Monday, September 17, 2007

Erdinger Dunkel Weissbier

I have taken a few trips to the beer yard recently and on my most recent trip I picked up a case of Erdinger Dunkel Weissbier. I must admit I was looking for Weihenstephaner Dunkel, and this was my second choice. I also was tempted by the Brooklyn Brewery and Schneider and Son collaboration beer. Ultimately the $70 price tag and the fact that I had never tried it before dissuaded me.

This beer is one of my favorites. I have not yet done a side by side tasting with Weihenstephaner Dunkel and some of my other favorites, but I definitely would like to in the future. Drinkability is my number one concern and this one is at the top of my list. Wholesome and smooth this beer never disappoints. If you are looking for something different, look elsewhere. This is a good traditional dunkelweiss that I would definitely recommend.

Price: $53 for 24x500mL
Marked 03-2008
5.6% ABV

Sunday, September 16, 2007

Stella Artois and their New Website


So the good people of Stella Artois, sent me a free poster, some coasters, and an invitation to their new cinematic website. I was very pleased to receive this invitation and received my poster and coasters well before the September 15th pre-launch date. The poster is now hanging on my wall and I took a first look at the website today.

Unfortunately for me, not all of the completely flash websites played well with the Linux version of Flash 9, but the errors were limited mostly to the very simple games integrated into the website(sorry for technical details on a beer blog). The art and cinematography is superb, but the user interaction leaves something to be desired. The games are very simple, instruction free, and almost childish. That being said there is much to be seen and heard(all in French), and it will be well worth a visit on September 18th when it launches.

The most interesting part of this whole situation to me is the marketing technique Stella is employing. I think it will work quite well for everyone. Blogger are happy to receive trinkets and Stella will enjoy cheap advertising. Read this for more comments on the advertising campaign.

http://www.stellaartois.com/