Pink Eyed Jim’s Blog

Cherry Hill, NJ’s Flying Fish Brewing Company released their Grand Cru Winter reserve last month, and according to their website, it’s available until February 1st, 2006. You’d be doing yourself a favor by picking up a six pack - or better yet a case - of this fine Belgian-style ale.

Maybe I’m biased - I’m a huge fan of Belgian-style beers (as well as their actual Belgian counterparts) - but this beer is awesome. It is “very lightly filtered” according to the Flying Fish website, so the beer is slightly opaque, bright yellowish color (Did I mention I love unfiltered beers too?). A smell yeilds aromas of sweet rich malt, with a noticable sourness. This is a very malty beer; it tastes raisiny and rich. The sour note, added by the use of acidulated malt, lifts the beer’s flavors just enough to allow the fruitiness of the Magnum and Styrian Golding hops to shine through the rich heavy maltiness of the brew. This nice rich ale is the perfect brew for a blustery November evening.

4 out of 4 Bill O’ Reillys

If I make any reference to “judging a book by its cover” in this article, feel free to e-mail bomb me.

Anyway, the label on this bottle of blush is simply attractive. Judge for yourself, it’s up there. What should really interest us is the pinkish-orange liquid inside the bottle. It’s quite good too.

With notes of raspberry and orange and subtle hints of sweetness and pear, this wine is all-around-fruit. This is a nice wine for relaxing on a spring or summer day, also good for dessert.

Quite enjoyable. I give this 4 out of 4 Bill O’ Reillys.

I purchased a 22.7-ounce bottle of this fine beer at Joe’s Liquors on Central and Louis in New Brunswick for $3.99. I’ve been meaning to check this out sooner, and after tasting this, I’m upset that I haven’t until now. It’s simply delicious - light and crisp like a lager should be, but still has an incredibly deep malty richness and a vigorous bitterness provided by ample hopping.

I give this 4 out of 4 Bill O’ Reillys

Seattle-based Jones Soda Co has just released their annual (for three years now) Holiday Packs. Their off-the-wall “zero-calorie meal replacement beverages” flavors include Turkey and Gravy, Wild Herb Stuffing, Brussels Sprouts, Cranberry, and Pumpkin Pie. Yes, they’re all sodas. Last year, Jones’ Holiday Packs were all sold out mere days after their release, and they were commanding bids of $50 for five bottles of soda on ebay. We bought three packs of these today and I’m now trying my way through them. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Turkey and Gravy

The soda is tan and murky and has a smell that reminds me of, well, turkey fat. A sip reveals a slightly sweet rich turkey flavor that I can only describe as completely unique. Not exactly my cup of tea, but definitely worth it to try once.

Cranberry

Smells like cranberry. Good Start. Tastes like cranberry. Good finish.

Wild Herb Stuffing

Smells a bit buttery, and a bit citrusy and a bit chalky, kind of like a Flinstones vitamin. Tastes buttery and herbaceous and just a little sweet, more like seltzer. This is actually quite good.

Brussels Sprouts

This smells really buttery and almost a little sour. I’m kind of afraid of tasting this one. But here goes nothing.

My worst fears were confirmed; this tastes like the Bertie Botts Vomit Flavored Jellybeans, or even sour milk. Really gross.

Pumpkin Pie

This smells like sweet pumpkin and cinnamon and nutmeg. Quite the opposite of the above soda, I can’t wait to try this one.

Wow. This is good. Sweet and rich and spicy, it definitely doesn’t taste like a zero-calorie soda. Mmm.

All in all I defintely liked the sweet flavors best, it would be hard to pick a favorite among the cranberry and the pumpkin pie. The wild stuffing is also quite good too. The fact that these guys are donating a part of each sale to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital alone makes these purchases worth it. And hey, you can tell your friends you’ve had turkey and gravy soda.