Things to drink in Western Canada

I know, I promised to get this posted a while ago.  But life intrudes, ya know?

While in the Vancouver/ Whistler area a little over a week ago, I had a chance to try several beers and wines that are worth sharing and recommending.

Just not this.  Never this.

 I'm going to start off with an apology for the photography.  Using an iPod with the horrible light in a hotel room is never a good mix for quality pictures.

As a start on beverages, I'll start with a nice wine.  Prospect Winery 'Rock Wren' 2010 Pinot Noir.

A very nice Pinot.  Medium body, slight earthiness, forward fruits, and just the right amount of acid.  It was a really good pinot, and I would buy this if they carried it locally.

Sticking with wine, this was another good find:

Quail's Gate 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon.  A big cab with dark fruit flavors, and a hint of vanilla and wood.  This would be excellent paired up against a steak or venison.

Now, on to beer.

When ordering beer with some of the locals at restaurants or at events, a lot of them were drinking something that I pronounced as 'Cocaine', and was quickly corrected should be 'Co-ka-nee'

This was one of those 'cognative dissonance' moments.  Working with and being friends with Canadians, I have always had the good natured ribbing about American beers being watery weak stuff.  This beer was indistinguishable from Coors Light.   Weak, watery, and is probably in every Canadian college student's dorm fridge. 

On the complete opposite side of the spectrum:

Ahhhh... flavor

Propeller Revolution Russian Imperial Stout.  Very forward roasted malt and caramel flavors, with a nice hops bite and a clean finish with a hint of nuttiness.  Very nice and drinkable.  Another one that I wish I could get locally.

And sticking with the Dark Side:

Russel Brewing Rick August Russian Imperial Stout.  This was really, really good.  Poured a dark black with a thin lacey head, and has a strong molasses and rum scent.  The scent carried into the taste with forward flavors of rum, molasses, cocoa, and licorice.  Undertones of coffee, hops and a sweet finish.  This would be a great afterdinner drink by a fire.  I wish I had brought back a case of this beer.

If you are in the area, I hope this helps with some good beverage selections from some guy in central Texas.

Political Statement FAIL

I have seen this going around the internet a bit, and I am just stunned by teh stupids:

The stupid... it BURNS!

Her benefits were denied by a federal agency under Obama's administration.  Somehow this is Romney's fault.

However, Romney is in favor of two women marrying... one man.

A Must-Read

Go read this excellent post by LawDog on the spreading weirdness of California

Folks, if eight of your cities are among the "Most Miserable" places to live in the United States, that there is what we finely-trained law-enforcement types call "A Clue".

That is some win, right there.

I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing model airplane glue.

...or, to be out of the country.

Well, sorta out of the country.  A little too far north where they have funny money with pictures of kids playing hockey on it.

Seriously.

So, while I'm pretty much out of connection, we have the blogospere light up with all sorts of things I don't have the time or bandwith to respond to.

There was the atrocity in Colorado.  My heart goes out to the victims and families.  I cannot understand the mind of someone that would perpetrate such an act. 

Then the inevitable blood-dancing from the usual D-bags and political types (but I repeat myself).  So far, The Miller has the best response to the head D-Bag

There was the caught on tape attempted robbery of an internet cafe (they still have those?) and the critical failure of the victim selection process that was in the news as well.  As MI2Tall said "PePaw went and got him some."

Also on the CHL/CCW front, there was the attempted robbery of a pizza delivery guy by two shotgun-armed 'yutes.'  Pizza guy, with a concealable handgun, goes muzzle-to-muzzle with the bad guys.  Hits both of them, and comes away unscathed.  Never give in, never surrender.

I'll have some beer and wine reviews posted soon.  I was too far north to have any gun or knife related stuff to talk about- except how naked you feel in the middle of bear filled forests with nothing but harsh words to deal with any threats.

Bad beer Friday

Sorry for the lack of posts. Been out on travel.

Here is a suggestion: don't drink this beer. It's not good

>

Targets!

A deal a few days ago from gearhog.com. Cool little reactive targets.

The targets came from http://www.targetsfromus.com   They have all sorts of designs, and some cool, inexpensive targets.  Check them out.

Hawkward

Watched this guy through the spotting scope for about half an hour.  He just say there looking around before he was chased off by bluejays. 

BTW, if you have ever wondered if you could take an iPhone pic through a spotting scope... yes.  You can.  It's just REALLY frustrating.

Crappy Holster = Dangerous

Everyone on the GunBlogosphere has heard about, read, or commented on this story:

Woman killed after off-duty Detroit officer's gun goes off

There is one line in that story that everyone that carries needs to read and take to heart:

Police say this 16 year veteran officer had the Smith and Wesson M&P .40 caliber handgun in a soft neoprene holster.  It was on his waist when it somehow accidentally fired.

"It is possible still for the trigger to be manipulated with that type of holster," said Godbee.

USE  A QUALITY  HOLSTER. 

Carry Rules:

1.  Don't use a $10 "one-size-fits-none" nylon or neoprene holster.  
2.  Use a quality, purpose built belt.    
3.  Leave the gun in the holster and don't touch it unless it is an emergency
4.  Carry a quality gun.

 Follow these rules, and concealed carry will be more comfortable, more concealed, and SAFER.

Dog problem

Darn thing has been listening to dubstep and taking ex.

BBQ Brisket

You might have noticed a couple of pictures of a brisket over the last couple of days.  This was a last minute decision to have brisket on the 4th, so I did not have much time to plan.

I got a 9.5 lb brisket from Costco, rubbed it with kosher salt, onion and garlic powders, fresh cracked black pepper, and some smoked paprika.  I put it into the Bradley Smoker and gave it 4 hours of Mesquite smoke at about 200 degrees. 

While smoking, I would open the door every once in a while and spritz it with a  50/50 mix of Worcestershire and apple juice. 


After 4 hours, I moved it to a foil pan, added a small bit of the spritz mix to the pan.  I covered it with foil and stuck it in the oven at 195 degrees, and went to bed. 

The next morning, I pulled the foil off and drained off the extra liquid in the pan (and reserved it).  Then I upped the temp on the oven to 220 degrees and gave it 2-3 more hours of heat to 'set' the bark on the outside. 

While the brisket was finishing up, I put the liquid that I had reserved into a sauce pan and set it to boil, after skimming off the fat.  When it reduced by half, I added some black pepper, the remains of a bottle of commercial BBQ sauce, a little garlic and some apple cider vinegar.  This cooked together and became one of the best sauce I have ever had. 


When the meat was falling apart tender, I wrapped it in foil then in a towel, and put it in a cooler for transport.  This "FTC" step seems to be critical for a brisket according to several online sources.  I don't know if it is- but it worked for keeping it warm for the 2 hours until dinner. 

I think I have cracked the brisket code.  I need to replicate this 2-3 more times and make sure I have it down pat.  What's the next occasion?  This week is "National Farrier's Week."  Is brisket traditional for that?

Done!

Almost there!

Smokin!

Alton Brown is part of the Gun Culture!

Check out these tweets!


Alton Brown is one of the reasons I am as good of a cook as I am now.  12 years ago, I pretty much cooked large chunks of meat on the grill... and that was it.  After I met That Wife, and she introduced me to a wider range of cooking, I started watching Food Network.  Specifically, I started watching every episode of Good Eats that I could.  Alton Brown spoke to my inner Hardware Geek/ MacGyver wannabe, and showed all the science behind cooking.  Now I have proof that he is a gun guy (there were suspicions... He's from Georgia, sometimes featured very cool tactical knives on his show, etc...).  Very cool.

h/t to Bitter at Shall Not be Questioned