Gluten-Free Beer: Omission Pale Ale is So Good, You Can’t Tell

Beer: Pale Ale Brewery: Omission Style: Gluten-free beer ABV: 5.8 percent The world has no shortage of really terrifying diseases you can catch. Necrotizing Fasciitis — often referred to as “flesh-eating disease” — is a bacterial infection that causes body tissue to dissolve like a wet napkin. Prion Disease can…

Make Puerto Rican Egg Nog Now, Enjoy It Later

Ring the bell, it’s time for Last Call, where JK Grence, bartender at Shady’s, serves up booze advice and recipes. Got a burning question for your bartender? Leave it in the comments and it might be answered in a future column. I’m getting a little stir crazy waiting for cold…

My Wine Cellar & Bistro Hosting 2nd Annual Wine Festival

If you enjoy wine tastings on a giant scale, you’ll want to attend My Wine Cellar & Bistro’s second annual wine festival. Happening November 18, the festival will feature 20 wine samples poured by four wine distributors, as well as live outdoor music. See also: – Best Place to Sniff…

SanTan Rail Slide

Beer: Rail Slide Imperial Spiced Ale Brewery: SanTan Brewing Co. Style: English Strong Ale ABV: 7.1 percent The problem with seasonals is that they’re just that — seasonal. Here for a short time, then gone for another year, your cravings be damned. Feeling like a Pumpkin Porter in the springtime?…

Five New Books About Wine

There’s a time to drink, a time to think and time to combine both of these marvelous things. Welcome to a breakdown of some of the best books of the year on wine. From funny to educational, if you’re a wine lover these books should be on your list. The…

Alaskan Baltic Porter

Beer: Baltic Porter Brewery: Alaskan Brewing Co. Style: Baltic Porter ABV: 9.8 percent Alaskan Brewing is known for their Smoked Porter, and why not? The beer’s won more golds than Michael Phelps, impressing so many beer judges that they’ve basically made the brew the standard by which all other smoked…

Sommelier Dave Johnson Suggests Wines to Drink with Your Halloween Candy

So, you’re hosting a Halloween party. Worried your wine selection might conflict with, say, the appearance of supermarket cupcakes? Or a bag of fun-sized Snickers? We’ve got you covered. After a conversation with sommelier David Johnson of Davanti Enoteca we feel better about recommending the following choices that digest beautifully…

Two Great After Dinner Drinks: Stinger and Golden Cadillac

Ring the bell, it’s time for Last Call, where JK Grence, bartender at Shady’s, serves up booze advice and recipes. Got a burning question for your bartender? Leave it in the comments and it might be answered in a future column. The other day, someone emailed me an excellent question…

Lagunitas Brown Shugga’, How Come You Taste So Good?

Beer: Brown Shugga’ Brewery: Lagunitas Brewing Co. Style: American Strong Ale ABV: 9.9 percent Shovelfuls of dank hops. Scoops of honey and brown sugar. A blast of grapefruit juice. Brown Shugga’, how come you taste so good? Lagunitas’ barelywine-gone-awesome, Brown Shugga’, has appeared in this space before, but under much…

James Bond Now Drinks Heineken. So What?

Ring the bell, it’s time for Last Call, where JK Grence, bartender at Shady’s, serves up booze advice and recipes. Got a burning question for your bartender? Leave it in the comments and it might be answered in a future column. By now, you might have heard about the new…

Five Ways to Enjoy Wine Outdoors in Arizona

Welcome to Vine Geeks, with your hostess on all things wine, Kate Crowley. Crowley is not a sommelier, but learned to pour a glass of wine properly at ten years of age — because it is an important life skill to master early. See also: – 10 Favorite Metro Phoenix…

Magic Hat #9

Beer: #9 Brewery: Magic Hat Brewing Co. Style: American Pale Ale ABV: 5.1 percent There are a few ways to judge the strength of beer culture in a city. One would obviously be the number of breweries operating within the community (and judging by recent events, we’ve got this one)…

Your Drink This Weekend: The Eva Perón.

Ring the bell, it’s time for Last Call, where JK Grence, bartender at Shady’s, serves up booze advice and recipes. Got a burning question for your bartender? Leave it in the comments and it might be answered in a future column. If you’ve been into a cocktail-oriented bar in the…

Chow Bella’s Guide to Pumpkin Beer 2012

In the past, pumpkin beers were rare — a seasonal sideshow, showing up only in the breweries daring enough to make them and enjoyed only by drinkers willing to take a chance on the oddities. Today, however, brews made with pumpkin have officially become mainstream, with nearly every brewery worth…

How to Make the Perfect Mai Tai

Ring the bell, it’s time for Last Call, where JK Grence, bartender at Shady’s, serves up booze advice and recipes. Got a burning question for your bartender? Leave it in the comments and it might be answered in a future column. After working for five years at the now-shuttered Trader…