One-Twenty (Prospect)

Name: One-Twenty
Label: (Pre-launch edition with the 'unofficial' label)
Brewery: Prospect Brewery
ABV: 4.0%

Rating: The Prospect Brewery website. Go to it and buy some stuff.

Game: The World Cup is fast approaching and this means many nights of no gaming (sad face), but it also means lots of football and watching England win for a second time (smiley face). So no new games during the month of Footy so it's time to trawl through all of the Guitar Hero collection. This includes 2, 3, World Tour, Metallica and Van Halen. Thats a lot of songs and a lot of shredding to be done before Friday 11th June.

Big John (Prospect)

Name: Big John
Label: (Pre-launch edition with 'unofficial' label)
Brewery: Prospect Brewery
ABV: 4.8%

Rating: It's a stout, it's also probably one of the best stouts I've ever had. Admittedly I don't drink stout all that much, but still... If this was available in the shops I'd buy it regularly, that's all you need to know.

Game: What now after the mighty Gears of War 2? A bit of Forza 3 perhaps? Forza 3 ain't half yawnsome after spending the past few nights chainsawing dudes in the face. Bless it's little cotton wheels.  Not in the mood for driving games then? No.

Hop Vine Bitter (Prospect)

Name: Hop Vine Bitter
Label: (Pre-launch edition with 'unofficial' label)
Brewery: Prospect Brewery
ABV: 4.0%

Rating: Awesome, this should be available everywhere. Supermarkets should definitely be carrying this, why aren't they?

Game: Gears 2 ain't too bad on Hardcore difficulty. In fact I just kicked its ass, don't think attempting Insane difficulty is such a good idea though. Roll on April 2011 and Gears of War 3.

Piddle in the Hole (Wyre Piddle)

Name: Piddle in the Hole
Label: "Traditional Cask Ale"
Brewery: Wyre Piddle Brewery
ABV: 4.0%

Rating: Someone was obviously taking the piddle when they thought up the names for these villages; Upton Snodsbury, Peopleton and Crowle, Wyre Piddle, North Piddle and Piddle in the Hole.

Game: Just found out there's going to be three DLC releases for Alan Wake. My DLC boycott will be coming to an end I think, plus I get the first one free thanks to spending an inordinate amount of money on the Limited Edition on release day.  Hopefully Microsoft et al will have taken note of my boycott and will have fixed whatever I was moaning about in previous posts, I've forgotten what all the fuss was about to be honest. I'm rating Alan Wake 8 out of 10 by the way.

Pedigree (Marston's)

Name: Pedigree
Label: "Classic English Pale Ale - Official beer of England"
Brewery: Marston's
ABV: 5.0%

Rating: This is the pale version, slightly different label too, its paler...

Game: Just remembered how awesomely violent the Gears of War games are. Currently playing on Hardcore difficulty. I remember trying it on Insane difficulty many many many months ago and it being far more difficult than Gears 1 on that difficulty. Lets see how we get on with Hardcore difficulty.

Waggle Dance (Wells)

Name: Waggle Dance
Label: "Beer brewed with honey - The Waggle Dance is the ceremonial performance a bee gives to alert the hive to a source of nectar."
Brewery: Wells
ABV: 5.0%

Rating: "Tantalising honeyed aromas tempered by a grassy, lemony nose - all leading to a finely balanced, fresh delicate flavour of hops with a lingering dry finish" - no wonder it costs £1.72 a bottle.

Game: Played a bit of DJ Hero to pick up some achievements, specifically the "5 star all songs on medium" achievement. Getting there but typically there's a song thrown in that is despicably difficult to 5 star even though the ones after it are peasy. This happens on Guitar Hero too. Annoyed... mildly.

Summer Lightning (Hop Back)

Name: Summer Lightning
Label: "Award winning golden ale"
Brewery: Hop Back Brewery
ABV: 5.0%

Rating: Hop Back Brewery has won more than 70 awards for this, its flagship beer.

Game: Another Super Street Fighter IV gaming night tonight hosted by the great Ugly Geezer from the Frugal Gaming community. Not played for a few weeks and it was really noticeable how much everyone else has improved. I won my first three matches but then everyone else must have warmed up as I didn't get a look in after that. They're all on fancy fightsticks as well (sad face).

Hot Cross Ale (Titanic)

Name: Hot Cross Ale
Label: "Brewed especially for Spring, this beer combines spices, sultana flavours and hops to create a delightful ale with a hint of hot cross buns - Seasonal beer, limited edition"
Brewery: Titanic Brewery
ABV: 4.5%

Rating: Does actually taste like hot cross buns. Spicy.

Game: The announcement of Gears of War 3 (here is the Gears of War 3 Ashes to Ashes trailer) has spurred me on to revisit Gears of War 2.  Having shamefully done only one play through so far, it's definitely well overdue a replay.

Cumberland Ale (Jennings)

Name: Cumberland Ale
Label: "Pure Lake District - Late afternoon in October looking over Cummock Water"
Brewery: Jennings
ABV: 4.7%

Rating: New label with nice picture.. still doesn't taste like sausages... Win.

Game: Oh no, gaming burnout? Worries about work and family stopping me from enjoying anything?  Depressed.  Don't know what to play, might be time to buy Red Dead Redemption, it's GTA but with horses. You can upgrade your horse. Everywhere is sold out. FAIL.

Newcastle Brown Ale (Newcastle Federation Breweries)

Name: Newcastle Brown Ale
Label: "Newcastle Brown Ale is the yen an' anny after all" - not sure what this statement on the label means, think it's in foreign or something
Brewery: Newcastle Federation Breweries
ABV: 4.7%

Rating: Just to prove it's not just consumed by pissed geordie scum-bags, I drank some and it was alright by me.

Game: Feeling mildly depressed after finishing Alan Wake. Got 1000 gamerscore and 100% complete, go me etc etc. But it feels like when a really awesome series you watched as a kid finishes, coupled with some weird shit going on at work its enough to want to make me find an alternative use for my shoelaces. Doom on me, indeed.