What should be my first beer back in America?

This is something I’ll start thinking about in a few days when we get on a plane to fly home. Right now I’m focused on what my next Franconian beer will be.

How am I ever ever going to get caught up on new beers and drink my favorite holiday beers? I’m not, particularly since we’ll still be “limiting” ourselves to drinking regional beers. So I think I’ll start with a simpler question: What should my first local beer be?

I know it will be a seasonal release, and I wouldn’t be surprised it its hoppy. It will be from the mid-Atlantic states, because we’ll be in New Jersey, where there are plenty of stores with excellent bottles choices (though not nearly as many great bars).

Please leave a suggestion as a comment.

 

Franconian winter

Franconian hops field

A hopyard just outside of Markt Ingensdorf (southeast of Bamberg), in the Hersbrucker hop growing region.

 

Session #23 announced: Old and new

The SessionBeer and Firkins has announced the topic for The Session #23 (Jan. 2) and it doesn’t exactly fit into a short headline:

What will you miss about 2008 (feel free to list your tasting notes, if that item is a particular beer) and what do you expect will excite you most in 2009, in the “Beer World”? Again, if that is a beer, what about it is special and worthy of being excited about?)

I’m posting this as we prepare to head off to the somewhat snowy Franconia countryside. Yesterday I finished my last interviews, for the wheat beer book and a magazine story I’m working on. Seven notebooks are full, so no taking of notes today.

But I know I’m sure going to miss the swath of beer drinking land between Bamberg and Prague. Maybe that’s what I’ll write about. I promise not too be long and to include something about actually drinking specific beers. This topic leaves room, you’ll note, for a simple drinking note or two.

 

Session #22 roundup posted

The Session21st Amendment has posted the roundup for Session #22: “What Does Repeal Mean to Me?”

If you are working on a term paper about beer blogging and want examples of the diversity of the beer blogosphere I’d suggest starting with December Session posts.

We’re only talking about a few dozen of the hundreds of beer blogs operating, but a pretty interesting tip of the iceberg.

 

#20 – Where in the beer world?

Where in the beer world?

Do you think you know where in the beer world this photo was taken? Then please leave a comment.

When I started this feature I didn’t mean it to turn into a contest. I simply planned to post a photos I find interesting, sometimes to make a point. I didn’t necessarily expect readers to know where they were taken. But from the get-go you surprised me.

As a result I might have lost my way, trying to post images I figured somebody would know but ones that weren’t “too easy.”

This week we return to Plan A. Maybe you will know in an instant where this was taken. Maybe you will be a bit surprised when I tell you, and I sure hope you’ll find it interesting.