Dear Kid,

We had a great visit with Grandma and Grandpa.

On Tuesday I took the day off to play with them and after a leisurely start to the day, we went down to Findlay Market.

The first (and perhaps most important) thing we did was to walk over to the Samuel Adams mural and find the second hidden perfect pint glass and the word C I N C I N N A T I. I feel so much better! It was tricky and I never would have figured it out without help. (If you’re dying to know where the hidden letters are let me know—I will share the love).

Then we found Maverick Chocolate, and how could we not investigate? Especially when there was a big sign promoting Cold Nitro Coffee. Say what? Clearly we had to try some! They infuse cold nitrogen into coffee which makes it fizz up and build a foamy head (like beer). Either the nitrogen or the coffee was bitter so we added simple syrup. (Really? Not drinking coffee black? Yes, in this case really.) Summary: Grandma and I are trendy enough to try Nitro Coffee but not to order it again. At our urging, Grandpa tried it. Fortunately, I had a piece of gum to help him get the taste out of his mouth.

Then we found a spice place which had all kinds of interesting things (before you look, can you guess what was in the Simon and Garfunkle (spelled by the singer Garfunkel but by the spice people Garfunkle) mix? We bought a little bit of this and little bit of that and had a wonderful time.

At the oil and vinegar place, we tasted and bought peach balsamic vinegar. Unlike some flavored vinegars which are, um, subtly flavored, this has a bold right-up-front peach zing. Yum.

From there we wandered around and eventually had Vietnamese food for lunch.

Our final stop on our outing was at Pet Wants where the store, the employees, and the puppy compete for adorable-helpfulness. We got some food for the Puppy (a mix of lean and salmon—quite yummy if you are of the canine persuasion), chatted a bit, and headed home.

It’s amazing how nice a day can be when you hang out with people you like.

Love, Mom

P.S. If you didn’t get (and can’t read the fine print), the Simon and Garfunkle (see note above about spelling) mix has parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme.

Dear Kid,

Many college students think they know all there is to know about beer (drink it). Many parents of college students think they know all there is to know about the cost of beer (82% of the kid’s food budget).

While both of these may be true for actual college kids, it is far from accurate in the World of Beer as I had the great fortune to learn this past weekend.

Huge thank you to Best Friend Errand Service for inviting me to help set up for the Samuel Adams employee Oktoberfest event. And huge, HUGE thank you to the Samuel Adams folks for showing us around and letting me see things that aren’t usually on the “you’re here to get this place set up” tour.

Samuel Adams’ Utopias® is a blend of batches in which the barrels become “an integral part of the brewing and aging process.” It’s an uncarbonated dark beer (did you even know there was such a thing as uncarbonated beer? I did not) so you can drink a wee bit and close the bottle back up for another time.

Utopias is not for the poor college student as a single bottle (complete with its very own limited edition number) will run you several hundred dollars. If you can get one. Which is not at all obvious because of the “limited” part of limited edition (they made less than 15,000 bottles in the last production year).

Not only is it rare and expensive, there are 13 states where you can’t even buy Utopias because the alcohol content exceeds the legal limit for beer. Yes, Ohio is one of the states where it is verboten.

Now you know.

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

As you may recall, I spent Saturday morning downtown with Best Friend Errand Service helping set up for the Samuel Adams annual employee Oktoberfest celebration.

I must say (and so I shall) that we did an awesome job turning the “before” into the “after.” Table cloths, centerpieces, corn stalks (yes, I tried to put one bunch up upside down, but we fixed it), HUMONGOUS pumpkins, bales of hay, and a bunch of other stuff make for a great transformation.

They were expecting about 750 to the private event and I hope they had a wonderful time.

Not only did we get to see the incredible ArtWorks mural (still waiting for someone to tell me where the second pint glass and the word Cincinnati are hidden), we got to learn a little about Samuel Adams brews.

First of all, it turns out there is a special, secret, private, locked, and very cool room for the making of the KMF. OK, first it turns out that there is a beer (or perhaps it’s an ale) called Kosmic Mother Funk. You probably knew that, but I didn’t. And it turns out that some (or all—I’m a little unclear about the specifics) of it is made here in Cincinnati. And it further turns out that it ages in HUGE (bigger than the huge pumpkins) vats that are Works of Art Themselves. Holy cow is this room gorgeous.

I know you are probably more interested in what’s in the vats, but I don’t really have info about that. What I can tell you is the room is a beer brewer’s dream and even for those of us that don’t dream of beer it is amazing.

At either end of the room are big stained glass pieces that Samuel Adams commissioned. They show the important figures in Cincinnati brewing over the ages. Beautiful.

After our quick tour of the room, we went back to work transforming the parking lot into an event locale. But the memory lingers. Just like a fine beer.

Love, Mom

Check back Thursday for more about beer.

Dear Kid,

Yesterday I got to help the Awesome Sue of Best Friend Errand Service (shameless plug for her business) set up for the Samuel Adams Octoberfest employee party. More about that tomorrow. One of the cool things we got to see while we were there was the new mural on the side of the brewery.

The mural was done this summer as part of the ArtWorks program with the youth apprentices (apprentici?). As in the same program that wonderful Zoe participated in (albeit on a different mural). I don’t know any of the kids who worked on this one, but it is amazing nonetheless.

The mural depicts the history of brewing here in the Queen City.

Did you know that King Gambrinus is considered the patron saint of beer? That’s him on the far left of the mural. According to My Friend the Internet, Gambrinus isn’t actually a saint of anything but since I’m not one to let facts get in the way of a good legend, I say we go with the patron saint thing.

At King Gambrinus’ feet is the Miami Erie Canal which used to transport materials and goods through Cincinnati.

Then comes the barrel room with the stain glass (I’ll show you pix of the Real Thing soon), wonderful farm ingredients for beer, and the “Louis” beer kettles.

After that Findlay Market, the Cincinnati skyline (the buildings, not the chili), and Genius of Water (better known for standing in the fountain downtown) raising her glass to King G and the people of Cincinnati.

The coolest part of the mural, however, is that there are hidden elements. Not the periodic table kind of elements, but hidden pictures (I knew to call them “elements” because the information flyer about the mural calls them elements.)

There is a big beer bottle on its side (found it), two Samuel Adams perfect pint glasses (found one so far), a flying pig (FINALLY found it), and the word CINCINNATI (still looking; it’s driving me crazy). Here’s a link to a clearer depiction of the mural if you want to try to find the hidden elements.

For the record, it is VERY cool that we have this kind of public art project in Cincinnati. It would be even cooler if someone would show me the second pint glass and the word Cincinnati…

Love, Mom

Yes, Zoe is going to update me on mural she worked on. Very Soon. (Right, Zoe?) Here are the first two parts of that in case you’ve forgotten.

Cincinnati ArtWorks Mural | Teen Interns Participate

ArtWorks Summer Apprentice Program Part II

Dear Kid,

If you think a “cicerone” is a type of Italian food, you clearly haven’t been watching enough Food TV.

This is a good thing since you are supposed to be studying things other than food. And, being the kind of mom I am, I am here to provide the small bits that are missing in your more formal education.

A Cicerone is a beer expert. Not just any beer expert. A tested and certified beer expert. Specifically one who has been tested and certified by the Cicerone Certifying People.

Although it sounds like an excellent Italian meal.

Becoming a Cicerone involves learning about beer and taking tests. If it were an Italian meal it would involve cheese and sauce.

Becoming a Master Cicerone involves more learning and more tests and blind taste tests. Only about 2 people per year qualify for Master Cicerone status.

Drinking slightly flat beer in college does not qualify one for Cicerone status.

It might however qualify one to eat Italian food.

Love, Mom