I Ain't Afraid of No Goat! Black Me Stout

Black Me Stout by Champion Brewing Co.

"Bryant...  The Cubs... WIN THE WORLD SERIES!!!! Bryant makes the play!  It's over!  And the Cubs have finally won it all in 7 and 10!"

The Dilettante's been a little wrought and preoccupied the last few weeks -- what with the post-season and THE CUBS WINNING THE WORLD SERIES and all!!!!  Yeah, that's a cup from Wrigley with both the Cubs & World Series logos on it!  Uh-huh!  Now that Wrigley's serving Goose Island products, maybe now they can add a stout.  Like this "Black Me Stout" from Champion Brewing Company of Virginia.  This is total speculation, but I think they named the brewery for the WORLD CHAMPION CHICAGO CUBS!!!!  (Does Virginia have a baseball team?  Nope.  Gotta pick either the Nats or the O's, I guess.)

Just soaking it all in while waiting for the start of the victory parade.

Not too sure about that name, but the beer is good.  It is, in fact, black.  Even casts a shadow in direct afternoon sunlight.  Just like the can -- which had to be just out of focus so we could see the beer in the pint and THE CUBS WORLD SERIES SOUVENIR CUP!!!!  Not too heavy, not too light.  The beer that is.  Not the fact that THE CUBS WON THE WORLD SERIES!!!!  That's totally heavy!  And exquisitely light!  Magic, in fact!  More bitter than sweet.  The beer that is.  Not that THE CUBS WON THE WORLD SERIES!!!!  'Cuz that's totally sweet!  There are some chocolate notes -- but more cacao than cocoa.  Overall, it has more of the  dark sweetness that tips into bitterness characteristic of molasses, which makes it easy to enjoy multiples.  You know, kinda like getting used to THE CUBS WINNING THE WORLD SERIES!!!!

(And just because it's the sweetest thing to watch...)

Beer & Mussels at Corridor Brewery & Provisions

Lake Michigan, Chicago, October, 23

After a last minute trip to Michigan to help with some family matters, we slid back into Chicago on a glorious Sunday afternoon to find Indian summer in full effect.  As we drove along Lake Shore Drive, The Husband suggested we do dinner at a new brewery in the 'hood.  We walked in the door, tossed the rollerboards in the bedroom, and splashed some water on our faces.  We watered the plants and headed right back out to Corridor Brewery & Provisions to water ourselves.  We have at thing for mussels and they have 3 flavors on their menu -- Belgian Style with beer broth, cream buttered leek & fresh herbs; Red Curry with coconut milk, cilantro and lime; and Saffron with white wine, chicken stock, roasted potatoes, and Spanish chorizo.  We decided to work our way through them, ordering one of each.  But we stopped with the second.  The Red Curry was so good we knew that anything to follow would be a disappointment.

A day that makes ya wanna put
on a skirt, get on your cycle,  
and ride along the lake.

To drink, all I really wanted was an ice-cold vodka martini with half-a-dozen olives, but you don't go to a new brew pub and not order beer.  So Freaky Deaky Belgian Breakfast Stout it was.  Three of them, by the time we paid the bill!  And it totally tasted like breakfast.  Bitter, like charred bacon.  Sweet, like oatmeal; with a touch of brown sugar unifying all of it.  Three went down super easy.  The Husband had Doubledore Double IPA.  I'm kinda one-and-done with IPA's.  He took a sip and gave a wow-it's-very-citrusy holler.  In a cocktail that's usually a turn-off for him.  But in a beer, it seems to be the opposite.  It was citrusy, and hoppy, and coriander with that slight pininess that is intriguing for the first round, but after that turns somewhat soapy and I'm out.

Upshot: Freaky Deaky Breakfast Belgian Stout

(After the mussels we both had the pulled pork sandwich.  Decent.  It could've used more sauce.   Coleslaw came on it which I usually like.  This slaw was just ok...until I figured out those weird, sweet things were bits-o-pineapple in it.  [*All 4 AGT judges hit their buzzers simultaneously...*]  The fries, however, were excellent!  The stout complimented the pork very well.)

All-in-all, a gorgeous night.  Even after the sun went down and the sky turned inky black above the street lights, the air was beautiful.  Can't believe we're down to 10 hours, 40 minutes of daylight and the steady slide into winter....

Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale

 Last weekend was my budd, J's. bday. A collector of cookie jars, The Partner suggested we get him one to mark his big day. Luckily, there's a cookie jar store up the block from us. No kidding.  Alas & alack, it wasn't open yet when we hoofed it up there to accomplish our mission.  So what did we do?  Walked a few doors up to browse the local liquor store, of course.  Why the liquor store is open on a Saturday morning before the cookie jar store, is beyond me.  

Besides stock items for the bar, they also had unique craft beer offerings.  Given our post-blog bourbonlicious life, we had to bring home a six of Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale.  Tonight, while The Partner was making dinner, we cracked a couple.  There is no missing the fact that this brew is aged six weeks in decanted bourbon barrels.  Sweet, smooth, vanilla, oak, bourbon are all right up front.  Delightful to sit at the kitchen bar, chat about our days, and watch The Partner make dinner.  Very enjoyable and we both agreed that this is a one-time tipp a night.  With only one KBBA it's not a cloying or syrupy sweetness, but more than that at the start of an evening, it could be.  Keeping the KBB ale on the bar as well as the stout (which we've had out before) would be a good thing.  Great for conversation and starting the evening off in a unique and tasty way.

We did eventually make it back to get the cookie jar!

He Shot, She Shot | Burger Bar

PDT Interview
Personal Preferences: booze.

A good day for a burger & a bev with a friend.

Style of Drink: something to go with lunch,
Spirit of Choice: house aged rye, beer
Last Drink: Black Thorn (Irish)

I had a fun afternoon planned with my friend L. today.  It’s been a snowy day in Chi.  Almost 6 inches in the city.  But that was only gonna add to our fun.  We had lunch at Burger Bar.  Falling snow made for a cozy atmosphere that lent itself to lunchtime cocktails.  Since The Partner is under the weather – a-gain – I knew there’d be no happy hour tonight.  So this seemed like the perfect opportunity to evolve the blog.  L. is a photographer too.  Of the professional variety, not the dilettante kind like me.  She also is fond of the tipple.  We placed our orders & cocktails were delivered.  After I snapped our bevs, with my Android, she whipped out her iPhone. 

He Shot: 3-month aged Templeton Manhattan

“Now from my point of view,” she said, shooting them from her side of the table.

Thus the first installment of an occasional series, “He Shot, She Shot”.  Great double entendre there, too.

For lunch, L. had the Les Urbain [sic], which is a burger topped with brie, onion jam & dijonnaise.  To wash that down she sipped a Metropolitan Krankshaft Kolsch which Burger Bar’s 1-inch thick, ring-bound beer guide describes as having “very clean & crisp taste, with graininess & notes of hay in the forefront…wheat malt rounds out the bitterness of the Santiam hops.  Light bodied & easy to drink….”

She Shot: Krankshaft Kolsch

“And is it?”  I querried. 

“It is,” she enthused kitschily. 

When I looked at their cocktail card, I was uncertain if hard liquor was the right pairing for my Wild Bill (bison, arugula, goat cheese, tomato chutney on a pretzel roll).  But then I saw it:

“**House 3-month barrel-aged Templeton rye Manhattan**”

Done.  When it’s snowy and cold out, what better to warm your cockles than a special Manhattan?  Besides, Wild Bill and bison scream bourbon.  If you find yourself at North & Clybourn and want a beautiful cocktail made with home-aged booze, get yourself one or two of these.  A little smoky, with a nougaty sweetness and clear notes of vanilla.  And smoooooth?  Creamy.  Silky.  Yum.

Caveat emptor:  Burger Bar is one of these “boutique” burger joints where if they call them “stackers” instead of burgers and serve bison and elk and top them with onion jam instead of caramelized onions then they can charge $15 a burger.   Do go, but make certain you’re going with good friends who enjoy a fat, messy burger, good beer, and fabola Manhattans!