Two Men and a Beer

Nahum and I both had the day off for MLK Day...which just so happened to coincide with a) an unexpected snowfall of several inches, and b) the maturing of Batch Dalet.


Like Hannibal, I love it when a plan comes together.

At around 4.30pm, Nahum came to the 2JB Annex holding two freshly chilled bottles of coffee stout. "Your house is kind of my Man Room," he said, referring to the excellent attic/fortress of solitude where this blog is put together. And since the missus was not so lucky to be off work, we'd be able to drink as two unfettered fellows, kicking back with their homebrewed creation.


We popped the caps on the two bottles and poured them into frosted mugs. I opened a bag of chips and jar of salsa (no wife present=no plates/bowls required for the snacks--we just dropped 'em in the middle of the remote controls) and put on some CDs. We clinked a hearty "L'chaim!" and kicked back to some serious enjoyment.



The stout was noticeably different from the previous, non-coffee brew. Drier, mellower, more roasted-tasting (which I think gives it a flavor and mouth-feel of chocolate). The carbonation wasn't too crisp, which was a good match to the solid body of the stout. We smiled, took another sip and spent the next hour or so as two men (well, at least manly for us...) discussing the topics of the day over a cold, tasty brew. And I'd even throw in a suggestion that the snowy scene added to the tastiness--looking out the window from the warm room to the cold yard turned the coffee stout into a kind of grown-ups' cup of hot cocoa on a snow day off of school.


By the time we'd gotten to the bottom of the glasses, we were enormously pleased with our latest creation and eager to pounce on the next batch. We picked an English Brown Ale recipe that will be the basis of Batch Hay...coming soon to a NJ Man Room near you!

P.S. - Today was Inauguration Day, and I finally was able to open up one of the bottles of pre-mixed black and tan, made specially for this day. Did we make a beer worthy of the momentous moment? Yes we did! This one's for you, President Obama...