Two Sets of Three...so far
Some know that I started growing a beard last year.
Movember to be exact. That's the month that a mustache is grown to show support for a worthy cause - awareness of men's health issues.
If you have not seen my moustache AND beard, here is a photo of what it looks like.
No, not really.
That actually is me standing behind a cut out of the distinctive photo on the label of a popular beer made by
Holy City Brewing Company.
It is called
Chucktown Follicle Brown and the cut-out that beckons you to poke your face through is at the brewery on Dorchester Road.
This was one of the three places visited Saturday on another rousing, brave but cheerful, Brewery Mini-Crawl.
There are several other clusters I plan to visit.
Cheerful because it was time to visit a trio of craft beer-making places.
It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and my camera and I were among happy, cheerful people, chugging some fine tasting beers.
Looks like some breweries serve food so children are allowed to be there.
I saw lots of families enjoying an offbeat pre-Easter outing.
To wisely sample the offerings of many beers it pays to be sensible.
At each place, I looked over the menu and selected four small "samples" of the brewmaster's product by a particular brewing company.
Moderation in moderation.
Here I chose 2 dark stout and porter beers and two lighter ones:
Notorious Hen, an American Porter with a BBQ Rub; Fancy Stout with sweetteeth caramel added; Smells Like Rick, bourbon barrel aged and Kate the Great, red wine barrel aged.
While sipping and tasting, I saw a lady with a 4-glass flight, taking a sip of each glass in rotation so all four were now half-filled.
Hmm. Kind of defeating the whole tasting concept.
Might as well pour all four mixed together in a pint glass!
Looking to my right I saw a colorful, catchy mural by the artist Patch Whisky.
There was a sizable crowd this afternoon at the bar and I could not avoid having a man's head included in the lower left of the mural.
Not my best ever use of the clone app of Photoshop, but I did try to eliminate the fellow. If you can't see what I did there, I am sure the artist would have issues.
Let's just not tell him and keep this among ourselves. Thanks. Whew.
Hoping the get a view of the Ashley River before sunset, we headed over to nearby one-year-old
FreeHouse Brewing Company.
Known for its nice deck, picnic tables and spectacular sunsets on the river, it also prides itself on producing all organic craft brews.
Our friendly bartender showed a Thursday sunset photo she had phone snapped and I recalled it had
been a cloudy sky which usually adds bright colors to the end of the day.
Looking out past the tall, silvery beer vats and the bar, I saw it was a lackluster kind of sky so just sat at the bar and tried a 4-glass flight.
The organic beers I sipped included a Green Door IPA, the HooDoo Imperial Stout, Lucky Oyster Stout and a Battery Brown Ale.
These four 4 oz glasses held enough to really savor the taste, yet kept total consumption to a minimum.
Being an older native Charlestonian, I can remember when the Fox Music store was downtown on the corner of King and Beaufain Streets.
My 1950s high school buddies and I would go in to browse the vinyl records.
Then we'd select one or two albums and walk down the squeaky wood floor, enter one of several glass enclosed booths and play the record on a turntable. Some dancing often happened.
I had left town by the time it closed and moved out to 3005 West Montague Avenue.
Part of their building in the back was used to store pianos but, after a lot of work, that space was opened three weeks ago as the
Rusty Bull Brewing Company, in Suite 110.
I peeked through the window in the front door and stepped in to be part of the "soft opening."
The Official grand opening is set for May 6. I like one of their slogans:
"We make it. You drink it."
I chatted with the two Co-Founders, heavy-bearded Ben Mayer and Brian Bogstad.
As usual, I ordered a flight so I could sample some but, instead of four, a fifth was added.
As the menu board on the wall behind the bar stated, right now they only make five offerings so they threw in the 5th to give me ALL of today's taste options!
Here is a shot of the menu on the wall of beers offered but many more will be added by the May 6 Grand Opening, Ben assured me.
Reason enough for me to swing by again. And again.
I saw something new being offered at these breweries.
I was used to seeing a large dark colored glass 64-oz Growler that can be filled and sealed (no open container in your car).
The new item is a Crowler. a 32-oz metal container that is sealed with a flip-top so you can conveniently - and legally - take two pints home.
Currently, they are closed Sunday and Monday, but that is subject to change.
(Click on the images and links for more details.)
This is only the second mini-Brewery Crawl. As more are added, this could turn into a long-term writing odyssey!
That would be cool.
Labels: Brewery mini-Crawl, Chucktown Follicle Brown, FREEHOUSE Organic Beer, Growlers and Crawlers., Holy City Brewing Company, Rusty Bull
Books and Beers on a Saturday night....
Leah Rhyne , local Sci-Fi writer, put together a "book reading"last Saturday evening.
I knew one of the writers so I hopped in my car and joined the crowd.
A "reading" is where several authors come and share aloud a chapter or two of their book.
Leah has written a series called
Undead America that includes
Zombie Days, Campfire Nights; No Angels, and
Jenna's War.
Yes, Leah writes about zombies.
And her newest book,
Heartless, not surprising, is about a young girl who wakes up one day and discovers she is dead.
The good news...she appears not to smell. So far.
The sampling she read does have her using a needle and thread (a delicate pink color, not harsh white) to sew back a pesky flap of skin that dangles from her right cheek.
We further learn that she feels no pain as she does her deft darning.
Jason Zwiker, Charleston photographer, known for his essays, short stories, fiction and non, was the first reader of the night.
Jason flipped on the microphone around 7:30 to tease us with a chapter of his first - not yet finished - novel entitled "
Jimmy the King and the Witch in Green," Part one.
I have sat several times at public readings by David Sedaris at Charleston Music Hall, and have been impressed when an author reads excerpts of his own work.
Listening to Jason is only the second time I have experienced this and I told him later that he writes well and emotes very effectively while reading.
Oh, did I mention the crowded "reading room" was at
Holy City Brewing Company?
The brewery is situated behind rows of dark warehouses, and you turn off Dorchester Road, and bump your way over uneven pavement to reach the almost filled dirt parking lot. "Good crowd," I thought, as I left my car and headed toward the bright lights.
As I said, Leah's "undead heroine"
had a major problem.
Fortunately, the former mortal had a very-much-alive friend and supporter.
A reading gives you only a sample of what is to come and tonight was no exception.
Just as I was warming to Jason's characters and this young lady with a deadly future, it was over
The third author,
Patrick Wensink, took the microphone, and picked up his latest book
"Fake Fruit Factory."
Patrick explained he was from Louisville and was on a 15-city book-signing tour.
He was in Nashville, then Savannah the night before, Charleston was his 14th stop and he would finish up in Charlotte.
His previous book - featured on the New York Times list - was
"Broken Piano For President."
When we chatted later, Patrick ticked of the cities on his tour that included cities in the Northwest, the middle of the country, New York City and this Southeast final leg.
He did add that this was his first reading in a crowded brewery on a Saturday night.
Wish I could say all of the people lining the bar and seated at tables were there to hear snippets from new books.
Listening for a snappy chapter or the opening pages of a brand new novel.
Patrick opened one of the copies displayed on the table and explained that the mayor of a small town in Ohio had to come up with a plan to attract tourists to raise a large sum of money to save his small town.
In fact, it was so small that cartographers didn't even bother to put it on a map.
Many were probably there just for the Holy City Pluff Mud Porter or Gruesome Twosome but the overhead speakers carried the author's voices around the room and probably gave some beer drinkers an added literary boost to a night on the town.
I know that Liz Chartrand and her husband, from West Ashley, queued
at the merchandise table when Patrick finished and bought a copy which he happily signed.
A line had formed as others stepped forward to ask questions of the three authors or to make a purchase.
Leah
Rhyne, who had organized the event, also seemed pleased with the results.
I am sure that Jason Zwiker looks forward to two things:
1. Finish his novel and 2. Get it published so he could have a stack of them to take on a book signing to read aloud ....and to sell.
(Click on the photos and links for more details.)
Thanks for stopping by.
Yes, I had a Holy City Nitro Porter.
Burp.
Labels: Broken Piano For President, Fake Fruit Factory, Heartless, Holy City Brewing Company, Jason Zwiker, Jimmy The King, Leah Rhyne, Nitro Porter, Patrick Wensink
Celebrate - Have A Pluff Mud Porter!
It was the Second Anniversary for the makers of
Pluff Mud Porter.
I went to where the craft beer is made and bought one at
Holy City Brewing on Dorchester Road.
Wow. What an exciting two years it has been for Charleston and we beer drinkers.
They make more than just the porter that I really like.
I didn't sample them all but I did buy a t-shirt.
The celebration was set for Noon to 8:00pm and I got there late - around 6:00pm.
At an outside stand pouring my porter, the staffer remarked it had been very busy and now was calming down.
She added that there was a nice breeze all day.
Biggest breeze-maker I've seen in a while.
I did arrive just as the Keg Tossing contest started.
Don't know if he won but he had good form and the crowd murmured approvingly. And sipped their beers.
Because it was mainly a family gathering with lots of children running around, I was not surprised to see a small black 6.5 gallon keg brought out for the small fry to toss.
It too was empty of course, although I heard comments like "Well, maybe it's a Lite beer, and something about "half-pints."
I was late so the band had just stopped playing. I had hoped they were taking a break but they laughed when I asked.
There was an impressive large storage container sitting across from the main buildings.
It was a perfect "canvas" for the familiar skyline of our Holy City.
I neglected to get the name of the artist but I'll ask and update this later.
That's my way of doing reverse fact-checking.
The beer was good, the day had cooled off and I wanted to show my appreciation for some nice guys who make a fine product.
You'll see me around town wearing my new black t-shirt.
Probably with a Pluff Mud in my hand.
(Click on the photos for more details.)
The link to the brewery has some excellent photos by Chrys Rynearson.
He has a REAL fisheye lens and knows how to use it!
Labels: 2nd Anniversary, chrys Rynearson, half-pint kids, Holy City Brewing Company, keg toss, Pluff Mud Porter
Run Forest, Run !
My
Photography Group has its monthly meeting tonight and I scrambled to select some photos to take with me.
We come up with an optional theme each time for the popular SHOW & TELL.
Tonight it's
"Things Found In A Forest." You can bring 15 or so of your favorite shots but I try to include a few themed one too.
Yesterday I realized I hadn't foraged in a forest lately so I strolled around my yard instead. The red leaf sat alone among all the browns and green grass.
Yes, I removed all the other colors with Photoshop.
My large magnolia tree in the front yard had already bloomed with its beautiful - but brief - delicate white flowers.
But, deep in my "forest," I saw scaly growth on several limbs.
I believe it's called lichen.
Checking online, I see that's a combo of fungus & algae.
Looking down I saw another additon for tonight's presentation.
The cones were scattered amidst the large leaves.
I tweaked the picture a bit with Photoshop to add some detailed drama.
While we were growing up, my brothers and I would throw these at each other, pretending they were
"hand grenades."Playing
"WAR" during the 1940s seemed like the thing to do. Almost patriotic for my WWII
Youngest Generation.
I also will share with the group my visit to the newest craft beer brewery that has popped up here.
What a fine addition by four enterprising young men.
Holy City is on Dorchester Road between I-526 and I-26, tucked behind some warehouses.
The friendly Tasting Room is cozy and comfortable. I sampled small tastes of all four of the lastest offerings.
The
Bowens Island Oyster Stout (ABV 5.5) was introduced only a few days ago and joins their
Pilsner and the
Pluff Mud Porter (ABV 5.0), a nice dark beer that's become popular around town.
I bought a jug of
Hurricane Category 3 IPA(ABV 7.0) to celebrate the end of "H" Season.
Drink local, I say.
(Click on the photos for more detail). It's only been a few years since South Carolina allowed brewers to provide beers with more than 4.0 or 5.0 ABV (Alcohol By Volume) and Coast Brewing was the leader in persuading our lawmakers to make it legal to sit and sample a beer at the brewery. Thanks Jaime!
Labels: ABV 7.0, algae, Bowens Island Oyster Stout, Category 3 IPA, Dorchester Road, fungus, Holy City Brewing Company, I-26, I-526, Jaime at Coast Brewery, Pluff Mud Porter
To wisely sample the offerings of many beers it pays to be sensible.
Our friendly bartender showed a Thursday sunset photo she had phone snapped and I recalled it had
