Beer school and barley wine

Hi folks.

We're doing Beer School tomorrow night at 7pm, at Monty's Korner. The subject: Beers of the Great Lakes. Some of the finest craft beers on the continent come from their shores, and, dammit, we're gonna taste 'em. Patrick is out of town, but hopefully Bruce will be there.

We tried theBlue Point No Apologies Imperial IPA on cask last night at The Old Toad. Absolutely fantastic. The cask conditioning lent a rich smoothness and really accentuated the hop aroma. What surprised me whas the subtlety of the beer's finish, which completely lacked the sharp hop bite usually found in barley wines. Still, the alcoholic flavor was nicely balanced in the beer. You may not find it on cask, but give it a try if you're looking for something strong.

-Mark