Sure, advertising makes the world go 'round, but it also makes me get up and head to the kitchen to fetch a snack. And yet, there are some commercials that are just so well done that they're actually worth watching, and Heineken's cinematic ad "The Date" certainly falls into that category. Composed of one long tracking shot that follows a rakish young hero and his sexy date as they enter a surreal banquet hall, encounter a host of strange characters, and celebrate with a couple of cold bottles of Heineken (don't they have glasses at this party?), it's marketing at its finest. And since the date looks like a lot of fun, Heineken came up with a way you can experience it yourself, sort of. 

When I showed up at Aretsky's Patroon last Thursday evening for the launch of Amstel Wheat, I immediately regretted not bringing my growler. As the newest beer from the storied Dutch brewery, it's only available on draft, and thus there was no way for me to take some of the precious nectar with me for additional sampling at home. Fortunately, I was able to stay long enough to quaff an appropriately perfect pint (pictured) in one of the midtown Manhattan restaurant's many private rooms, and can report that it's a fine addition to the Amstel portfolio.

What took you beer guys so long? It's 2011 and you're only just now coming up with a brew targeted to morning drinkers? New Zealand's Moa Brewery is focusing on a grossly underserved segment of the beer-drinking population with the introduction of Moa Breakfast, a brew worth getting out of bed for. This is what marketing people refer to as "low-hanging fruit."

A German dude has broken the world record for the largest structure ever built with beer mat coasters -- 300,000 of them. In the western German town of Schleiden yesterday, Sven Goebel, 21, completed construction on a five-room apartment made entirely of beer mats. It even featured a table and chairs and and a fireplace. But then, it all came crashing down.

Say the word "U-tah," and I get anxious, annoyed. I think immediately of the watered down Corona (as if it needed to be any more watery) greeting me at the end of a brutal bunny slope. I think of weak vodka cocktails and having to order food I don't want to get them. I think of scary things. But, that's all changing, sorta. They'll still be watery Corona at the grocery store, but recently relaxed liquor laws are making the state a better place to drink.

These days, beer cans are all about bells and whistles. Mountains that turn blue when the beer has been chilled to optimum drinking temperature. Can liners. Wide mouths for smoother chugging. There are even beer cans now that let everyone else know that you are interested in being skinny —  the newest Heineken Light receptacle, for example, which is closer in size to a Red Bull can. Things weren't always so. Today we hearken back to the days of beer-packaging of yore, before light brews taught beer-drinkers how to be self-conscious and before beer packaging became ashamed of beer-drinkers. A time when a beer could call itself Champagne Velvet with a straight face.

Bad time to travel to Belgium. The country is running low on two of its most best-known beers, Stella Artois and Leffe, due to union protests at the Anheuser-Busch InBev brewing company. No beer has left Anheuser-Busch for the past week, and bars and supermarkets are said to be running low.

Before you start reading my blog entries and wondering who that crazy lady wandering around L.A. at all hours of the night is, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Tricia Romano, and I've previously terrorized the shores of the East Coast where I wrote a column about nightlife called "Fly Life" for the Village Voice in New York. That five-year run ended in 2007; I packed up and moved to Los Angeles last spring and was living a quiet life by the beach, when BlackBook lulled me out of retirement. I'll be reviewing the latest in Los Angeles nightlife, dishing news and gossip about the city's parties, bars, clubs, restaurants, and even the occasional taco truck.

On a glorious Memorial Day weekend like the one just past, New York becomes a fantasyland for locals who choose to remain behind and relish the suddenly vacated city. Tourists still mob Times Square, but a large percentage of natives, students, and bridge & tunnelers decamp for the shore. Which makes it a perfect time to wander through the normally choked West Village, since it happens to hold several of the city's best beer bars. So we embarked on a quick tour of a notable trio -- the Blind Tiger Ale House, 124 Rabbit Club, and Vol de Nuit -- to bring you the first taste of what's on tap during the warmer months. Apologies for the blurry photos in our gallery, but we thought it was just our blurry vision at the time.

New Orleans' favorite beer is back on the Bayou (and in a few Yank bars).