Monthly Archive for September, 2006

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Delicious draught delight

I had some of my family from Britain in town last weekend. My cousin brought some English ale with him, a beer called Boddingtons Pub Ale - or “Boddy’s,” as it’s nicknamed. It’s a delicious ale - a bit lighter than most ales, but very hoppy and refreshing.

The best part of the beer, though, is its fantastic head. Boddington bills itself as the “Cream of Manchester,” and its creamy heads are the reason why.

Beer sold in cans can’t produce the head that you get in a mug that’s been drawn from a tap at your favorite watering hole. That’s because heads produced by CO2 fizzle quickly (think Diet Coke, here). But Boddington’s (along with a few other British beers) include the “Draughtflow System,” an engineering marvel which ensures that one has a proper British head for his beer.


Mmm… look at that firm head. This picture was taken several minutes after pouring, and you could still float a quarter 20 pence coin on it if you wanted to.

I was curious to see how this “Draughtflow System” works, so I cut the can apart.

Rattling around inside the can was a plastic “widget.”

The widget is a nitrogen-infused plastic bubble that floats inside the pressurized can. When the can is opened, the CO2 inside the ale is released, the pressure inside the can drops, and the widget releases its nitrogen in a small explosion. And it turns out that CO2 + nitrogen makes a firm, creamy, silky head; which aerates the ale to perfection. And while CO2 bubbles are going up in your glass, the nitrogen bubbles are going down. Just like when your barkeep pulls a fresh mug for you.

Turns out you can buy Boddy’s here in the States. I definitely recommend it, if not for the taste factor, at least for the gimmick factor the widget will give you. Think of how cool you’ll sound at your next football party, explaining the concepts of pressurized nitrogen and CO2 to a wowed audience.

It’s an Ale, so serve it warm, say around room temperature (“British room temp,” that is, where “warm” = ~65 degrees).

You engineering geeks might be interested in the widget’s patent.

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Yay parenthood

Things I can’t believe I’ve said to my daughters:

  • No, honey, there’s always only been three fish in the fishtank.
  • Ouch. Don’t worry, it’s okay - you’ve got plenty of blood.
  • Hit Daddy in the nads again, and I’ll chain you to a pipe in the crawlspace.
  • Br- uh, Cel- uh, Mad- uh, whoever you are, clean that mess up.
  • Which one of you flushed a size 4t dress shoe?
  • You - why is your foot wet?
  • *munch*munch* no sweetie, nere’s no cookies neft. *munch*
  • Let’s see… hmmm… nope, sorry, Kipper’s not on right now… but Look! There’s a cool football game!! Wanna watch it instead?
  • Get out of your carseat again, and Daddy gets his duct tape out.
  • Yes, you’ll love it. I put sugar in it.
  • All boys secrete poison. Your mom and I will give you the antidote on the day of your wedding.
  • Wow! That is such a great picture of the rabbit! Mommy? Yeah, it’s a great picture of Mommy!
  • What’s your mom’s cell phone number again?
  • What’s my cell phone number again?
  • C’mere and pull my finger.
  • I SAID…leave the baby’s eyes alone. They have to stay inside her head.
  • No, you CAN’T pee standing up like da - hey, now, I said you ca - stopstopSTOP—aaah, crap. Told you. Now clean that up.

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