My Two Dads and Other Anomalies

Finally, some new beers to talk about...or are they new? In Rogue's case, I have been excited to see a new beer from them, only to realize it was a beer I had already tried and was re-packaged under a different name. They used to make a "Dad's Little Helper" that was a Malt Liquor. This new Dad's Little Helper is sure to be a new version, considering that it is a Black IPA. Being a Pacific Northwest brewery, I'm surprised they haven't embraced the "Cascadian Dark Ale" name that breweries in that area have used for beers of that style. This version of Dad's Little Helper is 7% ABV and sells for 5 to $6.99. I saw this version at Kelly Liquors at Mountain Run shopping center.

Also spotted at the same Kelly Liquors was maybe not an anomaly, but the beer's label certainly pictured a scene out of the ordinary. Big Sky's Buckin' Monk is a Belgian Tripel that comes in at a hefty 10.5% ABV. We never get a large allotment of the Big Sky special releases so you may want to act fast if you plan on trying this one. I only saw about six bottles at Kelly's, and the 25 oz. bottles are selling for $14.99 each. That's about the same as you'd pay for the other big bottle Big Sky releases like Smoove Cherry, Olde Blue Hair Barleywine, and Ivan the Terrible.



Lastly...not much of an anomaly for a true "beer geek", right? We all have that day where we pick up five 30-packs of Miller High Life and another 30-pack of the Light version for when the regular High Life is just a little too much. Think I should change my moniker after seeing this picture? Tough crowd! I was already chastised and had my "beer geeknees" challenged in the Alibi weekly newspaper letters section for saying in a story that I didn't like to drive the 12 miles to Turtle Mountain brewery. In the same week when I had returned from a $1000-plus beer trip to Dark Lord Day. But in my defense of the Miller takeover of my trunk, the beer WAS priced at $8.99 a 30-pack at that Kelly Liquors location! And they also have the same deal on 30-packs of Pabst Blue Ribbon and Coors Extra Gold. So, judge me if you will, but I am drinking a 2009 Goose Island Bourbon County Stout as I write this.