The Red and Black

Issue date: 8/28/08 Section: Out & About

Media Credit: JON KIM Most Controversial History: Santa's Butt Winter Porter [Click to enlarge]

Step right up ladies and gentlemen and prepare yourself for the strangest and most obscure elixirs in town.

Think your beer tastes a little bland? How about adding a little Antarctic water to freshen the brew? Wish wine could resemble bug juice? We have just the thing. Witness the mysterious man-shaped bottle or the amazing hairy-legged girl. Take a step outside your comfort zone and dare to turn the page.

Vintage Beer: J.W. Lees Vintage Harvest Ale

Available at Five Points Bottle Shop, Trappeze
$7-9

To beer laymen, the word "vintage" may bring to mind expired or "skunky" beer, images of "bitter beer face" or a collection of throwback Miller cans strewn across the ubiquitous high school drinking spot.

What many people may not know is that some beers, like wines, can actually mature in flavor and aroma over time.

Such is the case with J. W. Lees Vintage Harvest Ale.

Brewed out of a generations-old brewery in Greater Manchester, England, this ale technically belongs to the English barley wine variety, and is known to have a strong, malty flavor with a bite that gets more powerful as the beer gets warmer.

The beer is released only once a year in December. It is recommended that anyone wishing to partake of this particular ale grab a buddy to split it with. In addition to its overpowering flavor, at 11.5 percent alcohol by volume, it may be a little much for the casual beer drinker to manage on his or her own.

Most Controversial History: Santa's Butt Winter Porter

Available at Five Points Bottle Shop
$5

Liquor, beer and cigarettes are notoriously touchy topics, especially when the issue pertains to children.

Such is the case with the controversial label of the holiday-themed Santa's Butt Holiday Porter, an English beer imported to the U.S. by the Shelton Brothers of Belchertown, Mass.

Banned from the shelves of several states, the label depicts a reverse-angle image of the beloved Santa Claus, beer stein in hand, sitting atop a beer "butt" (an enormous cask formerly used in England to store large quantities of beer).

Obviously, any image of Santa is appealing to children and with the reference to a "butt" of any kind, several states decided that the beer was simply too enticing to children who happened to find themselves in a liquor store.

Several pending lawsuits led these offended state officials to reconsider selling this brew. Most decided that the labels would be protected under the First Amendment right to free speech, and so the bans were eventually dropped.

Even so, if you find yourself sipping on a pint of Santa's Butt come Christmas time, you may want to point the label away from any impressionable little ones nearby.

Bang for your Buck: Copper Creek 2 for Tuesdays

On Draft at Copper Creek: English Pale Ale, India Brown Ale, Irish Stout, Special Summer Blonde
$2

Most college students know what it is like to check their account balance and feel their heart sink as they realize that they may be subsisting on ramen and tap water for the foreseeable future.

But to the credit of these unfortunate many, most are resourceful enough to figure out a way to enjoy a stress-relieving drink at the bar on the cheap, whether it is from a ladies' night or from a well-concealed flask.

For those who get tired of these options, or other cheap staples such as High Life or Pabst Blue Ribbon, a refreshing alternative exists at an oasis on East Washington Street.

Although three to four craft-brewed selections are available any night of the week, one can obtain the delicious beverages for a scant $2 a pint on Tuesdays.

Ranging from pilsners to stouts to ales to porters, there is always a beer that appeals to everyone.

Just be sure to tip your bartender, as lines can get long, and for 2 bucks, you're probably going to want more than one.

Artsiest Label: Flying Dog's Gonzo Imperial Porter

Available at Five Points Bottle Shop, Trappeze
$10

Anyone who has stepped foot inside ABC Package or 5 Points Bottle Shop knows how overwhelming the microbrew refrigerators can be to the average person.

These microbrews rely on the staff's knowledge to direct customers to what they may be looking for. But that doesn't work, perhaps a really cool name or eye-catching label does the trick.

Flying Dog achieves the latter with the art of famous cartoonist and caricaturist Ralph Steadman.

Steadman is most recognized as the friend and artistic partner of the late "Gonzo" journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson. His distorted and often disturbing images graced the pages of Thompson's classic novel, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," as well as numerous other articles and books.

In honor of the long-time friendship with Steadman, Thompson and company founder George Stranahan adorned the labels with Thompson's likeness, as can only be depicted by Steadman.

The beer, with its rich, robust flavor and 7.8 percent alcohol by volume, would definitely be appreciated by its inspiration.

Most Expensive: Scaldis Prestige

Available at Five Points Bottle Shop, Trappeze
$34

If you are looking to impress someone with a fancy beer, look no further than Scaldis Prestige, a bière brut (champagne-style beer) appropriately bottled in 750ml champagne bottles.

The bière brut is a relatively new style of beer that is intended to be a sort of crossover beer for folks who like their beverages top-shelf.

Scaldis Prestige comes in a box with two mini-snifters so you can further demonstrate your apparent abundance of class. With an ABV of 13 percent, you will be able to sport a buzz appropriate to the $34 price tag.

Most Exotic Origins: Dogfish Head Pangaea

Available at Five Points Bottle Shop
$10

Few ideas for beer come from watching children's programming, but then again, great ideas can strike at any time.

Dogfish Head founder and president Sam Calagione claims that his idea for Pangaea came to him while watching a program on dinosaurs with his young son.

Pangaea, of course, is the name of the former supercontinent that existed millions of years ago, before tectonic activity broke it apart.

The idea is relatively simple: Make a beer that contains ingredients from every continent on Earth. Logistically, it would be enormously expensive to mass produce such a beer, but it has been produced in limited quantity.

The recipe calls for crystallized ginger from Australia, water from Antarctica (the only possible ingredient able to be harvested from there), rice from Asia, Belgian hops, and etc.

The beer itself is bottled in champagne bottles and contains 7 percent alcohol by volume, so take it easy with this slightly spicy ale.

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