In case you haven’t heard, I have an arch-nemesis, Steve Heimoff. Now, I didn’t always have Steve Heimoff as an arch-nemesis. Way back when, when I was coming up through the bush leagues, a scrappy fellow by the name of Tom Merle called me out, and thus a rivalry was born. Then, at some point, I got a girlfriend, replaced the ’73 alfa with a sparkling new Passat, grew a mustache, and felt I was ready to move on to a real arch-nemesis, the aforementioned Mr. Heimoff. Now, for some people it is difficult to move on from these types of situations, and apparently Tommy Boy thinks we are still arch-nemeses, but alas we are not. I’m a sporting fellow though, and I’ll indulge the water-balloon-esque comment bombs on the Wine Mutineer OWC Page. Continue Reading »

Oregon brewery Full Sail has released its Brewmaster Reserve Series, Slipknot Imperial IPA, and will be available from January to the middle of March. “As the name implies, every aspect of this American style IPA is amplified – from the up-front hop aroma and bitterness to the big malt body,” said Full Sail’s Brewmaster, John Harris. Continue Reading »

ESPN Columnist Rick Reilly posted his thoughts on the sport of beer pong, fine beverage’s proving ground for throwing ping pong balls into plastic cups of beer. Beer pong players are the real deal,

“You have never seen such large people throw such tiny objects into such small receptacles with such hair-raising frequency. The best teams hit about 70% of their shots on the eight-foot tables. That’s like pitching a quarter into a parking meter slot seven times out of 10. - Rick Reilly

Here is a link to the full story on ESPN.com.

Two of my favorite things in the world that I thought would never meet are, fine beverage and carbon fiber. Why I love a good beverage, perhaps a beer, is obvious; it’s delicious, the beer culture is relaxing, the artistry within the brewing process, and well there is always the buzz. I love carbon fiber because it’s stronger than steel, lighter than aluminum, and most importantly, they make race cars out of it. Well, now the dream has finally come true, carbon fiber coasters with a stainless steel stand are available from Carbon Fiber Direct. This item is probably only for the fanatic as the price is a steep $149.99, they are still very cool.

Forget the ice luge at the local bar, go for the real deal and check out the world’s first permanent ice bar in Stockholm – ABSOLUT ICEBAR. ABSOLUT Vodka, whose home country is Sweden, teamed up with ICEHOTEL to create the ultimate bar experience. Not only are the drinks served in glasses made of ice the interior of the bar is all sculpted ice from the Torne River in the Swedish Lapland. That’s right the entire bar is ice, kept at a chilling 23 degrees Fahrenheit.

There are four other locations around the world for your frigid entertainment: Jukkasjärvi, London, Tokyo, and Copenhagen.

Here is a cool bar cabinet with a top that slides out to reveal a built in stainless steal ice bucket. The interior has adjustable shelves to hold bottles, bar tools, and glassware. Also comes with a leaf to provide 81 inches of bar space for larger parties. Available from the Pottery Barn.

Unlike Visa, military ID is not accepted everywhere I want to be. Case in point, in California I want to be in a bar and apparently California doesn’t recognize military ID as a valid proof of ones’ age to be served alcohol. This is a bit odd to me being that not only does military ID include a picture of you and your birthday, it also includes your social security number, a crazy blacked out picture of your face on the back, various scanable barcodes, Matrix Reloaded type holograms, oh and did I mention the computer chip in it? Big Brother’s watching! Continue Reading »

George, the 20 pound 140 year old crustacean was given a second chance at life when PETA, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, fought for his life and spared him from eventually meeting the steamer at City Crab and Seafood at Park Avenue in New York. Also saved was some poor guy (or obviously not poor guy) spending $540 on a 20 lb lobster at $27 per pound. Continue Reading »