If you know me, you know that I loves me some fine, hand-crafted fermented grain beverages, particularly down at Boundary Bay.
Well, I recently moonlighted at our other award-winning brewery here in Bellingham, Chuckanut Brewery and Kitchen, and naturally I’ve got something to say about it.
Soon.
When I read this morning that the European Union has elected a Belgian, Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy, as their new president, I didn’t think much of it. After all, Belgium is an incredibly vanilla, low-key, non-aggressive country that a lot of people, especially Americans, know very little about.
What could possibly be the harm?
Well, then, a few hours later, I read the following on my beloved Boundary Bay Brewery‘s Facebook Page:
Boundary Bay Brewery our brewers today are crafting a Belgian Tripel. Admittedly odd for us, but our contender for 2010 Seattle Belgianfest http://bit.ly/URKaW
Coincidence? I think not!
Boundary Bay has NEVER brewed Belgian ales before as far as I know, and I’ve been going there religiously ever since they opened in 1995.
And, all of a sudden, out of nowhere, The Washington Beer Commission decides to announce its “1st Annual Belgianfest.” That’s “1st Annual”, meaning they’re not just planning on having one fest, they’re going to make it an annual tradition?
What the HELL is going on here?!
This van Rompuy guy is obviously a force to be reckoned with, not wasting any time before exercising his new EU muscle.
Is this just the beginning of new era of Belgian world dominance? We’ll just have to wait and see.
I, for one, will be keeping an eye on them.
(Ironically, I happen to like Belgian beers, but that’s just the kind of vulnerability a political force hellbent on taking over the world will exploit.)
First On the Go post: Had a pint of Hoppy The Woodsman, from Schooner Exact Brewing Company, at the Green Frog last night. Hoppy, yes, with prominent bourbon notes from the bourbon barrels they use. Found out this morning that it is 11%ABV. No wonder I was asleep by 9pm.
Whatcom Middle School, Bellingham, Washington
Last night I was down at the pub, havin’ a pint with the lads, and one of the lads has a 7th grader who goes to Whatcom Middle School…
…who went Whatcom Middle School.
Apparently, not long after we said good night and headed home, Whatcom Middle School, built in 1903, the oldest school in the district, one of the oldest in the state, burst into flames, the flames were fed by high winds, and the historic building was all but destroyed.
My friend’s son and nearly 600 other students and staff do not have school or work today and tomorrow, and there’s no word yet on where they will go or when.
Ironically, the building had been undergoing seismic retrofitting for many months, so now, if an earthquake hits, the skeleton of the building is less likely to collapse. Great.
As the photo here depicts, the inscription above the front entrance to the school reads, “Waste Not Thy Hour”.
This could have happened during the day, many people could have been injured and/or killed, and hundreds are unexpectedly displaced. This incident reminds us of how our precarious life can be, and just how important it is to not waste thy hour.
Listen, I know there can be a dark side — alcohol abuse, neglect of family, brawls, etc. — to the romantic image of the neighborhood watering hole, but then I’ve already copped to being an unapologetic romantic.
Well, it’s been two days since my last visit to my favorite local pub, Boundary Bay Brewery, and I’m still thinking about how special this tradition is to me, how much pleasure I get from unwinding with friends over glasses of well-crafted fermented grain beverages, surrounded by others, likewise enjoying themselves or comforting one another. For me it’s very little to do with intoxication and everything to do with community, that enduring antidote to the kind of isolation humans are prone to, especially in this age of cable TV and internet.
In keeping with the romantic stereotype, the blog post title here includes the admittedly cliché vernacular “lads”, but, truly, I have as much fun at the pub when my wife or the wives of my fellow lads are in attendance.
Some years ago, I saw a British film, The Match, set in a characteristically charming village, where the two pubs have a fierce rivalry, including the waging of a nearly 100-year old annual soccer football match. The Match was a fun if mostly forgettable film, but the scenes in the underdog pub hit all the right notes, capturing the camaraderie and the central importance the establishment has for its patrons, with one character referring to it as the village’s living room.
Unlike the lads in The Match and dozens of movies like it, I don’t belly up to the bar on a daily basis. And so, I offer up this tantalizing vision of refreshment, to hold us all over, until we meet again, down at the pub.
