A Goy and his beer...

How do brewkateers!?!

It's been a few weeks since I posted a blog as sadly legitimate employment has kept me rather busy! I have, however run into a number of beers and some music in the mean time that I think you need to hear.

I'm dedicating this post to my good friend Matt, who, not only adopted a puppy this week (Ms. Roxxee Ketchup), but ALSO found out that his wife is pregnant!! Way to go boyo!! Congratulations!

First and foremost in my mind is a beer that upon initial inspection seemed to be a kind of gimmickey brew, but I decided to give it a go anyway. Cutsie packaging and a bold statement of being the "Chosen Beer" made me an instant skeptic. Oy Vey!! I'm schvitzing here! He'Brew's Genesis Ale by the Shmaltz Brewing Company was more than a surprise. It is a remarkably well balanced beer in the fact that it's not too heavy, not too light, the right balance between sweet, nutty malt and a light hop finish. The deep amber hue was pleasing to the eye, however the head left a bit to be desired as its small overly uniform bubbles fizzled out a bit quickly. I'll chalk it up to environmental differences between NY and MA! In all, this was a most refreshing beer and frankly, I was a bit disappointed that I didn't trust the beer enough to buy a full sixer of it. Lesson learned!

In pairing this with food, I tried to think of a traditional Jewish meal. It's only fitting given the back story of Owner/Proprietor/Brewer, Jeremy Cowan and of course the theme of the beer. Now, as a "Goyam"(someone who is not of the Jewish faith), I can't say that I'm familiar with anything outside of the Traditional Sader or Matzoa ball soup. Not to say that the Genesis Ale won't go well with Hebrew Nationals (no ifs ands or butts har t har har)... It was an excellent pairing and a personal favorite, by the way, as that was the meal I had with this beer! However, fear not those of you who are not among the chosen people! The internet has come to our rescue! The recipe listed below is going to go extraordinarily well with this beer.

Lamb Shanks with Portobello Mushrooms and Dried Cranberries.
http://homecooking.about.com/od/lambrecipes/r/bllamb13.htm

This meal is going to match well in the fact that A. it's down home food for a down home beer. B. It's Kosher (I think...) And C. The pairing is such that it matches the sweetness of a well carmelized crust and rarely cooked lamb shank, the meatiness of not only the Lamb, but the portobellos. In addition, this beer trends towards the sweet side and I think the dried cranberries will balance that off well with a bit of tartness.

I think a sign of care in a brewery is oddly enough the care that they take in their website and by extension, their client relationships (aka you and me!). This is a site built for Beer Geeks and is, as an added bonus, a thoroughly entertaining site. The funniest part for me is that they're in their 13th year of brewing and to celebrate, they're having a Bar Mitzvah. Hilarous. The description of the beer on the website, might as well be a recipe. They give you the type of grain they use, the hops, (which I'll have to try the Warrior hops... I've never used those in my own personal brews). I was really impressed with the site and the beer and frankly I'm excited to see what their newest offer, the "Rejewvenator" has to offer. It's a belgian style ale with pomegranite... interesting! All in all Mr. Cowan, you've exceeded the hype. A hearty McGoy cheer to your brew. L'Chaim!

http://www.shmaltz.com/


ON TO THE MUSIC:
Dave Matthews Band: Whiskey River and the Groo Grux King

I'm going to start out with a disclaimer. My wife exceeds my fandom 10fold, however, I am a DMB fan... have been since highschool. Saw them at Fenway, saw them both times in Hartford when the riot police showed up firing rubber bullets (Riot at a Dave Concert? Really?!) I've put in my time and I'd see them again in a second... great show and definitely worth the ticket price. I still enjoy their music and it always reminds me of summer. But I digress! I can say honestly that there are 3 to 4 decent songs on Whiskey River. Those songs that are good are REALLY good. The others, frankly are filler in my opinion, perhaps they'll grow on me in time but for now... Eh... As always, well executed from a technical standpoint. Interesting musically, but not overly moving. The album all told is over produced and is at times a bit too much. The better tunes are stripped down, change tempo and theme as any good "Jam Band" does. They SING to you, they make you feel and dance. What would a hippie dance to, besides... well everything? For me, those songs on the album are "Funny the way it is", "Why I am" and "Alligator Pie (Cockadile)"

There's a banjo in several of the songs, however I don't think it's Bela Fleck... he might have added more to it... but he might also have overcomplicated some already decent songs. Favorite on the album is a song that reminds me of the second song on the first Rusted Root album. "Alligator Pie" is a chugging Louisiana style Cajun butt kicker. It's a great driving song, but I do have to watch the gas pedal!

As always, DMB has put together an okay album, I'll listen to selected tracks, but it will never be Remember Two Things or Under the Table and Dreaming. As Primus says, "they can't all be Zingers".

Good luck, good Pickin' good brewin'

Rob Anderson