I met Michael Bane

[CDR]

Depends on what kind of beer it was...Worsham, in response to your email question...since 1999, I've lightened up a little on beer, spending a bit less time with porters and stouts and a bitd more with lighter brews.

For just drinking beer with a meal, it's hard to beat Anchor Steam, and Anchor Steam owner Fritz Maytag is a hoot.

As a category, I like alts, but the only real bottled alt is Alaskan Amber, which can ususally only be found on the West Coast here and there. I like a good Pils, but they are darn hard to find...American microbrewers tend to either steer away from them or over-hop 'em. I have to say the best Pils I have ever had was fresh beer in the Czech Republic...those guys are on top of it! Gordon Biersch's Pils is pretty good and more available. If I'm at a Biersch microbrewery, though, I'll usually opt for the marzen, unless their maibock is available. Maibock rocks...it's a pale-colored hoppy lager with an extremely high alcohol content (Mike Dillon and I once had a fascinating conversation about maibock, BTW). There's bottled versions around, but the only one I'd recommend is Dead Guy Ale from Rogue, which doesn't have quite the alcohol % of some versions.

In terms of a good summer beer you should try, check out Grand Teton's Bitch Creek ESB...it's a multiple gold medal winner and we usually keep a six-pack of it in the house. For my money, the best bitter is Rogue's Brutal Bitter, but it is damned expensive...like $10 a six-pack.

India Pale Ales are a good summer choice, but WAY overdone by American microbrewers (who tend to be addicted to hops). My favorite is Stone I.P.A., the only drawback is the alcohol content's a bit high. My Sweetie really likes Redhook's Long-Hammer IPA, although I preferred their Ballard Bitter, which was really somewhere between a bitter and an IPA and seems to have gone the way of the Great Auk...strangely, I never particularly cared for Redhook's ESB...not "B" enough!

Michael B

So no Rheingold then.......

[texcaliber]

I have to say if you have yet to try "WACHUSETT Country Ale"  you are missing out. And you have to mug it. Also as far as the summer ale, I have yet to come close to the Wachusett Summer. But i may be a little bias. When Michael comes North for the "Survive a Weekend with Michael Bane..." he might have, JUST HAVE TO, take a tour of the Wachusett CO. and see what i am bragging about. Make sure if yall do i go, we will meet all the Cool guys. Way too much knowledge about beer.

Tex

[DonWorsham]

try "WACHUSETT Country Ale" 

If I'm the lucky winner, I think I'll try the Wachusett Octoberfest (avail 9/1 - mid Nov). Heck, why not try them all...

[texcaliber]

If I'm the lucky winner, I think I'll try the Wachusett Octoberfest (avail 9/1 - mid Nov). Heck, why not try them all...

good point man

[texcaliber]

ONLY WARNING:

                       Them "WACHUSETT" boys will have ya 2stepping out the door man. So make sure Michael has a driver for yall........um?........I mean us! Yup thats it. 

Tex

[Sponsor]

[gunman42782]

Mike, try St. Pauli Girl, dark.  Best beer I ever tried.

[Tim Burke]

"Oh my god! You're just like those other crazies. You've got an earring, and you're crazy!"

I've read Over the Edge, the earring wasn't going to convince me one way or another.

There's bottled versions around, but the only one I'd recommend is Dead Guy Ale from Rogue,

Good to know. Dead Guy Ale has been my preferred brew for a couple of years, but I was thinking of trying some other maibock.

[Walter45Auto]

Well, I am taller than I am in person! Wait...is that right?

Earrings, tats, heck, I was just a writer who specialized in risky business and as a consequence moved in some farily odd crowds...television was an accident. The earrings did help when i was running the NSSF Media Education Program — liberals are surprisingly easy to lull in to complacency if they think you're "one of them." The last Christmas party i had here in Planet Boulder, a "liberal activist defense attorney" came...he said that even though I was a "gun guy," he liked me because I wasn;t like "those other whackos with an ammunition factory in the basement." My Sweetie said, on cue, "have you ever actually seen our basement?" and took him down...he came back with big eyes. "Oh my god! You're just like those other crazies. You've got an earring, and you're crazy!"

Well, there you are!

Heck, I'm the luckiest guy in the world! I got an email today from a company wondering if I had enough ARs. Of course, the answer was, "Like, no." I'm going to Idaho to shoot the new .408 military sniper round at 2000 yards. I'm thinking of going to Europe for a while to hang around arms factories and get some Czech pilsner. I send SHOOTING GALLERY t-shirts to Iraq and count the heads of the top contracting companies as personal friends. I've handled John Browning's guns and the guns Clint Eastwood carried in "Josey Wales;" at the request of Col. Jeff Cooper shot up the last bx of 20 super-hot Norma 10mms out of Bren Ten seriel number 001; spent time in cheesey bars listening to war stories I can't repeat. I have no job security, lousy health insurance, a collection of custom 1911s that also includes my father's Remington Rand. I've helped design guns, blown up two, midwifed three shooting sports and engineered enough money for USA SHooting to help get the Olympic team to Athens for the last Summer Games.I get to go to Knob Creek and shoot all the guns. LUCKY! I owe it all to you guys, who put up with a LOT!

Seriously, thank you!

Michael B

Tell me you AT LEAST have an earring shape like a 1911, or maybe a GLOCK.......

I wore a belt buckle shaped like a derringer to church one night and one of the elderly ladies freak a little bit.

"Why are you carrying a gun?"
"It's just a belt buckle. Doesn't even have any moving parts." (This was Before I got my CHL. Imagine if she knew I now carry a REAL gun everywhere I go.)

[texcaliber]

a lady made a stink because i printed one Sunday. So she talked to the Pastor.......after quoting the Bible and Jesus a few times about arming yourself, old bitty says"but He wasnt talking about guns". Pastor looked at me and waved me over and asked,"why didnt Jesus say anything about guns?". Well looking like a Jack-O-Lantern i said "cuz Paster, The Almighty had yet to bring us John Moses Browning".  Everyone except "bitty" laughed hard. Then the pastor asked what he should do? "You shouldnt let guns in here!" says she. 
Pastor: "Does that mean you want me to take off my Glock while i preach?"
She just turned around and walked away with her mouth wide open. Needless to say I get a few more smiles than I did before. Go figure.

tex

[Walter45Auto]

I LOVE THAT ANSWER! Your pastor is CERTAINLY OK BY ME!

Our pastor carries too, but I think he leaves his in his car during church. There's one other guy that I know of (We took our CHL class together) who carries at church all the time. But I'm certain there's more that carry in chrch at least sometimes. There's a few that know I carry, but they're all people that I know are ok with it.