Colorado Beer Trip – Great Hotel

Okay, no beer highlights here, just wanted to comment on our first night’s hotel. The Downtown Omaha EconoLodge is in a great location and was a great price. I’m thinking this was more of an extended stay hotel than anything else. It seemed like some people had gotten pretty comfortable there. But on that note, we too were comfortable. I love me a King-sized bed and it was comfy. I am wondering however, if they got their furniture from the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas. Now let’s get this straight, this EconoLodge (and none others that I know of) does not have an Asian theme, but I am pretty sure that this is the exact same bed and chest of drawers that we had in our room during my bachelor party in Vegas.

I was also very surprised and pleased that before we arrived, they somehow seemed to secure my Grandpa’s recliner and place it in our room before we got there. I thought that was a nice personal touch. Finally, It was very convenient to have the coffee maker within arms reach of the toilet. This was especially helpful when we woke up late and needed to get on the road. It was nice to be able to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. This place also included free breakfast which is always a plus. We were able to fill up on frosted flakes, yogurt, various juices and a banana all while listing to two old guys passing a cell phone back and forth trying to direct a third to their current location. Pretty hilarious, especially when you're dealing with two cities in two States separated by a river.



Only seven hours to Fort Collins, on the road again…

Day 1 Colorado Beer Trip (continued)

Thursday, May 21st, 2009 After the drive from Minneapolis to Des Moines, the Omaha leg of the trip seemed like a breeze. A short two hours after leaving El Bait Shop and we were already approaching the Council Bluffs/Omaha area. Before the sun went down I wanted to check out the Old Market. I had spent quite a few afternoons in the Old Market when a buddy of mine was at Creighton Dental School. I used to go down every summer for the College World Series and I was always impressed with the Old Market. This part of downtown is Omaha’s trendy hot spot. Old warehouses tastefully refinished into gift shops, retailers, bars and restaurants. Of these old buildings, one of them is a renovated firehouse, and creates some pretty tasty beers. The Upstream Brewing Co, from firehouse to brewhouse. The atmosphere is comfortable, very clean and straight lines, almost like you’re in a chain restaurant but with the charming wait staff of an independent. We bellied up to the bar and were treated the way first timers should be treated. Very friendly bartenders, offering to help in anyway possible but not intrusive, hasty or forceful. I knew what I wanted… the sampler, duh. We were brought two tall glasses of water without even asking. I like a place that does that. Too many times water seems like an inconvenience than a service.

No fancy rack for their sampler, just a laminated placemat with descriptions of the beer to be placed on it. Thirteen mini Pilsner glasses to be exact. “Oh how cute”, Carolyn exclaimed! I won’t go into detail on all of them but rather just the more memorable ones. The Dundee Export Scotch Ale was very pleasant. Plenty of malt and a nice easy drinking smoky finish; hints of sweet caramel set this one apart. It was also fun to taste the Blackstone Stout along side the cask version of the same beer. Both were nice and roasty with big body but the cask version was more complex. I was picking up a hint of oak and maybe some bourbon. It definitely seemed barrel aged to me, but the bartended assured me it was not. The only differences are serving temperature, the cask version isn't on nitro and the cask version was dry hopped. I enjoyed them both but more so the cask version. Another couple of beers really stood out. The Oatmeal Cookie Beer and the Blue Mystic Saison. The cookie beer was toasty, creamy, malty, biscuity and all around delicious. The Saison was brewed with ginger which added a nice refreshing twist. This saison was very citrusy already and the ginger added that piney something extra. It's not overpowering, I may not have even noticed it if I wasn't looking for it. It was very subtle but very welcome. After finally finishing them all plus lots of water we headed out. The guy next to us at the bar ordered a flourless chocolate cake and we almost pulled the trigger. Bartender said it would go nicely with a Stout/Raspberry Ale fusion. I bet it would.

We quickly checked into our hotel, dumped our bags and headed for the Crescent Moon Ale House. Omaha is pretty much a beer desert. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy visiting Omaha. There are many fun places to go have a beer, but if it’s a fine selection of craft beer you're looking for, your options are slim. There is one place, however, dubbed “Beer Corner USA” that should satisfy all of your desires. The corner of 36th and Farnam streets plays host to a wealth of beer imbibing opportunities. Under the confines of one roof you will find a Tap House with a wonderful selection, a German Bar with all your favorite German imports, a Belgian Beer Bar and a liquor store with a name all too inviting, Beertopia. What more could you ask for? We could have spent a lot of time and a lot of money on this little corner. It’s probably a good thing the seven hour drive looming the next morning was in the front of my mind or we would have. It was ten o’clock on Thursday night and the place was packed! While researching this trip I had read an article online about bartender Chris Bettini at the Crescent Moon. This guy has a mad passion for beer. We were lucky enough to have him taking care of us during our visit. I told him I was looking for Lucky Bucket, a brewery that I heard two stories about earlier in the day. I woke that morning having never heard of Lucky Bucky and by 10 PM, I had heard two people in two different States talking about it. In Des Moines, Mike from Court Ave had mentioned that Zac Triemert, former brewer at Upstream, ventured off to start his own brewery, Lucky Bucket. He said that I should seek it out while in Omaha. Then, while sitting in Upstream I overheard a bar manager talking about “our side project” Lucky Bucket. I obviously don’t have the whole story but I was intrigued nonetheless.

Crescent Moon had Lucky Bucket’s Pre-Prohibition lager on tap so I gave it a whirl. It was good, no wow factor, but very drinkable. I thought it was a rich creamy fruity lager, if there ever was such a thing. Of course I had tasted 25 beers already that day so my palate was pretty fatigued. I certainly had no problem finishing it. I would love to have another shot at this one. Later I tried the Ska Nefarious Ten Pin Imperial Porter. I had heard about this one and was eager to try it. I knew we weren’t going to make it to Durango while in Colorado so I didn’t find any problem drinking it here. Mmmmmm, this was superb. Thick as tar but drank like silk. A lot of smooth creaminess behind this big bold roasty fella. I even got some alcoholic heat. At 8% it isn’t huge, but it ain’t no slouch either. I had to stop after this one. We had some crazy folks take a picture of us in front of the mural on the wall. This picture (not pictured) looked fine when we took it, but when we got home it was all blurry. Funny how clear everything is when viewed through beer goggles. Ha ha… and off we went into the Nefarious Nebraska night.

Day 1 Colorado Beer Trip

(click on pictures to make 'em bigger)


Thursday, May 21st, 2009 Again, due to my limited vacation days this year, I was forced to work a half day on Thursday morning. Not ideal, but doable. The clock struck 11:00 and we were off! Or so we thought. We fought the Marq2 construction downtown and finally made it to 35W. Remember that TV commercial where everyone is tailgating and having a good time and then they pan out and you realize they are all on the freeway? Well this was just like that except without the barbeque grills, beers and happy people. I knew there was major construction on 35W south and should have avoided it altogether but I wasn’t thinking. Half an hour behind schedule and the Civic was finally in 5th gear.

We made some time up on the road and arrived in Des Moines at 2:45. First stop was at The Court Avenue Brewing Co (or CABCO). Most people were still working so when we walked in it was pretty quiet. Naturally we sauntered over to a table by the glass separating the brewery from the dining room. As I did throughout most of this trip I started with the sampler. This was about the coolest (and heaviest) sampler rack as I had ever seen. It seems that about as much creativity as goes into the beer goes into how various brewpubs serve their samples and this was no exception. See picture. I usually sample beers from lightest to darkest in color with the exception of really hoppy beers. They usually do a number on my taste buds so I save those for last. I really enjoyed all of the beers I tried as each of them was unique and all its own. So many times I’ve been to brewpubs and besides color they were all really similar. Not here. I especially enjoyed the Belgian White (Wit). It was brewed with Curacao orange peel and it really added a nice citrusy punch, very refreshing. We got to speak with brewer Mike Gauthier later and he mentioned it was much sweeter than previous versions and more so than he likes it. I thought it was great but would love to try a drier version someday. I also enjoyed the Kaplan Hat Hefeweizen. More clove than banana than most American Hefes and a nice grainy malt backbone. It was a very clear beer so I asked if it was the Krystal style… no, just nicely flocculating yeast. That might also explain the unique yeast flavor characteristics. I really enjoyed talking with the brewer and learning some of the joys as well as the challenges of being a brewer in a brewpub. He talked about the pressures of keeping production up with demand; a constant battle between brewer and bar manger. He also talked about how frustrating antiquated beers laws can be. For example, in Iowa you can’t brew beer stronger than 6.2% ABV but you can sell it stronger. So it’s hard to compete with the Belgian Beer bar down the street which often has beers on tap 15% or higher. After visiting for a while he took off for the bar rather quickly. I assumed there was a question that needed addressing or something, but no… he went up to grab a specialty beer. 21st Amendment Ale. This brew named in honor of the Volstead Act is their Rye Pale Ale aged in rye whiskey barrels from Iowa distiller Templeton Rye Whiskey. A 2008 barrel aged beer festival Silver medal winner. What a barrel aged treat, the whiskey really shines through. Low in carbonation and very smooth. One of my favorites on the trip. Had a great time at CABCO but alas, on to the next!


Thanks to the great crowd of beer gurus on BeerAdvocate I was introduced to a beer bar in Des Moines with over 100 beers on tap, El Bait Shop! It’s located right by the Iowa Cubs stadium and there was game that evening so it was beginning to get busy. This biker bar (think spandex not chaps) boasts one hundred and five beers on tap. How do you decide? I went with a recommendation and tried the Rogue Imperial Pilsner and I really liked it. It was high in alcohol, very fruity in aroma, clover and honey and a rich powerful noble hop aroma blurring the line between floral and spicy. Mmm I could drink a few of these. The last beer I tried when we were there was Raccoon River’s IPA. Raccoon River is another brewpub in downtown Des Moines that didn’t quite make our short list. I was happy to get the chance to try one of their beers but was disappointed once I did. It could have been old, but it seemed very dumbed down. The hops had all faded and the malt presence was a bit more than it should have been. I also detected a little butter. Oh well, it would take more than a diacetylic amber to bring me down. This eclectic place was really comfortable, the taps were just begging for the camera and the food was awesome. I am a big supporter of the “When in Rome” menu theory* so I had to try El Garlic Bait Burger. This minced garlic infused burger topped with American and Gouda cheeses and barbeque sauce melted in my mouth AND in my hands. What a delectable gooey mess, yum. We finished our beers, licked our fingers, polished off every last crinkle cut french fry and hit the road. Omaha or bust!

BEER THIS! DA

*If there is an item on the menu that features the establishment’s name I tend to lean toward it. When in El Bait Shop, do the El Bait Burger.

ROAD TRIP! Tasting beers to Colorado and back.

On June 8th I begin my studies with the American Brewers Guild. That will consist of ten hours of lecture per week plus another six hours of studying for 29 weeks. Add that to my full-time job and a second part-time job and any free time will disappear. I thought I should have one last hurrah before going underground for the next seven months and a beer trip sounded good. While both my vacation days and budget are limited this year we decided to take a road trip and do it over the Memorial Day weekend. Colorado is definitely a beer Mecca so it was off to the Centennial State.

Our trip included stops in Des Moines and Omaha along the way followed by stops in Fort Collins, Longmont, Denver and Golden. The itinerary included a couple of stops in Boulder and Lyons as well but due to some rescheduling we weren’t able to make it. Missing Boudler was disappointing but that just means we’ll have to go back.

We had a lot of great beers – I tasted 105 different beers in all. We had a lot of good laughs – Carolyn even had beer coming out her nose at one point. We made a bunch of new friends and even got to catch up with some old ones. We met some great people in the brewing and beer bar business and had about as great a trip as we could have imagined.

Inspired by another beer blog I follow (Thanks Kris and Mag), in the coming days I will be blogging in more detail about our daily visits to the local beer scene. Check back soon and often.

DA

Convert This!

I’ve read various blogs recently arguing Craft Beer vs. Macro Beer. The argument is never about which is better, but always about why craft beer is better than macrobrewed (mass produced) beer. For the most part I’ve stayed out of this like I do most debates. My Mom is nearly full blooded Norwegian which makes me nearly half and we Scandinavians like to avoid conflict. If you keep your mouth shut, it can’t get you in trouble. However, I feel it’s time to comment, especially since this week is American Craft Beer Week.

How do I feel?

My feelings on the matter are simple… if you like the way it tastes, drink it. The problem is that I am confident many people think Bud, Miller and Coors products taste good. Are they wrong? Not necessarily. Do I think they taste good? No, but I also don’t think they taste bad either. In fact I don’t think they taste much at all. But just because I don’t think they taste good doesn’t mean they can’t taste good to someone else. But what if that’s all they knew? I believe a conversion to craft beer enjoyment begins with a little education and some good old fashioned persistence. How many of you liked the taste of beer the first time you had it? I certainly didn’t and I would bet a majority of you didn’t either. I learned to like it though. As they say, it’s an acquired taste. Some younger drinkers are lucky to have started with craft beers but many of us older guys did not. But that doesn’t mean we’re a lost cause. Why did we start drinking light lagers in the first place? Certainly not because they tasted good. For a long time in this country that was all that was available. And if Light American Lagers are all you know (like me until I was 24) chances are you’re not going to go into a bar or liquor store and buy anything else.

I remember my junior year of college. I was just barely legal. Not a rookie beer drinker by any means, but turning legal means going to bars and making your own decisions on what to drink. One evening I ordered a Sam Adams. Holy crap did that taste horrible. I didn’t know what it was that I was tasting but it wasn’t beer. I even remember buying one for a friend on her 21st birthday as a joke. Sadly I went back to old reliable. I wish I hadn’t given up on old Sammy so easily. More importantly, I wish I would have had a friend to tell me what it was I was tasting, that is was normal, in fact intentional and to tell me that people actually enjoy that flavor. I would have become a craft beer drinker a lot sooner if someone had educated me and told me it was okay to explore those flavors.

Well, I didn’t have to wait long. Three short years later my family took a trip to England. I was forced by some pretty persistent (and evidently brilliant) uncles to drink what the locals drink… and I fell in love. By that time, the American Craft Beer scene was nearly 20 years strong and I had no idea what I was missing. When I came back state-side my beer life made an about-face and I have never looked back. My uncles introduced me and educated me on the wonders of different beer flavors. While many of the beers I drank in jolly old England are not available here in the States, I began seeking out beers that compared to them (in my rookie palate’s opinion). Eventually the evil Sam Adams became my best friend.

Although the craft beer scene was long past the infancy stage in 2000 it was still rare to find anything but macros or common imports on the majority of restaurants tap lists. Sadly this is still the case in many places, but it is getting much better. We are lucky here in the Twin Cities to have a local brewery like Summit. Most places around town have Summit’s flagship beer Extra Pale Ale on tap and it’s a pretty dang good beer. For me my go-to beers when dining out became Summit EPA and Sam Adams Boston Lager. Now here’s where it gets interesting. For a while I actually thought that Sam and Summit tasted “pretty much the same”. Many of us know that this is most certainly not the case but at that point that’s what I perceived. Eventually my palate matured as I tried new things. As my tongue became barraged with new flavors, bitterness, sweetness, spiciness, roastiness, etc it actually got more refined. I was able to perceive and identify new flavors and distinguish similar beers from each other. And I’ll tell you what, my friends, there is nothing more exiting than that. I remember the first California Common I tried. Gross! What is that stinky rotten cheese aroma? And what’s that bitter/tart flavor? That can’t be healthy! Well as things progressed I learned that those were Northern Brewer hops, a defining character of this style. “Stinky cheese” and “tart” became “woodsy” and “rustic”. Once I knew they were intentional and unique I became more open minded and began enjoying the complexities that set this style of beer apart from others.

I challenge you.

Let’s back up a little bit and follow the progression of Sam Adams in my life. For the first thirteen years Sam Adams was around I had never heard of it. First time I tried it I hated it. Tried it again and again and I started to enjoy it, but still compared it to every other hoppy “dark” beer. Eventually it became individually unique and even more enjoyable. So I challenge you today, in the spirit of American Craft Beer week, convert a friend or two. It’s not an overnight conversion but you just might be the person to flip the switch and redirect a friend down the ride of their life. I’m not sure if craft beer sales will ever equal (or heaven forbid exceed) macro beer sales, but it’s worth a shot. We have a wonderful opportunity here to start, or I should say continue, a revolution. Light Lager lovers are curable and I truly believe that craft beer drinkers are irreversible. Convert someone today!

It’s Finally Done!

I have been working on a project for nearly a year and a half and it is finally finished. In a post (paragraph two) earlier this year I wrote briefly about a project that was finally completed. Well it wasn’t completely done. It was finished to the point where we could move it out of the garage and into our living space. But it wasn’t the completed working bar that I had envisioned when I started. Here’s the long story.





















My father has been a Lutheran pastor for nearly 25 years. It is customary in this profession to move around every ten years or so to keep congregations from getting stale. These days you can find him on St Paul’s east side at Arlington Hills Lutheran Church (or with my mother at any of the many great pubs in St Paul). I sometimes think they have more fun than I do. We’ll get picture text messages from them while they’re at places like The Muddy Pig, W.A. Frost or Great Waters. What can I say? They know how to enjoy life. Back to the story… Before moving to St Paul, Dad was a pastor in rural central Minnesota. They lived in a parsonage (home owned by the church reserved for the pastor's family). And in that parsonage was a garage. And in that garage was a workbench. For the first eight or nine years they lived there I never knew that the workbench was actually an altar. The decorative side always faced the wall since the back had a door on it and inside they would keep gardening tools and what have you. Well, the altar must have been removed from one of the old country churches that are constantly closing up all over the Midwest. No one really knows how long it was sitting in the garage but I really wanted it. Dad asked around and no one seemed to know where it came from or whether it was of any sigificance to anyone so he said I could have it. I saw lots of potential in this beat up old grubby workbench.

The first thing we had to do was evict all the tenants that resided in the altar. Yep, it seems between the frame and the decorative crown molding lived a family of mice. Once that problem was eliminated we loaded it up in dad’s truck. I got it home and into our garage and quickly got to work. Shows like Mythbusters and Smash Lab are successful because people like to destroy things and see things getting destroyed. This was no exception. I had a lot of fun disassembling this little gem. Crowbars, hammers, flying nails, yay! However, once I got it all apart the fun stopped and the “work” began. I quickly got burned out and neglected the project. I found it was too hard to sand all the intricate decorative pieces that adorned the front of the altar. I gave up and pursued other interests. Eventually I returned and decided it might be easier to sand if I removed all the pieces. So I did just that. The wood was old and brittle and some of the parts broke. Frustrated again! This pile of lumber nearly became firewood. But since I wanted the end result to be rugged and antiqued I decided to plug away. I bought a dowling jig and slowly put Humpty Dumpty back together. Slowly I worked about an hour a month. We’re talking glacial pace. Then all of a sudden I got the urge to step it up and finish it. My brother comes to town once, sometimes twice, a year and he was coming soon! I decided in early December that I would finish it by the time he got here January 10th.

I worked and worked and worked until finally I got everything sanded, everything broken put back together, every rotten board replaced, everything stained and everything reassembled. I did it; I got it finished literally the night before he flew in. And by finished I mean I now had a nice new piece of furniture to grace our living/dining room. It was pretty and it worked too. Sort of. The problem was that I had to fill a cooler with ice and place the kegs in it to keep them cool. Not difficult but a pain in the kiester. In addition to that, when beer warms up, the carbonation comes out of solution (un-dissolves?). So the lines between the keg and the tap (uncooled) ended up filling with foam. That’s all that would come of the tap for a few seconds. Every time you’d pour a beer you’d get a glass full of foam. Becasue of this I didn't use it very often. It wasn't much more than a piece of art that was nice to look at.

What I had envisioned all along was a kegerator so to speak. A refrigerated altar that dispenses kegged beer. Am I going to Hell? Perhaps. After three months of just admiring my bar, I went back to work. I framed up the inside of the altar kinda like you would do if you were finishing a basement. Next, I applied quarter inch plywood for a nice smooth interior. Using Liquid Nails I adhered 1” foam insulation to the plywood and finally adhered pieces of FRP to the foam. Let me tell you this was no easy chore. FRP stands for Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic and it is very hard to cut. Also fiberglass is very itchy and you don’t want to breathe the dust. I ended up using my dad’s Dremel with a cut-off wheel to cut it. I wore gloves, long sleeves, a mask, safety glasses and took my work outside. This seemed to work well and it got me outside one nice afternoon. Once the FRP was applied I caulked the corners with white caulk and now I have a nice waterproof and easy-to-clean interior. I did the same to the bar top and it actually insulates very well.

Of course at this point all I have is a glorified cooler. I’ve been holding on to my old dorm fridge for use on the altar bar and it was time to install it. It wasn’t hard to remove from the original fridge and not very hard to reinstall on the new altar either. It did annoy me a little that I had to cut a big (4” x 4”) hole in the side but I had no choice. It doesn’t cool as well as I’d like and I’m sure it’s not efficient but it does the trick. Perhaps I can find another old fridge and put another one on the other side. Right now it cools to 39-42 degrees which is good enough. Can’t wait to see my electrical bill. Overall, I am quite pleased with how it turned out. And my wife is pleased since I did all this most recent work in our dining room! Running up and down between the garage and dining room... sawdust and tools everywhere... but I digress. I got home from work yesterday and poured myself a beer from my own living room. It was nice.

That being said, I am sure I will continue to play around with this project. I would like a bigger bar top, I’d like to improve refrigeration, add another draft tower, etc. I am fully resigned to the fact that it may never be truly completed. Pictures of the project can be found HERE.

Cheers!

Beer + BBQ + Baseball = Good

Good Friday was good to me. I woke up refreshed from having the previous day off (which I spent brewing). Work was slow as the Market was closed. I left work early, went to the gym, went to church and all this before 5pm. Heck, I’m not even home from work by 5pm on most days. Good Friday was good indeed.

Like many people, I like to have a little balance in my life. For instance, when grilling I like to have a beer in one hand and the tongs in the other. This creates a nice balance and keeps me from tipping over. Seriously though, I find it a lot easier on the conscience if I hit the gym before over indulging. Balance. By the time I was home from church and got cleaned up after the gym it was almost 5 o’clock. I was heading over to our good friends’ home in Savage. They have a seven month old and I am a bachelor on Friday nights so it’s a win-win for both of us. I don’t have to spend the night alone and they don’t have to get a sitter but we both feel like we didn’t waste a perfectly good Friday night. The warm weather meant it was time to get the grill out (enter ‘Tim the tool man Taylor’ sound effects here). In my opinion there’s nothing better than sitting outside on a warm evening. The smell of marinated meat sizzling on the grill, the sound of dogs barking and a glass of craft beer in your hand… ahhhhhh. The only thing missing was the smell of freshly cut grass. Soon enough.

The night was planned out perfectly. 5:00, happy hour. 6:00, eat. 6:30, enjoy a nice cigar. 7:00, Twins game. The evening was welcomed by a nice cold Summit EPA. Ah, yes, a man’s beer. A Minnesota staple. A craft beer brewed to perfection every time. Sure there might be more exciting, trendy craft beers out there but there is no beer more solid. Enjoyable day in and day out. A local favorite and must have in my fridge. After supper (and a couple cold EPA’s) it was time for a new favorite of mine… Cigars and Surly. I just love the flavors that dance in my mouth during the combination of a good cigar and a Surly Bender. As they say; it takes two to tango. The cigar tasting of rich tobacco, spice and of course smokiness with the dark chocolatey roastiness of the Bender meld in prefect harmony with one another. However, it could be the over the top hoppiness of this beer that really compliments the cigar. Give it a try.

After the fire was extinguished and Kaylee was put to bed the boys retired to the man cave for a night of baseball and bitterness. Bitter because the game wasn’t being broadcast in HD, Grrrr! But bitter also because I was enjoying the latest Surly seasonal – Bitter Brewer. I find myself saying “this is one of my favorites” about many of their beers but this one I really look forward to. So easy to drink yet so delicious at the same time. I love hops and this beer has plenty. A far cry from their Furious but more than enough to make me happy. Bitter brewer is also low in alcohol (4% ABV) so you can drink a few and still function. A classic session beer.

Our mighty Twins were just coming off a 2-2 opening series home stand. I always get excited for baseball’s opening day. For me, at least mentally, it signifies the end of winter and the beginning of summer. Other than that, there really is nothing too exciting about Seattle coming to town. I would have preferred to sweep them but hey, the Twins will lose 50 or 60 games this season so I can’t get down on them already. This next series is where it is at. Many of you remember last year… the dreaded game 163. A crushing defeat in a one game playoff with our arch-rival Chicago White Sox. That game was decided by a solo homerun by Twins-killer Jim Thome. Final score 1-0. White sox in, Twins out. Now, seven months later, we pick up right where we left off; US Cellular Field in Chicago’s south side. As we all know by now the game ended up in favor of the Twins and it was a treat to watch as a Twins fan. The highlight for me had to be Joe Crede’s homecoming. Joe was acquired by the Twins as a free agent from the White Sox in the offseason. He was a crowd favorite in Chicago.

When he came up to bat for the first time he was greeted with not only a standing ovation but a warm up song. As Joe stepped into the box the loud speakers blasted Air Supply’s hit All Out of Love. “I 'm all out of love, I'm so lost without you…etc”. It was pretty funny and even Joe himself got a kick out it as he was seen chuckling. Moments later he reminded the White Sox fans just what they loved about him… his ability to hit the long ball. Crede laced a 2-0 pitch off Jose Contreras (see picture) into the left field bleachers giving the Twins a two to nuthin lead. After see-sawing for the next five innings the Twins finally broke it open with a seven run seventh innning. Final score 12-5 Twins. It was a great game to watch if you are a Twins fan. And it was a great way to finish out the work week. Beer, Baseball, BBQ and Blunts. It was a Good Friday indeed.