TRAGEDY IN GERMANY

(Thanks to Mark Schlesinger, again, plus Layzeeboy and DavCat)

Comments

[Siouxie]

We're gonna need a bigger straw. And a hairdryer. And beer nuts.

[Not My Usual Alias]

At the Bears-Packers game on 12/22, beer and soda froze as soon as the caps were removed and the contents were no longer under pressure.

Thankfully for the Bears kicker, he hit the field goal so the frozen beverage would not be a projectile aimed at him if he missed in the overtime cold.

[Braniff]

I thought alcohol only froze at lower temperatures than that. Any scientists out there to shed some light (beer) on the subject?

[Annie Where-but-here]

Where's a drunken zamboni driver when you need one?

[OtheU(manity)]

I'd've thot that there wuz more alcohol in German beer than to allow it to freeze @ that temperature ... really ...

When I wuz younger (a LOT younger), some guys I knew would forget to stash their beer where their parents wouldn't know they had it, in a Nodak winter ...

Hadda get to about -20º before it actually froze enuf to bend the cans ...

That's whut they told me ... yeah ... I heard that sumwhere ...

[Layzeeboy]

I think I know where Dave is. There are tropical islands in Germany, aren't there?

[Punkin]

Let's all take a moment of silence.

*hic*

[Layzeeboy]

O/T

Just got this in an email and thought I'd share it with the whole class.

Quote of the day:

'Whatever you give a woman, she will make greater. If you give her sperm, she'll give you a baby. If you give her a house, she'll give you a home. If you give her groceries, she'll give you a meal. If you give her a smile, she'll give you her heart. She multiplies and enlarges what is given to her. So, if you give her any crap, be ready to receive a ton of shit.

end O/T

[azred]

Thanks Layzee for the grin. I'm going to embroider that and hang it on my wall....as soon as Mr Red gives me some embroidery thread... and a needle... and a nail... and a hammer...

[Mike Marsh]

@Braniff: Beer is still mostly water, which will separate from the alcohol and freeze. This effect is used to make "ice beer", which is beer that's been "frozen" and the ice removed. What's left is stronger, though there's still plenty of water in it (presumably depending on the temperature). You can use this to achieve a similar (though less potent) result as distilling. It's safer in that you're not likely to get an explosion, but you're concentrating the methanol as well as ethanol. When distilling, you can remove the methanol (it evaporates at a lower temperature than ethanol), but freezing doesn't let you separate the alcohols.

[Cheesewiz]

Do they enforce Skating under the Influence in Germany?

[Pete]

In other words, to prevent this kind of thing happening again we must remove all the water from beer, leaving it 100% pure, unadulterated alcohol. Sounds good to me.

[Braniff]

Thanks MM. So at -4C the stuff that was frozen was the water? leaving pools of purer alcohol for the really desperate alcoholics to lick up? Or would that be cold enough to freeze the alcohol as well?

[BoscoH]

I'm sure he's not the first trucker to fail to secure his load properly.

[Margaritaville]

Beer popsicles for everyone!

[Elon Weintraub]

Braniff, there would definitely be an unfrozen pool of purer alcohol at -4. Also, the "beverage" would still mostly be water.

[Mike Marsh]

If you freeze out too much water, the result will leave you literally "blind drunk," ie methanol-poisoned. It'd probably taste terrible too, unless the bitterness from the hops freezes with the water. Of course, as a scientist I should probably favor testing this experimentally.

You can freeze alcohol, if you have liquid nitrogen available. A friend of mine (who also taught be about distilling) brought vodka ice cubes to a party. It behaves in a very disconcerting manner, but man is it good in a glass of orange juice.

[Allen at Division]

Beer-sicles for everyone!!

[pogo]

And just to add - the freezing point of ethanol is -114C, or if you are left handed, that's -173F.

Methanol freezes at -94C, -137F

[Braniff]

Thanks Elon and Mike. This is like an episode of Mythbusters!

[Al Einstein]

You can freeze alcohol, if you have liquid nitrogen available. A friend of mine (who also taught be about distilling) brought vodka ice cubes to a party. It behaves in a very disconcerting manner, but man is it good in a glass of orange juice.

LOL
Who ever said geeks were no fun at parties?

[Layzeeboy]

This "fun party geek" should add that LN2 (liquid nitrogen) is -321F, or -196C if you have blue eyes. (We store body parts in it).

[ron]

It's a crying shame when so many people know so much about alcohol that perfectly good beer is being strewn across the highways of the world.

Only one zamboni driver was arrested this year.

[Mike Marsh]

We don't know the brand, so we can't really say if it was good beer or not. Still, better on the ground than all over my kitchen.

[Annie Where-but-here]

What a blog - nearly useful nerdisms, people who yell 'beer popsicles!,' and guys with knowledge of how to store body parts (the dead kind). Let's do it all again next year.

[Allen at Division]

Don't drink methanol (Sterno), unless you're fighting off the Andromeda Strain (it will kill you). Ethanol is the fun stuff, especially the Captain Morgan 151 proof variety.

Cheers, everyone! See you in 2009!

[Siouxie]

I have alkyhol in my freezer ( of the vodika kind). I have bought the mixers for Cosmos and Appletinis. Everyone is welcome to come on down and partake in drunken kareoke (YES, Punkin...it's a tradition at my house @ New Years).

Um...we'll also have food of some kind.

[Annie Where-but-here]

Vodka and cornbread - my fave - yeehaw!

[insomniac]

or if you are left handed, that's -173F.

or -196C if you have blue eyes.

i'm blue-eyed and left-handed, so what do i use, degrees kelvin?

[daisymae]

(envisions hundreds of Germans lying on the beer ice licking madly)

[pogo]

Allen - you reminded me that a friend in college had an ambition one year to down an entire pint of 151 rum in a single evening. He made a number of attempts but I don't think he ever made it. We did find him passed out in a number of odd places though.

[pogo]

"or if you are left handed, that's -173F.

or -196C if you have blue eyes.

i'm blue-eyed and left-handed, so what do i use, degrees kelvin?"

Well, -173 + (-196) = -369 * Finagles constant = $1.98!

[Punkin]

I'm ambidextrous (sp?), so do I go both ways??

(Siouxie - Don't asnwer that!!)

Sorry I'll miss the festivities, BFF! Don't shoot into the air at midnight! (Or do you toss your machete??? *shiver*)

[MartiniShark]

Just to toss my professiional hat into the ring: I often deal with kegs that have frozen due to boxes that were set too cold. The beer does seperate with the ice crystals resting on top of the heavier ingredients. Once you defrost the beer lines when the tap pours you get a concentrated product because the keg draws from the bottom.

Back in the day we used to time our beers in the freezer and pour them off when partially frozen for our own ice beer. Apparantly buying malt liquor was too much hassle.

[Cat R]

*trips*

Awright, who left a hat on the floor?!?