There certainly are a number of things to consider when tasting a new beer - color, clarity, head, taste and finish all come to mind, but it seems a novice beer collector like me needs to be aware of another, sometimes more important aspect of the tasting process as well. I call it Setting and Circumstance. I expounded on the topic (perhaps to excess) at Beer Rant but feel it's important and (hopefully) thought-provoking enough to raise here at Aleuminati as well.



The… Continue

Following some discussion about possible beer trades, I managed to get out to a couple of the local specialty shops here in north Phoenix and found a few local brews generally available as well as some craft beers from the western U.S. (Colorado, New Mexico and California)



And, since I can't very well offer to trade stuff that I myself have not tried, I picked up the following Arizona beers:

Four Peaks Brewing 8th Street Ale (English Style Pale Ale), Tempe, Arizona

Four… Continue