We all got our own open-one-a-day calendars this year. Mine is from Clown Shoes Brewing. I haven’t had a ton of their beers but I have really enjoyed the ones I have.
Day One was a dry-hopped IPA. It’s a standard-issue style these days and this one was really tasty.
Day Two was a Bavarian-Style IPA. This is not a style I’ve had before and I don’t know that the Bavarians are known for their IPAs? I didn’t really like this one, but I soldiered through and finished it.
62-degrees at dusk on December 13th.
A Guinness Draught can and a fire pit were practically a requirement.
The Veil’s Circle of Wolves is a big barley wine, this one aged in bourbon barrels. I’m not sure what year it’s from. 2019, maybe? There was plenty of bourbon still in it so it couldn’t have been too old. It was nice for a cool autumn afternoon.
2013 Bourbon County was next. I’ve got this old flight of these I’ve been hanging onto for too long. Figured it would be an interesting follow after that Veil jam.
It was not. 7 years is just too long to rest. There was some bourbon in there and yeah, it was a stout, but it wasn’t in any of the fun ways this beer would have been after a year or two of cellaring. Oh, well lesson learned. I poured most of it out.
Official, a new, fresh IPA from Bell’s was exactly what I needed after that Bourbon County (failed) experiment. This one is all lively citrus at the front and the beer is hazy but not at all chewy like they can sometimes be. Bell’s just got back to us in RVA and this has been the highlight so far.
Enjoyed a couple of cans of Weapon of Choice from Civil Society Brewing.
Like Adam mentioned on the show, it’s great that Richmond gets beer this good from far away. As shitty as 2020 has been, generally, we’re in an Era of Great Beer Availability.
But don’t worry, I made room for recovery time.
After keeping 2019 recording drinks nearly 100% cocktails, it was fun to crack a beer for last night’s show.
Tröegs Nugget Nectar is a dry-hopped amber ale. This seasonal treat is a longtime favorite at our house.
My desk is a mess.
The Solid Sundays keep on rolling.
Last weekend I competed in the 2020 RVA Open, a weightlifting meet here in town. I was trying to get a competition total of 179kg, which would qualify me for competition at the 2020 American Open Series, which starts in March at The Arnold. I went a couple of years ago and it was a good time.
Here’s my last lift of the RVA Open:
This 105kg clean and jerk was a PR for me and secured a meet total of 183kg, more than enough to qualify for the Arnold.
As always, I have to give tremendous credit to my coaches, Chris and Maddie from The Weight Room (the best gym in RVA).
I copped this sweet medal:
Got a photo with these class gentlemen from my session:
And then rolled over to Banditos for food and cold ones with my family:
Like I said, solid.
I had this the other night. The Veil describes it as:
Simple Ale designed by our Funkhaüst manager Pizza Nick and brewed in collaboration with our buddies @heirloomrusticales from Tulsa, Oklahoma. We fermented this spelt Farmhouse Ale at cooler temperatures in oak with a blend of a few of our favorite brewers yeasts. Half way through conditioning we added raw Virginia honey to the barrels. It was then lightly dry hopped and naturally conditioned in the bottle to higher volumes of carbonation with the addition of more raw honey from Tulsa.
I don’t generally enjoy Farmhouse Ales but I can sometimes find something to like about them if they get a decent dry-hopping. This one was not my jam. There is some combination of farmhouse yeast strains and bottle conditioning that makes these beers taste bad to me. I bought two bottles, so I’ll give the other one as a gift to a farmhouse-loving pal.
Adam and have been recording a podcast on and off for a couple of months. We each pick three things to talk about over a beer. I dropped the ball and failed to mention the first one, but I’m here with a timely note on the second show. We’re calling it the Safe As Milk podcast, SaMcast for short.
Recording and editing a podcast is pretty fun. I’m excited to see what this turns into.
I work with a guy whose brother is one of the founders of the Triple Crossing Brewery. They shot a little time-lapse video of the tank installation. Neat stuff. I’m excited to try their beers when they are up and running.