Vacation!

Vacation isn't over yet, and it's been the longest consequetive stretch of time off since I was hospitilized about 3 years ago, but I have really gotten used to the idea of not going to work every day.

Don't get me wrong, I don't have a grueling, hard physical labor type of job, I have a boss who doesn't micromanage me, I (mostly) get along with the people that I work with, and it takes me about 5 minutes to get to work in the morning!

But it's still work.

In the eleven days of my vacation, I spent a lot of time writing, took a seven-hour hike through Wilderness Park, saw two awesome blues concerts, took road trips to Lawrence Kansas to perform a wedding and to St. Louis Missouri to hear a lecture from author and spiritual teacher Christopher Penczak, and sampled a lot of beer. I slept in when I wanted to, saw the sunrise when I wanted to and watched the movie Second Hand Lions at the recommendation of a co-worker. I got a lot of great pictures at all of these activities.

Unfortunately, I need the income from my job to be able to afford to do these things, and maybe after a few months the retirement life would be less exciting.

As for now, I'm going to enjoy the last two days of my time off!

The Origins of Thanksgiving

In 1776 Christopher Columbus discovered Plymouth Rock, subsequently buying Manhattan from the redcoats for $24 worth of beads, trinkets and a cherry tree. Not long afterward, the evil white man corrupted the Indians by giving them blankets infested with cranberries. A great feast was called for, but the Indians couldn't eat ham due to kosher requirements, so they had to substitute turkey. At the conclusion of the feast Captain John Smith, whose name the Indian holy man Wattalodbul had prophesied would be used for all time as a pseudonym, called for all area merchants to construct giant balloons and parade them about and to rise at dawn to begin shopping for gifts to mark the birth of Christ.

Beer Review: Empyrean FestivAle & Limited Offering "Bagget"

Not everything that Empyrean brews gets bottled. FestivAle is the winter seasonal offering that I tried yesterday at their downtown Lazlo's restaurant. I'd call it an IPA India Pale Ale, although it's not described as such on their website. 6 1/2 % alcohol content, citrussy aftertaste and the typical IPA emphasis on hops, with a higher bitterness number (47) than anything else Empyrean has to offer. Nice sippin' ale.

The second ale that I tried was one of their limited offerings. I think that they called it a "baggett", although I could not find any reference to a "baggett" ale anywhere. Nontheless, it was brewed with what they said was a huge amount of honey, giving it a mead-like taste, which i couldn't just, since I've never tasted mead! That being said, it wasn't overly sweet as I had been lead to expect, but smooth and refreshing with just a hint of sweetness from the honey. Easily a "lawnmower" beer.

Sam Adams Winter Lager

A return engagement: Winter Lager comes back to the Winter Classics variety pack!

Not much of a head, and what little there was dissipated quickly. The color is a coppery brown, there's a hint (but alas, no more than a hint) of cinnamon, and a bit more of a hint of orange. Malty taste similar to Octoberfest, no bitterness at all.

This is a lager that would be great on tap during the winter months.

Sam Adams Winter Classics: Coastal Wheat.

Sam Adams Winter Classics is here! As always, Boston Lager; Old Fezziwig's Ale, Holiday Porter, Winter Lager & Cranberry Lambic make a return appearance and new this year, Coastal Wheat.

I thought that Coastal Wheat was an odd choice for a winter brew, but I'm kind of on the fence after drinking it. I don't taste too much of a difference between Coastal and the old Hefeweizen, which it supposedly relaces, the lemon doesn't come on very strong, in fact I could barely taste it. Perhaps a winter variety pack needs a lighter ale to counteract the heavier fare that usually heralds the beginning of winter. All that being said...I really like the Coastal Wheat and will definitely drink more!

Harvest Collection Wrap Up

The Harvest Collection by Sam Adams was truly a good set of fall beers. They're always going to include the Boston Lager, but the rest of them were really appropriate for the cooling weather. I haven't tried it yet, but I have my doubts about the Coastal Wheat being in the Winter Classics variety pack. I've heard that it's replacing the Hefeweizen, which was a great summer beer (and by the way Sam Adams, how 'bout updating your website?)

Sam Adams Irish Red

The first part of this review is an old review from September, 2009; the second section is new

We're finally at the last of the Harvest Collection - Irish Red. Not surprisingly, The Irish Red is...red, well, more of a copper color anyway. Fast dissipating head. A slight bite to it, but not much in the hops department, despite their claim to balance the maltiness with he hoppiness. No overwhelming tastes, but a hint of bread & toffee. Compares favorably to other Irish Reds. I haven't checked the food pairings, but I would recommend with barbecue.

Sam's Irish Red has grown on me over the last couple of years. I would say that it is one of my favorite year-round brews. I really enjoy having Red as part of the Harvest Collection - it has a deep maltiness that approaches the complexity of a good Oktoberfest.