fatheadfred

racism- no longer a problem for a few, is a problem for all. Sad to see people vote based on race. Very sad. Not just voting though, just one example.

I was at this joint in KC called Sweet Tomatoes and an SBS song came on as I was sitting down. Thank you God, thank you Jesus...I think it was Shake it Off. Your post about BB&Beyond made me think of it.

So StL needs em too much, Chi town not at all. Alright, KC is in the middle...we'll take em.

Damn. I am glad I am too poor to even consider these shows. Pretty gawdamn stressful. Guess I'll be hangin' w/ a more mellow crowd in Tulsa. The Chi shows might get hostile.

While listening to many parts of Sky Blue Sky, I have had the feeling that a lot of the sentiments and findings Jeff is reporting run along similar lines to much of what I've read about Buddhism. Whether he got these from Buddhist texts or came to them in a natural progression of living and examining that life is another question. Probably a combination of reading and thinking.

Gestalt

I like both. It was wack though when I heard the older version. Kind of poppy fruity.

They need to get rid of Glen...he sweats too much.

The good thing about Wilco is all the stages they've been through. I have to admit I am a recent convert, but when listening to their shows, like Spiders from the Pittsburgh 03 concert, the band has many different faces.

Nels rocks and understands his role, he ain't no rookie. It seems to me like Jeff likes to divert attention from himself at times to kind of get in the moment with a song, then get it back again.

nah, they're OK, not great, but pretty good

 

course wilco blows 'em away

Who are the Shins? What a wierd name for a band.

Yeah, nothing like talking about brewing to really make you long for nice pint w/ a pillowy head. mmm

Lobbies, Tax code, Insurance companies, inability to use natural resources effectively, e.g., solar, wind, etc -->see lobbies. Lobbyists prevent us from moving forward. Folks used to be able to go the white house lawn and bitch. Now you can't even join activist groups w/o being labeled a terrorist, once again --> see lobbies.

Dependence on China for cheap goods and in turn our financial dependence on them via treasury bonds. We'll be eating dogs in the US before too long. Sorry Ellen.

oh,yeah, for pellet, right on...i am used to leaf hops. my bad, yeah beertools use to make u pay first, but you can use it free...I like seeing the projected color, abv and ibu's.

hops are pretty good for a makeshift privacy fence as well. i have some growing that block the neighbors view of my pool .

i will say for brewing purposes, buying them is a better option than growing your own.

 

4 pounds of carmel 120, 8 pounds of pale malt, and an ounce of chinook hops can produce a mean beer.

Furreal? You better up those hops to around 3 z's to handle all that crystal 120. Here's something to tool around w/ prior to brewing. http://www.beertools.com/ it is free to use and an excellent waste of time, that is, if you are at work.

and the smell of mashing grain is better than the smell of boiling extract. of course all grain is a LOT of work.

Can't beat the smell of the mash, or the hop additions during the boil. I almost like that more than drinking it.

Tried this a few years on a budget set-up. We tried a lager type brew (that's like a paler type of ale) and it turned out okay if a little on the flat side, but we managed to induce a bit of fizz using some carbonated pellets or some such. I know you can get fancier type devices that give your brews a real soda stream type pep, but that was way beyond my means at the time.

 

The best part about the whole homebrew process is, obviously, the tasting. Because you don't have, or rather we didn't have, any way of measuring the alcoholic content we just had to sit there and drink glass by glass deciphering the impact like some kind of bum's science experiment. ... one glass: I'm feeling fine, two glasses: still fine....... three glasses: I'm feeling a bit flush.....four glasses: where did I put that Disco Hits compilation? and so on.

 

We did try brewing wine in a sack. Again this turned basically into vinegar like the cider scare stories mentioned above.

 

I too was considering re-enterring the home brew world with a cider home brew/press.

Cider making is a little more labor and money intensive than beer. And you can't vary the flavor like you can with beer...my warning. I think this may stem from my overuse of cider. For 5 years straight, a group of 5 of us split 75 gallons/year. A pickup truckload of apples. Apples are cheap around here (when it rains). $65. My dad built the press from a kit ($200 or more now?). And it takes a full day to press and put the juice to bed.

Here's what I got:

As long as you don't over-sulfite it (I forget the correct amount, maybe 1/4 tsp per gallon?), it settles out in about 24 hours & is ready for yeast pitching.

I believe a common form of sulfite is called camden tablets. I have used sodium metabisulfite (potassium type also available) for wine and it worked well...meaning clean and no funk off taste.

how long did you wait after the sulfite to pitch the yeast? from what i remember, it takes a sttrong yeast to overcome the sulfite.

 

just found i have a case of barleywine thats been aging for a few years now. bet that has mellowed nicely.

I'll have to look into that cuz I was always on the mashing/pressing line, while my exalted alcoholic pal was doing all the chemistry. I'll send him an email and repost.

Lucky for you to have booze laying around and suddenly finding it. Especially barley wine. Cheers.

What's all this city bashing about? It has nothing to do with Jay, you wouldn't understand. I can't wait not to see you when they decide to come back. Wilco playing a show at the Fox Theater was quite a treat, Jeff was so damn nervous playing a venue like that when he grew up going to shows there, and having the known it's past history. Half the Wilco songs you probably love have references to St. Louis and will never know!

 

Hail Hail Rock And Roll!

I was joking in reference to previous posts about KC sucking so bad. Anywho, I used to live east of StL as a kid and have good memories of the city.

Yep, no St. Louis area shows since March, '06. Although I'm not sure why. They always sell out within minutes.

I was wondering about that the other day as well. Beginning to think it is a territorial pissing w/ Jay? Doesn't he live in StL. Or maybe Jeff doesn't like StL, I don't. What a craphole. The last time I was there I couldn't wait to leave. hehehehe

Arcadia's is very good.

Had Arcadia's IPA for the first time....bad batch and the cocksuckers didn't even offer freebies. Shit was vinegar and gushing. blaaah.

i'm sure it didn't help when i added a bunch of sugar to up the gravity, then tried to stop the fermentation to keep the results sweet. it was good for a while, althogh more dry than i had wished, then after sitting in the fridge for 6-8 months, we tried to drink it, and nearly went blind. my calculations put it around 9%. i'm sure i let some bacteria in there in one of the sugar additons.

 

been meaning to try it again, being more careful with the sanitation, and consuming it more quickly

I think we added sugar to hit 8-10% to prevent spoilage and allow aging. But, we added sulfite to kill bacteria, then later pitched yeast.

How did you stop fermentation? And always add the sugar initially and one time only to keep it sanitary. You can even heat a sugar solution to 140 then add, but wait til the whole mix is within pitching temp. range.

Homebrew cider can be really good, just be careful, as i managed to produce 5 gallons of really wicked alcoholic vinegar after it sat too long.

fresh is by far the way to do it. most of the storebought ciders/juices have anti fermentation additives .

Had that happen when experimenting w/ a natural fermentation. There is too much in the air not to kill the bacteria w/ sulfite before pitching. It is not from sitting too long, it is from initial infection from not killing the naturally occuring bacteria.

Yeah, I'm not much of a University of Kansas fan either.

 

I am sorry I forgot about Boulevard... It's KC's saving grace IMO.

Yeah, you suck KU. It is fun to hate either KU or MU...just doing my part.

Been to the powerplant once. Their beer is good. The guy knows what he is doing. Can't comment so much on the atmosphere or food as I've only been once and it was mid afternoon on a Monday.

Not much of a fan of Zona Rosa either. It is way far away from where I live and their brewery REALLY SUCKS!

Kind of agree w/ the festival comments. We do have several but are all pretty generic and lack a significant cultural element.

And for you, Columbia person, we ate at the 'stuff your face Mex joint' after Wilco and had fun. Your brewery is good (at least it was when I was there several years ago). Have always liked the Blue Note and have seen tons of shows there. Gotten way laid (is that how you spell it?) at Willie's on the cheap (homey hook ups) and have always had fun there. Oh, got to talk to your old friend, Quin Snyder, after Dylan show at Stubb's during ACL Festival. We offered him a tick to summerfest and he quickly declined.

And Gawdurn, the bickering is shooting up the replies on this show. Maybe we should all get together and drink tea...and see the city.

ok. what are these sights worth seeing? i've been here for 2+ years and I'd like to know. seriously. i'm not being a smart ass.

Tour of Missouri started there. Way cool. Cyclocross WORLD championships in Dec.

Nelson and Cont Art museum.

Mongolian BBQ on 39th

Gomers liquor!

Bobby Watson playing at the Blue Room

Sprint center is a work of art. Walk up to it and it is crazy. Like a UFO just dropped in the middle ofthe city.

I like the distant vibe of clubs spread out. It prevents the cliche like in some cities.

Blayney's basement.

Thomas Hart Benton house.

Watching Broadway coffee customers snarl at Starbuckers.

Boulevard brewery. Freaking phenomenal refurbish and new German brewing kettles

BBQ everywhere, although I only eat our meat (cafo meat scares me and it should scare you too)

Plaza (sometimes)

Memorial WW exhibit is sposed to be pretty cool? Haven't been yet.

75th st. brewery

Landahl park

Trolly track trail

Unity downtown usually gets some really good speakers

Swimming in Brush Creek (joke, haha)

The Uptown, Copa room

SEEING WILCO AT CROSSROADS!