Confessions of an Undercover Geek

My buddy Jon and I went to go see the new James Bond movie Casino Royale on Friday, which was AWESOME. Afterwards we met up with some other friends at a pub in Dupont Circle, the Brickskeller. If you love beer, this is the place for you. They boast over 1,000 beers on the beer list. This is both bottled and on tap. It is a very chill place to hang out. I had a sandwich, Spaten Optimator, and a Boddingtons. If you’re going to be in DC and wanna grab a beer, drop me a line.

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A bunch of my Michigan friends had been telling me about Bell’s Oberon Ale. It is brewed in Comstock, MI. When I got home last week, my dad and I went grocery shopping and decided to pick up a six pack.

Wow! It is really good. It has all of the essences of summer. Try it out. I look forward to having some time to try more Michigan beers.

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My buddy Sam goes to Artisan Church here in Rochester, NY. Apparently they have an event called Pastors at the Pub, where they meet every week at the Old Toad Pub, drink beer, and discuss religion and culture.

That is awesome. I get into so many religious discussions when I am out with my buddies drinking a beer. It is about time some pastors came out to a pub too.

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My buddies and I were at the Old Toad last nite for Trivia Night. I noticed they had Rouge’s Shakespeare Stout on tap.

It was bloody brilliant. It is hands down one of the best stouts I have had in a while. It is really dark. It has that nice chocolate aftertaste to it. It doesn’t have the bite that Guinness does. TRY IT!

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I have always been a big beer guy. We have a Beers of the World store here in Rochester. There are so many different kinds that you can try.

I was reading an article in Food & Wine Magazine.

Craft beer is now the fastest-growing part of the alcohol industry in the United States, outpacing sales of wine and hard liquor. In 2005, craft beer sales increased by 9 percent over the previous year, according to the Brewers Association, a trade group. Some individual breweries did even better.

Apparently these, gastropubs (fancy fancy beer pubs) are starting to pop up all over America. Pretty cool….

I love wine but it is also great to see good beer get its due as well.

NOTE: I do not advocate drinking in excess. ONLY in moderation.

It has been a crazy day. We had the academic convocation ceremony today and then I had a bunch of my friends’ graduation ceremony to attend (mine is tomorrow.)

I got back to my apartment about half an hour ago. While I wind down and do some reading and writing, I am drinking the Saranac Belgian White Ale. It is quite delicious.

I am not sure how to describe it but the bottle says it has tastes of tangy orange peel and coriander. When I bought the 6-pack a few days ago, it cost $6 bucks. The price is right. It is good.

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So as you may or may not know, we just heading into the home stretch here at RIT. Next week is finals week. This quarter is finally coming to an end. This is reason why I have not been writing as much. I have been funneling any creative energy I have into my school work.

So you may be thinking to yourself, what kind of beer has Justin been drinking? Well let me tell you. After working most of the day on my ajax/svg projects, I met up with some of my friends who also minor in American Politics. We went to go see one of our professors who is in a blues band play at this biker bar downtown Rochester, Dinosaur Barbeque.

The beer of choice for the night was Rouge Dead Guy. Boy was it fantastic. I am not really sure what the flavor was but this ale has it going on. It has this nice rich color to it and a flavor that is just as rich. So when your out buying groceries this week, take a look for Rouge Dead Guy. You will no be let down.

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For those of you that are sitting home and wondering what kind of beer I have been drinking lately, I have been digging into some of the fine British beers.

• Old Speckled Hen (what I am drinking now)
• Boddingtons
• Bass Ale

They are all great. The next time you are at your favorite pub pick up a pint of one and let me know what you think.

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I haven’t written in a long time about the beers that I have been trying.

Last night, I went with my buddies to the pub to grab a quick beer. We were each working on papers for the ethics class we are both in. We wanted to compare notes and fly each other’s arguments against eachother to make sure there weren’t any holes. Where better to compare notes then at your favorite pub?

We were very excited when we saw a new beer from the Magic Hat Circus Boy. I had never had a hefeweizen before. I was pretty impressed. It was more of a crisp creamy kind of taste to it. It has more of the golden color to it. It was enjoyable but doesn’t stand up to the Mardi Gras.

So morale of the story is…the next time you’re at your favorite pub or beer store, look to see if they have something special from Magic Hat Brewery. I think you will enjoy it.

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I have recently read on John Dvorak’s blog, Biology News Net, and Science Daily News that there is some type of cancer preventing chemical found in beer. I guess when I go to the store and get a six pack or go to the pub and grab a pint, I can say that I am doing it for my health.

A compound found only in hops and the main product they are used in - beer - has rapidly gained interest as a micronutrient that might help prevent many types of cancer.

Researchers at Oregon State University first discovered the cancer-related properties of this flavonoid compound called xanthohumol about 10 years ago. A recent publication by an OSU researcher in the journal Phytochemistry outlines the range of findings made since then. And many other scientists in programs around the world are also beginning to look at the value of these hops flavonoids for everything from preventing prostate or colon cancer to hormone replacement therapy for women.

Photo by Roland, via Flicrk Creative Commons