The Wake

Part I

Part II

Schlitz is Back!

Milwaukee beers get a bad rap, but heck don’t most of the Ameircan mega-brews. Schlitz was once at the heart of Milwaukee’s brewing powerhouse. But don’t be worried, there’s plenty of brews still being brewed in my hometown and a lot of them aren’t half bad.

The “Beer that Made Milwaukee Famous” is back and I just happened …

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Because I’m not that interested in writing today here is a history of why beer is great today and where it came from the New York Times.

Beer used to be easy: You were a Bud guy or Miller guy, maybe even a Schlitz or Ballantine guy. Not that it mattered much, since they tasted virtually the same.

But the days when American beer was all suds are long gone. In a great example of grass-roots …

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Photo by Ben Alpert

Now I’m as much of a technophile as the next geek. I’ve built computers and bought my fair share of surround systems, HDTVs and the latest, greatest videogame consoles. Most of them have been great, but something has plagued me over the last year and I don’t think I’m alone. It seems that with every technological …

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Big Bird on Sesame Street Night

Here is a recent story the piqued my interest on NPR’s All Things Considered. It seems pretty crazy that some 87 years after the end of prohibition that there are such harsh laws still on the books. Then again everything is illegal in America. This is after all the land of political correctness. Anywho, listen to this great story at the link below and buy poor Dan a beer, he might even enjoy it.

Click …

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Wilco recently played a five night stand at Chicago’s Riviera Theater. Rolling Stone recapped the career spanning shows and much to my chagrin, Wilco had Wisconsin’s own New Glarus backstage.

Pre-show, the band snacks on seafood curry and jasmine rice while roadies tap a keg of the hard-to-get Wisconsin microbrew New Glarus. (”We discovered it at a venue in Milwaukee,” says Stirratt.) Tweedy, who’s sipping sparkling water and munching chips, drives each night from …

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Peanut B. Pipsqueek becomes entranced by the roar of the shaver, like a snake to his charmer.

A Mesmerized Cat

Bobby Seale the co-founder of the Black Panther Party For Self Defense recently spoke at the University of Minnesota. Here is a clip in the midst of the civil rights movement.

We ask a question that gets to the very fabric of human existence. What’s more important to you: Art or Science?

Art Vs. Science

Dark Matter Music Box at the University of Minnesota

Read the article here.

As my computer seems to be in good shape now I can return to “real” life. I’m not sure if this guy has to much time on his hands or what, but who doesn’t want a beer launcher? Sir, my hat is off to you, you’re a gentleman and a scholar.

The Beer-Launching Refrigerator

I yearn for a time when we didn’t have computers or instant communication. I look back at a simpler time, while I look forward to a relaxing summer breeze. Damn Windows Vista and Final Cut Pro. I’m not sure what this has to do with beer, but I sure could use one. The past year has been full of great experiences (ie London, Summer in Minneapolis, New York, etc), but some kind of technological voodoo …

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Reading an article over at MinnPost a few minutes ago reminded me of a disturbing trend in the brew business in the last few years that has gained some momentum recently. MinnPost’s Mark Neuzil covered the move of large multinationals buying out smaller “green” companies. In this case it was Clorox’s (nothing says natural like the fresh scent of Clorox Bleach) move to buyout Burt’s Bees. As Mark mentions later, many of these companies …

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