Intellectual Ferment of a Different Kind
Suppose you have finally made your way to Munich to try all of those harmoniously brewed helles lagers, Bocks, and Hefeweizens. Supposing, too, that you ventured further afield to the iconic breweries that ring Munich, such as Kloster Andechs, Weihenstephan, and Ayinger. What’s the next …
Greetings, all you fine readers of A Tempest in a Tankard! This post has nothing to do with beer and everything to do with beer. I’ve been meaning to update the layout of the site ever since, oh, 2013 when I started the blog. But …
~Oud Bruin? Rood Bruin? Flemish Red? It’s all foeders to me~ Only an hour by train from Brussels, West Flanders is renowned for its picturesque medieval towns replete with belfries and beguinages, sandy North Sea beaches, verdant open fields, and a harrowing First …
Cobblestones and Canals Ethereal cobblestone lanes, canals, medieval Flemish architecture, magnificent squares that recall the wealth and power of the merchant class, secluded parks, and even a few windmills make for an enchanting ambience you won’t find in many other cities. Bruges’ urban …
Part II of “Warming Beers for Cold Nights” “Stepping from behind the bar, the tavern keeper walked over to the flickering hearth. […] Bending over, he picked up the jug he had placed on the brick floor close to the bed of coals. Inside the …
~ “The past is a foreign country.” ~ You might have ended up here thinking this post was going to be about barley wines, Belgian quads, barrel-aged imperial stouts, or winter warmers. It’s not, much as I enjoy those typically malty styles. My apologies. Blame …
So here we are again. One more turn around this mortal coil, drinking to forget the follies of an old year and toasting the auspiciousness of the new. For me 2017 has been extremely enjoyable, uncanny parallels between the 1930s and the present notwithstanding. I …
Just a little over a year ago, the internet was abuzz with news that the Smithsonian was in the market for a beer historian. That the venerable Smithsonian Institution would be looking to collect, document, and display the history of brewing in the United States …
Not long ago I went on one of the more stellar culinary journeys of my life. Mortadella and bowls of tagliatelle di ragù in Bologna. Mounds of culatello and Parmigiano Reggiano in Parma. Vitello tonnato and carne cruda all’Albese in Alba. Every kind of snail …
The shadows are getting longer on this late afternoon in early autumn as I pull in from a long bike ride. I need a beer. Like most of us in North America these days, I’ll probably head down the road to the local brewery to …