Sweet Memories, Blah Taste
Last night, Zoe and I attended a charity auction for SICSA, the Society for the Improvement of Conditions for Stray Animals. A couple years ago we adopted Tessa from this great local organization and jumped at the chance to attend the dinner with friends.
Before the meal, we caught up with Tessa's foster Mom and scouted out all of the silent auction items. About ten items in and what do I see? An unopened bottle of Pete's Wicked Summer Brew.
I used to really enjoy Pete's Wicked Summer Brew, albeit about 10 years ago. Although I was dubious as to how well a beer, well this beer (and a lager no less) survived the last eight years since it was brewed, I thought it would be fun to see. So, in order to take this bit of beer history home, I first had to win it.
Apparently I wasn't the only beer nerd at the auction, as #23, whoever you were, kept pushing me to up my bet. I kept a vigilant eye towards my prize, but every time I thought I saw #23, I bounced over to realize it was either #48 bidding on a Monica Lewinksy/Bill Clinton commemorative dual blade pocketknife or #95 checking up on his Cincinnati Bengals 1985 license plate bracket.
Well the bids ended and I'm happy to report...I won! After sticking my precious bottle in the fridge last night, I pulled it out tonight. It was 2000 all over again. I had hair, had just finished dusting off my Billy Bass and was ready to crack open a bottle of Pete's Wicked Summer Brew.
My first clue should have been the broken liner from the bottle cap. The second clue was a lot of "something" floating in the glass after the pour. The final clue?
The taste.
I don't regret my purchase one bit, as the cause was great. Unfortunately, time was not gentle to this brew. In fact, I kind of wonder if it had survived if I would have even liked it. I believe my palate's changed a little bit since Pete's Summer Brew was available.
Thankfully, I had a back up plan in the form of Pumpkin Ale and a great dog to enjoy it with.
Before the meal, we caught up with Tessa's foster Mom and scouted out all of the silent auction items. About ten items in and what do I see? An unopened bottle of Pete's Wicked Summer Brew.
I used to really enjoy Pete's Wicked Summer Brew, albeit about 10 years ago. Although I was dubious as to how well a beer, well this beer (and a lager no less) survived the last eight years since it was brewed, I thought it would be fun to see. So, in order to take this bit of beer history home, I first had to win it.
Apparently I wasn't the only beer nerd at the auction, as #23, whoever you were, kept pushing me to up my bet. I kept a vigilant eye towards my prize, but every time I thought I saw #23, I bounced over to realize it was either #48 bidding on a Monica Lewinksy/Bill Clinton commemorative dual blade pocketknife or #95 checking up on his Cincinnati Bengals 1985 license plate bracket.
Well the bids ended and I'm happy to report...I won! After sticking my precious bottle in the fridge last night, I pulled it out tonight. It was 2000 all over again. I had hair, had just finished dusting off my Billy Bass and was ready to crack open a bottle of Pete's Wicked Summer Brew.
My first clue should have been the broken liner from the bottle cap. The second clue was a lot of "something" floating in the glass after the pour. The final clue?
The taste.
I don't regret my purchase one bit, as the cause was great. Unfortunately, time was not gentle to this brew. In fact, I kind of wonder if it had survived if I would have even liked it. I believe my palate's changed a little bit since Pete's Summer Brew was available.
Thankfully, I had a back up plan in the form of Pumpkin Ale and a great dog to enjoy it with.
Mike Lang
