Liefmans Goudenbond, tasty

I was abused

I had this past friday off and decided to spend it doing some photography in and around Yokohama. What an amazing day it turned out to be though it had nothing to do with any of that photo junk. Mid-day rolled around and my thirst was starting to pick up, but knowing that most Yokohama bars don't open till 5 p.m. I went searching for a good bottle. What sucks about Yokohama is that there isn't a decent bottle shop, uh, closer than Tanakaya - in Tokyo. There is a Queens Isetan in the Yokohama train station and they have more than anybody else; so I headed over. Found a couple things that looked nice but I wasn't in the mood for a pilsner or pale lager so I skipped out on those and decided I'd burn a couple hours waiting for the pubs to open up. I don't see a problem with that. I hadn't been to Craft Beer Bar in a while so I decided I'd check them out again. It's a real nice bar, but I always feel underdressed when I go in there, which makes me pretty uncomfortable. I quickly got over that upon seeing they had the Baird Double IPA on tap! I wanted to try a couple different things while I was there but after that first glorious sip of the Baird I knew where I was staying till my cash ran out. Nice copper orange in color with an aroma of citrus, grapefruit, orange, and a caramel malt background. I love that caramel malt. I dig big time hops in my DIPAs, but not enough breweries give them the malty backbone that IPAs desperately need. The Baird DIPA had a near perfect body making the flavors really stand out. Big grapefruit, citrus hop bite followed by some pine and herbal notes. That malty backbone keeps the hops grounded. Bitter and delicious, I wish they'd bottle this.

I resolve to be a better drinker

Things I'll do to make this a blog to be reckoned with:

1. Drink more Japanese brews.
-Included with this one is writing more useful reviews; finding more seasonal and difficult to find Japanese brews.
2. Do more beer research/reading
-I'd like to actually add something to the world of beer blogs and not be just another reviewer of beer.
3. Continually improve my beer photography
-Not only improve my equipment but increase the creativity of my photographs

I think three is achievable, any more would be asking for a letdown. I resolve to start working on all of these right after I recover from my New Years celebrations...whew.