Beer+Product: BrewGene App for iPhone

The BrewGene App for iPhone is a handy tool for tracking, rating and finding new craft beers. Think of it as the Pandora of beer apps. It operates on an algorithm that compiles user ratings, but instead of only using your personal ratings, it suggests brews based off of all the other user ratings as a whole. All in all, this is a fun and easy-to-use app that helps track and store all the beers that you try. With over 30,000 beers in its database, there is plenty of fun to be had. Rating and commenting on beers is just part of what this app has to offer, so here is a list of some of BrewGene's other cool features:

• Cellar: This acts as your personal filing system to keep track of all the beers that you have tried and rated. This comes in handy if you like to constantly try new beers, but also have a hard time remembering what you've already had. 
• Rec's: This is a compiled list of beers recommended for you based on the ones that you have already reviewed. The more beers that you rate, the more accurate the recommendations will be.
• Submit: This feature allows users to add to the already large database of beers. Here you can upload a picture of the beer and enter general information (Name, Brewery, Style, ABV%) along with your rating and tasting notes. There are some duplicate entries, of course, as some users name beers differently. That's something to keep in mind when searching the database.
• Misc: Clicking on the miscellaneous section offers users the option to post their reviews to Facebook/Twitter, invite friends to join, follow up with the BrewGene Twitter feed, learn the history of the app's creative team, etc. It is the social media hub of the app.

BrewGene, unfortunately for non-iPhone users, is only available for the Apple product. However, the app was based off of the BrewGene.com website that affords users the same functions without the portability. Overall, this product is a great beer buddy.

Beer+Place: The Distillery, Savannah, GA

The Distillery in Savannah, GA prides itself on being the only true craft beer bar in town. Their motto, "No Crap, Just Craft," articulates their passion for serving only quality craft beers. If you are looking for American light lagers like Miller Lite or Bud Light, you are in the wrong establishment.

The Volen famliy opened the bar in 2008, but the actual building dates back to the early twentieth century where it initially served as a working distillery by The Kentucky Distilling Company. The Temperance Movement and Prohibition eventually forced it out of business. It then became a Freich's Pharmacy until that closed in 1940. Rumors claim that the second floor was used to make bathtub gin and beer during its pharmacy era. The Volen's converted this building into a beautiful new bar and designed it based off of an 1895 photograph of a saloon. With exposed brick throughout the interior, the dark, rich mahogany and oak bar is clearly the centerpiece.

Now--about the beer! The Distillery offers a wonderful beer selection of over 100 bottles and 21 revolving taps, including both imports and domestics. Some of the featured breweries that you can always find are Victory, Flying Dog, Left Hand, Sweetwater, Stone, and many more. Their selection includes all the major styles (Amber Ales, Pale Ales, Wheat Ales, Porters and Stouts, Belgian Ales, Brown/Scottish Ales, and Lagers). Prices range from around $4-9 a beer, but there are some more expensive selections, particularly in the Belgian/Belgian-Inspired Ales. Flights are available, and the bartenders are very knowledgeable and willing to help.

There is also a food menu that offers some very good items to either help soak up the alcohol or pair accordingly with your beer. My favorite indulgence is the deep fried moon pie paired with a Young's Double Chocolate Stout.

Beer+Food: Sriracha Pork Tenderloin with Baked Cajun Fries and Pan Fried Cabbage

Ingredients:

Meat Injection—

• 2 Tbsp Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce
• 2 Tbsp Water
• 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EEVO)
• 1 Tbsp Garlic Powder

Pork Rub—

• 1 Tbsp of each: Red Pepper Flakes, Garlic Powder, Black Pepper, and Basil

Meat and Sides—

• 12" Pork Tenderloin
• 1 Medium Sized Cabbage (Plus 4 Tbsp of EVOO, Salt and Pepper to Taste)
• 4 Russet Potatoes (Plus 2 Tbsp EVOO, 4 Tbsp Cajun Seasoning)

      Cooking Instructions:

Start by pre-heating the oven to 400 degrees, and then mix the ingredients together for the Meat Injection. I found that using a small plastic bowl with a lid and shaking makes for quick work on the injection.

Place thawed pork tenderloin on a shallow baking sheet with the fat side facing up. Mix the Pork Rub ingredients together, and then rub the mixture onto the meat. Make sure that all sides are dusted with the rub.

Give the Meat Injection another few shakes to make sure that the ingredients are mixed, and start injecting along the sides of the pork (about every two inches). Then inject more down the center, again spacing about every couple inches. The pork is now ready to be put in the oven. Place a meat thermometer in the center of the tenderloin and put it in the oven. Bake for 1½ hours, or until the internal temperature reads 165 degrees.

While the tenderloin is baking, wash and rinse the potatoes. Cut them into wedges and place in a large, sealable plastic bag. Add the EVOO and Cajun seasoning and shake to coat the potatoes. Put the potatoes on a baking sheet and bake during the last 10 minutes of baking the pork. The potatoes will bake for 20 minutes, but you should flip them half way through. Cooking times will vary for the potatoes, depending on how thick you cut the fries.

Finely chop the cabbage. The Cabbage will cook for about 20 minutes, so it's best to start cooking it when you put the potatoes in the oven. Heat a large skillet/wok on medium heat with half of the EVOO. When the skillet is ready, put the cabbage in and put the remainder of the EVOO on top. Stir the cabbage so that it is evenly coated in oil. Lightly salt and pepper—you can always add more as the cabbage cooks down.

Makes sure to cover the skillet and stir frequently so the cabbage does not burn.

When the pork is done, remove from the oven and place on a cutting board. Allow it to sit for about ten minutes before cutting so the juices can be absorbed into the meat. Cut slices about 1" thick.

Servings: 4

Beer Paring: Sam Adams Boston Lager, Sam Adams Oktoberfest

I tried both Sam Adams beers with this dish, as it was one of the first dinners that I prepared with the thought of pairing it with beer. The Boston Lager tasted the best overall. The heat of the Sriracha sauce really brought out the flavors and aromas nicely, as did the Cajun seasoning on the potatoes. There was a little something missing, however when paired with the cabbage—not that it tasted poorly, but the taste of the beer and food were definitely not amplified. I think that adding some heat to the cabbage might have helped draw out more of the flavor. I would suggest adding some red pepper flakes to the cabbage as it cooks. The Oktoberfest, a fine beer on its own, came up short when tried with the pork and potatoes; however, it was fantastic with the cabbage, which I made a note of for future endeavors. That's part of the fun in both cooking and trying new beers—even if you mess something up, there is always something to be learned.    

Beer+Product:The Beer Companion: A Book Review of The Beer Trials

Seamus Campbell and Robin Goldstein have created a must-read book for anyone even slightly interested in the world of beer. Their goal is simple: "to broaden your horizons, and narrow your search, by arming you with better information about beer." The book is divided into two parts. Part one, The Beer Landscape, deals with the highly evolving new world of beer. The second part, The Beer Trials, focuses the process and findings of a blind tasting of 250 beers from around the world. This book has the makings of a perfect beer companion.

To read more please click on : The Beer Companion

First Post: My Beer Journey

My adventures in beer drinking began when I was in college. Like many young adults in America, I ordered an American light beer in a bar for my first alcoholic beverage. The beer was rather insignificant, but the bar opened a new door for me. After a few months of frequenting the place, I discovered that there was a beer club. The goal was to drink every kind of beer that the bar offered, both draft and bottled, and you would get a free T-shirt. They had about eighty different beers, so it ended up being a pretty expensive shirt, but that was the first time in my young beer-drinking life that I had stepped out of the mainstream and into craft beers. Granted, there were some pretty lousy options (Zima comes to mind), but having other choices other than the typical Bud Light/Miller Lite's of the world was refreshing and exciting. Unfortunately, I was living in rural Ohio at the time, and craft beers were few and far between. I was going to have to do some traveling if I wanted to find more quality beers.

To read more, please click--Acquired Taste: My Beer Story

Cheers!