The Cosmopolitan

Well, it has been a long run but the Palace Station is no longer my favorite Las Vegas casino. They’re $.99 22oz bone-in ribeye steaks have been outplayed by the new and swanktastic Cosmopolitan. The Cosmopolitan sits nuzzled in between the monstrosity that is City Center and the Bellagio and directly on top of The Jockey Club, which I bet you didn’t even know was lodged in there.

The newest addition to the infamous Las Vegas Strip has got a lot of attention leading up to its soft opening this week and it is all fairly credited. I did some on-site reporting last night to give you an insider’s take on the new resort and casino. Unfortunately, my press pass for jonmackin.wordpress.com was denied and I was not given my comped suite, meals and New Years Eve concert tickets, (looks like I’m going to have to fire another personal assistant) so Youtube videos and pirated pictures from Google Images will have to suffice.

I will begin by highlighting the overall theme and of this little gem. It is not their aim to attract the whales from Dubai and Macao, instead they would like to focus in on the 25-45, college graduate, with $75K + income. If they wanted more senior citizens playing Bingo and Keno they would have built another MGM Resorts property. OOOOOhhhhhh burn! And President John Unwin definitely knew the type of guest he wanted to attract when this was still in the planning stages.

The overall theme of the property is representative in the decor from the chandeliers throughout the casino to the warm and inviting suites. Planning a wedding, I have come to learn the terms “vintage” and “contemporary,” which would both be applicable on this new classic. It puts a modern twist on traditionally swanky hotels. If you took the casino out you would think you were in some original Hollywood boutique hotel. If you took the hotel out you would think you were in a purple version of the Monte Carlo in Monaco.

That is how they tailor their gaming, suites, and also food and beverage. You can find all of you standard beverages at any of the bars throughout the Cosmopolitan. However, they try to embrace their uniqueness by having customized beverage lists ranging in craft beers, rare wines, and spirits that cannot be found at your local CVS. They have mixologists pouring and shaking up drinks that have never been made before bringing their individuality points up. They even took the typical casino center bar and stretched it across three floors and draped in a giant chandelier.

The dining options are nearly endless. Every high-end casino has about 10 options with cuisine stretching across the whole gamete. They have interesting takes on their steakhouse/lounge STK, buffet, French fusion, and many others. They even have a walk-up Mexican/Chinese take-out spot for all of you late night cravings. It is the little touches like this that really set them apart from other pretentious hotels on the strip.

http://www.cosmopolitanlasvegas.com/taste/restaurant-collection.aspx

The nightlife is run through Marquee Nightcub and Dayclub in the warmer months. “The venue is more than 62,000 square feet, with 50-foot-tall ceilings and an unparalleled multi-million-dollar sound stage designed to cater to any performer’s whim. Coliseum-style seating surrounds a focal dance floor, where one can marvel at the four-story LED screens and projection walls that will display customized light and image shows distinctly tailored for each performance. In addition to the Nightclub space, Marquee will debut its Dayclub in the warmer spring months. Featuring Grand Cabanas with individual infinity pools, the Dayclub also boasts a multitude of three-story Bungalow Lofts, complete with a cabana, living quarters and a party deck on top.

Resident DJ, DJ Vice, will be spinning his Serato with the lastest in hip-hop and fist pumps. The grand poohbah of all parties will be this New Years Eve when the Jiggman hits the stage with Coldplay. Jay-Z and Coldplay cover a demographically sound fan base that makes seeing Kim Kardashian seem like Roseanne Barr. This concert will also be showing on their giant marquee along Las Vegas Blvd. Normally you could not pay me enough to go to the strip for NYE but I might consider this if H.O.V.A. sent me a fruit basket.

I always surprised to find out that they had a little shopping promenade and pretty good shopping at that. I spent all of my time in “CRSVR” trying on UNLV snap-back hats and staring at Air Max 95s but there was a bikini store for the ladies and “AllSaints” which looked like the clothing out of “The 5th Element” and the only good musical ever made “Newsies,” but whatever floats your boat I guess.

Now is the time to seize the day and go pretend to be a tourist and check it out. We even got lucky and were given a guided tour just because we looked like lost Europeans (I think it was either my peacoat or Danielle’s top hat). “The Cosmo” as it will come to be known is bringing Vegas back to some of its old roots by being classy without being gaudy, being fun without having to sacrifice quality, and being “just the right amount of wrong.”

Nike Pro Combat BCS Uniforms: Oregon, TCU, Florida, and Boise State

Today was originally supposed to be a blog dedicated to the scholars of the world as they embark on a new beginning of post undergraduate education. However, with breaking news in the world of the uniforms there are much more pressing issues to be discussed than graduation.

This morning at a media event and press conference from Cowboys Stadium, Nike unveiled its BCS line of Pro Combat Uniforms for four of its Elite schools. The schools given this high honor of rocking cutting edge and innovative uniforms are the University of Oregon, Texas Christian University, the University of Florida, and Boise State University. These uniforms were presented by Ndamukong Suh, Steven Jackson, Desmond Howard, and many others.

Starting at the top with my Ducks. In a perfect 12-0 season trumped somewhat by their bright and loud uniforms it is only fitting that they stick to their roots and end their season on the same note. They are not my favorite colorway of the 80 combinations they have at their dispose but I can definitely appreciate the creativity. Nike was somewhat limited in options with Oregon being the #2 seed to #1 Auburn and thus the away team but they still did pretty well.

I am one for uniformity when it comes to uniforms. I like themes, all-blacks, all-whites, and alternating colorways with helmets matching pants and jerseys matching shoes/socks. But I understand not everything is going to go my way and Nike knows what they’re doing. While I would have preferred a combination similar to what they wore against UCLA these will suffice for the time being as they hopefully bring home the crystal ball.

They decided to go with the carbon-fiber helmets, white jerseys, and white pants. But the real fun comes in with the base layer and footwear. The base shirt is customized to have a fast design and each individual players’ number on the sleeves which is nice for individuality. The shoes are the Zoom Alpha Talon Cleats that are brand new for Nike and won’t be available for other schools till next year and the socks add a little pizazz with the highlighter yellow.

I would like to defer to my NFL blog http://jonmackin.wordpress.com/2010/11/23/new-nfl-nike-uniforms-with-pictures-off-all-teams/ for a second to validate the authenticity of the leaked Nike NFL Pro Combat uniforms for 2012. If you notice they have the same pant design, same structure throughout the upper half of the uniform. Further verifying that NFL uniforms are not fake and that Nike “leaked” them on purpose to start the buzzing of the bees.

See? Now on to TCU. TCU is the only Texas school I will allow my sons to go on recruiting trips to and for that they get my seal of approval. Even though they did just cheat on the Mountain West with the Big East. Which if they would have stayed with the additions to Boise State, UNR, and Fresno State we would have been a better conference but that is an entirely whole new issue in itself.

But I digress, these TCU unis are sick. Thanks to Nike, one of TCU’s new school colors is red which is attributed to the venom that the horned frog produces. I assimilate it to how the Lady Vols of Tennessee wear light blue in with their creamy orange. Anyways, the old school style jersey is countered with modern pants with scales throughout and revolutionary helmet with red stripes as well.

Now on to one of the newest members of the Mountain West that I previously alluded to, the Boise State Broncos. These are the unis in which Kyle Brotzman will be missing field goals in and the rest of the returning Broncos will be getting acclimated to Sam Boyd Stadium in. At first glance they look like their standard all-blues that they wear at home on the smurf turf but there are some subtle differences.

Nike designed a new jersey which can be noticed around the collar and with the difference in fonts. They also incorporated more orange into this makeup with the cleats, base layer, and logo on the helmet. Which anyway to brighten up a boring uniform for me is a good thing. These unis are clean and to the casual fan are the same but are much more detailed to the avid sports/fashion enthusiast.

Along with Urban Meyer went any sort of creativity for the Gator Pro Combats. Maybe it is the fact that Florida is a traditional university and doesn’t want to piss off boosters by wearing some ridiculous uniform or maybe it is because they are only playing in the Champs Sports Bowl that Nike wanted to allocate their work to the preceding three teams. It’s not that these uniforms are ugly it’s just that they aren’t much different from what Emmitt Smith and Tim Tebow have been wearing for 20 years.

In conclusion, (I love doing that as unprofessional and cliché as it may be) Nike did a pretty good job with the designing of their Bowl Series Pro Combats. I would have gone into it with a completely different mindset and strategy but that is why they are getting paid to do what they do and why I am writing about it. All in all there weren’t any monstrosities but I would have liked to have seen some more creativity.

Smoking is bad mmkay

Smoking is bad, mmkay. These wise words from South Park’s Mr. Garrison aren’t taken serious enough. We all know smoking is bad yet 20% of Americans still smoke. We all know that nothing good can come from smoking yet over 40 million Americans are still lighting up.

On this Thoughtful Thursday I’ma thinkin’ and I’ma thinkin’ that smoking is really dumb. This summer my Grandma passed away after a battle with lung cancer that eventually spread to her brain. As serious as the disease it still is not enough to deter the most addicted smokers from puffing away from their hospital bed. Sometimes they are so used to smoking that they do it just to do it and don’t realize what they are physically doing to themselves.

This isn’t the 1950′s anymore were it was supposedly cool to smoke because “The Fonz” smoked. I don’t know one person that has ever looked at a smoker and said “Damn, he/she is soo hot. Look, he/she is smoking doesn’t that make you want to just shove your tongue into their tar infested mouth? It is 2010 and smoking makes you look like white trash. And if you’re not white, then you still look like white trash because it would sound racist if I were to say black/Asian/Latino trash.

Through this blog, if I can convince one person to not smoke one cigarette than this was a success because the horrible side effects build up over time and if I can distract that process even a little bit for one person than this was worth it. Smokers are literally killing themselves over an extended period of time. It is like sitting in a bathtub like Frankie “Five Angels” in “The Godfather II” and slicing your wrists with a plastic spoon for years upon years until one day all of the diligent work finally pays off for you in the end.

It really is just an extended version of suicide that lasts over decades. Which in a way is even worse because you are putting yourself through physical pain for a longer period of time than if you were to just jump off a building. It is just plain selfish because you are choosing your prerogative over the feelings of the people who care about you. If smokers are still to ignorant to realize what they are doing to their own health then it is time to whip out the guilt card.

Yes, they are killing themselves physically. Yes, they are limiting the time they can spend with loved ones while they are still here. They are shortening their lifespan in which they can see their friends and families but it is also time they must spend outside or away from everyone so as not to subject anyone to their second-hand smoke, which is a whole other issue in itself.

The idea that one person’s stupid choice can affect innocent bystander in such a negative way is ridiculous to me. 53,800 people a year die from secondhand smoke. So, if you are too selfish to give up committing suicide then think again and stop committing murder. You may think your one cig may not affect someone too much but every other smoker that person has crossed paths with thought the same thing. Thus contributing to a possible death, heart disease, asthma, emphysema, and smelling like shit.

Hopefully, this blog will make you smokers nervous and stress out a little bit just enough so that you step outside for a smoke just to prove that you are not stable enough to give up smoking and need help quitting. So, after you shrink your lungs a little more, think about the excuses you’re going to give the people who want to see you live longer.

“I could quit if I wanted to.” Oh yeah? Then why don’t you? Because you’ve been smoking forever and you don’t want to give up because you don’t think you can. Or “I only do it when I’m having a drink.” Ok, I get the social aspect of doing something. So are you drinking alone or are you taking a step back and blowing the kush in someone’s face as Yung Joc would say. Or my favorite “I know I should quit, I’m trying, I just can’t right now.” How fucking stupid is that?

Pardon my language it is just “mind-bottling” to me that people don’t care enough about themselves or their loved ones to stop doing something that is hindering both of those relationships. You may think you are not and you do care but if you really did you would quit and it is as simple as that.

It is not my intention of offending anyone with this, I just kinda started typing and the frustration just started flowing out. There were a few points where I didn’t even have to look at the keyboard because I was typing so fast. If you are a smoker take five non-smoking minutes and think about what you are doing to yourself and the people around you and if the pros really out-weigh the cons, then keep smoking but I doubt they will.

Top Ten Kinds of Chips

Good morning on another Top Tensday Wednesday. Today we will be analyzing the intricacies of the delicacie known as chips. Not poker chips, not England’s version of fries, not pieces of metal in a computer, but good ol packaged chips. They’re the things we eat an entire bag of when we’re drunk, the vessels we use to transport tasty dips into our oral hangers. They come in many different shapes, sizes, and flavors. They are made with potatoes, corn, and grains.

I consider myself to be a connoisseur of junk food and have made it a project of mine to be able to research, taste, and qualify the quality of chips from around the world. And this invaluable knowledge comes to you at no monetary cost whatsoever. As always, my taste buds will differ from yours and if they don’t then that is weird, but I encourage you to tip me on your chips. Lesssss Go!

10. Tostitos Hint of Lime: This is one of the newest additions my arsenal. I cannot believe I have gone 23 years without having a strong relationship with hummus. It is obviously made from beans but it has almost a smooth and creamy texture that resembles cheese and I love cheese. All thanks go towards Tostitos Hint of Lime or this partnership would not have been possible. It is your standard Tostito tortilla chip that comes with just the right amount of artificial lime flavoring without overpowering the chip and dip.

9. Cheddar and Sour Cream Ruffles: This chip is too fold because eating them hurts so good. The silky cheesy and sour creamy flavor powder melts in your mouth, while the sharp and jagged Ruffle pierces and bruises the roofs of our mouths. Eating these chips resembles eating piping hot Totino’s Pizza Rolls that burn and peel the tender flesh from inside our mouths. No pain no game though because these chips are worth leaving the roofs of our mouth feeling like popped bubble wrap. Just looking at these makes your mouth hurt right?

8. Barbecue Pop Chips: This innovative and technologically advanced snack is changing the snack world as we know it. It provides for a healthier alternative to the greasy potato chip. These chips are made from corn and baked until they crisp up and pop like a flat version of popcorn. The barbecue seasoning is then sprinkled over these beauts giving them a sweet and savory flavor profile similar a pulled pork sandwich.

7. Cooler Ranch Doritos: These are by far the most mysterious chip on the list. The base is the standard Dorito but it is th flavoring that had us ever since our lunch days in the multi-purpose room. The seasoning has specs of green, red, and BLUE? The green could be any kind of herb seasoning, the red could be any kind of pepper seasoning, and the blue could be any kind of cooler seasoning? I have always wondered what flavor is blue that would go into a Dorito. Is it a blue shark gummi? Is it ice? Is it milk? No one knows but it doesn’t matter because they are “Simply Delicioso.”

6. Original Pringles: Once you pop, the fun don’t stop. I wish I could thank the mechanical engineers that invented the Pringle. The shape of the Pringle, when done right, fits perfectly snug inside your mouth so your tongue is able to get all the flavoring on the top and bottom of the chip while not having to crunch and roll it around in your mouth. Then comes the packaging. The extra money invested in the silo-like can have made the Pringles brand what it is today because eating Pringles out of a plastic bag just would not be the same eating experience.

5. Harvest Cheddar Sun Chips: This chip is James Carville of chips. It is whimsical, eco-friendly, and healthy to a certain far-left extent. It utilizes natural adjectives to portray its natural flavor. These chips start off coming from God’s green Earth and that is exactly where they go when they’re done. The bag the Sun Chips sun bathe in is a biodegradable bag that breaks down in land fills much faster than any other for plastic that kills fishies in the ocean.

4. Fresh & Easy Blue Corn Tortilla Chips: Who doesn’t love these markets that took overt the vacant CVS space in your neighborhood. They provide Whole Foods quality at Wal-Mart prices due to their mean and lean business plan. They also provide a chip that is the ultimate tag team partner for salsa and guac. Once you go blue you’ll wonder who knew? Blue corn trumps white corn tortilla chips with a much more hearty and savory flavor that gives you more bang for your buck.

3. Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper Kettle Krinkle Cut Chips: Bring on the grease. The kettle style of cooking allows for the chips to almost cook each other the way the are tossed to and fro off of one another. This allows for the transaction of grease back and forth coating the chips in a thin layer of oil that envelopes our mouths upon entry. Then with the simple seasoning of Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, these Kettle Chips become awfully hard to put down.

2. BBQ Lays: I love me some good “cue” and Lays knew exactly what they were doing when the teamed up with KC Masterpiece. I am more of Memphis style BBQ man myself with their mustard base sauces but for being a mass-produced sauce, KC Masterpiece is aight. They take their dry ingredients and give the Lays a good rub down prior to packaging allowing the veteran chips to marinate in their dry rub on store shelves. Once the bag is opened I recommend eating handfuls at a time without stopping for air.

1. Nacho Cheesier Doritos: The most versatile and tasty chip in the chip market. It can be eaten at lunch, during the Super Bowl, after a long night mashing on your couch, or my personal favorite time-the morning after as it serves as the perfect hangover cure, when paired with Gatorade and Extra-Strength Tylenol. The Nacho Chessier flavoring is complex in nature but simple in taste bringing back nostalgic memories from our past. There have been many variations of the Nacho Cheesier Dorito but throughout generations the original has outlasted all competitors and that is why it is the best chip of all time. They may have taken the “ier” out of the “cheese” for now but they will always be “Nacho Cheesier” to me.

It’s beginning to look a lot like… Hanukkah?

The eight crazy nights’ opening ceremonies have commenced and the fun has only just begun. This extended holiday happens around this of time of year (usually) every year but do you really know what Hanukkah is? On this “Thoughtful Thursday” I will try to enlighten you a little bit on this Festival of Lights (pun intended).

Everyone has their own perceptions of what Hanukkah is and it usually comes tagged with a dreidel or potato latke stereotype. Yes, there are more dreidels spun during Hanukkah than on Martin Luther King Jr. Day but that is not the extent of the holiday. It is not the Judaic version of Christmas either. It is a real challah-day with real, feelings so please refrain from leaving racist jokes. Get it challah-day? Challah; the Jewish braided bread? Whatever.

Any who, Hanukkah or Chanukkah, pronounced [χanuˈka] is a Jewish holiday that celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem which was destroyed during the Maccabean Revolt in the 2nd century. This was prior to the birth of Christ and following the extinction of my favorite dinosaur ever, the Brontosaurus. If you don’t remember what the Brontosaurus looks like just picture a much bigger version of Chris Bosh.

But I digress. Hanukkah is celebrated by the lighting of nine candles on a menorah over the course of eight days and nights in commemoration of the flame that stayed lit for eight days and nights. There are nine candles for the eight days and nights and a ninth utilized to light the preceding candles. This menorah is one of my favorites because it is actually related to Lumiere from “Beauty and the Beast.”

This is what makes Hanukkah so special to the Jewish religion, that by divine intervention the  “miracle of the container of oil” occurred. The flame should have only stayed lit for one day when in actuality it stayed lit for eight days. This is like a much more important instance of when Giada De Laurentiis is trying to make her famous Eggplant Parm with only 1/4 cup of olive oil when her recipe calls for 2 cups. Damn, now that I think about it, I should have put her on my “Girls! Girls! Girls! The ten I like the most” http://jonmackin.wordpress.com/2010/11/10/girls-girls-girls-the-ten-i-like-the-most/ blog and taken out Kelly Kapowski.

Again, I apologize for the distraction, back to Hanukkah. It burned for eight nights which “conveniently” was the same amount of time it took to press and consecrate new olive oil to keep the flames a-burnin’. Like any other holiday there are customs, traditions, and prayers that are exercised throughout the holla-day. To the surprise of many “The Hanukkah Song” by Adam Sandler was not sung at the first Hanukkah. However, it is a fair and modern interpretation of Jewish history brought forth by possibly the second-most famous Jew of all time. Guess who was the first, I’ll give you a hint it’s not Drizzy Drake.

So, for the seven remaining nights of this highly misunderstood holiday take the time to broaden your horizons and learn a little a bit about history from your favorite Jew. Whether you are a Christian or Shiite Muslim it is not against your religion to sip on a little Manischewitz and get a little wine drunk because God knows that it the best kind of drunk when your gums are purple and are feelin’ all good and slippery. If you have any questions please refer all question to my resident He-Bro, Noam Amir-Brownstein. Shalom! http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/noam416

The UFL

Ever since the NFL merger in the 1960s, there have been multiple unsuccessful attempts at providing another competitive brand of football to rival the NFL. They all try to have their niche and competitive advantage when in reality their competitive advantage is a disadvantage of talent. The NFL will always be the NFL and no one will ever rival them because they have the best players in the world and ultimately that is what people want to watch, the highest level of football being played on the biggest stages.

The XFL tried to put less restrictions on rules and implement tacky exceptions to allow for a more hard hitting and faster play but all it did was come off as unprofessional and disappeared shortly after its inception. The AFL had a good thing going for a minute because they were able to showcase a faster brand of finesse football on smaller stages while not trying to be the NFL but still trying to compete with but they just couldn’t compete with the level of talent.

The CFL is just weird. They have weird rugby style rules, bigger fields, and all of the “has beens” and “never was” players that provide for a brand of football that only mothers could love. There is now a Lingerie Football League, but that is neither here nor there because that is a totally different issue. There are plenty of other amateur, regional, and flag leagues that try and position themselves in a way better than the NFL but the all fall short.

The problem is that they all are trying to beat the NFL at something and that is a battle not worth fighting. I believe the phrase goes “If you can’t beat them, join them.” And that is exactly what the UFL is trying to do. They working in accordance with the NFL to appease them in every way possible to provide for them a minor league brand of football. Different regional teams would be correlated with different NFL divisions to exude an atmosphere similar to Triple-A baseball and be the breeding grounds for the NFL.

The NFL can easily track players’ progression, speak with professional and high level coaches like Jim Fassel and Denny Green, and test out the viability of possible NFL rules in the UFL. They are very competitive, there is a high-level of talent, and growing fan bases in their markets. This year the UFL decided to move the teams to smaller markets so as they didn’t have to share media time and their fan base with the NFL, another smart move.

It looks as though the UFL is here to stay with backing by a group of investors that includes Mark Cuban and Google. As long as they provide good and real football entertainment at an affordable price the fans from markets without for football will yearn for the UFL. I’ve seen a few games and can attest to their sustainability. The games are entertaining, they have big name coaches, some big name players, and plenty of potential for growth, which is exactly what they intend on doing. Growing.

Veterans Day… to me

I have always had a great deal of respect and sense of patriotism towards our country and if I wasn’t currently engaged, graduated, and in my current situation I would definitely consider serving. I guess that’s why I take Veterans Day a little more serious than your average detached 23 year old male.

What is Veterans Day? Why do we get it off from work? What does it mean to Veterans themselves to have a day in honor of their bravery for our country?

To me, it is a day where we can take a step back from reality for a minute and recognize the country we live in for what it is worth. How lucky we are to live with freedom, how much worse it is in countries that do not have our luxuries, and how blessed we are to have men and women who have fought and are still fighting so that we keep that freedom and sense of protection.

Veterans get one day out of the year when they fight or were fighting the other 364 for people to recognize their efforts. That’s great and all and it allows for people to organize parades, shows, speakers, etc… But that doesn’t always suffice for me. I’m one of those people that likes going to the airport just to thank the soulja boys and girls for their service. It’s shooting fish in a barrel, there are always tons of them flying. All it takes is a handshake and a “thank you for your service.”

You can remix it up and put your own spin on it but it’s the little things like that, that can give a troop assurance that what he/she is fighting for is appreciated. It’s not awkward and you feel like you did a good deed for the day. I can’t even imagine the thought that when troops came home from Vietnam, that they were spit on, disrespected, and not appreciated for putting their life on the line for us to be safe. The idea of that is just mind-bottling to me.

I understand people didn’t necessarily agree with the why we were in the war and that is fine but it was not the troops’ faults. They were like the Boise St. players. Their administration gave them a shitty schedule, but all they do is win games. Our troops were put in a shitty situation and they just tried to make the best of it. Many of them didn’t even want to be there in the first place but were legally bound to with the draft. They did what they were told and they came home to the opposite of what they expected and deserved.

I just would hate to see another situation like that in our country where people were not appreciated for their patriotism towards our country and try to thank the men and women in uniforms as much as possible. Who knows, a simple “thank you” could do as little as brighten up someone’s hour or day, or it could really mean a lot to someone who lost a friend or a part of themselves when they were serving.

So, next time you see someone in their fatigues or even a Cop or Fireman give em a quick thank you or even a head nod to let them know you appreciate what they do on a daily basis, so that you can live the way you do. God Bless our troops, Good Bless America, and in the words of “Hacksaw” Jim Dugan… USA! USA! USA! USA!

Sam Adams Beer

As the seasons change, so do the types of available beers. Over the past year, I have become very interested in the brewing of craft beer and have limited my intake in domestic light lagers. I am still new to the craft beer craft but have begun to hone in on what defines a good brew. One brewer that I have become fond of is the line of Sam Adams brews from the Boston Brewing Company.

Normally, I don’t like anything that comes out of Boston but I’ll make an exception with this one. The Boston Brewing Company was started in 1984 by Jim Koch in his kitchen where he developed their signature Boston Lager. The recipe was handed down from his grandfather in the early 1800s. It was survived during prohibition by his father and then brought to life by Jim in the 80s.

Besides brewing good beer, I respect Sam Adams’ patriotic roots. Their namesake obviously comes from the revolutionist during the Boston Tea Party but they remain a true American staple in the craft beer market. In 2008, they were bought out by conglomerate InBev along with Anheuser-Busch. While they are not technically the small business they started out as, they still operate the way the used to.

While they are a apart of a huge corporation, Sam Adams still stays to true to its craft roots by creating beers that use some of the best ingredients throughout the world to give it that homemade taste and feel. With the craft beer market blowing up over the last ten years, there are thousands and thousands of breweries to choose from. It has begun to assimilate the wine market, where if you are new to craft beer seen, you might not even know where to start.

Sam Adams is a good entry-level brewery to widen your horizons. They have their standard Boston Lager, Boston Lager Light, stout, hefe, porter, several year-round ales, and Imperial Collection (which are a little pricier but are absolutely delicious). But my favorite aspect of the Sam Adams Brand is their seasonal collection.

Sam Adams places a large emphasis ad promotion towards their seasonal beers. They are well known for their Winter Lager, Summer Ale, Oktoberfest, and newly introduced Noble Pilsner in the spring. They are distributed just about everywhere from Albertson’s to large draft beer bars which makes them easily accessible while still maintaining a level of limited quantity with having seasonal beers, limited edition beers, and their Imperial Collection.

Being able to find decent craft beers at a decent price are few and far between. And Sam Adams offers a little bit of everything for all kids of palettes. They have hoppy IPAs, milkshake-like porters, light and spicy white ales, and fruit infused lambics. My personal favorites are the Cream Stout in the Winter, Noble Pilsner in the Spring, Imprerial White in the Summer, and the Oktoberfest in the Fall, which just so happen to be on special at Miller’s Alehouse.

Right now, you can get a 22 oz. for only $5.  But the cool thing is if you get 2 you get to keep the 22 oz., laser etched Sam Adams pilsner glass it comes in. And if you get a cool server or bartender they just might let you take em all home. Last weekend I stocked up so Danielle, didn’t have to get me a set for Christmas. I will continue my collecting tomorrow evening if you would like to partake in the experience with me.

I didn’t want to get into the details of each brew because we could sit here and talk about that forever. I just wanted to highlight an American brewer that I like and appreciate the way they do things. If you have any other suggestions as to widen my horizons in the craft beer industry, I would love to hear them. Drink up.

UNLV 2010-2011 Men’s Basketball Preview

The 2009-2010 season ended shockingly premature for the Runnin’ Rebels being knocked out of the NCAA tournament by the Cinderella Panthers of Northern Iowa. Fans across the country had their brackets busted by Northern Iowa as they sent the Runnin’ Rebels back home to Las Vegas before they had a chance to take on #1 overall seed, Kansas.

This is a new season and it has the makings to be an even eventful one at that. It all begins tonight with the Rebs first preseason game against Grand Canyon. The competition in the Mountain West Conference will be tighter than ever this year with Brigham Young, New Mexico, and San Diego State all receiving votes in the ESPN/USA Today Top 25 poll. UNLV Head Coach, Lon Kruger has his work cut out for him this year with a tough out of conference schedule as well playing Wisconsin, Stanford, Boise State, Louisville, and his alma mater Kansas State.

However, the defensive-minded coach isn’t worried too much with returning starters Tre’von Willis, Oscar Bellfield, and Derrick Jasper. Not to mention the sophomore season of high flyer Anthony Marshall and highly recruited center, Carlos Lopez making his debut. While the team may like size in the lane, they make up for their deficiency with speed and guard play. Hopefully, Kansas transfer Qunitrell Thomas will add some size to the middle while not taking away any athletic ability.

The Rebels were picked 4th in the Mountain West Conference, most likely stemming from off the court troubles and uncertainty for senior, Tre’von Willis. However, with such competition throughout the conference it is very possible for the bigger schools to beat up on each other during conference play as a true leader emerges and that leader could very well be any of the four.

One thing the Rebels counted on late in the season was their clutch three-point shooting from Kendall Wallace, which will be missed as Wallace is out indefinitely with a torn ACL. The senior guard was finally coming into his own as he matured entering what would have been his senior season.

The Rebels will have to rely on their defensive tenacity and quickness throughout the course of the regular season to justify a good seed in the conference tournament. The Rebels tend to do well in low-scoring defensive games as their conditioning surpasses the competitions’. If the Rebels can keep the points down and intensity up, the loud and eruptive Thomas and Mack should serve as the 6th man for the Runnin’ Rebs.

Nevada Day

Home means Nevada, home means the hills, home means the sage and the pine, out by the Truckee’s silvery rills and I don’t know the rest. Today is Nevada Day and as Nevadans I feel as though we owe it to our fair state to recognize its roots, instead of just assuming some Governor may back decided to give us the Friday of Halloween off and call it Nevada Day.

On October 31, 1864 Nevada was 36th stateadmitted into the Union. It was originally known as “Admission Day” until 1933 when the state legislature renamed it “Nevada Day.” On this holiday all state, county and city government offices are closed, along with most schools and libraries giving us the ability to go out and shop for last minute Halloween costumes and begin getting ready/pregaming early due to the lack of activity.

In 2000, Carson City moved Nevada Day from October 31 to the Friday prior in an effort to generate more interest and allow for more statewide recognition. Parades and celebrations are held throughout the state in Hendo, over the hump in Pahrump, and most notably in our state capital, (not Reno) Carson City. Our state was given the motto “Battle Born” per our admittance came in the midst of the Civil War with the help of Abraham Lincoln.

I realize this isn’t the most interesting blog but I felt it would be my good deed of the day, to through our lovely state a bone. Most of you are probably to hung to even read this morning so I figured, why waste good material on a blurry morning as it is. Thank you to all 40 of you who will read, be safe this weekend, God Bless America, and God Bless Nevada.