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.

Wide range of Georgia craft beer is now on the menu at Johnny Harris

It wasn’t history that finally lured me into Johnny Harris Restaurant, though the Victory Drive landmark has plenty of that; nor was it the delicious barbecue dishes and sauces, though they have delighted generations of customers over the past nine decades. No, all it took to get me there, after living in Savannah for more than 30 years, was an invitation earlier this month from my friend Tim Rutherford to sample the restaurant’s craft beers. The Maple Room Tavern, located at the rear of the restaurant, has 16 taps devoted to Georgia craft beers. The locations of the breweries cover the state like the dew. From up in the mountains, there’s Burnt Hickory and Grumpy Old Men: from metro Atlanta, there’s Sweetwater, Monday Night and Red Hare: and, from Savannah and the Coastal Empire, there’s Service, Eagle Creek, Moon River and Coastal Empire. Other breweries on the October menu include Jekyll, Three Taverns, Creature Comforts, Wrecking Bar and Orpheus. Over two separate visits, and enabled by 5-ounce sample pours (which can be ordered as a flight), I enjoyed eight of the beers on the menu. Of those, my favorites were Eagle Creek’s River Street Praline Brown (a sweet, malty treat), Three Taverns’ Quasimodo (smooth, delicious and dangerous with an ABV of 10 percent) and Orpheus’ Lyric Ale (a stylish, hop-centric saison). In addition to its rock-star regular beer menu, the Maple Room is also hosting special events. Red Brick Brewing of Atlanta will host a special dinner there, featuring a keg of its 2013 Buffalo Trace Bourbon Barrel Aged Russian Imperial Stout, on Nov. 6. For more information, on this and other events and activities, check out The Maple Room Tavern at Johnny Harris Restaurant Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/themapleroomtavern.

A salute to Savannah's Service Brewing

Everything was inspection ready when Service Brewing Co. opened its tasting room last Saturday. The floors and equipment were shined, the gift shop was stocked, and, best of all, the menu board was stacked with choices. The story of Service Brewing has been well chronicled. Army veterans Kevin Ryan, Dan Sartin and Jeff Hyatt have painstakingly converted a cavernous century-old warehouse just off Savannah’s riverfront into a state-of-the-art craft brewery. It’s a saga of patriotism and persistence. But, the success of Service Brewing will hinge on factors far less idealistic. For that to happen, its beers have to appeal to an increasingly educated and sophisticated beer audience. Happily, based on my tasting room experiences, along with earlier opportunities to try their beers, I’m convinced that Service Brewery has the requisite arms to make that happen. Ground Pounder Pale Ale, Rally Point Pilsner and Compass Rose IPA are solid examples of those styles. Two other selections, Peach Apricot Pale Ale and a Cask Biere de Garde, are particularly distinctive and delicious. Go by and give them a try. The brewery is located at 574 Indian St. The tasting room will be open from 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays, and from 2 p.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays. Tours will also be conducted during those hours. For more information, go to servicebrewing.com.

Bike, Beer, Bike: A balanced plan for the long Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day weekend used to present me with two opportunities: Enjoy the Savannah Craft Brew Fest on Saturday, and then endure the Savannah Century bicycle ride on Sunday. To be honest, the past couple of years I’ve skipped the festival, preferring to rest up for the ride instead. This year, however, I came up with a different strategy: Ride 50 miles on Saturday morning, go to the beer festival on Saturday afternoon, and then put in 50 more miles on Sunday morning. Both bike treks – 49 miles on Saturday, 51 miles on Sunday – were done on the windy, quiet roads of Hunter Army Airfield. Matt Linebarger, Bill Brown, Ed Kenreich, Dr. Spencer Wheeler, Chris Klein and Danny Nagelberg also turned out for the rides and the camaraderie. Good cycling companions are hard to find, and I’m very fortunate to be part of a group that has coalesced over many years and countless miles. Companionship, in the person of Tim Rutherford, was also the key to survival, or at least maintaining some semblance of sobriety, at the Savannah Craft Brew Fest on Hutchinson Island. We got there in time to stand in line and sweat and swear, but all that was quickly put aside once the gate opened at 1 p.m. Keeping my choices to selections that I had not tried before, and please keep in mind that these are 1- or 2-ounce pours, I made my way around the Trade and Convention Center, sampling a dozen or beers, including Creature Comforts’ Tropicalia (an American IPA), Highland Anniversary Saison, Kentucky Ale Bourbon Barrel Pumpkin, O’Dempsey’s Inukshuk IPA, Cisco Grey Lady Ale (a wheat ale), Red Hare National Companion (a California common), Sierra Nevada Flipside Red Pale Ale, Burnt Hickory 9353 (a tart Belgian IPA brewed with peaches) and Goose Island’s 312 Urban Pale Ale. That was all done in the space of about an hour, and I then headed home to rest and refuel for the next day’s ride. This looks like a good blueprint for next year.

It's a real thicket out there in the beer-aisle pumpkin patch. Check out these recommendations before you buy.

As summer’s cauldron continues to bubble the mercury in Savannah’s thermometers, many brewers are already coming to market with the distinctive flavors found only in the fall seasonal offerings of pumpkin ales.

For nearly three centuries, brewers – especially those in America – have sought out alternative sources of fermentable ingredients. Barley is the preferred choice, but soon corn and rice found places on the grain bill. Assorted fruits were an easy choice. Pumpkin and its inherent starchiness was a natural – especially as a fall beer that more or less mirrors our fondness of pumpkin pie.

Pumpkin ales are often an acquired taste – and not necessarily a beer that you’ll drink in volume. Picking one from the shelves can leave a bad taste in your mouth – pun intended. Some drinkers prefer the bold, sweet and spicy pumpkin pie flavors; others want a more subtle, crafted beer with hints of the orange gourd.

Sitting among ales like Linus in the “Peanuts” pumpkin patch won’t help you choose. But beer drinking pals Chuck Mobley and Tim Rutherford tag-teamed this feature and took the bullet for you. Read their reviews, and then grab a pumpkin ale that fits your expectations. 

Tim’s Pumpkin Ales

Buffalo Bill’s Pumpkin Ale – 6 ABV
buffalobillsbrewery.com 
America’s Original Pumpkin Ale was first brewed in 1985 at this Hayward, CA, brewpub and brewery. Made with real pumpkin, it has a golden amber color, and the sweet aroma of pumpkin pie.
Yes Chuck, it is, like the label warns, pumpkin pie in a bottle – if you like your pie watery and a tad sour. I didn’t find much to like about this beer – although I suspect its inherent sweetness and holiday spice will appeal to some. Cloudy roasted pumpkin-orange color; the head – oops, it’s gone – leaving me with a pint glass of something I’d rather swap for a poke in the eye.

Shipyard Brewery Pumpkinhead – 4.5 ABV
shipyard.com
There are some great beers coming out of Maine, and this pumpkin entry from Shipyard Brewing Co. in Portland is no exception.
This golden-colored wheat ale has among its malt bill a dose of malted wheat – which shines through the complexity like the North Star pointing the way toward Maine. Yeah, there’s spice and sweetness but the wheat platform seems to be the best foundation upon which to craft pumpkin ale. Pumpkinhead has aromatics that are pleasing, not sickeningly overbearing. Its tolerably low ABV makes it an easy drinker – the beer’s complexity makes it interesting without being such a spiced up seasonal nod to fall. Solid, cream-colored head sustains for a bit and then lingers in a ring around the glass.
Chuck, I know that we both think the wheat style is often overworked. However, the team at Shipyard proves that you can make an appealing beer with weizen at the root.

UFO Pumpkin – 5.9 ABV
harpoonbrewery.com
If it’s a UFO from Harpoon – then it’s a rich and flavorful unfiltered beer. The brewery’s hazy, amber-colored pumpkin beer is brewed with a mélange of Yankee pumpkins, sweet barley and the delicious variety of Northwestern hops that gives it pleasing bitterness on the finish. Kudos to Harpoon brewers for NOT spicing this beer to the point of cloying sweetness. Still I detected a nostalgic hint of clove – like the Clove Gum of my childhood – that subsided as the ale took hold of my palate. This is genuinely pleasing pumpkin ale – well played!

Cisco Pumple Drumkin – 6 ABV
ciscobrewers.com/brewery
This Nantucket-based brewery doesn’t get much shelf space in Savannah – or much attention from craft beer drinkers. And, Chuck, I know you weren’t enamored with this pumpkin ale finalist – but I found the earthy, raw pumpkin aroma unusually appealing. Not overly spiced or sweetened. The beer drinks very clean with some hops bite. If you're looking for the hint of fall with a clean finish, this may be the pumpkin ale for you! 

Chuck’s Pumpkin Ales

Southern Tier Pumking – 8.6 ABV
stbcbeer.com
Pumpkin beers go back to the earliest days of America. A circa-1643 New England folk song includes this ditty: “For we can make liquor, to sweeten our lips, of pumpkins and parsnips and walnut-tree chips.” Now, 271 years later, Pumking – an audacious seasonal from Southern Tier – is a sweet, spicy reminder that fall is approaching, even if it will take its time getting to Savannah. In addition to what you’d expect, pumpkin, of course, along with cinnamon and nutmeg, Southern Tier has added a dainty dollop of vanilla. No parsnips here, Tim, just a creamy pumpkin pie that will make you consider adding a chaser of Cool Whip.

Southern Tier Warlock – 8.6 ABV
stbcbeer.com
Warlock, which Southern Tier describes as an “Imperial Stout Brewed with Pumpkins,” reminded me of my first marriage, Tim. I kept taking sips, trying to talk myself into continuing, even when I knew the relationship was going down in flames. There’s no grace, no style here – just dark, dominating malts with faint hues of pumpkin crying out for attention. Warlock is much like a temptress, purring “hey, you loved Pumking, put down a few buck and give this a try.” There will be no second serving of it at the Mobley house.

Shipyard Brewery Smashed Pumpkin – 9 ABV
shipyard.com
Tim, I’m going to echo the high praise you gave Shipyard Brewery. Its attention to detail is impressively evident on the back label of Smashed Pumpkin, which lists the inclusion of pale ale, wheat and light Munich malts, along with Willamette and Hallertau hops. The result is refined and refreshing. Light in color, it’s a tad sweeter and less spicy than most of its pumpkin counterparts. Its 9-percent ABV gives it pronounced, pleasing warmth and encourages you to slowly sip it. For me, Tim, this would be the perfect fall dessert beer, a grand companion to a pumpkin or pecan pie.

At top, a flight of beers from Blue Mountain Brewery at a restaurant in Williamsburg. Below, the beer aisle at Total Wine, and there were additional stacks of beer throughout the store.

Enjoying beers, earning badges in the shadow 

of national monuments and museums

The beer aisle at Total Wine. The beer list at Bungalow Alehouse. The primo lunch at We, The Pizza.

Those are some of the highlights of a recent trip to Washington, D.C., and Williamsburg, Va., a week-long excursion my wife Shelly and I set up to celebrate our 30^th wedding anniversary. We toured several of the Smithsonian museums, marveled at the collections in the Newseum on Pennsylvania Avenue and walked the first settlement at Jamestown and the battle lines at Yorktown.

Through it all, I also sought out also high-quality beers, particularly ones that are not available in Savannah. On our first evening in suburban D.C., we dined at the Bungalow Alehouse in Woodbridge. I started with a Big Daddy IPA, and followed that up with a Bear Republic Racer 5 IPA. As I was enjoying them, I was also texting with good friend Tim Rutherford (do your palate a favor and follow him at www.savannahfoodie.com), and he advised me to shoot for as many Untapped badges as possible during the trip. In all, I accumulated three: “Pale as the Moon, Level 5” “I Believe in IPA, Level 10” and, my favorite, “Drinking Your Paycheck.”

Later in the week, at Total Wine in Springfield, Va., I spend just as much time shopping as my wife did in the Talbot’s Outlet next door. I bought far too many bottles to list here: The receipt is close to 18-inches long. Included in that number are two that merited places on the Craft Beer Bucket List recently put together by www.seriouseats.com - Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald Porter and Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA. I also purchased bottles of Duclaw Sweet Baby Jesus, a chocolate peanut butter porter, and Adriaen Brouwer Dark Gold Ale, a beer that I enjoyed several times during my 2012 excursion to Belgium.

Look for more on those selections, and an afternoon at Alewerks Craft Brewery in Williamsburg, Va., in my next post.