I’m thankful that, even after 44 years, Buddha still rides with me

The sight last week of a Lucky Buddha Enlightened Beer bottle sitting on the shelf at Habersham Beverage brought an immediate smile to my face. There were a couple of reasons for that. One, its unique red-and-white cap would be a welcome addition to my collection, and two, I’ve got what can be described as a long-running relationship with Buddha dating back to 1969-1970 when I was stationed at Nakhon Phanom, a remote Air Force installation in northeast Thailand. About midway through that tour of duty, a couple of other airmen and I flew out of NKP to Bangkok. We were headed for a week of R&R at Pattaya Beach, an idyllic resort on the Gulf of Siam, 90 miles or so from Bangkok. We had a choice on how to cover that distance: Take a slow, but safe Air Force bus, or hire out a Thai taxi, a little risky, but likely to get us there first and into an ocean-view room. The taxi, which operated under the auspices of the Armed Forces exchange system, looked safe from the outside. But, instead for safety belts, it had only short pieces of straps, neatly cut off near the seat. When I asked the driver about that, he smiled and said, in words that have stuck with me ever since, that we didn’t need seat belts because “Buddha rides with me.” Well, that may have been so, but at some point on the ride, almost all of which was spent speeding past other vehicles on a two-lane road, I’m quite sure that Buddha wished he could have buckled up. We arrived at Pattaya Beach, in a time that has also stuck with me, in 79 minutes.  I laughed, I screamed, I sweated so much that my khaki uniform looked like I’d put it on while in the shower. It remains one of my life’s indelible experiences. Thanks, Lucky Buddha, for the memories.

Look to the Prairie for saisons to serve at Thanksgiving dinner

For years, my favorite beer for Thanksgiving dinner, with all its flavors, textures and pleasures, has been the saison. This history-tested European ale can stand up to and stylishly complement such traditional Southern favorites as turkey, dressing, gravy, green beans and sweet potatoes.
Saison Dupont, a traditional Belgian choice, and Ommegang Hennepin, a strong New York-state saison, usually grace our table during this meal. But, in 2014, we’ll be passing around bottles from a rather unlikely source, the state of Oklahoma. Birra, a farmhouse ale, and Prairie Ale, a Belgian-style saison, are two of the products of Prairie Artisan Ales of Tulsa, Okla.
A relative newcomer to the Savannah market, Prairie lists some 29 beers on its website, including the wonderfully named Bible Belt, an imperial stout aged on coffee, Cacao nibs, vanilla beans and chili peppers.
Neither Birra nor Prairie Ale is quite that exotic, but they’ll star throughout the Thanksgiving meal. Birra, the lighter of the two at 4.2 percent ABV, is a perfect, slightly peppery accompaniment to pre-dinner conversation. Prairie Ale, at 8.2 percent ABV, has the usual spicy saison notes of citrus and pepper, accentuated by a generous addition of Saaz hops and enlivened by the addition of flaked wheat and cane sugar.
This rare level of complexity and flavor has brought it a rating of 91 percent at beeradvocate.com. For more information on Prairie Ales, check out its website, prairieales.com.