This edition of The Session is sponsored by Ray and Melissa at Bathtub Brewery.
Announcing Session #20: Beer and Memories
Is there a beer that reminds you of a specific memory?
If you’re thinking, “Huh?” then you might want to craft your response along the lines of “Whenever I drink [insert brew here] it reminds me of that day …” Or perhaps it’s the reverse. Oooooh.
So many possibilities. I’ve been of legal drinking age for half my life, after all, and beer has always been a part of it.
Should I write about the Schaefer I used to get my Dad when I was a kid? Or maybe the Coors Light he and I would have during a break from moving a ton of dirt by hand? Maybe the Budweiser I bought for my first underage purchase? (The statute of limitations has passed, right?) Perhaps the Miller Genuine Draft that my friends and I drank in our “drinking youth”? Or maybe the Red Dog that I had in Section 4G of the parking lot at Giants Stadium before many, but far too few, New York Giants games?
I don’t drink any of those any more, so there’s no opportunity for one to “bring me back”.
There is, however, Brooklyn Brewery Oktoberfest. I don’t usually get to see my best friends but once a year, and the only time it seems we can get together is in October. We’ve been doing it for years and long ago came to refer to our get-together as our own Octoberfest. Wouldn’t you know? We’re getting together next weekend.
One beer we can always count on is Brooklyn’s Oktoberfest. It’s been a favorite of ours since we first tried it I-don’t-know-how-many years ago. My brother loves it so much that he buys at least two cases of it just for himself. As soon as I see it in the store I know that football is starting, the trees are getting ready to show off their foliage, and our get-together will be soon.
Lots of good memories tied up in that malty treat, and plenty more to come.
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Ron lives 400 miles away from me. Max 320 miles. Don 225 miles.
As you might expect, that sort of precludes us from nipping down to the pub together on a regular basis.
While Don is still a carefree bachelor, Ron, Max and I are all married, each with two children.
So taking off for a weekend every few weeks isn’t really an option either.
But, every year, once a year, we work really, really hard to get our schedules in synch, our spouses mollified, and a little time off from work.
For years now, the best time to do this has been in October. So, for over ten years, we’ve been getting together for a long weekend in the Fall. We’ve been gamers forever, so we bring our computers and network them together for some good electronic mayhem. (We’ve been doing this since the time of Doom, when networks were in their infancy and hardly anyone had heard of the Internet.)
We also each bring four (or more) six-packs of something interesting. We’ve even been known to take notes and rate the beers we liked.
We cook meat over fire. We eat potato chips and Doritos. We order in pizza and hot wings. We usually manage to pop out to a brewpub or a good beer bar at least once. And, of course, we drink that “interesting” beer and sit and talk about what we’ve been doing all year.
Last year I hosted the guys. This year Ron’s hosting. He’s worked real hard to have a new family room ready in time for us. (He has been posting about it on his personal blog, and it’s fascinating reading.) He also says he has a couple of “surprises” for us. Woo-hoo!
It’s also this weekend. As such, Ron and I will be rather scarce ’round these parts until at least the middle of next week. We’ll try to pop in now and then, but content will be light for the next few days.
Enjoy the weekend. I know I will.
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Octoberfest is in full swing. Ah, I wish I could be there.
For those of you who, like me, are thousands of miles away from Munich, I offer you this poor substitute:
The history of Oktoberfest: Getting ready for Oktoberfest
What is an Octoberfest (Marzen) beer: Oktoberfest Style
Of course, what’s Octoberfest without Beermaids in traditional dirndls? LIVE - from Octoberfest
We did a series of posts comparing and contrasting a number of different Octoberfest beers.
Octoberfest: Sam vs. Saranac
Dogtoberfest - Flying Dog Brewery
Oktoberfest Beer Battle: Round 2
Octoberfest Beer Battle: Defending Champion from Brooklyn
Oktoberfest Beer Battle Champion
Of course, you can’t forget the food: Bratwurst w/ Sauerkraut for Oktoberfest
Maybe you can’t make it to Munich, but the most famous of beer festivals has inspired countless imitations. There are a couple of websites that can help you find one near you: Looking for a beer festival this weekend?
Of course, Ron and I, along with my brother Don and our good friend Max have our own version of Octoberfest:
Oktoberfest 2006 - Part I
Octoberfest 2006 - Part II
Octoberfest 2006 - Part III
Octoberfest - Postscript
This year’s version kicks off October 5.
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