It’s nearly midnight on a Saturday as I write this.  Thunderstorms have been rolling across the Chicagoland area.  The windows have stopped lighting up, but I still hear the occasional distant rumble.

Earlier tonight I’d had one of the best Porters ever, and this one, this St. Peter’s Old-Style, I hadn’t even intended to review.  I thought I had done so already.  A long time ago.

Nope, it was St. Peter’s delicious Cream Stout that I’d reviewed.

Popping the top, I take that first sniff.  Not much there.  Yeasty tinge on muted burnt malts.  Whatever.  I tip it up for the taste.

For a Porter, this one is hoppy.  That’s what hits first, a manic dog-bite hoppiness with zero carbonation, fading to a black burnt-grain malt sunset.

Probably because of the over-the-top wonderfulness of the Baltic Porter I had earlier, this one is disappointing.  That, and I remembered how much I’ve enjoyed their Cream Stout.

It’s good, it’s perfectly drinkable.  I’m enjoying it.  Let’s be fair here, it’s a good beer.  It’s just not amazing or outstanding, and therefore, alas, not a Holy Beer contender.

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UPDATE:  This review is from nearly two years ago, but I revisited this beer tonight, and I still stand behind the following statements 100%.

This limited release beer is as totally over the top as you’d expect from Lagunitas Brewing Company.

Imagine going to Starbucks and ordering a beer.

This would be it. Cappuccino Stout.

I drank two of these without writing a single word. I didn’t want to be bothered. The brew demanded all my attention.

This beer is for someone who drinks black strong coffee straight up. No cream. No sugar.

This beer is for someone who has turned so jaded that everything tastes the same and has blended into a grey muck, and life has turned dim, and all pretty women look like hard plastic. It’s for someone who can’t stand to turn on a radio because the entire spectrum makes you gag. You want to smash cell phones, you want to wreck your car on purpose, you want to set fire to a bank.

This beer is for you.

It will realign your Universe, reset your brain, and help you regain your love of humanity. This beer will pull you back from the brink. This beer will help you breathe.

This beer will help you create.

This beer will give you the urge to put on big heavy boots and stomp around in the mud, laughing hysterically, and roll around on the floor with a puppy.

This beer just might save your life.

I hereby proclaim it a Groovy Brew and rate it 8.1 on the Holy Grail Scale. Get it while you can, it’s seasonal, and it’s disappearing fast.

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You can tell by the ultimate minimalist signage that this place has to be special.

Every beer here is off the hook wonderful.

Two Brothers Tap House is at the Two Brothers Brewing Co. Warrenville, Illinois.

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I am pretty sure I saw this Polish beer when I was in Helsinki earlier this year, but I didn’t try it.

Now here I am in Chicagoland and, well, I can’t resist a good Porter.  I just hope this is a good Porter.

Smells good.  Deep, dark, sweet, slightly yeasty.

First sip:  Delicious.

There’s a smooth, umber richness that is hard to pin down.  It’s sweet and malty, not much if any hops, and the carbonation disappeared almost immediately.  There’s a citrus edge that mellows into a walnut taste, riding over that Porter sweetness that is like beer candy.  It’s not really chocolaty as much as it is a kind of roasted caramel.

I love this stuff.  I think I’ve finally decided that Porters, especially a Baltic Porter like this one, is my favorite type of beer.

I’m going to proclaim Okocim a Holy Beer Contender, and give it a 9 on the Holy Grail Scale.  I would give it more but I’m afraid the enthusiasm I’m feeling is actually the alcohol.  Because really, truly, I’m darn close to just calling this the Holy Beer.  But, no.  I have other Porters to try this week, as well as a selection of beers from my favorite California brewery, Lagunitas.  I may actually enjoy one of those even more.

Life is good.

Drink good brew.

Groovy.

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Those of you who follow this site probably noticed I haven’t been around much lately.  It’s because I just moved twice.  Yes, twice.

I’m now settling into a little cottage west of Chicago, in the Wheaton area, and am literally still pulling things out of boxes.

I did take some time out to go exploring in my new stomping grounds today, and lo and behold I discover Binny’s in Glen Ellyn.

Look at all this beer!

GroovyBrew Beer reviews is back in business!

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It’s Friday night.  I’m winding down from one of those long, painfully busy weeks that leave you feel like someone’s been using your brain as a punching bag.  Dinner was teriyaki chicken and wild rice.  My girlfriend is off with family, busy for the weekend.  I’m all alone … and I’m ready to relax with a good beer.

Reaching into the fridge of plenty, I pull one out at random, and tonight it’s Oberon Ale from Bell’s Brewery.  A summer ale.

Well, it doesn’t feel quite summery yet here in the Quad Cities, but a summer ale sounds good.  Any ale sounds good. 

Okay, I tell myself.  Stop typing and start drinking.  Time to pop that top and take the ceremonial sniff.

Now this is odd.  It smells like summer.  Literally.  I can’t quite put my finger on why.  There’s a wheaty wisp over light malt and a hint of yeast.  All very subtle.

I take a taste…

Tangy, citrusy, with a bright carbonation that quickly fades.  There’s a rush of hops that’s like the swelling of music, first sweet then bitter — and that too fades, leaving the mouth more or less clean.  Clean and ready for more.

I have to ponder this a moment.

I like it.  No, I love it.  I really freaking love it.  This is some good brew!

7.9 on the Holy Grail scale, this is hereby officially deemed a Holy Beer contender.

Bravo Bell’s Brewery, well done.

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It’s the end of a particularly hectic day, and I am so in the mood for a brew.

Reaching into the fridge I pull one out at random and it turns out to be Brau Brothers Brewing Ring Neck Braun Ale.

Popping the top, I take a sniff.  Smells sweet.  Faint whiff of dark malts, strong whiff of yeast.  Hmm.

I take a sip.

Ooooohhh.  Oh yes.  YUM.

Not much carbonation.  Sweet and malty, not much hops, easy to toss back and drain.  It isn’t an especially complex taste.  Rather pure, in fact.  Sweet malt, dark chocolate notes, hint of coffee.

Easy to drink.

Good all the way to the last drop in the bottle.

Groovy.  Not a Holy Brew, but darn good!

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I so totally enjoyed Brau Brothers’ Whirly Bird Oatmeal Stout that today I picked up several more of their beers, and this first one, picked at random from my fridge, is their Pilsner Lager.

Popping the cap, I get the crisp smell of sharp hops and light maltiness.  Smells good.  Made my mouth water!

I tip it up to my mouth and take that first sip…

Citrusy.  Smooth.  Hoppy.  Complex, especially for a pilsner, with a medium effervescence that tingles at first, but then leaves your mouth clean with a lingering light bitterness that says … "Excuse me, you need to drink some more."

I’m happy to oblige.

And then at the end I find I wish I’d bought a pack instead of a single.  Good stuff, this brew.  Groovy.  Not quite a Holy Beer, but very drinkable.  I could easily enjoy something like this all evening. 

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• If you had purchased $1000 of shares in Delta Airlines one year ago, you will have $49.00 today. 
• If you had purchased $1000 of shares in AIG one year ago, you will have $33.00 today. 
• If you had purchased $1000 of shares in Lehman Brothers one year ago, you will have $0.00 today.

But, if you had purchased $1000 worth of beer one year ago, drank all the beer, then turned in the aluminum cans for recycling refund, you will have received $214.00.

Based on the above, the best current investment plan is to drink heavily & recycle.

It’s called the 401-Keg.

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Ran into this at the local beer emporium…

If necessity is the mother of invention, this inventor is a serious candidate for AA.

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