Beer #22: Sly Fox Ichor and a Look Back at 2011

I had intended to write this post yesterday, but instead found myself letting off a bit of steam about 2011.  So in honor of the first day of a fresh clean year, I'm going to look back at 2011 and hopefully learn something.  (fingers crossed!)

1.  What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?  I started blogging.
2.  Did you keep your New Year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?  I don't do New Year's resolutions.  I guess the answers are no and no.
3.  Did anyone close to you give birth?  A lot of people, in fact.
4.  Did anyone close to you die?  Really Internet asking list, yes, someone very close to me did die.
5.  What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?  More time in so many ways.
6.  What countries did you visit?  Sadly none.  Maybe I'll make it to Israel in 2012.
7.  What date from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?  July 15.
8.  What was your biggest achievement of the year?  I found a strength that I didn't know I had.
9.  What was your biggest failure?  Running.
10.  Did you suffer illness or injury?   There were a few days of a funky toe that concerned me.
11. What was the best thing you bought?  iPad2
12. Where did most of your money go?  Beer and food and that was before I started this blog!
13.  What did you get really, really, really excited about?  Celebrating ten years of marriage with Gary!
14. What song will always remind you of 2011?  Young the Giant, My Body
15.  Compared to this time last year, are you...happier or sadder? Happier.  ...thinner or fatter? Fatter.  ...richer or poorer?  Richer.
16.  What about...more or less likely to decide inanimate objects looked like boobs?  More. Although I do tend to see more penises where there aren't penises.  ...more or less likely to watch Glee?  No cable, no Glee.
17.  What do you wish you’d done more of?  Saved more money, less going out to dinner, spend more time with my Mom.
18. What do you wish you’d done less of?  Procrastinating at work.
19.  What was the best book you read?  Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged.
20.  What was your greatest musical discovery?  Beirut.  Thank you BalletX!
21.  What did you want and get?  iPad2
22.  What was your favorite film of this year?  The new Sherlock Holmes movie but I don't know the name of it.  That's how I roll.  I'll tell you about a great movie, but you need to work for it.  I can name some of the actors or at least some of the other movies that some of the actors were in...on the other hand, you shouldn't ask me about movies.
23.  What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?  I spent it in Harrisburg planning an event.  It involved politicians.  Ugh.  That's a hell of a way to turn 36.
24.  What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?  Seeing my friends more often.
25.  How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?  Take more chances.  Wear color.  That necklace is not too big.  Two patterns?  Why not!
26.  What kept you sane?  Gary
27.  Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?  Johnny Depp.  He could stand around in a bathrobe and read phone listings from Sioux City, Iowa and I would love it.
28.  What political issue stirred you the most?  Nothing.  I can't stand the bickering, name calling and stupid accusations.
29.  Who was the best new person you met?  Someone at work, who will remain nameless because I don't mix work and blog.
30. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.  Breathe.
31. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.  "I throw my hands up in the air sometimes, saying eh-yo, Galileo"  I love to misunderstand lyrics and sang that one all year.

***

2011 went out with a lot of laughter and many, many corks popping.  In fact, I may have champagne running through my veins today.  So far 2012 has been exceptionally lazy and that's fine with me.

Today's beer of choice is Sly Fox Brewing Company's Ichor.  It is an Abbey Quadruple coming in at 10% ABV.  It has a candied smell and is dark brown and nearly opaque in the glass.  It tastes rooty and organic like rootbeer without the overt sweetness.  I also got notes of chocolate.  It has a nice dry finish.  Overall a great beer.

Sidebar:  Upon opening the Ichor and settling in to write my review, Gary -- out of nowhere, mind you -- announces that Ichor is an interesting name for a beer as it is what differentiated man from god in Greek mythology.  That's the joy of living with a man who doesn't seem to ever forget random facts.  You get a little trivia with your beer.

Anyway, Sly Fox is always a win in my book and Ichor is no different.  If you find yourself in Chester County, stop by one of their establishments.  And check out their story when you can.

Welcome to  2012, folks!

Attack of the Abominable Snow Hippo

Beer #18:  River Horse Brewing Co.'s Belgian Freeze

Today I'm going to tell you about my favorite animal.  No, it's not the dachshund in his natural habit:  

It's the hippopotamus -- the COOLEST MAMMAL EVER!  Why do I enjoy the hippopotamus -- or the river horse in translation -- so much?  One:  Who could argue with that face?  Especially when he's hanging in the river?

Two:  The hippo, despite its quite unwieldy size, can outpace a human for short distances.  So if you piss one off in the wild, you better hope that you have more stamina.

Three:  It was believed that they were so bad ass that they sweated blood.  Thankfully science has proven that they do not in fact sweat blood, but rather a natural oil that acts as germ protection as well as sun screen.  Heck I'd sign up for this feature if I could!  I spend a fortune on sunscreen.

Four:  Egyptians both feared and honored hippos.  Fear due to the hippo's tendency to hang out in the Nile River.  Honor as the hippo represented the goddess who protected women during childbirth.  Sadly I learned that hippos no longer roam the Nile River while I was visiting Egypt.  But hippo figures abound such as this one:

(courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

I would have preferred to use a photo from The Egyptian Museum in Cairo; however, Arab Spring must have taken down the website because I couldn't get the link to work.  This one is made of blue faience.  Faience is a glazed non-clay ceramic material or silica, composed of crushed quartz or sand, with small amounts of lime, and either natron or plant ash. Its main ingredient was quartz, obtained from sand, or crushed pebbles to which was added an alkali, a bit of lime and ground copper as colorant. When fired, the glaze turns brilliant blue.  Seeing it in person is amazing.  Something that is 2,000 - 3,000 years old should not be so brilliantly blue.  

So in honor of the hippopotamus, the river horse, my favorite mammal, I'm drinking a River Horse Belgian Freeze.  Hailing from Lambertville, New Jersey, this is one river horse that people won't fear.  Unless you get freaked out by crazy beer logos:

(courtesy of the River Horse Brewing Co. website)

The abominable snow hippo turned out to be satisfying on this cold night.  It's malty (go figure, it is me drinking after all!) and has hints of caramel.  I don't notice its spice as much as other Belgian-style ales.  Toward the end of the bottle, I kept getting a hint of something slightly sour...not bad sour, just odd.  I don't know what to make of that.  Sadly I only have one bottle and I can't compare quality between bottles.  Did I get a funky bottle?  Did the spicy brown mustard with dinner mess up my taste buds?  It's a mystery.

Until tomorrow and #19...