The Beer Czar on KTAR's Thirsty Thursday with Mike Russell

As I mentioned in this weeks edition of S.L.I.F., I was a guest on the KTAR show "Thirsty Thursday" with Mike Russell. I posted it to my new You Tube page. You can see it here.

Please note the amazing intro graphic!!! My brother in law Mike did that me, as well as our new logo. I can't thank him enough!

Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

S.L.I.F. (Sorry Liver its Friday) Vol. II

Welcome to the second installment of S.L.I.F.!!!! Lots of great stuff in this post! Beer Czar on the radio, craft beer getting a NASCAR, a local pumpkin beer, and more! Check it out!

Pamala, Bruce and Mike of The Bruce St James Show

Thirsty Thursday on KTAR

Mike Russell of the "Bruce St Jame's Show" (you might recall my chat I had with the show's co host, Pamala Hughes) on 92.3 KTAR has started a new weekly segment "Thirsty Thursday" giving weekly tips and advice regarding craft beer. The Beer Czar was the first guest! You can listen to our discussion right here...... And make sure you listen to 'The Bruce St James Show" on KTAR 92.3, Mon-Fri 9 am to Noon! 

Win tickets to San Tan's Oktoberfest!!

San Tan Brewing Co.'s Oktoberfest is next week. You can win tickets to it from The Beer Czar by emailing us at thebeerczar@gmail.com and put the word "tickets" in the subject line. Check out all the info here....

Four Peaks Pumpkin Porter

One of my favorite local seasonal beers is Four Peaks Pumpkin Porter. They were on Fox 10 showing it off, check it out here....

Craft beer gets a NASCAR!!

Oskar Blue's is sponsoring driver Landon Cassill!! Cassill will pilot the No. 4 Oskar Blues Brewery Chevrolet at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Dollar General 300 on Friday, October 11. OK, I might actually watch a NASCAR race for the first time in, well 40 years.....Check out the full story on Beer Pulse here....

Oskar Blues Colorado Flood Relief Fund

Speaking of Oskar Blues, they are raising money to help the victims of the Colorado floods. You can get all the info, and donate at their page here....

The 1st Annual Pumpkin Beer Tasting

1st Annual Pumpkin Beer Tasting with The Masked Blogster!

Last weekend, Masked Blogster and I co-hosted a Pumpkin Beer tasting. I wrote about it beginning of this week (you can read it here). Well, Masked Blogster recorded the event, you can listen to all the fun here!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Until next time

Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

Win tickets to San Tan's Oktoberfest!!!!!

*** Please Note, this contest is now closed***

To see the winners, click here....

*********************************************************************************
Got any plans next weekend? How about a little beer, brats, and live music, for free, on the Beer Czar?

Next weekend, Oct 5, in downtown Chandler, San Tan Brewing Co. is holding their annual Oktoberfest! If you have never been to this, it's a heck of a party! There will be bbq from Montana BBQ, brats from Brat Haus, live music, and of coarse, beer from San Tan!

The party starts at 4, check out the entertainment schedule!

4-7 p.m.                Bad Cactus Brass Band
7-7:45 p.m.           Versions of You
7:45-8:30 p.m.      Good Rust
8:30-9:15 p.m.      80 Proof
9:30 p.m.              The Expendables

Tickets are $10 a person, and are on sale now at San Tan's website (go here....), or you can get discounted tickets at all valley Basha's locations for $8 a piece.

You can get your tickets free! Here's how!
Just email us at thebeerczar@gmail.com and put the word "tickets" in  the subject line, and you will be entered into a drawing to win 2 tickets to this awesome event, on us!
 
For more information on the event, you can check out the event website here.....

I hope to see you there!

Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

Touching new Guinness Ad

One of the reasons I love beer, is for its social properties. I say it a lot, but beer brings people together. Its one of those things that can help us loosen up, give us something in common to talk about, and can connect folks that normally wouldn't connect the opportunity to do so.
Beer, while given all the social stigma's and negative perceptions, still can bring out the best in us, I feel. How many times has someone asked you to help them move, and before you can answer, they follow up the request with "I'll buy the beer!". You know you would help that friend move regardless, but the beer gives us that "excuse" to make it seem like we are going to do something extraordinary in order to get our hands on a few free beers.

Well, I recently came across a new Guinness ad that embraces this aspect of beer, and even takes it a step further. Take a look.....

Now, in the end, is this ad more about beer, or is it more about the good that is in people? I would argue its not about beer at all. Its about the human spirit, men supporting a "brother" and the willingness to be there for someone in need. The beer, is sort of the "excuse", the "if you play ball with me, I'll buy you a round" sort of thing, same as the moving analogy I used above. Macho guys sometimes need an excuse to be supportive of one another Of coarse. they would lend support, and be happy doing it regardless, but always look for a reason to sort of save face. In this case, its an "ok, I'll do it for the beer" excuse. They would play ball anyway, and probably had a great time doing it, but in the end, its the beer bringing them together, giving them that "moment"..

So, regardless of how you feel about Guinness, love it or hate, this ad is awesome, and shows the best in us, the beer just gives them the reason. This ad is right up there with Budweiser's 9-11 tribute commercial that only aired once (check it out here) . What is the most touching beer ad you've seen?

Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

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Guest Contributor - Beer and Sports, a match made in Heaven!

I am happy to present to you our latest guest contributor, Blake. A home brewer from upstate New York, Blake writes about two of his favorite things and how well they go together! Thank you Blake, and enjoy!


Beer and Sports, a match made in Heaven!
Fall is my favorite time of year for many different reasons, but when the leaves start changing and the air gets crisp, there’s one thing that I’m most excited about: sports. With football season kicking off and the MLB playoffs right around the corner, it’s the perfect time to get together with friends and enjoy some good old-fashioned American competition. Going to the game certainly has its perks, but what about bringing the game home, right into your living room?

There are a lot of things you’ll want to take care of before you get everyone together to watch the game, but the number one necessity for your party is beer. Besides being a great time of year for sports fans, fall also brings the release of some unique seasonal brews, so you’ll have plenty of choices when it comes to stocking up for the party. You can’t go wrong with a nice, malty Märzen to ring in the start of the new season. This is a good “entry-level” option for guests that might be intimidated by trying new beers, but will satisfy craft beer veterans as well. Another style that tends to be a crowd-pleaser during this time of year is pumpkin beer and you could stock your entire party with the choices available within that category alone!

Another great way to pick out beer for the event is to choose something that’s tied to the team/city/state that you support. So, if you’re rooting for the Patriots or Red Sox, embrace the spirit of Boston by picking up some Sam Adams and your guests will immediately get into the Boston groove. If you’re hoping that the Pirates will make a deep playoff run or that the Steelers will get back to their winning ways, shows your Pittsburgh pride by picking up some Iron City Beer. When getting your place ready for all of this beer, look for useful but festive accessories, like growlers, pint glasses or even some MLB baseball bat bottle openers. You’ll keep the theme of the day going, while giving your guests the right tools to enjoy their brews.

 At this point you’ve got the beer situation pretty much under control, but you can’t leave your guests’  stomachs empty. Baseball and football games are usually synonymous with eating greasy stadium food and abandoning any and all health-consciousness for the duration of the game. You can bring this tradition into your own home, by taking typical ballpark eats and making them more party appropriate.

Everyone’s favorite first course at the stadium is nachos, and there’s no reason why your guests can’t enjoy this too. Give your nachos a beer-infused twist by making some Beer Queso to put on top. You should be able to find a decent variety of tortilla chip options at your local grocery store, so grab some colors that show your team pride and drizzle on the cheese!

 Craving something else to go with those nachos? Take the all-time favorite ballpark franks and give them your own unique twist. Cut up some hotdogs, wrap them in cheese and biscuit dough, and after a few minutes in the oven you’ll have your very own pigs in a blanket. You can go with traditional dipping sauces like ketchup and mustard, but why not make some extra Beer Queso and serve that alongside the dogs as well? After all, if you’re going to do some damage to your cholesterol level, you might as well make it worth it.

In case anyone needs a pick-me-up after halftime or once the 7th inning stretch rolls around, you might want to have something a little sweeter on hand. At one of my recent get-togethers my wife was nice enough to make us some cake pops, and got creative by shaping them into footballs. I left the baking to her and don’t have the play-by-play details for this one, but I found a great step-by-step guide that shows how you can easily make some football-shaped treats of your own.


Hopefully these tips will give you some inspiration if you’re planning on having a sports-related party in the near future. Just remember that you can have a great time while keeping it simple and most importantly of all: don’t forget the beer!

Blake Daniels

Blake Daniels is a stay-at-home dad from Upstate NY that likes to keep things simple. You'll most likely find him brewing and enjoying beer, mowing his lawn or spending quality time with his family (but not necessarily in that order).








Thank you so much Blake, good stuff! Please help me in welcoming Blake to the Beer Czar. We hope to hear a lot more from Blake very soon, on a  regular basis!

Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

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1st Annual Pumpkin Beer Tasting

The Beer Czar pumpkin keg!

This passed weekend, I had the pleasure of co-hosting a pumpkin beer tasting with my good friend Masked Blogster! The event was even recorded by the Masked Blogsters podcast, Maskerpiece Theatre, Hear what people thought about each beer, and some witty banter between Liger and Masked Blogster. You can listen to the podcast here... I even jumped on the mic from time to time to give some insight, and ad what I could to what was going on.
The event was small, friendly and laid back. We tasting a total of 7 pumpkin beers, blindly. Then the participants ranked each of the beers, and at the end of the night, we tallied up the scores to come up with a list "top pumpkin beers" to recommend to you all!

Masked Blogster 

We had a panel of six tasters, grading the beer on a scale of 1 to 5, in the areas of  appearance, aroma, taste, mouthfeel, and overall. They gave each area a grade of 1 being the worst, 5 being the best, and added up the scores for each beer. We later entered those scores into a spread sheet, which averaged up the scores, and ranked them in order of highest to lowest scores, giving us a 1st through 7th place.

Bobby and Mrs Blogster getting started

So without further ado, I will go over the list of beers we tried, in the order we tried them, along with a few notes about each one that the attendee's had to say, then I will give you the rank in which each beer fell. Just a quick note, if you want to read more about the beers flavors, I provided a link to the Beeradvocate reviews for each beer, just clink the link on the beer name, and it will take you to those reviews. OK, here we go...

Daniell giving her thoughts one of the beers

1. Shipyard Pumpkinhead, Portland Maine. Pumpkin Ale, 4.7% abv. For the first beer of the evening, was described as "light in color, but smooth", "nice aroma", "subtle pumpkin-iness" "sweet" and "too sweet" , and even a "love it"!

2. Wasatch Pumpkin Seasonal Ale, Wasatch Brewing/Utah Brewers Collaborative 4% abv. Terms ranging from  "more cinnamon and spice then pumpkin", "overall, quite good", "weird taste", "subtle pumpkin, enjoyable spiceyness" all the way to "blah, not a fan at all".


3. Pumpkick, New Belgium Brewing, Fort Collins, CO, 6.0% abv. Seemed to be a popular beer at the time of the tasting, people stating "pleasant finish" and "it leaves a great after taste", and some less enthusiastic "better then #2" and "not my favorite".

4. Fall Hornin', Anderson Valley Brewing Company, Booneville, CA 6.0% abv. This was the only beer we tried in a can, and it seemed to go over well. Heard things like "a little bitter", "more like a red ale", "really good finish", "smells awesome" and even a "loved it, favorite so far!".

5. Small Batch Pumpkin Harvest Ale, Tommyknocker Brewing Company, Idaho Springs CO, 5% abv. "Smells of caramel and chocolate", "looks good, smells great...", "..getting a lot of coffee in this one", and some "light on flavor" and even a "watery taste" and "thin mouthfeel"

Mrs Czar, not impressed!

6. Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin, Pugsley's Signature Series, Shipyard Brewing, Portland ME, 9% abv. This one had the widest range of comments by far. Seems the group either just loved this beer, and just absolutely hated it. Most terms were either "awful", "yuck" "horrible flavor" to "wow, best so far" to a "this is awesome!". This one it seems you'll have to try for yourself to figure it out! (note, it was one of my favorites of the evening as well)

MB and Liger giving the play by play

7. Peaceful Pumpkin, Mudshark Brewing Company, Lake Havasu City, Arizona 5.2% abv, Our only local Arizona beer of the evening. Not sure if it was tasting fatigue, or the late hour, but reaction to this one was a little muted, and not very enthusiastic, but it wasn't bad either. Had a hard time gauging this one at the time of the tasting.


After the tastings was wrapped up, I tallied up the votes, and here are the results, in the order they scored, and the scores they received.

The line up!

Beer Name                                      Score

1. New Belgium Pumpkick,              16.33

2. Mudshark Peaceful Pumpkin        15.83

3. Anderson Valley's Fall Hornin'      15.5

4. Shipyard's Pumpkinhead               14.33

5. Wasatch Pumpkin Seasonal          14.00

6. Tommyknocker Small Batch         13.67

7. Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin          12.37

The group!

All in all, I think it was a pretty successful event, and we had a ton of fun! The event was recorded by the Masked Blogsters podcast, I will post a link to the podcast here as soon as it is posted! Hear what people thought about each beer, and some witty banter between Liger and Masked Blogster. I even jumped on the mic from time to time to give some insight, and ad what I could to what was going on.

Look forward to more tastings to come from the Masked Blogster and I. I am thinking maybe  "The First Annual Ugly sweater and Christmas beer tasting"??? Has a nice ring to it....

If you have an idea for a tasting, or would like to host a tasting, please contact us at thebeerczar@gmail.com and we will make those arrangements!

For a complete look at all the photos of this event, check out The Beer Czar on Facebook here, and like us while you are there!!!    (link to photo album)


Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

The best beer in the world, is the one in your hand....

This is something I've been saying for a long time now. Like many a newbie beer geek, I started getting excited about limited release beers, or beers that were hot on the top of Ratebeer, or Beeradvocate's top lists. It got to the pointwith me, and many others where you get so obsessed with these hard to find, rare gems that you ignore or forget about the wonderful beer being brewed just a few miles, or in some lucky cases, just blocks from your home. Beer geekery can be a lot of fun. However, I found, it can also be frustrating, exhausting, and VERY expensive. If I hear about a beer I want to try, I will go to one, maybe two places to find it, if its not there, I stop. I am not about to waste time, gas and money driving all over the valley for an IPA I may never have again, or worse yet, may not even like in the first place. This has always been my frustration with the "beer geek". I don't dwell on it, I will mention it from time to time but never really spent much time on, and sort of forgot about doing a full write up on it.

However, this passed week, Andy Ingram of our beloved local brewery Four Peaks in Tempe, wrote up a piece in the local "paper" about much this same topic, however, he wrapped it up a lot better, and far more eloquent then I could, or did.  So I wanted to share his thoughts with you here....

The most important beer? Is the one you like.....

So there you have it, thank you Andy, very well said! I couldn't say it any better. Reminds me of a conversation I had with Masked Blogster on his podcast a few weeks ago. Judge brewery's by their flagships, not by the beer that has been sitting in a barrel, in the cellar for that last 4 years. Judge them on the beer the make the most of, not the least. And most importantly, don't spend so much time and energy on looking for hard to find, rare gems, that you forget about the gem you have in your hand already! Don't get me wrong, getting your hands on these rare beers can be fun, and more often then not, they are very good. I just think its important to find that balance between the two.

Until next time

Bottoms up my friends!

The Beer Czar

Guest Contributor - "Ghost Stories" with Becky....

We have another guest contributor this morning! This time, it is a none beer related post, but still extremely interesting none the less (to me at least, and I hope to you too), which is why I asked my good friend Becky, a friend from my college days in NH, to write up a quick piece to post on the blog. Becky is part of a paranormal investigation team in Massachusetts.
Again, this is none beer related, but doesn't mean you can't enjoy a beer while reading it. So, I recommend, either sit by a fire, or imagine yourself sitting around a glowing campfire, enjoying a few beers, and trading scary stories, seems like a logical combination to me! So, without further ado, here is what Becky has to say..


"Ghost Stories" with Becky....

Ahhhhh Fall, my favorite time of the year. I invite you to grab a Sam Adam's Octoberfest with me or your favorite Fall beer and enjoy this spooky time of year with tales from a Ghost Hunter.
I bet you're wondering what Beer and ghost hunting have in common? Why is there a “blog” about the paranormal on a blog devoted to beer?
The answer is simple... Nothing! Just like beer has no connection really with a hard day at work, sporting events or other social gatherings. It is simply used to help the body relax and unwind, or for some people, provide that false courage used to face the unknown.

So, as I've alluded to, I am a paranormal investigator from Massachusetts. I do not use beer to help with courage but I have used it to help unwind after a particularly eventful night. My goal as an investigator is to rule out all the “known” possibilities so that I am left with the unexplainable. One needs a clear head to do that. If there is evidence I am left questioning, I toss it out. I have had several of these “unexplainable” experiences I'd like to share with you.

I am currently with a team whose home base is on board a Navy cruiser just outside of Boston proper. Though it had never been in combat it has seen its share of suffering through its commission as a hospital ship. Now, for those of you who watch the paranormal shows, they neatly tie everything into an hour or less “highlight” reel. When we do investigations they span over a good 6+ hours. Most of our time is spent talking to air in the dark hoping for that 60 seconds of possible contact. This doesn't include the time it takes to go over the evidence which can be 3 times or longer than the actual investigation.

Last weekend I was aboard the ship with 4 other team members and 2 guests. We were down near the anchor windlass room doing an EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) session. As we were introducing ourselves and asking if anyone was around we heard giggles and voices that sounded like young children answering questions with yes or no. All 6 of us heard these voices with our own ears. Thinking there had to be other people outside, (the hatch was open and a commuter boat docks next to the ship) so we went to look. The commuter boat was no where to be seen and there wasn't anyone else around. Who were we talking to? We did a quick review of our voice recorder and heard a very loud and clear EVP of a man saying “NO” We are still going over the evidence so who knows what else we may hear...
Later that same evening, one team member saw a man standing on the flag bridge in Navy dress whites. When we went to find out who he was, he vanished. There were no men in uniform on board and we never did find him. Who was he and what was he doing?

Another area of the ship was used as a “burn unit” for people who were severely burned and the best care they could provide was basically pain management. The bunks are stacked 3 high with just enough room for care givers to walk between them. So, you can imagine the lack of room and privacy for these poor people. Many others on the team have seen an apparition of a man who was burnt upon most of his body. A strong smell of sulfur and burning flesh is usually present when this individual appears. We were informed that he had been seen just last week laying on the third bunk. Upon entering, there was an incredible heaviness to the air no real scent. I introduced myself and the team, and acknowledged how the victims must have suffered. I asked how they were doing, and in a pain filled, male voice I heard the sarcastic reply “how do you think we are doing?” My heart going out to them, I asked what they were getting for the pain. His response “morphine”. That was it. Could it have been my emotions for what I was feeling for the injured? My knowledge is that morphine was used during that time? Yup, I won't deny it but the voice, the voice was not mine.... You can decide.


One thing I love about the paranormal is that there are no “experts” Each experience is as unique as the situation and people you may be contacting. Stay tuned for other experiences I have had throughout the month of October. Until our next encounter...
Bottoms Up!


My thanks to Becky! What I love about the paranormal is that, weather you believe it or not, it is fascinating. You can't "disprove" anything, and its hard to prove anything as well. You can just take what evidence is collected, and draw your own conclusions, and have faith that what you believe is correct. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope to hear more from Becky soon, especially as Halloween approaches!
(note- none of the photos are from Becky, or her team, they simply stock photos from the internet)

If you are interested, and want to learn more about Becky, or her team, drop me a line at thebeerczar@gmail.com and I will get you whatever information I can.

Thanks again Beck, well done!

Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

S.L.I.F.!!! (Sorry Liver, it's Friday!)

Happy Friday to you all! We've made it through yet another week, and for that, congrats, you deserve a

beer, you should probably get yourself one, right now!

I didn't have anything real pressing or interesting to share with you that warranted a single post of its own, but I did have a number of useful tidbits and info I wanted to share, so I figured I would just wrap them all up in a pretty, single package, and share them all with you at once. I might even make this a regular Friday thing, or at least semi regular, we shall see.

Who wants a great Taco, and a good time???
A reminder, tomorrow, Saturday the 14th, don't miss the Rockin Taco Street Festival at El Palacio in Chandler (on Gilbert and the 202). Just note, the contest noted in that post is now closed.

Are you a fan of white chocolate?

Good news for lovers of Sonoran Brewing Company's White Chocolate Ale. This wonderful, unique Arizona favorite is now available in 6 packs!! So look for it at your favorite beer store any day now!

Almost pumpkin beer season!
I know its hard here in Arizona to be thinking of fall beers and pumpkin ales already when its still in the 100's, but its that time of year again (in fact, I've been seeing fall beers in stores for weeks now). As is normally the case, I get a lot of folks asking me this time of year for my recommendations for good pumpkin beers. Well, we will be doing a pumpkin beer tasting coming up very soon ( the 1st Annual Pumpkin Beer Tasting featuring The Masked Blogster will be coming up!! Details to come!), but in the mean time, here is a pretty solid list of some great pumpkin beers.....Top 10 Pumpkin Beers. The list is a very solid one, I will disagree with just one on the list. My apologies to all my Maine faithful, but I think Pumpkinhead by Shipyard is a below average pumpkin beer at best. Buffalo Bills is a better option in my opinion. Aside from that, 9 solid beers!

Seriously brilliant!

Must have Tailgating gadgets for the beer lover!
As is always the case, the fine folks at Keg Works have come up with another great list. This one, is ""10 Tools for Tailgating" and, well, there is some great stuff on the list! My favorite, and its so friggin brilliant in its simplicity, is the "Go Plate"! Seriously, how many problems does this one simple innovation solve? Just awesome!








We want you!!!
Do you have a favorite brewery/brew pub? A favorite beer you want everyone to know about? Do you have a fun or interesting story to tell folks about a trip to a brewery, or having a great beer after a long hike? We want you to share it with us! We are looking for guest contributors to The Beer Czar! You can write about anything you want, as long as it is just somewhat beer related. Funny, serious, informative, it can be any, or all of those things. If you are interested, please drop me a line at thebeerczar@gmail.com with some details, and we will get you posted here on The Beer Czar! We would love to have you! Check out a few of our past guest contributors!

A Look at Colorado - contributed by an old family friend, Jon
A Short Tour of Washington Brewery's - contributed from my good friend Daniell
Touring Sam Adams - contributed by my good friend (and Daniell's husband) Bobby

So please, if you have some fun beer stories or whatever, please, share them! (if you can include photos, that would be great, but if you don't have any, not a problem)


That's about all for this first edition of "SLIF", hope to bring you more in the future!

Have a safe and happy weekend everyone
Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

Rockin’ Taco Street Fest, and the Beer Czar wants to give you two tickets!

OK, disclaimer first thing, I know this isn't totally beer related, but let me say this. El Palacio is very
supportive of local breweries, and as far as Mexican restaurants go (they aren't always known for their tap selection) you won't find a better beer selection at one then you will find at El Palacio. You've read my write up's on their amazing beer dinners after all. Besides, they are a great bunch of folks over there, serve amazing food,  and I wanted to do what I could to spread a little love their way.

OK, that being said, this weekend, they are having a street taco festival! You've heard me say it before, but I'll say it again, if there is one thing I love almost as much as I love beer, its a taco, and the ones at El Palacio are as good as they come!

The festivities start this Saturday at 4 pm. There will be food, margaritas, beer, games, contests (mustache contest, and taco eating contest), a kid zone with pinatas, you name it.

The best part, there will be a raffle, and the grand prize, a trip to Ensenada Mexico!! The trip is for two to Ensenada will be given away to one lucky raffle ticket holder. Each $5 admission ticket automatically receives one raffle ticket; additional tickets will be available for $5 each or 2 for $8 the day of the event. Also, all participants in the taco eating and mustache contest will get FREE admission to the Rockin’ Taco Street Fest.





Oh, did I mention, live entertainment....I didn't? Well, there is live entertainment that includes performances
by Ballet Folklorico Quetzalli-AZ, DJ Hanzerelli and the Latino Rebel Band:

Here is the schedule.....

4-4:45 p.m.    Ballet Folklorico
5-5:15 p.m.    Taco Eating Contest, $100 cash prize
5:15-6 p.m.    Ballet Folklorico
6-6:15 p.m.    Mustache Contest, $100 cash prize
6:15-7:45 pm  DJ Hanzerelli
7:45-7:55 pm. Ensenada Raffle, do not have to be   present to win
8-10 p.m.        Latino Rebel Band

The famous Papas and Beer, in Ensenada!

As started above, admission is just $5 a person, but we want to help you with that. Email me at thebeerczar@gmail.com, in the subject line put "contest" and you will be entered to win a drawing for 2 tickets (remember, that also enters you in the raffle for the trip to Ensenada too don't forget!)

Good luck!
Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar


You can read the entire press release here....

Cooking With Beer: Chipotle Beer Cheese Dip

Well, the 2013 NFL Season is officially underway, and that means a few things are certain, Tom Brady will have another MVP caliber season, and many of us out there will be drinking a lot of beer, and washing it down with a lot of mostly very unhealthy food, in the form of chips, dip, wings, burgers brats, you name it.
So, I thought I would share with you one of my favorite things to eat while watching my beloved Patriots on Sunday, cheese dip! I love cheese almost as much as I love beer, and this recipe combines the two, and even better, it even adds a little chipotle to make it that much more enjoyable, and give it a little kick! So turn on the big screen, ice down the beer, and make yourself an awesome beer and cheese dip to impress your friends, check it out!

CHIPOTLE BEER CHEESE DIP:

8 oz cream cheese
1 cup + ¼ cup mozzarella, shredded
1 cup + ¼ cup sharp cheddar shredded
2-3 chipotle chilies in adobo, chopped
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp onion powder
¾ cup IPA beer (or pale ale)
2 Tbsp cornstarch
½ cup cilantro, chopped (plus additional for garnish, if desired)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350.

Fill'er up!

In a blender or food processor add the cream cheese, 1 cup shredded mozzarella, 1 cup cheddar, chipotle chilies, garlic powder, onion powder, beer, and corn starch.

Process until very smooth, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the cilantro, pulse a few times to combine.

Add to an oven safe dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

Garnish with cilantro if desired, serve warm with chips.


There you have it, just the smell alone of this is worth the minimal effort it takes to make it, one bit of it, and yeah, you'll want to make it every Sunday (and maybe even Monday Night!)

Until next time, GO PATRIOTS
and bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

Win an 8 day rafting trip through the Grand Canyon! Also, is it too early for pumpkin beer?? NO!

Grand Canyon brewing is doing it again, giving away a rafting trip down the might Colorado River, through the majestic Grand Canyon. Along with Grand Canyon Expeditions, Grand Canyon Brewing is going to offer 28 VERY lucky winners a trip of a lift time. 8 days, through 277 miles of some of the most amazing scenery mother earth has to offer! Its free to enter, and its so easy to do so, what do you need to do?

Fill out entry form at www.freerivertrip.com

Text “Rivertrip” to 82257

Fill out tear pad entry form at participating retail locations

Scan QR code on coasters at participating locations

Contest open September 1, 2013-July 1, 2014.

So, get your beer drinking/thrill seekin self to enter this contest. Seriously, this is a once in a life time trip, and costs nothing to enter. You have till July 1, 2014 to complete your entries. 

You can read all the details in the press release here....

Pumpkin Springs, Grand Canyon

One more tid bit from Grand Canyon Brewing, now available at fine beer retailers here in Arizona, and I am assuming Vegas  is their Pumpkin Springs Porter. Named after am amazing geologic feature located within the Grand Canyon, "Pumpkin Springs is a huge pumpkin shaped pond along the Colorado River, overflowing with merky hot springs water stained orange from trace minerals and arsenic".

I really like this pumpkin beer. I am not a fan of

the overly sweet pumpkin beers. Pumpkin beers can be broken up into two categories for me. Beers that taste like they have a ton of pumpkin pie filling in them, and those that taste like actual pumpkin. I am a fan of the latter. I don't really like the overly sweet pumpkin beers, I like them more understated and subtle  This was is somewhat sweet, but not overly so. Its smooth, and easy drinking. Aside from the pumpkin flavors, there is a caramel sweetness, and some fall spiciness that I just love in pumpkin beers. Although it was 110 the day I drank this beer, it made me anxious for cooler weather and family gathered around a table full of far more food then we could ever eat! Do yourself a favor, go grad a bottle or two of this fine, fall brew. Its never too early to enjoy a bit of autumn!

Until next time

Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar

Cooking with Beer "Beer Can Chicken"

As a lot of you know by now, I like to post beer recipes on here from time to time. Being as tomorrow is Labor Day, and many of us will be grilling, I wanted to post a recipe using beer and the backyard grill. Well, one recipe that comes up more then just about any when it comes to cooking with beer, is beer can chicken. I've had a lot of folks ask me about my "favorite" beer can recipe, or how i do it. OK, so here goes.....

The easier way

There are two ways you can do this. The easy way, and the even easier way. For the even easier way. You can just buy the pre-made beer can chicken rub (I think the one by Weber is the best). Or, for the slightly more difficult, but still very easy way, you can make your own rub with little more then a well stocked spice rack. Here is the recipe I use....

2 tablespoons smoked paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder

Just mix all that together in a bowl, and there you have it, just that easy. Now to prep the chicken.... but first, preheat your grill to medium/high heat.

Start with a whole chicken. Rub down the entire bird, inside and out with either vegetable or olive oil.

Now, coat the entire bird with the rub (the one you either made, or bought) including the inside cavity.

Take a 12 oz can of beer of your choosing. *hint- even if the beer you want to use doesn't come in a can, just empty a can of beer that does, and use that* I like to use a nice, flavorful light (in color) beer. Like a Triple, or Belgian White Ale, but really, any lighter beer will work just fine. Make sure the can of beer is only about 3/4 full, then place the chicken over the can in the center of your grill, so that it sets nicely without falling over. Cover the entire chicken. My grill is pretty small, and the cover won't close with the bird standing up, so I just us a large piece of aluminum foil to cover it, or just close the lid if it fits. Cook the bird for about an hour an a half, or until the internal temp reads over 165 degrees. Once that temp is reach, where you have it, a very simple, very delicious, very affordable way to grill a whole chicken!! Just a note, you can also do this recipe in your oven as well, just as easy.

Enjoy!

If you have a favorite beer recipe, and would like to share it, please send us a copy of the recipe (and any photos you have of the preparation, or completed recipe) to us at thebeerczar@gmail.com, we would love to share it!

Have a safe and enjoyable weekend, have fun, and be responsible!

Until next time
Bottoms up my friends

The Beer Czar