Erst Mach' Dein Sach Dann Trink und Lach!

Translate it...then live by it.

8/30 - Had a bit of a secret half-day off today (sorry, Ashlee) and drove up to Hendersonville for the afternoon for lunch, some brews and an afternoon matinee movie.

Best on-tap craft beer prices I have seen in a long while at Sander's Ferry Pizza and Pub in Hendersonville today and only Tennessee products too with a ton  of selection.   The place looks kind of dated (was something else in the past evidently) and it was dead for the lunch-hour, but I really enjoyed it and will be back when I can.  I had a couple of new-to-me pints starting dark with a solid Nut Hoarder Porter from Ole Shed Brewing over in Tullahoma, TN.  I finished light with an appealing Kolsch from Yee-Haw Brewing up in Johnson City, TN.

I don't post a lot of food pictures on this blog, but this is about the prettiest (and tastiest, and reasonably priced) salads I have seen or consumed in a while.  Did I mention I was very  impressed with all aspects of Sanders Ferry Pizza and Pub in Hendersonville?

 After lunch I drove a short distance to catch the historic true-story film, Operation Finale, at Streets of Indian Lake Theaters.  It was very good and interesting.  I killed a little more time at Growler USA nearby with a few shorty 5-ouncers including the rather bland Amra Mango IPA from DESTIHL Brewery (IL), a nice kolsch from Carolina Brewery (NC) called Sky Blue, and finally a much better and heavily- hopped Deadhead IPA Series: Soundboard also from DESTIHL Brewery.

9/1 - I spent most of the day at Belcourt Theater today as did actor, Ethan Hawke, who introduced a retro short film and a retro full-length film this afternoon, and then had his own new  film that he directed shown later tonight and then was around afterwards for a Q and A session along with a couple of the stars of the movie.  My friends, Danny and Wayne, met me for lunch around the corner  from the theater at Hopdoddy where I had a Chicken Scratch pilsner (photo above) from Little Harpeth Brewing here in Nashville.  I have had this one before, but never checked it in on UNTAPPD.  The, ahem, "nice view" with lunch was the best thing I saw this afternoon as the short film was just OK at best, and the retro-film, Badlands was just awful.  How is this considered a classic??  Before the films, Danny and I also stopped by Belcourt Taps across the street from the theater and I had a darn good Swell Rider Tangerine Session Ale from D9 Brewing (NC).

With some time to kill between films and not wanting to lose my sweet (and free) parking space in the Belcourt lot, I decided to Uber over to the new Jackalope Brewing facility known as The Ranch in the nearby Wedgewood area.    These are some sweet new digs and brewing facility!  I am glad to see this new addition since their original  8th Avenue location is pretty small and always crowded.  As you can see in the photo above, they have a lot of choices on tap at The Ranch.  I started with the Koko's Kitten stout that was very solid.  I closed my tab with an excellent Willapus Wallapus double IPA.  I will definitely be back here for more visits! 

The day was saved with some good beer throughout the day and an excellent film tonight called Blaze, a biopic of the unknown, underappreciated and sadly, late, Texas outlaw country singer-songwriter, Blaze Foley.  After the film, there was a Q and A session with (L to R) musician/actor, Charlie Sexton, who played legendary singer/songwriter and friend of Foley's, Townes Van Zant, in the film;  musician/actor, Ben Dickey, who played the title role of Foley; and actor/director, Ethan Hawke. Both performances were outstanding and Hawke's direction was spot-on.

9/2 - Happy Labor Day Weekend!  I spent the rest of the holiday weekend hanging around the pool with the family with some great temps and some good beer thanks to a variety six-pack I got at Lebanon Wine and Spirits today.  I started with a can of tasty Key Lime Cougar Bait, a blonde ale from  Country Boy Brewing (KY) with a subtle Key West influence to try and hang on to summer a little longer.  The rest of the six-pack pretty much embraced the upcoming autumn season, however.  I had a can of the decent Chronicles marzen lager from Black Abbey Brewing here in Nashville, and finished off the day with a nice can of Oktoberfest marzen lager from Left Hand Brewing (CO).

9/3 - The three-day weekend continued today at the pool and I continued on my march toward autumn with an excellent bottle of Kentucky Pumpkin Barrel Ale from Alltech Lexington (KY) Brewing.  Next up was a decent Shiner Oktoberfest (2018) marzen lager from Spoetzl Brewery (TX).  I concluded with a solid Post Road Pumpkin Ale from Brooklyn (NY) Brewery.

9/5 - I went and saw the new social-media driven film, Searching, tonight at Opry Mills thanks to MoviePass.  It was well done and a pretty good story.  Beforehand, I had dinner (curry wurst!) and a couple of German beers near the theaters at the Bavarian Bierhaus.

Despite my heritage, German beers just aren't my favorite, so I guess it's pretty sad I am only at Level 3 on UNTAPPD check-ins with them.  Tonight I had the Spaten Munchen/MunchnerHell/Premium Lager and the Hofbrau Original lager.  They were both decent, but here's the problem...they tasted exactly the same!  How is there any originality in German beer when they pretty much all taste the same?  It's good ol' American craft beer for me, please.

9/7-  We took the quick kayak trip over to the Nickajack Lake Bat Cave this evening and the weather was perfect and the bats were many.  Afterwards in Chattanooga we had a late bite to eat and some adult beverages at  The Flying Squirrel Bar which has a pretty good beer list.   There were out of a few that I ordered (of course), so I settled for a decent 'Sup kolsch from Heaven and Ale Brewing in Chattanooga; a light but tasty Cali Creamin On Nitro blonde ale from Mother Earth Brewing (CA) and downright awful gluten-free Pale Ale from Omission Beer (OR)...I didn't even finish it.

9/8 - We were in Chattanooga this weekend for the brand new Moon River Music Festival which was great. On the way in today I even got to meet James Trimble, lead singer for The Dirty Guv'Nahs who play tomorrow night!!  James really liked my custom UT jersey.  There was good beer to be had at the festival and all around on the North Shore.  We walked through Brewhaus to get Coolidge Park where the festival was and they had beer stations throughout.  I had a solid Honky Hefe from Mayday Brewing over in Murfreesboro and a better-that-I-was-expecting Watermelon Blonde ale from Hutton and Smith Brewing here in town.

The festival itself had an impressive list of craft beers to choose from too.  I have already had several of their offerings, but tried the darn good Mr. Fantasy English summer ale from Blackberry Farm Brewery over in Walland, TN.  Somehow this beer was not on UNTAPPD so I got the privilege of adding it to the app.  Back at the Brewhaus as we dodged some rain, I finished the day with a pretty good Freak Show pilsner from Jig Head Brewing up in Cookeville.

9/11 - I met my friends, Danny, Craig and Alison, this evening at M.L. Rose Craft Beer and Burgers for dinner before heading to the USA vs. Mexico Friendly International Soccer Match at Nissan Stadium in downtown Nashville.  With my meal I had a decent  Bubble Farm IPA from Clown Shoes Brewing (MA)  and a tasty Scottish ale called The Fulkin from Half-Batch Brewing up in Hendersonville, TN.

Our buddy, Wayne, joined us at the stadium, and after a scoreless first half with a couple of good saves right in front of us from our goalkeeper, the very young USMNT finally got on the board with a score right in front of us in the second half and hung on for the 1-0 victory.  It was a fun atmosphere with 40,000+ in attendance. We sat near the rowdy American Outlaws fan zone behind the southern goal, plus a large, raucous Mexican contingent throughout the stadium.  The weather was perfect with no humidity and fall-like temps.  I even found a new beer at the stadium for the game.  The stove-pipe can of Sumpin' Easy pale wheat ale from Lagunitas Brewing (CA) went down smooth and easy.

9/13 - My pal, Wayne, and I met in Hendersonville  at the Streets of Indian Lake Theaters for opening night of The Predator in IMAX, a continuation of the Arnold Schwarzenegger 1980's sci-fi classic.  It was campy, violent, gory and funny.  Just like the classic.  Beforehand, I had a light dinner and a few brews down the way at Growler USA including an OK Eight Point IPA from Devils Backbone Brewing (VA), and a half-pint  of the tasty IPA from TrimTab Brewing in Birmingham, AL, who are new to this distribution area.  Welcome, fine Bama beer makers!! 

9/15 - We took a fun little overnight weekend trip up north to eastern and central Kentucky along some of the famous Bourbon Trail  that we haven't visited before, and although the focus was on the whiskey they are famous for in these parts, I was able to scavenge a few new-to-me-beers along the way as well.

The blue skies of the Bluegrass State of CAN-tucky! 

I was the DD most of the way up toward Frankfort, Kentucky, but my pal, Charly, drove the last short leg after I found a six pack of  Deliberation Amber Ale  from West Sixth Brewing  in Lexington  at a gas station stop.  It was smooth and refreshing and a great way to start the trip for me.

After a great, free (and a little spooky) ghost tour at Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, we had time to zip up the road a few miles to the West Sixth Brewing Farm.  While their beer is made over in nearby Lexington, this working farm here in Frankfort has a tasting room.  I had to add my selection to UNTAPPD since it was brand new.  The Fresh Hoptober marzen was terrific and  made with Cascade and Chinook hops grown right here on the farm.  My friend, Charly, also let me have a few sips of his Cerveza lager that was pretty good also.  Ashlee let me partake in her solid Transylvania Tripel also.  It was a beautiful night out under a billion stars sipping suds.  Don't get much better.

9/16 - We moved westward today to Bardstown to check out the annual Bourbon Festival which was great.  They even had beer and I had two new brews from Alltech Lexington Brewing including the tasty Kentucky Peach Barrel Wheat Ale and the smooth as silk Kentucky Vanilla Barrel Cream Ale.  

I had this GIANT pork chop sandwich at the Bourbon Festival from Hog Run BBQ here in Bardstown.  No, that is not a slider bun, it's a regular-sized hamburger bun!  Somehow, I was able to eat dinner (albeit just an appetizer) a few hours later down in Bowling Green when we stopped at White Squirrel Brewing.  With my light dinner I had their very good Nut Brown English ale.

9/18 - Thanks to my friend, Charly, for giving one of his Budweiser Reserve Copper Lagers from a six-pack he bought.  This one is aged in Jim Beam barrel staves and I have to admit was pretty good (beautiful copper color too).  I enjoyed it in the pool this afternoon after work.  It was a nice prologue brew from our recent trip to the Bourbon Trail.

9/19 -  I had another sorta secret day off today.  After actually attending an early safety meeting at work, I headed out for a day of leisure as Ashlee worked (sorry, babe).  After a leisurely breakfast at Waffle House down in Murfreesboro, I headed east over to Cannon County to scout out a waterfall on private property that no one is living on currently near Woodbury called Rainbow Falls.  I found the property it was supposed to be on, and even walked to the woods line but never heard any water running or falling.  More research is necessary for this one I guess. 
Next, I headed north to Hendersonville to catch an early afternoon showing of White Boy Rick at The Streets of Indian Lake Theaters.   I thought it was a well done film and an interesting story. I had a couple of cold ones after the flick a few doors down at Growler USA before heading home.  I started with a pint of the decent Bicycle Kick kolsch from New Belgium Brewing (CO).  I switched to half-pints with a drive ahead of me and had the interesting and tasty Societe/Stone The Skedaddler IPA, a collaboration from Societe Brewing and my all time fave, Stone Brewing (both in CA).  It was almost like a cask-conditioned ale with very little carbonation.   I finished with a solid Revelator Pale Ale from TrimTab Brewing (AL).  

A fun and unscheduled little stop today on the way to breakfast today was a quick walk along the new North Murfreesboro Greenway along the East Fork of the Stones River.  Gotta bring Ashlee back here for a longer visit!

It was Lebanon Poker Night for me again.  I have had a few months off from this since I am splitting my seat this year with another guy named, Derek, and he has played (pretty well) the last couple months for us.  I got a variety 4-pack from Lebanon Wine and Spirits to take with me for the night, but wound up only having one (a pretty good Bonito blonde ale from Ballast Point Brewing [CA]) when my pal, Quinton, brought in a huge cooler of craft beers for all of us to enjoy.  What a guy!  Thanks, Q!  I had a pint can of the excellent Loopulus double IPA from Creature Comforts Brewing (Athens, GA) and finished the night with another pint can of the really tasty Waffle Talk imperial stout from Bearded Iris Brewing here in Nashville.   My signature hand of pocket threes didn't pop up tonight, but I did deal this beauty of a flop shown above.  I went on to place third; chopped a bit of the prize pool; and pushed the Rob/Derek Team up to within one point of first place for the year!!

9/20 - I had the second beer of my variety four pack left over from poker last night in the pool this evening after work.  It was a solid can of Oktoberfest Gemutlichkeit marzen from Wiseacre Brewing over in Memphis.  Can't believe  I am only to Level 4 for Oktoberfest beers on UNTAPPD....gotta change that!  

9/22- I gotta give it up for this fairly new restaurant in the Germantown section of Nashville called 5th and Taylor.  We went  here with a co-worker of Ashlee's who was in town, and besides the food being pretty darn good, they have one of THE BEST beer menus I have ever seen in a restaurant.  Not only a ton of local brews on tap,  but an even longer list of cans and bottles of unique libations.  I started with a can of fair-to-middlin' Mango Even Keel session IPA from Ballast Point Brewing (CA).  Next up was a draft of  the crispy and tasty German Pils from Smith and Lentz Brewing here in town.  I finished the meal with a draft Prost! marzen from Little Harpeth Brewing also here in town.

9/23 - What a Sunday fun day!  I started the day watching a scraped-out  9-6 win for the Titans on the road in Jacksonville on TV to take an early lead in the AFC South.  I had one of my gift beers from Quinton from the other night at poker to celebrate the win.  The super-dank and delicious pint can of Boss Tweed NE DIPA from Old Nation Brewing (MI) was a perfect toast.   We ended the day in Nashville at the SOLD OUT Maroon 5 concert at Bridgestone Arena.  They have been a guilty pleasure of mine for many years and they even played one of my favorite (lesser known) songs recorded as a solo by Adam Levine called "Lost Stars."  I found a nice pint can of Longboard Island Lager from Kona Brewing (HI) to enjoy during the show that I know I have had before but never checked in on UNTAPPD.  

9/24 - My beer-loving pal, Nate, won a contest recently with BrewDog Brewing in Columbus, OH, where they chose his suggestion for a new beer to brew.  The 2018 Renegade Release is a wee heavy Scotch Ale that was peat smoked with vanilla and I thought it was very good.   Nate traveled up to Columbus this weekend to try it out and was generous enough to bring some back for a tasting here in town tonight  at New Heights Brewing Company in Nashville along with a few more Brew Dog products.   I also got a taste of Brew Dog's Lost Lager pilsner that was OK, their very good Native Son double IPA and their surprisingly good (to me) Homicidal Puppet Helpdesk barleywine.    I couldn't leave New Heights out since they were kind enough to host a tasting of another brewery's products:  I had their juicy and pleasant Et Tu Brute IPA and their decent Slancha VA Scottish Ale that I thought tasted more like a German Octoberfest-style marzen.  

9/26 - I had another day off  today (this time legit) so I headed over to check out the noon-time Preds practice at the Centennial Sportsplex near Vanderbilt.  While not as new at the Ford Ice Center over in Antioch, it's still a pretty impressive facility.  That's the "Big Blue Wall of Defense" as I like to call them pictured above.  Afterwards, I had lunch and some half pints of beer at Homegrown Taproom.  I started with the super juicy and delicious Braxton Labs New England IPA #002 from Braxton Brewing (KY), then the equally good Hoponius Union India pale lager from Jack's Abby Craft Lagers ((MA) and finished with a nice Dorfbier dunkel lager from Urban Chestnut Brewing (St. Louis).  Next up was a quick and easy Global Entry interview over by the airport to give Ashlee and I easier airport access here and abroad for the next five years.

I celebrated my successful Global Entry interview and the rest of my day off with a stop on the way home at the new Catch 22 Gastropub in Mt. Juliet.  I had three good beers here (last one was 3% ABV at least) and as it indicates on the "big board" there I checked them in on UNTAPPD.  First up was the boozy and heavy Canadian Breakfast Stout (CBS) from Founders Brewing (MI), the Super Cluster IPA from Lagunitas Brewing (CA) and the  alcohol-weak, but tasty, Cheeky Pete Ordinary Bitter from Half Batch Brewing up the road in Hendersonville, TN.

9/29 - I headed down to Chattanooga today via Hwy. 111 through Sparta and stopped at the historic and interesting Mt. Gilead Graveyard to check out these rate "tent graves."  These here are circa mid-1800's and evidently this was a regional thing at that time to keep grazing cattle off of the tops of graves.  

After a day of family obligations in Chattanooga, it was nice to slip off a mile or so for a few late-night brews at Heaven and Ale Brewing.  All three were tasty with the Hop Kush IPA and its juicy flavor being my favorite.  The Mud Shark is an English brown ale. The Meditation Saison Aged in Peach Brandy Barrels was a little underwhelming, but still  quite palatable.