While at the Edgewood Cheerleaders Golf Outing, I was fortunate enough to win tickets to a Cincinnati Reds game. Last night my wife and I went to the game, and decided it would be a good time to try a new beer.

It was an evening game, and the air had begun to cool and the one beer at the concession stand I hadn’t tried yet was Tire Bite Golden Ale, brewed by the Flying Dog Brewery.

I had been hitting the salted peanuts pretty hard, and had a plate of nachos and jalepenos so my palate was not exactly clear.

The color of this beer was dark amber, and clear. I drank it slowly and enjoyed the taste. There was a hoppy aftertaste that I’ve been noticing with a lot of the micro brews I’ve tried of late. The beer was good, but nothing to write home about. I would buy it again but probably wouldn’t be my first choice.

I also should note, the image makes the beer look a little cloudy but it really isn’t That’s condensation from the cold beer in the warmer air. I’m giving this beer a B-.

Posted by Sam

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My father, who has become a big time Rolling Rock fan (and I’ve posted regarding this previously) decided he’s giving up his kegorator in exchange for a healthier workout regiment and diet. Fortunately for me, he unloaded the kegorator onto his third born son for a very fair price.

Included in the deal was the kegorator, the CO2 tank, and whatever was left of the Rolling Rock 1/2 barrel. I was thrilled, and it didn’t take me long to finish off what was left of the 1/2 barrel.

The next big question was what to replace the Rolling Rock with. Sure, I’ve grown to like the Rolling Rock somewhat, but I wanted something a little more. There are plenty of beers out there I like better. My initial thought was that I wanted to get Smithwick’s, but after looking into pricing, I decided that Smithwick’s and Sam Adams were a bit steep for my “Keg beer”.

After contemplating local distributors, gas prices and the price of beer I decided to go with Michelob Amber Bock. Mr. Porch joined me on my journey across town to pick up my new beverage of choice, and shortly after we tapped the new keg, we pulled one off and enjoyed a tall Amber Bock in the tasting booth with a 5 Vegas Shorty.

Posted by Sam

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Ahhh…..my favorite time of the year. High school football has begun, the college hockey season is just a few short weeks away and I’m beginning to find Oktoberfest beers on the shelves again. This years first appearance is by the Great Lakes brewery. I’ve had their fine fall brew in the past and it is one of my favorites. Let me tell you about it.

First of all, the very sight of it reminds me that autumn is near and the full flavor of some of the best brews are about to appear. Classic Great Lakes label with a festive celebration scene. It poured a nice clear amber with a fairly thick creamy head that lasted about a third of the way down. You can smell the sweetness of the malts with each drink. It has a medium to full flavor, a bit on the sweet side, with a nice clean finish that begs you to open another. You can really taste their signature malt profile, but that is a good thing with this beer. It would go well with a nice autumn meal like stuffed pork chops and apple sauce or beef roast cooked in the crock pot.

Great Lakes has never disappointed me, and their Oktoberfest is another winner. I don’t think they make a bad beer.

P-O-R-C-H rating:  C

Posted by Mr. Porch

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Got this one with a sampler pack from Cigars International. Dark wrapper, purple, black and gold band. Torpedo style. Nice looking cigar. The wrapper was a little veiny but no hard spots. When I lit it, it gave out thick plumes of smoke but that didn’t last long. After about 5 minutes, it became very hard to draw and seemed to lose it’s full flavor effect. It kept going out and it didn’t burn very even either. It was too much work to smoke, so I put it out about 1/2 way down. A real dissappointment. It started out like a good cigar, but quickly lost it’s rating with me. I have 4 more left so I will be smoking them and if my opinion changes, I’ll let you know.

Posted by Mr. Porch

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Of all the beers I’ve befriended, this is the first black and tan I’ve ever had. My nephew, JP, who recently finished his 6 year stint in the Air Force, made a trip to South Carolina a couple of weeks ago and brought back with him a few Yuengling Black and Tans. Our good fortune here at beerandcigars.net shined down on us once again as he decided to share them with Sam and I.

As with all the Yuengling beers, it had a very nice looking label. It poured a dark black like a cola, with a dark, caramel colored head that lasted more than halfway down. For a beer with the thick, full flavor texture it had a somewhat mild aroma with a surprisingly light flavor. This is a very smooth and good tasting brew that one could drink more than he should in one night. Not a lot of hops but not too sweet either.

The perfect event for this beer would be at room temperature with a big slab of BBQ ribs. Thanks again JP, for your contribution and service.
P-o-r-c-h rating = C

Posted by Mr. Porch

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Ah yes, another cigar from the Powerhouse 16 Sampler, from Thompson Cigars. This was pretty much a bad time for a cigar I planned on doing a review on. I had just awoke from an afternoon nap, brushed my teeth then came outside to the tasting booth for a cigar.

My pre-light inspection revealed no visible construction issues. The wrapper looked clean and neat and is an attractive looking cigar. My squeeze test revealed no hard spots, and had consistent softness throughout.

After lighting and taking the first few puffs, I was a bit bored with it. I thought about the flavor of this cigar was average at best, maybe I was expecting something more.

As the cigar was about halfway through, I began to enjoy it a bit more. Was my initial taste affected by the toothpaste from me brushing my teeth? Possibly.

As the burn neared the band, I began experiencing some very severe wrapper cracking. I managed to keep it all together until I dumped it, but it was pretty bad.

Overall, the flavor of this cigar was decent. Nothing to write home about, and I won’t run out to buy another one but a good smoke. The appearance of this cigar was the best thing going for it, and maybe I had expected something more. I’m giving this a C+.

Posted by Sam

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