Rock Barbers Blog
November 29, 2011
Hot sauce. There are thousands, but in the U.S. there are the big three, Frank’s Red Hot, Cholula (with the round wooden cap) and of course, Tabasco. You know them and probably have one or more on your counter. Since we are a locally owned and operated company, we thought that it would be interesting to taste test some locally made hot sauces with our customers at Rock Barbers. So we drove to the store and bought four different hot sauces, three local ones, to see if there was an overwhelming preference.
We set up a testing area toward the back of the barbershop. We provided tortilla chips to place drops of the sauces on, then covered the bottles with brown paper and labelled them with A, B, C, and D. We did not want to influence the testers by the packaging of the bottles. The testers could taste each in any order and retry any one that they wanted. Most were washed down between tastes with the local beer in our kegerator, Buffalo Gold. After their decision was made, which was difficult for almost everyone, they would put a bean in corresponding cups also labelled A, B, C and D. Then we would reveal the different hot sauces names and prices.
Here are the results:
A: High Altitude Gourmet Red Habanero $4.99 Englewood, CO 37%
B: Boulder Hot Sauce Company Harry’s Habanero $4.39 Boulder, CO 29%
C: Gilberto’s Gourmet Goodness Zesty Cayenne $4.99 Fort Collins, CO 23%
D: Kroger Hot Sauce .89 cents ?? Not sure what locality ?? - Votes 11%
Next time you are in the store looking for a new hot sauce, think of our local ones and give them a try. You’ll be surprised with the quality goodness in every bottle and you will also be supporting another local entrepreneur.
Next Rock Barbers Taste Test – Barbeque Potato Chips?
Want to know more about hot sauces? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_sauce
October 17, 2011
For centuries in America shaking hands with someone has been the traditional manly greeting. The handshake subtly delivers a message about yourself as well as an introduction. In business it is a good tool in making a strong impression. The way you shake hands tells a lot about your personality and confidence.
Here are three simple rules about this manly art.
1- If this is a first meeting, introduce yourself by name while you are extending your hand and looking the person “in the eye”. Your right hand should slide into the other persons right hand, stopping when the web between your thumb and index finger reaches theirs. At this point you should squeeze their hand with enough pressure to form a solid grip. You do not want to appear too familiar or casual, just honest and respectful. If it is someone you know then you can add a personal touch with “Whazz up?”, “Hey Dogg” or “How ’bout dem Bears?”
2- Shake only 2 or 3 times. You are not trying to pump water up a well. More than 3 pumps can appear ridiculous and become awkward.
3- Remember that your grip should mirror theirs. Not too hard, just firm and polite. Easy there Tarzan… it’s not a strongman competition.
There you have it. Confident and professional.
When you come into Rock Barbers we’ll welcome you with a handshake that builds your confidence and anticipation of another great service.
Here are some other handshake versions and ways to say hello.
The “High Five” http://youtu.be/-mMRY2N6s2I
The “Bro Hug Double Tap Back Combo” http://youtu.be/u0FfCJ9M0hE
September 9, 2011
Now that summer is almost over we all know that America’s 4th most popular professional sport, Hockey, is just around the corner. (I know that I’m not including motorsports. Their fans would argue that they are actully the most popular and don’t get respect. That is for another blog.)
Hockey is a great sport with “Man Up!” written all over it. They use terms that are as cool as the ice it is played on… “five hole”, “dump and chase”, ” between the pipes”, “gongshow”, “light the lamp”, “put the biscuit in the basket”. (Well maybe not the last one. It sounds a lot like the line from the movie Silence of the Lambs. ”…she puts the lotion in the basket…”) If you can’t strap on the skates and play for the Colorado Avalanche you might just try to get into an adult hockey league to work off some aggression, get back into shape and have a cold adult beverage with your teammates in the locker room after your game.
There is a great local rink in Superior, CO named Boulder Valley Ice. It has a full NHL, 200′ x 85′ sheet of ice maintained by hockey players “serious” about smooth, cold, hard ice. BVICE provides programs from Learn to Skate to Adult Hockey. Check it out at http://bvice.pucksystems.com/.
While you are out on the ice moving around like Sidney Crosby or Alex Ovechkin, you might be inspired by a couple of new dasher board ads encouraging you to “Man Up!”
August 28, 2011
Last January right before the Super Bowl we had the idea to serve each customer a “right-sized” pour of a cold beverage during their visit to Rock Barbers. How cool would it be to “take the edge off” a long day at work while you relax in our barbershop? Very cool was the answer. So we started thinking about bottles vs. cans. That became a problem for storage, cooling and disposal. Ah hah! Let’s build a kegerator. It can’t be that hard… and it wasn’t. Here is how we did it.
1. Buy a fridge that can hold a full keg. (It is called a half-barrel at the liquor store.)
We bought ours at Sears. It is an apartment size refrigerator. $299.00 plus tax.
2. Get the Kegerator Conversion Kit. $200.00
- 1 CO2 tank with regulator
- 1 coupler
- A lot of surgical tubing for beer and CO2 lines
- 1 tap
- 1 tower(necessary for mini-fridge conversions)
- 1 drip tray
- 1 draft spigot
- 1 shank
- 1 draft spigot handle
3. Remove the shelves from the fridge. Just throw them away because you will never need them again. This fully opens up the space inside the fridge to accommodate the keg.
4. Remove the shelves on the door itself. This takes up valuable room when you shut the door. Replace the door gasket as you will need a seal to keep the beer cold.
5. Drill a hole in the front or side of the kegerator at the proper height to be able to dispense the beer from the tap without bending over. *This is a safety measure to avoid getting a bad back from bending over. You gotta think ahead people!
6. Place the shank into the hole, secure and tighten it. Attach the hoses according to directions to the CO2 tank.
7. Place the cold keg in the new kegerator, attach the coupler. Set the CO2 tank to 8 pounds of pressure. Pull the tap handle and beer should flow.
Oh sure there will be plenty of tinkering and adjusting to get the foam just right. A lot of beer will be consumed in this process but as they say “Waste not, want not”.
The next time you come in to Rock for a haircut, don’t wait to be asked, just go over to our kegerator, grab a cup from the top, place it under the tap at a 45 degree angle, pull that tap and pour yourself a cold one. God knows you deserve it!
PS: It’s 5 O’clock somewhere.
PSS: We are always looking for cool stickers to put on the kegerator. Bring one in and stick it on.
