Beer - A Celebration of Fine Brews and Mixes

Here are two surprising brew facts: Oktoberfest in Germany takes place in September. Second, the largest selling Octoberfest brew in the world is not German but is in fact one of my favorites: The American-produced Samuel Adams Octoberfest (well, so they claim). Yes, I've got beer on my mind!

When my budget allows, here's a list of the finest beers and beer mixers that have ever graced my palette. I throw in some descriptions from BeerKnurd.com, home of the Flying Saucer chain, my favorite happy hour spot in Memphis, Tennessee.

Guinness Draft- Guinness has to be served just at the right temperature but when it is, it's near perfection! This is my favorite pub beer.
Description: "Most popular stout beer in the world. This black beer has a soft and creamy texture with a tang of hop bitterness in the finish. It is medium to light body with coffee and roasted flavors."

Stone's Ruination IPA - I can't stand most IPA (India Pale Ale) but Stone Brewery's Ruination is brilliant. I cannot define the bite it holds. My brother-in-law nearly choked on this brew.
Description: "Bracingly Bitter! Thick pungent hop aroma, pours a deep copper color with a very thick head. Notes of citrus rind, grapefruit and intense piney hop flavor. 100+ IBU's."

Samual Adams Boston Lager - Sam Adams constantly presents a steady stream of fine drinking beers, and as much as I love their seasonals like Winter Ale, Octoberfest and Summer Ale, the Boston Lager is consistently my favorite drinking beer around the house.

Monty Python Holy Grail Ale - Not only is it excellent to see a licensed beer from England of one of the greatest films ever made, it actually tastes really good. It should, as it claims to be tempered over burning witches!

Stone's Arrogant Bastard Ale - Another great beer from Stone Brewery. The tagline for this beer is 'You're Not Worthy". I know of only a few people that can drink this in it's entirety without finding it excessive and bitter. It's a truly amazing sensation to drink.
Description: "This dark ale is well hopped with a nice floral aroma and an intensely bitter palate. It is very full-bodied with complex malt and hop flavors. The finish lingers with noticeable bitterness."

If none of the above beers are to your liking, there's also several mixed beer drinks that taste great while engaging in happy hour! Most of these are Guinness based.

Black and Tan - Bass Ale and Guinness layered, this is a smooth standard readily available at many pubs. Very similar and possibly even smoother is Half and Half which is also Guinness based but layered with Harp lager this time.

Black Velvet is Guinness topped with a hard cider. It can be switched up to a Blue Velvet, which is the same thing but topped one more layer with a port wine. If either of those sound just a bit too heavy, a lighter route is the Snake Bite, which is a pale lager with cider.

I just discovered a recipe for one called Dark Side of the Moon: It's Blue Moon (a wheat based beer) layered with Guinness Stout! I have yet to try it but it sounds intriguing!

Last but not least, and all the credit goes to my uncle and his friends for telling about this recipe they came up with for something they call the Irish Bastard. It is Stone's Arrogant Bastard Ale mixed with Guinness. They haven't told me the percentage to mix though. It sounds brutal. It looks like I have a winter project to try out!