Saint Patricks Day, Cork, Ireland.

Howdy Folks

There has been many a time when i have fallen around various towns and indeed the city as well on this most drunken of days. i have carelessly swigged yellow (or Green) fizzy water and made a complete arse of myself. this year however i was determined to be different. i stayed SOBER all day and even all night not a drop of anything legally considered to be alcoholic passed my lips and boy oh boy was i in for a surprise.

the day started rather slowly with Morgan and I heading down to the Grand Parade in Cork City to check out the food festival which was by then in full swing. Quickly we joined a Queue for some food which we had heard was very good. this food was being served by Barracuda Barbeque Company from Kinsale. I have never had anything like it, Bratwurst and Herbed Potatoes in a Chinese Style takeaway box with some fried onion on top, so simple but abou the best thing i've eaten in a long time, if you see these guys anywhere try the sausage and spud punnet you won't be disappointed.

We the watched the Parade which passed without a hitch, so far the day had been a big thumbs up, after the parade we went and visited th Bierhaus on popes quay in the city, here i had two weihnstephaner non alcoholic beer, it's nothing special but it knocks the socks off Becks any day.

after this we went and enjoyed some more weihnstephaner in the Oval on south main street, followed by heading to Captain America's for some food and cheesy St Patricks Day style Irish Music.

After this it all wen't wrong, usually by this point in the evening i was very drunk on a barstool somewhere or already in bed but this year with sober eyes i saw it all, it was madness, Gardai required at every street corner, the street was a veritable obstacle course with vomit everywhere and drunks fighting in middle of the road, at one point i saw some lad vomit on his burger and then pick it up again before deciding that it was in-edible. i always wondered why the rest of the world saw us as nothing other than a bunch of drunken Oirish Louts now i know, it's because on Our most publicised day the vast majority of irish twenty-forty somethings become a big shiny flashy neon stereotype of what it is to be Oirish.

Next year i'll stay for the food Fair and the well organised Parade, but will exit the city good and early, i'll ignore the news, and refuse to listen to the stories others tell, I'll imagine that the world see's us as a, well educated, funny, pleasant, population and not just a bunch of drunken idiots.

beer tasting, Baltika 8, Baltika 6, Fullers ESB, Black Sheep Emmerdale Ale

Howdy Folks, Back Again with some more beer tastings, in this post i will be going over my tasting notes from four beers as stated in the title. so ets get started eh?

First up Baltika 8 Hefe-Weizen:
powerful spicy nose with hints of citrus fruits,possible clove. this fades with time.

On first taste there is little or nothing to talk about except a mild clove aftertaste which doesn't really last,a few tastes later and i'm afraid that there is little more to add except a rather unpleasant tang before the clove.

this beer has little to no body and feels very light in the mouth, i am not impressed, having tried various Baltika beers in the past i feel that this has generally summed up the brand for me, not good.

@5% alc by volume i was expecting more from this beer but was sorely disappointed. My final word: i definitely would not buy this beer again, just plain nasty.

Next up is another from Baltika their Baltika 6 Porter:
Good malty nose with a distinct lack of roasty aromas.

on Initial tasting there is a strong malt flavour slightly bittersweet, unusual but not bad aftertaste which once again fades Quickly, this is definitely a porter but seems to me to lack any special destinctivness that would set it apart from any other standard porter.the same unpleasant tang as the baltika 8 appears after the third swig. it may be something to do with the ingredients or por storage i'm not sure.

once again there is little body to this beer a bit too easy to drink for such a malty flavour.

with it's 7% alc by volume this is the strongest beer of the post but it sure doesn't feel like it. my final word: of all the baltika beers i've tried this is the best although it still falls short of the mark when compared to some of its competitors.

Next up is a beer made Fullers this beer i liked Fullers ESB:
light floral nose with fruity berry like aroma with a not too heavy malt backbone.

good hop profile (from which my inexperienced palatte cannot distinguish one hop from another) with a light lasting bitterness smooth and easy to drink.

this beer has good body which is not overly heavy nor overly light, i see this beer as an evening beer, maybe not session strength but close enough.

@ 5.9% alc by volume this beer is perfect for chilling out in the evening and reflecting on your day, my final word is: a superb beer which excels in many areas but fails to point out in which one it excels most.

the final beer of my post is a Gimmick from Black Sheep Brewery it is their Emmerdale Fine Dales Ale:
light to nonexistant aroma with little or nothing to offer me, very faint scent of malt.

Bland and uneventful much like the show itself, I keep waiting for the Plane to crash and kill off the dullness but alas it hasn't.

body is once again pretty standard not great not terrible, once again i'm not impressed but in regard to this beer i'm not sorely disappointed, In My Opinion this is a gimmick beer, designed for the masses of bland, soap opera watching, yellow water swilling, people.

the Alc content is pretty average too 4.2% by Volume but that was to be expected, my final word: probably fine for the wollpack but certainly not for me.

well that's me for this post if you have been affected by any of the views or opinions expressed in this post please leave a comment.

if you feel that i have been too harsh on a particular beer or not harsh enough please feel free to leave a comment.

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