Congratulations are in order, dear readers, for me. After many years of arduous study and heart-wrenching self-sacrifice, I have obtained my Doctoral Degree, (Thank you, thank you!)
Now before you get all verklempt in your unbridled joy at my achievement, let me explain. My doctorate is not in medicine, philosophy or even education. It's in "Stoutology."
Yes, Stoutology. And what it means is that I know my stouts. Here's the story of how I got there.
The missus and I stopped for brunch at a roadside diner on Rt. 1 in Edison called the Skylark Diner. Though the design and the decor make it look like it's right out of the old Jetsons TV show, the food was very good and pretty reasonable, too.
And it has a bar.
And on the bar was a taphandle, among others, that said Bareknuckle Stout. It was a unique looking taphandle, so I ordered a pint with my breakfast of Virginia Ham and eggs. I watched it come from the tap and it poured like Guinness does out of a nitro-tap or when you empty one of those cans with the nitrogen widgets in it. Reverse bubble flow and all that, you know. Looked pretty appealing.
Tasted pretty good, too, even before the sweet ham. Nice, smooth, rich mouthfeel, decent nose and black as pitch (once it settled) with a creamy off-white head about a finger and a half high. It got better as it warmed, too.
But--call me ill-informed-- I hadn't heard of it before, so I resolved to look it up when I came home, because, while it wasn't Mackeson's Triple X or Lancaster Milk Stout, it was definitely very drinkable.
As Gomer Pyle would say, "Surprahz, suprahz!
It's made by Anheuser-Busch in Merrimack, NH. And it only comes from a tap, according to its blurbs.
Anyway, my research led me to the site below. Click on it, enter your birthdate and then a picture and some Lounge Lizard music will come on. Click on the group of people on the far right sitting at the bar, and take the final exam to see if you can get your Doctorate in Stoutology. I didn't miss a question. How about you?
If you get your doctorate, I'll buy you a Bareknuckle Stout at the Skylark someday. Go anytime. Just wait for me there.
(Hint: you might do better on the test if you click on the group of people on the far left of the scene first.)
Cheers!
