Ich liebe dich. What better way to say ‘I love you’ than a litre of beer and a generous, heart-shaped gingerbread portion. These are consumed during Oktoberfest and are equally popular at the Christmas Markets.

f/5, 1/40 sec

Recipe for 45 gallons of Oktoberfest. Brewed 12/05/09 with Rick, Andrew, and Klaus.

As I was sick for a few days I had enough time to think about everything I wanted (and did not want) to think about. Maybe it’s because my first wisdom tooth is coming up, but I also thought about the past year and all that I’ve learned. Of course I have developed myself and learned many life lessons the past year, but I won’t bore you with that. At the end of the year lists seem to appear everywhere, so why not join the herd for once? Below you’ll find a list of – what might appear to be random – things that I learned in 2009. As I said before, there is no such thing as useless knowledge!

-  A DSLR takes much nicer pictures than my old DSC (both Canon)
-  Only Irish whiskey has the extra e (instead of Scottish whisky), which they like to say it stands for enjoyment
- Rutger Hauer is a very nice man who likes two sugars in his coffee
- I can’t seem to celebrate carnival without getting sick afterwards
- Festivals are still as fun as two years ago
- Cats can be pretty damn cute
- I really can call some of  my friends in the middle of the night, and they will pick up
- Dutch people will dress up like anything for free fuel
- Riding around in a shopping card means guaranteed bruises
- Drinking vodka from a detox cup is not good
- Actually, anything coming from a detox cup has made me sick

(c) Peter Koenig

- I still can’t control myself when going into a bookstore
- Doel isn’t entirely empty yet
- Ze Frank is as funny live as he was on The Show
- Amsterdam is even prettier by night
- Foreign guys somehow still attract me more than Dutch for no apparent reason
-  Work isn’t always as fun and as important as you might think
-  Talking to strangers can be a good thing
-  TEDxAmsterdam was as cool as anticipated
- My little finger size is more an 11 than a 12 (ergo I lost my ring)
- Stop dying my hair actually makes it look better
- Twitter is more addictive than one might think
- Stewardess flatmates suck
- Sequins weren’t only cool when I was born (in the ’80s)
- n8 is really cool, afterparties not so much
- Being the only Dutch in a German/American bachelorette party is fun
- I can do the electric slide like a true middle-aged American
- Gay saunas in Amsterdam are also used for art exhibitions/launch parties
- A trip to Copenhagen showed me that it is still my favourite city in the world (after Amsterdam)
- It’s lonely without friends and family
- Paris is not too bad
- Going into crazy rides after drinking a few Maß at Oktoberfest doesn’t make you sick
- You can’t trust millionaire men, even if they have a daughter your own age
-  Things might look bad, but it could always be worse.

Do with this information what you want

Last night was, intentionally, a night of two brewpubs and, unintentionally, a competition between the oldest brewpub in Toronto and the newest. As I was working in the area, Soph and I met up for dinner and drinks at Granite. My excitement was for the fact that I would finally be trying the Granite Gin Lane Ale, one of the few Ontario barley wines. Poured in an psuedo-snifter, it initially looked like murky apple cider, becoming more opaque as the beer settled and warmed up. At nine percent ABV, it’s not the strongest barley wine out there and not the most flavourful. Mostly raisins and a bit of toffee, it lacked the alcoholic bite and strong dose of hops. While still tasty, my big problem with Granite beers is that they always seem to be very thin and this continued the trend.

Fighting weariness from our long work days and the big meal we had inhaled, we still managed to check out the new brewpub opened by Mike Duggan. The #9 IPA has been around in Toronto for sometime now and has become a reliable option at some bars, so there was a certain level of expectation already put on the rest of his beers. Only the top part of the brewpub was open, a swanky looking dining room and bar. Not ordering food, the menu escaped us but there was definitely some poutine and pulled pork going around, as well as a chalk board oyster sign. Definitely looks like this part of the brewpub is meant to lure in the business clients or beer geeks looking for a fancier night out. A nice touch was the decorative glasses on each table that were filled with different types of barley, though we were tempted to snack on some of it while sitting there.

My order was the London Porter and Soph got the Asian Lager (which I drank a good portion of, so it’ll get a writeup). The first surprising aspect was that all beers are served in lager glasses. Whether it is intentional or they just don’t have the glassware situation sorted out, I don’t know. (It wasn’t busy enough to be out of clean glasses.) The porter was a very dark brown with a lot of chocolate and a bit of oak. Very drinkable, I could picture having this around a fire. The lager was made from Asian rice and hops, creating a really different beer. The lemon and pepper are really evident, but also a trace of banana and sweetness that worked well. The hops in the finish made it a thirst quencher that just makes you want more. I know rice is usually the sign of a terrible macro beer, but that isn’t the case here. Hopefully they’re selling growlers of this in the summer.

Our very nice waiter also offered to get us samples, which is hard to turn down. I got a mini-stein of the Festbier, a German lager that was their strongest brew at 6.7% ABV. Very bready and grassy, it was nice until the alcohol hits you in the finish. Definitely try it before you buy it. The other beers currently available are the IPA, a German pilsner, Irish stout and a weissbier. The IPA is not available for take-home purchases yet but our server said they were hoping for next Monday. (They did have bottles and packages on display, which looked quite snazzy.)

While we were impressed with our visit to the brewpub, especially as it had only been open four days, the location does not seem like an ideal spot. The building is nice, but I can’t see there being a lot of foot traffic. There’s nothing else open on Victoria on a Saturday night, but they may be banking on the 9-5 crowd. I’ll definitely be back, especially when I can buy some of the IPA.

Granite Gin Lane Ale

Mike Duggan Asian Lager

Mike Duggan Festbier

Mike Duggan London Porter

Today: 1.1L. Year-to-date: 38.38L.

The Saucer stepped up their usual Thursday “Tap Nite” this week, with two rare beers on offer instead of the usual one — Avery Out of Bounds Stout (firkin) and Brooklyn Monster Ale (draft).

That was as good an excuse as any to make a night of it, so we did. I drank the two Tap Nite selections, and then wrapped up the night with a Real Ale Oktoberfest (draft).

Avery Out of Bounds Stout

Dark brown with plenty of nutty brown highlights. The head out of the tap is decent — light latte color, 1-finger, fluffy and bubbly. Eventually ends up a thin cap. Despite some early signs of stickiness, there’s not much in the way of lacing by the time I’m done with the pint.

The nose is like a roasted smoky porter with a touch of hops, interesting and not exactly what I expected (maybe I didn’t do my research very well).

There isn’t much in the way of subtlety here (no surprise, given the brewery). It tastes like darkly roasted and maybe even burnt coffee, with a touch of smoke thrown in. It’s a bit bitter and hoppy, too, but that gets overwhelmed. I’m not getting much sweetness at all, and that’s a big disappointment – I like my stouts to have at least some chocolate or dark fruit or something along those lines. In that sense, it certainly stands out for a stout.

Big caveat on the mouthfeel — they served it out of a firkin. Unsurprisingly, it’s smooth and chewy, if not quite thick. This is the beer’s best attribute, by far.

As I drank the Avery Out of Bounds Stout, I kept thinking it was like a coffee porter with a stout body. I found it interesting and worthwhile for about the first half of the pint glass, but its appeal kinda faded the more I drank. It’s only 5.1% abv, so in that sense it’s quite drinkable. Still, I was pretty tired of it by the end of the glass. I can’t imagine seeking it out.

C+ (The nerds over at Beer Advocate give it a B+)

Brooklyn Monster Ale

Clearish and reddish caramel with some golden orange highlights. All four of us get slim caps for the head, mine has a thick white ring and some oily slick covering nearly the whole surface. Don’t expect any lacing whatsoever, and there isn’t.

The nose is both subtle and sweet for a barleywine. There are hints of a Belgian dubbel here, as I get a bit of dark fruit, some slight spiciness and even yeasty sweetness. But I’m also reaching — it was a bit of a struggle to smell much at all.

This tastes like no other barleywine I’ve ever had, and I can’t quite describe it. It’s sharply boozy and maybe a bit fruity, but I wouldn’t call it sugary sweet. Maybe berries? I’m looking for other stuff, but it’s hard to find much else. I still get mostly booze, and I mean that in a liquor-ish sense I think — whisky or scotch? And those dubbel characteristics I got in the nose are nowhere to be found here.

The mouthfeel doesn’t really live up to the style. It’s velvety and very slightly chewy, but not thick. There’s also some fizz that is subtle but noticeably sharp.

My main conclusion here is that Brooklyn Monster Ale desperately needs to be aged and tamed. There’s just way too much alcohol presence, and the rest of the package doesn’t have a chance. For now, it’s really hard to drink — I left a couple of sips at the bottom of the snifter. If I can get my hands on a bottle, I’ll definitely give it another chance in a year or three.

C- (The nerds over at Beer Advocate give it a B+)

Real Ale Oktoberfest

Light and bright orangeish brown. There’s a thin cap at first, but pretty soon it’s just some oily slick with a decent off-white ring around the edge of the glass. No lacing to speak of at any point.

Smells almost like nothing. I struggle to find some bready and musty malt, and that’s about it.

Let’s see….there’s plenty of bready or biscuity malt sweetness, and there’s a definite floral hoppiness to it as well. As I type that I think it sounds like a good starting point for a balanced Oktoberfest, but as I was drinking it I didn’t think it tasted all that great.

Oktoberfests rarely have much of a body, and this is no exception. It’s fizzy and watery and only just better than light-bodied.

Real Ale Oktoberfest is not awful or even close to that, but it’s certainly not special. My biggest mistake was having this as my last beer of the night. I could see starting the night with one, but after a bitter burnt-coffee stout and a harshly boozy barleywine, this just never had a chance. Still…considering it’s a style I don’t particularly like, I’ll try it again sometime.

B (The nerds over at Beer Advocate give it a B)

Today, I got a check in the mail for $9.25 from 1-800-Flowers.com. I assumed that this check was the outcome of some sort of class action lawsuit in which I was an unwitting plaintiff. I mean, I believe it was last Mother’s Day that they delivered a product inferior to the one I ordered to my mother, and failed to deliver the one Kat ordered for hers, and never produced any sort of refund. Surely, others suffered from this terrible service as well, so I reasonably figured that such a lawsuit had occurred.  Then, I realized that Kat hadn’t received any such check, so I decided to read the fine print.

By cashing this check I agree to a thirty-day trial offer in Elite Excursions. I understand that the $19.99 monthly fee will be automatically charged to my card on file with 1-800-FLOWERS.COM unless I cancel my membership by calling 1-866-709-2905 before the end of the trial period… By cashing this check I authorize 1-800-FLOWERS.COM to securely transfer my credit card information to Elite Excursions for enrollment, billing and benefit processing.

Yeah. Would you, at the suggestion of a company that had ripped you off once before, sell your credit card information to a company you’d never heard of for $9.25? You be the judge, Internets.

As some of my readers may know, I married Kat on June 20 of this year. She’s awesome. She’s sexy. She’s smart. She may or may not know what she’s gotten herself into. And all that makes me very lucky. I had thought about chronicling the wedding, honeymoon, and the preceding events, but I can’t possibly do it justice. In fact, I’d almost prefer that the stories of our wedding exist only as an oral history, aging for the sake of occasional tastings, like a good vintage, or more appropriately, a dark, potent brew. So, I’ll stick to something I had hoped I would write about more often when I started this blog: beer.

I prepared a really awesome gift for my groomsmen. It consisted of a homemade Oktoberfest contained in fancy, swing-top style bottles. Each bottle bared a hand-made label, and came packaged with a pint glass, hand-etched with the groomsman’s initials. Pat Faust, the wife of Dennis at Brew and Wind Hobby in East Hartford, did the calligraphy and screen-printing for the labels as well as the glass etching. I had the beer brewed and bottled for sometime prior to the wedding, but I waited until about 10 days before the wedding before I came up with the label idea and started looking for someone to make it and the glasses for me. In addition to creating a really nicely finished product, Pat did it within my tight schedule and the gifts were a hit. They simply wouldn’t have happened without her.

As far as actually brewing the beer went, it involved a lot of firsts. It was our first lager, it was Dave’s first experience with homebrewing, and it was the first brew session at my parent’s house. Also, this batch employed some new equipment, including a 185,000 BTU propane regulator and burner for brewing, and a mini-fridge equipped with a temperature controller for fermentation. The burner necessitated that we brew outdoors, on a cold December night, at my parents house. Since it produced lots of fire, heat, and carbon monoxide, we obviously couldn’t operate it in the apartment. Furthermore, I didn’t feel like lugging brewing equipment to and from the courtyard. However, brewing away from home would present its own challenges, like forgetting to bring the yeast. While brewing, I turned up the burner too much, leading to a boil-over and then a small fire. Apparently, the foam from the wort caramelized as it spilled down the side of the pot and then ignited upon contact with the flame. After dealing with that and adjusting the burner to a lower setting, I thought all was well. We still had a really strong boil going, which undoubtedly helped make the beer really clear in the end, but we also lost a lot of water, reducing yield and increasing the concentrations of hops and malt. I wish I could blame the small amount of beer, 3.75 gallons, on the insanely powerful burner, but truthfully, I easily replenished the lost wort volume with water during fermentation, achieving the intended concentrations of malt and hops. Therefore, the low volume really has to do with poor efficiency in the mashing process. Perhaps the small quantity increases novelty of the whole thing. At least it tastes good!

And it’s not just me saying that. Even Samuel Adams agrees. On a whim, I submitted four twelve ounce bottles of Groom’s Reserve to the Samuel Adams Longshot Homebrew Contest where it earned second place in the Oktoberfest category. I will point out that the brewer who took first in that category became a finalist with another one of his entries. In other words, I was beaten only by a skilled brewer, as opposed to some schmo. As a prize, Samuel Adams sent me a hat. I may only wear it when I get drunk, but I wear the glory 24/7.  Have a look at the judges’ report cards:

Before I close, I’d like to share a link to some of the wedding photos taken by our guests. When I get a hold of the digital copies from our official photographer, I’ll share them there.

Do the following terms mean anything to you?

Chits, Ameritrash, right-binding, windrose, animeeples, rhondel, worker placement, Uwe Rosenberg, Klaus Teuber, Rio Grande.

If they do, you are awesome and you can be my friend. If they don’t, let me be the first to welcome you to the meta-narrative of German board gaming. Yes, Martin Luther is not the only good thing to come from Germany.

Since God is sovereign we are committed to only participating in board games that leave nothing to chance. We scoff at the pedestrian mechanics of Monopoly and Risk. The more dice, the less worthy the game.

Find four friends, grab an overpriced Oktoberfest beer, unpack that poorly translated game that takes 45 minutes to set up and prepare for a two hour intellectual duel unlike any you have ever experienced.

Here are some worthy titles for you to consider:

Settlers of Catan (cities and knights expansion), Agricola, Puerto Rico, Dominion, LeHavre, Power Grid, Antike, Caylus, Steam, Ticket to Ride, Notre Dame, San Juan, AmunRa, Metropolys.

Rivers of a Lost Coast was released on DVD a couple weeks ago, and If you didn’t get a chance to see the documentary in theaters I recommend getting a copy. It’s an amazing story that will quickly find a place in your heart. Justin and Palmer have totally out done themselves. This move should be seen by every Steelhead fishermen that ever fished, and especially by agriculture and Water agency’s. Tell all your friends, spread the word, cause the only ones that can save these fish is us. RELEASE WILD STEELHEAD!!!!

The Okoberfest was a huge success. Thanks to everyone that was able to join us, and especially to anyone that helped out. The Organization was able to raise enough money to get things rolling, and have many plans to do great deeds.

Being luck enough to have Tim Rajeff at the event was great, but having him give instructions was amazing. That man can cast like no other, and his not just a great caster, his fun to be around. He donated some of his rods to the raffle which made for some happy winners. If you haven’t had a chance go check out his line of Echo Fly Rods. Incredible rod for a incredible prize.

The Raffle was a huge hit, from custom-built fly rods, guided trips, hand tied flies to a couple night stay a some local resorts. It was a blast and a ton of money was raised for restoration.

It was a great event, and I hope to see you all again there at next years Oktoberfest.

Also I had to share one more Picture of the Smith River. Steve and Chris went back up after Thanksgiving had hammered on big fresh chrome fish.  Yet again I was holding down the fort, but I got my time in luckily. Fish On everyone, keep your fingered crossed for a big return on the Russian. I hope to see you on the water!!!

Chris Aff with a well bent rod

Christmas in north Georgia conjures up images of colorful lights twinkling through the bare branches of trees, the glow of a warm fire crackling in an old stone fireplace, and a cup brimming with hot chocolate to warm the senses after a walk in the cold night air.  Like many North Georgians, I envision snow flakes gently falling on obscure mountain roads.  I dream of being bundled under blankets with my soul mate – the cold air on our faces, the sound of jingling of bells, the faint sound of carolers in the distance – as we are drawn through a perfect north Georgia white winter enchantment in an open sleigh.

Small towns and villages all across the north Georgia mountains are planning “old-fashioned” Christmas celebrations; from Santa arriving on an old-time train in Blue Ridge, to visiting Santa and Mrs. Claus  at their home in Canton.  North Georgia has celebrations and activities for kids of all ages.  Take time to enjoy a local, “old-fashioned” celebration in your home town.  You will be glad you did.

We all know Santa lives at the North Pole, but since 2002, Santa and Mrs. Claus have opened their “southern home” in Canton to thousands of admirers.  The festivities begin with a warm welcome from Mrs. Claus.  Inside the home, you can view one of the largest collections of Christmas memorabilia south of the North pole.  You will delight at the Christmas villages all lit up for the holiday, including many model railroad train displays.

Upon exiting the home, you will find a path lit up with colorful lights and decorations leading to…Santa’s Workshop!  You can feel the excitement in the cold winter air as each step brings you closer to the “sacred shop”.  Kids instinctively know Santa is inside waiting to greet them with a resounding HO! HO! HO!  All children get to sit on Santa’s lap, and tell him what they want for Christmas.  Be sure to bring your camera to capture all the smiles.  Santa and Mrs. Claus will be at 6951 Vaughan Road, Canton every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.  Please call 770-345-6314 for more information  

The tiny mountain village of Helen, known for its Alpine Village theme and Oktoberfest, is aglow in celebration of Christmas.  The streets are lined with displays of trees, candy canes, and garland.  Enjoy a horse-drawn carriage ride through the village streets for a wonderful and charming experience.  Visit www.helencvb.com/events/ for more information.

The “Christmas on the Square ” celebration takes place in downtown Blairsville on December 5.  The activities begin at 1:00 P.M. with open houses at the Mountain Life Museum, and historic courthouse.  The Christmas parade starts at 4;00 P.M.  Then at a little after 5:00 P.M., everyone will gather on the courthouse lawn to watch the lighting of the Christmas tree and sing carols.  Visit http://www.downtownblairsville.com/eventxmas.html for more information.

For a truly unique holiday experience, make plans to see the “Holiday Show” at the Rollins Planetarium on the campus of Young Harris College in Young Harris.  The holiday show,  ” Season of Light”,  is scheduled for two shows – December 4 and 11.  The show explores the traditions of the season, the burning of the yule log, Christmas tree lights and candles, the lighting of luminaries and the traditional Jewish Menorah.   The show also includes religious and cultural rituals, and of course Kris Kringle, Santa Claus, and St. Nicholas.  Weather permitting, The College Observatory will be open to the public.  For more information contact the college at 706-379-5195 or www.yhc.edu

Dawsonville celebrates its annual Christmas tree lighting on December 5.  There will be hot cider, cocoa and coffee to warm all in the cold night air.  The Dawson County High School Chorus will be performing and Santa will arrive as the crowd sings  ”Here Comes Santa Claus”.  The kids will want to visit with santa just to make sure they are on his “good” list.  For more information, visit www.Dawson.org  

Always a family favorite and worthy of inclusion is the ” Magical Nights of Lights” on Lake Lanier Islands.   There are over six miles of giant illuminated characters created from millions of lights.  Plan on visiting the Holiday Village, complete with a roaring bonfire, pony rides, and of course, Santa himself.  For more information please visit www.lakelanierislands.com/event.php?id=133 

“An Old Fashioned Christmas in the Mountains” will be held in Cleveland on December 5.  The fun begins at noon in Historic Downtown Cleveland.  The celebration will feature a “Gingerbread House” competition.  Each entry must be modeled after an historic building or landmark in White County.  The Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia will choose the finalists on December 3.  The winner will be chosen on December 5.  There will also be a Christmas parade, caroling on the square, and a Santa look-a-like contest.  Free hot cocoa and cookies, kids activities, and games will also be featured.  Visit www.clevelandbetterhometown.org/events.html for more information.

Jasper will celebrate “Night of Lights Christmas Celebration” on December 5 beginning at 3:00 P.M.  Kids can visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus.  There will be a parade of lights and special music, face painting and activities for the kids.  Please visit www.jaspermerchantsassociation.com 

Celebrate an “Old fashioned Christmas” in Dahlonega with a real “home-town” Christmas parade that will bring Santa Claus to town.  There are plenty of other holiday festivities planned throughout December such as caroling on the square, wine sampling, live theatrical Christmas events.  A visit to this charming mountain town during the holidays will simply amaze all with its lights and decorations in the town square.  On December 6, local “Bed and Breakfasts” will host a “Sleigh Bell Tour” of their facilities.  Please call the Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Visitors Center for more information, 706-864-3513, or www.dahlonega.org 

Nothing is more special or rewarding than celebrating Christmas at your home with family and friends.  As an architect and custom builder, I take great pride in creating homes that will welcome family, friends, and…Santa to your special holiday celebration in the North  Georgia Mountains.  Please visit www.georgia-mountain-home.com

From our home to yours… HAPPY HOLIDAYS !!!

Pra completar os posts da nossa viagem, vou falar de Munique (Munich, München, Monaco) e da Oktoberfest. Sempre que o maridex ouvia falar da Oktoberfest ele ficava doido hehe e sempre a gente planejou ir e ou iamos pro Brasil ou não tinhamos folga juntos e nunca dava, mas dessa vez tudo deu certinho! Até o fato da minha irmã já estar na Europa e da minha amiga estar na Itália e ter ido com o marido lá encontrar a gente! O motivo principal da ida lá era a Oktober mas pra mim se tornou a cidade toda pq apaixonei por tudo de Munich, mas assim TUDO! Os alemães que encontramos foram muito simpáticos e receptivos, há quem diga que seja por causa do festival e eles são mesmo assim por causa dos turistas e mais $$ pra eles e tal, but who cares?! Eu achei todos muito gentis e hospitaleiros. Não achamos dificil andar de metrô (U-BAHN) ou ônibus, vc chegando no aeroporto, vc pega um mapinha da cidade e tem todas a linhas de metrô e trem lá, então é só seguir. Ficamos no Hotel Flora e, apesar de ficar bem pertinho do centro e da estação principal eu não recomendo. Bom, a gente ficou lá bem por falta de opção mesmo, culpa nossa porque demoramos pra decidir qdo exatamente iriamos pra Alemanha e por conta da Oktober, os melhores hoteis já estavam lotados! O preço do que a gente ficou é super em conta mas o hotel é bem acabadinho. Se vc pensa em ir pra a Oktoberfest reservem beeeem antes o seu hotel ou vc vai pagar super caro (ou acabar pegando um meio chué). Mas, enfim, era só pra dormir mesmo pq passávamos o dia e quase a noite toda fora então, foi ok até porque estávamos bem pertinho do centro .

OlympiaPark

BMW welt

Nymphenburg Palace

Nymphenburg Palace

Demos uma paradinha para almoçar, e almoçamos no restaurante do Olympic Park e gostei muito! Achei o preço em conta e você escolhe as combinações (our combos) que vc quer, Danke ao nosso amigo, ele pediu pra gente De lá, ´comidos´ demos uma paradinha básica na Allianz-Arena, o hubby nem queria entrar, só tirar uma foto lá fora, para quem não conhece, durante a Copa do Mundo de 2006, esta arena era conhecida como FIFA World Cup Stadium Munich. A noite muda de cor e vc pode ver acesa em branco, azul ou vermelho (ou as duas últimas intercaladas).

Dachau

Bald ist Weihnachten und wir freuen uns schon auf den Winter

Noch 3 Wochen, dann fliegen wir hoffentlich in den Schnee.

Wollen soooo gern Schlitten fahren und Schneeballschlachten machen – hahaha.

Was wir die letzten Wochen so angestellt haben koennt ihr hier sehen:

Oktoberfest
klick auf Foto und sieh mehr…

Great Ocean Road
klick auf Foto und sieh mehr…

Mildura & Mungo Nationalpark
klick auf Foto und sieh mehr…

Philipp Island
klick auf Foto und sieh mehr…

Sonnige Gruesse von Lars & Anni

Thought you’d want to know we’ve added to the lineup. Good while supplies last:

Spaten Oktoberfest 6 packs (a few left) reg. $8.99, sale $4.99

3 craft beers from North Coast Brewing:

• Brother Thelonious Abbey Ale 4 packs, reg.$13.49, sale $4.99
• Le Merle Saison 22oz singles, reg. $7.99, sale $2.99
• Scrimshaw Pilsner 6 packs, reg. $10.49, sale $5.49

We also have a few kegs of Rogue Somer, which is a light-drinking Orange Honey Ale (gets great reports from those who’ve tried it). Full-size kegs reg. $175, on sale for $40 (keg deposit not included). And yes, we’ve proofread this post already, and none of these prices are typos!

First come, first served! See you soon….

The past couple of days have been long (very, very long) and intermittently filled with beer. Yesterday was a rare day off for me and I figured it was about time I got my H1N1 protection. (“Just Say No” is not an option.) Then Soph and I found we had some mid-afternoon time free (that annoying time when it’s almost time for dinner, but definitely too early), so we went to the Victory hoping for some Durham Black IPA or Mill Street Roggenbier. It was a fail on both counts, so I opted to try the Nickel Brook Marzen, even though it is not a style that does much for me. It had a nice amber colour and decent caramel maltiness with a citrusy tang, but was disappointing compared to Soph’s Mike Duggan #9 IPA. I haven’t had many marzens, but it seemed to fall within the style.

Later, after a delicious Jamaican pumpkin roti, a delicious Fuller’s London Porter was all I needed before going out and dancing to some 90s music. A rich porter with tastes of chocolate and coffee, it manages to taste excellent while not feeling heavy or filling. Pretty much heaven in a can.

Back when I started this blog, someone asked if I would include ciders. While there is some commonality, I think of beer as a product of barley and hops, which excludes ciders from the conversation. So the cider I had while dancing does not count.

Fuller’s London Porter on Ratebeer

Nickel Brook Marzen on Ratebeer

Today: 1L. Year-to-date: 28.94L.

Just a quick alert that we have negotiated some crazy cheap beer prices for this weekend:

Bud Light 24oz cans, case of 15 for $17.00 (reg. 1.69 each, so it’s like buy 10, get 5 free.)

Michelob Ultra 24pk cans for only $14.99 (get a 24 pack for the price of an 18 pack.)

Bro. Thelonious Abbey Ale, 4pk, reg. $13.49, now just $4.99 (not a typo).

Spaten Oktoberfest 6pk, reg. $8.99 now just $4.99.

All prices are only good while supplies last, which is probably only for the weekend. And as always, we don’t charge extra to get it cold.

Stop in asap….

Septemberfest? Novemberfest? Nawww, you gotta go to Oktoberfest. For those of you who don’t know about Oktoberfest, it’s the world’s biggest beer fair.

6 million people. 6,940,600 liters of beer are served in big mugs called Maßs.

I went twice to the biggest and most famous tent, Hofbräuhaus. It seats 6,896 inside, and 3,622 outside. If you go to Oktoberfest (doooo itt), don’t go to any other house. Free entry + best brewski in the world + the younger, more serious boozers from all of the world.

We kicked it with German biddies repping their traditional dresses. They call em dirndl:

Old ladies walk around selling pretzels and chicken.

The best part of the festival was dominating 5 or 6 Maßs then going on German rides, which are 239780243 times better than American rollercoasters. Ya can’t go on the good ones twice in a row without booting.

So many people gettin’ zooted in one place:

For music, here’s Milkman. You can download one of his entire albums for free on his website (click Music, then scroll to the bottom). He’s pretty dece. At least quit listening to that dern Girl Talk already.

Als ich heute Abend nach Hause kam, lag es auf dem Küchentisch: Wolfgang Schorlau – Das München-Komplott.

Klappentext:

Ein alter Fall denkt Dengler: Das Bundeskriminalamt bittet ihn, die Akten zum Attentat auf das Münchener Oktoberfest von 1980 zu prüfen. Doch dann holen ihn die Schatten des schwersten Terroranschlags in der deutschen Geschichte ein. Er findet heraus, dass die Ermittlungen seinerzeit manipuliert wurden – und dass die Mächte, di damals die Fäden zogen, immer noch äußerst gefährlich sind, auch für ihn.
In diesem bis zur letzten Seite spannenden Krimi untersucht Wolfgang Schorlau mit den Mitteln eines Kriminalautors den noch immer nicht aufgeklärten Fall des Bombenattentats auf das Oktoberfest.

Erster Satz: “Ich weiß Bescheid.”

October is officially over (by some 2 weeks…) and we are on our way to Thanksgiving!  Our culinary group from the Pioneer Unit of the Herb Society of America, had an extraordinary Oktoberfest celebration!  For those of you who have never had German food, you need to try it the next time you get the chance.  The celebration was complete with German wine, German beer, German food and German history…..all of which was made even more fun by the company of good friends dining around the table together.  

click on image to view the video!

The Oktoberfest 5k, a walk/run fundraiser took place in Richmond on Oct, 3, 2009. The course went through the Financial District, down Shockoe Slip, across the Mayo bridge, along the Floodwall, back over the Manchester Bridge, and returned through the Financial District. The founder of the OK5K, Greg Hennig, said,”it is a race that everyone wins.” All registered participants received a ticket to attend the official Oktoberfest celebration on October 24th.

We were divided into teams and sent out to shoot this assignment. Our time frame was 3.5 hours, for shooting, editing, posting and lunch. Kinda like the real world I suppose. Our team picked the OK5K.  Credit also goes to Miguel Souza, Ben Sellers and Jacyln O’Laughlin. I worked on shooting and editing.