Good Beers, Bad Beats - Winter 2011-12 Edition

Beer Review Double Feature: Boulder Beer's Flashback & Great Divide's Nomad

2012-01-23T21:21:00.001-05:00

Greetings.

Time to do an update since I have been dragging my feet, so here is a double feature review! I will be reviewing Boulder Beer's Flashback and Great Divide's Nomad.

Let's begin, shall we?

I will start with Boulder Beer's Flashback Brown-IPA Ale. Previously this was known as their "anniversary ale", but I guess they have decided to do something new for their anniversary and they are re-branding this beer as a brown ale/IPA.

This was a 12 ounce bottle that I acquired from Total Wine & More in Huntersville, NC. The brown beer bottle is marked in yellow ink "best by 24 Nov 2011". Oops. I hope this doesn't affect the beer taste.

The beer pours a cloudy brown color with a super thin head. Aroma is hops with light malt and nutty aroma. The taste is all IPA hops with no trace of the brown ale and the aftertaste is all hops as well.

Very easy to drink but it seems to me that this beer is better when fresher. I cannot give this high marks until I get a fresh beer. I rate this beer a 3.4 out of 5.

Okay, beer two: Great Divide's Nomad Pilsner.

This was a 12 ounce bottle that I acquired from Total Wine & More in Huntersville, NC. The beer label is marked "bottled on 12/12/11", so I know this beer is fresh.

This beer pours a golden color with virtually no head. Aroma is corn and wheat, a little grassy. Taste is all corn and hops with a mild hops aftertaste and a small amount of bitterness.

This was a typical pilsner that had been given a little bit of extra care. I rate this beer a 2.7 out of 5.

And just like that, my double feature is complete. I will return with a rating of Saranac's White IPA and maybe one more, if I'm feeling 'frisky'.

Thanks for reading.

At Long Last: Anderson Valley Winter Solstice

2012-01-18T00:18:00.001-05:00

Greetings.

At long last, I am finally posting my review of Anderson Valley's Winter Solstice. I've been 'sitting' on this review for over a week now, really no excuses to be made.

So, let's start with the review and then I will move along to the NEXT six beers I will be reviewing.

"12 ounce single bottle from Total Wine in Huntersville, NC.

This beer pours a cloudy copper color with a thin tan head. Aroma is light with malt, spices and some sweet notes are present.

Taste is honey, malt, spices and a lingering sweetness. Lingering malt aftertaste is present. A very refreshing beer. I rated this beer a 3.9 out of a possible 5 mugs. Disagree? Say so in the comments area. I know you're out there reading (at least when I make posts on time you are).

Now then, on to my next SIX beers to review and rate. They are (in no particular order to rate):

Magic Hat Circus Boy (a re-rating for me)

Boulder Beer Flashback

Great Divide Nomad

Magic Hat Howl

Saranac White IPA (brand new!)

and Clown Shoes Clementine White Ale.

I'll be back tomorrow with a new beer review. Thanks for being patient and see you then!!

First Post for 2012...Two Weeks Late.

2012-01-14T23:53:00.002-05:00

Yeah. That's me, a slacker.

I've had a few beer reviews to post to the site, and I just have not gotten around to it.

Totally my fault.

So, I will be posting all of my overdue beer reviews tomorrow (Sunday).

I have not played any poker lately, so nothing new to report there. I have dabbled a little on Carbon Poker with play money, but that's it. Donkeys galore on that site.

Tomorrow morning: I finally post my review for this great beer (Spoiler!) Anderson Valley's Winter Solstice Seasonal Ale:

See y'all tomorrow!

Overdue Beer Review #2: Samuel Adams Black & Brew

2011-12-28T23:54:00.002-05:00

Greetings again.

I'm back after a short break to taste and review the second of my overdue beer reviews: Samuel Adams Black and Brew.

This was also included in Samuel Adams' Winter Classics 12 pack.

Review: 12 ounce single bottle from the Samuel Adams Winter Classics 12 pack. The beer pours a nice coffee brown color with a thin, dark tan head. Aroma is all coffee, it reminds me of when you empty the coffee grinds out of a coffee pot.

Taste is all coffee as well, nothing but coffee. Aftertaste is all coffee as well.

The beer is decent, but it is hard to separate the beer from the overwhelming coffee taste and aroma that goes with it. There is no noticeable taste of the malt, hops or any other flavors. The coffee is overpowering.

I rate this beer at 3.4 out of 5 stars. It is decent, and I do like it, but there is room for improvement.

Tomorrow's review will be one of my remaining brews for the holiday season, Anderson Valley's Winter Solstice Seasonal Ale.

Don't forget to scroll down to see review #1 for Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock, it was AWESOME.

Thanks for reading, I'll see you tomorrow!!

Overdue Beer Review #1: Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock

2011-12-28T23:17:00.001-05:00

Greetings.

Yes, this beer review is one day late. It's totally my fault; I got lazy and never got around to posting the review.

Nonetheless, this first one of two was worth waiting for. I present to you my review for Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock.

Previously, this beer was only available as a large stand along bottle that you would pay somewhere in the neighborhood of $10-15 for. This beer is now available in Samuel Adams Winter Classics 12 packs (while supplies last).

My review: this was a 12 ounce single bottle from a Samuel Adams Winter Classics pack, bought in Huntersville, NC while I was looking for some holiday spirit.

Pours a dark ruby brown color with a deep dark tan head. Aroma is very light cocoa.

Taste is a rich light chocolate flavor with a lingering cocoa flavor and the sweetness is delightful. I am truly amazed by this beer.

Kudos to Samuel Adams for this beer!! I rated this beer a 4.6 out of a possible 5 stars.

Overdue Beer review #2 is to be posted next, for Samuel Adams Black & Brew.

Thanks for reading overdue review #1.

I'll be right back!

Double Beer Review Tomorrow

2011-12-26T23:05:00.001-05:00

Seasons Greetings.

Just got back from my long Christmas weekend, and I am pooped.

So, to catch up the blog, I will post a double review tomorrow. That's right, two beers reviewed tomorrow.

The plan is to review two Samuel Adams beers that I have not had before: Chocolate Bock and Black and Brew.

Good times.

See y'all tomorrow!

Beer Review: Anchor Brewing's Our Special Ale (2011 Version)

2011-12-22T23:52:00.002-05:00

Greetings.

Today's beer review is for Anchor Brewing Company's annual Christmas Ale, which they call "Our Special Ale".

Each year that they brew it, they make subtle changes to the spices that are used in this ale, but the basis for the brew remains the same. This year's version beckons, so let's rate it.

The beer pours a dark ruby brown color with a lingering tan head. Aroma is all spices, I believe this year they are using cloves, nutmeg and maybe a little cinnamon.

The taste is overwhelmed by the spices. In fact, this beer tastes a little like a clove cigarette. I am utterly disappointed with this beer this year. In year's past this beer has been awesome, whereas this year's version is an insult.

I'm halfway tempted to send my review to Anchor to voice my displeasure with this year's version.

I am not a beer expert, but I AM a beer snob. In my opinion, there is NEVER a time to use cloves in beer. It's like putting turds in a punchbowl, you ruin it for everyone.

In conclusion, I rate this year's version of the beer only 2 out of 5 stars. What a disappointment.

With the holiday weekend fast approaching, I will not be posting a beer review tomorrow since I will be on the road. I will attempt to post a beer review on Saturday when I have access to a computer.

Thanks for reading and I will see you again soon!

Beer Review: Sweetwater Festive Ale

2011-12-21T23:23:00.002-05:00

Greetings.

I am back with the long awaited beer review for Sweetwater Festive Ale.

To start, I was immediately taken back with the color of this beer. It seems to be a dark ruby red more than a brown color. Very little tan head, if any.

The aroma is all spices with some rich malt notes thrown in there for effect.

The taste is very heavy. It is spices, a nutty flavor and then the malt kicks in on the end.

I noticed that the aftertaste is a little bitter with a lingering coffee or cocoa flavor to it.

The alcohol content is high, but you cannot put your finger on it from this beer. It is nonexistent.

I liked this beer, but it is one of those beers that you really have to be in the mood for if you are going to drink more than one of them.

I rate this beer a 3.6 out of 5. Disagree? Say so in the comments field below.

Tomorrow I will rate this year's version of Anchor Brewing's Our Special Ale.

It's a pity that RateBeer.com has decided to stop giving this beer its own year rating, because this beer goes through subtle changes each and every year.

Thanks for reading, see you tomorrow!

Beer Review: Harpoon Grateful Harvest Cranberry Ale

2011-12-20T22:38:00.003-05:00

Greetings.

Today's beer review is Harpoon Grateful Harvest Cranberry Ale.

I obtained this beer as a single 12 ounce bottle from Total Wine & More as part of a mix your own six-pack. Truly one of the best ideas ever.

The beer itself starts out impressive: it pours a nice dark amber/copper color with a little bit of a tan head.

Aroma is surprising. I was expecting to get a lot of cranberry nose in this beer, but it was all rather muted, just a little bit of malt and the cranberry seems non existent.

Taste is fruity with some malt notes and then a little bit of cranberry sneaks in on the end of it. Aftertaste is from the malt lingering on your taste buds.

Overall, this is a nice beer, but I am a little disappointed it. I thought this beer would be refreshing, instead it was just another fruit beer with nothing that makes it stand out from the rest. I rate this beer a 3.0 out of a possible 5. Disagree? Say so in the comments.

Tomorrow's beer: the long overdue review of Sweetwater Festive Ale. I attempted to acquire this last year, but struck out. I finally have it, and I'll post the review for it here tomorrow.

Thanks for reading. Cheers!

Beer Review: Newcastle Winter IPA

2011-12-19T23:54:00.001-05:00

Greetings.

I thought I'd start off my beer reviews with the one beer that brought me back to this blog: Newcastle Winter IPA.

You see, I went into the local Harris Teeter after a gym workout, and saw that they had this beer in a six-pack. I was immediately interested due to my previous personal love for Newcastle Brown Ale (that is, until I discovered the joy that are IPA's).

Add to the mix that I had previously seen this only in 12-packs, so it became a no brainer.

After having one or two at home, I became curious to see if they had done a fall/autumn version of a Newcastle brew.

Boy, did I miss out!

Newcastle Werewolf. Wow.

I never saw this beer in the local grocery store; had I seen it, I would have snapped it up in a heartbeat.

So, after drinking my six pack of Winter IPA over a couple of days, I decided that this past weekend I would hit the local Total Wine & More to see if they may have a single bottle of this lurking around the shelves. I knew it was a long shot, considering that it was at least 6 weeks after Halloween, and that's usually the time that all of the fall/autumn/Oktoberfest beers are yanked off the shelves.

So, as I thought, I did not find the Newcastle Werewolf I was looking for, but I did find this, which I thought was a neat idea for a Thanksgiving beer:

Harpoon Grateful Harvest Cranberry Ale.

I will do a full review of this beer (with pictures of course) when I do the sampling. It'll be either tomorrow or Wednesday evening depending on my 'schedule'.

Okay, now back to the original beer to review: Newcastle Winter IPA.

It was a decent beer. It was a milder IPA than the ones I have seen/tasted before, but it had enough flavor to keep your attention without running you off from the overpowering alcohol that normally accompanies IPA. I rated it 2.9 out of 5 on Rate Beer.

I would suggest trying it as a single if you can get your hands on it.

Thanks for reading, I'll be back tomorrow with another beer review!

An Actual Poker Post

2011-12-18T12:50:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

Two posts in a little over 12 hours after taking 6+ months off. How about that?

I decided to take a tour of a website that 'claims' to be available to the USA: Carbon Poker.

Your first clue that there might be something amiss is that the website doesn't end in ".com". Well, when I type it in with the ".com", it routes to the ".ag" site.

For the uninformed: .ag is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Antigua and Barbuda.

So there you go.

Additional note: according to this site, there are only 6 poker sites that are taking US players for real money.

Now then, where was I? Okay, Carbon Poker's site. I test drove the site this morning, playing a couple of play money tourneys to see (1) how the site felt and (2) to see how much game I have after taking virtually 8 months off from poker.

Answering #1, the site was great. I could change the layout and colors of the table to my liking, to include changing the cards, the carpet, the table, the whole thing.

Answering #2, apparently I still got it. I played a 10-person tourney and finished 2nd, and I played a 60-person tourney and finish 4th.

Overall, I would rate Carbon Poker 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.

As for playing on that site for real money, I am decidedly on the fence until the US Government decides how and when their citizens can play cash games legally. It sucks to say that, but when you have the fiasco that went down with Full Tilt Poker's site and their subsequent handling of player funds, it is a necessary evil.

That's all for now, a beer post coming later today.

Thanks for reading.

Happy Holidays - Wait, I'm Actually Posting a Blog?

2011-12-18T00:10:00.000-05:00

Seasons Greetings.

Yeah, I haven't been here for quite awhile. So, why come back?

Well, I did happen to pick up a CHRISTMAS SIX PACK at the Local Total Wine and More.

So, I decided that I would review each of those beers and then post them here as I do it. Try to get back into the swing of things I guess.

I have a plan to review at least two of them each day then do some other catch up posts to get this blog back to the low, low standards that I had set.

Sound good? Okay, great, I'm going to be back tomorrow (SUNDAY), though technically it's already Sunday morning (12am) here, so let's just say later on today.

Good? Good.

New Post Coming Soon

2011-05-25T16:17:00.000-04:00

Yes, I have been slacking.

New post is due to you soon. Today, perhaps.

You see, I have been following the whole "Black Friday" and now "Black Monday" thing, and there's nothing to do about it but wait for the feds to finish getting their jollies by busting whoever is left doing online poker in the 'forbidden' U.S. Market.

I do have some beer reviews to get out there, so let's go in that direction, okay?

New post just as soon as I get the pictures downloaded off of my camera. Deal?

Deal. See you very soon.

I went to the Beer Store, but...

2011-05-04T18:11:00.001-04:00

Greetings again.

Two posts in one day after not posting a thing in over a month. Go figure.

Well, I took it upon myself to go to the beer store (Total Wine & More) down the road and picked up a nice six pack: two new Shiner beers (Ruby Red, 101), a new Newcastle Summer beer (WOW!), Samuel Adams Latitude IPA, Shock Top Raspberry (had to round out the six pack) and Sweetwater Road Trip.

One big but...when I got out of my truck, I dropped the six pack on the driveway, breaking the Samuel Adams IPA (not a big loss) and the Shiner Ruby Red (F**k me!). So, when I get around to doing my beer updates, I only get to update you on four new (to me) beers.

The lost beers:

My Response to the Black Friday mess in the U.S.

2011-05-04T10:13:00.000-04:00

Greetings.

Well, it's been about two + weeks since the whole DOJ thing came down and effectively shut everyone in the USA out of playing online poker. I was at work on a Friday, looking for something to read, and when I pulled up the Drudge report...BAM! My heart sank.

It's not that I was using online poker to make a living (though had I applied myself, I probably could have in a pinch). I was a casual player who loved to grind it out thru $1 tournaments in hopes to get to the final table and make a payday usually in the range of $50-100. Usually any money I had won would remain online since I really never won enough to consider getting a cashout.

But now, the online community in the US is forced to use new poker companies that haven't (yet) had their US access shut off. I've looked at sites like Cake Poker, Carbon Poker, Doyle's Room, Bodog, etc. I haven't yet downloaded any of their applications because I just haven't had the urge to give poker a shot.

Today, that might change. I think its time to see 'where the fishes' are, if at all. It is, after all, my day off.

Also, apologies for not getting beer updates out here. No excuses for that. I'll get right on that today as well.

We had a nice heavy rain last night, so I'll use that as my queue to wash away the old dirt and pollen and to move forward with this mildly amusing blog.

Black Friday won't kill US poker, it will just change it. Poker will be back in the US, whether its on Full Tilt or it migrates to one of the other previously mentioned clients. Just stay positive and let the chips fall where they may.

Mores updates to come, thanks for reading.

Making Up For Lost Time

2011-03-20T11:42:00.000-04:00

HOWDY!

Yes, I am back. It's been a couple of months, but when you finally get a JOB, some things just fall by the way side.

Like this blog.

So, going forward, I will make an effort to update this blog at least 4 times a week.

Today's update: what the heck have I been doing? Well, I have been doing some new beer sampling, and I have also been playing some poker on Full Tilt. So, I do have some interesting things to say about the two subjects that I am suppose to be covering here.

I am back on the wagon that is getting out there and sampling/trying some new beers. I tried Bell's Best Brown Ale, and despite other people's high ratings, I still believe that Newcastle Brown Ale is the best brown ale out there. I'll have to check my own ratings to see if I have ever rated another brown ale higher than Newcastle.

There are a few other beers that I have sampled, but none of them were "groundbreaking", so I'll save their review info for another post.

Playing poker 101: NEVER PLAY ON TILT. I learned that the hard way after getting mad at a table online. All in with 8-8 pre-flop will get you busted broke 75% of the time. I ran into A-A, and it was all over. I did place in a tourney, and that in itself is a whole other story.

Sorry if I seem a little vague, but I really just wanted to put something out here that says, yes, I'm back and that I will be offering some actual content in the near future. Honest.

So, many apologies for the lack of material, but it will all be better here, and soon.

Thanks for reading, I'll be back tomorrow (or later today) with a better post!

Happy New Year...I Guess

2011-01-05T09:55:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

As always, with the new year coming in on a weekend, I fall behind on "things". This blog, being one.

Well, I got a bit of a new year's "FU" from Google Adsense. For some reason they've disabled Adsense on my account. Strange, considering I hadn't made enough revenue for them to even consider sending off a check.

Therefore, I have moved Amazon to my 'featured' advertisement slot. If Adsense somehow magically re-activates, then I might consider giving them their slot back.

Now then, I have not have a chance to do any new beer reviews, so put that on the I owe you one list.

I also have not played a hand of poker in 2011, but that will soon change.

So, check back later on today and I will have something of interest to post here.

Thanks for reading, see you very soon!

Happy Holidaze

2010-12-23T09:23:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

It's been about a week since I posted anything here (sorry), but I've been out of town. The family keeps me busy with "crap", so this blog lags from it.

My bad.

Now then, on to some good news! Full Tilt Poker is currently offering a $100 bonus "free" if you can earn 1,000 FTP points by January 9th. The question you need to ask yourself here is "can I earn $100 without spending that much?" You can if you are playing in the right areas. My suggestion: play cheap Rush Poker on FTP.

Rush Poker is something fairly 'new' at FTP, and with its design you can see a bunch of hands without having to wait for the hand to finish before heading over to the next one. Your days of waiting around for the hand to end are over.

Oh yeah, if you need a bathroom break, you can stand up from your seat to break up the constant rush of cards.

That's the poker update for today, now on to the beer one.

I am heading to the local beer store to see if I can procure any new holiday beers. I will post an update later today if that trip is successful.

Two days til Christmas, hope your shopping is going well. Don't forget to click a banner before you leave, my nickels are getting close to being equal to a dollar.

Thank you for reading (and clicking), I'll see you later on today!

My 2nd Christmas Beer Photo Essay - The Beer Changed

2010-12-18T16:56:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

I did manage to acquire a noteworthy beer for my 2nd Christmas beer review. However, it wasn't the Sweetwater beer that I came home with.

I went to my "go to" place for beer and when they did not have the previously mentioned beer available, I went for a beer that I had previously seen there that is an annual treat: Anchor Brewing Co.'s "Our Special Ale".

Therefore, with our further delay, here is my review of the beer, as well as the accompanying photo essay:

12 ounce single bottle acquired from Total Wine & More in Huntersville, North Carolina. The beer pours as a dark ruby/copper brown color with a nice creamy tan head. The aroma is very rich with spicy notes and a touch of malt. The taste is also very spicy and also grabs the malt notes as well. Aftertaste is a bit of spice and a bit of malt. Nothing bitter. A very drinkable beer, but a bit too rich for more than a couple 'servings'.

Rating 3 1/2 Snowmen out of 5.

Enjoy the photo essay, I'll be back with more tomorrow!

The Next Christmas Beer for Review has been Determined!

2010-12-18T09:40:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

Sorry for the delays in recent posting; the Christmas season has interfered with my normal daily routine of posting SOMETHING for the masses to read about.

So, without further delay, I shall introduce to you the second Christmas/holiday beer I shall be doing a review of:

Sweetwater Brewing Company, Atlanta, Georgia
Festive Ale

A beer with some great reviews, so that was enough for me to go and get it (if it is still available).

I hope to acquire this masterpiece this afternoon, and if you are lucky, a review will immediately follow.

Don't forget to click a banner ad or two, the nickels are getting close enough to a buck that a check might be in the mail by the end of JANUARY. I wish I was making that up.

I am posting a link to a suggested Christmas gift if you know of someone who really loves beer.

Thanks for reading, look for an update this afternoon!

The Delayed Photo Essay on Shiner Holiday Cheer

2010-12-14T15:58:00.001-05:00

Greetings.

Okay, I'm trying something here. I'm posting a link to my "photo essay" on my sampling of Shiner's Holiday Cheer beer last Saturday. It's late, but I've been too scatter brained to get this done any sooner. Okay, here we go:

Cool, it worked.

As you can see, this was a great beer. In fact, I am determined to find a six pack of this beer for the coming weekend.

Oh yeah, there is one other thing - I need to decide on my next beer to review. I'll do that and post it here -- if not later today, then it will be tomorrow.

Nothing poker related to pass on just yet -- opportunity is out there, and I just need to get off of my dead butt and hit the tables.

Now then, click on the banner ads and throw a few coins my way.

Thanks for checking in.

The 1st Christmas Beer Review of 2010 - Brief Version

2010-12-11T15:42:00.000-05:00

Howdy.

I have finally acquired a bottle of Shiner's Holiday Cheer. In the style of a Rate Beer reviewer (which I am one), here is my brief review:

Beer pours a nice dark copper color with a lingering light tan head. Aroma is very noticeable with peaches and a little bit of malt. Taste is very, very smooth. This beer is outstanding, I will be buying a six pack of this once I get back to the beer store!

Overall rating: 4 candy canes out of a possible 5.

Bigger, better review tonight after I get done with whatever I gotta do. I have pictures to share as well, plus I am thinking of putting up a poll and give people the chance to select the next beer I will rate. All this, free of charge.

Thanks for reading, now click some banner ads and get me a few nickels for future beer reviews!

Thank you and have a good Saturday!

Early Wednesday Check-in

2010-12-08T11:33:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

It's early on Wednesday morning, so why not check in?

It seems like a lifetime since I played a poker hand, although it has been just three days. I'm still mad about not being about to play the Sunday free roll uninterrupted. Life happens sometimes.

I think I will make a run at qualifying for the Sunday free roll later tonight. I would do it earlier, but I have been summoned to help do some Christmas decorations at a friend's location. Bummer, this afternoon would have been great for giving everything 'a go'.

Beer update: today is the day that I acquire Shiner's holiday beer. Whether I have to make a special trip to the local Total Wine & More, or I just happen to pick up some brewskis at the local grocery store, I will have at least one Shiner beer to talk about tonight/tomorrow. It's worth it, I'm assured of by a beer friend.

Thank you for clicking on these banner ads. The nickels are adding up, and one day soon I might have dimes to talk about! It doesn't cost you anything to go out there and do an ad click or two. If it will make you feel better, I'll do a double update tomorrow or Friday to repay you for your readership and clicking.

That's all for now, it's damn cold here in NC and I need to put some socks on.

Thanks for reading, see you soon.

Quick Recap of Free Roll Follies

2010-12-06T21:15:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

It's Monday, so to quickly recap what happened yesterday with the $1,000 Free Roll:

I was playing very well, doing what I needed to do. I was up to around 13,500 in chips when I was pulled into running an errand by a room mate. The errand lasted 75+ minutes. Once the errand was over and I was able to get back to the table, I was down to my last 1,000 in chips.

From there, I pushed all in with 8-10 suited (The Mookie!) and caught a 10 on the flop. The turn brought a King though, and the chip leader at the table flipped over Ace-King to end my free roll at 923rd place.

In other news, I went to a local store to get the beer of last week for reviewing it, only to find that this particular grocery store didn't carry it. Phooey! I'll have to get it and get that review done so I can move on to the next one.

I hope you are staying warm tonight. Be sure to click a banner ad and browse for a moment, I could use a nickel.

Thanks for reading and I'll see you tomorrow.

Free Roll Sunday is here

2010-12-05T15:14:00.002-05:00

Greetings.

It's finally Sunday, and I am here ready to play a little poker. I got 30 minutes to wait around before the $1k free roll begins, and it appears that we have a hearty field for this event:

17,000+ entrants. One thing to keep in mind though: there will probably be about 10,000 players and 7,000 knuckleheads who never log in for the tourney.

So, I'm here. I'll update you all at each break on how play is going.

Suggested reading: The first (and only) poker book I've ever purchased (perhaps this is why I am just an average player (in my opinion))

Click on an ad banner if you would, it'll pay me 5 cents sometime in the future (if I ever get there).

See you at the first break.

UPDATE #1 - first full break is due in 10 minutes. I've already gone from my starting stack of 2,000 chips to a bit over 9,000. I'm playing one hand just after getting over 10,000 in chips and someone trapped me with a hand, knocking my chip stack down to 5600. My pocket 9s were junk after a flop of Ace-King-Rag.

UPDATE #2 - Just doubled up to 10K after an aggressive player called my all-in with Ace-10. I showed Ace-King, and a King on the turn gets me back on top. Fast and furious play. Total number of entrants (officially): 18,637. Remaining players: 10,894. Don't forget to click on a banner to add a nickel to my future poker funds. Nickels do add up eventually.

FINAL UPDATE: Finished 923rd, only top 90 get cash. Will explain in detail tomorrow what happened to get me to that point.

Thanks for reading today!

Snow in December...WTF?

2010-12-04T14:11:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

Well, this wasn't supposed to happen today. I was treated to a very nice light dusting of SNOW this afternoon. The snowfall lasted for about 1 hour, but during that time I got absolutely ZERO done around the house. Work grinded to a total halt so I could watch the snow flakes drift to the earth.

Right now, the snow has stopped. The local radar shows that there might be more on the way, but that is a few hours away.

Anyways, let me get back on topic. Last night I did not get to do any poker because I got treated to dinner at a local bar. The bar had $1 Pabst Blue Ribbon in a bottle, which totally kicked ass. I had two, and I had a very minor headache this morning to remind me of that. So, file last night under beer.

Today I have the same thing that kept me from the poker tables yesterday, so unless I get home and have the spare time, I won't be playing any poker hands until at least tomorrow afternoon's $1,000 freeroll. Did I mention I won a seat? Here's what a winner's pop up box looks like on FTP:

So, I am off to get ready for the last night of the local event, so if you got the time PLEASE do me a very small favor and click on a banner and browse around. These nickels will eventually add up to a whole dollar one day in the far off future, and your clicks are greatly appreciated.

Thanks and have a good one!

Friday Night Poker, maybe.

2010-12-03T15:03:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

I have not acquired the previously posted 'beer of the day/week', so I need to get on that.

Tonight is Friday night, I hope to have a little free time to do a little poker dabbling, but I do have one commitment on the table. So, let me clear the table and then I can get back to what is important on Friday nights: enjoying a little taste of the coming weekend and playing with drunken donkeys at .01/.02 tables. (That's 1 penny/2 penny tables for you that are FTP stupid).

Also, I have been trying to find that best layout for this site. I have some ad banners (please click, nothing to buy unless you like something from Amazon) that I am trying to reorganize on this screen. Once I have found that right setup, then I will leave it alone.

I will make a musical suggestion, so if you have an ear to bend, take a moment and check out this musical artist:

Back to donkey-like typing later on this evening.

Happy Friday!

Beer of the Day

2010-12-02T11:46:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

I did some research on a beer I found at the local store, so I've decided to make it my beer of the day.

Shiner Holiday Cheer - a Dunkelweisen that is brewed with Texas peaches and pecans. I will post a review here once I acquire it and appropriately taste it.

Pic:

Happy Thursday! More poker and beer to post later on. Cheers!

Freeroll Follow-up and the first day of December

2010-12-01T18:28:00.000-05:00

Greetings.

It's the first day of December. So, for all of you flunkies trying to get into the 1-a-day freeroll at Full Tilt, that means getting out there and playing a little to make sure you get your one point for the day. After that, just 30 more to go. Seems simple, huh?

Following up on yesterday's post, I did manage to accomplish the semi "rare" feet of being 1 of the 250 people to get a ticket to the $1,000 freeroll on Sunday afternoon. Top prize is a cool $90, which could fund your "poker jones" for about 2 weeks if your playing the cheap tables.

One thing to note about the freeroll, it allows for LATE REGISTRATION. How do you do that? Well, if you wish, you can simply "unregister", then on tourney day register late (if it isn't full) and avoid about 19 1/2 minutes of donkeys going all-in with their first hand to have an Ace. Just something to ponder.

No beer update just yet, although I did take a few snap shots of some beers at the local grocery store that were for the Christmas season. I will have to do a little investigating to see if they are even worth investing $8 for a six pack.

Suggested reading for today is something I read and would thoroughly recommend if you a fan of RUSH or need to read a biography on how a rock star dealt with tragedy in his own family tragedy:

Thanks for reading!

End of November Freeroll Blowout & I Moved North

2010-11-30T14:22:00.000-05:00

Good day!

It's the end of November, so I decided to do some freerolls and get ready for playing poker in the month of December.

So far, I am doing pretty good (in my own estimation). Then again, they are freerolls. I got two going on right now, and I am above average on chips thru a few breaks, so no complaints here. Busting donkeys is a blast when your cards play out the right way.

I have also completed my move to North Carolina. I've been here for nearly 8 weeks now, and I am still LOOKING FOR A DAMN JOB. Other than that, its colder than Flori-duh and I am having fun whenever possible.

That's all for now, I owe ya'll a beer update, so once I get caught up on today's fun I will pass that information along. Be sure to click on at least one ad on the page - it'll eventually lead to me getting a tiny check in the mail sometime this winter.

Thanks for reading, see you the next time!

Life Deals a Cold, Cold Hand

2010-09-23T17:20:00.000-04:00

Greetings.

It's been a bit over one month since I have been out here to post anything at all. Who's fault? It's mine, of course. You cannot place blame for something that you alone are responsible for.

As for the title, well, it is true. Any poker player with half a skill set knows that there are times that your dealt hands get cold. Well, such is the same for me in life in general.

I had made the decision sometime during August that I was going to move 'north' to North Carolina. I had planned on moving out of my place in downtown Jacksonville and staying for awhile with my Mom and my brother before heading out of town. Well...turns out that (a) when you plan on moving, you really should rent a truck. I used my own pick-up truck, and several days of hell ensued. The last load included comedy gold: I managed to let one of my couch cushions blow out of the back of the truck and 'probably' fell into the St. John's River while crossing I-95. Oops.

(b) after moving, make sure that you have everything in its right place. I still have boxes to eliminate from their dropped positions around the house.

Finally, (c) don't forget to let your boss know that you are moving. Mine decided to can me before I got the chance to quit. Damn it.

So, this has taken quite a bit away from my poker/beer time. In fact, I have resorted to drinking Busch Light to deal with my issues. Poker has to wait.

So, I intend to give a better update once I have my life in the correct order. For now, its Mom's cooking and my brother's farting until I get 'north'.

Farting around Full Tilt - A Weekend Recap

2010-08-16T11:18:00.000-04:00

Greetings.

Yes, it has been a little too long since I have gotten out here and posted anything.

Totally my fault. I have been doing some poker things, some beer things, but nothing that has driven me to get out here and do a post.

This past weekend I had a small amount of green to my Full Tilt account and decided to give it a go in the Daily Dollar evening games to see where I would finish up.

Long story made short: I did well, but as usual, you are normally eliminated when one of two things happens: (1) you play stupid, or (2) you make a hand, only to have someone make a better hand.

#2 happened to me this weekend twice. Friday night I was probably 30 minutes of play away from making the money (top 1080 get paid out of 10,000+) when I pushed all with AK suited and a board showing K-4-Ten. Queue the call from across the table, and the guy flips over pocket Tens. Oops.

It happened a second time yesterday, when my trip Queens were smoked by trip Kings on a flop of K-Q-3.

#2 is usually more acceptable when it comes to losing. You played the hand well; there's really no way to sniff out those middle pairs unless you push pre-flop. In the dollar tourney, you are playing with at least 50% of your table mates being classified as donkeys or fish. Cheap tourneys bring out the idiot players (yours included, sometimes). That's poker.

Losing via method #1 is one that I reserve for any free rolls I decide to play in. Free play = 99% donkeys at the table. It happens. So, first hand all in plays are usually A-rag vs. K-J off suit or something silly like that.

I think I have done one tirade in the past about free rolls and the time you invest in them; I'll check my archives to see what I said then (so I won't repeat myself) and then expand on that if I need to.

Okay, that is all for Monday. I just wanted to get something out here to break up the drought.

Oh yeah, Mondays suck. Just sayin'.

Later dudes...

Seven days of summer flu makes one weak

2010-07-29T16:49:00.000-04:00

Greetings.

Yes, one week later, and I am finally well.

Unfortunately for me, I caught a flu bug on Thursday night, and it dragged me down for all of the weekend and the better part of this week. I am finally feeling well enough to get back to the blogging.

Because I spent the better part of the weekend in bed and under the covers, I did not do any poker playing or beer drinking. I was completely miserable. At one point during the weekend, I would have easily traded my worst hangover for this bug. It made me ache all over, stretching and tightening muscles that I have not worked out in a gym in quite some time.

Now then, where does that leave me? It leaves me with some catching up to do. August 1st is a coming, and I would like to try to do my "poker for an entire month" type of challenge. I have an idea of what I want to do, I just have to push myself to do it.

One side note - I am moving out of my neighborhood at the end of August after a nine year stay. It is time to move. I have been stagnant, and I need some fresh faces and some fresh air. That shouldn't interfere too much with my poker/beer stuff until near the end of next month.

That's your quick update for today - a better update tomorrow now that I am back and feeling much better. Thanks for reading.

Freerolls are exactly that they say they are

2010-07-23T16:14:00.000-04:00

Greetings.

Four in a row. Let's keep the ball rolling.

Last night I went out to Full Tilt to see what was happening with the poker room. I had not been out there to mess around for at least the last two weeks due to a mess of things going on with my 'personal life' (or lack thereof, depending on which of my friends you talk to)(you know who you are).

Full Tilt is in full pimp mode for their upcoming 'Little Big Tournament", which is where you pay $2 for a shot at $100K. There were a number of super turbos available to play with small chip stacks of 300 to start. I played three of them, and although I did well I guess when you are only risking 5 FTP points to enter the tourney, you're not going to win the entry unless you are very, very patient.

I have a lot of patience when playing with my own dinero, but when playing with points or playing in free rolls, I usually tend to be a bit of a donkey more often due to boredom. Case in point was the nightly $250 USA free roll.

I had managed to get one of the 7500 seats after the tourney was full - somehow I managed to time the click on FTP's web site right when someone left the tourney. Five minutes into the tourney, I had lost 1/3 of my stack when my pocket Jacks ran into pocket Kings. Not three hands later, I was all in with Ace-King suited against a pair of 3's, and the 3's held up. That's poker.

All in all, it was nice to wet my feet a little and wade in with the fish and donkeys. I'll be out there again tonight.

I'm looking to pick up some new brews tonight so I can do a little blogging about what beer has made its way to the Northeast Florida area. This area is usually among the last in the USA to get a certain type of beer. In my opinion, it is probably somewhat related to the fact that we have a huge Budweiser brewery on the north side of town, so they may have their hooks in the distributors when it comes to bringing in new beers.

Okay, enough typing for now. I'll be back tomorrow with more poker and beer to talk about. Be safe and I'll catch you tomorrow sometime.

Thanks for reading.

Updating the other half of this site

2010-07-22T16:10:00.001-04:00

Howdy again.

Three days in a row. Wow. I am trying to be a man of my word.

Now then, as the title suggests, there is something else I should be blogging about here, and that is your favorite and mine: beer.

I have been rather sporadic on doing my beer ratings, but I aim to change that. I have rated 625 beers (so far). Click this link to check out what I have sampled:

See Don's beer ratings at Rate Beer

I was ready to do a full review on a beer that only recently has turned up in Florida: Fort Collins Brewery - Rocky Mountain IPA

...that is until I went to my RateBeer account and found out that I had already rated this beer two years ago. Apparently on one of my many trips up to North Carolina, I had acquired a single and brought it home to drink and rate. Oops.

Okay, so making no excuses here, I will have a slew of ratings to post this weekend. I aim to have beer reviews on each and every Sunday, but I might slip in some beer news or reviews during the week if the beer is that great/awful.

Awful beers need reviewing too - you need to be warned!

Okay, that's my little beer update for today, I will be back with more poker stuff tomorrow as I hit the tables with the usual gang of super-donkeys that play on Full Tilt.

Special thanks to Waffles for his $.02 on my last post about 'minor league' poker sites. It was greatly appreciated!

Thanks for reading, see you tomorrow!

A Brief Rant about the "Minor Leagues of Online Poker"

2010-07-21T16:36:00.000-04:00

Greetings.

Yes, two days in a row for posting. I'm already way ahead on my own expectations.

Now then, I wanted to do a little post about what I consider the 'minor leagues' of online poker.

You see, we are all very familiar with the "Big Two" of online poker (Full Tilt and Poker Stars). What I am referring to is the 'little guys'.

What has prompted this little foray was an e-mail I had received from another poker forum, who was pimping their weekly tournaments. They used to do all of their tourneys on the "Big Two", but now they were using some other minor sites that I had never heard of. Sites like, well, apparently Phil Laak now has his own poker site, called "Unabomber Poker" or something like that.

This is where my thought train starts. Phil Laak, his own poker site? Really? There are maybe 5 top pros who should have their own site: Doyle Brunson, and then pick any four of the founders of Full Tilt.

Why on earth would anyone go to Phil Laak's site to play poker? I don't know, I am asking.

Poker Stars and Full Tilt both offer something not seen at most little sites: the chance to interact and play against real poker stars. I imagine that Phil Laak's site has him, and that's it.

In the past, we have seen other name brand pros start their own sites, only to have them crash to the ground. Namely, Daniel Negreanu, whose site was absorbed into Poker Stars, and Johnny "Fucking" Chan, who had a site last year and as of this posting I have no idea if it even exists anymore.

I'm sure that initial start ups of minor online poker rooms can be profitable, but over time I would have to think that unless you have a name pro who is constantly at final tables, your site's chance for growth is minimal at best. Just look at the "November Nine" for 2010: all of them are either Poker Stars or Full Tilt.

As for Phil Laak, there is no question he has some poker skills, it just seems that his skills aren't what they used to be. I'd like to see him at a final table soon, and hopefully his poker site will still be around when he gets there.

Thanks for reading, see you tomorrow!

Lost in the Dark...until now.

2010-07-20T14:37:00.000-04:00

Greetings,

I don't know how many people even recall my incoherent ramblings of poker games past.

Nonetheless, here I am, ready to move forward with what I should consider as a steady hobby.

Over the last few months I have spent my time "off and on" playing at Full Tilt. In my own assessment, I feel I have played better than I have in years gone by, with one exception: I still make the occasional donkey call.

The donkey call is something that I do for one simple reason: make the person prove the value of their hand. About 2/3 of the time, I pay the consequences for calling the best hand, but when I do catch someone bluffing or catch them with a marginal hand, it does two things (in my opinion): (1) it sends the message that I will call a big bet, and (2) it shows other poker players what kind of person they are dealing with.

Quite often, shortly after I 'out' a player as a bluffer or as a marginal player, they normally are busted by someone else. It doesn't always happen, but when it does, it does give me a small sense of satisfaction.

That's all for now, I will be doing bigger and better daily updates now that all of my issues are behind me and I can concentrate on enjoying my poker game.

It's Groundhog Day

2010-02-02T18:49:00.000-05:00

Am I dreaming, or did I actually decide to come to my poker blog and post about poker?

No dreaming, I am here. I got tired of seeing my last post was done in June or something like that, so I figure I will post to get the blog updated.

Just a quick post before I actually start writing stuff worth a damn.

One thing of note - I noticed that if you use the Google Reader to follow blogs, with my own blog - it will go back and pick up my older posts (pre 2008).

SO much to cover, but I just want to get the cob webs and dust knocked off the site. I'll be back with a better, longer, more informational post.

Thanks and see you soon.

Two Months Later...Again. WTF

2009-06-23T15:04:00.000-04:00

Two months of goofing off, not posting updates, and here I am, at home taking a personal day because I manaaged to tweak my back real good.

Funny enough, I decided to play a "play money" tourney on Full Tilt and I'm at the final table. Go figure.

Hell, I'll even post a picture of it if I can remember how to do that.

Anyways, it has been a long time since I have been out here to post about anything.

Apathy more than anything.

Today, I'm sitting here, playing a little poker, and decided it was time to do some updating.

One thing I am doing is playing in the Full Tilt Poker Fantasy WSOP challenge. I'm doing rather well with that. I'm inside the top 2000 overall, and I have qualfied for three freerolls within the last week.

As a matter of fact, let me go and check on my rankings right now...wow, better than I thought. I have been ranked as high as 721st place. Right now I'm inside the top 1000 at 942nd. Fantasy earnings at $3,600,000 or so.

If only I had started playing this sooner...who knows.

Final table update - I'm down to the final four at my table.

I'm still only playing poker at Full Tilt. I have noticed that they have finally brought down their minimum deposit amount from $50 to $30, but that is still miles away from Poker Star's $10 bucks.

Final table finish: 2nd place. I had actually been down 10 to 1 in chips, fought back to take the lead, and then couldn't finish the deal. I had QJ against KQ and that busted me. Oh well. It was fun.

On the beer side of things - and this is also a beerblog - I am stuck on 599 sampled beers. I have not found a beer 'worthy' of me using it for beer #600. If I find it, I will let you know.

Okay, I'm going to get a shower and 'start my afternoon' now that poker is over. I will take a moment to checkup on a few old haunts (AlCantHang, Pauly & Mookie) and I will post again real soon.

Thanks for checking in. I promise to be here sooner than later.

Quick Monday Night Post

2009-04-27T23:52:00.000-04:00

Howdy.

Quick post before I get to bed.

I just wanted to drop a line to 'fulfill' my duty to add a Monday night post.

I would have been here sooner, but I was out of town and did not get home til 9pm.

Add to that 'unwind time' and I just now realized I was supposed to post something here.

More poker crap tomorrow, plus some beer updates.

I picked up six new beers to try and review on ratebeer.com, so I'll post those here tomorrow as I work on my poker game and work to put this blog back in the top 25000 of poker blogs that don't suck.

Thanks, see you tomorrow.

Two Months Later...Yeah, that's about right

2009-04-22T21:25:00.001-04:00

Howdy.

Two months later, and yeah, that's about right. I made a deposit at Full Tilt Poker last Friday night, and somehow, I am a positive $2 with the cashier.

I displayed some of the old poker skill Friday night when I finished 23rd in a $3+.30 KO No Limit Tourney and collected $6. It brought back some thoughts on a previous adventure.

As with as tourney that you are playing in, once you get to the money, it doesn't matter what you did before in the tourney. I was forced to make a decision during the tourney while just hanging off the edge of the cash bubble. Low on chips, I was dealt AQ off suit in early position. Do I go all in, or do I limp to see a flop? I answered my question with a question:

Do you want to win? My answer was yes, so I went all in, and hit an Ace on a flop that 4 others saw and my small stack was now well in the money with just a few eliminations to go.

Now then...

My intentions for this blog is to 'BRING IT BACK TO LIFE'. I have all the time in the world to do a lot of things, but I do enjoy poker, and I was having lots of fun when I was blogging and reading other blogs and playing a little poker.

Granted, I am a little wiser with the cash and I know a bit more than I did then - but so does everyone else.

Next post won't appear here until Monday night - I am headed out of town for a three day weekend, and Monday night is the 1st shot I will have to post a blog.

Thanks for reading - I wil get back to my old self - and don't forget about the beer!

Gee, You'd Think I'd Update This More

2009-02-16T16:21:00.001-05:00

Howdy.

Yeah, I've been playing poker for two months now; still I have yet to post one worthwhile or thoughtful thing on this site.

Hey, it happens.

I've been updating my beer selections, but I know I should post them here as well.

Perhaps if I get motivated enough (and caught up on everything holding me back) I'll get to that at some point.

I'm still circulating.

Tell you what, I'll pass along updates all this week on what the F everyone else is doing with their blogs.

I'll look into that with a bit of research, and come back and post on it.

Throw in a couple of comments by some readers, and I'll even post a picture of myself at the dentist this morning with a mouthful of dental molding. Yuck!

I think I just doubled my posts on the 'new' blog. Congrats to me!

I'm Back....Again

2008-12-12T19:42:00.000-05:00

Howdy.

Once again, I've decided to dive back into this poker thing.

I haven't been here in awhile; I needed to spend some time to work on 'real life' matters.

You know, the things that get in the way of poker time.

With the new year approaching, and my calendar clearing up, I've decided to get back to it.

One thing I've noticed is that nothing has really changed. I think that there still is a market for poker, but I am convinced that it is currently in a moderate decline. I don't think it has the flash or the pull that it had just two years ago. Much of that is due to the economy, and so on. At some point, beginners who never improve on their play just quit the game.

So, after a refreshing break, I'm back to play.

I'm looking forward to catching up with old friends, and playing in old tourneys that I used to haunt.

It's nice to be back. See you at the tables.