Hoptober Golden Ale

Phillies lost last night, bummer! Tomorrow they take out their frustrations at home, and are going to put up at least eight runs, my prediction. And what a long-ass day at work! Then I came home and found a stack of papers that I put on my desk to remind me of some shit I need to do NOW (you know, instead of amusing you people). Things like paying the mortgage on time and calling the city to find out why I have a pink water bill invoice which (I guess) signifies a late payment penalty. (This city blows--their website didn't work for a week to pay the bill, so the day before it was due, I sent an email asking for options which they never replied to, at which point I researched how to pay via telephone. I paid lunch time, day it was due, and then they send me this shit?) Well, they are NOT getting my $15 even if it costs me $115 in my time.

I almost forgot to tell you about the car at the stop light in front of me on the way home. Good thing it was a very long light because the passenger opened the door a dozen times to puke her guts all over the road. You know how you swerve to miss dead animals? Well, this puke puddle was big enough to call for a similar response when the light finally turned green!

I'm starting off this weekend with "a veritable cornucopia of the earth". Really, that's what the bottle says about Hoptober Golden Ale brewed by New Belgium Brewing in Fort Collins, Colorado. Yep, you guessed right since you are such a loyal reader! This came home from Texas a few weeks ago, as no New Belgium beers are available in Florida. The label has a bunch of people on unicycles and using hula hoops around a camp fire--I'm pretty sure that is standard stuff in Colorado, along with wind-powered breweries. New-age hippies? Or was the illustration a circus practice?

Anyway, Hoptober has a fruity and floral aroma, nice but not powerful. You start out with malty and spicy flavors in your mouth, and wheat as well. Then the beer turns hoppy and fruity, with pears and citrus flavors. The carbonation is very high and bubbly. The 6% alcohol is completely masked and you finish with a dry metallic flavor left in your mouth. Not horrible, but I'd say boring if it weren't for the giant carbonation and bad aftertaste. Just an OK beer!

Rand Ross Unicycle with Training Wheels (Chrome)

Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver With Heart Rate Monitor

Bell Double Back Two-Bike Trunk Rack