This week's list of new and returning products follows a few words about a great fireworks show and a good place to eat in Manistee
Preamble by Steve Siciliano
Barb and I didn't have to go far to watch 4th of July fireworks last weekend. I have no idea who I need to thank but one of our lake neighbors orchestrated a pyrotechnics display that hands down was one of the best we had ever witnessed. Along with our guests Trudi and Brian Baratono we were able to OOH and AHH at the big colorful boomers right from the comfort of our deck.
My son Chris and his wife Gena have been staying at the cottage all week. Chris and Gena live in the Ashville, NC area and we haven't seen them since their annual trip up to Michigan last summer. One morning Chris and I hit the Little Manistee and despite intervals of pouring rain we each landed a handful of colorful browns and rainbows.
Later that afternoon the four of us took a drive in the rain to Manistee and had lunch at The Painted Lady which bills itself as the "oldest operating saloon in town." It's a top notch operation with excellent food and a full bar. If you're ever in the environs of Manistee you should check it out.
Featured Wines of the Week
Tenuta Santa Maria, 2017, Valpolicella Ripasso, Italy, $35.79/750ml- this elegant and complex valpolicella continues the family tradition of the Ripasso method, used in the 1850s. The style is a consistent expression of the indigenous Corvina, Rondinella and Corvinone grapes and terroir of the area. The Ripasso method is delicately achieved conducting a secondary extended maceration and fermentation over the Amarone grape skins, giving the wine higher complexity, bolder and softer body, and intense color.
With notes reminiscent of the Amarone, the wine is a vivid ruby red color. At the nose, intense hints of cherry, blueberry, licorice and lingering accents of cinnamon and pepper. At the palate, soft and warm structured velvet tannins and a very balanced acidity. Long finish with fruity sensations. (Source)
Zajc, Cvicek (Tsvee-Check), Red & White blend, Slovenia, $14.39 /1000ml This unique wine has a gorgeous bright raspberry color from a mix of both white and red grapes. This wine is not quite a rose and not quite a red, but happily and deliciously somewhere in the middle. Organic, low alcohol, and approachable with its light bright red fruit flavors of strawberry, cherry, and raspberry; this wine can handle anything you want to throw at it. Pronounced "tsvee-check" it's an amiable and fun 1L bottle, and your host will applaud you for bringing the national drink of Slovenia instead of the unexciting mass produced wines that usually show up at these things. (Source)
Pullus, Halozan, White blend, Slovenia, $13.19/1000ml-Its beginnings date back to the sixties, when the then director of the Ptuj winery Jani Gönc “invented” the wine. He got inspiration for it in Alsace. His basic idea was to offer to the market a wine with geographical origin and offer Slovenian drinkers something that would nicely and unaggressively mix with mineral water. Base for Haložan thus includes all the typical varieties that grow in Haloze hills, where vineyards for Ptuj Winery are:Welschriesling and Rhine Riesling, White Pinot, Chardonnay, Furmint, Sauvignon and minimum Muscat additives. (Source)
Buy three or more bottles of wine get 10 % off.
"It's our mission at Siciliano's to sell quality wine at affordable prices
Featured Spirits of the Week
Monopolowa, Whisky, Austria, $31.49/750ml- A blending of whiskies made from barley and other cereal grains. This whisky showcases notes of oak, pear, chocolate, and honey on the nose with lemon zest and spices joining in on the palate. The finish lingers with note of warm spices. (Source)
Zoladkowa Gorzka, Vodka, Poland, $21.09/750ml- Inspired by a recipe from 1822, this rye based vodka whose name translates to “bitter stomach vodka” has been flavored using bitter orange peel, herbs and spices and a twist of caramel. (Source)
New and Returning Products
18th Street Candi Crushable, $2.99/16oz-Made in collaboration with Northdown Cafe & Taproom. This beautiful beer is rounded out with flaked oats and lactose sugar, simcoe, and falconers flight. (Source)
18th Street Chasing Paper, $3.79/16oz-Coming in at 6.2%, this Citra packed Double Dry Hopped Pale Ale is just what you need to get the weekend started! (Source)
18th Street Cone Crusher, $3.79/16oz-Bursting with an overwhelming amounts of citrusy Amarillo hops, Cone Crusher showcases tropical fruit overtones of orange and mango, while being backed by a pleasing earthiness to make for a crushable beer. (Source)
18th Street Dive Bar, $5.49/16oz-Berliner with pineapple, mango & vanilla bean
Arbor A Girl Named Egypt, $2.59/12oz-This very special Double White IPA was brewed in memory of Egypt Covington, as a tribute to her love and passion for life. Developed in collaboration with her friends and family, it includes some of her favorites… elderflower, passion fruit, and mango. Her smile would light up a room and we hope this beer does the same for you. Please enjoy with friends, loved ones, and strangers alike. Spread her kindness, share her message, and raise a glass to A Girl Named Egypt. (Source)
Atwater TC Cherry Wheat, $1.99/12oz-Fruit Beer
Brewdog Clockwork Tangerine, $1.99/12oz-A fully automated sessionable IPA infused with tangerine. Perfectly timed delivery of juicy citrus with notes of mellow tropical fruits, followed by subtle notes of caramel and toasted malt. All wrapped up in a medium bodied ale. A director’s cut for the twenty-first century. Clockwork Tangerine - IPA precision for the people. (Source)
Brewery Vivant Lush Turbo, $4.69/16oz-Lush Turbo is a massively hedonistic hazy IPA brewed with Citra and Nelson Sauvin hops. (Source)
Collective Arts Jam Up The Mast Passion Fruit Peach, $4.39/16oz-Sweet and exotic passion fruit pairs with juicy peach for a beer that screams summer! Sour & hops in perfect, thirst quenching harmony! (Source)
Equilibrium Linear Phase, $ 5.69/16oz-Linear Phase pours a beautiful creamy bright yellow with an aroma of tropical citrus and grass fields. Flavors of pungent orange, passionfruit, melon, and berry come together in a soft and creamy mouthfeel with our #EQjuice finish with just a touch of bitterness to round things out. (Source)
Equilibrium Morning HAze, $5.69/16oz-Morning Haze is an aggressively hopped Galaxy and Mosaic DIPA with wheat and oats (think our Answer collab "Can It Be All So Simple" with a touch of bread). It pours a hazy tangerine orange and releases bright notes of pineapple and blueberry with an aroma that mirrors the balanced taste. This beer is very crushable and designed for late night celebrations, letting loose, and hitting the snooze on alarm clocks. (Source)
Equilibrium Partical Physics, $4.69/16oz-We used Particle Physics to manipulate Photon, and turn theoretical physics into reality. We took Photon, upped the ABV to 5.5%, and hopped it at the rate of the fractal series with a citra forward Hop bill. The result is an intensely hopped but low ABV crushable American Pale Ale. It pours a very hazy orange, releasing well-blended notes of dank apricot, tangerine, peach, mango, and pineapple. It tastes of soft juicy tropical fruits and hop resins. This drinking experience is further enhanced with a soft and billowy mouth-feel with a disappearing finish that has made this the new go to pale ale for the Equilibrium crew, especially now that the warm weather is season is upon us. (Source)
Equilibrium Raspberry Dimensions, $5.69/16oz-Raspberry Dimensions pours a frothy ruby red daiquiri color releasing sensations of tart and sweet raspberry jam, citrus, tropical fruit frosting, and nerds candy. The flavor follows with layers of raspberry filling interspersed between sandwiched-vanilla-sponge cake. This is the fullest, round, light, and fluffy body we’ve accomplished in a SIPA yet that still maintains high drinkability thanks to its #balancedacidity. This beer is packed filled with all the dimensions you’d want in a light summer raspberry drink. (Source)
Haymarket Unfashionably Late, $3.59/16oz-Brewed with Pilsner malt, flaked oats, oat malt, and heaps of flaked wheat. Late hop additions and dry-hopping with Ekuanot and Cascade, Citra, and Amarillo hops. Fermented with 'Conan' ale yeast from Omega that provides abundant stone fruit notes. (Source)
Old Nation Full Earth, $4.99/16oz-The slightly more sophisticated entry into the New Orthodox Series. On the nose, pine, flowers and citrus. On the tongue, layers of the same. That signature Old Nation snap and mouthfeel ever present. (Source)
Oskar Blues Mama's Little Yella Pils, $1.99/12oz-This tasteful reality Czech is the perfect antidote for the watered-down versions of pilsner clogging Americaâ's shelves. And Mama's gentle hopping (about 35 IBUs) and low ABV (just 4.7%) mean we're finally honoring consumer requests for a delicious but less-challenging beer. (Hey, we like a good low-dose session beer, too.) Look for our Gold Metal Winner on US shelves in March. (Source)
Rogue Cotes Du Rogu Kriek, $15.99/500ml-Several years ago we caught a wild yeast strain from the open air of the Yaquina Bay. We cultivated the strain, along with 5 common varieties in 16 barrels, selecting & blending the best of them to form our house mixed culture. With this unique culture we've created a series of limited, foeder aged, sour beers to get your taste buds tingling. This kriek highlights both sweet and tart cherry flavors that are supported by oak. (Source)
Shorts Tiramisu Blond, $2.59/12oz-Tiramisu Blonde is an Experimental Blonde Ale brewed with lactose, cocoa nibs, and coffee. The ale is a hazy, light brown, and pours with a small white head. Scents of fresh coffee and chocolate meet initial flavors of roasted coffee and velvety chocolate. The lactose in this brew gives this beer with a creamy mouth feel. The finish is smooth and slightly sweet. (Source)
Southern Tier Nitro S'mores, $4.09/12oz-Ale brewed with chocolate, graham cracker, and vanilla flavors added. Poured on Nitro for a smooth and creamy finish. (Source)
Trail Point Doctor Peel Good, $2.99 /16oz-A refreshing slightly tart and tangy wheat beer made with blood oranges. A nice burst of citrus highlighting and bread-like characters with a slightly crisp finish. (Source)
Transient Air So Thicc, $4.89/16oz-IPA - Imperial / Double
Transient The Juice is Juice, $5.49/16oz-Hops burst out of this glass with absolutely no bitterness. Bright fruit flavor of passion fruit and citrus. We will make more. We must make more...(Source)
Two Guys BC Blond, $2.99/16oz-Blonde Ale
Two Guys Mosiac Quest, $4.19/16oz-Single hopped IPA. Great citrus flavor. (Source)
Two Guys Trench Warfare, $3.49/16oz-Brown Ale - English
Upper Hand Light Flight, $10.99/6pk-Upper Hand Light is brewed with 100% barley malt, giving it a fuller, more authentic malt flavor than your standard American Light Lager. Upper Hand Light is clean, and light on the palate.