HopHeadSaid Food Pairing Blog

Beer Pairing Advent Calendar

11/30/2013

One of my favorite childhood holiday memories that still holds my attention as an adult is advent calendars. One of the most simple reward systems ever created!

"Hey kid, I'm gonna give you box full of little molded chocolates and you can open one door each day until Christmas. Now don't bug me about Christmas for 25 days, you got it?" -- Yeah, right.

Well, versions of that bribery worked for me for about a week and a half until my wife started buying them for me again after we got married. I have had some really great ones over the years but my favorite was a Lego themed one. When I was done I had a little town complete with Santa.

Starting tomorrow, I will be offering up my own advent calendar. A beer pairing a day until Christmas. These pairings will be holiday themed, of course, and will be paired with holiday movies or TV shows, Christmas songs or treats

In the meantime here are a two advent calendars for your young or young at heart.

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Beer Enthusiast Gifts

11/23/2013

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Each year I recycle this list just to help our significant others find the perfect gift for us. The gifts range in price from a six pack to a full blown kegerator so I know you will find something in your price range.

If you have any suggestions to add to this, please let me know in the comments below.

Beer Certificates

Beer Certificates: Go to your LOCAL (not big box franchise super mart) beer store and purchase a gift certificate. If they don’t offer gift certificates buy a beer and make your own gift certificate label at home and wrap that and a wad of cash around the bottle.

Beer Books

Seriously, we beer geeks are students of beer and we will read just about anything as long is it is about beer. My suggestion is "The Oxford Companion to Beer" but really any other beer history/style/making book will work.

Beer Bouquets

Beer Bouquet: Yes there are the usual Budmiloors type of beers but don’t give up just yet. You can get a personalized team NFL bouquet with Magic Hat, Boulevard, Deschutes or Brooklyn! Now that is a beerquet!

Kegerator

One of the ultimate gifts for any beer enthusiast. There is nothing better than being able to walk over to a tap handle and pouring yourself a beer. Oh, and the buddies or girlfriends will think it is pretty awesome, too.

The link to the left will take you to some pretty fancy and completed kegerators. They will also cost some real $$ so I suggest you find a refrigerator on Craigslist and buy the tap parts here or at a local homebrew shop.

Beer Glasses

Does your beer enthusiast have everything? How about a boot? How about a thistle? If not, then this is the place to find some of the more unique beer glass styles.

Beer Clubs

CraftBeerClub.com-The Finest Beers!-125x125 banner

A great gift to broaden any enthusiast's horizons. The link to the left will take you to the Beer of the Month Club but I suggest you find out if recipient's favorite brewery offers any kind of club first. Many do and the clubs/memberships often offer special perks or discounts.

Beer Gear

The link to the left will take you to my beer gear store, a shameless self-promotion to say the least. If you do an internet search for beer gear you will find many other options that will clothe, bathe, feed or entertain that special beer geek in your life.

Cheers!
ct.

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Homebrewer Gift Guide

11/22/2013

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If you are having a hard time finding the perfect gift for the homebrewer in your life then your day just got a whole lot better. Below, you'll find a list of gift ideas ranging from $0 to well over $5000! Most of the items below are linked to Morebeer.com (one of my favorite online homebrew shops) but if you can get these at your local homebrew shop then do that instead. Now, without any further commentary from me here is a list from least expensive to most expensive.

Support $0: This is the best gift you can give to your homebrewer and it is by far the most valuable gift on this list.

Brewing books $10-$15: Before you purchase any book make sure you check out the “brewing library” first. We hombrewers love our books and you don’t want to get him/her a duplicate. I would suggest Brewing Better Beer (picture to the left) for any homebrewer, newbie or experienced.

Large capacity scale $14.95: This is for the all grain brewers and sure beats using the bathroom scale trying to read the weight that is covered by the bucket. If yo can find scale that goes up to 15 or 20 pounds, even better!

Temp controllers. Either one of these will work just fine, in fact, I have both of them. I use the analog controller ($58.95) for my kegerator because holding my finished beer doesn't require an exact temperature. I use the digital controller ($99.95) to regulate my fermentation temp which does require more exacting control. The digital controller is also a multi-purpose unit that can be set to turn on a refrigerator/freezer as well as set to turn on a heater.

High temp pump $149: This will keep your beloved homebrewer from lifting large amounts of scalding liquid above his/her head! This one is a must if you are brewing batches larger than 5 gallons.

Kegerator setup $299: this is a great starter set-up. The tank will come empty but you can get it refilled at just about any welding supply store. There is a cheaper version (a one tap set-up) but you can bet that your homebrewer will be upgrading the number of taps as soon as the first one comes in so you might as well start with two!

Refrigerator or Chest Freezer $50 to $200: Depends on were and how old the refrigeration unit is. You can find these things on Craigslist and they are usually pretty cheap. Buyer beware, though. Both of these can be used as fermentation chambers by controlling fermenting temps or converted to kegerators.

All grain upgrade $289.95: A great way to get your homebrewer out of the house on brew days. The larger batch size means the wort (pre-beer liquid) will be so large that he/she will have to use an dedicated burner. Here is the best part, that burner can only be used outside!

Conical Fermenter $1895: The baddest of the bad ass fermentors with temp control features to help keep your fermenting wort at just that right temp. I know this is quite a jump in price but this fermenter doesn't need an external fermentation chamber. This means you will save $$ on the extra refrigerator/freezer and temp controller.

Brewsculpture $6,300: The baddest of the bad ass homebrew systems and the one that makes all homebrewers drool. I have had the pleasure of working with one of these systems before and take it from me, it ROCKS! There are other less expensive versions but if you can afford one of those, whats another $1000?

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Micro Touch One

11/13/2013

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Every once in a while, I have the opportunity to review something other than beer. Today, I am writing a review of the Micro Touch One razor.

Bottom Line: I like the razor and I will continue to use it.

Before I get to the pros and cons of this razor I think you should know a little bit about my shaving habits. I don't shave often and when I do I use a razor to trim up the edges around my "5 O'clock" but I don't usually do a full facial shave. Instead I use a beard trimmer to knock back the stubble every couple of days. So keep that in mind as I continue.

Why you should buy this:
1. This is a sturdy little razor. It has the heft of quality stainless steel and the operating parts (the butterfly closing mechanism) are quite smooth.
2. The razor comes with a sturdy case to keep your razor from rolling around in a drawer or your suit case if you are traveling.
3. The small size is perfect for traveling.
4. The blade replacements will last a long time. My first blade lasted almost a month (reference my shaving habits).
5. The butterfly closing mechanism opens easily to rinse the blade off after each shave.
6. The razor holds the heat (from the hot water) and has a soothing, smooth feel as it runs across your face.
7. I can't see why this wouldn't work if the ladies want to use it on their underarms or legs.

Considerations:

1. Learning Curve #1: This was my first single blade razor experience. If you haven't used one before make sure you follow the directions on the package. I "kinda" followed the directions and ended up with a pretty good nics and a nasty razor rash after my first use.
2. Learning Curve #2: The blade of this razor sits in a different place than the disposable I am used to using. After a few uses I could better judge where to place the blade to trim my sideburns, etc.

Maybe this razor isn't for you if:
1. You need to shave in tight corners. The blade placement that makes it difficult for me to reach the whiskers directly under my nose. A place I don't often shave (reference my shaving habits).
2. You need to shave around prominent bones. The blade placement also makes it difficult to shave my neckline (in between my collar bones and just below my Adam's apple).
3. You have large hands. I have medium sized hands and the razor requires a pinching type of grip. See the Pawn Stars picture above.

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Wolf Creek Brewery - Giveaway

11/13/2013

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I am kicking off this partnership with a BANG! I will be giving away a $50 gift certificate to one lucky reader.

How to enter: Tell me what your favorite Wolf Creek beer OR food OR beer pairing is (but don't over think it like I tend to do) in the comments below and you'll be entered to win.

At noon on November 15th, I will randomly pick the winner from all those who comment. Good Luck!

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Wolf Creek Partnership

11/7/2013

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I am really excited to announce a new partnership with Wolf Creek Brewery.

Every other month I will be visiting Wolf Creek with a group of other beer geeks and foodies and we will be exploring the different beer and food pairing options available. After each one of these visits I will write a feature article about the beer pairing possibilities. The most exciting part of this partnership for you will the gift certificate giveaways! Each month I will be giving away $100 in gift certificates so you can explore our pairings or create your own!

The first giveaway will be happening soon!

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Stout Day 2013 - Tasty Options

11/7/2013

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Are you ready for Stout Day 2013? I certainly am. In fact I am so ready, I inadvertently celebrated it today. But that doesn't upset me in the least, it just means there's another day of stout drinking for me.

If you're not a stout fan my list below will change your mind. I've broken them up into two categories: In Bottles and On Nitro, for your convenience. Some of these stouts taste great out of the bottle while others are just plain amazing with the soft touch of nitro.

In Bottles

1. Yeti (any version, also my favorite) Great Divide Brewing Co. 2 The Czar, Avery
3 Extra Export, De Dolle
4. Velvet Merlin, Firestone Walker
5. KBS (Kentucky Bourbon Stout), Founder's
6. Speedway Stout, Alesmith
7. Milk Stout, Lefthand
8. Worthy Adversary, Fulton

On Nitro

1. Old Rasputen, North Coast (my favorite)
2. Murphy's Irish Stout
3. Guinness
4. Double Chocolate Stout, Youngs

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Beer Pairing Advent Calendar

Beer Enthusiast Gifts

Beer Certificates

Beer Books

Beer Bouquets

Kegerator

Beer Glasses

Beer Clubs

Beer Gear

Homebrewer Gift Guide

Micro Touch One

Wolf Creek Brewery - Giveaway

Wolf Creek Partnership

Stout Day 2013 - Tasty Options

In Bottles

On Nitro

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