New Beer Sunday (Week 760)

Nice start. As I'm in a movie mood, I'd have to say, for traditional romance, Mediteraneo is my favorite. But for a romantic movie about the love of cinema...Cinema Paradiso. That one gets me every time. I'll chime in with a beer when it's Sunday, Left Coast time.

Cheers

 

Happy New Tying Up Loose Ends Beer Sunday, Redux (Week 760)!

I was so satisfied by my theme last week that I have decided to CANtinue it. Inna meantime, I was called out by a user as one of the things that really annoys him about BeerAdvocate.com. 8=) I must be doing something right! I am a binary personality - ppl either really like me OR really hate me, but there is no indifference. It takes a strong ego to run for mayor (twice) & now to run for a place on our School Board. I'm dahn with the slings & arrows.

A fave rom, eh, Doc? CANderella, for me. A young bottle of homebrew is invited to the homebrewers' ball by her fairy hairdresser, only to be Pop!ped open by a handsome Prince ChANming. She runs out, horrified, gushing her CANtents all over the steps. A yeast strain test is CANducted, she is sussed out from her poorly-capped & leaky stepsisters & lives happily ever after, once a mobile CANning unit transfers her into an aluminum cylinder. Glad you asked?

I am most happy to CANtinue where I left off last Sunday, in totes Back to the Future mode. Sundays routinely have me CANducting brewery horizontals, but ocCANsionally, some fall through the Crack! & Glugs, which is where this week & last come in. It provides me a CANportunity to catch up without ketchup where I initially failed to launch.

Today, I pick up where I left off last Sunday, exiting the TARDIS at Week 718 in Stable 12:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/40386/282105/?ba=woodychandler#review

My next one requires both an add & a photo so sleepy-time first, then that evolution, then a screening of "Hustlers".

 

Hey all. cavedave here, with my no longer plastered, disastrous past cast master's last blast for a while. Warning, this may be long. Just took both of my meds and getting ready for the first mile walk of the day.

Bad season for stings. I had one yellowjack get me early season when I grabbed his hiding spot on a branch and he objected. Got me good, left me with a welt like a big mosquito bite for a week. Itched like one too. Some weeks back got chased down by a hive of jellowjacks. About a dozen of the bastards got me. Mighta been worse if I wasn't wearing permethrin treated clothes I since have found out. Some swelling for sure, and itched all over my body for about ten days.

Last Sunday was stung a really good one on my right thumb. Didn't see what got me, but it had to be a hornet from the pain. It swelled, and I had trouble typing my NBS post, and by Sunday night was really getting big. No worries, I have been stung plenty in life and treated it like I would any other sting, cold compresses and kept it elevated. Went to bed with it still swelling. Monday morning woke from pain at 4:00, my fingers and lower arm were like five knockwurst attached to a salami. The skin was so tight I thought it might tear.

I don't visit a Doctor regularly, to say the least, very bad of me, I know, and my last visit was six years earlier. Didn't want to do it, but I called the service and made a Dr. appt. In the hours I waited it swelled past the elbow. The PA at the Doctor's office couldn't hide the stare of disbelief when she looked at my hand and arm.

But this isn't a song about the draft. This is a song about garbage. (some of y'all will understand)

After taking my blood pressure, the PA immediately went to find the doctor. With Dr. present she took it again. Dr. informed me, "Your pressure is high. Not gonna sugar coat this, it is in stroke territory, and I want to get you to the hospital right now in an ambulance." Woaaaah, I know my pressure usually is a bit high, which is worrisome, but this hit me like a dropped brick. At hospital the first test they took my BP was 234 over 130! "How am I still alive?" I tried to joke with the nurse, but a strange, helpless panic began. Finally after three more BP tests, a battery of blood draws and hooking electrodes onto my body, they checked me in to run IV antibiotics for the arm they thought to be cellulitic, gave me a dose of prednisone, and blood pressure meds, and kept me hooked to machines. Before they released me pressure was "down" somewhat, and the hand was loosening a bit. By Tuesday afternoon the swelling had improved even more, I could touch finger tips to each other, but BP, even with the meds, was still in danger zone. Two subsequent visits confirmed the bad news of dangerous BP . Major wakeup call, and I am glad to be here today to bore you silly with its description. My Dr. suggested the hornet that stung me and caused the cellulitis likely saved my life. I was ready to be one of those folks whose first major symptom is stroke or death.

My lifestyle choices have led to both good and bad consequences, and I won't try to make a case for either. Now it doesn't matter. The choice now is life or death, and I'm gonna choose life because I have family to enjoy and works to finish. I have stopped drinking and will continue for as long as necessary. I am on the DASH diet, probably for life. I need to take off 30+ pounds of weight (8 lbs. off so far), and find exercises to replace the skiing and mountain biking I did when my body was younger and able. Mushrooming and hiking in the hills was my only real exercise, and it was (obviously) insufficient to overcome a life of consuming bad things and neglecting my body's upkeep. Only the future can say whether a lifestyle change and meds will be able to control this. I pray it will be sufficient.

All this long winded crap to lead in to saying what hopefully isn't goodbye, but maybe see you down the road sometime. Can't say I won't stop in to NBS or other parts of the site occasionally, but looks like whatever years to come (I hope I can still say years) will be ones much different than what I have been doing until now. I have greatly enjoyed getting to know you all through this wonderful thread that is much more than a "thread", so let me just say one more time, even though my beer enjoying days have come to a close,

Hope you also have a Great American Beer in your glass. Cheers!

 

We all go through changes and those changes carry us from thing to another in life. Doing new beer sunday with you was one of the best times in my life . Cheers Dave! I won't miss you because we are going see each other around! Love to you and love to Ba.

 

Good morning BA, hope everyone is enjoying the end of the weekend once again. Thanks to @lordofthewiens for today's introduction. I don't like romantic films all that much, so I couldn't tell you. More of a comedy or action film type of person. Another typical week for me as always. Been very low on beers to review in the fridge, but have been able to keep it restocked every weekend. Going to be busy today with my usual errands. Need to pack up a box for international trade.

Also @cavedave, wishing you the best of luck on your healthy endeavors. Hope to see you around.

Today’s morning big beer review. The Bruery Apfelsap. This was awesome. Solid head retention, minimal lacing. Aromas and flavors of huge lightly tart/tangy red apples, fruit peel, pear, apricot, honey, caramel, brown sugar, apple brandy, oak, wheat, and white bread; with lighter notes of oaken vanilla, cinnamon, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast earthiness. Light herbal, grassy bitterness; and Fruit/brandy tang/tartness on the finish. Light-medium carbonation and very full body; creamy, slick, bready malts; light syrupy, sticky hops, fruit tang/acids, and oak tannins in the mouthfeel. Lightly increasing lingering tart/tannic dryness; no cloying sweetness. Mild increasing warmth of 15.6%, minimal lingering barrel booze. Dangerously smooth slow sipper due to sweetness. I was hoping for a bit more yeast complexity, but you get what was promised: an awesome balance of fruit, apple brandy barrels, and rich malts. Not overly sweet/heavy from lingering dryness. Really big fan. 4.1


Cheers, be back in the afternoon as usual.

 

Wishing you all the best. Even though you're not drinking please continue to post pics of the mushroom hauls, they are amazing.

 

Good luck with your new chapter, hopefully a very long and happy one!

And while I don't have a new beer this Sunday, I feel moved to thank you, Dave, for helping me find my way here on NBS and all that it has led to, both here on BA.com and also in the real world. It means a lot to a lot of us that you, @utopiajane and several others served as good caretakers of the best virtual bar on the planet. And I know I'm not the only one who has benefitted from your knowledge and advice -- and generosity. I've got one last Founders' RIS of the three you sent me a couple years ago, and I'll be sure to toast you and your good health soon when I open it.

Cheers, buddy!

 

New Beer Sunday: German Marzen/Oktoberfest

Mornin’ NBSers, with an alert for SE PA folks and a thanks to @lordofthewiens for today’s startup.

Well, weather-wise it looks as though we’ll have a comfortable day around here today with temps in the low-mid 80s and mostly cloudy so the UV index should be around 0. Good day for errands and some chores. Guess I’d better review the “honey-do” list since the wife will be gone for at least part of the afternoon.

@cavedave it sounds like you’ve had one of those “moments of truth” that pulls us up short in living our lives to evaluate how we are living them. Glad to hear it was a strong warning signal rather than a final outcome. Be well my friend. You will be missed. Todays’ new beer will be a toast to your return to NBS once things settle down. Cheers, Amigo!

This morning’s new beer is a new Oktoberfest from Cape May Brewing over in SE NJ.

My review is still in progress but can be found here:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/25890/104773/?ba=drtth#review


Basically this is a well-done solid example of the style. The aromas/flavors are clean and mostly about the malt with a bit of caramel showing. The malt sweetness is complemented nicely by a background of floral, slightly spicy and earthy hops. A nice Oktoberfest that is both drinkable and enjoyable that I’ll be fine with having again when I find it fresh.


My choice for Most Romantic Movie and Best Romantic Line from a movie?

For a variety of reasons I won't detail, for me that’s got to be Casablanca and Bogart.

First, some important background for those who’ve not seen the movie or have only seen it a few times:




And now for Bogart's line:




Cheers, all!

 

@cavedave im sorry to hear of your health issues, and that you have to give up drinking, but very happy to hear that you are alive and have a plan for many more years of mushroom picking!

As for my favorite romantic movie, I’ll show my age a bit I guess and go with The Notebook. I always cry at least once during that movie. So what, wanna fight about it?

 

It wasn't my favorite movie, and I don't watch many romantic comedies, but last night/early this morning I watched Book Club, which is about old people having sex and maybe falling for each other after reading 50 Shades of Grey. It had an impressive cast for sure. It was just mildly entertaining but apparently good enough for me to watch it to the end. Towards the end of it, I cracked this open.

The Brew Kettle - Major Lager

16oz canned on 2019-07-15. Overall rating = 3.77

A - Clear straw-gold with a 1-finger white head and decent lace

S - Pils malt with a touch of corn. Mild honey, grass and floral

T - Lightly-toasted sourdough bread, light lemon, grassy spice. Touch of light bitterness in the dry finish (IBU listed as 9.9). Not as sweet as I expected from the smell.

M - Light-medium body and medium carbonation. Crisp.

O - An easy-drinkin' brew although I could have used a little more sweetness, which is something I like in my low ABV lagers.



Props to cavedave for heading in a new direction and thanks for the many, many contributions to our site. I'm about to go for a walk myself, something I now do everyday.

 

Good luck on the turn to a healthier path. Hope that trail eventually leads you back to us safely. But whether it does or doesn’t, thank you for your contributions to this thread and for championing the usage of words to explain numbers over the years.

 

Good day New BSers! Thanks, @lordofthewiens, for starting today's thread. Well, let's address today's questions/news in order:

1. Favorite romantic movie: Same as my favorite Xmas movie: Diehard.

2. @cavedave: That's a double bitch Dave! First, probably owing the remainder of your life to a hornet and secondly reducing/eliminating alcohol consumption. I know I'll miss reading your enlightening commentary here as well as your fungi fotos - Somehow the 'shrooms I find never look like the ones you post! Please lurk and feel free to join in if you feel like it. I consider you a friend with whom I just haven't spent face time.

3. @utopiajane: Good to see you're still lurking here, Maria! How're the art endeavours working out? I miss all your food photos.

4. Last and least important, today's New Beer:



Found in back of beer reefer – where I bought it and for how much is not recorded. Reviewed 9/15/19.
“BOTTLED 10/15/18 12:51” marked with yellow dots on the neck and shoulder of the bottle. Stored at 42 degrees and served at 54 degrees in a hand-washed and dried Jester King snifter.
Appearance – 3.75.
First pour – Light amber, clear.
Body – Dark brown, opaque. When held to the light, red-amber and translucent.
Head – Large (Maximum 6.2 cm, aggressive center pour), tan, medium density, average duration, diminishing to an irregular three to ten mm crown and a thin rocky cap.
Lacing – Fair. Wide partial ring of tiny bubbles with a couple of holes. Fairly remarkable for the high ABV.
Aroma – 3.5 – Sweet toffee.
Flavor – 4 – Sweet with a distinct caramel/toffee flavor. No alcohol (12% ABV) flavor or aroma, no dimethylsulfide, no diacetyl.
Palate – 3.5 – Medium, approaching syrupy, soft carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 4. Think English barley wine but a bit sweeter. Very decent, on the cusp of good.
Rating 3.82, rDev -5 %.

 

Poured into a 13 oz Sixpoint Resin Nordic pint glass canned on 8/1/19 and Hopped with Citra. Pours a very attractive dark orange with a half finger sticky white head that leaves plenty of thin lace behind as it settles. 4.25

Smell is mango, peach, mandarin, and some apricot. 3.75

Taste is better tropical tangerine, mango, peach, and apricot really balanced nicely with nothing dominating. 4

Mouthfeel is bigger than medium, slightly sticky but not dry, soft gentle feel, and at 6.3% goes down very easy with plenty of flavor. 4

Overall this is nice, nothing amazing but really a pleasant NEIPA. 4

 

@cavedave glad you are doing what will make you a healthier man. Ironically, I am on a similar path & today will be my last beer day (at the least for the foreseeable future) because of health options.

I’ve enjoyed your posts & what you’ve brought to the thread & wish you the best health!

Cheers!

 

That's bad news indeed my man and you will be sorely missed, but a wake up call like that has to be answered.

My contribution this morning is a seasonal choice, Dogfish Head Punkin Ale . . .




Clear amber brown color with white cap and lacing.

Aroma of sweet malt with spiced pumpkin in the background.

Taste on entry is a nutty sweet malt with spiced pumpkin icing on top. An element of sweetness from start to finish yet the sweetness complements rather than intrudes. The spiciness may be nutmeg or that may be my imagination. It does all blend well together making for a fairly complex beer with all parts singing in harmony.

Medium texture with balancing carbonation.

Pumpkin beers in general, to my tasting, have a routine sort of pattern as of course they must emphasize pumpkin in some way which may result in a single dimension sort of flavor, especially ones that get carried away with the spices. This is round, rich, smooth with low bitterness and very enjoyable for the style.

 

I like your choice this morning. Typically, a six-pack of DFH Punkin Ale is my one Pumpkin beer for the year. Got this year's six-pack about 4 days after bottling and there are 4 left in the fridge to be spread out over the coming weeks.

 

Wishing you all the best as well.