Thank BREW very much!

 

2/1 - I joined the new (and free) Tennessee Ale Trial program today that includes over 60 craft breweries throughout our great state.   Can't wait to fill up those redemptions!! 

I won a small dollar crazy pineapple tournament tonight on Global Poker too.  It was vs. 11 others and gave me a 600% profit.  

2/2 - I attended the opening night of the new creeper film from M. Night Shyamalan, Knock at the Cabin, at The Roxy Theaters (recliners!!) here in town with my pal, Toney.  Beforehand, we had dinner at Tenn Lakes Brewing along with Ashlee where I had their new collaboration with a local homebrewer group called WilCo Brewery, the nice and hoppy West Main IPA.   The film was decent.  Definitely not my favorite MNS film, but definitely not his worst either. 

2/5 - Part of our Sunday Fun Day today was a stop at the new-to-us East Nashville location of Tailgate Brewing.   While here I had their very nice NEIPA called Trees: Supergrass Hazy IPA; a couple sips of Ashlee's rich but tasty Dough: Blueberry Pancakes White Stout; and I finished with their excellent OFBFB: English Brown Porter. 

Beforehand, I had a draft pint of the smooth Navel Gazer Specialty Batch stout from New Heights Brewing here in Nashville along with some excellent tacos at Condado in the fun Capitol View area of downtown (free parking!). 

2/6 - The weather was nice enough today for a walk up to Cedar City Brewing for Mug Club Happy Hour this afternoon to try their new small batch Peach Berliner Weisse which was pretty good and not sour at all.  I met up with my friends, Curtis and Kate, as well and then Ashlee joined us for dinner as well. They are really "kegging out" the beer here now, and there were actually two other new-to-me brews on tap and I enjoyed both with dinner.  Plus, I was able to add them in on UNTAPPD. Their CDR CTY Dunkel was full of roasted malt and very light.  And their CDR CTY American Dry Stout was flavorful and light as well. 

2/8 - Cumberland U Baseball is back!  I stopped by and watched a little hardball today on an afternoon walk to The Cedar Tap.  While there I had a pint of the very good Tiny Fest Amber Lager from The Black Abbey Brewing here in Nashville.  I finished with the very tasty NEIPA from East Nashville Beer Works called Tropical Daydream. 
 

2/10 - I headed out on a solo long-weekend trip out to West Tennesse today with three major goals: First, to see the NBA Southwest Division Leading Memphis Grizzles play tonight. Second, to see one of my favorite bands, Lucero, play a show at a brewery in Jackson, TN. And third, to play in a poker tournament in Tunica.  I accomplished all three and had some great craft beer along the way as well. 

I got a great price on a room at the pretty nice La Quinta by Wyndam Hotel in downtown Memphis within walking distance to The FedEx Forum and Beale Street.  It was also walking distance to High Cotton Brewing where I had a couple pre-game libations.  First up was their tropical and solid River King IPA 2022.  I finished up with their Cosmic Red Ale which was excellent.  I really appreciated the $5 pints on a Friday night with the Grizzlies in town just up the road.  Salute!! 

Like I mentioned before, the Grizz are the SW Division leaders in the NBA right now despite a recent losing streak.  It's been a while since I've been here since they don't have as many Duke players as they used to, but damn if that Ja Morant ain't amazing!  

I had a great front row seat in the upper level and settled in with some Slim and Husky's Pizza and a pint can of the Tiny Bomb 2022 Czech pilsner from Wiseacre Brewing right here in Memphis.  The Grizzlies handled the Minnesota Timberwolves fairly easily, pulling away in the fourth quarter with a 128-107 win.  Morant put up 32 points in a helluva show.  My Duke brother, Tyus Jones, only had 6 points off the bench and a couple of assists.  I was also excited to hear the Grizzlies have recently required another Duke alum, Luke Kenard, who will be with the team in the next game! 
It was a fun night and a fun atmosphere here with the excellent U of Arkansas-Pine Bluff marching band performing at half-time.  

I did a little bit of Beale Street after the game, but only because I spied a new-to-me location of Ghost River Brewing on the FedEx Forum end on the way to the game.  It was thankfully not very busy (thankful for me, not them, I guess) and I got a seat at the bar where I started with their surprisingly good English bitter called ESBeale (clever name!).   I finished with an even more delightful Dom's Red Irish ale that was barrel-aged six months in Old Dominion Whiskey barrels.  I headed on back to the room after that just to be on the solo safe side. 

2/11 - I had most of the day in Memphis before heading back east a skosh to see Lucero at Hub City Brewing in Jackson, TN, tonight.  So, I slept in a little and then headed over to the new-to-me Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World in the old Pyramid facility on the banks of the Mississippi River. I've never been in this cool facility even before it was this store.  I am sure glad they were able to do something with it after the Grizzlies moved to the FedEx Forum. 

I didn't do any shopping really, but I did pay to go up in the tallest free-standing elevator in the world to The Lookout at The Pyramid since it was a pretty nice day for a look at Memphis from up high.  There's also a cool narration as you ride up by pro fisherman (and UT fan) Bill Dance about how this place came to be over a fishing bet.   

It's a great view up top and Memphis really is a pretty cool town. 

Time for some beer!  I headed over to Grind City Brewing next for a first-time visit.  It's set up in an old furniture manufacturing facility and they have repurposed a lot of the wood from furniture molds and such into tables, chairs and wall decor.  And their beer is great!  I started with their unique and tasty I Thought I Saison and finished with their Nightman dark lager that was excellent. 

Thanks to my new Tennessee Ale Trail app for letting me know that Soul and Spirits Brewing was just around the corner as well.  That's my rental car - a very nice Nissan Sentra with leather seats and a sunroof - parked out front that I got for a great weekend price from the local Hertz place here in Lebanon.  This was my first time visiting here as well, and I was impressed.  

I've had some great beer on this trip so far, but Soul and Spirits is my favorite brewery so far.  Man, their beer is outstanding and incredibly unique!  I even bought two variety four-packs to bring home and to share with some of my beer buddies.  Pictured above was my first pint at the brewery, the outstanding Mane in Black (all their beers are named after blues songs, by the way, so cool) English porter on nitro.  I finished with their equally amazing cask-conditioned session ruby bitter ale called Fallen in Love.  I would have loved to sample more here, but I had a long drive ahead of me. But I will be back!!  It's official:  Memphis is a great craft beer town!! 

I made a quick stop on my way east at the also new-to-me Hook Point Brewing in Collierville.  This Air Force themed brewery can't even serve pints yet at this location yet, but I got a sample of their Darken Ship black IPA that was tasty enough for me to buy a pint crowler to take home for later.  

I got to Jackson, TN, just in time to check into my hotel, the rather new Springhill Suites by Marriott at another nice price, before heading over to Hub City Brewing for the concert (free parking!).  Lucero had two great openers including the soulful-voiced Tyler Goodson, and the quite enjoyable, Justin Wells (photo above) who I really liked.  He reminds me of a combination of a young Steve Earle (with a sense of humor) and my dearly missed pal, Brian Griffith (RIP, brother).  With Tyler's set I drank their nice red ale called the Holler Back.  With Justin's set I enjoyed their Irish dry stout called Half Langered (photo above as well).  Great music at a solid craft brewery...this must be heaven!  I even got to meet both openers briefly as they hung out in the crowd for the headliners show.  

Lucero just tore it up tonight.  They had a large enthusiastic crowd as they plowed through great song after great song including some new ones from their new album being released later this month (in Nashville - I may have to be there!).   

I mean, Lucero brought it!!!   Lead singer, Ben Nichols, is just amazing as is the entire band.  With their hour and a half headlining set I had Hub City's very good coffee blonde ale called Golden Hour.  I stopped with three beers since I still had a 6-mile trek back to the hotel.  

2/12 - I really had some great rooms at great prices on this trip.  Thanks, Booking.com.  I didn't really want to leave my large, comfy room in Jackson (photo above) this morning, but I had to get to Tunica by noon to play in the better of the two daily tournaments offered today.  My room in Tunica at the Horseshoe Casino was great too.  It was my first time staying at any of the casinos there and it was convenient and comfortable. 

Bingo!!  I made $400+ profit from a final table 6-way chop vs. 43 others today at the Horsehoe's Sunday noon daily tournament with a decent structure and a $3K guarantee.  I even had a craft beer during play as they were serving complimentary Ghost River Gold ale.  Cheers! 

I planned on playing the smaller buy-in (and weaker structure) tournament at 7 PM also but got deep in an online tournament in my room on Global Poker and missed the start of it.  Oh well!  I enjoyed relaxing in my room and watching The Super Bowl with really no rooting interest in it.  I didn't cash in the bigger online tournament I was playing because I made a big mistake and ran into aces just before the money, but I did get second in a small dollar tourney later on in the evening.  

2/13 - The drive back from Tunica was early since I was technically working today.  It went smooth and uneventful, and I was back home by noon to drop my rental car.  A great little trip that I would be happy to repeat any time I can! 

2/14 - We celebrated Valentine's Day with a Fitz and the Tantrums show at Brooklyn Bowl in Nashville.  Our view from the club level was pretty good and the place was packed.  On the way to dinner at Jane's Hideaway in East Nashville, I enjoyed my pint crowler of the very light and smooth Darken Ship Black IPA that I picked up at Hook Point Brewing this past weekend during my trip out to west Tennessee.

2/15 - I walked up for happy hour at The Cedar Tap this afternoon where I had the ho-hum American Ale wheat beer from Gratis Brewing here in Nashville (come on, Jay Cutler, you can do better!).  I finished with the light and tasty Urban Hiker Lager from Tennessee Brew Works here in Nashville. 

2/17 - I went to the free taping of the live WMOT weekly radio show, "Finally Friday" today at 3rd and Lindsley because they were going to have a performer that I like on the show named William Prince.  It was a lot of fun!  Besides, William (who was awesome), they had Americana legend, Jim Salestrom, and songstress, Hannah Bethel, who I wasn't crazy about except for her song about our own Watertown.  I had a great gumbo lunch and two beers for only $20 too!  

My first beer was an UNTAPPD repeat, but it has been over 7 years ago...the Bison Vienna lager from Little Harpeth Brewing here in Nashville was as smooth as it was way back then.  My next canned beer was a new on to me and a perfect choice for listening to some great free live music in Nashville - the 615 Live Lager from Terrapin Brewing down in Athens, GA, was light and refreshing. 

What a great discovery! Just like this cool Nashville skyline mural made of whiskey barrel staves I saw on my way out.  Can't wait to do it again in downtown Nashville with free parking, free music and cheap food and beer!  Salute!!   Thanks, WMOT and 3rd and Lindsley!  

2/18 - Ashlee and I took ride up to Gallatin today and stopped in Big Trouble Brewing for her first visit here    Q.  We both had and enjoyed their new Jean Claude - Belgian Strong Ale.  It was so new, in fact, I got to add it to UNTAPPD as a new beer.  I finished up with their less than stellar Blue Hefner blueberry hefeweizen which was weak on the fruit taste end. 

2/19 - I attended the USWNT game in the She Believes Cup against Japan today at Geodis Park with some friends.  We all parked at Fait Le Force Brewing and before the game I had their light and tasty cold IPA called Two Million Winters.  I also got a taste of their New Zealand pilsner called Delusional Nature from my beer pal, Nate.  The ladies won the game 1-0 to take a commanding lead in the standings for the cup with a previous win over Canada and which culminates with one final game in Texas next week against Brazil.  

(Editor's note: The USWNT went on to win The Cup a few days later with a win over Brazil.)

2/20 - My pals, Toney and Curtis, joined me tonight to catch the new Ant-Man sequel called Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantumania in IMAX at Opry Mills.  The movie was pretty weird, but very enjoyable.  Kang the Conqueror is going to be a great super-villain for this next MCU phase. 

Earlier today, Ashlee and I (and Sunny) had lunch at the new Double Dogs Sports Bar and Grill in Gallatin where I had the Cottontown Brown ale from BriarScratch Brewing which is also here in Gallatin.  I am sure I have had this sweet and tasty one before, but UNTAPPD said no, so cheers! 

2/23 - It was beautiful weather today for late February, so I took a walk at lunch up to Cumberland University where they had some food trucks set up on campus.  I choose the Mexican one, YaYo's OMG!, which was fantastic.  Looks like this might be a monthly thing.  Sounds good to me! 

2/24 - I headed out to the Poker Barn tonight to get in a little live tournament action.  I took a variety 3-pack with me.  Here's how they went...first up was the very interesting, very unique and quite tasty rye wine (photo above - first time having this style of craft beer) called Grist Ain't Groceries - Year One Anniversary from Soul and Spirits Brewing out in Memphis that I picked up on my recent trip out that way.  Next up was a sneaky sour (printed very small on the can) called Mango Jungle from Boulevard Brewing (St. Louis) that was actually sweet and citric tasting to my palette.  I finished with a repeat (but first time in a can), the solid Bad Elmer's Porter from Upland Brewing (IN).  The poker was not good as I was card dead most of the night winning only two smallish pots and chopping another before running my 10x stack into pocket sevens with an ace-rag hand that did not hit. 

Earlier in the day I had lunch with my friend, Tom, who I had not seen in a while at Cedar City Brewing and had their new so-so CDR CTY Blonde ale (at least that's what I called it on UNTAPPD since it was so new, they didn't even have a name for it yet). 

2/25 - I was fortunate enough to attend the opening day match of the new 2023 season for NSC against NYCFC today.  The boys rocked some very cool new "Man in Black" jerseys honoring the late Johnny Cash.  The rain held off for the game, my walk to the park from Fait Le Force Brewing, and a little pregame tailgating.  At FLFBC before the game, I had their smooth and refreshing Mexican lager called Dimber Damber, and then the equally smooth and light Belgian-style pilsner called Nefarious Fellow.   At the game during our 2-0 beat down of them Yankees in their Titan blue uniforms, I had a can (and then a draft following that) of the new tasty lager made especially for NSC called Pitch from Music City Beer Company.   The moniker on the can "Pairs Well with Glory" sure felt correct today! 

2/27 - It was a nice, albeit windy, day for a little CU Baseball this afternoon, so I took Sunny along to get her a walk in around the outfield as well.  She seemed to really enjoy it. 

Of course, she really enjoyed the foul ball she found in the parking lot on the walk back!  Yep, that's going home with us! 

2/28 - The weather was just too nice not to take a drive up north of Cookeville to Washmorgan Hollow which was recently bought by The Nature Conservancy.  I was disappointed that the small creek coming out of the hollow was dry, so I assumed the waterfall at the end was dry too, so I skipped it for now.  Still might be a great place to take a wildflower hike later this spring.  

I did find flowing water at nearby Cummins Falls State Park on the way back at least.  This one's always a beauty.  So glad the state saved this amazing area from development. 

3/2 - My pal, Toney, and I went to opening night of the new trilogy film Creed III in IMAX tonight at Opry Mills.   We had dinner and I had a beer at TennFold Brewing beforehand.  I had their new and nice Schwarzbier called Dusty Overalls.  I usually wouldn't see a boxing movie in this format, but this one was actually filmed with IMAX cameras.  The film was pretty good with Jonathan Major kind of stealing the movie.  He does it again as a great bad guy.  

3/3 - I attended another free taping of the live WMOT weekly radio show, "Finally Friday" today at 3rd and Lindsley with this week's performers being The War and Treaty, the Natchez Tracers, and Jaimee Harris.  I missed Jaimee's set due to being delayed by some bad weather, but listened to it on the radio on the drive in.  The Natchez Tracers were pretty good, and The War and Treaty were phenomenal.  My friend, Tom, joined me today as well.  
Afterwards, I stopped Monday Night (Brewing) Preservation Society and had a couple of great brews while I answered a few work emails. I started with their very nice dark Czech pilsner called Prague Fog.  I ended with the amazing imperial 7 Deadly Stouts that was aged in seven different spirit barrels over two years.  With a 13.7 ABV is might as well be called the "7-Liquor Ass-Kicker."  It's my first 5-star perfect brew on UNTAPPD in a very long while.  

After a long streak of running kind of bad in all poker formats recently, I got a small tournament win tonight in a dollar Crazy Pineapple game vs. 19 others.  800% profit is how you gotta look at it! 

3/4 - Even though it's streaming on Netflix, I decided to go see multiple Oscar contender, All Quiet on the Western Front (2022), on the big screen at the Hollywood 27 Theaters (recliners!) in Nashville today. Since it's already been winning awards for its sound and cinematography (and only cost $6 thru Regal), it seemed worth it.   It was.  Such a well-made film.  Made for the big screen for sure. 

(Editor's note: As I predicted, the film racked up at the Oscars with four wins for best foreign language film, cinematography, score (which was awesome) and production design!) 

3/5 - We had a nice Sunday fun day today down southeast with a visit to Old Stone Fort State Park in Manchester where we took in views of Big Falls on the Little Duck River and also Blue Hole Falls (photo above) a bit farther upstream.  Afterwards, we also stopped by Common John Brewing (which is less than 2 miles from the park) and I enjoyed their milk stout called None The Wiser out on the patio in the nice early March weather.  Of note:  this was my 4,500th check-in on UNTAPPD!! 

3/7 - Another dollar tourney win tonight vs. 21 others for an 800% profit.  Tiny steps. Tiny steps. 

3/8 - As a Mug Club Member, I got discounted tickets ($10 each) to the first-ever comedy show at Cedar City Brewing tonight for me and Ashlee.  Our friends, Curtis and Kate, joined us as well.   Beforehand, I walked up first to CCBC and had their Wings Wednesday deal.  Since there were no new beers on tap, I settled for another tasty Bubba Bock.  Then we headed over to The Cedar Tap and had a few pre-show brews including a very fruity and delightful Blueberry Picnic ale from Blackstone Brewing here in Nashville.  I remained on the fruit end of the craft beer spectrum next with a Nitro Rubaeus with great creamy raspberry goodness from Founders Brewing (MI). 
The show was very good with four funny comedians and a equally hilarious host.  Word is this might become a regular thing which sounds good to me!   While at the show I had another CCBC repeat:  their very nice CDR CTY Irish dry stout.  

Earlier today I won another $1 bounty tournament on Global Poker vs. a field of 76 others for a 2,100% profit.  Now we are rolling...a little!

3/10 - I attended yet another free taping of the live WMOT weekly radio show, "Finally Friday" today at 3rd and Lindsley with this week's performers being Stevie Redstone; Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley; and Alex Mabey.   While I didn't know about any of these folks before today, I liked what I heard on my YouTube research from each of them.  Ickes is considered one of the greatest dobro players in the world and their set was by far the best. I even got to meet both of them briefly. Although it was very cool that Stevie Redstone had a new local favorite of mine, Aaron Lee Tasjan accompanying him on guitar.    I had a great catfish lunch as well.

Afterwards, I stopped by the Homegrown Taproom to catch up on some work (and some brews!!).  I had three half-pints in the following order: first up was the nice Italian-style pilsner called It's a School Night from Xul Brewing up in Knoxville; second was an excellent Gazelle Hazy IPA from Tennessee Brew Works here in Nashville; finishing was a little earthy and disappointing Premium Bitter from Southern Grist Brewing here in Nashville.

3/11 - I got to attend tonight's MLS game in Nashville with NSC hosting FC Montreal.  Most of the game was in the downpour (photo above), but luckily, my friend Nate's seats are just under the roof of Geodis Park. The Boys in Black (tonight's NSC jerseys) put a commanding 2-0 defeat on the French Canadians to secure their second straight home win in this new season.   During the game I had a couple new brews from Tennessee's own Rock-n-Dough Pizza and Brewing including their very nice pilsner called My Town (first half libation) and their excellent Snow Plow Vanilla porter (second half libation). 
Before the game, I stopped by The Cedar Tap and had a pint with my pal, Curtis.  It was the very good Drafty Kilt Scotch ale from Monday Night Brewing (ATL) which I thought I had tried before, but UNTAPPD said no.  I parked at Fait La Force Brewing as I usually do for free for the game and had a couple there before walking to the stadium.  First up was their very good bock called Mahogany Hall and then their solid Belgian tripel called Saucy Ballerina. 
After the game, I gave Nate a lift home and we stopped back in FLFBC afterhours, and I had a half-pint of their excellent Belgian strong dark ale called Where the Ghouls Dwell, before calling it a very successful night since my beloved Duke Blue Devils also won the ACC Tournament as well!

3/14 - I went to see the new sci-fi movie, 65, at the Hollywood 27 (recliners! Tuesday night discount!)  tonight, despite it getting some lackluster reviews.  I thought it was a pretty entertaining and well-made flick.  Beforehand, I stopped by The Black Abbey Brewing Company for a couple of BOGO brews.  First up was their excellent Kenny Lager, and I finished with their equally good Saison Rose farmhouse ale. 
(Editor's note:  I went and saw this one again a couple weeks later with my pal, Toney
at The Roxy Theaters (recliners!) here in Lebanon.) 

3/15 - My beer buddy, Nate, headed over to Lebanon tonight to join me
 at Cedar City Brewing for Wings Wednesday there.  I had their newly renamed, but still tasty, Lake It Easy Kolsch with my dinner and Ashlee joined us as well.   And then I had to have a "Cedar Bomb" in early celebration of St. Paddy's Day coming up on Friday.  It was great!  I finished up with their new light and refreshing CDR CTY Mexican Lager which I got to add to UNTAPPD. 

Nate and I decided to make a crawl out of the evening and walked over to Tenn Lakes Brewing next where I had their disappointingly soapy brown ale called Problem Shlobber.  Nate's choice wasn't great either, and his theory that the hard Lebanon city water might be affecting the taste could be true.  Let's hope they remedy it soon.  

We finished the evening with a walk to The Cedar Tap with the best beers of the night.  I started with the excellent Mean Old Tom stout from the Maine Beer Company.  I finished with a beautifully done Key Lime Pie sour from Prairie Artisan Ales (OK). 

3/16 - It's the official start of March Madness today and the Eastern bracket (pictured above) is my favorite with Duke, UT and Memphis in there, and some teams I want us to beat (UK obviously, Marquette (cuz they fired Wojo) and Michigan State (even though I like Coach Izzo).  I cracked open a crowler I got from Fait La Force Brewing the other night to celebrate.  It was their farmhouse ale called Toboggan Party and it was spectacular.  Both Duke and UT won tonight and now have to face each other on Saturday (bummer, but GO DUKE!!).  

3/17 - Happy St. Paddy's Day from The Poker Barn!!  I took a variety 3-pack with me to play tonight hoping for some luck of the Irish.  Not so much.  Had to rebuy early when my QQ got cracked.  Made the final table, but was out 7th and they only paid 5, of course.  I've come to the hard realization that I am just not a winning player here at The Barn and am going to have to limit my player here rather drastically.   The beer was pretty good at least.  I started with the excellent Anti-Hero (2022) IPA from Revolution Brewing (Chicago).  Next up was another pint can from Souls and Spirits Brewing out in Memphis: their solid Hound Dog hefeweizen.   I ended on sour note (to match my mood tonight) with a fairly decent fruited (watermelon) gose called Green Zebra from Founders Brewing (MI).  

3/18 - Well, my mood didn't improve much the next day as my Duke boys went and got whupped by the grown-ass men of UT.  It was a tough game and very physical, but more importantly, UT's shots dropped in the second half and Duke's did not.  I will be pulling for The Big Orange from here on out at least.  Even NSC lost their first game of the season on the road in New England.  I did have a great brew to drown my sorrows at least.  It was another pint can from Souls and Spirits Brewing out in Memphis (who also lost their NCAA game):  the Hopperbolic NEIPA.  

3/19 - Look, I had a few brews and some Irish coffees at Sunny's First Birthday Party today, but did I have so much I was seeing sextuple?!?!  Nope, whew!  These were six of Sunny's friends from up in Portland, TN, where she sometimes is boarded while we are out of town.  They all made the trip down today and romped and played like it wasn't 30 degrees outside while us humans hunkered down around the Solo Stove and shivered.  I did have four beers during the festivities, and they went in this order:

the delicious Mocha Dolce (nitro) stout from Firestone Walker Brewing (CA)

the tasty (and dog party themed) Pilot Series: All Dog Alert oatmeal stout from Yazoo Brewing here in Nashville (thanks to my craft beer buddy, Nate, for that one)

the much too seltzer-like Hell or High Pomegranate from 21st Amendment Brewing (CA)

and yet another great pint can from Soul and Spirit Brewing out in Memphis (man, these guys are solid!):  the Spanish Harlem Mexican-style lager.  

3/21 - I was gonna skip the new DC film, Shazam: Fury of the Gods, since reviews have been luke-warm, but since Regal is now doing Bargain Tuesdays including in IMAX, I figured it was worth a discounted look with very low expectations.  I decided to head up to Hendersonville to catch it at Streets of Indian Lake Theaters since I hadn't been there in a while and I could also swing by Blossom Thai and Cellar Door Craft Cavern for some great food and a craft beer beforehand.  I thought the movie was decent, a little goofy at times, but, hey, it's a super-hero movie.  The biggest disappointment was that they were out of their awesome Thai beef jerky at Blossom.  But the beer was flowing at least. I had the excellent Bound by Time juicy IPA fromn Edmund's Oast Brewing (SC).  I finished with a taster pour of the solid That Coconut Porter from Cherry Street Brewing down in Chattanooga who have taken over the old Heaven and Ale (RIP) space.

3/24 - I attended yet another free taping of the live WMOT weekly radio show, "Finally Friday" today at 3rd and Lindsley with this week's performers being Emily McGill and Steve Cropper;  Anne McCue; and Boys Club for Girls.   While I didn't know about any of these folks before today, I liked what I heard on my YouTube research from each of them.  I had their salmon plate for lunch which was fantastic! 
Afterwards, I stopped by Homegrown Taproom to catch up on some work and have a couple half-pints.  I started with the very impressive Irish Dry Stout from Mill Creek Brewing over in Nolensville.  I finished with the exceptional Moloko milk stout from 3 Floyds Brewing (IN).    

When I got back, Ashlee and I (and Sunny) headed to Yappy Hour at Mayday Brewing down in Murfreesboro.  This was a gathering of golden retrievers (some for adoption) out on the patio.  Lots of sweeties were on site and I had their very nice Llama Lager while we hung out there. 

3/25 - "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!!" - Michael Corleone

I got a surprise invitation to the Poker Barn Tournament of Champions tonight as a Wild Card seat based on my points earned this season.  A few people ahead of me couldn't make it, so I got the call.  I guess my two final tables without cashing this season did get me something at least.   I started the tournament with a lower stack than many others who earned more chips based on wins and points this season, but it was a reasonable structure, and hey, it was a freeroll basically - I did buy some extra starting chips for a $20 dealer toke. 
I took a variety 3-pack with me as well to enjoy and they were as follows: 
Intermodulation - a repeat, but excellent, IPA from Barrique Brewing here in Nashville 
Bungalow - a nice light lager from Middle Brow Beer Company (Chicago)
Shiner Trail Ale - a rich sweet brown ale from Spoetzl Brewery (TX).  I got a six-pack of this one at the Three Forks Market in Watertown where I always try to support their nice craft beer section for such a small-town store. 
I was the bubble-boy tonight finishing 4th with only three spots being paid, of course.  I was lucky to get where I did after sucking out twice to better hands during earlier all-ins.  I continue to admit I just don't run very well at The Poker Barn (I don't consider suck-outs/bad-beats as running well) and while I appreciated this opportunity, I again plan on limiting my play there in the future because of this fact not only to save money, but also peace of mind. 

Earlier today, I walked up and watched a little Cumberland U baseball on my way to and from The Cedar Tap where I had a couple of pints including the decent Nordic, a Kveik yeast blonde ale from Marrowbone Brewing over in Ashland City, TN.  I kicked the keg of the Destiny Column Baltic Porter but got a decent enough taste of the nice collab between Yazoo Brewing here in Nashville and Wiseacre Brewing out in Memphis to check it in on UNTAPPD.  I finished with the excellent Chasing Rainbows 2023 DIPA from Bearded Iris Brewing here in Nashville who also happen to be celebrating their seven-year anniversary today!  Hurrah!! 

3/26 - We had tickets to the SOLD OUT showing of the new Jason Isbell documentary, Running with Our Eyes Closed, at The Belcourt Theaters tonight with Jason himself and the filmmaker in attendance.  Beforehand though, we did a little exploring and shopping in Nashville that turned into a good little craft beer crawl for me. 

First, we stumbled upon the sweet new West Nashville location of Bearded Iris Brewing.  Here I had their excellent Japanese rice lager called Easy Tycoon.  I also finished off Ashlee's amber lager choice which she said was too hoppy for her taste (it was nice and hoppy).  It's called the Rogue Researcher and I thought it was solid. 

We also made a quick stop by Bold Patriot Brewing in West Nashville where I had their Joseph Ashley (Farmhouse Saison) that was decent.  I haven't been here in a while, and it worries me these guys only have three of their own brews on tap now where they used to have several.  Could this be the beginning of the end for them?  We shall see. 

Next, we headed over to the 12 South area and while Ashle was dress shopping, I popped into The Filling Station there and had a pint of the excellent Destiny Column Coffee Pale Ale from Wiseacre Brewing out in Memphis.   

To get a good parking space, we had to go early to The Belcourt, so we killed a little time before dinner with a stop at Hopdoddy where I had an uber-pint of the excellent 60 Minute 2023 IPA from Dogfish Head Brewing (DE).   

I even checked in a new-to-my-UNTAPPD Asahi Super Dry lager with my dinner at Sushi 88.  I was sure I had checked one of these ho-hum macro-brews in before, but UNTAPPD said no.  

 
3/29 - It was a bachelor night for me today with Ashlee headed to NYC for work and some fun with her co-workers through the weekend.  I decided to go see the Blue October show at The Skydeck at 5th and Broad.  I bought the ticket with some poker winnings (I had a $106 profit from PokerStars with a 3rd place and a 1st place chop recently) I also bought some fun Hawaiian shirts and a pair of shorts with my winnings.   For the 10% charity donation I gave $11 to our local NPR station.   The show was great as expected since these guys always put on a great live performance.  I only got to see the last song by the opener, The Beatnik Bandits, but they looked like a lot of fun.  
I parked for free over at the ML Rose Craft Beer and Burger bar at Capitol View and Ubered to and from the show.  I had dinner here too along with a nice DIPA from Living Waters Brewing here in town called Highgate I.  I finished with a very sour (albeit very fresh) Radiance: Lemongrass ale from Harding House Brewing over in West Nashville. 

Earlier in the day I had a wardrobe fitting for my background movie role next week in the filming of Holland, Michigan starring Nicole Kidman.  I was surprised to see that I was selected for three different scenes instead of the one I applied for. 

My other big coup of the day was picking up this beautiful mustang convertible down in Murfreesboro that I rented from the Turo app for four days.  My first destination was Yazoo Brewing up in Madison where I did some remote working while sipping on their excellent Impy Hop Project # 1 DIPA.  I finished up with their very good Pilot Series: Trappist Single Belgian blonde. 

After the Blue October show, I stopped by the plaza at Bridgestone Arena to check out the new Pekka Rinne statute.  Very cool! 

3/30 - Man!  This is a great view to start a Bachelor Day!!  Puddin' Head Central!!  
 

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I had plans to go to Kentucky with the convertible today but got a later start than I hoped for due to making a sale of our spare kayak.  $90 is worth it!   It was still a beautiful sunny afternoon, so I picked a few closer spots to head to.  First off was the Cledis Burger Joint over on Elm Hill Drive where I worked a little out in their beer garden while sipping on a Hazel lager from Living Waters Brewing here in Nashville.  I moved north next to Half Batch Brewing in Hendersonville and was surprised how far along their new facility (photo above) was coming along.  Can't wait to check it out later this summer!  I started here with their excellent Cheeky Pete British Pub Ale and finished with their solid George, a Belgian-style pale ale.  

I was in Hendersonville for another reason too and that was to check out opening night of the new film Dungeons and Dragons:  Honor Among Thieves in IMAX at the Regal Theaters at the Streets of Indian Lake.  I thought it was a fun ride from start to finish.  
Beforehand, I had dinner at Blossom Thai and the Cellar Door Craft Cavern where I had a very good Zombie Ice DIPA from 3 Floyds Brewing (IN).  

3/31 - It was another Bachelor Day for me, but unfortunately a rainy one for the convertible.  I didn't let that "dampen" my spirits however and headed out for yet another free taping of the live WMOT weekly radio show, "Finally Friday" today at 3rd and Lindsley with this week's performers being Wylie and the Wild West; Jeff Plankenhorn; and Erik Huey.  Wylie's a yodeling legend who has played The Grand Ol' Opry more than 50 times. Plankenhorn was my favorite of the three and I even got a fist bump from him after his set.  And Huey was just annoying IMO.  

After finishing up work at The Casual Pint in Smyrna where I had the lovely White Chocolate Moo Hoo milk stout from Terrapin Brewing (GA) and the solid Duck River Dunkel from Goat Island Brewing (AL), I went to the nearby Malco Theaters to catch a matinee of the new action sequel John Wick Chapter 4.  While this isn't my favorite film series, this entry was the end of the franchise (supposedly), so I figured I had to check it out.  But it just seemed more of the same to me again with some awesome set pieces, but the same ol' schtick and about a half hour too long.   Oh, and (spoiler alert) he dies at the end (supposedly).