Kommenter Beer Barrel: Jai Alai India Pale Ale

This week, let’s discuss the best thing come out of Florida since . . . uh . . .  oranges!  Oranges are good, right?  Away we go to the land of STRONG BEER TAEKS.

NAME: Jai Alai India Pale Ale

SOURCE: Cigar City Brewing, Tampa, FL; the home of the runner-up Tampa Bay Lightning.  Let’s all give the Lighting a big round of applause for their strong showing in the NHL Playoffs.  I got them a little something, you know, for the effort.

TYPE: American India Pale Ale

REVIEW:  I went to Florida this year in the spring with my kids because Disney marketing is effective (Damn you to hell, you Hitler-loving sociopath), and the only redeemable thing about the state is this stuff.  My friend brought some back to Denver recently, and I had one last night while watching The Daily Show.  As an aside, if you want to see Jon Stewart’s speech about Charleston, just, you know, go to Facebook or Twitter.  Even your racist uncle posted it.  This IPA is good drinkin’.  It has a nice bright copper color, and tastes like all the good things in Florida, like grapefruit, melon, peach, orange and tangerine.  It is important to note here that fruit is all that is good in Florida.  Nothing else.*  Things that taste like all the bad things in Florida include La’el Collins’s asshole, an accidental sip out of someone’s dip cup, Bud Light Mixxxxxxxtails, and Grandma.

Anyway, Jai Alai finishes with a touch of caramel malt and pine-iness that cuts through the bitterness just about perfectly.  It is reasonably hoppy at 70 IBUs, and has a perfect alcohol content of 7.5% ABV for a strong American IPA.  It is easily in my top five IPAs, and ranks up there with the best of them, including Pliny and Odell.

The actual game of Jai Alai, on the other hand, involves Latino men throwing a hard little white ball, also known as a pelota, which is Spanish for “ball”, against a wall really, really fast using a gravy boat made out of straw.  Famous players include Joey Partido, Diego-Irastorza, Pizzoza, and Arriaga II.

GRADE:  A

*I feel bad.  I have a rule that places aren’t bad, just the people that inhabit them, and you can find something nice about any locale.  On that note, here are some additional good things about Florida: my friends I visited, that tasty Cuban style coffee in Miami, really nice beaches, really great fishing, all of the pythons taking over the Everglades, those bridges that connect the Keys, Sep, Sep’s coffee shop (presumably), Kate Upton’s boobs, this guy, and the fact that it takes in all of the left-over East Coast old people (glances at Horatio).

Programming Note: Since many of you are new, here are links to prior beer barrels:  Week 1, Week 2Week 3, and Week 4.  The Uinta one didn’t make it over to the new site.  I blame the St. Louis Cardinals.

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Horatio Cornblower

Also I can do without most of Florida, and I would gleefully push the button that resulted in Disney getting nuked, but Key West is fantastic. I love that place and want to spend far more time there.

Horatio Cornblower

The fuck man? I’m 46 for Christ’s sake. I got at least three good years left in me!

Sep

http://lucky-goat-coffee.myshopify.com/

If anyone is interested in the coffee shop.

Old School Zero

As Dale Cooper would say, it’s DAMN good coffee.

Old School Zero

Everybody but me and the other new hire on my team is either out or working from home today. I’m tempted to get a lunchtime beer.

Sep

I tried to play hooky for a few hours last week for an early weekend primer, but all my friends were not interested or “working”. What a bunch of jerks. You should go for it!

Sep

You’d be surprised how many drunks in FL can’t pronounce “Jai Alai”.

On second thought, no you probably wouldn’t

King Hippo

I was hoping for that gif when I saw the title. There are a surprising number of beer stores in and around my midsize slice of Southern suburbia. Woohoo, heavy university/advanced degree recipient demographics.

makeitsnowondem

the most dangerous game

Sep

Also congrats to your Hockey team.

Horatio Cornblower

I don’t. Christ, what an asshole.

/Hides “Stanley Cup Champions, 1987” tattoo with Whalers logo

Sep

While it’s true, there aren’t many good things to come out of Florida, I am grateful for the weird shit that has shaped me into the degenerate that I am today.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to the gas station to buy some Jai Alai

/adjusts Oakley Blades
/pedals trike into the sunset

ballsofsteelandfury

YEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!

Sep

Truth hurts, and I am no stranger to the truth.

ballsofsteelandfury

The only OTHER redeeming thing I can think about Florida is that the women are super fit in Miami and can go topless on the beach.

Although that’s a bad thing too because I felt like a total fatass.

sunrisesunrise

My wife and I are dropping the baby off with grandma so we can try some new beers tonight. I can’t wait.

sunrisesunrise

I live in the eastern portion of San Diego. So there are a few decent ones around. Ballast Point and Pizza Port are my current favorites but there are so many to choose from. It seems like you can’t float a pass without hitting a brewery. My wife is very limited in what she likes to drink (Blue Moon/Shocktop) but I have been getting her to move past those macros. So if she wants to go and try something, I don’t say no. It usually means she finds one thing that she can drink and I am free to sample everything else.

Tonight, we’re starting at URBN Pizza and Brewery in El Cajon for dinner (or else it’d be a short night) then either Twisted Manzanita, BNS Brewing & Distilling Co., Butcher’s Brewing and/or Pacific Islander Beer Company (all of which are in Santee and less than 15 minutes from our house).

sunrisesunrise

I’ve only been to the OB location because I have a friend that lives by Sunset Cliffs. Their Rye IPL was so good. I was so disappointed when it wasn’t there the next time I went. But their Breakfast Porter is damn good as well. Stone’s Escondido location is always busy. I think I’ve actually been able to sit down there twice. Didn’t know that about the owner but as long as they keep putting out the Enjoy By series, I don’t think it matters.

Horatio Cornblower

I just had Ballast Point’s Sculpin for the first time last week. I was favorably impressed. And pretty buzzed, since after the first 22 oz. bottle the second 22 oz. bottle seemed like the best idea I ever had.

sunrisesunrise

Sculpin is amazing. If you like grapefruit, I highly recommend the Grapefruit Sculpin. I was hesitant at first but it is damn good.

Sep

I tried a Stiegel with Gin last weekend. I dunno how it compares with the Sculpin, but it was surprisingly tasty.

laserguru

I’m stopping by the Whole Foods on my way home tonight and I’m grabbing a bomber of Port’s Wipeout IPA, which I fucking love,a growler of Ballast Point Sculpin and an El Segundo Brewery Blue House IPA.

Wipeout has a really nice amount of carbonation and a great blast of hops. I’ve used it as a gateway IPA for newbies. It’s fucking delicious. We are planning a trip to Del Mar race track this summer and we will be stopping at the Pizza Port in Solana Beach for a few pints.

sunrisesunrise

Quick review: my wife enjoyed her Drake’s Hefeweizen so much she had a second. She tried Bell’s Oberon but it had too bitter an aftertaste for her liking (although I thought it was good). I had a Flintlock Pale Ale from BNS (local out of Santee, CA). Nice taste, not too bitter and only about 5.5%. We then went to Pacific Island Brewery where I got there Dakine American IPA and he wife got their Blonde Ale. The IPA was very hoppy and not too bitter. And the wife enjoyed her Blonde (Heh, heh). Now home to enjoy my Sculpin and Grapefruit Sculpin.

montythisseemsstrangetome

Arriaga II wasn’t nearly as good as the original (obviously), but Arriaga III is supposed to have The Rock in it.

VonTazeMeBro

I went to the liquor store and asked for week four’s beer, but they told me to go fuck myself and kicked me out :-/

makeitsnowondem

This is probably my fault.