(SpoCOOL) A Spokane Blog

Numbers. They can be interesting, and a look at our stats from the last year gives us a good idea what Spokane and beyond is looking for. At least as far as our five readers go. Anyway!

Here are some statistics from 2012 which may or may not be of interest to some of you. Many things, like search rankings, dictate hits, but this gives us somewhat of a general idea what people are interested in, within the confines of what ye olde Team SpoCOOL covers.

First, restaurant searches: Most popular keyword was Central Food, often times in the guise of Central Foods. Casper Fry came in second, followed by South Perry Pizza. That most places start with a spike around the time they open is no surprise, though some, like the aforementioned restaurants, maintain a steady stream. Particularly South Perry Pizza has hung around the top here for a while.

The #1 hit from our Twitter links was the Beignets re-opening post. Not too surprising, and we can only agree with @norton_cameron's take on the situation: "after all that??"

Drinking games are ever popular, with Breaking Bad hitting the top, and, somewhat disturbingly, teen drama Pretty Little Liars sitting comfortably at number two.

Our most popular sub-page is Restaurant Reviews, closely followed by the Liquor License Stalker and Links.

And the most random search popping up with an oddly high frequency: "Why does Laura Linney introduce masterpiece classic?" (Why indeed?!)

Finally, the #1 browser for this site: Safari, with around 30% of the hits. This is largely the result of iPhone and iPad hits, which have skyrocketed over the past year. And as opposed to the rest of the world, Android sits at a paltry 8% versus iOS's 23%. Who would have thought Spokane had such great taste?!

And as we go into 2013, we're looking at making some modifications to better accommodate mobile devices. In 2011 only a couple of percent of you accessed the site using phones and tablets. In 2012 it was closer to 1/3. Times are, apparently, changing. Rapidly.

You may or may not remember Patrick's $100 Mac & Cheese Challenge...

... which of course started with a visit to Saranac. The downtown eatery recently added another mac and cheese to their menu, though it's for a limited time only. The Beer Mac & Cheese is, at least going by our memory, similar to their original dish, but with the addition of -- surprise, surprise -- beer.

And then again, why not? The mainstay is great, and it deservedly topped the readers's Best of... poll last year. (Which, incidentally, meant Patrick did not have to cough up $100.)

The added beer is only described as a "domestic lager", and we had our doubts something that's traditionally flavorless when imbibed would make much of a difference when used in cooking. Yet it does. The cheddar cheese sauce feels like it has just a little bit more depth here, and a little bit of smokiness makes an appearance toward the back.

In that sense, this might all be very similar to the original mac and cheese, but just a little bit better. A little bit is, in our minds, enough to push it over the edge.

This is decidedly something we all should approve of, and a reason to head down to Saranac to try out the Beer Mac & Cheese. It's listed on the weekly special menu, so this a limited engagement kind of thing, and pleasantly priced at $10.

So do we have a new winner of the $100 Mac & Cheese Challenge? Well, maybe, but that is up to you to decide! Go give it a shot, and, as always, feel free to Tweet us your impressions.

I mean, I'm sure there are plenty of things to do, but if you're still looking for something, here are a couple of suggestions:

Clover is offering a special $50 menu which includes prime rib, soup or salad, dessert, and a glass of champagne. You can make reservations from their website.

The Bartlett and Casper Fry have teamed up to create a fundraiser for the soon-to-exist concert venue. Performances by Cathedral Pearls and Erik Walters, with special deals on appetizers and drinks will run you $25. See the Facebook invite for more, or just run out and buy tickets straight away.

Masselow's will have a special menu, $145 for two people, $195 with wine pairing. (We can only assume single people are asked to slum it somewhere else.) See it all on their website. 

And if you're up for something more casual, Manito Tap House will stay open until 2am with drink and food specials.

Update: Nectar Wine is running a $99 per couple shindig. (Although I would contend, and I am mathematically challenged, that would make it $49.50 per person, as opposed to the stated $50. Hey, every literal dollar counts!) Run and grab tickets.

Did we leave anything out? Well, I'm sure we did, so let us know on Twitter, @spocool, if you have any tips on what should be posted here.

Dogfish Head likes its minutes and it likes its IPAs. Some of those combinations turn out well; some, like the 120 Minute, are more admirable than awesome; others I don't quite get.

The special edition 75 Minute falls into the latter category. Not that it's a bad beer, mind you, it just didn't have the balance I'd expect from what essentially is a blend of the 60 Minute and 90 Minute. This could have been awesome, but it doesn't live up to the rather significant hype.

First, though: Fair is fair, there are a lot of amusing details around the 75 Minute, like its 7.5% ABV and 750 ml bottle. That's kinda cool. The label, too, is amusing.

And the first impressions of the actual beer fares equally well. This is a pretty beer, dark and copper-y, with a clear white head. Sniff it, and you'll pick up on the promised maple syrup straight away, nicely mixed with strong notes of hops.

This might be the root of my "meh" final impression. The sweetness just didn't carry over to the flavor as well as I had expected. The hops dominate here, with the mouthfeel having a strange, sharp, overly carbonated edge to it. That's pretty much the polar opposite of Dogfish Head's description of it.

The way the syrup sort of plays second fiddle to the hops is odd. In a sense this just tastes like somebody squirted a small amount of syrup into a 90 Minute IPA. The harmony I had expected between syrup and hops after whiffing the beer just isn't there.

Really, that's too bad. I think the 75 Minute had great potential, and many people seem to love the beer. I mean, they love it. They're in love with it.

You might have more of a positive impression of the 75 Minute too, so give it a try, certainly. It's not horrible, I had just expected more.