In December, I drank my last bottle of 2009 Anchor Christmas Ale. That’s right: I drank a three-year-old beer—ceremoniously, too. I poured the ruby-brown brew into a gold-rimmed Christmas Ale pint glass that I reserve for drinking Anchor’s iconic holiday seasonal. I took notes and compared them to what I had written the first time […]
Food & Drink
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The Hops: Great River Brewery’s Farmer Brown Ale is our brew of the month
Two weeks after their 800-pound canning line was stolen last summer, the brewers at Davenport’s Great River Brewery welcomed Charlene to their team. Hauled from Colorado on a rental truck, Charlene is the brewery’s new canning machine. While speaking over the phone with Great River brewer Paul Krutzfeldt last month, I could hear Charlene rumbling […]
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On The Table: What are you drinking tonight?
In these chilly mid-winter months, all it takes is a good spirit to ease the shivers and warm the soul. In the search for winter cheer, Melissa Sinclair, general manager of the Motley Cow Café, and Katy Meyer, owner and chef at Trumpet Blossom Café have shared their thoughts on crafting seasonal cocktails that reflect […]
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Chicken Little Reviews Clinton Street Social Club
Tucked into the busy lineup of Clinton Street storefronts, wedged between two other doorways, an unassuming red awning marks the entrance to one of the city’s newer and more exciting dining establishments, the Clinton Street Social Club. This elusive entrance opens to a flight of stairs that lead up to the second floor. This obscure […]
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The Hops: Two Lutherans, a Presbyterian, an Episcopalian and a Baptist walk into a bar
At first they seem like a group of old frat buddies meeting after work. Over pizzas and pints, they commiserate over troubles at the office. They discuss sports and the hard luck of favorite teams. They playfully argue, tell off-color jokes and laugh. And they even have a signature chant, which booms across the bar […]
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On the Table: Sweet Spot – Wilton Candy Kitchen in Wilton, Iowa
When I was a kid, you got your ice cream at a Baskin Robbins franchise in a strip mall next to a Fayva, where you got your plastic jelly shoes. I had heard of “drugstores” where you could sit at a counter and get malteds and melts, but I had never actually visited a place […]
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The Hops: St. Bernardus Christmas Ale by Brouwerij St. Bernardus – Watou, Belgium
‘Tis the season for holiday beers, a time when breweries release festive winter warmers or special one-offs made with top secret ingredients, and a time that for me is the most exciting part of the seasonal beer calendar. In the past, I happily vetted many of these special releases for my December recommendation; however, this […]
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Chicken Little Reviews: Her Soup Kitchen
It was a warm, fall Sunday when my wife and I stopped by Her Soup Kitchen for lunch. The restaurant was buzzing with people, every table was filled, and we were not the only ones waiting for a much sought after seat. It didn’t take long – maybe five minutes – before a table opened […]
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The Hops: What’s New for the Craft Beer Consumer?
For two years, a collaboration of brewers from the Boston Beer Company and Weihenstephan worked to develop a unique new beer. The result, the champagne-like Infinium, was brewed in accordance with the German Beer Purity Law of 1516 with a process that is still patent pending. On its webpage, the beer is praised as “groundbreaking” […]
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On the Table: If You Give a Frog a Cookie
Arnold Lobel’s storybook characters Frog and Toad are two of the literary giants from my childhood that have enjoyed second, third and (currently) fourth revivals for me as I’ve shared their stories with each of my children. Although I still enjoy these funny and sweet stories, by the 20th or 30th read (that’s a weekly […]
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The Hops: Breakfast Stout by Founders Brewing Company – Grand Rapids, MI
My plan to recommend a tasty and potent weizenbock this month fell through, so I have decided to suggest a stout that is so good I drank it for breakfast while camping in September: Breakfast Stout, brewed by the Founders Brewing Company of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Though it may not provide the important nutrition to […]
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The Hops: Cleaning up Kinnick
The sun has yet to rise but the full moon still hovers over the western horizon. Its pale light illuminates the trash strewn parking lot behind Kinnick Stadium. Cars dodge garbage bags and piles of disposable plates; the crunch-crunch of stray cans and plastic cups under their tires echoes across the lot. A dozen people, […]
