Beer Guru on… Kegerator.com
Halfway through grilling season we start to get bored of the tools on hand and begin looking around for ways to accessorize. Since the grill has what it needs we shift our focus to what goes with the grill - beer. Kegerator.com has a whole gamut of unique and interesting tools for serving beer, not least of which is their namesake Kegerator, a miniature refridgerator with a tap so you can slip a keg in and have draft beer.
We asked Resident Beer Guru Patrick Wardrop to look through Kegerator’s offerings and pick out the three things he puts at the top of his wish list.
1. Beer Tube
I’ve never seen one of these before. What a great new way to serve beer. This tube is 100 ounces and keeps the beer inside cold while it sits on the table waiting to be tapped. It would compliment a poker game nicely as long as you position the flop just right. The Beer Tube would require less trips to the tap during a game, and that helps my ROI. At less than $100 if you catch it on sale it should pay for itself within a couple showdowns at the river.
As a homebrewer, I’m always changing up my kegs and, let’s just say that sometimes, after a few beers, my buddies will ask what beer they’ve been drinking has been and, lo and behold, I can’t remember my own name, let alone what’s in my mug. The chalkboard beer tap handle is a cool way to write and remember what’s coming out the tap right below. This would be nice, makes it easy to switch up a keg too.
3. Beer Volume and Temperature Monitor
At less than $10, it’s novel and cheap as well as one of those accessories one might actually need at some point. When friends are coming over and that keg has been in there for a few weeks it’s easy to forget just how much has been drained. This strip monitors what temperature the beer is inside as well as how much is left. Unless you have see-through kegs, you’ll need this. And usually you’ll need it at exactly the wrong moment.
Beer Guru On… Samuel Adams’ Winter Lager
Winter in Texas is relative. But unlike most of the country, what we consider winter is very nearly over, and that requires a change in our beer consumption. We asked Resident Beer Guru Patrick Wardrop to review one of our favorite winter brews before the season passes and SXSW reminds us, in a flood of free Shiner beer, that Spring has arrived.
Patrick writes of the Samuel Adams’ Winter Lager:
Appearance: Dark reddish amber, good head retention which fades to a thin light head with a little lacing.
Aroma: Slightly sweet with cinnamon or all-spice undertones that produces a very pleasant aroma.
Taste: A slight malty, caramel and cinnamon flavor with a hint of hop bitterness that has a dry smooth finish.
Mouth feel: Medium-High carbonation and medium body that is clean and crisp.
Drinkability: A very drinkable winter brew, it goes great with all kinds of food. I would classify this is as a crowd pleaser most would enjoy.
Serving type: Draft
Conclusion: Overall this a great beer that I would recommend to most, even some non-beer drinkers. It is a very smooth beer that isn’t too heavy for a dark beer (you can drink a few extras and not get full).
Taking Back Valentine’s: Gifts for the Alpha Male
Ladies do not fret. Despite the fact that we have taken back Valentine’s and you are therefor expected to buy US gifts this year, we are here to help. No matter what type of man you are devoted to - Health Lover, Food Lover, Beer Lover, Football Lover, or Fitness Lover, we have the perfect gift suggestions for you from men who exemplify what it means to be a man - whatever they love.
Alpha Male Football Lover
Marc Faletti - Fantasy Football Genius from FootballGuys.com
3. The Jersey
A staple of any football fan, the NFL jersey is the adult equivalent of underoos.
2. The Watch
All Longhorn fans will drool over the finest piece of men’s jewelry ever crafted for them: The Tag Heur Longhorn Watch. It’s simple, it’s elegant, and it’ll make your football lover look classy. For most of us, that’s a rare feat.
Only one team wins the Super Bowl every year. Odds are, your football lover’s team wasn’t that one… and he probably cried like a baby about it. Show him you care by giving him the gift that keeps on giving – a tissue box featuring his favorite team.
Alpha Male Fitness Lover
David Lee Nall - WNBF Professional Body Builder and Certified Personal Trainer
3. Guided Fishing trip with The Saltwater Fishing Cowboy
From their website: “Big fish! Captain Scott (Bullrider) McCune will put you on all sorts of fish, including Marlin, Sailfish, Dorado, Tuna and Wahoo.” In Port Aransas 361-563-TUNA
2. One year range pass at Reds Gun Range
From their website: “The range has ten 100-yard firing points. The moveable targets may be positioned from any distance from 0-100 yards by the shooter.” In Pflugerville 512-251-1022 and in South Austin 512-892-4867
1. Rent a 2008 Lamborghini Gallardo for the weekend
And hey, they are offering the second day free as a Valentine’s Special. In Austin 512-279-RENT
Alpha Male Food Lover
Levi Oliver - Former Tamale Eating World Record Holder
3. Take him to a local food challenge.
Instead of surprising your food lover by challenging him to the Jaun in a Million Don Juan Taco Challenge at brunch on Sunday, like you would an old pro, you would be better off giving him a home-made gift certificate for support in training and the price of the meal if he chooses to take you up on the offer.
This may sound obvious, but a cook book is an excellent gift for a food lover. Don’t race off to Barnes and Noble and just grab anything off the shelf though. The best way to get away with giving an Alpha Male Food Lover a book for Valentine ’s Day is to A) make it yourself, and B) make it thoughtful.
This next gift is actually a bad idea to give directly to your man: cooking classes. On the other hand, signing yourself up for a cooking class is a different thing entirely. If your Food Lover is your household’s head chef, taking an interest in the culinary arts in order to dazzle him with a few things will make him fall over from love-induced seizures.
Alpha Male Beer Lover
Patrick Wardrop - Home Brewing King
Some new bar stools from The Barstool Company at 6403 Burnet Rd. Preferably nice high stools with comfortable leather seats, nothing too fancy. They have a million to choose from and will help you find the perfect spot for your guy’s beer-drinking butt.
From the website “The Brewer’s Dinner at North by Northwest features a menu carefully crafted by Head Chef George Powell. Each dinner includes several courses, all served with our own beers to complement and enhance the meal.”
A nice draft system that holds 1 - 4 kegs. If it has to, it can go in the garage. Austin Homebrew has a few conversion kits for turning that fridge you have in the garage into the envy of your loved one’s poker buddies.
Alpha Male Health Lover
Devon Hornby - Director of the Tao Health Center at 5515 Balcones Dr.
3. Kettlebells
The Russian way to awesome strength and as much muscle as you could ever want. The beastly beauties are like a cannonball with a handle. They are sweeping the country like a storm and every Health Guy on the cutting edge should have a few sitting around the house for quick butt-kicking workouts.
2. Power Mixer
Most of us health guys spend a lot of time making our protein shakes. A nifty little gift for your healthy guy on the go is a power mixer. There portable mixer make getting our protein fix at work or at the gym fast, easy and inexpensive. Maybe throw in some chocolate flavored whey protein powder to keep in the spirit of Valentine’s. (Editor: Max Muscle on Research Blvd. 243-8371 has a Magic Bullet Express that blends drinks in 10 seconds or less.)
1. Class
If you want to send your man to something that has a real payoff then you might want to consider Sifu Fong Ha’s seminar coming up at the end of the month. The practices he teaches are renowned for their calming and rejuvenative effects. In other words it is going to make him a better lover. Now that is a Valentine’s gift…
Taking Back Valentine’s: Gifts for the Alpha Male Beer Lover
Ladies do not fret. Despite the fact that we have taken back Valentine’s and you are therefor expected to buy US gifts this year, we are here to help. No matter what type of man you are devoted to - Health Lover, Music Lover, Food Lover, Beer Lover, Football Lover, or Fitness Lover, we have the perfect gift suggestions for you from men who exemplify what it means to be a man - whatever they love.
Alpha Male Beer Lover Patrick Wardrop is a home brewer with the most kick butt garage freezer-turned-keg chiller with draft we’ve ever come across. We asked how he did it and he had us until he said the word “compression” and we began to pass out. Although that might of been the effects of the homebrew he was serving as well. We asked Patrick for the five gifts he is wishing for this Valentine’s.
A 6-pack of Moosehead, that’s the one in the green box with the picture of the moose on the front. If you can’t find it in your local grocery, make a trip to the Hyde Park Market at 4429 Duval St, home of about 550 different beers (until you buy all of two of them, then they’re home to about 548).
Some new bar stools from The Barstool Company at 6403 Burnet Rd. Preferably nice high stools with comfortable leather seats, nothing too fancy. They have a million to choose from and will help you find the perfect spot for your guy’s beer-drinking butt.
From the website “The Brewer’s Dinner at North by Northwest features a menu carefully crafted by Head Chef George Powell. Each dinner includes several courses, all served with our own beers to complement and enhance the meal.”
A nice draft system that holds 1 - 4 kegs. If it has to, it can go in the garage. Austin Homebrew has a few conversion kits for turning that fridge you have in the garage into the envy of your loved one’s poker buddies.
To have a pint of Guinness inside the St. James’s Gate at the Guinness Brewery in Dublin… it’s the sexiest thing a woman could do for her beer loving man on Valentine’s. Well, it’s Top 5 but you probably wouldn’t do the other 4 so my as well get him this.
