Old Guardian Barley Wine (bottled) - 3.7

Old Guardian
Barley Wine
Stone Brewing Co.
Escondido, CA
Alcohol Content: 11.26%

Jon:
The least sweet barley wine I've tried--and sweet is why I didn't like some of the others. There is sweetness there, of course, but more honey flavors than the weirdly intense figgy flavors I was expecting from past experience. A lot of depth--plenty of hops, and a bitter tea finish. Every sip yields something new.

3.7	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 5/5 7/10 3/5 7/10 3/5 5/5 7/10

Mark:
Old Guardian is a beautiful honey-colored ale. Surprisingly, there wasn't a strong aroma, but the taste is definitely intense. It starts out sweet, but balanced with bitter and spice. Definitely for sipping only!

4.1	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 5/5 7/10 4/5 8/10 4/5 5/5 8/10

Jere:
Tastes like beer with wine poured in it. Also, be careful how much you consume--half of a 22oz bottle knocked Mark on his ass the first time he tried it. Luckily I just had a fourth of that (bottle, not Mark's portion). Anyways, good for getting drunk fast.

3.3	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 4/5 6/10 4/5 6/10 2/5 5/5 6/10

Mojo Risin' (bottled) - 4.5

Mojo Risin'
Imperial/Double IPA
Boulder Beer Company
Boulder, CO
Alcohol Content: 10%

Jon:
I was really stoked to try this super-charged version of Mojo, and it doesn't disappoint. The relatively mild citrus aroma doesn't prepare the drinker for how amazingly bitter this beer is. The lemony hop flavor just wrecks your face in an instant. As intense as it is, it's surprisingly balanced (as much so as an Imperial IPA can be). Great stuff.

4.4	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 5/5 9/10 4/5 9/10 3/5 5/5 9/10

Mark:
Oh my... This is like drinking two Mojos in one glass. Super-charged. Great citrusy flavor with an intense bitter finish followed by an alcohol "glow." I think it made my ears red. Great!

4.8	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 5/5 10/10 5/5 10/10 3/5 5/5 10/10

Jere:
Long build-up for trying this out, and it was worth the wait. We didn't think Mojo could get any better, but slap a "Risin'" on that and you're good to go. We'll be hard pressed to top this next time. But our wallets will thank us if we try something else.

4.4	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 5/5 10/10 5/5 8/10 2/5 4/5 10/10

RPM Challenge - Report Card

New songs written in February	3
Unreleased songs recorded in February	13
Beers consumed in February	50+
10-song album finished	Yes
Days to spare	1
----------	---
Final Grade	B-

We would've liked to finish writing more new songs, but we adhered to the minimum rules and successfully met the challenge. After a long month of writing, practicing, gigging, and recording, we ended up only using tracks from our final recording session. We are happy enough with the results to start plans on incorporating the tracks into a new limited-release CD, so keep your eyes peeled for that. We would like to thank New Belgium Brewing, Deschutes Brewery, and Grupo Modelo for helping us persevere through the hard work.

We've learned some good lessons, and we're going to do our best to keep writing and working hard during the other 11 months of the year. But first, back to the important stuff--new beer reviews starting next week!

-Jon