Upslope Brewery

On Tuesday night, my friend Marty and I had the opportunity to attend a tasting of Upslope's complete line of beers (minus one which we had tried before) at The Blending Cellar on Pearl Street. Besides getting to taste some incredible beers, it was a unique chance learning about these beers from a couple of the head guys at the brewery. If you have not heard of Upslope, it is the newest microbrewery in Boulder and has been open for almost a year now. They currently sell only two of their beers in stores around Boulder, their pale ale and their IPA. Being such a small brewery still, they are taking their time to figure out which beer they will can next (another great thing to mention about their beer is they only come in cans!). The tasting offered their two existing beers and three new ones, all of which were entered into the Great American Beer Festival. The three new beers were a brown ale, a belgian dubbel, and a belgian pale ale. All three of these were excellent but the brown ale took the gold for me. Upslope is going to be big one day with their selection of superb brews, and if you are ever in the Denver/Boulder area take some time to visit their taproom in north Boulder or just pick up a six pack of their cans.

Mochi Balls!

"Perhaps one of the greatest treats in the world" to quote a few of my good friends (including myself), I have finally gotten around to writing about these delectable goodies. First off, mochi can come in many different forms and flavors as the word "mochi" just refers to the sweet rice cake outside. The one which I recommend for everyone to try is a mochi ice cream bon bon. You can find these at many Japanese restaurants or if you are lucky enough to have an Asian market in your town, you can find them in a packaged form made by a company called Maeda-En. These come in a box of six and in such flavors as green tea, strawberry, vanilla, chocolate, mango, and red bean. I highly recommend strawberry, green tea or red bean. I would describe these treats as a sweet, soft bite of rice and ice cream which instantly melts in your mouth. Whenever I get someone to try these for the first time, they are completely thrown off by the texture but always come back for more. Last but not least, these little balls which are made almost entirely of ice cream are not actually that bad for you. I have always known Japanese desserts to be a little bit on the bland side, but they make up for it by having the best after-dinner snack in the world.

Big thanks to my friend Benton for introducing me to these little balls of heaven.

I'm goin' to Jackson....

Hello to anyone checking this thing out recently... Last week I decided I was going to pack up all my belongings and move to Jackson Hole. I kept searching for a good deal in Aspen, but living there this winter would be almost impossible for me, and I have too many good friends in Jackson to skip out on what is going to be an amazing winter. This being said, I have been quite busy and consumed in my plans to be keeping up with the blog. I will be in Jackson by the end of the week and posting will resume at a more normal rate. Thanks for your patience and stay tuned for more!

Dr Dog @ Belly Up

Wow.. this band really surprised me on an off-season Saturday night in Aspen. Dr. Dog is one band I have been meaning to listen to for quite awhile now after reading so many great reviews and articles this past year on their most recent album, Fate. Also seeing that they once opened for My Morning Jacket, it was about time I got to check them out...
They began the set with incredible energy which lasted throughout the show and most of the songs held up the same energy with only a few slow ones thrown in here and there. Their music is something out of another decade but it definitely has a twist making it a new kind of modern rock. Their voices are timeless, often sounding like the Beatles or the Beach Boys, but the uplifting bass lines and awesome guitar riffs make the sound very unique. They also had a great stage set-up with plants surrounding the back of the stage. I look forward to listening to more of their music and highly recommend going to see them live for anyone who has the chance.

Basalt to Steamboat

This past weekend, I had the awesome opportunity of joining a couple of my good friends in Steamboat. With the leaves changing and the wonderful weather this time of year, it is great getting to see different parts of Colorado and enjoy what each has to offer. Driving to Steamboat took me on a new route which I had never travelled in this state, CO-131. The landscape along this highway is beautiful, and different than most of its surrounding areas, with lots of small pastures amidst wide, rolling hills and not to mention aspens scattered about everywhere. For a small part of this highway there are some random, jutting rocks similar to "Finger Rock", pictured above. On Saturday, we travelled north of Steamboat, almost to Wyoming, to check out some of the Routt National Forest. This is another beautiful area of Colorado, and below is a picture of something resembling a natural concert hall located in these forests.

Hope you enjoy the pictures and my information on this part of the state. For anyone ever travelling to Steamboat, try taking CO-131 (especially if it's in the fall) for some wonderful landscape.

I and Love and You

"I and Love and You", the latest studio release from The Avett Brothers came out today. If you have not listened to these guys before, go out and buy this album (either way get this album to support these amazing musicians)!! Every one of their previous albums has been a wonderful mixture of both slow, heart-warming ballads and fast paced songs filled with energy. Although I have not bought the album yet, I have listened to it on their website and it seems to be a bit heavier on the upbeat tunes with a little bit more pop sound to some of the songs. Do not get me wrong though, the songs sound great and seem to blend very well into a smooth, flowing album. Also to mention, these guys put on one of the best concerts I have seen, and if you have the chance to catch a show anytime in the future, do not miss out!

Cooper's Brewery - Best Extra Stout

Here's a delicious beer from down under for those of you who love a good stout. With the cold weather coming on up here, I find myself looking for a beer to warm me up and nothing quite does it like a stout. This brew ranks up there with some of my favorite dark beers. The initial taste is a little bit lighter than you would expect with a nice carbonation, but the finish is dark and milky.
It makes for a nice after- dinner beer (like most stouts) and is not quite as filling as most of them. I hope the picture helps you find this treat in the store.