While our previous post listed reasons to NOT feel guilty about drinking beer, this post has guilty pleasure written all over it. Fried Twinkies are so fair food ‘09; 2010 is about fried beer! The Texas State Fair is bringing fried beer to the table – and yes, you must have a valid 21-or-over ID to try this kooky concoction.

Mark Zabel, inventor of deep-fried Texas treats including the chocolate-covered-strawberry waffle ball and jalapeno corndog shrimp, is bringing his greasy indulgence to the state-wide cook-off competition held September 26. He hopes to snag a trophy with his patent-pending process that allows the beer itself to be fried inside a salty, pretzel-like pocket. “When you take a bite, beer pours out of the inside pocket of dough.” YUM! Zabel says he’s currently using Guinness but might switch to Shiner Bock or a pale ale like Sierra Nevada, reports Jacksonville.com.

The process has taken Zabel three years to perfect, but he’s confident that he has a winning combination in his fryer. And to satisfy other palettes, there will be fried margaritas and fried lemonade offered at the event as well.

Part II in a weekly series

Pabst Blue Ribbon – Even though this low priced fixture is now furiously linked to the “hipster” movement, that is soon to have run its course. Yes, not too far in the not distant future, the hipsters will find PBR decidedly un-ironic and will see its ubiquity makes not them a beautiful or unique snowflake but rather part of yet another marketing group like anything else. Then finally the Blue Ribbon will be returned to the masses that have a need for a six pack but only have a five spot in their pocket. Of course, now it’s hard to find a sixer of PBR for under $5 in many places as its new found popularity has driven the price up throughout the country. Still, it can be found.

The iconic blue ribbon is for the beer’s 1893 victory at the Chicago World’s Fair, and its patriotic red, white and blue colors and (in many places) its red “Union Made” stamp give away its blue collar, Midwestern roots. It’s design is largely unchanged for decades, and is easily one of the most recognizable brands in the country.

PBR doesn’t have that strong of a taste, but of what it does have is a sweet and grain-like flavor with a malt finish. It it’s fairly light, meaning these are (sometimes a little too) easy to pound down one after the other, which is largely how we’ve seen them consumed.

So long as the price doesn’t continue to sky rocket, PBR still remains a good deal, especially with the larger cans. Even so, the recent price hikes knock this down a bit in the rankings, putting it at a #2 of 2. As it stands:

1. 1. Miller High Life

2. 2. Pabst Blue Ribbon

For the next month we will look at cheap beers that we consider to be a good buy weekly.

Miller High Life – The Champagne of Beers. The Moon Maiden. Your ticket to the High Life. Whatever you want to call it, the $3.50-$5 six pack pack price range has made sure you’ll always have beer at a poker game no matter how long a cold streak you endure.

The bottle is a throwback to what you’d imagine Johnny Cash drinking in “Sunday Morning Coming Down” or what you’d find in your uncle’s garage fridge next to the Bel Air he’s fixing up. The can’s the plain sister except during the fall, when it comes in a blaze orange for hunting season.

Taste wise there’s a hint of bitterness, but it doesn’t have that rice-y taste you find in most big time domestics. It goes down fairly smooth, and you can easily polish a couple of these off without much unwanted aftertaste. Certainly you could ask for more out of a beer, but your beer would ask for more out of your wallet.

For the price, this is hard to beat. Also being an American standard for over 100 years doesn’t hurt either. As this is the first beer reviewed it will automatically take first place…for the moment.

Your comments are welcome.