Stan Hieronymus

Snowing on Raton, come morning I’ll be through the hills and gone.
Mother thinks the road is long lonely, little brother thinks the road is straight and fine, will little darlin’ thinks the road is soft and lovely,
I’m thankful that old road is a friend of mine.

– From Snowing on Raton, by Townes Van Zandt

I was not snowing yesterday when I drove over Raton Pass, happily because we’ve been on the stretch of Interstate 25 in a snowstorm before and I don’t recommend it.

However, shortly after I reached Colorado this pickup passed me with these really impressive looking antlers in the back. I hauled out my camera and took this picture (just for you) before he sped on his way. The truck had Wyoming plates so the driver apparently had farther to go then Denver (210 miles up the road).

Something I never would have seen had I flown to Denver (less than an hour from wheels up to wheels down from Albuquerque, but nearly five hours by the time you deal with airports – only 90 minutes faster than driving).

When I left the canyon I popped a Kevin Welch CD into the player. His music is perfect for that stretch of the road, foothills and antelope to the left, prairie that stretches to Kansas and beyond to the right.

Oh, I do love living in the West.

Tomorrow I’m off to Denver for the Great American Beer Festival. No complaints — or this wouldn’t be 15 years in a row (a streak that ends after this year — but I am aware that: a) it won’t be the biggest thing in Denver during the next week, and b) most beer drinkers around America, let alone the world, don’t give a hoot.

Although I travel with a specific to-do list I also know that good sense disappears one ounce at a time in the Colorado Convention Center. Every reporter has a certain number of story ideas shoved in his or her face, then you run across a surprising beer or two, get corraled into focusing on a particular style (like barley wine; bad idea) and come Monday you think, “Who cares about any of this?”

So I’m giving you a chance to make suggestions. This might be a really bad idea if what follows is deathly silence. Don’t be shy. I might even ask a superstar brewer your question.

What would you write about if you were going to be at the Great American Beer Festival? Would you . . .

– Lean on Vinnie Cilurzo to reveal what sort of beer he intends to put in all the used Cabernet Sauvignon barrels he has acquired?

– Take tasting notes on every beer from newish breweries like FiftyFifty, Hopworks Urban and Hollister?

– Ask Garrett Oliver what the next beer will be on the 750ml bottle series (while sampling an ounce of the wonderful Local One)? Note: A bad idea because he has promised to delay the next release by a month every time he is asked this question.

– Snarf down every bit of food in the 3,124 food and beer tastings planned for the rest of the week?

– Write haikus?

You tell me.