2011 was full of great music, wasn't it? Let have a look at some of the great albums and bottles of booze that made this year so special.
Pallbearer - Demo. Big thanks to DSFCB for introducing me to my new favorite doom metal band. These kids are from somewhere in the deep south but damn if they don't sound like they are from England circa 1972. The lead singer sounds like a young Ozzy so much it is crazy.
And he knew there's no hope of redemption! Don't you want to cut your wrists listening to that? Amazing.
Last spring I listened to Pallbearer constantly and drank Canadian whisky. I enjoyed the 10 year version of Canadian Club. Delightful stuff, really. That was the spring, but moving on to the summer new jams were needed. And what a hot summer it was.
Jan Hammer - Crockett's theme. Felt hot like Miami this summer.
Just put it on repeat for a few hours. Maybe open a bottle of Soberano brandy. That was summer.
Summer was also a time of drinking bourbon and listening to Motorhead. The classic album March or Die was my soundtrack. For some reason it just fit.
In the thunder and heat! Makes me think of the 90s and being young and full of vim and wanting so bad to taste the sweeter things in life like booze and women. Sigh...good times. Speaking of bourbon, I found an old bottle of Ten High 10 and it was pretty good whiskey. Pretty cheap too. If I make it back to the ghetto anytime soon I'll stock up for sure.
Moving on, this next gem is probably the only album released in 2011 that I actually bought.
Mithras - Time Never Lasts EP
Solid Mithras. Enough said.
This was a good year for doom, wasn't it? I can't remember who introduced me to this gem, but thanks for hooking me up with Lycus!
Lycus - Demo. Another American doom demo? We must be on the cusp of a great American doom metal awakening.
Reminds me of Ahab in many ways.
And finally, this was another great year for Bach.
The Emerson String Quartet - The Art of the Fugue. This classic recording of Bach's 24 fugues from the Art of the Fugue is deft and wonderful. I prefer the previous album of Bach fugues simply titled Fugues, but this is still solid work.
Starting this summer I had this set of Gymnopedie by Satie on repeat for hours. Still do. For those quiet moments.
That's kind of the year in music for me. I didn't say it was the year in new music, because I am old and hate new things and there was very little new music worth hearing this year.
It was a good year for booze, particularly whiskey. I'm not one of those whiskey snobs, we keep it real around here. Real cheap. In fact I am working diligently on a formula and a philosophy for making beer as good and cheap as possible. Emphasis on cheap. The sort of thing you could do in your dorm room if you had a sink, a hot plate, and a mini fridge. Just don't forget to invite me to your next college party; I will show up with a fifth of whiskey and sit in the corner and drink and call people peasants and try to get in a fistfight with someone bigger than me. Cheers.
Showing posts with label ten high. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ten high. Show all posts
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Friday, June 3, 2011
Booze seminar field report
Memorial day weekend saw the annual booze seminar in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. For this seminar I brought the following bottles:
Hannah and Hogg blended whiskey, Sunny Brook bourbon, Old Fitzgerald, and Ten High Ten bourbon.
I've already introduced you to Sunny Brook, but it is such a good deal for a great old whiskey I couldn't refuse. And while you might have followed my advice on Old Fitzgerald before, this version had the old fashioned cap seal like Sunny Brook:
The sticker instead of the plastic ring that you find on new bottles suggests this bottle was from the 80s.
Finally, the Ten High Ten came in a tin made in England but cost a mere 15 dollars.
And how did it go? Well, Hannah and Hogg tasted like I thought it would. It was a blend of a solid bourbon with "grain neutral spirits" which is essentially vodka. So it tasted like watered down bourbon. I didn't know you could do that and still call it whiskey. I also don't know why anyone would do that. Anyways you can tell because the whiskey is more straw colored whereas the bourbons are a golden brown color. The label specifies "The straight whiskies in this product are four years old or more. Thirty-five percent straight whiskies, sixty-five percent grain neutral spirits". It was only 9 bucks and is a total curiosity because A) the label says Chicago and B) the brand went under so long ago that google has very little to say about it.
The old Old Fitzgerald tastes pretty much like the new Old Fitzgerald. So Fortune Brands/Jim Beam Global didn't change the formula too much. Maybe there are slight differences, but not enough to concern yourself. A good whiskey, a good price, and sort of a novelty find.
Finally, Ten High Ten. From what I gather on the webernets this bottle was made by Hiram Walker, but the actual booze is a Barton whiskey. Hiram Walker has since sold the brand and Barton is now phasing out the bourbon with a cheap blend. So how did Ten High Ten fare? Quite well. It was, if I can recall, a solid bourbon. Howevah, that bottle went so fast that I had maybe a glass or two. Maybe it was just that good, or maybe the crew just needed to go to town. So I think it was a solid buy but this I don't quite remember.
Additionally, our illustrious host brought several batches of homemade dandelion wine and beer. A few comments.
1. This was my first time drinking dandelion wine, which I first learned about from an episode of Monsters called Mr. Swlabr. Pretty good stuff. The wine, that is. The sparkling dandelion wine (dandelion champagne?) was probably the best batch. If everyone's lawns weren't so darned well manicured around here I would definitely brew my own batch. Also, cue the May Song.
Watch Mr. Swlabr! Good times!
Yeah, May is good.
The homemade beer was good, but very unbeerlike. There were no hops in the brew, which is a big plus for me. Hops give me a headache. Also, these were extra sweet, the brewer added sugar when he bottled it so that the yeast would continue to ferment in the bottle, naturally creating carbonation.
Perhaps the best endorsement of the whole weekend: no hangover. I know, mixing beer, wine, and whiskey and no hangover is a minor miracle. The lesson is stay away from tequila.
Hannah and Hogg blended whiskey, Sunny Brook bourbon, Old Fitzgerald, and Ten High Ten bourbon.
I've already introduced you to Sunny Brook, but it is such a good deal for a great old whiskey I couldn't refuse. And while you might have followed my advice on Old Fitzgerald before, this version had the old fashioned cap seal like Sunny Brook:
The sticker instead of the plastic ring that you find on new bottles suggests this bottle was from the 80s.
Finally, the Ten High Ten came in a tin made in England but cost a mere 15 dollars.
And how did it go? Well, Hannah and Hogg tasted like I thought it would. It was a blend of a solid bourbon with "grain neutral spirits" which is essentially vodka. So it tasted like watered down bourbon. I didn't know you could do that and still call it whiskey. I also don't know why anyone would do that. Anyways you can tell because the whiskey is more straw colored whereas the bourbons are a golden brown color. The label specifies "The straight whiskies in this product are four years old or more. Thirty-five percent straight whiskies, sixty-five percent grain neutral spirits". It was only 9 bucks and is a total curiosity because A) the label says Chicago and B) the brand went under so long ago that google has very little to say about it.
The old Old Fitzgerald tastes pretty much like the new Old Fitzgerald. So Fortune Brands/Jim Beam Global didn't change the formula too much. Maybe there are slight differences, but not enough to concern yourself. A good whiskey, a good price, and sort of a novelty find.
Finally, Ten High Ten. From what I gather on the webernets this bottle was made by Hiram Walker, but the actual booze is a Barton whiskey. Hiram Walker has since sold the brand and Barton is now phasing out the bourbon with a cheap blend. So how did Ten High Ten fare? Quite well. It was, if I can recall, a solid bourbon. Howevah, that bottle went so fast that I had maybe a glass or two. Maybe it was just that good, or maybe the crew just needed to go to town. So I think it was a solid buy but this I don't quite remember.
Additionally, our illustrious host brought several batches of homemade dandelion wine and beer. A few comments.
1. This was my first time drinking dandelion wine, which I first learned about from an episode of Monsters called Mr. Swlabr. Pretty good stuff. The wine, that is. The sparkling dandelion wine (dandelion champagne?) was probably the best batch. If everyone's lawns weren't so darned well manicured around here I would definitely brew my own batch. Also, cue the May Song.
Watch Mr. Swlabr! Good times!
Yeah, May is good.
The homemade beer was good, but very unbeerlike. There were no hops in the brew, which is a big plus for me. Hops give me a headache. Also, these were extra sweet, the brewer added sugar when he bottled it so that the yeast would continue to ferment in the bottle, naturally creating carbonation.
Perhaps the best endorsement of the whole weekend: no hangover. I know, mixing beer, wine, and whiskey and no hangover is a minor miracle. The lesson is stay away from tequila.
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