Beer of the Week Blast from the Past: Michael Shea's Black and Tan

Beer score: 6.0

I don't like it when I go a week without trying another beer, but the good thing is I at least have some old notes on beers I tried long ago that no longer are being produced.

Such as this beer.

This black and tan was a mix of a porter and lager.

The porter taste was nice and smooth but there was way too much fizz for my liking.

The Genessee Brewing Co. of Rochester, New York, made this beer, which was a surprise because I usually don't care much for that company's beer and this one wasn't bad.

Books read in 2024: No. 31 -- The Second Epistle of Peter

published by Zondervan

Started: July 7
Finished: July 7

Notes: I just finished the first of Peter's letters, so thought I'd go ahead and read the second.

Mini review: The main parts of this letter consist of Peter warning against false prophets and exhorting his fellow Christians to remain ready for the return of Jesus.

Books read in 2024: No. 30 -- The First Epistle of Peter

published by Zondervan

Started: July 6
Finished: July 7

Notes: Getting back to my Bible readings, I'm interested to study Peter's writings as compared to those of Paul

Mini review: Most of what is here are recommendations from Peter on how Christians should act and how they should treat one another.

Books read in 2024: No. 29 -- Allan Quatermain

by H. Rider Haggard

Started: June 23

Finished: July 6

Notes: I've not read a lot of Haggard, but what little I have read has been fun and adventurous. Also, though I'm familiar with the Allan Quatermain character, I've never read any of Haggard's novels about his fictional hero. So, here goes.

Mini review: So my first Quatermain novel turns out to be the last one in a series, but that's okay as I had no problem following along with the story. The writing here reminded me more than a little of Robert E. Howard's tales of Africa, though Howard tends to be darker and to have more action than this particular novel did. The plot? An older Quatermain, in his 60s, sets out from England with some friends to enter the depths of Africa in search of a race of people. Why are the adventurers doing this? For something to do. While they appreciate returning to England for rest between their adventures, they long to return to wilds. During their journey their is a fair amount of action, though personally I would have liked more. The only parts of the novel for which I did not care were the occasional lengthy descriptions of a discovered region, these descriptions lacking in descriptive details but full of emotional details, a trend not uncommon to many a 19th-Century novel. Will I read more of Quatermain? Perhaps. I won't be jumping out to find all the other books in the series, but if I ran across some in a used bookstore I would probably snag them.

Beer of the Week: New Belgium Voodoo Ranger Imperial IPA

Beer score: 6.2

Company: New Belgium
ABV: 7.0
IBU: 50

Pours a golden color but not too light, almost with a touch of shade of amber. Gives off a bit of a pine scent and has the expected bitterness of an IPA in the smell.

Has some carbonation but goes down fairly smooth.

Though they put out some decent beers, I'm not usually a big fan of New Belgium nor of IPAs, but I have to say this one has won me over.

The taste has a fair amount of that IPA bitter, but there are also hints of that pine and maybe a little citrus.

I'd drink this one again.

Beer of the Week: Dos Equis Amber Lager

Beer score: 4.2

Company: Dos Equis
ABV: 4.7
IBU: 23

Sometimes this one is referred to as "Dos Equis Amber Lager" and sometimes it's called "Dos Equis Ambar Especial," but either way, it's the same beer.

This one pours darker than most beers from Mexico, and it's a little more hardy and less fizzy.

An odd mix of Mexican beer texture with a little bit of European taste thrown in. The flavor is mostly bready but includes a little touch of spiciness, though I wouldn't call this a "hot" or "peppery" beer. There's also a little bit of lime and maybe caramel in the taste.

Not a great beer, but also not an awful one. I wouldn't turn one down if handed to me, unless maybe there were better beers available.

Books read in 2024: No. 28 -- The Black Tulip

by Alexandre Dumas

Started: June 16

Finished: June 23

Notes: It has been far too long, more than a decade, since I have read anything from Dumas, and he really is one of my favorite authors. So, it is more than time I dip back into material from him, especially when it is one of his novels which I have not read before.

Mini review: Considering the title and the fact Dumas was the author, I expected this novel to be about an adventurous character with the nom de guerre of "Black Tulip," somewhat like the Scarlet Pimpernel or Scaramouche or some such. But that was not the case. No, the black tulip here is a literal black tulip. The plot concerns a wealthy young man in Holland of the 17th Century. His only love in life is growing tulips, so he becomes excited when a horticulture society offers a huge award for a black tulip. This young man sets out to grow a black tulip, but he is soon thwarted by political events and an envious neighbor. To say more would be to give away too much, but I will say this is more of a novel of intrigue than of action, though it still makes a good read. Any Dumas fan should enjoy this one.