[Nate]

Originally Posted by earlessdog

I had a shot of vodka tonight, fallowed by a St. Bernadus Tripel ale. The vodka wasn't my thing, I thought it was really gross actually.

Plain vodka?

Why would anyone shoot straight vodka?

Vodka is odorless, tasteless, dissolves instantly in liquid, and is among the more deadlier poisons known to man.

All joking aside, the only people who shoot vodka are Eastern Europeans and people looking to get ☺☺☺☺-faced.

If you're not either, the only way you should be drinking vodka is mixed. It is the base of a ton of cocktails.

Seriously. Straight vodka is just ethanol.

Yeah... gas.

[bobthecockroach]

Originally Posted by Nate

All joking aside, the only people who shoot vodka are Eastern Europeans and people looking to get ☺☺☺☺-faced.

Conveniently, their vodka is good enough for this.

[Role Modlin]

Originally Posted by Jeffrey

Clove cigarettes can still be ordered online! Thank goodness; I can't switch to "real" cigarettes. I want kreteks.

I've been trying to move back to my pipe with cavendish.

I recently read an article (I'm still looking for the link) saying that there is a good chance that cloves will be reclassified as mini-cigars and be excluded from the flavored cigarette ban. They would only be available in tobacco shops, but that wouldn't be an issue for those who smoke them.

Originally Posted by earlessdog

I had a shot of vodka tonight, fallowed by a St. Bernadus Tripel ale. The vodka wasn't my thing, I thought it was really gross actually. The ale was awesome, noticeably different tasting than any lager i've had so far. The idea of ales intrigue me now, i'm wanting to venture into some other ales sometime.
Is anyone an ale drinker here? Any suggestions?

Originally Posted by Nate

Plain vodka?

Why would anyone shoot straight vodka?

Vodka is odorless, tasteless, dissolves instantly in liquid, and is among the more deadlier poisons known to man.

All joking aside, the only people who shoot vodka are Eastern Europeans and people looking to get ☺☺☺☺-faced.

If you're not either, the only way you should be drinking vodka is mixed. It is the base of a ton of cocktails.

Seriously. Straight vodka is just ethanol.

Yeah... gas.

Originally Posted by bobthecockroach

Conveniently, their vodka is good enough for this.

Vodka....nasty.

Gin is much beter, but it will still get you sufficiently tanked if you're not careful.

[Jo Mo]

Originally Posted by Leboman

I recently read an article (I'm still looking for the link) saying that there is a good chance that cloves will be reclassified as mini-cigars and be excluded from the flavored cigarette ban. They would only be available in tobacco shops, but that wouldn't be an issue for those who smoke them.

I have a co-worker who smokes them. She, yes she is a girl, was really upset about the ban thing. But, still intends to smoke them regardless. I've tried them once. It takes some getting used to. Thank God I don't smoke anymore. Oh did I mention that, Lebo?

[Nate]

Originally Posted by Leboman

Vodka....nasty.

Gin is much beter, but it will still get you sufficiently tanked if you're not careful.

If it's neat, my preference is bourbon.

[Role Modlin]

Originally Posted by Nate

If it's neat, my preference is bourbon.

My preference is Canadian whiskey on the rocks or mixed with 7-Up. I do like gin on the rocks as well, but the last few times I drank it was with ginger ale.

[tht00]

Originally Posted by earlessdog

I had a shot of vodka tonight, fallowed by a St. Bernadus Tripel ale. The vodka wasn't my thing, I thought it was really gross actually. The ale was awesome, noticeably different tasting than any lager i've had so far. The idea of ales intrigue me now, i'm wanting to venture into some other ales sometime.
Is anyone an ale drinker here? Any suggestions?

The St. Bernardus is not going to be a good representation of the ale family, as it is an abbey-style ale. In my experience, these ales are amazing, and are often regarded as some of the best in the world.

That isn't to say other ales are bad. Not at all. I often find that they are often more flavorful and interesting than their lager counterparts.

It seems that most beers outside of macrobrewing (Miller, Bud, etc) are ales, though, there are certainly notable lager varieties (Maertzen, aka Oktoberfest, for instance).

I'd find a decent amber ale, if you want a more down-to-earth ale to try. It's definitely a go-to ale for me when I don't want anything too crazy. (And if you can, find some of Bell's ales. Fantastic.)

You should try an IPA sometime, but be warned that you may not like your first one, and you may not acquire a taste for it -- they are heavily hopped. It's often a love/hate thing.

And if you are not familiar with it: BeerAdvocate This is an excellent resource for finding and learning about new beers. It isn't gospel -- they are simply reviews from people who 1) love beer and 2) are likely going to have different tastes than you. I've dumped A and B rated beers down the drain, simply because I didn't like them -- my tastes were different. But that is usually the exception -- I've found many, many beers through beeradvocate that I absolutely love, and a handful that I can't stand.

[Role Modlin]

I love a good IPA. As tht00 pointed out, they are different. Very hoppy and often a strong alcohol taste. The Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA is a good one to start with. I prefer the 90 Minute but it's more harsh. I haven't had the opportunity to try the 120 Minute but I hear that it is an experience.

Some people might not agree, but I believe Samuel Adams makes some good beer that will give you a variety of styles without having to spend a lot of money.

You might want to explore Hefeweizens as well.

[Almost Enough]

Originally Posted by Leboman

My preference is Canadian whiskey on the rocks or mixed with 7-Up. I do like gin on the rocks as well, but the last few times I drank it was with ginger ale.

I have some Crown Royal that I've had on the rocks a few times. I love whiskey in general.

Does anybody have any good recommendations for a good tasting scotch that's in the sub-$40 range? I tried Johnny Walker Red Label and really enjoyed it, but would like to try something a little nicer.

[thesteve]

Originally Posted by Leboman

Some people might not agree, but I believe Samuel Adams makes some good beer that will give you a variety of styles without having to spend a lot of money.

+1 to this. Sam Adams is a great choice as far as mass produced American beers go.

[earlessdog]

Originally Posted by Nate

Plain vodka?

Why would anyone shoot straight vodka?

Vodka is odorless, tasteless, dissolves instantly in liquid, and is among the more deadlier poisons known to man.

All joking aside, the only people who shoot vodka are Eastern Europeans and people looking to get ☺☺☺☺-faced.

If you're not either, the only way you should be drinking vodka is mixed. It is the base of a ton of cocktails.

Seriously. Straight vodka is just ethanol.

Yeah... gas.

Well my roommate put me up to it, he told me it's usually only used in mixing drinks, but he insisted. Well, it helps to know that it was supposed to taste that terrible, and wasn't just me.

Originally Posted by Leboman

Vodka....nasty.

Gin is much beter, but it will still get you sufficiently tanked if you're not careful.

I'll have to give Gin a try, I almost bought a small bottle of some Scotch a couple days ago, though Scotch and Gin probably aren't very similar.

Originally Posted by tht00

The St. Bernardus is not going to be a good representation of the ale family, as it is an abbey-style ale. In my experience, these ales are amazing, and are often regarded as some of the best in the world.

That isn't to say other ales are bad. Not at all. I often find that they are often more flavorful and interesting than their lager counterparts.

It seems that most beers outside of macrobrewing (Miller, Bud, etc) are ales, though, there are certainly notable lager varieties (Maertzen, aka Oktoberfest, for instance).

I'd find a decent amber ale, if you want a more down-to-earth ale to try. It's definitely a go-to ale for me when I don't want anything too crazy. (And if you can, find some of Bell's ales. Fantastic.)

You should try an IPA sometime, but be warned that you may not like your first one, and you may not acquire a taste for it -- they are heavily hopped. It's often a love/hate thing.

And if you are not familiar with it: BeerAdvocate This is an excellent resource for finding and learning about new beers. It isn't gospel -- they are simply reviews from people who 1) love beer and 2) are likely going to have different tastes than you. I've dumped A and B rated beers down the drain, simply because I didn't like them -- my tastes were different. But that is usually the exception -- I've found many, many beers through beeradvocate that I absolutely love, and a handful that I can't stand.

Thanks a lot for the information, i'll take it into mind when liquor shopping.
It seems the liquor stores I have been to around here don't have much selection for imported beers and ales, most of those names don't ring a bell. I'll keep an eye out.

[Role Modlin]

Gin and scotch are nothing at all alike. Gin is colorless and smells like...well...it smells like Christmas trees. I've only tried scotch once and I hated it. It was Johnny Walker Red label and I thought it was absolutely horrible.

My favorite gin is Gilbey's, even though some folks give it brutal reviews.

[earlessdog]

Tried the pipe again today. It started off well, I smoked it for a few minutes without having to relight, but almost half way through it went out, and it didn't want to stay lit for very long. I think I packed it too tight.
It wasn't very enjoyable due to the fact that I was shivering in below zero temperature, my hands went numb. I don't know how much smoking i'll be doing this winter, I can't smoke in this house, and it just gets too dang cold up here!

[surferdude9375]

Had a night with the gents at the Cigar lounge and discussed finer things. I smoked a medium/bold Padron 4000 last night and it was quite flavorful. It seemed very inconsistent but I still enjoyed it..

[Nate]

Originally Posted by earlessdog

Well my roommate put me up to it, he told me it's usually only used in mixing drinks, but he insisted. Well, it helps to know that it was supposed to taste that terrible, and wasn't just me.

It's not so much that it's supposed to taste terrible as it is that it's not supposed to taste like anything.

The "taste" is just the sensation of pure alcohol [or as close to it as you'd want to drink] in your throat.