When I was a kid, football season meant a change in the weather. But the pre-season marked the hottest days of the year, the dog days of summer, the inevitable return to Sherman Creek Elementary School. On the radio, there was always some debate over who would quarterback the Packers that season. Don Majkowski became a folk hero in 1989, when he threw for 4,318 yards and 27 touchdowns. He led the Packers to a monster of a win against the Bears (the first since 1984) and was selected to the Pro-Bowl. Not bad for a 10th round pick. But in true 10th round form, he tore his rotator cuff the following season, and an ankle ligament in 1992. Blair Kiel, Anthony Dilweg and Mike Tomczak all took snaps while Majkowski was out, as did Brett Favre. Majik never again suited up in Green-and-Gold.
In the 20 years before Brett Favre (and that legendary come-from-behind win against Cincinnati) the Packers started 18 quarterbacks. In the 20 years since #4's first snap, they've started exactly 3 (and Matt Flynn only twice, including last season's lame-duck blowout of Detroit). So you can understand why the Packer faithful are so worked up about finding a back-up for Rodgers- it's the first quarterback controversy we've had in over two decades (right).
Graham Harrell is clearly not going to work as a back-up (but lets be honest: it doesn't matter who backs him up- if Rogers goes down, it's going to be tough to win) so the Packers might as well go after someone like Colt McCoy or Greg McElroy. They can hope to limit turnovers with one of those guys, and both of them have a much higher up-side than Harrell. I could even see McCoy developing into a trade-able commodity in 2-3 seasons.
It really was nice to see Aaron Rodgers get a touchdown pass (during last week's ugly 35-10 loss to the Browns) and run it in twice against the lowly Bengals. They finally found some sort of rhythm on defense. Clay Matthews might actually have some help getting disrupting the line, with young guys like Jerel Worthy and Nick Perry giving the D some much needed depth & energy. I'm looking forward to Hargove returning after week 8. A fresh player that late in the season can make a big difference, even if they don't play pro-bowl caliber football.
Cedric Benson is an exciting addition- a guy who has the potential to be a productive tailback for more than one season. How refreshing is that? I know I'm not the only one sick of seeing Aaron Rodgers leading the team in rushing week after week. I think Benson helps the Packers do several things that they had trouble doing last year: short-yardage situations, balancing the run/pass differential, and controlling the clock- keeping the other team's offense off of the field is a great way to keep them from scoring. An effective running game should help cut down on all of those shoot-out type games we saw last season.
And now, the beer.
Our trip to Alpine Beer Co. this week was a great treat- my older sister was in town, and we spent the day driving the winding roads through the mountains, stopping at wineries (she drank, I drove) and ending up at Alpine. I have loved their beer via some of SD's best beer bars (Hamilton's, Toronado, Ritual) but I had yet to actually visit their brewery. I will be doing an in-depth post on their beers later this season, so I won't go in too deep here. I will tell you that there is nothing like drinking a beer where it was brewed, served by the people who brewed it. And Alpine brews some damn good beers brewed by some damn good people.
My sister and I also brewed a Black Rye IPA, and we learned some important lessons. (Sometimes you just have to do something before learning how to do it properly)
The boil smelled delicious, and I burned the inside of my nose when I forgot the first lesson of high school chemistry (waft). Wafting doesn't look as cool as sticking your head into a boiling pot of wort, but looking cool really shouldn't matter in your own kitchen.
We also learned that rye absorbs a LOT of water. It doesn't have husks (which I noticed, but didn't think about) which means it gets very mushy when warmed up in water. Mashing grains to make wort is just like steeping tea leaves to make tea. You dump the grain into the warm/hot water, let it sit, and then strain the grains out. I usually expect to lose 5-10% of my water volume while mashing, and I didn't expect anything different to happen this time, so I began my boil without noticing that I had lost almost 25% of my volume. By the time I finished the boil, another 20% had evaporated. I expected an OG of 1.060, and ended up at 1.090 (strong enough to brew an Imperial Black IPA). I also ended up 3/4 of a gallon short of my 2 gallon goal. Luckily, I had pre-boiled about a gallon of water- always good to have extra water on hand, ready to go. So I diluted the wort, ended with an OG of about 1.065, and pitched the yeast. Oh- and the strainer I used to filter the wort after the boilwas coated in a brown slime thicker than the Dagobah Swamp. Rye slime.
So, the lessons learned:
1. WAFT.
2. ALWAYS measure your volumes. Before, during & after the brewing process. And have a gallon or two of extra water ready to go when pitching your wort.
3. When brewing with rye, add rice hulls. Especially if you are using a mash/lauter tun with an internal filter/false bottom & spigot. Unless you love a stuck sparge.
I like to think that those lessons apply to all of our daily lives.
This weeks top ten is expanded to twelve, and will deal with Wisconsin beers only. Barb delivered a suitcase full of Wisconsin beer (all of which were wheat beers, by request). I am amazed at the difference in beer styles brewed by Wisconsin brewers v. San Diego brewers. A lot more wheat, a lot less hops. IPA's and even IIPA's pack a maltier punch, and every beer goes well with cheese. Almost no sours, and very few barrel-aged variants. I can imagine that winter time will breed more stouts & porters. Can't wait to try them.
Again, this list is made up of beers I have had, not beers that I wish I have had.
12.Summer Shandy, Leinenkugel's Brewing Company- Beer snobs will thumb their noses at this one. But make no mistake, this is an incredible beer for a sun-drenched day at the ballpark.
11.Fat Squirrel, New Glarus Brewing Company- Currently, my favorite brown ale. Incredible on tap. Better than Alesmith's Nut Brown.
10.Bedlam Belgian IPA, Ale Asylum- Proof that Stone isn't the only brewery capable of putting out an excellent Belgian IPA. Less delicate than Cali-Belgique, but better hop/malt balance.
9.Black Bavarian, Sprecher Brewing Company- quintessential Milwaukee beer. More Germanic than anything brewed West of the Mississippi, a lot of power in those 16oz bottles.
8.Wisconsinite, Lakefront Brewing Company- Had this on tap @ Lakefront. I like to think this is similar to what farmers might have brewed during Wisconsin summers a hundred years ago.
7.Wisconsin Belgian Red, New Glarus Brewing Company- Best fruit beer I have had. Hands down. Although I am more than happy to taste any challengers. They also brew a Raspberry Tart.
6.Spotted Cow, New Glarus Brewing Company- beer at its most simple and delicious. A pitcherable cream ale, with some sort of mysterious Belgian yeast. Unfiltered. Unfettered.
5.Dancing Man Wheat, New Glarus Brewing Company- Just a great, great wheat ale. Seasonal brew. Get your hands on a bottle.
4.Barrel-aged Barleywine, Central Waters Brewing Company- Been saving a bottle of this for my birthday.
3.Moon Man, New Glarus Brewing Company- No Coast Pale Ale. An IPA that a farmer can drink.
2.Thumbprint IIPA, New Glarus Brewing Company- Was very surprised to find this all over the place this summer. Drinks smoother than Dorado, more body than Pliny. Holds its own against the best IIPAs in SD.
1.Illumination IIPA, Central Waters Brewing Company- My favorite beer from this summer's trip home. A friendly IIPA with awesome hop balance.
1 comment:
Dancing Man is 5th!??! No!!!
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