I salute the last vespers of this particular weekend with one of the better beers to be produced recently in New Zealand: YB Pot Kettle Black. Three Boys has made an 'Oyster Stout' which is also surprisingly enjoyable! These two are two of the bests discoveries of the year.
Alright, so this week I had a great time at my new favorite venue:
Hashigo Zake
Currently there has been only one place for good beer in town; and while the selection is good there, the lack of competition has left them a little fat and lazy. So some stirring of the pot is very welcome. Domenic and crew put on a tasting for Baird Beers a Japanese beer which he is clearly enamored with. I attended with some reservations Brian Baird, though after a judicious sampling of nine of their beers, I can say they are damn fine brewers. After two and a half hours and a conference call with owner Brian B himself, I came away impressed. All of them displayed balance and nuance, even my least favorites: Kurofune Porter and Red Rose Amber Ale. Country Girl Kabocha (japanese pumpkin) Ale, Teikoku IPA and Rainy Season Black Ale all were good. Suroga Bay Imperial Ale, Harajuku Taproom Celebration Ale and especially (my two favorites) Rising Sun Pale Ale and Angry Boy Brown Ale were awesome. Stupendous flavour and complexity. Indeed Angry Boy was apparently unoficially modelled on Brian's 'character' (and who's hometown is Cincinnati Ohio--Go Ohio boy!). Not someone who normally cares for brown ales; this is the best I can remember....
Kampai!
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