Danger, there is good beer

Surprisingly good IPA.  Great venue.  Excellent concert by There is Danger.

Black Iron India Pale Ale  (7.2% ABV)
Grand Canyon Brewing Company
Williams, Arizona

Check em out on Facebook or on the ol' fashioned interwebs at http://thereisdanger.bandcamp.com/

Photo borrowed from http://thereisdanger.bandcamp.com/

Day 12: Fire roasted brats

August 16:  Bratwurst Festival Day

No one will dispute that the first family camping trip with a toddler and dog requires beer.  But with 2 kids and a dog, we were running a little low on space.  So I packed the heavy hitters...

After removing the cage, the beer opened itself --- hence the foamy picture below.  HOLY $&*#!  This is not your ordinary beer.  Smells like whiskey.  Tastes like oak.  Feels like wine.  What is this?!?!  Very complex but yummy.  Definitely a boozer.

DeConstruction Golden Ale (10.5% ABV)
Odell Brewing Company
Fort Collins, Colorado

Day 11: Just relax...

August 15:  National Relaxation Day and National Failures Day

In honor of having hiked my first 14er on our 2013 Colorado Family Beercation, I am reusing my post-hike beer on National Relaxation Day.

Perfect day.  But the summit still looks so far away...

Dubbel Belgian-Style Ale (7.5% ABV)
River North Brewery
Denver, Colorado

Not only was the 7 mile hike amazing and exhausting (I am very very slow when it comes to rock scrambling and always very slow downhill), but the post-hike beer was amazingly delicious.  I think I chugged mine and then stole The Husband's after he passed out on the floor of the house.

Can't wait to have the chance to try this one again...

Day 10: Dreamsicle or Creamsicle?

August 14: National Creamsicle Day

A friend of mine in college was the first person to introduce me to Creamsicles.  However, she called them "Dreamsicles" so I didn't really know the difference.  Freshman year we used to fill the pockets in our hooded sweatshirts with them from the main dining hall and then stash them in our teenie dorm fridge's freezer space.  Perhaps the reason behind the freshman 15...?

Dropped the ball today with the beertography.  So instead, I pulled out a pic from our 2013 Colorado Family Beercation.  This was a nice crisp beer with a hint of citrus (hence why it appeared on Creamsicle Day).  Love the can art.

8-Bit Pale Ale (5.2% ABV)
Tallgrass Brewing Co.
Manhattan, Kansas

Beer with a cause

www.facebook.com

It has been nearly two months since the Yarnell Hill fire began.  And now that the media attention has moved past the 19 fallen firefighters, it's easy for some of us to forget what happened in Yarnell, Arizona on June 30, 2013.

That is unless you are someone who was directly impacted by the loss of 19 amazingly brave men: Andrew Ashcraft, Anthony Rose, Christopher MacKenzie, Clayton Whitted, Dustin DeFord, Garret Zuppiger, Grant McKee, Jesse Steed, Joe Thurston, 32, John Percin Jr., Kevin Woyjeck, Eric Marsh, Robert Caldwell, Scott Norris, Sean Misner, Travis Carter, Travis Turbyfill, Wade Parker and William "Billy" Warneke. 

And then ... I don't think that you ever forget.
 
In my mind, the 19 fallen men and the one lone survivor of the Granite Mountain Hotshots (and all other firemen, hotshots, police officers and border patrol agents for that matter) are men of another breed. They woke up every morning, kissed their wives, kids, mothers, fathers, friends, etc. goodbye not knowing if they would return that night... or ever again.

I have a hard enough time waking up sometimes when my alarm goes off at a reasonable hour knowing that I have to get up, play with my kid, teach a fitness class and maybe go to work and plunk around in Excel for a while.  

I didn't know any of these men, yet every time I watched a story about it on the news or listened to it on the radio, my eyes were blurry and there was suddenly a giant lump in my throat.  I just pictured my Husband and I tried to think about how to go on day after day without him.  And then I tried to imagine the husbands of 18 of our good family friends in our area all passing away on the same day.  I couldn't wrap my head around it.  How do you go on?

To quote Joe Biden, which most people only every do before they make fun of him (myself included), "as unbelievable as it is, as unbelievable as it is to fathom it, that a day will come when the memory of your husband, your son, your dad, your brother will bring a smile to your lips before it brings a tear to your eye."  I love this quote very much and I am fortunate enough to say that I do not know for sure, but I really hope that it is true.  And I hope the day comes quickly for the family members of the 19 fallen firefighters.

www.abc15.com

Why is all of this on a beer blog?

This weekend four bars in downtown Chandler – SanTan Brewing, Irish Republic, Bourbon Jacks, and Coach & Willie’s – will all tap kegs of Heroes 19.  This is the collaboration beer that was brewed using 19 different hops, donated by many of Arizona's local breweries, by members of various Arizona breweries at Prescott Brewing Company shortly after the tragedy at Yarnell Hill.  The beer was brewed with the intention of raising money for the families of the 19 fallen Granite Mountain firefighters.

From 11 a.m.-2 p.m., you’ll be able to meet Chandler firefighters and check out firetrucks. The bars also will be serving firefighter-related food specials.

Pints will be $5 and growler fills will be $20.

And if you’re busy or reading this from afar and can't get your hands on this, you can still donate to the cause.  You can buy a "virtual pint" on the Arizona Craft Brewers Guild website.

Cheers to the 19 men who risked everything every single day in order to try to save the homes of people they didn't know.

And cheers again to the families they left behind.  In my mind, you are all equally as heroic, strong and brave as your son/brother/father/husband. 

Day 9: It wasn't me...

August 13: Blame Someone Else Day

It wasn't me ... Mr. Bear opened it and so we had to drink it.  Thanks Mr. Bear.  This was an OUTSTANDING brew.

J. Marie Saison (7.5% ABV)
River North Brewery
Denver, Colorado

Oh, and Happy Birthday to my wonderful mom!!!

Day 8: Middle Child's Day

August 12: Middle Child's Day

The only thing tougher about growing up on the mean streets of Mesa in the 80's was growing up a middle child on the mean streets of Mesa. That is a pretty sweet Mt. St. Helens t-shirt however...

Arizona Trail Ale (6% ABV)
THAT Brewery
Pine, Arizona

Nothing terribly middle child-ish about THAT beer. Our past weekend camping trip ended with a scenic Sunday drive through the countryside east to west along the Rim Road and eventually through Pine. It was there we found ourselves too early for the daily opening of THAT Brewery and Pub. Not to fear, the visionary townfolk of Pine were on Chapter 2 in the book of "Running a Proper Mountain Town" and had organized a festival. THIS festival had the predictable random collection of local artisan wares, Cutco knives and lotion bars. Yeah, lotion bars. Apparently the traditional lotion market was moisturized, er...saturated and therefore lotion bars were born. I didn't get a chance to inquire about their melting point or survivability in the great desert so I had to pass. The resident Knights of Columbus (to be read in Ron Burgandy voice) announced their pancake breakfast was now half price since it was after 11am. This meant THAT Brewery was open. Sorry good sir knights.

THAT Brewery is the reincarnation of the old Rimside Grill on the south end of Pine. According to a 2012 article on the psaznews.com website, owners Tamara and Steve Morken purchased a closed restaurant and re-opened it as the Rimside Grill which operated through 2012. Early that year, Tamara and Steve decided to follow their love of beer and renovated Rimside into a pub-style brewery name THAT which officially opened on June 1, 2012. In a keep-it-local effort, Tamara and Steve employed as many local trades as possible during the renovation building not just a new watering hole but some collateral with local residents too.

Some quick local insight- The news story also references the resolution of regional water issues which is likely the water shortages around the May/June 2012 time. Proper beer needs proper water.

THAT Brewery and Pub had seven of their beers on tap this past weekend including two blondes (one strawberry), an amber, the ale, the IPA, a stout and an ESB. Their beers were all solid brews and paired very well with the mammoth cheeseburgers (one burger with green chilies and jack cheese and one standard cheddar cheeseburger) we ordered.  The wifey and I preferred the Backwoods Blonde, the Roadrash IPA and the Arizona Trail Ale.

To continue on the theme of "Running a Proper Mountain Town" the good folks in Pine started an annual mountain bike race. The Fire on the Rim mountain bike race, run this year on September 14th, is now in its 3rd year. The race has received pretty good reviews from the Arizona mountain biking community with previous riders citing the turn out and local support through out the race. Stories of on-trail home brew aide stations abound. Race proceeds go to wildfire prevention projects and trail advocacy. THAT Brewery is one of the sponsors this year. Beer and mountain biking, who knew!?!

Day 7: Presidential beer

Happy Presidential Joke Day

www.politico.com

Yes, this might be cheating... but only because I did not draw or photograph this.   However, I did scour the internet to find it.  Otherwise, I think it fits the bill.

Day 6: Submit your own beertography

August 10 is National Lazy Day.  So enough about me and what I'm doing or drinking.  This is my blog and I always do the writing.  I want to know what YOU are doing and/or drinking!

www.tocofi.com

So get out your cameras, crack open a beer and send your photos to suburbansuds@yahoo.com and I'll sort through them and then re-post them in separate post at some point to show what the readers do/drink/like.

When you send your photo, please tell me a little about the photo (i.e. the beer, the location, etc) and be sure to let me know if you wish to remain anonymous. You can send as many photos as you want.

Please know that I respect your photos and while I will re-post them, I will not use re-use them.

Cheers!

Day 5: Polka Festival

0.5L of ice cold Pilsner in a Hofbräuhaus mug.  Happy National Polka Festival Day!!

Day 4: Random surprise day

Happy Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbors Porch Day!

I got a lot of giggles driving to the grocery store today with my 2 year old while teaching her to say "zucchini" which she said over and over about 15 times.  She giggled each time.  Then it turned into "A B C D zucchiniiiiiiiiiiii...."

The only way I like zucchini is shredded and baked in a pan with a ton of flower and sugar (i.e. my mom's zucchini bread).  Is a fruit or a vegetable?  It has seeds... and is the product of a flower.... so my dad would argue that it is a fruit.  But is he right?

According to Wikipedia, "in a culinary context, the zucchini is treated as a vegetable, which means it is usually cooked and presented as a savory dish or accompaniment. Botanically, however, the zucchini is an immature fruit, being the swollen ovary of the zucchini flower."

If either one of these front door mats looks familiar to you, you should go outside and rescue your  homebrew and swollen ovary zucchini flowers.

Cheers!

Day 3: Sea Serpent Day

Living in Arizona, I was a little stumped with how to execute beertography on Sea Serpent Day.  But then I went outside to feed the dog ...

Fat Tire Amber Ale (5.2% ABV)
New Belgium Brewing
Fort Collins, Colorado

It may not be an actual Sea Serpent, but my 2-year old (and numerous other kids that come over to play/swim) sure seems to think the creepie crawlie in the pool is scary. 

Cheers!

Got plans for this Saturday? Read this first...

Arizona has some pretty outstanding breweries producing a ton of spectacular beers.  But who has the time to drive all around the massive state to visit and taste them all?  

Man, if only you could go somewhere and try them all at once. That would be pretty amazing, eh?

Thanks to World of Beer in Tempe, you can.  So find a babysitter, call all your beer-loving friends (skip the ones that only like Bud Light), get a cab (please) and head over on August 10th, 2013 for The Arizona Great Fifty-Eight!   

The Arizona Great Fifty-Eight will feature, you guessed it, 58 amazing Arizona craft beers.  All on tap. ALL. AT. ONCE.  

The hardest part will be deciding which ones to try.

Here's the current draft list (updated 8/1/2013):

Bad Water Saison

Borderlands Hibiscus Saison

Borderlands Jasmin Sour

Cartel Coffee Brown

College Street Big Blue Van

College Street Jesse's Malt Liquor

Desert Eagle Dunkelweizen

Desert Eagle Imperial Adler IPA

Dragoon Batch 100 Black IPA

Dragoon Tequila Barrel Aged Saison Blue

Dragoon The Dos

Dragoon Unihoper Pale Ale

Fate American Pale

Fate Oatmeal Double IPA

Four Peaks Barrel Aged Kilt Lifter

Four Peaks Hop Knot

Four Peaks Oatmeal Stout

Four Peaks Short Hop

Four Peaks Sirius Black

Grand Canyon Vienna Lager

Lumberyard Imperial Red Ale

Lumberyard Prince George Pale Ale

Mother Road Gold Road

Mother Road Lost Highway

Mudshark Bourbon Barrel Stout

Mudshark Dessert Wood Barrel Aged IPA

Mudshark Gone Bananas Wheat

Mudshark Marshmallow Stout

Mudshark Peach Lunacy

Nimbus Old Monkey Shine

Oak Creek Nut Brown on Steroids

Papago Brewing Orange Blossom

Phoenix Ale Bière De Garde

Phoenix Ale Homefront IPA

Prescott Liquid Amber

Prescott Ponderosa IPA

SanTan Beer of The World

SanTan Gordo Stout

SanTan Hibiscus Pale AleSanTan Moon Juice

SanTan Negro Nitro

Sleepydog Leg Humper

Sleepydog Red Rover

Sonoran Inebriator Cask (yep - a CASK!)

Sonoran White Chocolate

SunUp Galactic Pale Ale

That Strawberry Blonde

That West Coast IPA

Plus additional beers from O.H.S.O and Ten-Fifty-Five!!