I Just Couldn't Get Back To The Computer, And Now I Have To Hit The Sack
It turned out to be a weird day. I could not get back to the computer to list everything.
But here are two things before I turn in for the night. (I have had 4 straight days of lousy sleep. I hope to catch up a little)
First, the Dogfish Head tasting tomorrow. If by chance the storm takes a detour out to sea, we will go on with the tasting. If not, we will postpone it until January. Elizabeth has a 2 hour drive to make, and we don’t want to put her at risk with a sloppy, dangerous drive home.
I could theoretically just do the tasting by myself, but what makes the tasting fun for me is hanging out with the crowd, firing up the BBQ, and learning a little more about beer & brewing.
Also, the batch of Raison D’Etra from Paul of Blind Bat Brewing has taken a turn for the worse. Here is Pauls blog entry about that. Blind Bat Blog
I will post the verdict in the A.M.
Second, and a bit more important, our friend, and fellow beer enthusiast Keith "Shiki" Freeman, passed away on Friday. He was suffering from lymphoma. I will miss him. He was an energetic, enthusiastic, all around great guy. He always spoke his mind, and it was almost always positive. He came to most of our tastings, often bringing a pizza or two with him, and always arriving with a smile and a handshake. He was an accomplished homebrewer who had a wonderful knowledge and passion about beer. One thing that endeared him to me was that after each tasting, or as he left each tasting, he would come say good-bye to me and always say some form of the following..... "Dave, I wanted to say thank you for doing this. It's always a good time, and you are a great host. The fact that you make this such an event for us means a lot to me. And the beer BBQ food you make, well, let's just say nobody does this better than you, or seems to enjoy doing these tastings more than you. Thank you, keep up the good work, and I'll see you next time." You guys who knew him can hear him say it with that big smile and the 45 second handshake. When I am preparing for a tasting, and am frustrated by all the prep work, it's Shiki's words that remind me why I do it the way I do. He is the guy in the red jacket. Shiki, you will be missed.
But here are two things before I turn in for the night. (I have had 4 straight days of lousy sleep. I hope to catch up a little)
First, the Dogfish Head tasting tomorrow. If by chance the storm takes a detour out to sea, we will go on with the tasting. If not, we will postpone it until January. Elizabeth has a 2 hour drive to make, and we don’t want to put her at risk with a sloppy, dangerous drive home.
I could theoretically just do the tasting by myself, but what makes the tasting fun for me is hanging out with the crowd, firing up the BBQ, and learning a little more about beer & brewing.
Also, the batch of Raison D’Etra from Paul of Blind Bat Brewing has taken a turn for the worse. Here is Pauls blog entry about that. Blind Bat Blog
I will post the verdict in the A.M.
Second, and a bit more important, our friend, and fellow beer enthusiast Keith "Shiki" Freeman, passed away on Friday. He was suffering from lymphoma. I will miss him. He was an energetic, enthusiastic, all around great guy. He always spoke his mind, and it was almost always positive. He came to most of our tastings, often bringing a pizza or two with him, and always arriving with a smile and a handshake. He was an accomplished homebrewer who had a wonderful knowledge and passion about beer. One thing that endeared him to me was that after each tasting, or as he left each tasting, he would come say good-bye to me and always say some form of the following..... "Dave, I wanted to say thank you for doing this. It's always a good time, and you are a great host. The fact that you make this such an event for us means a lot to me. And the beer BBQ food you make, well, let's just say nobody does this better than you, or seems to enjoy doing these tastings more than you. Thank you, keep up the good work, and I'll see you next time." You guys who knew him can hear him say it with that big smile and the 45 second handshake. When I am preparing for a tasting, and am frustrated by all the prep work, it's Shiki's words that remind me why I do it the way I do. He is the guy in the red jacket. Shiki, you will be missed.
Yes, I remember Keith saying that too. He really like making a summary of the situation at hand and making his contribution to it too. I will miss him too.
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