Confession: I was a bad boy last night. For me, the photos that usually accompany my posts are absolutely critical to the effectiveness of the 365 brews project. I forgot to bring my camera tonight, and to all my readers out there I am truly sorry for that. I have however, supplied a few pictures of Affligem from various websites, and posted two other random pics of my friends because frankly they're more interesting than looking a stock photo of a beer bottle.
Anyway, since I forgot the camera, let the wordsmith stoke the fires of your interest by taking you on the perilous journey that was my Friday night.
It's another Friday night, Quinn is tired from being around thirty fifth graders all week and understandably doesn't share my zeal for going out and getting tanked. Fair enough, but I decide to venture on without her for the night. Some of my coworkers were going to a Mexican restaurant to share some drinks, eat some chips and salsa, and talk shit about all the kids we work with. My friend Stephan who saved my life earlier in the week (see the Sapporo post from Jan 12) joined the festivities and needless to say I was obliged to buy my new hero a drink. So someone suggested a round of patron shots (On my tab...fuckers) and then another (On Tiff's tab, thanks!). After a few beer, I was pretty good and tipsy, but the night was still young. Most of my friends and coworkers decided to go their separate ways and do who knows what, but for Stephan, Tiffany and I, the night was just getting started.
We ended up in Laguna at a club called Oceans that was pretty cool until a swarm of bros invaded the bar with their affliction t-shirts and backwards hats in tow. After a few 7&7's (my favorite non-beer alcoholic drink) we decided to leave the bar when some clumsy fool stepped on Stephan's sandal, ripping the sole from the strap.
So we leave Ocean's, Tiffany's friend Michelle showed up at some point and is trying to catch up to our level of beligerance that is steadily increasing. It's an uphill battle and I know that she's not going to catch up to us, but God bless her heart for trying. So now we're making the drunken stroll to my absolute favorite spot in Laguna called Brussels. Stephan is barefoot, Tiff and I are smoking cloves and I'm pretty sure I drunk dialed a friend but I can't be certain.
Brussels is going off as usual. Here's an equasion for you mathematical types out there: Belgian beer + Euro Dance Music + Dark Bar + Already being too drunk to care = Good times. Brussels bills itself as a Belgian cafe by day, and a bar by night, and it's pretty much the only bar in Laguna that's not filled with your typical Laguna people. Over the course of this night, I had four different beers, but Affligem was the only one that I felt was worth writing about. At Brussels you can expect a crowd at the bar, snooty Euro bartenders and the occaisonal creepy fifty year old man who stands in the corner with a glass of Chardonay spying sheepishly on the young women in the bar, but it's all worth it for the selection of beers they have. You won't find Budweiser anywhere near this place. They only serve fine Belgian beers, and the selection they have is hard to find anywhere else in Orange County.
Affligem was one of those beers that I had somehow never tried before. I'm admittedly a sucker for Belgian style lagers, but this one was definitely a cut above the rest. I was clearly very drunk at this point, but the quality of this beer was enough to somehow bring some clarity back to my wandering mind and take notes. Affligem had such a refreshing taste, it almost felt like I was drinking a glass of water (in a good way). My only regret is that I know I didn't get the full experience with this one, because I was already so drunk that all I really wanted to do was dance and raise hell. Regardless of my pitiful attempt to review a good beer while I was already completly tossed, I can assure you that Affligem is a beer that's well worth the price tag that inevitably comes with a Belgian import. Get out there and try it for yourself.
As for the rest of the night? Nothing amazing really happened. Michelle drove us home and Stephan crashed on my couch and left sometime before I woke up. All in all, a great night, capped off with a great beer. I'm a happy man.
Op uw gezondheid! (Flemish speaking part of Belgium) A Votre Sante! (French speaking part of Belgium)
Ian
www.affligembeer.be
P.S. Affligem has a kick ass website. Check it out, it has chanting monks in the background. Classy!
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