Momentous occasion

This doesn't really fit into the typical stuff I blog about, but since I was on hand for a historic event last Sunday, I figured it is worth mentioning.

Ginny's Dad has officially visited every county in every state in the lower 48 states of the United States of America.

He actually accomplished this task a few weeks ago, but just last Sunday, he colored in the counties on his official US county map. All that is left to do is to visit Hawaii, a few independent towns in Virginia, and maybe the judicial districts in Alaska. Then the quest will be complete.
So, want proof of this event? Just check out the video and pictures below.

The Lower 48 - Complete! on Vimeo.

Finally trying Social

The newest, and closest, brewpub to the homestead had been difficult to try. With limited operating hours (5 pm to 10 pm), it was difficult to find a convenient time to stop in. That fortunately changed in the past week, as the Social Kitchen and Brewery can now be checked off the list of brewpubs to visit.
A week ago, I was in the area around 5:00, so I stopped in to try a beer or two. Overall, the beers have been above average, though no super standout, but I'll get into those details in a moment. We also had a chance to try their food last weekend. We happened to walk by at lunch time and saw that they were open. It turns out that it was their first day to be open for lunch, so we took advantage of our good fortune.
The food was quite good. I had a very good cheese burger - well cooked meat, slightly charred, fresh toppings, and crunchy fries - and Ginny had a Vietnamese Fish Sandwich that looked great and she agreed. We'll definitely be going back for lunch/dinner when we have the opportunity (I might sneak over there while Ginny's in labor - it's about an 8 minute walk from the hospital).
As for the beer, there are five options currently offered:

• Social Koelsch - very light (taste and color) and refreshing, though drinking it while eating their house-made mustard resulted in it being really overpowered.


• Old Time Alt - Closer to a brown or a mild ale, this smooth beer could use a little more malt to balance out the dark grain and hop flavors.


• Easy IPA - A mildly hopped IPA (for the west coast) that's easy drinking


• Rapscallion - A low alcohol Belgian-style beer, dark in color and full bodied and flavorful. This was my favorite and it paired nicely with all of the food.


• L’Enfant Terrible - A higher alcohol Belgian-style beer (sort of between a double and a triple), that's light in color and full of Belgian-funkiness. Not as drinkable as the Rapscallion, but quite good.

Overall, I'm excited to have a brewpub close by (20 minutes walking, 5 minutes by MUNI on a lucky day) and am looking forward to trying more beers in the future.