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Hey guys!  My blog has moved, I switched to a wordpress blog.  You can find it here: AbbeySeeber.com.  It is in the beginning stages but is up and working so go check it out!

Thanks!!!

What a wonderful weekend!

last weekend was perfect....let me explain....

Saturday the weather was absolutely gorgeous, so J and I walked the entire river walk.  If you have ever been to downtown San Antonio, you know just how far that is.  We started at the new part, where we did some shopping at the Pearl Brewery including picking up a set of four wine glasses for $9.95 - a steal!  Then we headed all the way downtown, where consequently, the St. Patrick's Day parade (where hundreds of gallons of green dye is dumped into the water to turn it green for the week) was happening so it was hopping!  There was green beer being served by all the bars and crazies decked out in their Irish gear, there were even quite a few bag-pipe-ist!  So that was about a 10 miles journey.

Then we went to the hockey game.  The San Antonio Rampage were losing horribly to the Manitoba Moose so we left early to go to Luminaria - an art festival that is held annually downtown.  So we get downtown and we go to sneak into a very exclusive thing - we go to launch laterns.  That's all I have to say about that because I do not want anyone to get into trouble....just check out the pictures!

SO MUCH FUN!

how was your weekend?

I can only hope it was half as wonderful as mine!

UFO Club: 38, 39 and 40! oh and 41

that's right, in this post I will hit the big four oh!  that is forty!  count 'em!

so I had beer number 38 by itself so I am pairing it with 39-41 so it won't be lonely, also because I had a comment last week from Travis to update my blog so I am giving him a little extra...haha so for you Travis...

Deschutes Mirror Pond Ale - 2 Stars

I remember that I ordered this beer because it was the Fire Sale - a pint of the night sort of sale at the Saucer that sells for $3.00.  I always try have the beer on the Fire Sale so that if it is disgusting, at least I didn't pay much for it.  This beer I remember, but not in a good way.  Like you grandma that insist on giving you a fifteen kisses every time you leave her house, this beer lingers.  Lingers in a way that you can't get the taste out of your mouth, which would be great if it was refreshing, unfortunately it is not. boo!

New Castle Brown Ale - 5 Stars

Wow!  By the name of this beer, the brown part, I would think that this would not be my cup of tea uhhh beer but it was great.  It is very light for a dark beer which is probably why I like it so much.  It does not feel heavy and like your just ate a horse after drinking it.  Definitely, would recommend this beer to someone looking to branch out of the light, pale ales but nervous about the decision.

Saint Arnold Texas Wheat - 5 Stars

This beer is YUMMY!  Plus all the bottle caps have fun little sayings on them - oh so just in case you didn't gather from the beginning of this sentence, I had this beer in a bottle.  Okay moving on, this beer taste like a pale ale and has a very light wheat flavor resulting in a very refreshing drink.  Check out my pictures of the caps - I def want to make little beer cap magnets out of these guys!  So much fun!

Paulaner Salvator - 1 Star

This beer was not so great.  I wrote that it was nutty and yucky....like a dirty stinky smelly sweaty hairy grizzly boy.  no thanks.  It also has a weird smell, so if you are a fan of smelling what you are consuming, I do not recommend taking a big whiff of this one....it will backfire!  Paulner is made in Muchen Germany, Germans love beer and drink it too strong for me I believe.  Also, don't go visit the Paulaner website....the background noise is like a waterfall, maybe a beer waterfall, but it will definitely give you the urge to go to the bathroom.  Oh and there are some fake laughs every now and then.

I know there is a weird underline in the Muchen spelling.....I was trying to do the U with the two dots over it but it underlined it.....so that's what you get folks!

Groupon Weekend

Two weekends ago boyfriend and I went a little crazy.  Crazy because we had the most random, fun, and crazy weekend thanks to Groupon.  For those of you that don't know about Groupon - you are living in a sheltered world and I ask that you follow the link to Groupon and register now!  This website offers discounts everyday on something new in your city....what is not to love about that.  You can also purchase from cities surrounding your (or anywhere for that matter) and that is just what Jeffrey and I did.  As we saw Groupons in Austin that sounded fun to us we bought them and ended up with a fabulous weekend that was pre-paid!  HOLLER!

So on Friday night we went to a Rampage hockey game in town.  I have become quite the little hockey fan so this is always fun for us....we go to a lot of games and I just want more and more every game that I go to.  This night was special because the ice was dyed pink to support Susan B Komen for the Cure.  It was cool to watch the ice start really bright pink but turn to white as the players skated on it and kicked up snow.  They did a jersey auction after the game so boyfriend and I stay and are thinking maybe we could get a cool jersey for a relatively good price.....WRONG!  These jerseys were selling for thousands of dollars - what a great cause though.  I look forward to going to the second annual 'Pink in the Rink' night.

Pink Rink...How cool is that?

Saturday we slept in and then headed to Austin.  I had bought a Groupon to stay at the Vintage Villas on Lake Travis.  The resort was beautiful....a favorite for weddings.  Our room was very spacious with country decorations - our bed spread even had a cowboy on a bucking bronco on it! haha it was too funny!   So for lunch on Saturday boyfriend and I headed across Austin to another lake to have lunch at the Hula Hut.  Well, usually it is on a lake.  They drained the lake to promote some sort of seaweed to die so it ended up being a slight fail - the smell of the decaying seaweed and lack of water were less than impressive.  But, the drive was pretty awesome.  Scenic and windy - the kind that make you wish you were driving with the top down with your man and big sunglasses!

The view from our patio at the hotel!  The lake was way down but still beautiful!

Next, we went to The Triangle where I got some new sunglasses and purse at SoLa - a cute little clothing and jewerly boutique.  The Austin Flying Saucer is in this shopping center so of course we stopped for a few beers as well.  We had some friends that also went to Austin that weekend so we met them there and had so much fun.  I would share my crazy beer stories with you but you have to wait for the UFO club about those!  Hint: I had a chili beer!

Boyfriend and I, and the new sunglasses....they are purple!

A photo of the shopping center using the iPhone app Hipstamatic

After the Saucer we heading over to Cedar Park to watch a hockey game in Austin.  The Texas Stars play at the Cedar Park Center....and omgsh!  This was probably the best hockey experience that I have ever had.  First off, the arena only has like 16 rows so every seat is a great seat and everyone there is really into the game, partly because there are less people and partly because the view is so great you feel like you are really part of the action.  Boyfriend and I are already planning another trip back because we need some more hockey at this arena!  The game was great as well....it ended in a shoot out - the best!

The view from our seats!

Checking out the merch!

Sunday we got up and had a complimentary breakfast at the hotel.....which did not live up to the hype but that is okay.  After breakfast we drove back to San Antonio just in time to catch the All-Star hockey game.  haha - we are hockey nuts!  But that is okay...it was definitely a great weekend.  And Sunday night, I sure did sleep well!

What city near you do you like to sneak in a little get-away to?

Is the pressure of Valentine's Day getting to anyone else?

UFO Club: 35, 36 and 37

This night Jeffrey and I met my friend and big in my sorority out at the Flying Saucer!  It was so good to see her and catch up - it had been awhile.  I need to be more intentional about hanging out with my really good friends from college and not letting those connections fall to the wayside because I am now a grown-up, working girl.

Kilkenny Irish Cream Ale - 3 Stars

Not a bad tasting beer but it needs some UMPH!  This ale has a gentle maltiness that leaves you wanting me.  Like those really fun people that you can tell have to act a certain way with certain people - like the trapped feeling.  LET IT OUT, you know?!? The biggest fault of this beer is that it has less than 5% alcohol....so basically you get jipped!  And who wants that really?  If you are not going to give me any alcohol you better call it water and you better give it to me for free! The end.

Pilsner Urquell - 5 Stars

A beer I really like that I never knew about!  This is a light, fresh, beer - a pilsner! haha...imagine that.  This beer is brewed in the Czech Republic, which is cool.  And it is yummmmmmmy so what's not to love?  I don't write much about the beers I really like, I guess I am assuming this is the way beer is supposed to taste, which I guess may be true in my world!  Urquell baby!
 (Oh and that is Jaclyn with me, she is the best big in entire world.  I miss her)

Samuel Adam's Imperial Stout - 2 Stars

Notice how I am all over the charts in my beer choices for one night.  Which never ends well for me, yet I continue to do it.  I hope I learn that this is not okay quickly!  Anyways....this beer has a bite to it!  And a nasty one at that.  It is very dark, much like motor oil.  In fact, you could probably run your car on it.  So after a great beer this was even a bigger disappointment.  The Imperial Stout is not for this girl.

This was a fun night, I remember.
I had the 3 B's: Boyfriend, Big and Beer! haha!

UFO Club: 33 and 34

Live Oak Primus Weizenbock - 3 Stars

haha on this card I wrote that the beer was the same color as my nails which were chocolate brown ...random!  But anyways, when I first saw this beer the first thing I thought was what does weizenbock mean....so I will tell you.  A Weizenbock beer is a beer made with wheat malt.  And now you know some random trivia!  This beer has a sweet taste that disappears quickly leaving absolutely NO after taste - so strange!

Great Divide Hibernation - 1 Star

and on this card the first thing I wrote was 'Oh God, the things I get myself into'....haha not a good sign.  Let's just say that I did not enjoy this beer.  It tasted very alcohol-y....like in rubbing alcohol.  I don't want to drink that!  The Great Divide brewery is located in Denver, Colorado and the Hibernation is a winter ale that they have been producing since 1995.  The artwork for this beer (you know the wrapper thing) is really cute, very cabin in the woods in a snowstorm look, I dig.  But I do not dig this beer, probably because it is in that little glass....the glass of death!

BTW, I love these pictures of me!  I know that is a little big headed for me to say but hey it's true!  Besides my red nose....had a cold this day.

Thanks for reading!

...leave me some love...

xoxo

UFO Club: 30, 31 and 32

These beers were had at the Flying Saucer in Houston.  I like visiting saucer's in other cities besides my local one.  Boyfriend and I are going to try to visit all of them in the nation actually.  There are 14 locations so it should be obtainable, but I will keep you updated.  Anyways, Melody and Daniel joined 

Jeffrey and I at the Saucer and we enjoyed some time together.  You should remember them - we got them to join the UFO Club the last time we visited Houston....so they are each at number 6!

Ridgeway Very Bad Elf - 2 Stars

Ridegway Very Bad Elf is a series of 'Bad Adjective' Elf beers made by Ridgeway based in the United Kingdom.  I didn't really like this one - and it is huge - so I did not venture to try another.  I do really appreciate when brewers come up with clever names for their beer though, it definitely makes it more fun to try the brew.  This is an English Pale Ale but is rather hoppy but lacks a true flavor outside of that.

Ranger Creek Oatmeal Pale Ale - 3 Stars

This beer is brewed locally in San Antonio, Texas at the Ranger Creek brewery.  I did not know this but the owner of the Saucer in Houston suggested I try it after learning that I live in San Antonio.  It was a nice suggestion.  The beer is an American Pale Ale (which I don't know what the 'American' part means and if you look at the picture that is pretty dark - not so pale).  But anyways, this beer actually had a cinnamon/cookie taste.  Very nice.  I definitely want to go check out this brewery and take tour!

Piraat Triple - 3 Stars

I have decided to start shooting some videos while I am trying new beers so that you get a real look of me trying the beer and see my initial reaction on my face and my first thoughts.  I hope you enjoy this! 

And that is beer 30, 31 and 32!  Yay!

UFO Club: 27, 28 and 29

I have no pictures of the beers, but here is me on the day I drank them!

Hoegaarden White - 5 Stars

Yum!  This was a good wheat beer.  It is served with an orange and looks very similar to Blue Moon in that regard.  But it is much better than Blue Moon, which I am not a fan of.  It is a very smooth beer and smells very good and fragrant of the orange.  The beer is very yellow and is bigger than your average beer at 11oz.  Definitely recommend this one to everyone.  I want more in fact!

St. Bernardus Christmas Ale - 4 Stars

Okay - first things first.  If I was ever going to go somewhere and knew that I would only be able to have one beer, this would be it.  Why?  Because it has the alcohol content of two beers at 10 ABV!  You can double time it while maintaining some class with this beer.  It is dark but delicious.  It also has that spice-y thing going for it that a lot of Christmas beers have.  Very good!

Shiner Holiday Cheer - 5 Stars

This was a great beer day.  I enjoyed all my beers which I rarely ever do.  Shiner Cheer is once again dark but not to thik and smoother than you would like by it's color.  The Shiner brewery is only about an hour away from San Antonio and I do plan on visiting it with boyfriend some time.  I once got a chance to go in college as a chemistry club field trip, but I didn't.  Yes, I was in the chemistry club, and what? haha but yea I want to go now that I am a beer drinker and see what it is all about.

PS - My friend Jennifer asked me if I even like beer after reading my blog. haha, it's funny that this would be the next post where I genuinely like all the beers I had.  Jennifer - I do like beer! See!

UFO Club: 26

no I am not drinking beer one at a time now, although it looks like it.  I blog my beers per visit so when I only have one beer I only blog about one beer.  okay so now that that (ha!) is taken care of....

Anchor Christmas 2010 - 1 Star

I knew I didn't like it when people celebrated Christmas in November....yes I had this beer in November if you are wondering, I'm not that crazy. But I did not like it!  Anchor puts out a Christmas Ale annually, this brew (the 2010 brew) is the 36th annual Christmas Ale.  All I could think of as I drank this beer was NUTMEG!  tons and tons of nutmeg....so I guess if you are a fan of nutmeg flavor you will enjoy this beer.  nutmeg is also the Christmas tie in here in case you are wondering, I don't really get it but I don't cook Christmas dinners or desserts so maybe nutmeg is the spice of choice in those such items....i don't know.  There is a fruity bite to this beer as well, a cranberry or cherry taste - couldn't distinguish between the two.  (so I take notes while tasting the beers so I can accurately blog about my experience.  on this card i wrote anchor [female sign] less O.S.H., [male sign] better than O.S.H. I have no clue what that means now.  but if you can decipher - knock your socks off!)  Anchor brewery is located in San Francisco, home of the gays and a big red bridge! ...and other things I am sure, but I have never been!  Also this brewery takes careful consideration on how it designs it's bottles for the eight different beer varieties.  Def check out their website about the history of the design if interested!  Again this beer is cool but just isn't for me.  Too malty!  Too....ugh.....it's that after-taste that gets me every time, I can't do it.  I want to like this beer though and look forward to trying more from this brewery.

PS - this was the first time I used the Flying Saucer's new touch screen for the UFO Club receipt print....they have this in Houston so I guess it was my second time but my first in San Antonio! Rad!

xo

UFO Club: 25!

one random day, before going to the movies with boyfriend, if I remember right, we decided to go to the Flying Saucer.  And this is the day I had my 25th beer, which is a milestone if I do say so myself because that means that I am 1/8th of the way to the finish line of this journey.  so like if this was a marathon (which I kind of feel like it is in the drinking world) I would be at the 3.275 mile mark...haha okay so that sounds pretty pathetic.  maybe I will never compare my experience to a marathon again....never....

okay so drum roll for number 25 please...dump boop clap bump clunk....(in case you were wondering that was a written drum roll) that was cooler in my head....

(512) Bruin - 2 Stars

So obviously this beer is DARK!  Way dark so I was pretty scared. haha I don't know why it makes me so nervous because honestly I have liked a lot of dark beers that I have tried but still I freak a little.  This beer started out good but quickly turned on me, and hence the 2 stars.  512 brewery is located in Austin (obviously!) just about an hour from San Antonio so it is always fun to drink a local brew.  The bruin is pretty smooth with a rich maltiness to accompany it's mahogany color.  A good winter brew.  

okay so you might be saying to yourself, hmmm what happened to your hair?  how can you even talk about the bruin without addressing your crazy hair first?  okay so this is the truth.  i tried to do some cool hair-do that i saw in style magazine where you braid your hair while wet let it dry in braids and then curl the braids, take them out and to get a very voluminous do.  Well that's a load of bullshit.  All you get is 80's craziness.  So there you go!

yes i realize sometimes i capitalize sentences properly and sometimes i don't....it doesn't bother me, if it bothers you I'M SORRY...it bothers boyfriend but he doesn't say anything.

...because he is awesome!