What are you guys drinking tonight?

Here, here.

My wife's technique is to simply place the vermouth bottle next to the glass for a minute or two, and then put it back in its proper place at the back of the liquor cabinet.

 

One of my favorite quotes regarding the making of a "proper" martini:

According to Noël Coward, "A perfect martini should be made by filling a glass with gin, then waving it in the general direction of Italy"

 

I wonder the connection to Italy?

 

They were some of the first and main producers of vermouth.

Believe it or not, the older recipes called for a much larger ratio of gin:vermouth. The original "perfect" martini was written at a ratio of 1:1, and the Brits liked theirs at 2:1 on the rocks, with a splash of bitters.

I guess I'm a bit of a heathen in that I like my martinis with a splash of vermouth, a splash of olive brine, and some manner of stinky cheese filled olives as a garnish.

 

Yes, I was thinking about gin.

 

So apparently if your out of Guinness, jet black heart ipa is a doable replacement for an Irish car bomb. Considering the number of hipsters in the particular bar we were drinking, I dubbed it the ironic car bomb. Oh yeah, it's my buddies bachelor party. I'm hammered and a couple strippers are much better off financially than they were before I got there. Yup, I fell for the oldest trick in the book. I'm in the hole and the dancing nekid ladies are laughing all the way to the bank. But damn, I do love the chesticles...

 

Hop On Juicy Pale by Abita Brewing in Abita Springs, LA. Mild bready hop smell. Has a mellow melon-grapefruit taste up front, hints of pine and something like a mandarin orange, more pine in the finish but not bitter, very smooth all the way through.

 

Chocolate Milk Stout from 4Hands Brewing in St. Louis, MO. God damn ambrosia this is! Kind of a smokey, chocolate smell. When it first hits the mouth you could swear it is a glass of chocolate milk, creamy smooth with a little sweet. Changes to a more dark chocolate/smokey taste but still creamy smooth all the way down. I'd call this a desert beer, leaves you wanting another one!

 

Claymore Scotch Ale from Great Divide Brewing in Denver. Malty sweet aroma, starts with a smooth caramel flavor then the alcohol shows through, finish reminds me of a good scotch whisky, maybe why they call it scotch ale?

 

Did a number on my thunb with a broadhead yesterday. Drinking a good bit of this tonight.

 

Jameson Caskmates and a little ginger ale over ice

 

Bourbon for me. Knob creek 120 to be specific.

 

Finally got home so I can dip into my Wisconsin Brothers care package Started with a multi hop version of Dare Mighty Things IPA from the Eau Claire Brewing Project DBA The Brewing Projekt. I smell a little citrus, grapefruit came to mind. The flavor, rather flavors are all over the place, every taste I can think of that could be in an IPA seem to be here. None are overbearing, they just flow into each other. Describing it is like catching a greased hog, just when you think you have it it slips away. Hazy with a little sweet and a little bitter. I can't find the ABV rating but after a pint I'm pretty sure it is on the high end.

Thank you Brother

 

How's the stout compared to the standard caskmates?

 

I didn’t know there was a standard Caskmates. I thought there was the stout and the IPA and that’s it. I’ll have to try the standard version when this is finished.

 

Ha, well I kinda feel dumb now. They changed the label and I never realized the stuff I was drinking was stout. Nothing to see here people. Move along.

 

Nobody said Ironworkers were intelligent beings. Go pick up the IPA and let me know how it is n