Memorial Weekend

I believe that we should respect and honor those who have given their lives for our freedom. I try to be the first at the bar to buy a drink for a soldier/police officer/firefighter, as they are doing something that everyone should respect and admire.

Memorial Day is the national holiday to honor those who lost their life, while protecting ours. The weekend has turned to vacation, cook outs and camping for many people.  While I too took in the weekend to relax, I tried to keep in mind why we have the long weekend.

All of that being said, a group of us traveled up to the cabin to relax and enjoy the nice weather and good brews.  Along for the ride were 7 people, 5 dogs, 2 cases of homebrew and 2 cases of craft beer (Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and Intercourse Brewing variety case). All turned out to be great beers to drink all weekend long.  The Intercourse are brewed at the Lion Brewery in Wilkes Barre, with the names representing towns in/around Lancaster County.

The variety case included the Blue Ball Porter, Mount Joy Light, Bareville Pilsner and Paradise Pale Ale.  Along with the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, none of the main beers we drank this weekend were above 5.6%.  My love of SNPA is well stated throughout this blog.  Of the Intercourse beers, the Bareville Pilsner was perfect for the hot weather (it was around 90 degrees plus humidity most of the weekend). Sure, it is a basic pale American lager, but it has more of a body and crisper taste than the Macro bunch of beers. The other Intercourse beers were fine as well.  The Mount Joy Light was, well, light, both in body and flavor- better than a Miller Lite or Bud Light, but I prefer it to have a little more ummph. The Paradise Pale Ale was another average (in a good sense) beer- nice malt base with a citris hop bitterness. In one word, typical.  But when there is a SNPA sitting next to it, there is no comparison. I only had one of the Blue Ball Porter, but as I remember it was dark, roasty and quite bitter. Not remarkable at all, but drinkable.

Overall, we had a great weekend.  Nice weather, good beer and good friends.