three stooges

When I first realized there was a Three Stooges beer, I was in St. Louis at the restaurant Blueberry Hill (owned by Chuck Berry). In the hallway near the bathrooms, BH has some fascinating display cases with pictures of famous people who have been to the restaurant and also some great collections of tv, music, and movie memorabilia. My favorite was the Beatles display, but, on my way out, something else caught my eye: a display of Three Stooges memorabilia, complete with the Three Stooges Beer, made by Panther Brewing Co.  Clearly, I missed the boat on this beer when it was being made, but that didn't mean I couldn't go on a quest to find the bottlecaps, which feature Larry, Moe, and Curley on them.

It didn't take too long, what with the internet and all. A search on eBay produced exactly what I wanted: a complete set of Three Stooges bottle caps -- with BOTH Curley crowns.

I have spoken about TV shows and their fake beers before and how there needs to be more fake-to-real beers made. I have also spoken about Monty Python's Holy Grail Ale and the awesomeness that is their bottle cap. But this is the first time I've seen the actual TV/movie stars ON the bottle caps. And who better than the Stooges? Maybe the Marx Brothers, but that might be asking a lot.

Is there a Beatles Beer that I'm not aware of with John, Paul, George and Ringo on the bottle caps? Someone should get on that, stat.

By the way, I think it goes without saying that these are definitely Hall of Famers.

And a last note, here is Moe, Slap Happy. Enjoy!

colt 45

Michael and I love to explore a new neighborhood. Recently we visited a friend who just bought an apartment in Clinton Hill, and we were on our way over to have dinner on his fabulous roof deck and check out the new pad. Apartment envy set in.

But on our way over to the gorgeous new apartment, I was scanning the streets for new and unusual bottle caps -- something different than the Heineken, Smirnoff, and Coronas that I usually find on my street.

Just my luck: a (slightly beat up) Colt 45 was right in front of me, glinting in the sun.

Colt 45 is one of those beverages that I am HAPPY to pick up off the street, if it means that I never actually have to drink one. And it's not to be confused with the other kind of Colt 45, which I hope no one ever finds on the street. That's just dangerous.

Anywhoo, this malt liquor bottle cap is fancier than I thought it would be. It has a bold blue Colt 45, proudly announces that it's malt liquor (why would you do that?!) and also has a horseshoe and a horse, bucking in said horseshoe. There is also the background silver/white Colt 45 name repeated underneath the blue. It's almost TOO busy for its own good. But I admire what they're trying to do there.

goose island

I will admit it: My mom totally encourages this blog. (Hi mom!) She sends me emails when she likes posts, and you may have even seen a comment or two from her on here.

But mostly, she tells me that she's been on the lookout for bottle caps for me, and now, every time I go home, there's a pile of crowns and usually a beer or soda for me to bring home with me. She even promised that she'd take me on a beer run in a few weeks. Score!

Last time I went home, she presented me with a nice haul. One of the crowns included in the pile is Goose Island, a beer hailing from the Windy City.

Goose Island also makes soda, which I've managed to find on my own.

Both of these bottle caps fit the bill, but I'm guessing, dear readers, that you can pick out which one I like better.

Yep, its the one with the goose on it. How can you not like a goose head on a bottle cap? It goes nicely with a Duck-Rabbit bottlecap. Maybe the goose and the duck/rabbit can be friends? Someone should write a children's story about it. I'm telling you, that idea is GOLDEN. Almost like a goose that laid golden eggs.

schweppes

Sometimes, you have one of those days where everything just lines up the way you want them to.

As I believe I've mentioned before, Michael is a huge St. Louis Cardinals fan. In 2006, when the Cardinals won the World Series, he had a few superstitions going, one of which included drinking a Schweppes Ginger Ale while watching every game.

When I mentioned to this to my mom this morning, she said that I should definitely blog about Schweppes, and I said that I couldn't because I didn't have a Schweppes bottle cap!

Lo and behold: today, on our walk to the deli to get a Schweppes, what did I see on the ground, calling up to me?

A Schweppes bottle cap! Now, I swear, I have NEVER seen Schweppes in a glass bottle in my neighborhood. Yet, there it was, top-up in a tree planter.

I think it's a sign that the Cardinals are going to win tonight. I hope I didn't just jinx it.

coney island lager

I recently had friends in town who were supremely into Coney Island. So I thought, why not blog about this awesome bottle cap (which also happens to be my twitter pic)?

Obviously, I love this bottle cap. I wouldn't have it as my twitter pic if I didn't! My friends who fell in love with Coney Island were even considering getting tattoos of the Carney on the bottle cap while they were in NYC.

Alas, despite finding them a reputable tattoo parlor, they backed out at the last minute. They did bring the bottle cap home with them, which makes me think that it is still a possibility. And, it does raise the always interesting question: bottle cap collectors, do you have any bottle cap designs that YOU would have as tattoos? Do you have them? I'd love to see pics -- post links and/or images in the comments section!

I know you're out there & reading -- and I would love to hear from you -- ink or no ink.  Even just what you'd consider having as a tat.

I personally don't have any tattoos. But ideas are always welcome. (Sorry, Mom!)

Ayinger Oktoberfest Marzen

So, if you haven't already guessed, yesterday's mystery post is today's real post.

This bottle cap is pretty unusual based on my normal comings and goings with crowns. It looks like a painting, and goes all the way to the edge of the crown -- not just the top. It doesn't give any indication of the brewery or the beer (or even that it is beer!) but does bring to mind a quaint German village where beer is enjoyed and possibly brewed. Maybe you can even get some spaetzle or a delicious pretzel.

The deli where I purchased Ayinger -- The Foodery -- presented an interesting question that Michael and I have been discussing for quite some time.

What should bottle cap collectors do when they come upon an amazing new selection of bottle caps while traveling? Sure, you can bring a bottle opener on trips and try to drink a few in a short period of time. But sometimes that's just not enough; there's a limit to what one can buy and consume while on the road. So what does one do? There will always been those bottles left behind. There will always be the bottle caps that I will think about (Bad Elf, Seriously Bad Elf? They have Santas on the crown who are too fat to slide down the chimney!) and hope that someone out there has a few extra crowns that they might want to trade for or even donate to the cause. (Hint, hint!)

Does anyone have any traveling tips? This reminds me of my trip to Seattle earlier this year when I went to the deli across the street from my hotel three or four times every night to get different sodas. (Seriously, there are a glut of microbrew sodas in the Pacific Northwest.) It got a little out of hand. And I still wasn't able to get all the caps that I wanted.

And, FYI The Foodery: if I ever come back to Philadelphia (I'm sure I will) I will buy you out of all of the awesome bottle-capped beers you have!

mystery cap!

Check out this cap! A hint: it was purchased during my trip to Philadelphia, however, it is not a Philadelphia-beer.

Let me know in the comments if you can figure it out!