Rosa's Righteous Ribs

Rosa's Righteous Ribs, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

My wife and I love ribs and we're always looking for new ways to prepare them. About 6 months age our friend Rosa shared with us her favorite rib recipe and it quickly became our favorite rib recipe. The best part of this recipe is that it extremely simple. Try it next time your in the mood for ribs and let us know what you think of the recipe.

full rack of baby back ribs
olive oil
red wine vinegar
salt
pepper
oregano
thyme

Place ribs on a large platter. Sprinkle top side of the ribs with olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, oregano and thyme. Make sure to use enough of each so that the whole top side gets treated. Let the ribs marinate all day or overnight in the refrigerator.

Prepare the grill by preheating all burners. Once the grill is hot turn down the outside burners to medium heat and turn off the center burner(s). Place the ribs bone side down in the center of the grill (where the burner(s) are off) cook for 20-25 minutes. Flip ribs and cook for another 20-25 minutes.

That's it! ENJOY!

On this particular night I paired the ribs with one of Jolly Pumpkin's Biere de Gardes "Fuego Del Otono". Her are my tasting notes:

Pours a hazy dirty orange with fluffy white head. Nose is intense. Tart fruit with complex spices, damp earth, vinegar, yeast, madeira - different but very inviting. The mouth feel is thin and crisp. Flavors follow the nose nicely with a tart/sour canvass splashed with dark fruit, oak, cinnamon, clove. This beer drinks more like a wine than a beer and countered the ribs salty/dry spice flavors nicely.

Beer 365 # 227 Long Trail Hibernator

Beer 365 # 227, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #227 Long Trail Hibernator
Pours a clear soft brown with thin tan head. The mild nose is driven by sweet malt, slightly sweet. The mouth is medium to light with ample carbonation. Nice sweet malt flavors with just a hint of spice from the hops. Drinkable but not too memorable. (5.6% ABV)

Beer 365 #225 Stone Smoked Porter

Beer 365 #225, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #225 Stone Smoked Porter
Pours pretty darn close to opaque black with creamy tan head. The nose is what you would expect, some smoke, peat, chocolate, caramel, coffee and some warmth. Mouth is thick but not too heavy, carbonation isn't all that noticeable. The palate follows the nose except the smoke and peat show up mildly in the finish. Nice sipper on a cold night. (5.9% ABV)

Beer 365 #222 Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale

Beer 365 #222, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #222 Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale
Pours a hazy amber color with long lasting sticky white head.Blend of citrus and floral hops up front on the nose with minimal malt showing. Body is medium in weight with subtle effervescence. In contrast to the nose, the malt seems to take the lead on the palate for a second or two before the grassy, piney, citrus hops kick in. Finish in mild and pleasant. (5% ABV)

Beer 365 #215 Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA

Beer 365 #215, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #215 Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA
Pours a briliant hazy orange with bright white head. The cabonation was solid and long lasting. Really big nose of grapefruit, piney hops, "booze", honey, apples and more "booze. Lighter mouth than oone would expect from a beer this big. The flavors were as complex as the nose. Sweet tangerine, pineapple, grapefruit with bitter hop notes showing once in a while. Oh yeah there was the "booze" thing again. Strong and warming to the point were you ask if this is still really a beer. (18% ABV)

Beer 365 #214 Redhook Winterhook

Beer 365 #214, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #214 Redhook Winterhook
Out to dinner tonight so my choices were limited. Pours a deep amber brown (not that I actually poured it) with a little whispy tan head. Mostly malt shows up in the mild nose, perhaps a touch of spice. The mouth is light and almost still. Flavors were as mild as the nose, mostly a malt profile with little else to speak of. (6.1% ABV)

Beer 365 #207 Berkshire Brewing Cabin Fever

Beer 365 #207, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #206 Berkshire Brewing Cabin Fever
Pours a clear rusty orange with chunky, clingy off-white head. The nose wanders from fruity to spicy. Mouth is silky, soft with mellow bubbles. Flavors are rich and inviting. Semi sweet malt is the star with hints of fig, raisin and molasses. Wonderful winter warmer. (6.3% ABV)

How Light Can A Light Beer Get?

Bud Select 55, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

How Light Can A Light Beer Get?

With the introduction of their Bud Select 55, Anheuser-Busch has just answered that question. At 55 calories and 1.9g of carbohydrates, Bud Select 55 edges out Miller's MGD 64 by 9 calories and .5 grams of carbs for the worlds lightest beer. I tried one the other day just to see what a 55 calorie beer tastes like. Here are my tasting notes:

"In the glass the color is a crystal clear, burnt yellow with a short-lived, clean white head. The nose is chock full of grain with perhaps a hint of sweet malt. The mouth is ultra thin with active prickly carbonation. The flavor is hard to describe because it is somewhat non-existant. It tastes like beer infused seltzer water. (2.4%ABV)"

For comparison sake here is a list of some popular beers with their calorie content along with a list of everyday activities and how many calories a 170 lb man would burn performing the activity for 30 minutes.

Budweiser 143
Pabst Blue Ribbon 153
Sam Adams Boston Lager 160
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale 175
Guinness Draught 125
Corona 148
Heineken 166

Grocery Shopping 135
Hiking 231
Jumping Rope 386
Mowing the lawn 212
Shoveling Snow 231
Vacuuming 96
Walking (moderate pace) 115

Personally I'll stick to drinking Guinness Draught and keeping my house well vacuumed.

Super Bowl

Once again the “Big Game" is upon us. It is a time to gather with friends and family, fire up the big screen, and root for your favorite pigskin professionals. Of course no Super Bowl gathering would be complete without the necessary football fare. From light snacks to wicked wings to super sub-sandwiches, we all know that the food is as important as the game itself. But what about the frisky fluids to wash down all that glorious grub? Wine? Whiskey? Water? Nah… nothing says “Super Bowl Sunday” like a cold brewski. Now the real difficult decision begins; which beer to choose from the multitude of beers available. The Super Bowl is an American institution, so I suggest offering a selection of American beers. For snack food I prefer lightly hopped amber ales such as Rogue’s American Amber Ale. This brew has more forward flavors and will pair nicely with everything from chips and dip to zesty potato skins. If you want your mile high grinder to be the star of the show, then I suggest a beer with a less aggressive flavor profile. Sierra Nevada’s Kellerweis would be perfect. Its delicate flavors will allow the savory sub to shine through. If you have a passion for fiery hot wings or chili, then I suggest a porter such as Stone’s Smoked Porter Ale would be a great choice. With great food and great beer it is sure to be a great game, no matter which team wins. to help control the heat. For an all around crowd pleaser that will pair well with just about anything, you can’t go wrong with a Pale Ale. Berkshire Brewing’s mildly hopped Steel Rail Pale Ale would be a great choice. With great food and great beer it is sure to be a great game, no matter which team wins.

Beer 365 #198 Rogue Double Dead Guy Ale

Beer 365 #198, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #198 Rogue Double Dead Guy Ale
Pours a dark amber/red with thick clingy tan head. The nose is warming with notes of sweet caramel malt and crisp piney hops. The feel was rich and dense with just the right amount of carbonation. Flavor started out sweet and malty but the hops countered nicely near the mid-palate to create a nice balance. (9% ABV)

Beer 365 #197 Smuttynose Big A IPA

Beer 365 #197, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #197 Smuttynose Big A IPA
Pours a golden orange color with nice sticky dirty white head. Nice fresh nose of citrus and piney hops with caramel malt that tries to sneak through. The body is light with crisp carbonation. Pine hops lead the way but release control to citrus hops and a nice malt backbone. Very Drinkable! (9.2% ABV)

Beer 365 #196 Southern Tier Heavy Weizen

Beer 365 #196, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #196 Southern Tier Heavy Weizen
Pours a hazy golden yellow with quick forming white head. Nose has banana and clove over a wheat base. Medium bodied in weight with good carbonation. Flavors are true to the style but just amplified a bit, clove, banana, wheat flavors all all present along with a little heat from the alcohol. (8% ABV)

Beer 365 #193 Allagash Victoria Ale

Beer 365 #193, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #193 Allagash Victoria Ale
Pours a hazy golden orange with wispy white head. Nose is chock full of yeast and a mixed medley of fruit (banana, apple, grape). Mouth is light in body with crisp carbonation. Flavors of sweet fruit (you can find the grapes) marry a slightly spicy yeast, the finish is dry and spicy. (9% ABV)

Beer 365 #192 Oan Gat Biere de Garde

Oan Gat Biere de Garde
Beer 365 #192, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365 #192 Oan Gat Biere de Garde
Quite often I am asked to taste friend's homebrews. Many of them are good, few of them are memorable. Oan Gat is definitely memorable. Pours an unfiltered dark amber with nicely forming off-white head. Nose is slightly bready with some dark fruit and spice peeking through. The body is medium with nice, active carbonation. Flavors are intricate yet subtle. Plum like fruit, mild brown sugar and complex spices rest nicely on a bed of malt. Tasty! Chris- feel free to drop off more. (7.3% ABV)

Beer 365 #189 Stone Vertical 999

Beer 365 #189, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #189 Stone Vertical 999
Pours an evil opaque black with quickly disapating tan head. The nose is a complex medely od dried dark fruits, chocolate and coffee. The mouth feel is dense and slippery with meek carbonation. Flavors follow the nose, very complex but very well balanced. (8.9% ABV)

Beer 365 #187 Redhook Treblehook Barley Wine Style Ale

Beer 365 #187, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #187 Redhook Treblehook Barley Wine Style Ale
Pours a copper red color with a lethargic tan head. Sweet fruity nose, some bready malt, some alcohol. Mouth is oily with slow moving carbonation. Sweet sticky malt right away with piny hops quickly following. The hops are a bit strong for the style, drinks more like a DIPA. (10% ABV)

Beer 365 #186 Dogfish Dead Pumpkin

Beer 365 #186, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #186 Dogfish Head Pumpkin
Pours a clear copper color with tan head.
Nose is nicely subdued, with subtle hints of spice and pumpkin. Mouth is medium in body with ample carbonation. Flavors are mellow, nice malt base with cinnamon, clove and pumpkin flavors layered on top. (7% ABV)

Beer 365 #199 New England Elm City Lager

Beer 365 #199, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #199* New England Elm City Lager
Pours a hazy pale yellow color with ample white head. Mild nose of light hops and mellow malt. Mouth feel is light and crisp with good carbonation. Flavors are slightly sweet at first and then fades to a clean crisp slightly bitter finish. (5% ABV)

*it was bound to happen eventually... I missed a day.... must have either spaced it completely or reformatted a card without taking some images off.... oh well...

Beer 365 #185 Kona Pipeline Porter

Beer 365 #185, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #185 Kona Pipeline Porter
Pours a dark brown with tan fluffy head. Nose is a balance of sweet chocolate and burnt coffee. The mouth is mid-weight with really mellow carbonation. The flavors follow the nose but are a little meek and mild. (5.4% ABV)

Beer 365 #183 Victory Golden Monkey

Beer 365 #183, originally uploaded by mitchancona.

Beer 365- #183 Victory Golden Monkey
Pours a hazy golden yellow with a quick head that disappears is seconds. The nose is slightly fruity with hints of banana and apple. The mouth is light, crisp and very reactive. Nice mix of flavors- banana, spice (clove, coriander), apple, raisins. A slight warmth throughout just to remind you of it's strength. (9.5% ABV)