Shanks For The Memories.

Our friend Martin is shipping off to Nepal this week. Before embarking upon adventures fueled by rice and dehydrated peas, he had one last request: German beer and a massive pork shank. Well, you can see why we love this man! Neil and I immediately arranged to meet at the one place certain to fulfill this request in proper style: The Old Heidelberg Restaurant in Bethel, CT. If you are not familiar with the pork shank at the O.H., well, you should be. It is a heroically proportioned, lovely, tender piece of meat, encased in perfectly crispy brown skin. Generally, when a patron actually manages to finish this amount of pork, they are greeted with an appreciable amount of dismay. You then have the added esteem of being remembered the next time you walk in as "the guy (or gal) who actually finished the shank". Enviously, we watched while Martin consumed his epic hunk of pork at a steady and confident pace. He paused only to flash a suspicious eye at the waitress if she came too close to his plate or to sip on his mammoth stein of beer. Did I mention the OH also has mammoth steins of delicious German beer?? Well they do! A true Hops and Chops hangout! In the end, only a few meager bones were left and Martin actually reviewed the dessert plate with some serious interest. Bravo, a fine performance! We are looking forward to Martin's book about his treks in Nepal sometime next year. Check out his new website for more info. Safe travels Martin! Call us when you get back for more pork and beer!

Westvleteren- The True "King of Beers"

If you are a beer snob, Westvleteren beer is the stuff of legends. These beers, made by the Vleteren Monks, have been named some of the best beers in the world by all sorts of beer gurus. And what really sends all of us beer nerds into frenzies is the fact that they are nearly impossible to procure. You literally, have to go to the Abbey of St. Sixtus gates in Ypres, Belgium where this is made and wait in line to get your greedy little mits on this stuff. This is because this beer is made by monks who don't care if people are clamoring to get more of it. They make enough beer to support their monastery, period. These guys are the ultimate in quality control. They make beers of epic complexity and quality- largely due to the fact that they simply refuse to alter their brewing process to make more beer, faster. How novel! They only sell their beer at the monastery gates and across the street in the cafe. What's more, this beer is never advertised and never exported- at least not by them. If it was up to the monks, this beer would never make it out of Belgium. Somehow- I can only assume by some divine miracle- a bottle appeared in our beer cellar. I just hope the monks aren't too upset. I hope they understand my need for delicious beer sometimes leads me into temptation. I realize you can order contraband cases of this stuff through online beer warehouses and pay big $$ for it. But I believe that this would be disrespectful, not to mention being condemned to hell for all eternity for stealing from those nice beer brewing monks. But back to the miracle beer, which we managed to cellar for a year. For the purpose of scientific tasting studies and the overall betterment of mankind- I'll have you know! The Westvleteren 8 and the 12 are both known for cellaring well, although the 12 is known for cellaring with improved results for up to 10 years! Lord knows what kind of sick, hoarding, madman managed to hold onto a case of Westvleteren beer for that long. We tried the Westvleteren 8, a year ago, and it was spectacular- but dare I say it- the flavor and sweetness were almost too much. A year later it is still a dark, fresh, finely carbonated beer with a tight and lofty head. The flavor has evened out a bit though, subtle hints of licorice, and a glorious, grapey aroma, but only the slightest sweetness. The finish was amazingly crisp and dry, belying it's relatively high alcohol content and dark color. Needless to say, it left us panting for more. It is worth noting, that although this is undoubtedly a wonderful beer, there are so many others that can be enjoyed without traveling to Belgium or spending a huge amounts of money. St. Bernardus, for instance, did all of the brewing for Wesvleteren for many years and their St. Bernardus 12 in the 750ml bottle is a pretty tasty relative of the Westvleteren 12.

For The "Fighting Irish"

For all those militant irish football hooligans out there, take this survey to find out how many five-year-olds you can take in a fight.

http://www.howmanyfiveyearoldscouldyoutakeinafight.com/

I can take 26, how about you?

The Polack Who Stole St. Patty's Day

Well, this is supposed to be a big day for the world of meat and beer. I should be happy, I know. The only problem is that although St. Patrick's Day is the quintessential day for imbibing beer and consuming vast quantities of corned beef- all of which I am usually extremely grateful for- today I am feeling strangely apathetic. Maybe it's because I'm Polish and secretly jealous that there isn't a national Polish-American day where everyone eats sausage and pierogi and knocks back Okocim instead of Guinness. Martha Stewart is Polish after all. You would think she would be able to orchestrate a pretty good party for the rest of us Polacks. But, perhaps my problem is just the green beer. Green beer is not an Irish invention. No, only an American would drink green beer. Why? Well, if we drink Coors, Miller and the like, so we're not exactly concerned about the flavor of our beer. So why then would we be interested in the color of our beer either? Sadly, green beer is a just another reminder that beer, for many, is just a cheep means to a not-so-glorious end.

I will admit, however, that the saving grace of St. Patty's is Guinness. First of all, it's dark color prevents people from turning it green. But, secondly, I have always had a fondness for this beer. It is the shining star on the mediocre tap line up found in most bars around the country. Unimaginative and ubiquitous perhaps, but it never disappoints. If poured well, it has a nice creamy head, and pleasingly low carbonation. It is relatively light bodied and high in flavor. Guinness is, as Neil puts it "a gateway beer". So, I console myself with the thought that on St. Patty's day there are silly lager-swilling people all over the U.S. ordering a halfway decent beer for a change. They are having a fleeting brush with a beer that possesses actual character. Perhaps, every St. Patrick's day a few more folks order a Guinness and think, "Damn' this is good! I wonder what other beers have flavor? " This thought warms my cold, bitter, little Eastern European heart.

Kraut Sunday

Some may think this is Palm Sunday but I beg to differ. It's actually "Kraut Sunday". You may say, how can sauerkraut top Jesus Christ? Well, let's take a look at how lowly old kraut has nourished us over the centuries. In China, it kept the laborers who built the Great Wall from starving. Who could have guessed that one of the only man-made monuments you can see from space was fueled by fermented cabbage? In the Hundred Years War in Europe the only thing that assured victory was whether or not either side had an ample supply of sauerkraut. In the U.S. civil war, barrels of kraut were commonly seized to nourish troops. Sauerkraut was also on a list of patriotic foods to make at home during World War II.

Most importantly, sauerkraut is highly prized in eastern European cultures for it's digestive properties. Made in the late fall and early winter, fermented cabbage's beneficial enzymes supposedly help the digestion of heavy winter diets laden with sausage and smoked meats. Apparently, they really take this point to heart. We recently overheard our Slovak waitress loudly chastising her co-worker for eating sausages at lunch without kraut.

Not surprisingly, the sauerkraut you get in stores lacks digestive enzymes. The high heat canning process kills all the good cooties. This is probably what inspired my sausage-loving German husband to spend his day off making homemade sauerkraut. Like many oldie timey foods, I assumed that there was some sort of magic that goes into making it. Amazingly, it's pretty easy. Basically, all you do is slice up some cabbage, salt it, and smash the crap out of it with a potato masher (or whatever you have available). Then let it ferment, covered, for about 3 weeks at 60-70 degrees and hope like hell that your entire house doesn't smell like rotten cabbage! I'll report later on how it turns out! Here's a simple recipe if you're interested: http://www.kitchengardeners.org/sauerkraut.html

BAR is Back!

It was with high hopes on thursday night that we slid into a stall at the Bru Room @ Bar in New Haven. For those unfamiliar with the establishment, Bar features a modest selection of micro brews (toasted blonde, amBar ale, damn' good stout, and pale ale) and dynamite wood oven fired pizzas. We were breaking a self-imposed boycott after we ordered beers here a while back that were served out of really nasty septic lines. There aren't that many micro-brew establishments in CT, so it hurt us to take this place off our list of regular haunts. But the other day, we were tipped off that the management recently spent some serious $$ to replace their lines and tap equipment. So, we ordered their new and improved toasted blonde and took a big whiff. Clean and fresh! Hussah! Then the 1st sip: crisp, mild, with a very toasty caramel finish. Light on carbonation, alcohol, and on calories (107 calories to be exact!) Not the kind of beer that makes the earth move, but it was a lovely accompaniment our tasty 'roni and 'shroom pizza. Our confidence is reestablished! I can't wait to go back. It might be a while though, my husband is still recovering from the noxious pizza burps I had for the rest of the evening.

Spring = Meat

I hobbled outside on my crutches and found, surprisingly, a rare nice day in early New England spring. And guess what? Spring actually sprung and here are the crocuses to prove it! Friends, this can only mean one thing: almost time to grill some meat! Here's a cheater recipe for smokey grilled ribs:

1 or 2 frozen racks of pork ribs (whatever you prefer- st. lois style, baby back, or spare ribs) We prefer spare ribs because they're relatively cheap, meaty, and caveman-like.

If you want to smoke your ribs: pre-soak some wood chips (hickory, fruit wood etc.) in water overnight. On grilling day wrap the chips in tin, poke holes on the top of the packet and place over the flame side of your grill. You can totally skip this if you feel like it's too much trouble the ribs will come out fine regardless. I know this is totally un-gourmet, but sometimes Neil and I forget about soaking chips and just find a damp chunk of hickory lying around in our wood pile and toss it on the grill for good measure. If you opt for this method, just check in with a spray bottle full of water from time to time and make sure the log isn't burning. Smoldering = good, inferno = fire department!

1st, heat up the grill. We have a gas grill with 3 burners so we turn only one burner on medium heat to maintain a temp of about 300-325 degrees. You could do the same with a charcoal grill- heat up the coals and then when they are ready, move the fire to one side, keeping in mind that half way through your cooking, you will have to heat up some more coals to supplement your first batch.

Mix together in a small bowl: 1/2 Cup brown Sugar, 2 tsp. summer savory or thyme, 2 cloves fresh crushed garlic, 1 Tb. good quality sweet paprika ( or smoked paprika if you can find it), 1/8 tsp. cloves, 1 cup Dijon mustard, 1 tsp. cayenne pepper, or more to taste, 1 Tb. good quality chili powder, 1 tsp. dry mustard. This should make a thick paste.

Slather paste mixture on frozen ribs. Wrap thoroughly in tin to avoid leakage and place meat side up, on the non-flame (or coal) side of the grill. Put top down on grill and walk away! Come back in a 2-3 hours to turn ribs and check temp. Walk away again. In about another two hours your ribs should be pretty tender and falling off the bone. At this point, unwrap them and throw them back on the grill. Turn up the heat to brown lightly on both sides. If you like your ribs saucy, top with your favorite barbecue sauce and then brown and serve. Kick back and enjoy with the quintessential beer of summer: Schneider's Wiesen Edel-Weisse

Keg Kicked! Mom to Blame!

Well, we thought a 20 liter keg would last a month on average. And then, Mom came to visit. You wouldn't know she was so thirsty from her innocent exterior. She's always smiling innocently and saying things like "I just love these fancy beers!" but in reality she's guzzling the stuff when your back is turned. To add insult to injury, she totally whipped my butt in cribbage! Parents! All joking aside, we can't entirely blame it on Mom that our keg of La Chouffe has come to it's sad, yeasty end. It was a very enjoyable beer on tap- quite dry and easy to pair with food. It had subtle flavors of coriander and citrus peel and a pleasing hint of hoppy bitterness in the finish. I think it's perhaps slightly hoppier in the keg than in the bottle. Now, we just have to decide how to fill the void in the cooler until the maibock gets here. Also, if you are wondering just how fast you would go through 20 liters of beer, here's our stats: at a rate of one or two beers a piece, per night, (factoring in for dinner guests, or a thirsty Mom), 20 liters lasts about 3 weeks!