John Sciacca Writes...

As much as I enjoy enjoy drinking, writing and talking about beer, I actually have no interest in trying to make any for myself. It’s kind of like sausage. Huge fan, don’t want to know or be involved in any part of how it is made. (I’m sure it’s a totally non-gross process that wouldn’t involve bits and scraps and snouts or anuses at all...)

My first encounter with home brewing was none too impressive. My fr...

“See the TURTLE of enormous girth!

On his shell he holds the earth.

His thought is slow but always kind;

He holds us all within his mind.

On his back all vows are made;

He sees the truth but may’nt aid.

He loves the land and love the sea,

It’s true, I’m not much into beers that don’t have I, P and A in the title. Well, that’s not totally true. I like to think that I’m open to a great beer in whatever style it comes. You got a great blueberry ale, I’m gonna try it. You got a good Boch, I’ll drink down those hearty and bready malts with the best of them. And I’m really starting to get into Belgian Triple and other styles.

Howev...

You may recall that exactly a year ago yesterday I posted my drinking notes on Dogfish Head’s 120 Minute IPA. My summary was that it was – clears throat – “Like drinking a hammer.”

Dennis Burger also provided that review with some wonderful color commentary in the form of t...

A recent blog post I wrote titled "The Death of the Dedicated Room" got me talking about my family room home theater system.

I’ll be honest, when I installed it, I felt like installing a theater in my family room was a compromise. I really wanted a dedicated room to house my system, but, well, I could eit...

I’ve had my share* of beers at this point. And you get to a point that when you roam the aisles of your local grocery stores, liquor stores and beer emporiums you find yourself running out of new things to try. Especially when the city you live in has both Myrtle and Beach in the title and is often referred to as “the Redneck Riviera.”

(* Many would say I’ve had more tha...

Remember the Iraqi Information Minister? He was that guy during the first Desert Storm that would get on TV and make those awesome declarations about how the Iraqi army was doing. With jets streaking overhead, bridges blowing up, tanks being obliterated and US troops holding hands and hopscotching into Baghdad, good ole Muhammed Saeed al-Sahaf kept a stern face and proclaimed such awesomeness as:

Oh, Stone Brewing Co! Everything you do seems to be a giant, bar-raising, F-you! to the rest of the brewing world. You people think you’ve got a fresh beer? Fine, we’ll make one so fresh we’ll put the expiration date right in the beer's name and make it be enjoyed within 30-days of going in the bottle! You make a flight of beers? Bully for you. We’ll make a Vertical flight that span...

Growing up outside of Napa Valley, I discovered that the best way to learn what wines you like is to try a bunch of different wines. And almost everyone who starts their journey to becoming a wine lover starts off sweet. The Rieslings, the Gewurtztraminers, the Muscats, and that bastard of the wine family, the Rosés. (I'm not even going to dignify "fruit infused wine beverages" that sta...

I’m becoming a total beer snob, and, frankly, I don’t mind the label. Rather, I embrace it. After drinking – and reviewing – over 160 beers, I think I’ve earned the right to a little snobbery, and I now know exactly what I like and what I don’t with a razor’s honed edge.

However, I’m all about trying new beers. And when I stumbled across an interesting case of ne...

Bespoke (biˈspoʊk) is an English word that means a clothing item made to a buyer's specification (personalised or tailored). While it can be applied to other items, including computer software and luxury cars, the term historically was applied only to men's tailored clothing, footwear and other apparel, implying measurement and fitting. For most non-clothing items, the term build to order is usually used instead. The distinguishing points of bespoke tailoring are t...

It took me a while to embrace the beauty which is the 22-ounce bomber. Frequently a good bit more expensive – the five beers reviewed here would be in the $23+/6-pack range if you calculated by ounce) but there is just something so right about the bomber.

What I’ve grown to love is that the second glass is almost always better. I don’t know if it is the 20 minutes or so that it rests in the fridge while you’re down...

“Good people drink good beer.” – Flying Dog Brewery

You gotta hand it to Flying Dog Brewery…with names like Raging Bitch (Belgian Style IPA), Pearl Necklace (Oyster Stout), Doggie Style (Classic Pale Ale) and Horn Dog (Barley Wine), these folks have a great sense of humor.

But don't let their names fool you; they take brewing seriously and...

Starting a couple of years ago, I started a personal tradition of spending Super Bowl Sunday drinking a variety of high-end brews. The Super Bowl is one of only two sporting events I enjoy watching religiously. In fact, this will be the first football game I watch this year. (It certainly doesn’t hurt that my favorite team – the Niners – is in the Bowl. I mean, I’d watch it either way, but now I’m going to be a lot more vested in the actual game an...

Not all beers are created equal. Some beers are thin, yellow, pissy affairs that are suitable for little more than flavoring the water they’re brewed in. Others are meant to be light and easy, letting you drink all day while lying by a pool or ocean and taking your mind off of a sweltering sun. Others are flavored with fruit and sissified for people who want to drink beer but that don’t really like beer.

Then there are beers ...

If you think I’ve been slack in reviewing beers lately, you’d be wrong. Dead wrong. What I’ve been slack in is *posting* beer reviews lately. I’ve been drinking and reviewing beers just fine, thank you very much. But in looking through my notes, I see that I have over 20 beers already photographed and reviewed and just waiting for their days in the sun!

So, let’s start with four new IPA...

If you know anything about me, it’s that I love IPAs. Big, giant, crazy IBU, hop-filled beers that just light your mouth ablaze with flavor. Nay. Flava.

So whenever I spot a new Double/Imperial that I haven’t tried, I feel compelled to pick it up. You never know when you’re going to stumble on that next Hoppy Grail that is going to put a smile ...

All day on Twitter yesterday I was bombarded with messages and reminders that it was 12/12/12. And until that most unlucky of unlucky days – 13/13/13 – this would be the last time such a date happened in this century. So, what better beer to drink on such a day as an Epic Ale?

And what beer could possibly be more epic than a beer that ha

My brother, Adam, is a triple-threat, perfect storm when it comes to helping-a-brother-out and providing beer. 1) He’s incredibly generous, 2) He loves huge, crazy-hopped IPAs, and 3) He lives just outside the San Francisco Bay Area which is home to some of the greatest microbrewers on the planet, giving him regular access to some of the finest beers on the planet. (How’d you like to just stroll into the store any day and pick up Pliny the Elde...

I’ve been a fan of Marantz products for a while now for two big reasons.

One: The stuff has great sound and build quality and hits that sweet spot between middling receiver performance and the truly insane gear found at the high-end. (I’m looking at you, Meridian, Krell, Lexicon, ADA and Theta!)

Two: Kevin Zarow – VP of sales at D&M (Marantz, Denon and B...