We’ve always dreamed of biking through the great vineyards of Europe.
First, the obsession was the Mosel-Saar-Ruwer in Germany.  Then it was rolling through the great Grand Crus of Burgundy.  Finally, Piedmonte with all its amazing food, wine and love for cycling seemed to be the ideal “road” trip.  But all of these always seemed like a logistical nightmare unless we were willing to pay insane amounts of money to do an organized ride.  And even more costly would be the loss of spontaneity (e.g., “Hey – look at that old …

One of our favorite websites talking about one of our favorite subjects… that’s what we call a perfect pairing.  Jump here to read more on GOOD.

After months of anticipation, the 2010 installment of NYC Craft Beer Week has finally arrived!  So dust off your drinking shoes because it’s going to be a wild and crazy ride.
Aside from some of the hotly anticipated events such as dinner at Mas and home brewer apartment tours, one of the best parts about the next 10 days is simply visiting some new (or oft overlooked) bars participating in this year’s Passport.  As a public service to all New York imbibers, we’ve decided to publish our closely guarded and way-too-much-time-spent-on-developing …

Now that we all know just how important it is for everyone to participate in NYC Craft Beer Week, here’s exactly how to do it.  It’s simple really.  Just go online here or go to one of the participating bars to pick up one of these NYC Beer Passports:

At the frankly ridiculously low price of $10, you can’t afford not to get one.  Plus, most of the coupons in the Passport have offers which extend well beyond October 3rd, when NYC CBW ends.  But time is running out so hurry …

New York City is a tough place to make it… it doesn’t matter if you are a hard working indie rock band, an uber-talented pastry chef or a humble handmade pork dumpling shop.  Why is that?  First off,  there’s tens of thousands of people who are trying to do the exact same “thing” as you – no matter what that “thing” might be – and New York’s Darwinian culture only recognizes the most successful of the lot.  Second, to make matters worse, a clear hierarchy has been established in New …

Like white pants, summer beverages loose a bit of their momentum after Labor Day so we thought we’d share a few of our favorite summer bottles to help you plan for the long weekend.
Beer: Modelo Especial – in a can.
Yes, we’re excited about the big, heavy triples being back in season again but, let’s be honest: there’s nothing that screams summer like a Negra Modelo, in a can, in the sun. Pair it with corn on the cob (dressed with mayo, cayenne pepper and, yes, processed parmesan cheese), guacamole or, …

On a recent night, we tried out a few new bars in the neighborhood.  It wasn’t anything we planned… rather, it happened organically when a bar name caught our eyes or we overheard some cool tunes out on the sidewalk that drew us in.
Inevitably, the first visit to a bar is really a feeling out exercise… a quick scan of the various sizes and shapes of the beer taps might reveal the tell-tale shark of Dogfish Head, the dream catcher-like Magic Hat, or that black shalaylee-shaped handle of Guinness.  A …

If there is one thing that we love as much as a nice glass of wine, it’s a great beer.  There’s just something striking about a well made beer – when the hops, yeast, malt and water come together in a spectacular symphony of flavor and aroma that make you think to yourself “my… that’s a fine pint.”
We recently had the pleasure of experiencing some truly special beer and tasty “bar food” on a recent trip to Spuyten Duyvil.  Belgian beer is definitely the forte of this tiny, unpretentious-for-Williamsburg, watering …

Probably the most difficult of all the Belgian Abbey beer producers to spell, the monks at Westvleteren produce what many consider the finest beer in the world.  We didn’t have a car and according to the beer-phone (now a way-too-high tech for monks schedule), we had just missed our opportunity to pick up a couple cases anyway from the abbey itself.  So, after searching all over Brugges, Brussels and what seemed like every other city starting with the letter B in Belgium, we finally landed a small cache of Westvleteren …