a better experience, overall.

Here's a list of the various types of glasses and what beers to use with them:

Chalice - This is for those hoighty-toighty beers: Dubbels and Triples. These are beers with double and triple the malt strength. The chalice helps trap and retain the head on these beers.
Flute - For Lambics and Fruit Lambics. The flute helps these beers retain their carbonation for as long as possible.
Goblet - The goblet is perfect for Barley Wine, Heavy Ales, and Belgian-Style Beers. They allow the drinker to swirl the beer (like a brandy) in order to properly release the flavors and aromas.
Mug - You can't go wrong with a good mug, which works well with ales, lagers, and especially Oktoberfests. You'll find mugs in most bars, but they usually hold less than a pint, unless you get a stein.
Pilsner - The Pilsner is the only glass designed for it's own beer, the Pilsner. Most domestic beers (Bud, Coors, Miller, etc.) are Pilsners. The glass brings about the full flavors of these beers, and helps maintain their heads. It also works well with wheat beers.
Pint - The standard. The Pint is perfect for most lagers, ales, porters, and stouts. It comes in both 16oz and 20oz sizes. This is what's used in most bars (at least in my area.)