Song of the day, 10 August 2026

More Mancunian music.

I didn't know Van der Graaf Generator were formed in Manchester until recently. Here they are at Shank Hall in Milwaukee back in 2009. I was at this show and "Interference Patterns" (heard here) and "Man-Erg" left me gobsmacked.

Is this oyster stout fresh?: My Turn - Aidan by Lakefront Brewery

I am finally caught up on my salt & vinegar chips reviews and this post will get me caught up on beer reviews.

Aidan is Lakefront's - what? - 800th entry in their My Turn series? Well, maybe not quite that many but I am happy to see that it continues nonetheless. It has turned out some tasty brews and is the only way to get the venerable Milwaukee brewery to brew a smoke beer. "Smoked" and "rye" on the label drew immediate interest from me and I ogled the 6-pack with a male beer gaze. I mean, these are the two best things you can do to a beer. But what about that "oyster"?

Pulverized oyster shells were used here, not the meaty bits. Chemistry dictates that the calcium carbonate in the shells aids in clarifying beer and the practice dates back to the late 19th century, if AI is to be believed. The calcium carbonate gets proteins and yeast, which can make a beer cloudy, to coagulate and settle to the bottom of a brewing tank where they can easily be separated from the precious clear elixir.

Huh.

So do the shells add any flavor of the ocean? Lakefront says it adds a "subtle mineral quality". Interesting.

If memory serves, Aidan came out over the winter and my can had best by date of 04May2026 so I squeezed this in just under the wire.

My pour produced a big, tan head that had true staying power. The liquid was a deep, dark brown and admitted no light to pass through it. I don't recall the last time I saw a brew as Stygian as this one.

 

I see an oyster stout

And I want it brewed up black

 

Well that makes about as much sense as clarifying a beer that one cannot even see into. Ha ha! Who am I to question the folks at Lakefront?

 

I assume the oyster shells did their thing and clarified the beer but we'll never know. The aroma was roasty with a bit of sweetness that was redolent of haw flakes.

 

Taking a sip I found that it had a nice bit of fizz to it. The body was light-medium which took me by surprise as I figured a 7.1% A.B.V. stout would be on the heavier side. While I sampled it more or less straight out of the refrigerator, I found that the key to mining Aidan's vein of smoky rye deliciousness was to let it warm up.

 

This is something I need to work on with ales. I've gotta practice letting them warm up a bit instead of immediately consuming them in a sipping frenzy like that great white shark nomming on poor Chrissie Watkins.

 

Once I let my glass of Aidan enjoy a little bit of the temperate temps of spring, it took on many wonderful flavors. A general roasty taste was joined by milk chocolate giving a solid stouty base. A little stone fruit, some all-too mild smoke, and a hint of sweetness added to the mix. The rye wasn't spicy to my taste but rather is was earthy. I am beginning to suspect that rye becomes "spicy" in beer via melding with hops in a certain way. When I sup a Roggenbier such as, say, Tippy Toboggan, the rye has a mellow earthiness to it, a grainy flavor less sweet than wheat but not a sharp peppery one or a brisk turpene-like burst. As for the hops, they had a nice herbal aspect to them and let my tongue know they were there but the were not overpowering.

 

The grainy flavors lingered a bit on the finish and, as they faded, some dark roast coffee came into the picture before the herbal hop flavors came in. Bitterness and dryness were both middle of the road and made for a satisfying denouement.

 

Beyond wishing the smokiness had been a bit more prominent, this was one tasty brew. I was surprised that the malts didn't seem to add any bitterness as most American stouts (& porters too) generally have a fuliginous flavor from black malts or whatever kind of deep, black, burnt malts they use. Instead, Aidan had a nice, rounded roasty taste. Was this the result of the types of grains used? Or did the oyster shells have something to do with it? Honestly, I didn't catch that promised "subtle mineral quality". Maybe it was really subtle. Or perhaps that rounded malt quality is also known as a subtle mineral quality. After all, the both have the word "quality" in them.

 

Regardless, Aidan's malty profile was simply delicious. Roastiness, rye, and smoke made for a luscious pas de trois. Plus sweetness was held at bay and the delightfully light and nimble body belied the fairly high booze content.

 

Aidan was a great treat for me and I hope it's not too long before the My Turn series yields another brew with smoky malt in it.

 

Junk food pairing: If you have any Aidan lying around, drink it up for heaven's sake! And pair it with a bag of Mrs. Fisher's Dark potato chips. The extra sugars in the spuds yields more Maillard goodness and allowing you to drown in roasted gluttony.

A brace of bocks and sayonara snakes

When I went to the liquor store last weekend I noticed that Lakefront is not messing around when it comes to helles bocks. They had a couple on offer.

Have they brewed the honey bock before? I cannot recall. It was just nice to see a brace of bocks to push back against the 8 gillion IPAs.

I see that they have also resurrected Snake Chaser. 

 

 

When did this go away? Was it around last year? Not sure when this came back. Regardless, it's good to have it back for a little St. Patrick's Day cheer.

Some highlights of 2025

2025 has been quite a ride and it will soon end. The year, at any rate. The ride, perhaps not.

My divorce is likely the biggest event of the year for me. But 2025 has been more, much more, than just the beginning to the legal end of my marriage. Several people have entered or re-entered my life since being served papers. I found myself in the company of people that I would never have thought I'd be spending time with and have experienced quite a bit this year that was new and/or unexpected.

There were countless final things done with my wife and first times without her. Traditions were laid to rest and new ones born. Many new places, many new people. Some adventure was had in the UK, majesty in Concord.

A modest look back at 2025 in pictures.

HONK! was fantastic and Boston has become an annual trip for me. I love this Trump's Cthulhuy coif.

A most unexpected find on a hike.

Thanksgiving this year was the first in 20 years or so that I didn't spend with my wife. Instead I spent the day at the homes of two kind and generous people. At one I got to see Piper's brother, Gibson. 

While there I sampled a luscious mango turmeric ginger tart. Or was it a torte?

It was simply delicious and I befriended its maker. I now have someone to visit should I find myself in Evanston.

2025 was the year I attended my first Chicago International Puppet Festival. It was fantastic!

Back in October I moved out of our marital residence and over to Eken Park where I found that one of my neighbors was rather fond of Halloween.

My wife and I visited the Northside Lounge. Despite some awkward moments, we managed to have a decent time. I like the contrast in this rather spare photograph.

Our last trip together was to Milwaukee in May where we caught both nights of The Magnetic Fields. It was also the last time that we managed to spend any significant time together in something resembling harmony.

I made multiple trips to the lovely Morton Forest, a real treasure. 

In a seemingly never ending parade of attempts to spend as little time at home as possible, I finally made a visit to The Cat's Brew.

My friend who lives just a couple blocks away has a neighbor with this wonderful greenhouse. 

It's been great living so close to this friend as we now see each other fairly frequently and Piper has a new caretaker for times when I am out of town.

My trip to Boston saw me visit Walden Pond where I experienced the sublime.

While in England, I ran into this statue of Lucifer rather cunningly placed just outside the Ozzy Osbourne exhibit. 

The same museum also had a really cool exhibit about disabled people of color.

At another museum I got to stand before a steam engine from 1799 that was designed and/or built by James Watt himself. A piece of the Industrial Revolution that transformed the world. It still works. Amazing!

There were some nice pubs over in the UK.

Inside the Craven Arms looked like Sherlock Holmes' drawing room.

While I continue to get used to my new digs and still need to buy bookshelves, I do not miss my wife's clutter which occupied so much of our home. 

Earlier this month I made a return trip to the Christkindlmarkt in downtown Chicago.

I may have a marzipan addiction.

Chicago TARDIS was a blast again this year. My wife and I began attending in 2009 and, although she stopped going last year, it was this year that made me really feel like the tradition that we built together was truly over and now I had to make my own.

And so I have. I now meet my mother and a cousin at a nearby Greek restaurant. Making a visit at the Qamaria coffeehouse threatened to become a tradition but, since they opened an outpost here in Madison, I'll be going to the other Yemeni coffee place in Lombard.

I attended a panel hosted by the indelible Tony Whitt.

A gentleman and a scholar, Tony is the master of all things Target Novelizations. He approached me at another panel discussion to say thanks for attending his and chat for a bit.

My downstairs neighbor has a dog whom I caught staring at me one day.

My neighbor is a nice lady. She waves when either of us drive by the other. If the aromas from her kitchen are any indicator, she's also a fine cook. I am still getting acclimated to having downstairs neighbors as it has been a while since I've had any. But, if I am to have one, she is a good choice.

2025 may have marked the second anniversary of Grabby's death but she's never too far from my thoughts. 

 

 

2026 promises Chicago TARDIS once more and another trek out to the Boston area. But before any adventures in far off lands I plan to start a new tradition on the first day of the new year.

Civil Shrifting in the Cream City

Francis Bacon wrote:

A principal fruit of friendship is the ease and discharge of the fulness and swellings of the heart, which passions of all kinds do cause and induce. We know diseases of stoppings and suffocations are the most dangerous in the body; and it is not much otherwise in the mind; you may take sarza to open the liver, steel to open the spleen, flower of sulphur for the lungs, castareum for the brain; but no receipt openeth the heart but a true friend, to whom you may impart griefs, joys, fears, hopes, suspicions, counsels, and whatsoever lieth upon the heart to oppress it, in a kind of civil shrift or confession.  

His words came to mind last weekend as I prepared to visit friends in Milwaukee. I wasn't going to have a lot of time there but I was determined to make the most of what I was allotted and that would include not only me imparting griefs, joys, etc. but also my friends doing the same. While I'd hoped to be able to see everyone I knew in the Cream City, a couple had to bow out due to a funeral out of town. Still, two thirds ain't bad.

It was a lovely, sunny Saturday afternoon when I got into Bay View. Traffic hadn't been bad and I made it to the home of a couple friends in good time. I found that they were waiting for me on their porch. One I've known since high school and her husband since they've been married. It had been a while since we'd seen one another so the hugs were generous and most welcome. They were experiencing their own trials and tribulations so we could commiserate.

After presenting them with their gifts - food from Madison, I was presented with a loaf of sourdough bread in embryo. It was rising. Leaving the dough to its own devices, we headed out to Seven Bridges Trail. It was a perfect afternoon for a walk.

While there were still some leaves hanging on until the bitter (cold) end, I suspect we had missed peak color by a couple weeks. That is, I had missed it. My friends had been here to witness Nature in its resplendent glory.

As we walked along, I got caught up on the vexations which plague them and I, in turn, told them of my divorce and my progress in creating a new life for myself. Many griefs, joys, fears, and hopes were exchanged. And then my friend told me that my wife had visited them back in August, a month or so after our divorce began. It did not go particularly well and I felt badly for them; I felt responsible despite not being so, not even knowing of the social call. Oh well. Hopefully there will not be a repeat.

The trail was gorgeous. My friends said that it had been sparsely populated on their last visit but this day it had people everywhere. It lies on the shores of Lake Michigan and had a rather nice beach which I bet is well used during the summer months. 

As we walked along the shoreline, my friend noted that we weren't too far from where the body of Sade Robinson had been found. The 19 year-old had been murdered by a sick fucker named Maxwell Anderson who also dismembered her body.

Despite the horrific tale, it was a relaxing walk and we got caught up on one another's lives. Ever since my divorce began I've been wanting to draw my friends close, to be deeply present and deeply in their presence, and to savor their company like a fine wine. This was a very nice start to the weekend.

The walk also had the effect of giving us all a thirst and so it was off to the newly-reopened St. Francis Brewery.

The brewery closed back in 2019 but had been resurrected this spring - how fitting. I adored their Lust, a Weissbier, back in 2015 and wondered if it was still available. 

I began with a Krug of their Festbier which was very tasty with a toothsome maltiness and just enough hops for balance. While supping and snacking our conversation on the trail continued on barstools. I gave them an idea of the location of my new abode and the details surrounding my hasty exit from the marital residence. In turn, I heard more about their situation and how difficult waiting for resolution was on them.

My second brew was their Hefeweizen, Held Up Hefe. It too was very tasty but had a lighter mouthfeel than Lust. New owners, new recipe, I suspect.

Evening had arrived and we set out to find dinner. We settled on the Vanguard Bar which had vegetarian options aplenty for my friends as well as carnivorous ones for me. On the way there, a couple other friends of mine texted saying that they had returned from the funeral early and were available to get together. Wunderbar! I replied that we were going to eat and that I'd let them know when we were done.

Stepping into the bar we found the place to be packed. We had a 20-minute or so wait for a table. The TV screens had Pink Floyd live from Saint Tropez in 1970 playing but it was Whitney Houston that emanated from the speakers.

I had a bratwurst with onion, sport peppers, and spicy kraut. My friends ordered fries, fried tofu with a ginger-garlic glaze, and a salad of some kind. Everything was delicious but the fried tofu was perhaps the star of the meal with its glazed umami overload.

And the beer was cheap. $6 for a pint of Spotted Cow. Other beers were equally affordable.

With dinner done, I text my friends that we were on our way to the Blackbird Bar which is the tavern of choice of basically everyone I know in Milwaukee. As with the Vanguard, the place was packed. The crowd here was younger, though, and I spied a couple women whose breasts threatened to spill out of their tops. The game was afoot!

We found a few seats at the end of the bar and continued chatting. After a short while, my other friends showed up. We'd not seen one another since May and so their hugs were most welcome. It was simply wonderful to be with all these friends whom I don't get to see often. Even more special than normal. I felt so comfortable and wanted. A couple of them had met before but that was back in 1991 during our college years at a Halloween party that lives on in infamy. They reacquainted themselves with ease.

All too soon our ages showed and we headed out for the comfort of a couch. I was staying at my friends' place and took up position on the love seat while they the couch. We listened to music, supped beers, and chatted away about everything. A wonderful time. They introduced me to the music of Ngozi Family, a Zambian band from the 1970s.

The next morning one of my friends was out the door early to teach her yoga class. For my part, I was to meet up with some other friends to hang out in a sauna before enjoying the cool waters of Lake Michigan at Hot Spell Sauna.

Before then, I hung out with my friends' cats. 

My other friend woke up and we hung out for a short while before I was picked up. I hadn't seen this friend or her husband in a while so I found myself full of joy at being in the company of the remaining folks I know in Milwaukee. My friend has been enjoying the sauna for a while and I couldn't turn down her invitation to join her even if it was only just above the freezing mark outside.

The morning was sunny and clear, if cold, as we pulled into McKinley Marina which the sauna called home. My friend's husband had never been there and I took comfort in not being the only person for whom this was the first time.

A couple portable saunas were set up on the lakeshore next to the boat launch. The idea was that you would spend some time in the heat and then zip down the ramp and into into the lake.

We went into the sauna and I think we all started sweating immediately in the 200+ degree heat. But it felt good. The occasional dose of water on the coals got my nose burning even more as the steam entered my nostrils.

Sitting in the steamy heat, the three of us chatted about life - divorce and kids, for example - for a spell and then it was time to get into the water. We wandered around the fence and made our way down the boat ramp. The second my feet hit the water a shiver went up my legs and I could feel, as George Costanza said, shrinkage. It was freezing!

We waded in deeper. It didn't take long for my legs to go numb. No fancy neoprene accoutrements here; just a swimming trunks and Crocs. I was able to make it in about navel high before retreating. Once out of the water, I felt very good despite the sub 40 degree temps and a moderate wind as I didn't feel the wind's chill; rather it was a revivifying briskness. 

This hot and cold pattern was repeated throughout our 75 minute session. It was absolutely exhilarating!

Afterwards I was invited back to my friend's place for breakfast and more banter. I got to see her kids who had grown quite a bit since I'd last seen them. In addition, I was treated to some highly tasty Anodyne coffee from Sprocket Cafe. And I met their über-friendly hound, Izzy. Look at dem ears! 

All too soon it was time to go and I got dropped off at my other friends' place where I found them relaxing on the couch with the Packers game on the TV. I headed home after the game had finished and we had chatted away even more.

I made it home with a lovely loaf of sourdough in tow.

But also a couple paintings done by my friend that he generously gave to me to decorate the walls of my new place.

What a glorious weekend! I got to see, hug, and chat with every one of my friends in Milwaukee (they are all denizens of Bay View, curiously enough). It was great to be in their company when talking instead of having conversations mediated by a phone. Their hugs were wonderful and just being with them was so invigorating, so needed. In addition to discharging the swellings of the heart, simply being in their presence put me at ease and made my cares seem far away. I am very lucky to have them in my life.

Soul Brew liked my review (enough to reproduce it)

My review of Soul Brew Kombucha's Ginger Mango Peach has been reproduced at the Soul Brew website.

E-S-B - it's dynamite!

With an impending trip to the UK (hopefully), I decided to get in the mood by drinking like a Brit. Lakefront is helping out with this ESB.

I took it out of the frig and let it warm a bit. Very tasty! Smooth maltiness with a really nice leathery kind of taste. Just enough herbal hops too. Well played, Katie.

Milwaukee seen in the classifieds

Scanning the classifieds of County Highway an issue ago I noticed that Milwaukee was well represented.

Ooh! Hidden thoughts! Interesting. 

An old fashioned pen pal. Nice!

Brew Freunde: Bräu Buddies by Lakefront Brewery and Hofbräu München

I am trying to recall how I heard about Bräu Buddies. Either I read about it in Lakefront's newsletter or I stumbled upon it on one of my periodic strolls through their website checking on what the year-round pale lager is these days. East Side Dark and Riverwest Stein have stood the test of time, I suppose, while the pale lager spot seems to change every year or 2. (Probably less frequently, truth be told.) Klisch Pilsner, a Czech-style pilsner, which was, I believe, one of the brewery's first brews, went the way of the dodo. I think it was replaced by Lakefront Pils, a German-style pilsner. From there it gets murky.

Did Bierzeit, a wonderful Kölsch that seemed to be in the Lakefront line-up all-too briefly, come next? What a shame. I felt a bit spoiled for choice for a little while there between it and Kid Kölsch.

Did Lakefront Lager come next? A "Premium Lager", I avoided it because I associate those words with Miller/Bud clone type brews. The pale lager annual spot is now taken by Dive Beer which appears to be another Miller/Bud type American lager. Oof.

Looking at the list of beers no longer made at the Lakefront site, I feel sad that Cherry Lager and Holiday Spice are long gone. Wisconsinite was tasty; why did it have to die? Boo!

Oh well.

So somehow I stumbled upon the existence of Bräu Buddies, a collaboration between Lakefront and Hofbräu München. Described as a "rustic, German-style lager" and having been brewed with Melanoidin malts, I just had to try it. And so I snagged a six-pack.

Similar to my procrastination in taking notes for that hibiscus kombucha, I went through at least a six-pack before I ever busted out a pad of paper and pen. I was just too busy slaking my thirst. But eventually I did take some notes and took a photo or two.

The brew was light yellow to gold, depending on which part of the glass I was looking at. Clear as day and topped by a white head that lasted an average amount of time, I spied a few bubbles inside. It looked mighty purdy. A Helles? A Landbier? I dunno but I do know that the aroma was marvelous with a luscious breadiness no doubt from that Melanoidin malt while the hops gave a grassy scent.

Taking a sip, I was entranced the beer's medium-light body which held untold depths of toasty-bready-biscuity malt goodness. Not particularly sweet, the Maillard-inflected flavor was joined by grassy/herbal tasting hops. Not too strong but a bit more than enough to balance the malts. There are Saphir hops in here but I never caught anything fruity. Maybe something a little something floral in the aroma but I never tasted the tangerine that websites assure me are part of the Saphir flavor arsenal.

The breadiness lingered on the finish a bit while the hops, having taken on a more spicy note, gently faded in to add moderate bitterness and slightly less dryness.

This, this should be Lakefront's year-round pale lager. With its high melanoidin payload, Bräu Buddies hits the spot with a rich malt taste that I couldn't get enough of which explains why I've purchased multiple six-packs of it. I am feeling spoiled for choice again as this beer is a fine complement to New Glarus' Two Women, another rustic/country pale lager full of mouthwatering Maillard temptation.

Alas, I suspect Bräu Buddies' days are numbered and it will be consigned to the Lakefront Beer Graveyard before summer. What a bummer.

Junk food pairing: Bräu Buddies' label features a pretzel and this is a fine idea to accompany a can of the stuff. I suggest a bag of Rold Gold Selects Flamin’ Hot® Honey Mustard twists.

Pretty in pink: Organic Hibiscus Berry Kombucha by Forage

It has taken a while to make this review a reality. I bought and drank several cans of this stuff before actually taking tasting notes during consummation. Thirst would overtake me so I would pop open a can and dispense with my thirst without pen & paper figuring I'd buy another one on my next visit to the grocery store and that I'd review that one. Eventually I put paid to this vicious circle.

The Forage website no longer lists this hibiscus berry stuff. Did tariffs make the acquisition of tropical hibiscus financially untenable? Or perhaps this brew is available only during the colder months? Maybe the brewer just wanted to try their hand at different flavors.

Even if you don't care for the taste of hibiscus, you've got to admit that the reddish pink hue it gives to drinks is sure pretty. The color is provided by a chemical called anthocyanin which, if related to cyanide, is hopefully a benign cousin. This stuff was hazy with the trademark reddish pink. My pour did not produce any head so I figured this would be a fizz-light experience.

The aroma was fruity and floral. I hate to be generic but I am not able to distinguish the floral scents of hibiscus from those of rosehip, another ingredient. As for the fruitiness, it was berry-like but currants and apples come before elderberries and natural blueberry flavor on the ingredients list which also boasts essential orange oil and natural mango flavor further down. On one sniff I thought I caught the blueberry and orange but that may have been purely psychological and merely the result of reading the ingredient list.

Kombucha is tea and so has a light body. Fizziness was mild as expected. The taste was fruity and floral, if you can believe it. There are various fruits and fruit flavorings at play here so there was a fruit punch thing to be had. I think the orange came through as the kombucha warmed. I thoroughly enjoyed the floral flavor and the tartness that hibiscus and rosehip bring as it helped balance the sweetness which was perhaps a bit more than I prefer. It wasn't cloying, mind you.

I really enjoyed this stuff and it reminded me just how tasty hibiscus is. The earliest instance I can recall tasting it goes back to 2011 when Robyn Klinge devised and brewed (or co-brewed) a hibiscus saison that was quite novel to me and very tasty to boot. More recently, I was in Milwaukee and made a stop at Anodyne Coffee where Colombia Rodrigo Sánchez was on tap. The tasting notes mentioned hibiscus - a first in coffee, for me - and it did indeed have a hibiscusy taste.

This brew should satisfy your heartiest cravings for floral tea goodness.

The numbers are in...

...and Madison now has an estimated 285,300 residents as of 1 July 2024, up from 281,162 on that date in 2023.

Milwaukee also gained people - just under 500 - a small bump up to 563,531. Good news but the Cream City is still has about 14,000 fewer Milwaukeeans than it did in 2020.

It's weird to see that Madison now has half the population of Milwaukee. (Dane County has about 63% of the population of Milwaukee County.) While there may be a small town somewhere in Wisconsin that had a greater percentage gain, it sure looks like Madison's addition of 4,138 folks is the largest in number in the state.