My current addiction

This is what I'm drinking A LOT of right now. Yes, it's in cans. Unusual among craft brewers, but don't let it scare you off. It's from the Oskar Blues Cajun Grill & Brewery in Lyons, Colorado. More breweries should pick up on this — there are plenty of places, like camping or festivals, where glass just isn't allowable, and Oskar Blues ensures you don't have to lower your standards just to take some beer along.

First, the wife brought home their Old Chub Scottish Ale, a very hearty dark brew with body out the wazoo. If you like your beer with some meat on its bones, this did the trick.

Now we've moved into summer, though, and their Dale's Pale Ale is more suitable. It's loaded with hops, just a bit shy of being an IPA. Lots of backbone to it. I've really gotten hooked on this one; sixers of it in my fridge aren't lasting very long right now.

And finally, they also have Gordon, a strong ale. I've only had a sip — I was hoping Bobnoxious would give me a whole can last week when we were watching the theatrical version of Beauty & the Beast at the Zilker Hillside Theatre (don't laugh; you do things like that when you have children, especially four-year-old girls), but Bob was guarding his pretty fiercely and didn't seem emotionally prepared to give too much away. I don't blame him — it was a mighty hearty barleywine-ish thing. (Just kidding, Bob — you've always been generous with your brew.)

The web site also shows something named Ten Fidy Imperial Stout, but I haven't seen that down here in Texas yet.

But what about that aluminum taste, you ask? Won't it ruin quality beer? It certainly didn't bother me any. Sure, you can taste it on your lips, but it didn't appear to have infiltrated the beer itself. Says their website:

"[W]e discovered that the belief that cans impart flavor to beer is a myth. The modern-day aluminum can and its lid are lined with a water-based coating, so the beer and the can never touch. Cans, we discovered, are actually good for beer. Cans keep beer especially fresh by fully protecting it from light and oxygen. Our cans also hold extremely low amounts of dissolved oxygen, so our beer stays especially fresh for longer. Cans are also easier to recycle and less fuel-consuming to ship."

Works for me.