Six Point Brewery's Resin Review - Get out your Summer Guns!

Yo dawg!! I hear you like hops! So we put some hops in your hop so you can hop while you hops!
Sixpoint Brewery out of Brooklyn makes some serious beers, and some seriously good beers. This is one of them. But be ready to pucker, in a good way.
The narrow can is novel, but adds to the summer time experience as the sweat from it rolls down your hands or can be used to to cool off your neck. Cold beer in a can is a summertime staple in my house.
The nose is herbaceous and sweet. The first sip is peaches, all peaches and apricots and this is no lambic or flavored beer.  It pours a deep orange gold with a creamy tan head. After the peach hits a warm honey sweetness washes over the tongue. There is a malty sweetness also which is balanced by the citrus flavor of the hops which finish with a bitter grapefruit that's astringent but refreshing. Rate Beer gives Six Point Brewery's Resin a 98 a great score for a bold double IPA. I really enjoy this beer even though I'm not normally a fan of super hopped beers. Six Point has done a great job balancing the bitter fruit with sweet peaches and honey.
Food Pairing: Anything grilled and boldly spiced. Chipotle Rubbed Burgers, Smoked Chicken and Ribs. It can stand up to just about anything but would wash out something like lobster salad or other delicate dishes where subtle flavors need to stand out.

So...WHAT DO YOU THINK OF SIX POINT'S RESIN???

Double Edged Everything

Seems like every decision we make is a double edged sword.
Wow, I just thought that it might not be good to post a pic of me with razor blades in my hand.. No it's not a cry for help folks, I just shave with them. And while whipping these out a few days ago to replace the one in my safety razor I thought "Well shit, double edges are everywhere, why not get used to them"
What are some of your double edged issues?

Top 10 places to work from, when you work from home, but can't be home

Working from home is awesome. But sometimes you either can't be home, or need to get out into the sunlight and see a few humans to feel like a person again. Here is my list of places to go when I'm getting the itch to rejoin the world or if I'm just temporarily kicked out of my abode.

10.  Your car.  Parking and firing up the aircard in the car isn't always the most comfortable thing to do, but it's convenient and quick if you need to hit the pavement quick and need to be online to work
9.  Panera Bread.  You can work and you get the bonus of smelling cookies and sticky buns all day. Free internet.
8.  The park. Get out there, get some air and let the sun hit your pasty IT nerd face. Bring your aircard.
7.  The local bar. Make sure they have internet, that it's a quiet afternoon, and that you don't drink so much that you pass out on your laptop.
6.  Friend's house. Make sure they don't have kids, or pets, or anything noisy. Thank them by removing all the malware they picked up from visiting sites they deleted from their history.
5.  The beach. Baba oooma mow mow baba oom mow ma mow
4.  The local deli. Usually Free internet, and sandwiches. Just don't get chip crumbs in your keyboard.
3.  The bowling alley. All the White Russians you can drink..Note: only good if noise isn't an issue.
2.  A bus stop. Great place to people watch when you've spent too much time looking at SQL and Crystal Reports.
1.  The local coffee shop. Smells great, they don't rush you, free internet. And you just plain look and feel less like the Laptop Hobbit you are.

I Find my Meat in Strange Places

....it's no secret that I like ice cream. Just about any chance I get the excuse to hit the local creamery I'll be there. Out where I live we're lucky in that there a lot of Mom and Pop general stores that also make excellent frozen treats. A few summers after we moved here I was driving around and spotted this small trailer with a sign with an unpronounceable ( Grochowicz Farms ) name with a huge glorious ice cream cone next to it. Like an F1 driver on a bender I yanked the wheel and just made the driveway entrance to find out what goodies lay and wait.

Walking in I could see the store had lots to offer, homemade soaps, the ubiquitous jellies and jams, ice cream and candies and wait...what is this?? Grass fed beef?  I had to inquire more. 

While waiting for my chocolate malt I spoke to one of the nice girls working behind the counter about where the meat came from. Turns out they have their own farm ( duh Greg...Grochowicz " Farms" ) and they have chicken and beef available while they are open from Spring to Fall. They also have a hugely popular haunted hay ride which I admit I'm a little afraid to ride because they take you out into a corn field which in and of itself is a bit creepy. I thought, this is where I want to spend my money, this is where Americans should spend their money, a nice family run small business. 

So this is where we go now to get our meat whenever possible. It's an easy call for me, either go to a megamart where the beef is from a feedlot and shot up with antibiotics or a nice farm stand, where I can talk to the person who has raised the cattle by hand.....oh and there is the ice cream thing. This week's homework is to go get some ice cream!

It's ain't easy being green

Grass fed meats are better for you. Animals that are humanely raised by small farms instead of giant Globocorp feed lots do not need antibiotics and are under much less physical and mental stress, and therefore are better for you. You don't have to take my word for it, there are many studies that suggest that eating these type of meats is a better way to live both for yourself and the animal.
There is however a disconnect. One that I'm working on fixing. Right now buying grass fed products is not only pretty expensive, it's kind of confusing. This is because we're used to shopping a certain way. We grab out carts and head to the mega-mart which has everything we could ever want. They always have it in stock and they rarely run out...and if you're not eating organic products yet...it's cheap.
Most farms are getting there, they have websites where you can order products, they have farm stands where you can buy delicious fresh produce and meats, and there are the farmers markets that open up in parking lots and fields across the country. These are fine ways to shop, but as a part of the always going broke middle class I like to know that I'm getting the best deal. I don't mind paying a bit more, but because the food system is still biased towards a megamart/transporting food all over type system farmers need to charge more because the volume isn't there yet.
My project is a deal of the day type site that offers products from local and countrywide farms. The details are still fuzzy like a fresh jersey peach in July but they'll be worked out as we go along this journey together. It's an important one. People want quality food for their families but also know they can't spend a fortune. There is a middle ground here. And I'm about to put my gloves on and start digging in it.
This week's homework is to frequent a farmer's market or stand.

Up Your Buns Game!!!

People don't pay much attention to their buns. But like any part of a good sandwich, the bun needs to fill a roll purpose that is important as any hunk of meat or slice of cheese. The bun is what holds your burger or hot dog together, it's what sops up all the juices and melds your sandwich together. It's time we take a good look at the bun and how we can use it to elevate our summer grilling know how.

First thing is that when you can get your buns from a bakery, do so. They're much better than the plastic like products you get off the shelves in mega marts. Now lets talk about some buns that you should be grabbing this summer.
1. The New England Hot Dog Roll - flat outer surfaces, brush with melted butter and grill on both sides, one of the best buns to put your dogs in.
2. Pretzel Rolls - Like a traditional hamburger but but slightly chewier and with a very nice dark salted pretzel like crust. Perfect for sausage patty sandwiches with dark mustard and kraut.
3. Potato Rolls - a weak bun but soft, perfect for small slider types with chopped pickles and onions
4. Ciabatta Rolls - My goto for bigger 8oz burgers, nice crumb on the inside for soaking up juice.
5. Challah Rolls - or Brioche are nice eggy rolls that stand up well to toasting on the grill and to bigger burgers
6. Torta Sandwich Roll - a secret weapon and readily available at bakeries or even Costco. Grill both sides with butter and you have one of the best buns on the market.

I hope this post opened your eyes to an undervalued part of the backyard bbq experience. Your homework this week is to go grab some buns!

Top Ten Surprise BBQ Sauce Add-Ins

I like adding things into my basic sauce recipe to switch things up a bit. Pending on my mood and the meat that I'm cooking different add ins really can create a whole new flavor profile. Some of these add ins can be used on their own. Here we go.

1. Beer - Any beer is great to thin out a sauce that's too gloppy thick while adding a nice malted earthy flavor to the sauce, I usually stick with something dark like a stout or porter, almost adding a coffeeish flavor. 
2. Bourbon - Not too much or you'll set your whole backyard on fire, but a few shots of bourbon will give your sauce a little zing. 
3. Honey - Not only adds sweetness to your sauce, but an incredible summertime flowery flavor. 
4. Grilled Lemons - Add a smokey zest to your sauce, make sure your sauce isn't too thick, grill up a few lemon halves and squeeze them into your sauce. Perfect for all day moping. 
5. Apricot Preserves - For Pork, add them in or use it on its own as a light glaze for your chops or pork loin. 
6. Strawberry Preserves - For Chicken, adds a nice sweet fruity flavor
7. Apple Cider - Another item to thin out a thick sauce and to add a bit of fall flavored sweetness
8. Chocolate - unsweetened melted chocolate will add a rich depth to your sauce, almost creating a mole sauce of sorts.
9. Sesame Seeds - A little Asian flair with a nice nutty flavor
10. Liquid Smoke - you can make your own or get it in a bottle, most purists think it's cheating, but if you don't have all day to smoke your pork butts or you're doing them in your oven it really adds a nice smokey flavor. Only use a little, it's acrid stuff.

So there you have it, a few trade secrets to try out this summer. Your homework this week is to get out and grill!!