I’m not wont to talk about clichés or stereotypes, but I’m afraid the topic of beer is inescapable when writing about Germany. The world’s most renowned producer of this beloved libation simply cannot be discussed without at least some mention of it. Before you roll your eyes, though, let me assure you that I’m not [...]
On a warm April evening, two city girls poke their heads through the entryway of the Burp Castle. With eyebrows raised in curiosity, they tacitly ask why the library-like pub is so uncharacteristically packed.
“This is the New York City Homebrewers Guild meeting,” I offer. After taking another glance at the crowd, which is listening intently [...]
Another South by Southwest has come and gone, taking me out of commission for one week and daring me to recover my strength in time to make my Tuesday deadline for this blog.
Fuckin’ A. As long as I’m doubled over in defeat, I might as well go for a roundup of the foods that make [...]
When I tell people I’m going home for the holidays, I mean to say two things:
1. I’ve booked a flight to Los Angeles.
2. Once I’m in Los Angeles, I’ll get the Hell out and make tracks for the East Bay.
3. My appetite is expanding to Homeric proportions.
I’ll be the first to defend the city of [...]
What makes for a proper Chinese feast? Some might say diversity of flavor, but I prefer the known quantities that are dumplings and camaraderie. Really, there’s no better time to test out the adage, “Liquor before beer; you’re in the clear,” than when you’re among friends – friends who care about such things as being [...]
I’ve just returned from a week in Budapest, Hungary!
I’ll be deviating from my usual column to post several stories on my meals there throughout this week. As I continue post-vacation recovery, however, you’ll have to settle for this primer album of beverages and mustache:
My favorite beer in the world is an amber ale named Palm Speciale. I spent the better part of three months abroad in its company, savoring every chance to crack open a bottle and get to work on a beverage that would never make its way to my own continent. After returning to California, I [...]
Summer: Enshrined in Americana as the flagship of cookouts, stickball, and dubious water sports, this scorching swindle of a season doesn’t reveal its depressing nature until school is out and you’ve been reduced to a sludgesicle of a working stiff.
When I was a carefree political science major in the city of Berkeley, summer was a [...]
PICARD: A lot has changed in three hundred years. People are no longer obsessed with the accumulation of “things”. We have eliminated hunger, want, the need for possessions. We have grown out of our infancy.
RALPH: You’ve got it wrong. It’s never been about “possessions” – it’s about power.
PICARD: Power to do what?
The fact that Star [...]
