World Cup Preview Part One: Groups A, B, D, and G

For soccer junkies like me, today begins the greatest month every four years. The time when the sport known to the rest of the world as futbol dominates highlights of sports networks, even here in the United States. The time when half of the world arrives at work sleep deprived from waking up in the middle of the night to watch their team play. The time when you just hope your boss is alright with you taking off early to swill beer (hopefully of the craft variety) and chant with your fellow countrymen to root on your national team. It is our playoffs and Super Bowl all wrapped up into one month with games on every day. For the soccer junkie, this is our fix — it keeps us going, ups our tolerance, and leaves us wanting more when it is all over. Time to get hooked. Here is the first half of your guide to all of the teams and players, dramatics and theatrics that are the biggest sports spectacle in the sports world, the FIFA World Cup. Read More

Tips for Watching the World Cup

Having been involved with soccer since I was old enough to kick a ball, I have found it difficult at times to be a soccer fan in the good old U.S. of A. For most of those years, a stigma came with both playing and watching soccer, and it was not a pleasant one. Most of it had to do with people not knowing the game, and America not being at the foreground of the sport. However, in the last decade a soccer playing generation have become adults in America, and with their maturation has come the evolution of soccer as a popular sport to watch. Read More

140th Kentucky Derby Preview

The first Saturday in May. The day that every person who has graced the Commonwealth, no matter the time spent, claims their Kentucky heritage proudly and (quite often) obnoxiously. This … Read More

NCAA Championship Preview: UK vs. UConn

Let me start off by saying that I have a nearly complete piece written about Major League Baseball’s Opening Day, complete with pictures and stories and… You are going … Read More

Show Me the Money | NBA Two Year Policy

What do you think of the “One and Done” Rule (a.k.a. the NBA eligibility rule)?

Two years ago after Kentucky hoisted the National Championship trophy: the rule isn’t perfect, but … Read More

A Dream Deferred: Reflections from the UK Craft Beer Writing Symposium

Fourteen and a half years ago, spending an entire Saturday in a lecture hall fell somewhere between being set on fire and being water-boarded on the “things I want to do” list. Fourteen and a half years ago, paying ten dollars for beer was fine, as long as I got at least eighteen of them. Fourteen and a half years ago, a super-sized value meal from the closest fast food chain equated to a “good meal.” Fourteen and a half years ago, sitting in the Center Theatre at the University of Kentucky for my Freshman Orientation, bored and self-assured, I knew exactly who I was and what I wanted to do. Confident in my abilities and sure of the direction of my life. I wanted to be a writer, journalist actually.

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Ultimate 6er | In Honor of Our Presidents

President’s Day is a National Holiday because it is important to remember from whence we came. (Even though we went to school as a makeup snow day, but I am not bitter, no no, I am not bitter.) The link between leader and his lager goes back to the founding of this country, as Presidents needed their beer to deal with the pressures of office. Washington and Jefferson were home brewers (at least according to the tours of their estates). Madison encouraged citizens in all states to produce their own brew and even floated the idea of a National Brewery. More recently, President Obama made headlines brewing brewing a batch of White House Honey Ale. This Ultimate 6er is for our Heads of State. Read More

Three “Must See” Sporting Events IF You Call Yourself a Sports Fan

So you call yourself a sports fan? The Super Bowl hangover commonly refers to the Monday morning after the Super Bowl; however, from a sports fan’s perspective this refers to the down time between the end of football season and the beginning of NCAA March Madness. But this year especially, I am here to tell you that your sporting fanhood should be rejoicing, not pouting. Here are three things you need to be watching if you call yourself a sports fan.

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The Reasons to Love County Boy Brewing are “Simple”

No matter day or night, as the door closes behind you in the Country Boy Brewing taproom, natural light disappears. Darkness descends. The taproom is lit by dim bulbs, warm in color … Read More

Deschutes Brewing Mirror Pond Pale Ale

5% ABV, 40 IBUs

Trees, snow-capped mountains, jagged rock faces and their inverted reflection on pristine water. Nature. You vast, beautiful, dwarfing bastard. You produce all of those things which … Read More

Dieu du Ciel ! – Aphrodite

ABV – 6.5%

Last week it was colder in Lexington, KY than it was in __________ (name a really cold place). How about Quebec? That is in the Great White … Read More

Ultimate 6er | Christmas Movies

The holiday movie onslaught has begun. Here are my six favorite Christmas Movies, and a thoughtful beer to accompany each of them. Read More

12 Beers of Christmas Day 7: Ommegang Adoration

10.0% ABV

As the shopping days wane before gift-giving commences, those in my line (the line of purchasing procrastination) get ready to start thinking of ideas for the buying spree. As has always been the tradition of my brother and I, we go out on the 23 or 24 of December and buy all of our gifts in a matter of a few hours. We have a generally good idea of exactly what we need to get, and we spend our time buying, not shopping. As gift ideas seem less and less inspired every year with gift cards being the easiest way to shop for everyone, I became inspired when I saw the Christmas seasonal from Ommegang brewery. The label of this beer features a silhouette of the three wise men bearing their gifts in the form of tulip glasses and bombers all in a boat the shape of a crown. Beer as gifts: sounds wise to me.

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12 Days of Christmas | Day 2 West 6th – Christmas Ale

9.0% ABV

Egg nog and chocolate, the essentials of Christmas. The egg nog all rich and boozy, smelling of nutmeg and bourbon, often hangs up in my mustache waiting for retrieval from my bottom lip. And as I sip the egg nog various dishes filled with assorted chocolates garnish the rooms, tempting me to sin again with each pass. Like Romeo, give me my sin again. Conversation stays non-confrontational and smiles stay affixed to faces, as we enjoy each other’s company or at least wish to not upset the jovial vibe that has been created by loved ones and the proper proportions of alcohol. Hey, I thought this was a beer blog not “The Night Before Christmas”…right you are. I digress from my Rockwellian fantasy, now on to the important stuff – beer. Where does beer fit in to this holiday utopia? Read More

Kentucky Basketball

I am a college basketball fan. No, that is inaccurate. I am a University of Kentucky basketball fan, which means that I follow college basketball with a blue-tinted lens and … Read More

Roundtable Discussion: Survival Partner & Beer

With Catching Fire coming out this week, and while in the midst of another Walking Dead season, we need to look into survival. If you were in a survival situation … Read More

Schlafly – Tasmanian IPA (Special Release)

ABV – 7.2%, 60 IBU

Drooling, slobbering, out of control, the Tasmanian Devil etched himself into my mind from a young age, terrorizing the Looney Tunes universe throughout my childhood. … Read More

Champs and Chumps: NFL Playoff Picture is Coming into Focus

It is time, once again, to start talking about the playoffs. We are 11 weeks into the 2013-14 NFL season, and one thing is clear there are two tiers right now in the NFL. Tier 1: Seattle, New Orleans, Denver – these teams all have scary good offenses to go with really good defenses. Tier 2: everyone else in the playoff picture. – these teams have shown the ability to win (sometimes against good teams and usually at home), but are all inconsistent in big places. Read More

Savor Kentucky: A Celebration of the Commonwealth

On the weekend of November 1-2, the Horse Capitol of the World, Lexington, Kentucky, played host to the Alltech National Equestrian Games. This event attracts horse aficionados from all over the country to our quaint city to share in our first-class horse facilities, our hospitality, and our culture. But there was more than horses on display this weekend at the Kentucky Horse Park, as Alltech introduced patrons to the tastes of Kentucky with  an exhibition of Kentucky foods, bourbons, and craft beers, aptly named Savor Kentucky.

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The Nuances of Baseball

The official Major League Baseball Rules Book is a 125-page document that explains everything from how to play the game to how to keep statistics. Outside of that document there exists a set of unwritten rules that players, managers, and umpires use to govern the gray areas. This post season the legitimacy of some of these rules both written and unwritten have been called into question in regards to their legitimacy and their ability to affect the outcome of a game.  Read More