Boulder Event at WOB, Sleazy Bars, and Bad People

I had an interesting Thursday for may reasons.  Some of the events that took place that day make me feel great.  Others make we wonder if humanity is doomed.

I got a message today from a female friend that some dude she met at a bar punched her in the face last night.

So my Thursday began with preparing for a big event at a World of Beer (WOB) in St Pete.  I was very excited, as they had managed to keep some kegs back and were going to feature 9 Boulder drafts, including Killer Penguin, a barrel aged Saison, and the Hoopla Pale Ale.  josher and I left about 11:30 so that we could beat the traffic and get to Ella's Americana Folk Art Cafe in Tampa and drop off some samples of Lazy Magnolia that I think would fit in really well at that concept.

We got to Ella's  around 2:00 and found they didn't open til 5.  Bummer.  So we went off to have some lunch at one of my new favorite spots, Z Grille, in St. Pete (see below).

www.zgrille.net

Nevermind the fact that this place has an obviously great ambiance, the food is awesome.  I always have the fish tacos and their WTF Fries, which are covered with cheese and drizzled with truffle oil.  Josher had the same and we both enjoyed our meals.  They also have a small but decent selection of craft beer on draft and I have seen nothing come out of the kitchen that doesn't look incredible.

After lunch we met up with John and Becca from WOB and  to get set up and were gonna head back to Ella's to see if Ernie, the owner was in and possibly have a drink or two.  We arrived right at 5 when they were opening and the crowd had already begun to develop.  This place goes from 0-60 in no time and the staff are always very friendly to us.  The Tampa Bay Rays were on the tube and the bartender was a fan, so we ended up watching the whole game over some beers and Bloody Marys.  Their Bllod Mary is awesome and quite spicy, but the promised pickled okra was not included. This is unfortunate, as I love me some pickled okra.  Nonetheless, it is a top-order Bloody Mary.

The rain started to pour so we waited a bit and the combination of this and the traffic made us late to the event, which started at 7:00.  Shana from JJ Taylor was already there and we began the giveaways, etc.  The event went great and there was a big crowd that loved Boulder beer.  I met a few people who are going to the Great American Beer Festival and we promised to meet up out there.

After the event, Josher and I decided we wanted to hit one sleazy bar before we got back home.  As it turns out, we ended up hitting 3 that night, but are all too familiar with 2 of them.  Once on the Interstate, Josher did a google search for dive bars and found "T A Slammers" in Lakeland (see below)

Crack Pipe under pool table

http://tampabay.metromix.com/bars-and-clubs/neighborhood_bar/ta-slammers-lakeland/402681/content

 As soon as we pulled up to this place, we knew it fit the bill.  I try to hit as many local bars as possible when I am out and about and I have tried to change my paradigm from "bar owner" to observer.  Used to be, when  I was in a bar I concerned myself with the target audience, flow of the place, the cash register rings, etc.  These days I try to just watch the interaction of the customers and try to gain a perspective into their life experience.  This can have both positive and negative effects.  In this place, the effects made me want to crawl up to heaven and beg God for forgiveness on what we have done to his world.

One thing about dive bars that is very interesting.  The usual barriers that keep us apart, such as race and gender barriers, are transcended by drugs and the need to feel wanted.  In this sense, I find they are much further evolved than most of the rest of humanity.  Despite this admirable quality, I think perhaps the world is no better place with most of these people in it.  The crack pipe under the pool table pictured above pretty much says it all.

At one point, a lady who looked to be in her mid 40's walked in and somehow Josher immediately pegged her for the queen bee drug dealer.  I argued a bit, but after 10 minutes of observation I think he was right.    
Everyone in the place came over to her table and said "hi" in a very close manner.  She had a pitcher of beer in front of her that she never touched and her demeanor was definitely of someone doing business.  i was compelled to try to strike up a conversation with her, but Josher wouldn't let me.  I'd love to get the scoop on this woman.  My imagination makes we want to think she's running crystal meth for some biker gang out of California.  I wouldn't be in the least bit shocked if this were the case.

Despite my dogged thought on this place, I can say that our bartender was quite nice, approachable, and attentive.  As with our local dive bars, it seems a lot of the staff are doomed to deal with the people who walk in the door and do not mirror their customers' place in the world.  I find most of them to be very understanding people, even to the point that I feel bad for the crap they have to endure on a nightly basis.

Two bottled beers later and we were back on the road.

We arrived back in town around 1:00 am and stopped by Issues for a drink.  I always enjoy myself at Issues and despite their history of violence, I've never felt a bit unsafe there.  We ran into Bobert and chatted it up a bit.  Josher wanted to stop by JR's and despite my hesitance, I relented.  To say that JR's could be a sister property of  TA Slammers is an understatement.  I'm sketched out every time I'm in there.

Naturally, upon arriving, we got a front row seat to a fight in the parking lot and curiously enough got to watch another fight on the way out.  Same old story every night - here we go round again.

I woke up this morning with a headache and the foul smell of cigarette smoke and the end of western civilization on me.  Most mornings I wake up like this, I am haunted by the enduring thought that humanity has not come very far as a race.  Every late night in a bar, no matter what town I'm in, I see the same arguments and see the same fights; I hear the same conversations; I see the same tattoos.  I'm reminded of how many people really aren't adding anything to this planet and that the net product of them being here is in the red.  It's not that I feel I have made a significant difference in the world. However, one can only overhear the same person complaining about being evicted from their house while spending the pennies they have left from their Earned Income Tax Credit on Bud Lite so many times.

Oh well, this is the world that I have chosen to live in.  I embrace it to some extent, or I wouldn't continue to put myself in the middle of it.

So I get a message that one of the meatheads who were at JR's last night punched a female in the face.  the only reply I could muster to her was "what did you expect?"


         

 

 







www.zgrille.net

Thoughts with my Mad River

I'm sitting at ABBEY enjoying a Randall-ized Mad River Steelhead IPA infused with Amarillo hops contemplating a few things.  After a great meeting in Tampa, I figured I'd treat myself to a beer or two and live out the day with a smile when a buddy from high school posted this on Facebook:

 Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee: "Amy Winehouse died. That's a lifestyle choice. The 87 who were murdered in Oslo Norway. That's [effing] tragic."


Got me to thinking.  How is it that we can make such a huge deal out of the Casey Anthony Trial to the extent to where they track how much the trial is COSTING the taxpayers who can't seem to be happier with the need for this cost?  How is it that we have an exhausting number of people pasting songs from Amy Winehouse on Facebook and waxing about what a tragedy it is to lose this "genius?"  How is it that the (reported) 93 dead by disgraceful acts of violence, including the brutal shooting of children while dressed as a police officer is not as socially networked as Casey or Amy?


I'm not criticizing or judging.  I'm just pondering the possibilities.  A few of them that I can think of:


1.  The shootings and bombing were overseas and does not hit close enough to home?  It could stand to reason, as 911 and the D.C. Shooters were nationally covered to a great extent, and most Americans probably can't find Norway on a map.


2.  It is easy to emotionally care about a musician?  They speak to us through their songs and we feel emotionally connected to them as if they are "singing to us."  Just look at how the legend of Jimi Hendrix grows where the greatness of Jimmy Page is still a secret to those outside of rock music.  Look at Stevie Ray Vaughn's record sales AFTER his death.  Who's the greatest Beatle of them all?


3.  News is depressing?  All we see is death and destruction on the news.  Amy Winehouse was a person with a name and videos that we can post without much effort?  The children in Norway are a number - easy to put in a box in our minds and forget tomorrow?     


4.  The killer was politically motivated?  As Katt Williams put it "I don't know no insurgents, you can kill of them."  if we stay out of politics, maybe we cannot become victims?  An irrational thought, of course, but easy to swallow and justify.


5.  We are victims of the press?  Do we care only about what the press gives us most of?  As my mother puts it, "that may be putting the cart before the horse," but perhaps that's the case.  Why did we care so much about Laci Peterson, John Bobbit, and Jenbenet Ramsay?  These deaths are no more tragic to the objective eye as any other.  To their families they are devastating, but anyone who does not know these people should not care any more about them than the homeless guy who got shot in the town that we live in.  We laugh our asses off at Antoine Dodson, whose sister was almost raped in her own house; yet we hold vigils and make pilgrimages to see the grave of Kurt Cobaine, who killed himself while high.    


6.  We want to avoid the subject since the accused in the shooting was a blonde-haired, white Christian who killed for his political and religious views?  As it stands, he IS a reflection of most us of in America.  If he DID turn out to be a Muslim (which was earlier reported by Jennifer Rubin in the Washington Post) would we want to invade someone over it?  


I'm not sure exactly how to feel about the difference we make between these pieces of news.  Maybe hatred is more appealing, so we like to see evil in the face of Casey Anthony and O.J.  Maybe we don't have the same level of empathy for those abroad.  Maybe we just have too much news right now and only so much room in our days to give.  Maybe we were looking for an escape from financial gloom and doom when Casey came across our radar.  


Who knows.  Actually, I'd like to see some (constructive) comments on what anyone out there thinks. 


        


      













    

Tasting at Flagler Beach Wine and Cheese

Just finished tasting out some Lazy Magnolia and Boulder Brewing at Flagler Beach Wine and Cheese and had a great time.  Met Vinnie down there, joined by his girlfriend and future mother-in-law and got to tasting.  We decided that our best bet was to go with the Kinda Blue, Sweaty Betty, and Hazed and Infused from Boulder and Southern Pecan from Lazy Magnolia.

 I must say, the big hit with this crowd seemed to be the Kinda Blue.  We've done really well with this brew so far.  If you haven't experienced this wheat beer, it has a very light blueberry aroma and flavor so it does not give that cloying mouthfeel that you may get from other blueberry beers.  This one's a keeper.

The Southern Pecan from Lazy Magnolia is always a hit and I was extremely excited to that they have kept it on as a full-time offering at the bar.  If you're in the area, stop in and visit and have a Southern Pecan.  

Eola Wine Company

I finally made it down to see my buddy Matty at Eola Wine Company in Winter Park to drop off some Lazy Magnolia samples and one of the new Boulder brews, Kinda Blue.

www.eolawinecompany.com

We drove down on I-4 in the pouring rain during rush hour traffic, and with a drunk Steve Defran sitting next to me, the rain seemed all the more drenching.  However, my easy tunes from The Gathering kept us on the road and we made it to a mostly empty Park Avenue.

I have always greatly enjoyed being at Eola Wine and really love the atmosphere and great wine and brews.  Myself, Defran, Josher, and Renee met up with Rob and Stacy, and had some brews.  A sample of some of our beers:  St. Bernardus ABT 12 on draft, Scrimshaw Pilsner Draft, Ommegang Witte draft, and Coopers Vintage 2008.

We sampled out the Lazy Magnolia Southern Pecan Ale, Indian Summer, and the Boulder Kinda Blue.  Went over well.  Hopefully they will pick some of them up.  Gonna visit again next week and take some brews to share with Matty and his crew.

Next stop:  Tasting at Flagler Beach Wine and Cheese at 4:00 to do a Lazy Magnolia Tasting.

Monday's Randall Event at ABBEY

I just finished a crazy delicious Randalled beer at ABBEY - RedHook Wit infused with Key Lime, Mango, and Kiwi!!

Dave Meadows enjoying the Randalled RedHook Wit

When I first gave this a try, the tropical fruit didn't really come through that much.  I had to leave and give my sister-in-law a jump down the road, so after I got back and hour later, I ordered a glass of the Wit.  In the hour that I was gone, the fruit REALLY started coming through, especially the mango.

I want to hand it to these guys for what they have done with these Randall beers on Mondays.  It has become a treasure to me each week that I greatly look forward to.  I encourage anyone who wants something unique to check this out each week, as the outcomes of these infusions have been next-level  

Tasting at Total Wine

Got to taste out some Hazed, Sweaty Betty, Mojo, and Kinda Blue at Total Wine in Orlando on Saturday.

Beforehand I had some great food at Baja Burrito Kitchen.  The concept is similar to that of a Moe's or Chipotle, but I found the food to be much fresher and tastier than the others and I wish we had one near us.  

Once full and at the festival, Josh and I got to business of tasting out some brews.  We also ran into some friends of ours and were lucky enough to be at a table with Mike Wallace from Terrapin.

We have many more tastings coming up, so stay tuned!

Josher and Mike setting up

Tom and the OBP Mobile

Tasting out some beer

Troy from Microman 

Tristan from Sam Adams

Gnarly Surf Bar

Had the pleasure of meeting the owners of a new concept that will be opening in New Smyrna, Gnarly Surf Bar (pictured below).

The decor in the place has the vibe of a laid back surf shop and will feature cuisine from famous chef Danny Veltri, winner of Hell's Kitchen Season 5 (info below).  http://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/cleanplatecharlie/2009/02/hells_kitchen_5_-_chef_danny_-.php

On opening day, they will be carrying Lazy Magnolia's Southern Pecan Ale and Unique Beer's Toasted Coconut Porter on draft : - )   (see left bar for info on these beers)

The owner showed us a few of the "before" pictures of the location, and they must be commended for the one and a half year effort they put into turning this blighted location into a beautiful and festive restaurant.  I look forward to working with them and seeing this business flourish.  More news to come and hopefully we can get some promos going in the Gnarly Surf Bar.

Cigar City and Randall

Josher and Blair of ABBEY

Today I stopped by ABBEY before heading to see Transformers 3 and had a beautiful brew on draft.  They had taken the Cigar City Puppy's Breath Robust Porter and Radalled it with fresh raspberries.  If you don't know what that means I will explain.  The Randall is a contraption made famous by Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head.  It looks similar to a water filter.  The idea is that you use the Randall to infuse draft beer with your own fresh herbs, fruits, hops, or whatever else you'd like to flavor it with.

The Randall is hooked up directly to the draft line and filled with, in this case, raspberries.  When you pour the beer through the lie, it is run directly from the keg into the Randall to pick up all of the flavors from the raspberries, and then moves into your glass.  What you get is as fresh of an experience of that flavor that you can possibly achieve.

As for the brew, it was rated a 99 on ratebeer.com and is pretty marvelous on its own.  With the infusion of the raspberries, there was a nice mouth-filling tart flavor added with a fruit sweetness at the end that just continued to hit the palate. A good choice for infusion, I think.




On a side note, i just re-visited a movie that I love - The Last King of Scotland. If you have not seen the movie, Forest Whitaker puts on the greatest performance of his life (well, second best to his portrayal of Charles Jefferson in Fast Times at Ridgemont High), and James Macavoy gives a great performance as his personal doctor / "best and closest advisor."  This is a pretty heavy movie emotionally, somewhat in the same vein as Hotel Rwanda, so make sure to watch it when you are not wanting to get a laugh.  Also make sure to watch it alone so that you can focus on the dialogue, which can be scary at times.


  

Beer Haul

First of all, for those of you who know me well enough, you know my first love is whisk(e)y.  I am particularly partial to Scotch and Bourbons, but can easily enjoy even the worst piece of barley paradise you've got.  As a avid collector, I've pulled in some pretty rare stuff, but i think I've hit the mother lode.

Today, while visiting an antique store, I found my babaay - an uopened bottle of 16 year Old Baker Whiskey distilled 1917!  The best part, I only paid $71 for it.  If this turns out to be the real deal, we are in for a real treat.  Of course, the question is - drink it or don't drink it.  My inclination is to open that bottle with some good friends and whiskey lovers and have at it.  While i can't be guaranteed of the quality, it is one of those "is there a God" itches that I think I'll have to scratch.....  

Now, about this amazing beer haul.  I found this great market in Columbus, Ohio that blew my mind.  Of course, there are some great breweries that we cannot get in Florida, so I had to fill up on some of these great brews.

1.  Two Brothers Brewery (Warrenville, IL) - Hop Juice Double IPA, Askew Sour Ale, Bare Tree Barley Wine

2.  Dog Brewing (Westminster, MD) Stillwater Farmhouse

3.  New Holland (Holland, MI) - Rye Hatter

4.  Brew Dog Evil Twin - Yin

5.  Alesmith (San Diego) - Grand Cru, Speedway Stout, Yulesmith Holiday (Summer)

6.  DeWulf Lambrucha

7.  Buckeye Brewing (Cleveland, OH) Foreign Extra Stout

Additionally, I picked myself up a sixer of Edmund Fitzgerald just because I can't be where Great Lakes is sold and NOT get some of their brew.

Will be o the road the next few days but we have organized some more events for July in the Tampa area, so stay on line and we will keep you posted.

Lazy Magnolia Brewery

So me and Kev make it to the Lazy Magnolia Brewery in Kiln, MS.  The brewery lies in a small industrial property in a warehouse behind another business.  It is at these places that I am always reminded that we are not dealing with multi-national corporations, but with a very real person-to-person situation.  Although these beers make it all the way to Florida, Lazy Magnolia is a company made of just a few people who take their privately-owned business very personally.

We meet Brandi, the Marketing and Sales Director for the brewery; and Kathy a Sales Rep.  We get a tour of the brewery and get to meet some of the brewers and warehouse workers.  Very down-to-earth people who are dedicated to their jobs.  We know they are dedicated because it is about 120 degrees and humid inside the brewery and many of the staff bring several change of clothes.  Have to love this Mississippi heat.  

Leslie Henderson, co-owner

The bottling line at the brewery

We take a tour of the brewery, and it is once again apparent that this is a family operation.  The brewery makes several beers, each one unique in their own right.  Their flagship is the Southern Pecan.  This is an English style brown ale brewed with real roasted pecans.  The Southern Pecan, like all of Lazy Magnolia beers are very sessionable and come in at below 6% abv, thanks to state law.  Leslie tells us that these beers should all be good to sit on your front porch and drink.  They truly are.  Check out their beers at this link:

 http://www.lazymagnolia.com/ourbeer.php

Brandi, Sales and Marketing Director

Kev in front of the tanks

We met back up at the bar afterward and had a few Lazy Magnolia brews with the Marketing Department.  Although this was a business trip, I never once felt like we were anything other than friends visiting friends.  I really enjoyed the Lazy Magnolia Brewery and all of their staff and I look forward to re-visiting.

We left the brewery and took a tour through the coast of Mississippi until we reached Biloxi to do some gambling.  The coastline is edged with the most beautiful plantation homes you can imagine and i felt like I was going back in time. With the beach on one side of us and these gorgeous pieces of property on the other side, I felt like i was missing out on an entire piece of our American history.  I must explore more at a later date.  There was also a storm brewing and the view was absolute beauty.

 
 I found the people of Mississippi to be very accommodating and friendly.  We also found the Beau Rivage Casino to be very generous at the 3-Card Table and we loved the surroundings.  Up next, heading home to review some beers.  

Mississippi to see Lazy Magnolia - The Jourdan River Steamer

The Jourdan River Steamer  http://www.jourdanriversteamer.com  is a very cool spot on the river that has the feel of a beachfront place without the beach.  Very casual atmosphere and the food is very decent.  What most impressed me about this place was the people, but I will get to that in a second.

The entrance and my incredible Honda Element.

Houses bump up to an inlet, which ends here.  Very pretty.

The backside looking onto the river.

The river behind the building.

So we walked into the restaurant about 6pm and were set to meet up with Leslie and Mark at 7.  Figured we would check out the place, take some pictures, and have a few brews.  We sat down at the bar and I pulled out my laptop and camera so that I could download the pics into my computer.  I looked around a bit and that bartender, Don, asked if I needed to plug into an outlet.  The guy was very helpful and entertaining and we had a great time talking to him.  I ordered a Lazy Magnolia Southern Pecan and Kev had a Crown rocks.

As I stated, we had some great banter with the staff and when Leslie arrived, we had a decent buzz working.  She told us we were waiting for Mark and she ordered a glass of water.  When Mark arrived we sat down and began to talk business.  We ordered a BBQ Shrimp appetizer that was quite delicious.  For dinner, I ordered the Royal Red Shrimp, which were still attached with the head of the shrimp and some veggies.  Once again, pretty good stuff ad I'm glad I ordered it.  The lady who waited on us was cool as hell and we talked so long the retaurant had to turn the lights up on us.  A great visit with great company and I'd recommend checking out the Jourdan River Steamer if you're in the area.

Mississippi to see Lazy Magnolia - The Broke Spoke

Kevin and I took a drive to meet up with Leslie and Mark Henderson, owners of Lazy Magnolia Brewery.  Leaving at 6:00 in the morning was quite a chore, but we got on the road as well as could be expected.  The drive was nice, and we took I-95 instead of the more popular I-75 because I didn't want to go through the Ocala Forest.  In case anyone is wondering, the 95 route is better.

When we arrived, we stopped at a place that I found on the internet and just had to visit, the Broke Spoke http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3206784 in Kiln, MS (picture below).

It wasn't easy to take the first few steps toward the building and several times we considered the idea of just taking a picture and taking off.  However, I told myself that we would go into this place and have a beer, so we put on our man-faces and walked in.  This place is the darkest place I've ever been in, there are no windows, and the lights are all covered by thousands of bras hanging from the ceiling.

I sat first, and the bartender asked what I wanted.  Without even thinking about it, my mouth voiced the word "Budweiser."  It just seemed appropriate and I knew this was not a choice that would bring any attention to me.  Kev ordered a Bud Lite and we sat and enjoyed the scenery.  As it turns out, this place is a pretty dedicated Green Bay Packers bar, being that this is Brett Favre's hometown.  Having a dislike for the Confederate flag, being a Steelers fan, and having a distaste for Favre, I didn't have much in common with the place.  However, the bartender was polite enough, the beers were $2 each, and we had some good conversation with some of the customers.  All in all, when I go back to Kiln, I will probably find myself in the Broke Spoke.