from the twisted minds of snm
Could not resist a “new” offering from New Belgium, not a IPA! It turns out the Belgian style dubbel was one of their first beers. Pours a cloudy dark rose brown with medium light head. Dark malt aroma, hints of prune. Gives way to bitter and some alcohol warmth.
3 out 4 Belgian style monkeys.
Found at Marukai and Donqi, from the label, “Designed by Far Yeast Brewing, Tokyo. Produced by Brewery De Graal, Brakel, Belgium.” So we have Belgian brewed beer for a Japanese company imported by a New Jersey company. Pours a cloudy yellow, medium strong head. Citrus and coriander aroma, though the spice is subtler than others. Faint hint of skunk, also fair bitter. Finishes with astringent on the tongue and lingering spice.
3 out 4 confused Japanese Belgian monkeys.
Special release from Fat Tire, this Belgian white pours cloudy yellow with medium head. Some floral with a stronger citrus aroma and then the spice. Finishes with a nice grain. Bitter is well controlled. Medium mouthfeel. This is a great white, the coriander spice is more subtle than a Hoegarten.
4 out 4 white monkeys.
Recently opened up in the Hawaii Kai shopping center down near the City Mill side, this east coast franchise. On my way home from a early Olomana ride, I was in need of lunch and decided to give it a try. Seeing where it’s from, I had to do it and go for the cheese steak. I did go a bit non traditional and got the chipotle version, with chipotle mayo. They take things a step further and hand cut the meats and cheeses per order. They toss the seasoned meat, onions, and bell peppers on the grill, but against what some might consider authenticity, put a slice of white American cheese on. No Velveeta, I have no complaints. Stuff it into a hoagie roll and there you have it. A gooey mess of tasty goodness, complete with occasional gristle! No processed meat product there. My only complaint would be that it was not chipotly at all. I actually wonder if they forgot.
3 out 4 cheesy monkeys.
What with everything going on the past few days, in one of the evenings I was need of a easy meal. I could have grabbed some take out somewhere, but I had some good salmon sitting in the fridge that I bought before this all went down. Perfect opportunity to break out more Space Food. Grabbed another packed of the previously reviewed miso soup, and then this new packet. This one is a packet of freeze dried gomoku, “five item” rice, spoon includes! The various little squares mention disaster, outdoors, long term storage, 60 minutes with water, 15 minutes with hot water, 373 calories, spoon includes. Continue reading ‘Space Food II’
“Don to yasai omisoshiru” my translation? Boom, vegetable miso soup! My latest foray into what i call J astronaut food. Open the metalized plastic packet and you find what looks and feels like a block of foam, not fru fru bubbly flavoring stuff, but like styrofoam. Pour boiling hot water over it and watch it magically transform into miso soup with vegetables, this particular one is kabocha flavor. 
Its quite amazing, it reconstitutes into soup with recognizable chunks of kabocha, string beans, cabbage. It tastes quite good, and it even somehow retains texture! I dont know if Japanese astronauts actually eat this, but i can imagine its well suited for it.
4 out 4 space monkeys.
And now for Samuel Adam’s entry into this seasons Octoberfest beer. Pours clear dark amber medium head. Mild hop aroma, medium bitter that tapers. Finishes with a nice malt and nut. Medium crisp mouthfeel. Easy drinking but some substance to make for a good fall beer.
Easy 3 out 4 October monkeys.
Pro Bar Fuel Blueberry Pie
When you’ve been riding for 8 days straight and eating the same sets of energy bars, you run into food fatigue and don’t want to see another bar for a while. It’s been a few weeks now and were back riding at home, but I still have some of that fatigue, so I decided to try one of these that I haven’t before. The picture and name conjured up images of yummy pastries. Imagine my disappointment when I tore the package open and saw this. I didn’t expect to see a slice of pie like in the illustration, but I had at least hoped for something like a Pop-tart. What about this is blueberry pie? OK, there is the aroma of blueberry, but this is pretty much a fig bar. Not even a fig Newton with the somewhat crusty stuff. It’s not aweful, but it’s not PIE!
I’m tempted to give it less because I feel deceived, but I’ll give it 2 out 4 pie coveting monkeys.
This years SN Oktoberfest seasonal. Pours clear light amber, medium strong head. Hop aroma, but not floral. Also a fair amount of bitter yields to malt. Medium mouthfeel.
A pretty good offering, but doesn’t make me sit up and cheer.
3 out 4 Oktober monkeys.
OneUp Components is a Canadian company based in Squamish that produces various mt. bike accessories. Previously probably more well known for their drivetrain parts to extend your gear range. Their newest bit is this clever multi-tool that stashes either in your fork steerer tube or in their new mini-pumps. They managed to fit 2 through 6 and 8mm Allen wrenches, T25 Torx, tire lever, emergency chain breaker, quick link breaker, flat screwdriver, 4 sizes of spoke wrench, a spare chainring bolt, slot to store quick link, and cassette lock ring notch tool. Spec also lists presta valve core.