Pipkin Brewing Company - Pipkin Blonde Ale

Pipkin Blonde is brewed with a combination of Two Row Pale and Wheat malts. Paul uses Northern Brewer hops up front for their spicy flavor contributions and German Hallertauer hops at the end of the boil for their aromatic characteristics. The beer is modeled after the German Helles style. Look for a slightly spicy hop nose and a pale maltiness evident in the nose. Note a somewhat sweet pale malt character dominating this well-balanced, deep golden, filtered ale. Pipkin Blonde ends clean and crisp. Overall, a refreshing, clean session beer.

Pipkin Blonde Chili

As fall is firmly in place and we rapidly approach winter and the fact that it’s dark when we drive to and from the office, we’re in heavy denial here at Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club and fully intend to gather around Barbecue well into November and December. Hell, we live in American Baby... Where mass consumption of Beer, Burgers and Chili is the order of the day at any Red-blooded BBQ! On that note, here’s a list of food. When you mix it all up and cook it, it tastes real good. Be sure and save a beer or two from your shipment to cool your engine.

2 lbs kidney beans
2 ½ lbs hamburger
1 onion
1 green pepper
1 TBS salt
1/3 cup sugar
6 cloves garlic
3 TBS chili powder
1 ½ TBS dry mustard
24 oz. Pipkin Blonde Ale
12 oz. tomato paste

Soak beans in water 12 hours and then simmer over medium heat until tender. Lightly brown beef and caramelize onion in same pan. Discard fat (or donate it to your local McDonald French fry cooker). Combine sugar, garlic, chili powder and mustard with 12 ounces of brew and simmer for 15 min. Add tomato paste to beans and combine with all of that other stuff we just had you do. Simmer for 2 hours adding remaining 12 ounces of beer during the last 10 minutes. Roll up your sleeves, fill a big bowl with the stuff and maybe schlapp a sizable dollop-o-sour cream smack dab in the middle of it all.

Source: Great American Beer Cookbook, Candy Schermerhorn, Brewers Publications, Boulder, CO.

THE ALE STREET NEWS - Can a brewski a day help your kidney stones at bay? A study of nearly 30,000 male smokers says it’s true. A recent research project in Finland indicated that drinking a brew per day reduced the risk of the formation of kidney stones in men. How much? A whopping 40 percent! The researchers tested other beverages in the trial. But beer alone significantly reduced the incidence of kidney stones. The July 15 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology reports that the healthful effects could be the result of the water and alcoholic content of beer. I’m thinkin’ TWO beers a day and I never have to worry about kidney stones again!

THE CELEBRATOR BEER NEWS - You don’t have to attend medical school to become a doktor. Each year, thousands of people throughout the country receive Beer Doktor awards at Oktoberfest celebrations in such places as Frankenmeuth, Michigan; Kitchener, Ontario; and Munich, Germany. A Beer Doktor Award is presented to anyone who can drink a "humpen" (23.5) of beer without taking their lips from the glass. Although the title of Doktor is indeed prestigious, the compensation is not nearly as rewarding as the real deal!

ALL ABOUT BEER - To publicize the opening of a nightclub in Hamburg, Germany, a public relations firm came up with a promotional idea right off the top of their heads. They invited all of the city’s barbers to a special party. Within a month the new club was booming. The talkative barbers, as expected, had told all their customers about the evening. And everyone was especially well-groomed after the event.

BEER: THE MAGAZINE - Billy Carter, the late brother of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, had a beer named after him. In recognition of the "Billy Beer" honor, he said, "For me the beer thing was a natural, ‘cause I know a good beer better than anybody. Who knows? Maybe I’ll become the Colonel Sanders of beer." Following Billy’s death in 1988, an ad appeared in a New York newspaper, advertising six-packs of Billy Beer for the incredible sum of $9,000 each! Ever try the stuff? Nasty. Figures I tossed my beer can collection in ‘82.

MIDWEST BEER NOTES - The owner of a Fort Lauderdale laundromat took the drudgery out of doing the wash by selling beer and wine. He added another twist when the "suds" were flowing, a topless dancer. The Helpy-Selfy Laundromat didn’t have a cover charge but the cost of draft beer went up 35 cents a glass while the show was on. Local men were later found to have increased the number of times of doing their wash from once a month to twice a day.

Dear Murl,

I recently traveled China and although I never made it to the dried insect market that Commander McBrew described in your last newsletter, I was able to try a few Chinese brews and was wondering what you think of Chinese beer.

Jim Flayes

Laguna Beach, CA

Yo Jimbo or should it be Yojimbo,

Before I answer your question, I was wondering if you might be able to tell me, my fine human friend, exactly what the difference between Beer Nuts and Deer Nuts is? "Don’t know", you say. "Not a clue", you say. Well, Beer Nuts are $1.75 and Deer Nuts are under a Buck. Get it? Deer … Nuts …Buck … Sorry. I’ve been trying to tie that one in with a question for months and recently concluded, "Hey homedog, who’s damn column is this anyway?"

Beers produced in China are well-crafted, German-style lagers. Though not tremendously interesting and generally unpronounceable, they will complement a plate of Mu Shu Pork or Kung Pao Chicken nicely. If, however, you happen to be a canine and are trying to culturally blend, attempting the use of chop sticks with paws, I recommend something a little more potent, like a good Barely Wine or Imperial Stout. Chow-mein baby!

Woof!

Murl.