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TEH FOOTY IS OVAH!!

Or, How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love Drinking Small.

  Well, as they all too often say…that happened.  The most unforgettable Superb Owl that I would give anything to forget came in like a lion, and went out like a reach-around from the Hulk in a bad mood.  Football was always a convenient excuse for day drinking on the weekends, so as a substitute I utilized one of the wife’s frequent “we never go anywhere” rants to my advantage.  Like good little Capitalists we like to spend excessive amounts of money having strangers prepare excessive amounts of food for us.  I caught wind of a good burger joint that served local beers on tap, known to most of the DFO faithful as a gastronomic Motherland.  It didn’t take much wife-convincing, and she’s a borderline teetotaler so I have a ready-made designated driver!

The burger was good…very good, and the onion rings were something you would want preserved in an earthenware crock and tossed beside you in your inevitable grave.  The beer selection was impressive, my goal was something local that was light enough for a heavy meal.  I picked a brew called Beach in Wheat (pictured above) from the Lazy Beach Brewing Company.  My beloved got her one margarita, which was quite good, but she had to sneak a sip from my glass.  To my surprise she offered a trade of her drink for mine, but I did my man thing and refused (after offering to order her one for herself, of course) and tore in to my burger.  It had grilled jalapenos, which are usually mild due to the cooking, but these had some serious fire left.  This is the real test of a food-friendly beer.

I’m not a big beer snob, I admit to drinking Bud Light for years…I guess I was young and needed the money.  I’m still a fan of lighter brews as I prefer to enjoy my big-boy beverage with a meal, not as a replacement.  I have finally outgrown most of the mass market varieties, but in a pinch a cold Corona goes down great while manning the grill, and it’s easy to find on a Sunday.  I also like to be able to drink more than two and still be capable of hitting the bowl squarely when nature calls.  I took a big swallow of my Beach in Wheat to cool the jalapeno heat, then I realized I found my new favoristic food beer.  It’s a hefeweizen style brew which has the perfect balance of light drinkability without the watered-down flatness of the typical domestic lager.  My glass was soon empty but I still had food left, so I had to order a refill for…let’s call it quality control, consistency is very important you know.  I was decent enough to share this one while we relaxed and lingered over the last of the sweet potato fries, all in all a fine way to spend a Tuesday evening.

As soon as we got home I fired up the computer machine and used the Google to research this local brewer.  It turns out they make an interesting variety of beers, including bocks and IPAs.  Unfortunately nothing is bottled for retail sale, everything is sold through various restaurants, bars and a small taproom at the brewery.  They’re located in a little industrial park conveniently located on the way home from work, so a quick visit the following Friday was a no-brainer.  I went with the intention of just getting more information about the events listed on their website, but I didn’t want to be rude and not make at least one purchase:

I had to have another Beach in Wheat, and again I wasn’t disappointed.  The taproom is little more than a section of the small warehouse style building cordoned off with a few tables and chairs and minimal extraneous décor.  Needless to say I dug the hell out of it, and I wasn’t alone as the place started filling up quickly even though the only advertising is via the website.  The owners filled me in on the weekend festivities.  Friday and Saturday evenings a food truck comes by and they make a party out of it, which was all the convincing I needed.  Same for the Mrs. as she was all in for that Saturday.

Turned out there was a whole other section in the back with picnic tables, board games, playing cards and even foosball!  The place had a good-sized crowd of all ages and there was an old ghetto blaster hidden somewhere playing perfect background music at a level that still permitted normal conversation.  From the food truck we ordered a fish taco with cabbage and poblano-corn relish and a Korean beef and cheese quesadilla with a spicy aeoli for dipping.  The two beers we ordered while waiting for our food didn’t last long, so I tried a sampler board with a Blonde, a Session IPA and something I don’t remember.  The blonde was very crisp with a Peter King approved level of citrus.  The IPA was also what you would expect with considerably more body than the wheat.  The third glass, whatever it was, also satisfied.

Our food arrived and quickly disappeared. The quesadilla was particularly crock-in-a-casket worthy so we shared a second one to go with our sampler.  This kind of environment encourages socialization and we struck up a few conversations while trying to remember how to play Jenga.  All in all, this is a great way to enjoy a night out while supporting some worthy local businesses.  I also learned a great deal more about my favorite adult beverage and plan to continue my education.  The mind is a terrible thing to waste, so a little brain-pickling can only be a good thing!

Check out a local microbrew in your neighborhood, who knows what you’ll discover while drinking small.