Hypothetical situation: A friend of yours, who recently decided to buy a kit to brew his own beer at home, has presented you with a bottle of his first batch and asked for your honest opinion. This beer is flat, sour and looks like it was brewed with 51 percent spittle…
The Spot: SideBar, 1514 N. 7th Ave., Phoenix, (602) 254-1646. www.sidebarphoenix.com The Hours: 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday The Details: Appetizers and well drinks are $4, and you get $1 off all beers and $2 off wine by the glass. All wine bottles are $8 off. There’s an…
Beer: HopslamBrewery: Bell’s Brewery, Inc. Style: Imperial IPAABV: 10 percent Several times a year, a brew is released that sets the beer-buying public in a frenzy. Like a locust swarm, they’ll race from store to store to pick up as much as they can, leaving barren, empty shelves in their…
Beer: Jubelale Brewery: Deschutes Brewery Style: Winter Warmer ABV: 6.7 percent At my last check, the temperature outside was in the 70s. But the calendar still says it’s winter, dammit, which means it’s still a great time of year to crack open a dark, malty winter warmer. Deschutes Jubelale is…
The Spot: Big Earl’s BBQ, 7213 E. First Ave., Scottsdale, (480) 947-6800. bigearlsbbq.com The Hours: 2 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday The Details: Since we graded them back in October, Big Earl’s BBQ has revamped their happy-hour specials. Check the chalkboard above the bar for details on the new…
Beer: Sam Adams InfiniumBrewery: Boston Brewing Co. Style: Biere de ChampagneABV: 10.3 percent Boston Brewing Co. comes under a lot of fire from the beer community. It’s to be expected as the largest craft brewery providing for a fickle community of geeks — people will get upset and write you…
The Spot: Z’Tejas Southwestern Grill, 7221 W. Ray Road, Chandler. (480) 893-7550. Other locations include Scottsdale, Tempe and Phoenix. ztejas.comThe Hours: 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Hours vary slightly by location, and the Scottsdale Z’Tejas includes a reverse happy hour from…
Thirsty Lion Pub & Grill, 2000 E. Rio Salado Parkway, Suite 1041, Tempe, (480) 968-2920. www.thirstylionpub.com The Hours: 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 p.m. to close Sunday through Thursday. The Details: Wine, well drinks, margaritas, and 11 select craft beers are all $4. Domestics (Bud Light and…
Beer: The Nut Before ChristmasBrewery: SunUp Brewing (322 E Camelback Road, 602-279-8909)Style: English Brown AleABV: 4.2 percent ‘Twas the Nut Before Christmas, and all through the bar, People were coming, from near and from far, For a delicious nut brown ale and some holiday cheer, Nothing quite warms the spirit…
The Spot: Urban Tea Loft, 11 W. Boston St. #2, Chandler. (480) 786-9600. urbantealoft.com The Hours: 3 to 5 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 3 to 6:30 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays The Details: Appetizers are 1/2 off, domestic beer is down to $2.50, and a glass of wine is $2 off…
Beer: Winter WarmerBrewery: SanTan Brewing Co. (8 San Marcos Place, 480-917-8700)Style: Winter WarmerABV: 9.5 percent One of the great things about beer is its ability to combat oppressive weather. In the dead of summer, nothing beats back the heat like a frosty pale ale or light lager, and when the…
Yesterday we met Jim Meehan, bartender at New York speakeasy PDT. Today he shares with us the recipe for the Green Deacon, a drink included in The PDT Cocktail Book. According to Meehan, the cocktail’s based on a recipe in Stan Jones’ Complete Bar Guide called the Rosy Deacon. One…
The tender: Jim MeehanThe bar: PDT (113 St. Marks Place, New York, 212-614-0386) http://pdtnyc.com/The pedigree: Meehan began bartending in Madison, Wisc. At the tender age of 18. He moved to New York in 2002, and after jumping around several other restaurants and bars, opened his speakeasy PDT (Please Don’t Tell)…
The Spot: Va Bene Italian Cuisine and Wine Bar, 4647 E. Chandler Blvd., Phoenix, (480) 706-4070. www.vabeneaz.com The Hours: 4 to 7 p.m. daily, 4 p.m. to close Sundays and Mondays The Details: Contrary to what the restaurant’s website says, Va Bene’s happy hour isn’t exclusively drinks; it’s just mostly…
Beer: Lagunitas Sucks Holiday AleBrewery: Lagunitas BrewingStyle: Imperial IPAABV: 7.85% Lagunitas sucks, but at least they know it. I have a list of favorite winter brews, and right near the top is Lagunitas’ Brown Shugga. I love its origin story, which goes like this: Something went terribly awry when the…
Yesterday we met Chris Lingua, bar manager at the dimly-lit Scottsdale speakeasy Kazimierz World Wine Bar. Today he shares with us the recipe for Rimbaud’s Left Hand, a drink created by a bartender in Chicago with this story behind it: The drink is named for Arthur Rimbaud, a 19th century French…
The tender: Chris LinguaThe bar: Kazimierz World Wine Bar (7137 East Stetson Drive, Scottsdale, 480-946-3004)The pedigree: You could say Lingua came into Kazimierz, as most do, through the back door. He had long been a cook — first for sandwich-board places throughout high school and college, then at Cowboy Ciao…
The Spot: Jimmy Woo’s Sushi & Asian Bistro, 4233 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, (480) 945-4669. jimmywoos.com The Hours: 3 to 7 p.m. daily The Details: The Jimmy Woo’s happy hour is extremely inclusive: 1/2 price house sushi rolls (of which there are many), 1/2 price all appetizers (of which there are…
Last week we met Mario Rana, part owner and bar manager at Cuoco Pazzo. Today he shares with us the recipe for the Rio, a drink he named after himself. “It’s what everyone called me in high school,” Rana says. “They couldn’t say my name right, so I just told…
Beer: The AbyssBrewery: Deschutes BreweryStyle: Imperial StoutABV: 11 percent The philosophizer Friedrich Nietzsche once said, “Battle not with monsters, lest ye become a monster, and if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.” I’m no historian, but I’d be willing to bet old Freddy came up…
The tender: Mario Rana The bar: Cuoco Pazzo (4175 N. Goldwater Blvd., 480-265-9814) The pedigree: Rana fell in love with creating drinks when he started behind the bar of a coffee shop at age 14. He later started barbacking at the restaurant owned by his parents, then began working at…
The Spot: Stax Burger Bistro, 4400 N. Scottsdale Road #12, Scottsdale, (480) 946-4222. www.staxburgerbistro.com The Hours: 3 to 6 p.m. daily The Details: The Stax happy hour is all about 3 hours of $3 deals. On the $3 menu: five choices of Stax mini-burgers, like Turkey and Beef; Baskets of…
