Yuleday this friday!

Rather than the obligatory "history of beer" post, which origins can be simultaneously traced back to the Sumarians/Babylonians (Iraq/Iran), Romans, Egyptians, Teutons (Germans), etc. etc. etc., in a very cool 12 monkeys effect I refer to as "God's universal love of all peoples," lets talk celebrations.

The "Alulu" tablet - a Sumerian recipe for "best" beer circa 2050 B.C. (wiki)

Yule Tide is a festival of the winter solstice, of peoples afraid the sun was dying, before witnessing the miracle of its rebirth. It has German, western European, and Scandinavian roots, and though of course those aren't the only countries to celebrate the solstice, they are likely the original countries to do it with lots and lots of beer. In one account of a feast in Valhalla (to the Nords what Olympus was to the Greeks):

An abundance of heavenly mead made from goats' milk and honey was provided for the feasts and on occasions ale, too, was served.

Toasts were usually drunk in honor of Bragi, god of poetry, eloquence, and song. The gods pledged themselves to perform remarkable deeds of courage and valor as they tossed off horn after horn of mead and ale. Each time their mighty valor grew until there was no limit set to their attainments.

Sounds kinda like a drunken festivus, no? Which really is all our Yule celebration aims to be: a drunken pledge "to perform remarkable deeds of courage and valor," usually in the form of tossing off horn after horn of mead and ale. Speaking of which, i need a drinking horn. Any advice on where to find? This has gone off topic but I think we can all agree that'd be preeetty cool.

Next outing?

Oof, brutal 12th place finish at BGH's trivia last night...need to rest up for tomorrow's trivia night (at Boerum Hill's Black Sheep Pub). They may not have BGH's selection but we usually do better there. Coincidence that "better" = "at bar w/out 10%+ cask ales"? You tell me, friends. I also have to rack the Cherry Stout into the secondary fermenter after work. But that doesn't mean we can't plan for some brew hopping down the road.

So...upcoming NYC beer events via BA:

10.15
Barcade 5th Anniversary Party

10.15
Coney Island Freaktoberfest Party @ Ellis Bar

10.17
Roll Out The (Wooden) Barrel of Schneider Edel-Weisse (4th Avenue Pub)

10.20
Ramstein Brewery Night @ Bar Great Harry

10.20
Beer & Bacon Tasting @ Jimmy's No. 43

10.21
Captain Lawrence /Henry's Beer Dinner

10.23
Craft Beer & American Artisanal Cheese

10.25
Lela Bar Beer & Food (small plate) pairing

10.28
Shmaltz Brewery Freaktoberfest

10.29
Victory Night @ Barcade

10.29
Honey Swap- Mead & Beer Event

It's been forever since the deacon's slated his thirst w/some old school Mario at Barcade. The Jimmy's 43 Mead and Beer event (w/Sixpoint) sounds awesome, as do the Shmaltz/Coney Island Freaktoberfests. And I'll definitely be at BGH for the Ramstein event with some of the deaconettes. 4th Ave Pub is that new bar in Park Slope we opened during craft beer week...the one just down the road from Pacific Standard. Sounds like they're making a concerted effort to grab a crowd.

Thoughts?