A Taste of Scandinavia

You don't often see a Norwegian beer on tap at a suburban Baltimore restaurant.

But there aren't many restaurants with as vast a draught beer menu as Frisco Taphouse and Grill in Columbia. In total, there's 52 beers on tap. That's right, 52!

Many of those were eclectic craft brews that I had never heard of. So, I was sort of going blind. But I saw Nogne Brown Ale that I figured was worth a shot, since it seemed so far afield.



In fact, Nogne, which translates to "naked island," is Norway's largest supplier of bottle conditioned ale and the first and only producer of unfiltered sake in Europe, according to its web site. Founded by two home brewers in 2002, Nogne produces 20 different types of beer and 5 different kinds of sake.

The brown ale poured a dark brown, almost black, which is more fitting of an English ale that it mimics. Taste of mild chocolate overtones and slight caramel/toffee. Surprisingly hoppy for a brown ale that usually are smooth and a very low alcohol content of 4.5%. But the body comes up a tad short, hurting the overall taste.

Users scored it a B+ on Beer Advocate and a surprisingly high 92 on RateBeer, which I think is a tad high because of the surprisingly hoppy notes and lackluster taste

Rating (out of five mugs): 2.7

The Religion of Beer

On this Shabbat evening -- the night before the Jewish Day of Rest -- it seemed apropos that I sample a beer to fit the occasion.

Rejewvenator from He'Brew.

(OK, I didn't put that much thought into it. That's just what I happened to have in the fridge left over from earlier in the week and it was a bigger bottle enough for the missus and I to share.)

Almost as soon as I opened it, the smell of grapes hit me -- and upon looking at the bottle, indeed, this seasonal release is fermented with Concord grape juice. The half-doppelbock, half-Belgian-style Dubbel pours a beautiful amber color and the 8.2% ABV isn't overpowering. While the grape smell is powerful, it's just noticeable enough on the palette without being over the top. (Which is good, because, who wants a fruity beer)

It also paired well with the pot roast I made -- yeah, I made pot roast in the slow cooker today since I was off. NBD.

It scored a modest 85 on RateBeer.com and received an average user rating of 3.33 out of 5.

I'm also intrigued by some of the other He'Brew ales:
-- Origin, an Imperial Amber Ale brewed with Pomegranate Juice
-- Jewbelation Fourteen, a 14% ABV that uses 14 different malts and 14 different hops (It's in celebration of their, you guessed it, 14th anniversary)
-- Vertical Jewbelation, a new blend of all seven He'Brew beers aged in 6-year Rye Whiskey barrels

All in all, Rejewvenator is a solid brew that's worthy of a Mazel Tov!

Rating (out of five mugs): 4.2

Going Publick

The best thing about our newly created "Booze Caucus" is the ability to sample new things without having to pay a dime for it, since one or two members sign up each week to supply suds for everyone.

That's how I came upon Southampton Publick House, a Long Island brewery that I had never heard of. According to their web site, they have three staples: Double White Ale, Altbier and a classic India Pale Ale. They also boast four seasonals and another four high-end selections.

One of my colleagues brought in the Biere de Mars (6.5% ABV) and I thought it hit the spot: light, not too hoppy and a hint of citrus flavor that made it very easy to drink.

I was surprised that it only received a B-plus user rating on BeerAdvocate.com. I'm going to score it better and plan to put it in my summertime beer rotation.

Rating (out of five mugs): 3.9

A Rathskeller in an Unlikely Place

The Maryland State House Press Corps is a largely tight-knit group of reporters who slog through a 90-day General Assembly session that can feel like nine months in the desert.

While many of us compete for the same stories in the pressure-cooker environment of breaking news, there's a camaraderie that brings us together at the end of the day. From the reporters at the big dailies to those who write for the smaller community outlets and niche publications, many of us enjoy friendships outside the newsroom.

One recent weekday, an unnamed journo decided to bring a couple brews for co-workers to enjoy after deadline. It was a simple act that spawned a new tradition: The Booze Caucus.

Yes, politicians love to form caucuses -- small subsets within the legislative body (there's one for African-Americans, women, veterans, freshmen, and the newly formed Tea Party Caucus) -- so why not us?

And so the Booze Caucus -- since renamed the Ale Fozzies (it's an inside joke) -- was born. The only question was "Why did we not do this sooner?"

For the six years I've been in the "bullpen" and beyond, there's been a mid-session party/happy hour for the press corps and the beer usually flows heavily at the conclusion of the legislative session.

But the establishment of an official caucus that "meets" weekly is a new, and long overdue, phenomenon.

The rules are simple.
1) "Meetings" are held Thursday night AFTER deadline.
2) "Members" sign up to bring sample beers for other participants. Anyone is welcome to participate. You do not have to partake in order to be a member.
3) The beer must be eclectic. Brand names, such as Bud, Miller, Yuengling, etc., are not welcome.
4) Lawmakers, staff, lobbyists are not invited.
5) Know your limits. It's obvious but can't be overstated.

So with that brief introduction to this exciting new initiative, I'll be highlighting in subsequent posts some of the selections that have so far made the Ale Fozzies a smashing success.

Today's beer originates on the far end of Long Island

A rare Dogfish Head disappointment

More often than not, Dogfish Head delivers on its motto of "Off-Centered Ales for Off-Centered People." I've sampled more than a few of their brews and have usually come away quite satisfied.

Several months ago, the founder and owner, Sam Calagione, was featured on a Discovery Channel series, called "Brewmasters," which gave beer lovers an inside look at some of the brewery's unique creations (one is brewed with tea leaves, another with crystallized ginger)

Their Indian Brown Ale is one of my favorites, and DH's Raison D'Etre isn't far behind. The Milton, Delaware-based brewer also produced the highest content ABV I've ever had. The 18% Fort is made with pureed raspberries and straddles the line between beer and whiskey!

So it was with high expectations that I bought a four-pack of Aprihop, an IPA brewed with apricots. Usually I'm not a Pale Ale fan, but I thought Dogfish Head could deliver with a flavorful taste with a fruity undertone that somewhat balanced the beer's hoppiness.

But I found that while Aprihop wasn't excessively hoppy, the Apricot was hidden. I expected the sweetness of the fruit to really bring the beer to a higher level, but I just didn't get the flavor I hoped. Still, it was a quality beer and one that I would recommend to IPA fans. It just didn't reach the exceedingly high bar set by Dogfish Head, in my opinion.

Rating (out of five mugs): 2.5 mugs

Brewer's Delight

After a long day of class that capped off a long week of work with very little sleep, I was pretty pumped to meet a friend (who happens to be taking the multimedia journalism degree program at American Univ.) for drinks at Franklin's Restaurant, Brewery and General Store tonight.
Despite being only a few minutes from the University of Maryland campus where I spent four years of my life, Franklin's had somehow stayed off my radar. I had only ever been once in a work capacity when I didn't get to sample their homemade brews.
I don't think I'm going far out on a limb by saying brewpubs often deliver some of the best beers out there. They're fresh, smooth and full of flavor. You can buy the same beer bottled and it just doesn't taste the same.
And Franklin's didn't disappoint.
My first glass was called Hammer of the Gods, presumably an homage to classic rockers Led Zeppelin. This 8% ABV stout had a subtle chocolate overtone, went down smooth and was a soothing contrast to the delicious appetizer we ordered -- Nickel Curves, lamb sliders on housemade buns, topped with tzatziki. It actually took me a while to polish this one off, probably because of the higher ABV, but that simply allowed me to enjoy it more.
My friend's first selection was an intense Double IPA called Hop Madness that wasn't my cup of tea. But I'm not into hoppy beers. So don't expect many IPAs to come up in future reviews.
Being a place we probably won't go to all that often, we each ordered a second beer. He got the Bombshell Blonde, a rather unimpressive pilsner that was pretty tasteless and a letdown after the first round. I got the Rubber Chicken Red, which was again solid, but not as good as the first choice. It had a little more bite to it, but still went down very smooth.

Ratings (out of five mugs):
Hammer of the Gods: 4.5 mugs
Hop Madness: 2.5 mugs
Bombshell Blonde: 1 mug
Rubber Chicken Red: 3.5 mugs

Overall: 3.5 mugs (with a bonus 1/2 point for the excellent sliders)

Shaking things up...

Talk about a failed experiment.

I thought it would be fun to start a blog highlighting different classic rock songs each day. And while I do love classic rock, I grew bored of randomly picking one song and trying to stick to a cohesive theme day in and day out. That only took three weeks.

Let's hope this next one has a longer life span.

And it should -- because it will give me an excuse to drink beer. Not that one is needed.

Before you get any false impressions, dear reader, let me be very clear. I'm not an alcoholic. Far from it, in fact. I don't have the tolerance of my college days, but I do enjoy a good brew every now and again.

Yeah, I'm a beer snob. Miller or Coors? No thanks, I'll take an ice tea or a glass of wine. (It's important to have standards.)

So, what's on tap? (Yeah, that was a pathetic line). Hopefully, I'll offer periodic reviews of some eclectic cold ones that I have recently sampled with the intent of spreading some beer love.

First, a few housekeeping items to set the stage for my mission ahead. I tend to favor darker beers and largely shy away from IPAs. But I do like to mix it up every now and again, and I hope the following reflects that.

Favorite domestic beer: Ellie's Brown Ale (Avery Brewing Company)
Favorite import: Chimay Red Ale (Belgium)
Favorite standby: Yuengling (Hey, I grew up in Pennsylvania)

So, there you have it. A primer for what I hope will be a fun journey down the suds highway. As Ben Franklin put it best, "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."

Song(s) of the Day: February 15

The second entry in the week of love is a single band that produced two songs about love in its greatest hits album, which also happens to be one of my favorite classic rock albums.

"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" by Queen probably didn't win any awards for best music video, but it's a peppy song written by lead singer Freddie Mercury in 1979 that peaked at No. 2 in the UK, but topped the charts in the U.S. and Australia.

It's been repeatedly covered over the years, most notably by country artist Dwight Yoakam and most recently by pop band Maroon 5.

The next song on Queen's Greatest Hits album is "Somebody to Love," which was recorded three years prior to "Crazy Little Thing Called Love." The rangy classic rock ballad couples a complex melody and deep layering of vocal tracks performed by all four band members in live performances -- three in the studio -- that creates the impression of being sung by a large gospel choir.

A lyrical description on Wikipedia deduces that Mercury, who died of AIDS in 1991, uses the song to question his diminished love life and the role and existence of God. It didn't have as much success as the former song, reaching No. 2 on the UK charts, but only No. 13 in the U.S. Its most notable cover was George Michael, who performed a pretty cool version of it with the surviving members of Queen at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert for AIDS Awareness in April 1992.

Song of the Day: February 14

Take one guess at today's theme.

There's no shortage of love songs, ballads and romantic references in classic rock. In fact, there are so many good ones that I can't pick a single one, so I'll list off my favorites for the rest of the week.

Which one to pick for V-Day itself?

It wasn't recorded in the hey-day of classic rock, but one of my favorite ballads is Chicago's "You're The Inspiration."

Truth is, it's probably more of a power ballad typical of the mid-80s hair bands of the era than a true classic rock song. I'll have some of those later as the week goes on.

Recorded in November 1984, the song reached No. 3 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1985 and climbed atop the adult contemporary chart.

The lyrics make it a true Valentine's classic:

You know our love was meant to be
The kind of love that lasts forever
And I need you here with me
From tonight until the end of time
You should know, everywhere I go
You're always on my mind, in my heart
In my soul

[CHORUS:]
You're the meaning in my life
You're the inspiration
You bring feeling to my life
You're the inspiration
Wanna have you near me
I wanna have you hear me sayin'
No one needs you more that I need you
And I know, yes I know that it's plain to see
We're so in love when we're together
And I know that I need you here with me
From tonight until the end of time
You should know, everywhere I go
Always on my mind, in my heart in my soul

[CHORUS]

Interestingly, lead vocalist Peter Cetera said in 2004 that the song was initially written for Kenny Rogers and was inspired by a trip he took to Italy at the time. However, Rogers opted to not record the song and Cetera recorded it for his band's album, Chicago 17, far and away the band's most popular album, having gone seven times platinum in the US and a Grammy winner that included four Top 20 hit singles: "Stay the Night," "Hard Habit to Break" and "Along Comes a Woman," along with "You're The Inspiration."

Song of the Day: February 7

Call me a cheater if you want, but I'm taking editorial liberties with today's pick.

What better way of paying tribute to this year's Super Bowl winner, I thought, than to select a band or song that represents the Green Bay Packers.

Problem is, that's harder than it may seem. I was racking my brain trying to come up with a song or band in the classic rock genre with 'green' in the title (Sorry, Green Day). Same goes for Packers. And there's not many classic rockers who hail from Wisconsin.

So, I'm left with awarding co-songs of the day (two is OK, since neither one is officially classic rock)

1) "Saturday Night" by the Bay City Rollers.
The 1970s Scottish popsters were popular amongst teenage crowds in Great Britain the post-Beatles era. (Fun fact: Originally named The Saxons, the band chose a new name randomly by throwing a dart at a map of the United States. It landed near Bay City, Michigan, a mid-sized town that sits along Saginaw Bay, about two hours northwest of Detroit ).
When introduced in the U.S., "Saturday Night," which flopped in the UK, soared to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song also hit No. 1 on the RPM national singles chart in Canada.

2) "Blister in the Sun" by Violent Femmes.
One of the earlier alternative rock bands, the three-man Femmes, as they are known by fans, formed in 1980 in Milwaukee (about two hours south of Green Bay). Released in 1982, "Blister in the Sun" was one of their first hits -- and perhaps their biggest, even though it only reached No. 76 on the Billboard Rock Chart.. A music video was filmed in 1997 for the song's use in the film "Grosse Point Blank."
Following a contentious legal battle over the use of the song in a Wendy's commercial, the band officially broke up in 2009.

Photo credit: Tim Hagen, 2008

Song of the Day: February 5

Despite the fact that he's been writing and recording since the late 1960s, Elton John isn't your typical classic rocker. It's mellow and piano/keyboard-centric, a style that doesn't scream classic rock.


But it's hard to dispute that one of his most recognizable songs fits the mold: "Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)."

Written and composed in 1973, the song appeared on John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road." It has been covered numerous times, including by The Who (1991) and more recently, Nickelback. The song reached #12 in the Billboard charts and stayed in the top 40 for nine weeks. It reached No. 7 in the UK's Music Week Top 50.

Song of the Day: February 3

'Tis the season for weather references on the radio.

After yesterday's momentary tease when temperatures climbed into the mid 40s, the mercury dropped -- nay, divebombed -- by nightfall when I left the office around 8.

And all that snow that melted yesterday froze overnight, which made for a fitting song choice on the way in this morning.

"Cold as Ice" by Foreigner.

Recorded in 1977 by the British-American rockers, it became one of the most popular songs of the band in the U.S., reaching number 6 in the Billboard Hot 100. It has been covered by more than a dozen bands. The band still tours today and teamed up last year with Styx and Kansas for the United in Rock Tour. This summer, they'll join Styx and Journey in a UK tour schedule.

Orange and Black

With the Super Bowl days away and my team -- the Philadelphia Eagles -- eliminated in the first round, I'm free to root for a competitive game and not care too much about who wins.

But the Super Bowl also means something else to me. It's the time of year when my sports attention turns to both hockey and college basketball. I'll get to the latter in the next day or two, but first a word about my love for the Fastest Game on Ice. I'm a sports nut and while it's hard to pick which of football, baseball and hockey is my favorite, there's something about the game played with the little black disk that makes it so exhilirating: the hard hitting, the finesse, the fast pace and so much more.

Last year, I watched my hometown Philadelphia Flyers barely qualify for the playoffs, only to make a miraculous postseason run and come within two wins of capturing the Stanley Cup. It was a letdown in the end, but that they were eliminated a day before my father had major heart surgery -- speaking of miraculous victories -- so it wasn't hard to move on with more important things in life.

Now this year, riding a hot rookie goalie and a potent offensive attack, the Orange and Black headed into the All-Star Game tied for the league's highest point total and looking like one of the favorites for the crown. Of course, as I write this, they're getting shut out late in the game, but it's on the road to the second-best team in the conference. Anyways, it's good to be able to focus more on hockey as the season progresses. If nothing else, I can take out my daily aggressions by living vicariously through the players and their hard hits.

Song of the Day: February 1

By the time I left home this morning, the trip from the front door to my car was more dangerous than once I got on the highway. Most of the ice that glazed sidewalks and secondary roads had been cleared from the major thoroughfares. Still, it seemed drivers were taking a little extra precaution.

Combine that with the dense fog I drove through a few hours ago and today's song is quite fitting.

"Slow Ride" by Foghat.

The British foursome formed in the early 70s and still tour today with drummer Roger Earl as the only original member of the band. "Slow Ride," which appeared on the band's fifth album, Fool for the City, reached number 20 on the U.S. charts in 1975, the band's top single. Over the years, the song has maintained and even grown in popularity by appearing on dozens of movies (Dazed and Confused), TV series (Seinfeld) and video games (Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock). In 2009, VH1 named it the 45th-best hard rock song of all-time.

Song of the Day #1

Dear Reader,

I don't want to set some sort of high bar here by titling this post -- my first official one -- Song of the Day. That suggests I'll post a new one every day and realistically, I know that won't happen. But hey, why not reach for the stars.

During most of my daily commutes, I'll rotate between sports talk radio, the news station and one of the few stations that play music in the morning instead of some annoying DJ blabbering on and on. Fortunately, that means the local classic rock station or a more contemporary music station that bypasses some of the more recent dreck that passes for pop and rock these days.

Which brings me to the first entry:

On a drab, dull Monday morning, such as today, an energetic song like "Magic Carpet Ride" by Canadian rockers Steppenwolf was just the right prescription to get me going on the way to the gym. Initially released in 1968, it peaked as the No. 3 song in the U.S. becoming the band's second-biggest hit next to the iconic "Born to Be Wild." For me, its psychedelic rhythm and guitar-heavy chords is infectious

There are different interpretations of the origins of the song and its lyrics. Some say it illustrates the importance of letting go of reality and the day-to-day challenges and dreaming of a worry-free fantasy world.

My name is Alan Brody and I live in a van down by the river...

OK, I don't live in a van. But I do live close to a river. Well, it's more like a stream. Close enough.

Putting my homage to Matt Foley/the late Chris Farley aside, this is my introduction to the millions of readers that will no doubt gravitate to this site. I'm just that popular.

So what's this blog all about? Well, me, of course. And there's so much to tell. Just kidding. I lead a pretty blase life. I'm married to a wonderful wife, Jenn, who is a fourth-grade teacher in Silver Spring. We live in Columbia, Maryland with the most adorable cat in the world, Chase, who is named after Philadelphia Phillies 2B Chase Utley.

I am a State House Correspondent for the Gazette of Politics and Business, where I have been covering Maryland politics since 2005.

So what can you, my loyal readers, expect to find here? The idea is to blog about my passions, which include a variety of things that have no connection to each other whatsoever: Philadelphia's professional sports teams and University of Maryland athletics, grilling, touring breweries, classic rock, poker and a hodgepodge of other things that I'll write about as situations arise and the desire to write about them strikes.

So hop aboard and enjoy the ride. You might even find yourself strangely addicted. Or ridiculously bored. But hopefully somewhere in between.