Beer to Beat the August Heat

Time to get a couple beers in the fermenter for the brutal August I'm expecting.  I'm thinking of some new (but not risky) takes on classic summery ales.

What about a Blonde Ale (go here, click "6B" on page 2), brewed with apricots?

What about a Kolsch (go here, click "6C" on page 2), or maybe a Weizen, (15A, same page), brewed with honey?  Note:  the honey doesn't add sweetness; it ferments completely.  It'll add some alcohol, and some flavors of the type of honey it is (organey from orange blossoms, floral from clover, etc), as well as add a bit of body to the beer.  So the Kolsch won't be so lightly watery and the weizen will be a tad creamier.

This Blonde Ale, which is normally this sort of lighter, grainy concoction, brewed with apricots is really exciting me.  I love Dogfish Head ApriHop, what with its complex balance of hoppy IPA and nectary-sweet apricots.  Really a great beer.  But a Blonde Ale is normally so...so...boring.  I think apricots, as mildly sweet as they are, will add a really nice sweetness to this otherwise grainy doldrum without overpowering it.  Apricots aren't as strong as blueberries or raspberries or cherries.  They're really mild, so I feel like I'm not gonna be brewing "fruit juice with beer in it."

Note - some examples:  New Holland has a fine Kolsch-style ale called Full Circle.  My favorite weizen is Hacker-Pschorr Weisse.  And a passable Blonde Ale is either Fuller's Summer Ale or Saugatuck Oval Beach Blonde.

What says the crowd?

Week 3 of Crossfit training.  I train 3 days, take a day off to stretch and do yoga, 3 on 1 off, etc.  Today's Workout of the Day is called The Filthy Fifty:

1. 50 box jumps
2. 50 jumping pullups (start in a squat, jump into pull up, drop, land in squat)
3. 50 kettlebell swings, 30#
4. 50 walking lunges
5. 50 push-press (standing shoulder/upper-chest press), 45#
6. 50 back extensions
7. 50 burpees
8. 50 jump-rope reps
9. Run 800m

Hell yeah.

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MBC: The Ongoing Saga

First, news came that MBC was suddenly evicted from their brewery in Webberville.  That was April 25.

But all seemed well, because they had a sweetheart lease deal to move to Fenton to be a part of Fenton's revitalization efforts.  That was April 26.

However, that same day, from a different reporter at LSJ, news came that the deal between the City of Fenton and MBC fell through.

The fate of MBC, and its downtown pub, is still unknown to this blogger.  The downtown pub is still open for business, and still serving beer (though they now won't do growler refills or sell bottles to go); there's still some stock floating around at distributors.

But what about the City of Fenton and their thirst for a brewery?

It's gotten competitive!  Arbor Brewing (Ann Arbor, MI), Royal Oak/Detroit Beer Company (Royal Oak, MI), Clarkston Union (a big high-end like 100-tap beer bar), and Tavern 131 (same kind of thing) have all pitched Fenton for that spot.  Fenton officials will weigh several factors, including how well the candidate has revitalized the town in its current location.  My money's on Arbor/Corner Brewery!

More as I know it!

Also...today's workout of the day - the Helton.
3 rounds, each round consisting of:

• Run 800m
• 30 reps @ 30# dumbbell squat-cleans
• 30 Burpees
• Rest 1 minute

My thighs hurt.  Stairs kinda sucked this morning.

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So Where Was I...

Back to life again.

First, I am doing a saison tasting this weekend, probably Friday or Saturday.  I plan to do a taste comparison between 3 types of my favorite summertime beer, and see which one, completely subjectively, comes out on top.  I've got a big bottle of Avery (Boulder, CO) Eighteen dry-hopped rye saison, a bottle of New Holland (Holland, MI) Golden Cap saison, and a bottle of the classic and original Saison Dupont (Belgium).  If I'm feeling frisky, I might add Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY) Hennepin to the mix.

Given my "I'm being good" diet, I will have to share these big bottles with some willing participants.  And eat mainly spinach salads all day.  Or perhaps some protein shakes.  Oh, the sacrifices I make.

Speaking of diets, I was back to the gym today.  Having the Insanity warm-up and stretching sessions memorized, I plowed into an Insanity warmup to get the heart pumping and the sweat flowing.  I have a new respect and understanding of sweat.  I used to stop at the point where sweat got "too much." Now?  If my shirt isn't see-through-soaked, I didn't work hard enough.

After the warm-up, today's Work Out of the Day (WOD) was the Lumberjack 20:

• 20 deadlifts @ 250#
• Run 400m (I set the pace at 8mph)
• 20 kettlebell swings @ 2 pood (about 70 pounds)
• Run 400m
• 20 overhead squats @ 100# (put 100 on a bench bar, hold it over your head, do 20 squats)
• Run 400m
• 20 Burpees
• Run 400m
• 20 pullups
• Run 400m
• 20 box jumps (24" box)
• Run 400m
• 20 dumbbell squat-cleans @ 45# each dumbbell
• Run 400m

After that, I did 5 minutes of some ab work (leg lifts and obliques), and had a nice stretch.  Was in the gym for a total of an hour, including putting stuff in a locker, getting it out when I was done, a water bottle refill at the drinking fountain, and fucking around getting the weights situated.  We're talking 60 minutes, out of the car, back in the car.  YOU CAN DO THIS, PEOPLE.

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