Beer and Burgers: Goose Island:

David and I went last Thursday to Party Source for beers and burgers. We made sure to sit in the sun on the north side so I would be nice and warm.

and right next to the poison!

David and I had all but two of the beers before, the Summertime ale and the Oatmeal stout.

Featured beers: the 312 (4.2 ABV), the Goose Island IPA (5.9 ABV) the Oatmeal stout (5.1 ABV) Summertime (4.2 ABV) and Matilda (7.0 ABV).

David and I were smart this time and went back to the beer section to pick up a four pack of Matilda, which we flash chilled and brought to the table. I have a bottle opener on my keychain, like a beer boy scout. I’m always prepared.

The interesting thing was that the Matilda we purchased was 2008 and the samples were from the 2009 batch, enabling us to compare the two. Last year’s batch had more alcohol and harsher flavors, and this years showcased the banana flavors and was more mellow.

312

David and I liked the 312, which we had before. The IPA was OK. The oatmeal stout was nice and balanced. But…

I did not like the summertime ale. Blech.

We were excited to see Eddie Anderson from Goose Island again. We first met him at the Beer and Cheese tasting at Catskeller. He’s very friendly and knowledgeable, and we spent a good deal of time talking to him after he spoke about aging IPA’s and the Matilda batches.

I lamented that the Imperial IPA was not available in bottles. The reason for that, he stated, was that the hops started to drop off so quickly, and when people purchased it they were very confused and thought they got a bad batch.

Eddie!

And there was music. He had a request list. I was very tempted to request “Why don’t we get drunk” by Jimmy Buffet, but I restrained myself.

The burger was a “pub burger” inspired, served on a toasted English muffin with cheese and pepperoni. I really liked the English muffin idea.

And do you see those, on the left? Those pickles? They are the best. Pickles. Ever. After we were finished I tracked down the chef and asked him what they were. He showed me that they were Tony Packo’s sweet and hot pickles, and I picked up a jar. I ate some more when I got home. Just pickles on a plate. They’re that good.



We attended last nights Beers and Burgers, featuring Belgium last night and had a great time. The mysterious waffle man made an appearance, which was very welcome. More to come on that once I import, edit and upload the pictures.
This weekend is the Flying Pig, which runs right by our apartment. Good luck to all the participants!