Did I say I was taking a vacation day? Fat chance. I'm heading into the office again this morning. Another rush job. This one is for a friend who is moving back to town, so I don't mind much, but I also have another project that should be addressed. I'll probably work about two hours, then knock off for the Memorial Day weekend and . . .
Brews (You Can Use):
Summer drinking starts this weekend. You want to sound knowledgeable about summer beer? Just know this: It's heavy with wheat and modeled on Belgian white beer. Want more? Click here. Excerpt:
Wheat is a big-time trend as big brewers try to catch up with Hoegaarden. That's why you're seeing all those Blue Moon (Coors) and Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat (Miller) taps.
All three are decent versions of a Belgian style known as witbier, or white beer. Typically, they're spiced with coriander and orange peel and, unfortunately, splashed with a wedge of lemon or orange.
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Everything goes better with beer (except the sacred, which is why I'm often amused when certain areas make beer off-limits: just how sacred do they deem themselves?). Science on Tap.
If you missed it, incidentally, National Catholic Register featured Theology on Tap recently (subscription might be required), noting that Renew International recently took it over. The article is good, but it doesn't feature the "on tap" part enough. I've often considered implementing such a program at our parish, but no one has asked me, plus I fear--and mistrust--ecclesiastical red tape and oversight: according to the article, there's now training available for people who want to implement such a program.
I don't like "training." My dislike is at least partly irrational (training is merely a type of learning), but there's something about training that screams "cookie cutter," lack of inventiveness and creativity, inadequate but also unnecessary. If I start a Theology on Tap program, I'll either be an effective speaker and find effective speakers, or I won't. I'll have good beer, or I won't. I'll advertise it well, or I won't. I'm not sure why I need training for such things. If I stink as a speaker, a two-hour training session (or, horror of horrors, a weekend training retreat) isn't going to help a whole lot. Then again, there could be all sorts of practical things that I need to learn. If they told me, for instance, "studies show that a speaker's ability to deal with hecklers peaks with three ales, but after that, the law of diminishing returns snowballs," I could see some real merit. They might also tell me what mix of beers works best ("two types of light beers for the women, an assortment of mainstream brands, and two microbrews for the hardcore").
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Unbelievable: The Stratford Real Ale Festival ran out of beer right in the middle of the celebration. Man, that's like a Catholic Church running out of bread, a public library running out of books, a public school running out of condoms.
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New Miller product--high alcohol, low carbs, twist of lime--is going national. Another link about same story.
Have a great Memorial Day weekend.
