Super jealous of this — at the bar at Golden Road. (Taken with instagram)
Old TSR Christmas card.
Edit: It’s in poor condition because I had this hanging year-round on my bed’s headboard throughout the entirety of my childhood.
This stunner from Chicago’s Goose Island is tonight’s dessert. There’s a moderate level of carbonation, but the aged, oak feel is still that of drinking fresh cherries. Really tart, extremely sour — let it warm and you’ll likely find yourself puckering with each sip, also because it’s incredibly dry.
This is a really excellent session from Half Acre. Low 4.2 ABV, and kind of a grainy feel at first. Let it cool a few, through, and the tartness bursts through. Really high citrus content, but really clean. The earthy feel seems to play up sweetness rather than the beer’s more sour qualities. In other news, apparently an extended family member has a mail-order bride. Switching to something stronger soon.
Goose Island, Midway IPA. One of my favorite IPAs, very sweet for the genre. It reminds me of more traditional English IPAs, and it’s some of Goose’s best work. (Taken with instagram)
Denmark’s Evil Twin Brewing pokes fun at Brooklyn with this “single hip beer” (get it? Instead of “single hop.” Whatever, it made me laugh.) Here’s hoping it doesn’t taste like Vegan. Also: That’s my parents’ back porch.
Spent the day driving around L.A. with Common.
I also shared a prayer circle with him. We wasted half the interview, though, being all homesick about Chicago.
In the spirit of giving …
There are 273 songs in my iTunes playlist labeled “2011.” That’s a running tally of my favorite songs of the year. I’ve narrowed that down to 18 — maybe 19, depending on some last-minute changes — for the year-end mix-CD.
I considered putting the playlist on Spotify or SoundCloud, but I’m a stickler for tradition and the songs that made the final cut are also chosen because they loosely fit a theme that I believe sums up the year in music/culture. Also, it’s more fun to receive a free mix-CD in the mail.
So……the offer I make every year to family, friends, Los Angeles Times readers and anyone who randomly stumbled upon this is as follows: If you would like a year-end mix-CD, just drop me an email with your address. That’s it. I’ll send it, probably in early January.
I will warn you that the presentation is crude. CD-R, Sharpie, no art, no photo, no liner notes — just music.
Common. Chi-City and all.