Saturday, April 30, 2005

I didn't exactly liveblog the show today but I did take some notes as we went along.

10:30:  Dammit, I find I'm disappointed every time somebody stops by without buying anything and a little pissed when they don't even stop. We've been open for a whole half hour and no sales?!?! At least take one of my cards!

1:45:  Woo-hoo! Sold a card and a matted 5x7 so far and, as I'd hoped, had someone stop by that used to live in Plymouth, NC, as three of the seven photos that I had for sale already framed were from the Roanoke River or from the cemetery at the old Episcopal church there. Had a nice chat with the ex-Plymouthite and thought he might swing back by to pick something up, but I didn't see him again. People are coming in at a decent pace and the weather is holding up so far. Load out might be a problem if the rains do come - this location is much better for the show than where it was last year, but much more difficult to load in and out. I'm finding that I'm much more comfortable at these things pushing JennySlash's stuff than I am pushing mine. Maybe when we do the open studio tour in the fall, I should work her side of the room and let her work mine!

3:20:  Spent some time talking to the other two photographers in the show - very different material than mine, which is a good thing. There's actually a nice mix of media today, with watercolors, jewelry, ceramics, quilts and other textile art fairly evenly mixed. I just sold a matted 8x10 (the one of the Washington Monument) so I'm pretty psyched now. I've had a lot of people at least seem interested, maybe pick up a business card. I'm hoping that means that when the open studio tour comes around in November, they'll remember the name and come on by. Some of the other exhibitors have been raving about the Meadowmont show every September, but we're not doing that one this year. I do want to at least go out to it though and see if we might want to try it next year.

4:45:  I'm really surprised how many people are still here! Last year by 2:30 the place was a morgue. Hey, I sold one of the framed 8x12s! The Currituck Light staircase, which got a lot of attention today. The lighthouse stairs, the Slack Shop and the Roanoke River shot with the Weyerhaeuser plant in the background seem to have garnered the most interest.

I was very concerned about the weather as they were predicting possibly severe thunderstorms for much of the afternoon. While the wind did pick up a few times, there was actually very little rain so it was not too bad to go outside but not really pretty enough to feel like you had to stay inside. 'Bout perfect, I thought. I'm extremely pleased with the interest and the feedback I got (and of course the sales). I had a couple of people suggest doing some larger prints - not sure where to have that done but I may look around for that. Excellent day!

Friday, April 29, 2005

Xingu Black Beer - a Euro Dark Lager from Brazil.  Flat Pepsi...  Okay, maybe it wasn't that bad, but very little carbonation and overly sweet. I wouldn't recommend it.

Monchshof Schwarzbier - okay, now THAT's what I'm talking about!  Poured out of a tall flip-top bottle with a decent head with medium staying power.  Had some body in the mouth but remained nice and light.  Good bit of hoppy bitterness and that nice roasty flavor I've been looking for.  Compared very favorably to the SA Black Lager.

Dixie Blackened Voodoo Lager - a Munich Dunkel Lager from Loosiana and PC's preferred - not bad at all!  Nice sweet/bitter combo, good dark color, decent head that faded quickly to bubbles around the edges - very drinkable!

Of course I know I'd be drummed out of the serious beer drinkers reviewing corps for trying to compare a Euro Dark with a Schwarzbier and a Munich Dunkel, but who cares.  I'm looking for stuff I like.  So far the Sam Adams, the Monchshof and the Black Radish are on my recommend list, the Dixie is on my "I'd drink it again" list and the Einbecker and Xingu rate a "don't bother".  Unfortunately I've got another bottle of the Einbecker left...

Speaking of the Sam Adams - O frabjous day!!  Went by the Teeter on Airport Road after dinner at Margaret's Cantina (otherwise known at "Tony P and JennySlash's favorite restaurant") and low and behold they had Black Lager six packs!  I am truly blessed.  Blessed enough that after putting a sixer in the cart and starting to walk off, I had the sense to go back and pick up another one. Just in case.

Friday, April 29, 2005

Xingu Black Beer - a Euro Dark Lager from Brazil.  Flat Pepsi...  Okay, maybe it wasn't that bad, but very little carbonation and overly sweet. I wouldn't recommend it.

Monchshof Schwarzbier - okay, now THAT's what I'm talking about!  Poured out of a tall flip-top bottle with a decent head with medium staying power.  Had some body in the mouth but remained nice and light.  Good bit of hoppy bitterness and that nice roasty flavor I've been looking for.  Compared very favorably to the SA Black Lager.

Dixie Blackened Voodoo Lager - a Munich Dunkel Lager from Loosiana and PC's preferred - not bad at all!  Nice sweet/bitter combo, good dark color, decent head that faded quickly to bubbles around the edges - very drinkable!

Of course I know I'd be drummed out of the serious beer drinkers reviewing corps for trying to compare a Euro Dark with a Schwarzbier and a Munich Dunkel, but who cares.  I'm looking for stuff I like.  So far the Sam Adams, the Monchshof and the Black Radish are on my recommend list, the Dixie is on my "I'd drink it again" list and the Einbecker and Xingu rate a "don't bother".  Unfortunately I've got another bottle of the Einbecker left...

Speaking of the Sam Adams - O frabjous day!!  Went by the Teeter on Airport Road after dinner at Margaret's Cantina (otherwise known at "Tony P and JennySlash's favorite restaurant") and low and behold they had Black Lager six packs!  I am truly blessed.  Blessed enough that after putting a sixer in the cart and starting to walk off, I had the sense to go back and pick up another one. Just in case.

Wednesday, April 27, 2005

The Einbecker Schwarzbier gets a much better rating in BeerAdvocate that I'd give it and I don't understand why. When I read the actual reviews, they agree with my assessment - there just isn't much there there. Decent head, not much aroma and frankly not a lot of flavor. It wasn't nearly as roasty as I'd expect and really felt thin in the mouth. I found it wholly unremarkable (and naturally this is the only one I bought two bottles of).

On the other hand, the Black Radish from Weeping Radish out in Manteo was much better. I know it's really a Munich Dunkel Lager instead of a Schwarzbier so maybe I shouldn't compare, but the Black Radish was quite good. Not much head and it dissipated quickly - not much carbonation at all. But it's got a nice dark mahagony color, decent aroma and good roasted hops flavors with some chocolate notes. This one I'd buy again - didn't grab me quite like the Sam Adams did but I'd definitely recommend it if the SA isn't available.

I had the opportunity to give a little mini-tour of campus (via auto unfortunately) to an out-of-town visitor last weekend and while pointing out Kenan Stadium and the Morehead Planetarium and the Kenan-Flagler business school and the Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower, I realized that I couldn't remember which of the two gentlemen was the chemist that was involved in the beginnings of Union Carbide. So I did a little googling and found:

William Rand Kenan, Jr. - "William Rand Kenan, Jr., was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, on April 30, 1872. He was graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1894 with a Bachelor of Science degree, receiving particular recognition in chemistry, physics, and mathematics. It was during his college years that Mr. Kenan assisted his professor, Dr. F.P. Venable, in discovering the process that converted calcium carbide to acetylene. Following graduation from the University, he was active as a chemical and mechanical engineering advisor, being responsible for the installation of several important plants for the carbide and acetylene industry in the U.S., Australia, and Germany. In 1896, Mr. Kenan came to Niagara Falls to work at what would later become the Union Carbide Corporation."

So there ya go.  But waitaminit...

John Motley Morehead, III - "Following his graduation from the University, John Motley Morehead and his father were searching for an inexpensive method for manufacturing aluminum and instead discovered acetylene gas at their mill in Spray (now Eden), North Carolina. Mr. Morehead then developed an economical process for the manufacture of calcium carbide and laid the groundwork for the development of the Union Carbide Corporation."

O-o-o-kay. It took googling both names together to find the following on the UNC Chemistry Department webpage - "A tradition of collaborative discovery characteristic of our department dates back to Francis Venable. In 1893, Venable, together with two undergraduate students, William Rand Kenan, Jr. and later, Thomas Clarke, assisted former undergraduate student, John Motley Morehead in identification as calcium carbide (Ca2C) a material Morehead had prepared by electrolysis of calcium oxide, aluminum oxide, and carbon. This discovery had tremendous commercial importance, and led to the development of acetylene and the founding of Union Carbide."

Clear now? Think there might have been a little rivalry there?

Sunday, April 24, 2005

In my Dungeon Siege fever last week (I've still got it but it's a little more under control) I never got around to posting about the discussion in Eric Muller's blog regarding a series of books that he is trying to get removed from his daughter's public school (the link is to the first of many posts on the subject). Apparently the immediate reaction of many of his readers was akin to mine - that we don't like book banning from the left any more than we like it from the right. However, Eric's done a tremendous job explaining why we need to look beyond our kneejerk reactions - primarily the fact that the book he initially encountered blatantly promoted Christianity and ran down Buddhism, clearly running afoul of the Constitutional prohibition against establishing a state religion.

How could it not violate the Constitution for a public elementary school to single out and recommend a book series whose overt lesson is that conversion to Christianity is desirable and that safety resides in a decision "to follow only Jesus?"

There's a lot of good stuff to read there - it's worth your time to see what the company that is pushing these books, study guides, etc. are putting out there. It's actually quite sickening, which in and of itself isn't enough to move to get them out. Eric's reasons are much better.

At around the same time, I was catching up with Dave at Anonymoses and ran across his link to the worst album covers ever (which has become yet another serious time waster - thanks so bloody much, Dave!). I did find the album cover below, which appears to be from someone that has a much better handle on religious tolerance than the publishers of the aforementioned book series do. A little Christianity, a little Shinto...  can't we all just get along?

Well, my efforts to locate large quantities of Sam Adams Black Lager yesterday proved fruitless. Started with the Total Wine store over at Patterson Place and while they had beaucoups de beer, there was no SA Black Lager in evidence. Also there was no one to ASK about it in evidence, but it was Saturday and they were crowded (afternoon wine tasting) so I'll cut 'em some slack. Tried Whole Foods next with even less luck (they don't have a deep selection but it does tend to be relatively broad). Last choice was A Southern Season - again, not a deep selection but a relatively varied one. No luck, which makes me think that maybe the local distributor isn't carrying it yet.

So that all my efforts were not for naught, I decided to pick up some other black/dark lagers and pilsners while at ASS to do my own taste testing. Since I don't feel qualified to review beers for BeerAdvocate.com yet, I'll have to do it here. I picked up a few different schwarzbiers and Munich Dunkels and other dark beers (not ales), including a Dixie Blackened Voodoo Lager since PC's been drinking them.

I was chatting with the young lady at the checkout and she mentioned that the vote in the state legislature to raise the 6% alcohol cap (see my Pop The Cap post from a couple of months ago) that was expected last week has been delayed. I took a look today at the Pop the Cap website and it seems as if things are actually going okay - the bill is through the Commerce committee (had to settle for a 15% cap instead of no cap, but that's not too bad) and the vote in the House ABC committee is Tuesday. Still has to make it through the full House, a Senate committee and the Senate, but progress is being made.