I Do Stuff…

wave that flag

Last weekend we (Nancy, my dad, Pat, Matt and I) went to Wisconsin for the high school graduation of my cousin David’s oldest son, Andy.  It was going to be a giant party at the park across from Rose’s house as we would need all the space we could get.  We flew out on Friday morning to Milwaukee and from there we drove across the state to La Crosse.  On Sunday we would head back to Madison to visit more family and catch the plane out of Milwaukee on Monday.

I couldn’t wait for the long four day weekend in Wisconsin.  I was looking forward to introducing Nancy to the rest of the family and for her to see were I spent many summers, a few Thanksgivings, and Christmases thrown in for good measure.  Once we landed in Milwaukee the first thing we noticed was the severe temperature drop.  We just left temps approaching 100 degrees in DC and Milwaukee was a brisk 60 and cloudy.  When we got to Rose’s house a few hours later everyone kept apologizing for such cold weather.  I was loving it, I could have used a sweet shirt, but I was not going to complain about the cool weather.  I didn’t complain about the cool temps in San Francisco either.

After getting the rental car it took about three hours to reach  La Crosse.  We arrived at Rose’s house and walked right into a party.  We were offered something to drink and gladly took up the offer.  Not 10 minutes after we arrived others started showing up to welcome us back to Wisconsin.  In no time the house was filled with guests and everyone was having a great time.  Some of these guys I have not seen in five years so it was great to catch up with everyone.  Nancy, Matt and I spent most of our time outside on the deck, even thought it was drizzling.  It was just great to be outside enjoying the company.  Eventually we got the fire pit going and enjoyed a toasty fire with our drinks.  We did eat as well, someone brought authentic German potato salad and it brought back memories.  That and the brats and locally made hotdogs and I was in heaven.  Even had a few local brews from the New Glarus Brewing Company, the Spotted Cow was taste.  Late into the night we bullshitted.

The sleeping arrangements at Rose’s house are limited so us kids shacked up at David and Teresa’s house just down the street.  David came back to pickup us up so we wouldn’t have to stumble, I mean walk in the dark.  On the way back we got lost so we stopped by The Ridge to get some directions.

Five years ago, the last time I was in Wisconsin, turned into an epic and memorable trip.  Not only for me but for my entire family as well.  It was Mike and Roses 40th wedding anniversary so I went up to help celebrate.  After a welcoming house party we headed to The Ridge for a few more drinking.  I really wanted some scotch but they didn’t have any so I got tequila instead.  This was my fatal mistake, Jose and I just don’t get along.  Every five years I need to challenge that friendship and this trip was that time.  I remember my cousin Kenny and I sitting at the bar just knocking back the drinks.  Needless to say the next day, not just the morning but all day, I was feeling rough.  I pretty much missed the ceremony and party afterwards.  I felt so bad, I was ashamed I drank so much.  My family took it all in stride and they have never let me forget about that night.

park where the graduation was held

Nancy has heard the stories over the years from different family members so as we drove to David’s house she wanted to see the now infamous bar.  The place looks exactly like I remember it five years ago.  We bellied up to the bar in the same spot and ordered a round.  For a mere $10 we got four drinks, including the Spotted Cow.  After the round we finally found our way back to the house and headed to the basement for a night cap.  By now it was late and we were all exhausted so to bed we went.

The next morning I woke up and was feeling great, no hangover this time.  All morning we did was we could to help get ready for the party.  From what I heard 200+ people from all over Wisconsin were showing up for this party.  Teresa’s family is rather large and four of the kids were graduating at the same time so they rolled the parties all in one.  The party was held at the local park which has ample space to accommodate this large crowd.  We spend the afternoon mingling with family, drinking a little, and stuffing our faces with pork BBQ.  A friend of David’s spent Friday roasting and entire pig for the party and it was awesome

By late afternoon most of our family was off at church or…..doing something else and it eventually was just Nancy, Matt, my cousin Kenny and I left at the party.  Not knowing anyone else we headed to Rose’s house for a private party, we cracked open some beers and enjoyed the view from the deck.  Ever since I was a kid the view has been the same, an panoramic view of green fields and farms with a blue sky and white fluffy clouds as far as the eye can see.  I was happy Nancy got to see this fond memory of my childhood.  It was amazing but as darkness approached more people migrated to the deck, by 8pm it was full.  We talked, drank, and eventually got the fire pit out to make some s’mores.  Afterwards imagine if you can, 10 drunks walking from Rose’s house to The Ridge.  It was a crazy site seeing us all walking down the street.  At The Ridge we had another couple of rounds and called it a night.

Statue of Ssgt. Raymond P. Olson.

Sunday, our last day in La Crosse.  Teresa cooked a great breakfast of sausage gravy and biscuits which kept us going most of the afternoon.  After we got a tour of the local fire station.  David is a volunteer firefighter and is very proud of his work and the new station they have on the ridge.  Saying our goodbyes to David and Teresa, Rose and Mike, and finally Marvin we headed for Madison through the rolling hills of the back country.  Highway driving might be faster but it certainly lacks the stunning beauty of the state.  On our way we stopped in Coon Valley to visit their recently completed war memorial.  The memorial lists all those from the local area that have fought for our nation starting with World War I.  I got to see my Dad’s name engraved in marble.

When we arrived in Madison we visited with Pat’s sister Eillen and her husband Gerry who cooked a wonderful meal for us weary road warriors.  Same pattern as the previous two days: drinks, food, and then more drinks outside.  It must have been well after 10pm before we called it a night.  There was no spare bedrooms at Gerry and Eillen’s so Kenny and Patti, who live in Madison, offered their place to Nancy and I for the night.  Their kids started summer camp so the four of us had a few more drinks and talked late into the night before catching some zzz.

The next morning was very low key, which I loved.  In their living room is a high square table that Kenny, Nancy and I sat at all morning talking, getting a little work done and generally just shooting the shit till 11am.  Precisely on time my Dad pulls up in the rental and we head towards Milwaukee to catch our flight.  It was a short drive and we made it to the airport in no time, got through security (even with my refusal to use the millimeter wave machine and have some dude feel my junk) and waited for our flight.

Finally got home about 7pm and Nancy and I just relaxed the rest of the evening.  It was a long day of travel and after three days of drinking our bodies craved rest and relaxation.  I only wish we took off Tuesday so we could recover properly from our little adventure up north.  It was great seeing everyone up there for the weekend and we are looking forward to seeing most of my Wisconsin family at our wedding were we will tear it up in a foreign country.

This local brewery from Delaware has blown up in the last 5 years or so.  I remember going to the original ale house in downtown Rehoboth Beach long before they became popular.  We would go to get some great craft beer and honestly, some ok food.  But it was the beer that set this place apart.  Over the years they have increased their distribution area and it is very easy for me to find this beer in my local super market here in Norther Virginia.  Discover Channel even had a short lived tv show featuring Sam and Dogfish called Brew Masters.

Enough with the brewery, this post is about the incredible dinner they had.  Father’s Day was a few weeks ago and I missed it because I was on Phish tour (night 1, night 2, night 3).  For the last few years Phish has played on Father’s Day, usually in Saratoga Springs (2004, 2009 and 2010) and this year in Portsmouth.  When I am getting tickets I never realize what the date is, I am just looking for some close shows to attend.  Back in 2010 I got called back home and missed the SPAC Father’s Day show, but I caught the first year at SPAC and I was making the Portsmouth show this year.  I did of course call my Dad from the road and wished him happy Father’s Day and that I would take him out for dinner on my return to celebrate.

For a few years now my Dad has always paid when just the two of us go out for dinner and I thought it should be my turn to treat him.  It had been a while since our last dinner together and we both love beer so when I saw the announcement I jumped at the chance.  Since they opened their ale house in Fairfax and Seven Corners I have gotten their emails about dinners but never had the chance to attend one.  This I was looking forward to trying.

an incredible menu, click to enlarge

My Dad and I meet Nancy at the bar before the dinner for a quick drink before dinning.  Work has been crazy for Nancy so it was good to get her mind off work and enjoy a beer.  Later she went to dinner with Pat at Madigan’s Waterfront in Occoquan.  When the dinner started my Dad and I took our beers to the table and were surprised to find a full class of Festina Peche waiting for us, this was what I ordered from the bar.  It is a tart wheat beer with a hint of peach and I love it.  It certainly is not for everyone, but I dig the tartness and the hint of peach.  Many times when a brewer add fruit to their beer all you taste is the fruit and I hate that.  This one is well balanced and extra special with the tartness.  Abita Purple Haze and Magic Hat #9 are two other “fruit” beers I think are really good.

We got put into a booth and quickly meet our dinner quests for the night, two really cool guys who’s names I can’t remember.  We talked all night about beer and life in general.  One of the guys is an Archer fan so he got mad brownie points with me.  Thankfully he informed us that as the night went on the size of the beers would get smaller, after all there were five courses.  But as the glasses got smaller the alcohol content went up so it was really just a wash.

The night started off with three large bacon wrapped scallops that I thought was for the table but in fact was for each person.  They were cooked perfectly and I thought the peach wheat beer paired nicely.  Second course was potato salad with lobster paired with Burton Baton.  The potato salad was good, nothing special and I am not a big fan of the giant insects called lobster.  Even the beer was just ok, high alcohol content and a strong taste.  I thought they should have paired a lighter beer to go with the delicate salad.  I would have also preferred a lettuce salad, but that is just me.  In fact this was the only miss of the whole night.

Next up was the soup course and it was clam chowder paired with Shelter Pale Ale.  First thing we all noticed was the soup was broth based and not the traditional cream based chowder I am use to.  The broth was light but you could still taste the clam/sea/salt.  The beer was light of course and didn’t overpower the subtle flavors of the soup.  Surprisingly the guy who grew up in New Jersey never had clam chowder before and ate every last drop of it.

Next up is the main course, blue cheese stuff petite filet.  By this point we are all getting full but I was determined to eat all the courses.  My jaw dropped as I cut into the filet and tasted it.  It was perfectly cooked medium-rare and the flavor combo of blue cheese and port wine reduction was incredible.  The potatoes had a great flavor of bacon and cheese, creamy yet still a little lumpy, just the way I like it.  Even the brussel sprouts had a great tang and flavor.  The Raison D’Etre was a so so beer, like the name suggests it has a raisin flavor and was heavy as crap.  This beer was hard to finish but I forced myself to drinking it all.  Now and again I kept going back to the Festina Peche to cleanse my pallet.  By the time I was half done with the main course I had already eaten and drunken a ton and was completely full.  If this was a normal meal I would have yelled uncle and taken it home with me.  I wad determined to finish everything, even if I did happen to slow down a bit.  It was just to good to not finish.

Finally dessert came out which was a waffle, ice cream, maple syrup and MORE BACON.  The desert was incredible and I was surprised my Dad actually finished his, not just sampled.  He is known for not eating desserts but on rare occasions and this was that rare occasion.  Unfortunately as good as the dessert was the beer was anything but.  It was the Sah’ Tea which is brewed with juniper berries just like gin.  Next they add all these spices and add them to the mix.  The beer is brewed in a traditional style with heated river bed rocks but I must say the smell is awful.  All you can smell is flowers and taste nothing but juniper.  This one I could barely drink, back to my Festina Peche.

Around 9:30 we finally finished, stuffed and fully satisfied we headed home.  We were thoroughly impressed with the operation and I can’t wait to go back for another beer dinner.  One of our table mates has been to several of these and says the menus have never been repeated.  The only thing I was disappointed about was my Dad and I never really talked.  We chit chatted all night of course, but usually when he and I go to dinner we have some deep discussions.  Guess I will have to take him out for another dinner here shortly.

lets party!

Concert Photos | NYE Photos

This years New Years Eve party happened again at the beach house in Rehoboth with a few additions and surprises.  First off Marvin flew in for the holidays again after having surgery last years.  We also convinced Matt to come along for the first time and join in the festivities.  A not-to-be-missed once-in-a-lifetime concert with Nancy and my Dad was to take place as well.  Last year while at the beach, late in the evening and after many drinks, a plan was hatched for the two of them to play a duet together on acoustic guitar.  This was going to be the best NYE ever!

Getting to the beach turned out to be more of a hassle than in years past, traffic was not the problem.  The post-Christmas crowds had already died down and not many people travel long distances for celebrations.  The timing of January 1 also worked in our favor as Friday was the observed holiday so we all left on Thursday night after work, again making traffic a breeze.  What we didn’t count on was the blizzard that hit the beach a few days before.  When Nancy, Pat, and Marvin arrived in the afternoon they where greeted with a five foot pile of snow blocking the drive way.  The snow was plowed directly into the driveway from a cross street.  They spent over an hour clearing the snow till Matt showed up and finished what remained.  My Dad and I had to work so we got a late start and completely missed shoveling snow, what great timing.

lots of great food

It was great having a long weekend at the beach house with plenty of time to prepare for the party and a long night of drinking.  Getting up on NYE at the house was a fantastic way to start the day.  We pretty much lounged around all day till the afternoon hours when we started getting dinner ready for our feast.  By now the first beers and wine has been opened for everyone to enjoy so we where off and running.  For dinner Matt hooked up some nice fat pork chops with side of pasta and homemade sauce.  Nancy and I contributed with a <INSERT DISH NAME> dish we got from a recent cook book her brother gave us for Christmas.  The food was fantastic as we all stuffed our faces in preparations for the long night ahead.

Around 6pm, before dinner was served, the concert took place in a grand spectacle in the living room.  As the official audio and photo archivist I had my gear setup and ready to roll come show time.  The two of them played for almost an hour with various songs ranging all types of genera.  I must say the recording came out alright, very low levels as it was an acoustic show.  I think were I really shined where in the photos I took that night.  I of course would love to have a better lens that bigger aperture to shot in low light, but I think they came out rather well.

the highlight was the concert

After dinner stuck around the dinner table talking for a long while just relaxing.  That is probably the thing I love most about the beach house is the rush to do nothing.  There are not schedules, no time lines, nothing has to be done so we just sit around and relax.  Eventually the discussion turned to what to do at the witching hour of midnight.  We decided on a little bar hoping and got an early start, we left just after 10.  We wanted to grab our first drink at Fins which from last year we knew would close early.  Even though we arrived just after 10pm, the bar already took last call so we immediately walked out and headed across the street to Finbar.  Here they were remodeling in the off season and we got a preview of the new layout.  The big change was to move the bar close to the entrance and expanded it greatly to accommodate three times as many people.

The service here was not to great so we quickly finished our round and headed down to our local haunt for New Years, Dos Locos.  Here the crowd was lively and the place packed.  We were fortunate to grab two tables just as another group got up to leave.  The table was not yet cleared but we snatched it regardless.  Here was spent almost an hour as we drank a few rounds and rang in the new year with champagne.  After the hooping and hollering died down we headed back to the house to continue the celebrations.  Some more drinks and dancing, all of a sudden it was about 3am as everyone started dropping out for some much needed rest.

dance party

January 1 was a quite and lazy day for everyone.  I didn’t feel so hot for much of the morning and early afternoon, I should not have had that last whiskey sour with Matt.  That drink did me in, but it certainly was worth it.  We watched a lot of football and I was able to finish the book I was reading, Deception Point by Dan Brown.  As a matter of fact I don’t know if anyone even left the house that day.

By the time Sunday rolled around everyone was feeling good and back to life as we all headed back home.  Another successful New Years celebration.  We even got Nancy and my Dad to commit to another concert next year with an expanded list of songs.  Both committed to getting together once a month practice for the never-to-be-repeated-again concert event of the year.

See you all next year at the beach, have a wonderful new year everyone!

it was a night for beer

Photo Gallery

After nursing a hangover from the night before, Nancy and I got a late start on our trip to Baltimore. As a surprise Nancy got a hotel room in the Inner Harbor for the night.  We planned to spend the evening out eating and drinking, not having to worry about driving home. Getting a late start we did not arrive in the city till after three o’clock, plenty of time to check in and get settled in before heading out for the night.  We got an upgraded room, still the king bed but got moved to the 18th floor. The view was pretty bad, we looked directly into the court yard between two close buildings.  But then again we were in the city not for the room but to eat and drink. What we did get out of the upgraded room was a free happy hour and breakfast the next morning.

After parking the car we “relaxed” in the room for a few minutes and then headed down to the hotel bar for some drinks. While checking in the guy gave us a free drink ticket when he found out it was my birthday so the first round was on the house.  Plus we had some time to kill before the hotel happy hour so we enjoyed another round before heading up.

Once 7pm rolled around we packed it up and headed for the happy hour for some more drinks and hors d’oeuvres on the 17th floor.  Here the beer selection was down right horrible and there was no red wine.  But my mission of drinking all night was not going to be interrupted by this little fact and I plowed through two Amstel Lights.  The one saving grace was the hors d’oeuvres which were actually really good.  There was a fruit and cheese platter and these awesome mini burgers that Nancy and I both filled up on.  This actually helped solve one problem, what to eat for dinner.  Now we could focus on drinking!

James Joyce Irish Pub

Late in the evening we headed for the Inner Harbor to start bar hoping.  As many times as I have been there I didn’t have any places in mind on where to drink.  I like to wing it most of the time when it comes to finding food on trips.  We agreed that I would pick the first place and Nancy the next, going back and forth till we found our way back to the hotel.  Shortly after arriving to the Inner Harbor I saw a sign for Sullivan’s.  I didn’t know what it was before walking up, but the sign outside looked inviting and they offered a terrace so we could smoke.  When we walked in it was a swanky place, felt out of place being there.  We talked to the hostess and she said we could sit outside and a waitress would eventually come out to take our drink order.  We sat on the far side, right next to a three piece jazz band playing at the bar, I saw that and got excited!  Nancy smoked a cigarette and then I started harping on her to go inside, it wasn’t freezing out, I just wanted to hear the band.  We got a seat on the far side of the bar, ordered another round of drinks and a plate of oysters Rockefeller.  Nancy is not one for sea food, but she does love this dish.

After a quick drink it was time to head to the next bar.  I thanked Nancy for indulging my jazz music tastes and we headed deeper into the harbor.  We passed several promising places but nothing that sparked interest from Nancy.  Searching on her phone turned up an Irish pub, James Joyce, not to far in Little Italy.  Here we spent several hours drinking and talking.  This place was much more lively than Sullivan’s with a crowd that knew how to drink and a band playing traditional Irish music.  We bellied up to the bar and ordered a round of Guinness, this was my staple drink for the rest of the night.  Nancy even meet the lead singer from the band on one of her smoking breaks.  She leaned over after the set break and told me she just smoked a cigarette with the guy, real cool and down to earth.

National Aquarium

By now it was getting late and we both were getting hungry for some food and another round.  When making our way to James Joyce we noticed a place called Roy’s with the description of “Hawaiian Fusion”, this sounded interesting.  Unfortunately when we walked in after 11pm the kitchen had just closed down and they where only serving drinks.  We didn’t much fit in with the crowd and we got a cool reception from the bartender.  No need to stay where we are not wanted so we walked out, still looking for food.

One place that I love to stop by late at night in Baltimore is Sabatino’s, right in the heart of Little Italy.  The prices are reasonable and the food is pretty good.  Considering they are open till 3am on Fridays and Saturdays I hit it up regularly after shows.  Nancy and I settled in for another round of drinks and some late night pasta with tiramisu for dessert.  One thing bugged me while we were here, I noticed this guy in the opposite corner from our table and I just kept staring at him.  He looked familiar but I couldn’t place him.  It was about 30 minutes before it dawned on me, we saw Mickey open up for Joel McHale at the Warner Theatre a while back.  Mickey is from 98 Rock and he was having a late dinner with a couple of his friends.  I thought he was funny as shit when we saw him.

Unfortunately like all great things this too must come to an end.  We walked back to the hotel but we were certainly not done drinking.  The hotel bar was still open so we plopped down for another drink and shot the shit with the bartender who served us earlier in the night.  Finally it was time to head up to the room and catch a few zzz after a long night of drinking, in fact a long weekend of drinking.

frog from the National Aquarium

The next morning we woke up refreshed and headed to the free breakfast buffet on the 17th floor.  After checking out of the hotel we headed over to the National Aquarium to check out the fish.  I was planning on going here Saturday afternoon when we arrived, but the previous nights festivities delayed our arrival in the city so we had to postpone it till Sunday morning.  It had been years since either of us had been there, in fact it was probably 15+ years for me.  Some of the exhibits has been updated or rotated out, but basically just like I remember it from so long ago.  Another quick meal at Dick’s Last Resort were we got some decent food and a whole lot of bad attitude.

We arrived home late in the afternoon and both of us were exhausted from partying all weekend long.  We settled in for a movie but that was short lived.  I wanted nothing more than to fall asleep, which I did for a few minutes on the couch, but I had to get up and head out to Vienna with Jeremy to see Charlie Hunter perform.  The performance was forth getting out of the house for, but I certainly felt like crap till I got two cups of coffee in me.

I was surprised by the trip Nancy planned for my birthday.  We had a kick ass time bar hoping and taking in the sights of Baltimore for the night.  There is so much to do we could certainly go again, maybe next year for my birthday?

22 dead soldiers

Rob for a couple of weeks talked about getting some people together for a beer tasting at his house.  He would invite a few people and everyone was responsible for bring a six pack or two of something you have never tried.  Well Nancy and I were certainly in for that.  We managed to convince Matt to come along which added to the fun.  We were all at Sweet Water after Ellie’s birthday party at Wolf Trap discussing our engagement party and talked about the beer tasting.  Matt was in but only if we picked him up so he wouldn’t have to drive.  A small price to pay to get him to come along.

We arrived at Rob’s house a little late, but we certainly were not the latest to arrive.  We eventually gave up waiting for everyone else to arrive and started the tasting about 6 o’clock.  Rob printed out tasting forms from the Sam Adams web page which was really cool.  Because of the number of beers most of us just graded on a scale from 1-5 for each of the different categories.  Two hours later we finished sampling all 22 beers.  We tasted beers from Germany, Belgium, the left coast, East coast and one from Virginia.  The styles ranged from ales to pale ale, several stouts (chocolate was popular), weissbier, even a raspberry sparkling champagne beer that was pretty good.  A very sweet beer, not something I could drink a lot of, but definitely tasty.

We hung out for another hour and bounced around 9.  I had a small buzz from all the samplings and a few extra tastes of the really good ones.  I could have spent hours talking with the guys outside, but Matt and Nancy were ready to head out.  We brought three six packs and walked out with two, not a bad deal if you ask me.  Being early and still having plenty of beer we headed back to Matt’s house were my Dad and Pat were just cleaning up after a late dinner on the deck.  We processed to spend the next four hours with them drinking more and have a great time relaxing on the desk.  We burned through three of the four touches we were out there so long.  Eventually everyone called it quits around 2am, well past everyone’s bed time.  What a kick ass beer tasting, Rob is already talking about doing it again and we can’t wait till he hosts another one.

Beer Tasting