North Coast Pranqster
Golden orange color, head is mostly just light carbonation, doesn't stick around much.
Light aroma, not picking up much. A bit of spicy pepper almost, with some banana too.
It's got a bit of bite to it, but definitely cloves and some fruitiness to lighten things up too. The sweetness is what lingers on the palate, which is a good thing. Good Belgian flavor overall.
Overall rating: 4.05
Lowboy
Lowboy by John Wray
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
It took me a while to finish this one, what with the Olympics going on and all, and I do wish I would have been able to read it at a better pace. But even so, I felt it was pretty fantastic. The pacing of it, and the way the author handles the characters, and schizophrenia in general, I just loved all of it. It is a little out there though, getting into the head of a schizophrenic, of course. But it really is the voice that makes the book work so well.
Olympic Curling Preview
The long awaited curling competition gets underway today at the Vancouver Games. The men's side begins at 12 eastern on USA (and online) against Germany while the women will start off against Japan at 5pm on CNBC.
On the men's side, the clear favorite is defending world champion Kevin Martin. Martin is one of the best curlers in the world, if not the best right now. The US men, frankly, have little chance of winning it all. They're just too young and inexperienced, but hopefully they will be able to build from here and get even better. With some luck, they might be able to squeeze into the medal round, but I'm predicting a 6th place finish. Also, watch out for the Norwegian John Daly-style pants. Stylish!
For the women, Debbie McCormick has been there before. She won the world championship in 2003, and is ready to go in Vancouver. She should at least make the playoff round. However, the other teams in the field are strong as well. I look for Canada to win gold against China, and Sweden to take the bronze.
Curling is one of the high points of the NBCOlympics.com coverage. You can watch every game live online, so be sure to bookmark the curling page and come back at noon Eastern time today to check out the action. You can also check out FULL event replays of the men's downhill, among others. This way you can watch all the important runs, and not just what NBC thinks is important. They even bookmark the videos to mark the spots when the Americans are featured. Pretty cool.
Bell’s Sparkling Ale
Pale gold color. Average head with a little lacing on the glass.
Yeasty, sweet aroma. Definitely throws me into a Belgian state of mind.
Very fruity, very sweet taste. There is a little bit of peppery bite, but the orange sweetness tends to dominate. Smooth going down too.
Wish I could be more descriptive, but getting over a minor cold is killing me. Even so, my senses were awoken by this beer. Very good.
Overall rating: 4.3
The Unnamed
The Unnamed by Joshua Ferris
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I see that I previously gave Then We Came to the End 4 stars, though it was probably more like 4.5 stars. So it may be hard to rate this higher than that, but I do think it comes close. Joshua Ferris steps out of the office, literally, and takes us on a road trip without the cars. But despite the focus on the "unnamed" disease afflicting the main character, what drew me in was the intensity of his focus on the people. Tim, the hardworking lawyer beset by his walking spells; Jane, his devoted and loving wife, who picks him up while trying to deal with her own problems and her own life; and Becka, his teenage daughter wanting his love and attention. The hardship his disease causes all these people and how it affects their lives is what really makes the novel work.
There was enough in here that I thought didn't quite work that I can't quite give it five stars, but make no mistake: it really is a standout novel.
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