Beer Reviews: Leinenkugel's 1888 Bock

Missing the public opinion boat somewhat, Leinenkugel discontinued one of their heavier beers, the "Big Butt" Dopplebock and replaced it with 1888 Bock, based on an old family recipe...they say. Not much of a head, dark copper-amber in color, with a low bitterness rating as you'd expect in a bock. Hearty, malty and very drinkable. Solid flavor, great paired with some grilled chicken.

I Just Don't Believe It

The Democratic party's health care proposals are characterized by the Republicans as "a government takeover of the health care industry", which presumably would be bad, perhaps even socialist. This serves to get ordinary Americans worked up and incensed about the whole process, which I'm not convinced most people really understand, because most of us are trained to have a revulsion for socialism, which we equate with communism. 

But are most ordinary Americans really against protecting themselves from being denied insurance for pre-existing conditions? Are most ordinary Americans for millions of people losing insurance coverage and as a result health care? Do we as a nation actually believe that portability of health coverage and affordable health insurance for those who are not part of group plans is bad? I don't think that the nation is against those things, but have been convinced by The Right that it's something that it's not.

Perhaps we should stop demonizing the President and look at what the benefits would be rather than crying that the sky is falling and that the commies are coming.

   

Beer Review: Sierra Nevada 2009 Harvest "Wet Hop Ale"

Towering head, quickly falling back to about one third of the glass; light amber and cloudy. Twinge of piney citrus, like a light IPA. According to Sierra Nevada's webiste "These hops are harvested and shipped as “wet” un-dried hops—the same day they are picked—to our brewery in Chico where our brewers eagerly wait to get them into the brew kettle while their oils and resins are still at their peak." Not very bitter; citrus taste almost like grapefruit. Very drinkable.

Beer Review: Schell Brewwing - Schmaltz's Alt

First, a definition of "Alt":

Altbier (often abbreviated to Alt) is the name given to a form of German top-fermenting beer that originated in Westphalia and spread to parts of the Rhineland later.

The name Altbier, which literally means old [style] beer, refers to the pre-lager brewing method of using a warm top-fermenting yeast like British pale ales.^[1] Over time the Alt yeast adjusted to lower temperatures, and the Alt brewers would store or lager the beer after fermentation, leading to a cleaner, crisper beer than is the norm for an ale.

The Bavarian Reinheitsgebot (beer purity law; literally "purity order") of 1516 was drawn up to ensure the production of decent-quality beer; however, this decree did not affect brewers of the Rhineland. As such, the brewing traditions in this region developed slightly differently. For example, brewing during the summer was illegal in Bavaria, but the cooler climate of the Rhineland allowed Alt brewers to brew all year long and to experiment with storing fermented beer in cool caves and cellars.

The name "altbier" first appeared in the 1800s to differentiate the beers of Düsseldorf from the new pale lager that was gaining a hold on Germany. ^[2] Brewers in Düsseldorf used the pale malts that were used for the modern pale lagers, but retained the old ("alt") method of using warm fermenting yeasts.^[3]

The first brewery to use the name Alt was Schumacher which opened in 1838.^[4] The founder, Mathias Schumacher, allowed the beer to mature in cool conditions in wooden casks for longer than normal, and laid the foundation for the modern alt beer - a dark, lagered top-fermented beer.^[5] The result is a beer that has some of the lean, dryness of a lager, with the fruity notes of an ale.^[6]

Up to the 1950s, Alt was also called Düssel (from Düsseldorf), but since the term is not a Protected Designation of Origin, Altbier may also be produced outside of the Düsseldorf region. Venlo, a city in the Netherlands on the German border near Düsseldorf, produced the first Dutch Altbier. Similar varieties, also called altbiers, are associated with some other cities in Germany, particularly Hannover. Altbier is also brewed in small quantities in Austria, Switzerland and the United States.

Düsseldorf and Cologne are long-time rivals, though today it mostly comes down to whose beer is better, Düsseldorf's Altbier or Cologne's Kölsch, another top-fermented beer.^{[citation needed]}

Some alt breweries have a tradition of producing a strong ale known as Sticke Alt, coming from a local dialect word meaning "secret". It is generally a seasonal or special occasion brew, and is stronger and sometimes darker than the brewery's standard output.

One of Warren's (Schell's Brewmaster) favorite pastimes back in the 30's was a trip to the city dump to shoot rats–so much that it was a common date for him and his wife-to-be, Casey. The manager of the city dump was John Schmaltz–hence the nickname "Schmaltz".

This particular beer is a solid, drinkable brew, reddish-brown, with a medium head that dissipates quickly. Roasted, mild chocolatey flavor, low to medium hoppiness. Looks like a porter, but not at all heavy. Wouldn't mind having a few of these at the Zoo Bar.

Beer Review: Anchor Bock

Medium-thick head, dark reddish brown, porter-like color and consistency. Tastes like a cross between a pale ale and a porter. Very drinkable, ABV wasn't posted on the bottle, so it had to be under 5%. Kind of a nutty aftertaste with some caramel. Smell that I can't quite identify. Very smooth.

Imbolc: The Coming of Spring (Despite All Appearances to the Contrary)

February 2nd is celebrated (or maybe "observed" is a better term) hereabouts as Groundhog Day, where the shadow of a recently hibernating rodent determines whether or not Winter will last 6 more weeks. On the Catholic "Saint calendar" it's St. Bridget's Day (although there's another Bridget, from Sweden, honored on July 23rd) and in Celtic paganism a Bridget (or Brigid or Bride) also comes in. Brigid is the Celtic goddess of, among other things, fire. She is honored at the midpoint between the Winter solstice and the Spring equinox, on or around February 2nd.

Our modern division of the year into four seasons, each beginning at an equinox or solstice, is determined entirely by cultural convention and are not universal. The Romans had 3 seasons; cultures in the extreme north of Europe had two: Summer & Winter; tropical areas have seasons based on the annual rains; the agricultural societies of Europe had four seasons based more or less on planting & harvest, hunting & hibernation and weather changes; I prefer this last.

In my preferred model, the year begins on November 1st, and would be considered the beginning of Winter, with the solstice on December 21st being the midpoint, or "Midwinter" (which it is often called). Spring would begin on February 2nd, with it's height, or midpoint on the Vernal equinox, March 21st. Summer is ushered in on May Day, with Midsummer (a familiar term to many) on the Summer solstice, June 21st. Autumn, or the harvest season is rung in with the first of August, with the Autumnal equinox on September 21st marking its fullness. The year, in this system ends on October 31st.

In some years this makes more sense than others, with all the snow on the ground, it hardly seems like Spring, but in other years this is when you start to see things start to come alive again. In most years, December 21st seems awfully late to be starting Winter when snow has been on the ground for weeks and it's been cold and gloomy for over a month, and Summer sure feels like it's done with as August starts.

So, with the advent of Spring (as I see it), it's a time for hope (for warmer times), planning (as the planting season, both literally and figuratively gets closer) and goal setting. The snow may still be on the ground, but it's fast losing ground to warmer days.

Beer Review: Sierra Nevada Glissade Golden Bock

The first thing that surprised me about Glissade was the bright golden hue. I've been somewhat conditioned to think that Bocks should be a darker color: on a scale from amber to copper, but don't let the lightness of the color indicate a lightness of flavor. It poured a medium sized head that quickly receded leaving snowy-white lacing. The flavor is malty, but mildly so, with enough hoppiness to make it interesting. Honestly though, it's not the best beer that Sierra Nevada has ever put out, but fair. I'd give it a 5.5 - 6 on the IGB beer scale, I'd even hesitate to call it a Bock. On the other hand, if I hadn't read the label indicating that it was a Bock, I might have rated it higher...but still gone for a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale!

Beer Reviews: The Bocks Are Coming!

Spring is just around the corner, which means that breweries are coming out with Bock beers. I noticed Leinenkugel's 1888 Bock was part of their seasonal variety pack and I've got some Anchor and Sierra Nevada in the fridge that I picked up today. I'll be posting beer reviews for all of them as I get them, but for now, following is the Wikipedia article on Bock Beer.

Bock is a type of strong lager beer, first brewed in the 14th century in the Hanseatic town of Einbeck, Germany, from which it gets its name (originally "Einbeck" / "Einbock"). The original Bocks were dark beers, brewed from high-colored malts. Modern Bocks can be dark, amber or pale in color. Bock was traditionally brewed for special occasions, often religious festivals such as Christmas, Easter or Lent.

Bocks have a long history of being brewed and consumed by Roman Catholic monks in Germany. During the spring religious season of Lent, monks were required to fast. High-gravity Bock beers are higher in food energy and nutrients than lighter lagers, thus providing sustenance during this period. Similar high-gravity Lenten beers of various styles were brewed by Monks in other lands as well (see Trappist beer).

Bock beer originated in the Northern German city of Einbeck in the 14th century, and was recreated in Munich in the 17th century. Its alcohol content ranges from 6.3% to 7.2% by volume^[1]. The beer has a complex malty flavor dominated by the richness of Munich and Vienna malts, which contribute toasty flavors. It has a low hop bitterness, usually enough to not overwhelm the malt flavors, allowing a slight sweetness to linger into the finish. Bock is light copper to brown in color with reddish highlights, with good clarity despite the dark color. It has a large, creamy, persistent off-white head, and moderate to moderately low carbonation.

Maibock style is a pale version of a traditional bock. It is a fairly recent development compared to other styles of bock beers, frequently associated with springtime and the month of May. Alcohol content ranges from 6.3% to 7.4% by volume {^[2]}. The flavor is typically less malty than a traditional bock, and may be drier, hoppier, and more bitter, but still with a relatively low hop flavor, with a mild spicy or peppery quality from the hops or alcohol content. It is a clear lager, deep gold to light amber in color, with a large, creamy, persistent white head, and moderate to moderately high carbonation. There is some dispute as to whether the Heller ("pale") bock and the Mai ("May") bocks are the same style, but they are generally agreed to be the same.

How Does Prayer Work? Part 1

How exactly does prayer work? I know that there are different kinds of prayer: the talking-to-God prayer, the Praise-and/or-thanks-to-God prayer and others, but I'm mainly talking about the I-want-something prayer where you ask your god for something and when you get it you say "prayer works!"

Now I'm not saying that one shouldn't pray or that prayers aren't answered, but am asking how one is to know that prayer is indeed working.

In a typical prayer, a person asks God to please provide him with 'xyz'. Sometimes the thing asked for is received, or occurs. This is presented as proof, or at least an indication, that "prayer works". Now one might postulate that if 'xyz' doesn't happen, then prayer doesn't work. But this is seldom that case. There are a variety of responses to a non-appearance of prayer requests.

1. Ignore the non-response. Only draw attention to desired outcomes, so if you get 1 answer out of 100 tries, the success rate isn't 1%, it's 100%, because the one positive result is the only one you're paying attention to.
   
2. Make excuses for your deity. Say that he answers in his own time, or that he works in mysterious ways.
   
3. Father (God) knows best. Point to something else that happened that could be construed as better than what was prayed for. God obviously knew that you needed abc more than xyz, so that's what he gave you.
4. Lowered expectations. Accept part of what you asked for, or a too-late receipt of your prayer request and credit God for answering your prayer.
   

So, with all of that in mind, just how does this prayer thing work?