Joe Sixpack columns appear Wednesdays in the Appeal-Democrat. For more beer news, visit www.joesixpack.net. E-mail: joe@joesixpack.net.
Joe Sixpack
- The criminality of 'small beer'
- "I will make it felony to drink small beer." — "Henry IV, Part 2." If he had his way, Shakespeare — or at least his memorable character, Jack Cade, who declared his contempt for weak beer — would be filing criminal charges on the f... Full story
- Filtering produces different body
- Kristall weiss: A filtered version of hefeweizen. If that definition doesn't just make your skin crawl, well, you are a cold, heartless turtle. Why would anyone intentionally take one of the world's most-treasured beer styles — a variety whose... Full story
- Beer runners gone bad
- In most of America, "beer run" means one thing: darting out to buy beer for the night. It is a common term understood by pretty much everyone. Except in the Southwest. In the Southwest, "beer run" means heading to the 7-11 or the nearest convenienc... Full story
- Are you drinking in a real Irish pub?
- On St. Patrick's Day, nearly every bar pours Guinness and cloaks itself in shamrocks. But is that enough to be an Irish pub? This is no matter for idle pondering while the foam drops from your stout. In fact, it was the central theme of the first Am... Full story
- The therapeutic value of beer
- Every few months, another article hits the news columns proclaiming the health benefits of beer. Personally, I've always figured this was just the Republicans' idea of healthcare reform: Who needs a single-payer system when you've got a sixpack in t... Full story
- Resurrecting Russian Imperial Stout
- Where would lovers of the world's strongest, darkest beers be without a thin, pale German teenager named Sophia Augusta Frederica? Without her, one of the great chapters of brewing history might not exist. There'd be no stouts named Old Rasputin or ... Full story
- 16 things to know about foam
- We don't pay much attention to bubbles in our beer, unless they're foaming over the coffee table. When it comes to beer pleasure, though, bubbles are right up there with color, aroma, flavor, body and buzz. So, with the help of Roger Barth, Ph.D., a... Full story
- Nothing 'light' about Platinum Bud
- Bud Light Platinum is either completely deceptive advertising or evidence that the beer industry is now presided over by postmodern literalists of the Orwellian order. I'll grant that there's some actual Bud in this bottle, though its sweet, fizzy f... Full story
- 2012 brings fresh new crop of IPAs
- Black IPAs are so 2011. Last year's hot new style — which exploded in popularity before beer gurus could even settle on a proper name (Cascadian Dark Ale? American Black Ale?) — is already getting shoved to the side by a new crop of Indi... Full story
- Products go all-in for the big game
- When did the Super Bowl become an excuse to sell junk to beer drinkers? I'm not talking about beer itself, for it goes without saying that plenty of cold suds are a necessary lubricant for the 12 or so hours you'll be spending in front of the widesc... Full story
