Now, onto the review of of Roots Brewing’s 2005 Epic Ale!

One doesn’t just come across a 3 liter bottle of 6 year-old beer. There’s a story here, naturally.
In early 2005, Lara and I moved to Portland from NY, and upon arriving back into Lara’s house, which had been rented, we discovered a new brewery around the corner. Roots Brewing had just opened. We quickly became very fond of their brews…the IPA was like no other, the Red, their signature beer, was the best Red I’ve ever had. And the Porter? Fuggidabouddit. Chocolaty, silky smooth, and somewhere around 9% ABV, so you’d be tilted without even feeling like you were drinking!
A few months later, Craig Nichols, Roots’ founder & brewmaster, started promoting the release of the Epic Ale, a version of a beer he’d been making as a hobby for years. It was to be released on the Winter Solstice 2005. In addition to the release, they were going to be selling the jumbo bottles, each signed and numbed. To get a bottle, you entered a lottery, and the numbered bottles were sold in order of the names drawn. Once your name was pulled, you still had to pony up $80 for the bottle!
My name was called on number 12. On my walk up to the front to get my beer, I found $40 on the floor, which helped justify the purchase, especially since I’d just started at PSU, and the college debt had begun.
Over the months, Lara and I had befriended Craig. He made me swear I wouldn’t open it for at least 5 years. By then, he said, the beer would age nicely, and the ABV, which was brewed at 14.5%, would be somewhere in the 17-19% range. In truth, the beer was more like a barley wine. But it tasted more like a beer.
So we waited. And waited. We moved twice, and had 2 daughters. Last year, year 5, I could barely contain myself…but we had a 6 month old nursing baby…so Lara wouldn’t have been able to enjoy it too. So we waited some more. This year, I could wait no longer. Our family Christmas happened to be on Dec 22…the Winter Solstice. So 6 years to the day later, the beer was opened.
I can’t lie…I was nervous. I had stored the beer pretty well, mostly in cool dark places, but never refrigerated. I know about wine storage, but not beer. And, sadly, Roots closed its doors 18 months ago…on my birthday, so couldn’t even ask Craig about it.
When everyone had arrived, I unwrapped the wire, and popped the lever, releasing the synthetic cork. There was a release of air, followed by wisps of mist, which were both reliefs. I poured myself the first sample (had to make sure it wasn’t toxic), and quickly confirmed that it was in fine condition to drink.
So how was it? In a word: spectacular. Worth the wait. Wish I had more.
There’s no way to know what the ABV was, but it was quite strong. There wasn’t an overwhelming spike of alcohol, but unlike drinking beer, you could taste the subtle kick of alcohol. And the effects could be felt halfway through the first glass.
The beer itself was very malty. Copper in color, there was also a very subtle copper taste. The overwhelming flavor was caramel, with hints of chocolate, vanilla, and molasses. The carbonation was very soft after 6 years in limbo, so the beer went down very easily. Light and rich at the same time, it was great with enchiladas and even better with dessert.
Before we knew it, the bottle was empty. It was a special beer, and fittingly it was christmastime when we opened it, because I felt like a kid again with all the anticipation. I hope Craig resurfaces again…he’s a superb brewer, and the world is just better with his beers available to the public.

For the Bread (makes 2 loaves)

Whisk together:

2 2/3 Cups all Purpose Flour

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

Beat on high:

1 cube Butter (soft or melted)

1 1/3 cup lavender Sugar (see instructions below)

Mix the above together until crumbly (consistency of Brown Sugar).

Gradually beat in:

4 eggs, slightly beaten

Fold in:

4 ripe bananas

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (optional…I don’t use them)

Put batter into 2 buttered bread pans

Topping:

Slice less ripe bananas into 1/4 inch slices

Place slices evenly over batter.

Mix together:

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 oz Lavender-infused vodka (see recipe below) or Brandy

When smooth, drizzle evenly over top of un-baked loaves & bananas.

Bake at 350 for 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of bread comes out dry.

Lavender Sugar:

1 1/3 cups Granulated Sugar

3 tsp lavender buds, dried

Put into food processor until buds are dispersed evenly.

*Also tastes great in teas, etc*

Lavender-infused Vodka

750 ML vodka

1/4 cup lavender buds, dried

Add lavender to vodka.  Let stand 5-7 days, mixing gently once daily.  Strain buds out.  Enjoy over ice or in a martini, or as a mixer.

While we’re talking about lavender…try lavender simple syrup!

Boil:

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

1/8 cup dried lavender buds

When sugar is dissolved, strain buds out.

Use in Mojitos, or anywhere where simple syrup is used!

It’s a pleasure to announce the next phase in our winery construction project. We at Purple Cow have gathered the designs and information needed to submit for permits to construct an incredible gathering space for us all. The new facility will not only improve our ability to provide great service and beautiful vistas, it will allow us to increase the breadth of our product line with additional hand-crafted small-production wines. The next steps require much courage and energy, a journey Purple Cow hopes to make with your help.

We have progressed funding the designs, engineering, and information gathering from the success you have given us.  For the next large step in our future, and with today’s lending atmosphere, we must have permits approved before we receive any funding from our bank. This next step in submitting requires substantial application fees for land use and building permits.

With this said, Jon is making an offer to you, our friends and family, to help us forge forward in obtaining success in this next phase of our future. Jon has put together a rewarding opportunity for you to obtain our wonderful wines at generous pricing, hoping you all will invest in the future of your gathering space and your personal cellar.

If you don’t live close but wish to take advantage of the offer, please email as the web the web ordering system doesn’t handle special pricing offers.

We will open 11-5 both days this weekend to make this offer as accessible as possible.

We will also have design documents on display this weekend for your perusal. Many thanks in advance for your interest and participation.

I based this list on a few main criteria:

• Popularity at the time they were released
• Staying power; are they still played today on the radio, Muzak, etc
• I tried to avoid awful groups/bands, like The Backstreet Boys, N’Sync, and Nirvana (sorry grungers), because it would be impossible to list that many.  However, there are some lucky people who made it on the list twice.
• General awful-ness

Of course, these opinions are my own…feel free to agree or disagree!

And naturally, I’ve included links to the songs, in case you need a reminder of how BAD they truly are!

And now, in no particular order, my bottom 30 songs of the 1990’s…my ears are already bleeding.

Ricky Martin: La Vida Loca

Limp Bizkit: Nookie

Shawn Colvin: Sunny Came Home

Jewel: Hands

Waterfalls: TLC

Sugar Ray: Someday (barely edging their own “Fly”)

J-Lo: Waiting for Tonight

Prodigy: Firestarter

Savage Garden: Truly Madly Deeply

Sinead O’Conner: Nothing Compares to You

Sister Hazel: All for You

Vanessa Williams: Saved the Best for Last

Del Ametri: Roll to Me

Sheryl Crow: If it Makes You Happy

Santana Ft: Rob Thomas: Smooth

Lady Marmalade: Christina Agualara & Friends

Californiacation: Red Hot Chili Peppers

Blurry: Puddle of Mudd (I was once making fun of this band with a co-worker, not realizing that they were sitting 2 seats down at the bar!)

It’s Been a While: Stained

Pretty Fly for a White Guy: The Offspring

Lullaby: Shawn Mullins

Barely Breathing: Duncan Shiek

And with 2 each on my list:

Where Have all the Cowboy’s Gone?

I Don’t Wanna Wait

By Paula Cole

Higher

Arms Wide Open

By Creed

Kiss from a Rose

Fly Like an Eagle

By Seal

And a special 1-hit-wonder of terrible category:

Eiffel 65: Blue

Aqua: Barbie Girl

Los Del Rio: Macerena

Lou Vega: Mambo # 5

Marcy Playground: Sex and Candy

Jimmy Ray: Are You Jimmy Ray?

OMC: How Bizarre?

Chumbawamba: Tubthumping

Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen): Baz Luhrmann

So I waited as long as I could to open it (1 week, thank you very much).  You may remember that I tasted this wine at the Wine Club Barrel Tasting late 2009.  See that review HERE.  Petite Syrah is a favorite of mine, so I was excited to try the final product, and it did not disappoint!

Rich black-purple color flowed from the bottle, and I knew I was in for a big, full wine.  The nose had rich, heavy plum and over-ripe blackberry.  Interestingly there was also a heavy note of currant/raisin, similar to a Port.   The Durif had incredible complexity.  Big and bold up front, tasting of heavy, jammy fruit, followed by big, but even spice, and distinct full tannin.  The spice, more than brown baking spice, almost paprika, lingered nicely, much longer than the tannin.  Just a hint of the raisin/Port taste came through in the wine, but enough to not miss.  And just a touch of Oak from its time in the barrel, though not too much oak as to take away from any other flavor.

I drank this with a pork shoulder that I’d had in the crock pot all day, cooking in soy sauce & vinegar, seasoned with paprika (which paired soooo well with the wine), sea salt, bay leaves, and plenty of Garlic, plus onion, carrot and potato.  The pairing was wonderful, and the wine exceptional!  There is ONLY 25 cases of this wine produced!  It won’t be released for a few months, and then only to wine club members.  If you’re not a Purple Cow Wine Club member (shame on you), join today!  Visit their site HERE or email me at winewithgraham@hotmail.com to join!

Over the last week as we packed up, neither of us had any regrets.  The new home is a better layout for having a toddler, and for the way we live.  But, as some of you know, I spent over a year finishing out our 950 square foot basement, finishing it about a year and a half ago.  The basement had some great space, and it took a lot of work, both from myself, and with the help of many friends and family members.  That became the hardest part of the move…so many people helped create this great space and we only got to enjoy it for a short time.  The hardest thing for me to leave behind was my wine cellar, designed and built by my older brother.  It was an amazing room, with the coolest cellar door you’d ever see..

The night before we moved out, I had my older brother over to enjoy a nice bottle of wine in the cellar he built.  We opened a 2002 Truchard Vineyards Zinfandel, which proved to be a perfect way to close the room.  The Wine Gal made Parmesan chicken with pesto noodled, which paired great!  We just enjoyed the wine and food, and the room.  When we moved in, I owned 24 bottles of wine…all “special” bottles.  On the way out, I have a collection of over 300 bottles, and now, no cellar to put them into!  I know that there will be another great wine cellar in my future, even if it isn’t for a few years.  In the meantime, I left with a bit of a heavy heart.

If you’ve ever read this blog before, you know I’m a big fan of Purple Cow.  I stumbled upon them (quite literally) at the Seafood & Wine Festival in Portland about a year ago, and was so impressed with their 2006 Pinot Noir, and their wonderful, chewy, bold Tempranillos, that I left the event with a case of wine and a wine club membership!

In September, you may remember that I helped out at 2009 Harvest at their Vineyards.  Just tasting a few grapes from the vine was enough to get me excited about the final product.  Last night, Jon Armstrong (Owner, winemaker) and the P.C. crew cleared out the shop for the release party.  There was a great spread of food, a bonfire, and they brought out a couple barrels of future releases to try!

First was the 2008 Pinot Noir.  The nose was like roses and bright fruit: Pomegranate, huckleberry, cranberry.  It tasted of soft, slightly under-ripe raspberries, rose petals, and soft, evenly balanced tannin.

Then came the one I was really excited about, the 2007 Petite Syrah.  With juice from California, this Petite Syrah had been in the barrel for a while.  It poured the color of squid ink…a spectacular black purple.  I could tell it was one of the darker wines I’d seen in a while, even in the low, flickering firelight. 

It had a rich, blackberry jam nose, but the taste was heavy raisin & currant.  It initially had  a strong Port quality…thick & rich, heavy raisin, big, spicy fruit.

A few sips later, the raisin had softened, revealing big black fruit first, followed by soft, spicy currant.  I can not wait until it is released!  Purple Cow only has 1 barrel, so about 125 cases…just enough for the wine club and a few leftovers!  I recommend joining the wine club today!

Thank you to the entire Purple Cow family for a tasty, fun afternoon! Cheers!

This wine is a blend of 4 grapes:  Malbec (61%), Mourvedre (30%), Tempranillo (5%) and Pinot Noir (4%).  And only $24/bottle!

While the Malbec is prodiment on both the nose and the first taste, it is quickly overtaken by the Tannin and spice of the Mourvedre, which really give this wine a backbone.  Big bold fruit jump out of the glass with perfect rich spice, and enough Tannin to battle the acidity of the tomato based Cioppino.

Now, if you are interested, my Cioppino with Mustard Aoili recipe (and yes, this is MY recipe)

Cioppino (serves 3-4)

Seafood: 1lb large shrimp; 1 lb white fish (Tilapia, cod), 1/2 lb bay Scallops (Optional. when available: Mussels, Crab Legs, Salmon, Calamari)

1 Large onion, diced

1 Clove Garlic, crushed

4 Large Tomatoes, seeds removed, diced

2 Cans stewed or diced tomatoes

2 cups dry white wine

2 cups seafood stock (I used the broth from boiling the shrimp)

Optional, if desired: 1 Large Bell Pepper, diced

Seasoning: 2 bay leaves, Saffron, Red pepper flakes, Paprika, salt & pepper

Sautee onion & garlic in pan heavily coated in olive oil until opaque, add 1 cup white wine, reduce until 3/4 gone.

Add all tomatoes & bell pepper, stock, wine, bring to a boil.

While bringing to boil, add 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, 2 pinches Saffron (this makes the dish in my opinion), 1/2 tsp Paprika, bay leaves, S&P

When boiling, add UNCOOKED seafood (I pre-cook the shrimp to have easy de-shelling, and to create broth).  Simmer for 10-15 minutes until seafood is cooked.  Reduce to lowest heat until ready to serve.

Aoili:

4 TBSP Dijon Mustard

2 TBSP Mayonnaise

1 TBSP lemon juice

1 egg yolk

pinch of saffron

salt & pepper

Combine all ingredients into bowl, whisk until blended.  Drizzle over baked crisp french baugette slices

TO SERVE: Place 2-3 pieces of bread with aoili in bottom of serving bowl.  Scoop Cioppino over bread.  Garnish with 2-3 more bread pieces.  Drink with rich, bold red wine. Enjoy!

Yeah, we go way back!

If the name’s not familiar, he is the lead singer of the band Live, who happens to be far and away my favorite band.  Live recently announced that they are taking some time off after 20 years of making music together to do some solo and other projects.  While sad to Live fans, it seems reasonable.

As I’m watching the acoustic show, listening to songs I’ve heard literally thousands of times, I started thinking about how much influence music in general has on people’s lives, and how much of a soundtrack Live’s music has been in my life.  I’m sure I’ll miss a few profound moments, but I thought I’d share some of my favorite Live reflections, along with a few video clips I grabbed on my phone at the show.

It all started for me in late 1994, when I heard “I Alone” on KNDD, 107.7 Seattle.  I was in 9th grade.  My buddy Chris and I immediately dug the song, and, as a proud member of an order-by-mail CD club, I ordered the album, Throwing Copper, Live’s 2nd studio album.  (To be completely honest, the first couple times I heard the song I thought it was a new R.E.M. song!  Live acknowledges R.E.M. and U2 as major influences on their early music…pretty good taste if you ask me!)  At some point, I must have thought it important to save the invoice from the purchase of Throwing Copper, because I just stumbled upon it in a box of memorabilia!

A few months later, tickets went on sale to see Live at the George in George, WA.  5 buddies and I (a mad bunch 0f 16 year-olds) all bought our tickets without even worrying about how we were going to get to the concert.  Oh, to be 16 again!  So August rolls around, and I’ve had my drivers license for 2 whole weeks, so naturally I assume I’ll be able to drive mom & dad’s minivan full of guys 3 hours to a rock concert.  Mom & dad had other ideas.  So, mom volunteers to drive our motley crew out to the show, and sit in the car and knit while we were inside.  When we got there, she got to chatting with the lady at the turnstiles, and talked herself into the sold out concert for free!  We all set up on the hill, and after 2 terrible opening acts (PJ Harvey and Veruca Salt), the 6 of us bolted for the stage for Live.  For most of us, this was our first rock concert, and in 1995, it was the height of moshing and crowd surfing.  We pushed ourselves as close to the stage as we could and waited.  Finally the lights went down and the stage lights went up.  Already in awe of the beautiful setting (if you haven’t seen a show at the George, do so), we were livid about the concert we were about to see.  Feedback kicked in and the opening notes to “The Dam at Otter Creek” started playing.  The band made their way onstage to a fever frenzy of screaming fans, us included.  In retrospect, it must have been an amazing moment for the band…4 high school friends, now in their early 20′s playing to 15,000 people in one of the most incredible venues in the US.  I’m glad I was a part of it!

They played most of the 2 albums they had released to that point, their 1st, Mental Jewelry, and Throwing Copper.  My favorite moment came when they played “The Beauty of Gray” off of Mental Jewelry.   The songs builds for the first couple minutes, then, the second time through the chorus, Ed cracked a huge smile as he picked up the tempo, and I remember thinking about how much fun he must be having, and how much fun I was having too.  Here’s “The Beauty of Gray” from the solo show:

That concert would be the first of what has now been literally hundreds of concerts, and at last count, 15 Live shows!  1995 was the year Live really took off…they were Spin Magazine’s Artist of the year, had a huge #1 album, and so on.  In 1997, the week before their follow-up album, Secret Samadhi, was released, they were the musical guest on SNL.  I was working at KMart’s electronic department when Secret Samadhi came out, and we got our shipment a week before it was on sale…it was everything I could do not to walk out with a copy a week early!  Mind you, this is pre-internet…no advance song releases, bootlegs, etc.

A couple years later, in 1999, they released The Distance to Here and played Bumbershoot in Seattle as a headliner.  On their website they ran a contest for fans to write 10 interview questions they would ask the band, and the setting they’d have the interview in.  They gave the 50 best responses passes to a “secret warm-up show” the night before the Bumbershoot show.  Well, I won!  There was also to be a meet & greet opportunity, so I was out of my mind!  Well, 2 days prior to the show, I was contacted by a publicist and told that the venue had changed, and now was no longer all-ages, so I couldn’t attend.  I was 19, and pissed!  I went around and around with her, and finally she set me up with a backstage pass for the Bumbershoot concert instead.  So, just before Live took the stage, I bailed on my friends (I only had the 1 pass after all) and got ushered backstage.  They then took me to an elevated platform on the side of the stage where there were about 8 chairs.  The other side of the stage was the platform where the media sat…I was on the side with the band’s VIP’s: Wives girlfriends, family, etc.   It was amazing!  I was looking down on the show from above the stage.  The only odd part was that the people around me had heard the songs a million times, and here I am singing along, excited about hearing new songs, and generally worked up, sitting with a pretty mellow group of people who had no idea who on earth I was.

After the show, I was guided down to the trailer where I waited for the band to emerge.  One by one, they came out.  They all knew me by name without introductions, and were very apologetic about the mishap the night before.  When Chad Taylor, the guitarist came out, he said “Hi, you must be Graham…I’m Chad” followed by me saying “I know!  It’s good to meet you!”  He told me the story of meeting U2, one of his favorite bands.  He said when The Edge introduced himself, it went like this: “Hi, I’m The Edge”.  Chad: “No Shit!”  All in all, it was a great experience, as I had feared that these guys who I’d been listening to nearly every day for 5 years would be jerks.  Not in the slightest!  All were very wonderful to me, signing multiple autographs and hanging out for a while.

The next time they came through Seattle, I won the opportunity to be in-studio on the air at KNDD with Ed for the morning show.  4 people, myself included, got so sit in for the interview, ask some questions, and get pictures & autographs.  Later that year, a friend told me he had won tickets and backstage passes to a Live show, but it was in Aneheim, at the House of Blues.  So, naturally, we took a plane down to LA, rented a car, met up with Chris (previously mentioned in this essay) who now lives in CA, and my brother, also in LA, and went to the show.  That night, they played their version of John Lennon’s “Imagine”…still one of the greatest moments in my concert going lifetime:  one of my all-time favorite songs preformed by my favorite band.  Later in the show, something rather odd happened…Dennis Rodman, apparently a friend of the band, came out on stage during the encore and sang “I Alone” with them.  Needless to say…he’s a better basketball player than singer!  After the show, we were backstage, and at one point I turned and literally crashed into Dennis.  For the record, he’s HUGE!  I’m 6’1″, and my head was somewhere around his sternum!  He’s built like a tank!  On the way to our car after the meet & greet, we saw him wobbling to his ride with his arm around a groupie.

So, all told, I’ve seen Live in 5 states (WA, OR, CA, NY, NJ).  Last July, 2008, they played a show at Marymoore Park in Seattle with Collective Soul and Blues Traveler.  Once again, I managed to find myself with a backstage pass, so off we went.  Mind you, Lara’s 9 months pregnant at this point, and we were planning to go and return in one day.  (Side note:  I love you honey!).  The show was great, and we waited backstage with a bunch of aging fans (oh wait, I’m one of those too) who were mostly all hammered (not me, driving back to PDX w/pregnant wife).  Ed emerged from the trailer and stopped to talk to someone.  There were about 20 fans waiting for him.  He scanned the group and pushed his way through to us to talk to the pregnant lady, which drew plenty of glares from the others.  He was great, asking about gender, due date, and telling us about his 2 girls.  Then he was even cool enough to sign Lara’s belly!  What a guy!

I sit here writing in disbelief that I’ve been listening to their music for 1/2 of my life!  Over 15 years.  I can’t even venture a guess how many times I’ve heard “Lightning Crashes”.

Or my very favorite song “Pillar of Davidson”, an amazing song that was never a single on the radio.  As Lara and I planned our wedding, my only request was to have a Live song as our 1st dance.  We chose “Dance With You”.  Here’s that song from Eddie’s solo show:

Music is pretty important to me, there’s always a song in my head.  Every one of my favorite songs and albums come with very specific memories of my life at the time I first heard them.  “I Alone” was in the bonus room in my parents garage with Chris.  “Lakini’s Juice” watching SNL.  The Dolphin’s Cry in my car in a bank parking lot, not driving so I could listen closely.  “Heaven” in Time Square.    There are dozen’s more, each with a memory.  Thanks Live!  Eddie’s new song, Zion, gave me great hope that there is still wonderful music to come: