Tuesday, May 05, 2009

Starting the Night Off Right

While unwinding from our day, we are absolutely loving the refreshing seasonal Grassroots Ale (formerly known as Hale Ale from Hale Farm -- remember going there as a kid??) from Great Lakes Brewing Company. This particular beer is a "Saison" style, originally inspired by the pale ales brewed in farmhouses of Wallonia, a French-speaking region of Belgium, to quench the thirsts of the farm workers during Harvest Season.

Upon the first sip, we were in disbelief of how frangrant the bouquet was, however the more we consumed, the more we grew to appreciate the initially intense mixture of flavors. A unique balance of citrus and herbs is followed by a crisp and clean finish, which caught us off guard in the best way possible.

For now, we will leave you with some tunes that match the complexity of this brew:

[Mp3] Eulogies - Two Can Play
[Mp3] Great Northern - Houses
[Mp3] Dears - Meltdown In A Major

Bonus: All three bands are coming to Cleveland's Grog Shop on Saturday, May 9th. This show is not to be missed!

***
There's no denying that we are highly anticipating tonight's Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals between the Cavs and the Hawks. . .Although, we're hoping that the Cavs aren't rusty after being off for over a week. Regardless, it will be good for them to be challenged -- we cannot fool ourselves into thinking that the remaining games will be as easy as the first round of the playoffs.



<--Speaking of the Cavs, Kelly really wants this shirt (ahem!), or the v-neck version. It can be purchased online at C.L.E. Clothing or in person at the oh so lovely, Room Service.

6 comments:

Cara said...

Aw, I missed the game. Our cycling team at work had a ride and we rode from West Side Market to Independence (Rockside Rd.)

Nice shirt. I would totally buy one if it were an I (bike) Cleveland shirt! You don't even tell us what size you want!!

You know, I had considered getting that beer. I was slightly afraid but will have to try it next time.

Kelly and José said...

A bike ride sounds really nice. The game was good b/c it wasn't stressful (aka Jose wasn't yelling at the tv incessantly), but you really didn't miss too much ;)

That's a cool t-shirt idea! [Haha, and I'm a size small]

Definitely check out the beer and let us know what you think!

-Kelly

emily said...

I man! I want to try this beer, maybe I should ignore my "leaky ears" and go for it? i miss good beer! thanks for the great music recommendation! I'm checking them all out right now:)

Ryan said...

I bought a six of this beer last week and absolutely hated it. The nose is pretty amazing with that massive coriander play and makes you think you're getting something really complex and then you drink it and it's overwhelming acid up front that kind of kills any sort of subtlety on the mid-palate or finish. I know this isn't what the name means, but I literally thought I was drinking grass roots.

Then again, I have never had a Great Lakes beer that I've enjoyed. Half of them just give me a headache, the other half just make me pissed that I have 5 more in my fridge that I have to drink. (And I am really apathetic towards drinking to drink more than one or two, so that takes me like a week.)

Heidi Robb said...

Great minds - I recently sent that tee to en ex-Cle pat!

Kelly and José said...

CC - I feel so bad about your "leaky ear". . .at least liquor and wine doesn't have that effect on you!

Ryan - You are one picky bastard, but Jose agrees with you on this one! I, on the other hand, really enjoyed this beer.

Heidi - That is so cool! I'm sure your friend will absolutely love the shirt. The wine and gold one is pretty sweet too*

-Kelly