A Little Taste of Fall in Spring

Happy Friday!

Chillin' at the Woodside this evening with a little taste of fall. Certainly not from the weather as it was hot, humid and got into the upper 80s possibly low 90s here today.

The "taste of fall" comes from Sierra Nevada's Southern Hemisphere Harvest series ale crafted from fresh New Zealand hops, where yes you guessed it, it's fall down there! Great tasting smooth brew and worth checking out if you enjoy their Harvest series ales.

I've also been enjoying the artwork Sierra Nevada has been updating on their labels lately. They seem to be overhauling the label for each seasonal's release, and the beer's not bad either.

Last night I was at the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs vs. Charlotte Knights AAA ballgame, and Oliver North threw out the ceremonial first pitch.


"Lt. Col. Ollie North" is in town for the NRA convention this week. Michael Phelps is also in town for the 26th Annual Charlotte UltraSwim, but he wasn't at the game.

Also on the subject of new in town, the NASCAR Hall of Fame officially opened its doors to the public this week. This may add to the crowds for this year's Speed Street events.

I went to last night's ballgame, with "Jimmy Joe Pete" and "Sticky," who I work with and we have regular-scheduled events like this we refer to as "Team Building."


I will say that going to the Charlotte Knights stadium makes me appreciate the Iron Pigs ballpark and their fan attendance.


Granted the Iron Pigs are based in Phillies fan territory, and the Knights would most likely enjoy larger crowds if they were closer to the White Sox hometown of Chicago.

Also noteworthy, as any "beer nerd" knows, it's always worthwhile to check out the entire stadium as different beers are sometimes offered at different parts of the venue.


Last night was no different, as I found local Queen City's Olde Mecklenburg Brewery available at the opposite end of the stadium from our seats. This was at the entrance to the newly built "Beer Garden" where we watched the rest of the game following my discovery.

It was good to see the hometown team, but unfortunately the Iron Pigs lost 2-1. They don't seem to have the sluggers they had last year, but then that's AAA baseball. I was surprised at the amount of Phillies jerseys I saw around the ballpark, and my sister would have been pleased to see Jason Werth's jersey, her favorite Phillies player, on the back of a proud fan.

In other news...
Looks like Ol' Lazy Acres is up to his Summer Mix madness. While this year is not an official Summer Mix competition, I feel the need to mention my wins in 2005, 2006 and 2008 ;-)

:: Summer Mixes - How It All Began

Perhaps it's time to dust of my summer mix chops and throw a mix into the ring, or should I retire with a "hat trick" and let a new breed of summer mixers take the stage? Hmmm, who knows?

Wow, I am kind of floored by the news that Dave Matthews Band will take 2011 off from touring, and are scheduled to return in 2012. That makes this year's shows all that more meaningful. I may need to write up a post that culminates my lifetime DMB concert experience, which is 23 shows now and will be at least 26 shows after this summer.

Here's to a good weekend,

Salud!