Definitely a Belgian...

It's a Friday and I don't have any plans. I've worked all week, spent a good portion of today in the car driving from meeting to meeting.

Plus I had an hour of physical therapy to help me mend a broken shoulder.

Bottom line: It's time for a beer.

So, when I get home at 5:00 PM I decide that I'll walk myself to the local market and buy myself something that I've never had before.

First thing I see when I get there? Gnomegang.

Terribly tempting since I grew up near Cooperstown,NY - the city responsible for Ommegang Brewery - and the brewery behind "megang" in this beer. But, at $14.99 a bottle, I just can't bring myself to buy it. Maybe next time Andrenna comes over for a dinner party...

Instead, I buy Goose Island's Pepe Nero.

It's definitely a belgian...

In fact, that's mostly what you taste - belgian yeast.

The bottle says that it was brewed with black peppercorns, but I don't get any pepper, or any of the spiciness I expect.

I get an easy beer. It's easy to drink. Not too aggressive, not very hoppy, and none of that offensive smoke flavor that I've been seeing in some of the newer dark beers. Instead it's malty, has a little coffee flavor, and is lacking depth. It's not a beer that will put hair on your chest, or make you wish you had taken a smaller sip. It's just, well, easy to drink. It pours with a nice tan head and finishes smooth. It's 6% ABV too. That means you don't have to sip too slowly.

Another reason to try it? Pepe Nero took the Saison Gold Medal at the World Beer Championship... I didn't know that when I bought it, but knowing that now makes me feel better about passing up the Gnomegang to give it a try.

We always said we'd do this...

so here we go...

Meet two twenty-something attorneys that aren't practicing law...

Well, they could be practicing law...

But instead, they're spending their time volunteering, planting trees, working to improve access to fresh, healthy food in Sacramento...

and are drinking beer.

Actually, we're sort of beer nerds.

We go on roadtrips to check out breweries.

We smuggle beer back for each other from our vacations - Portland, Portugal, Salt Lake City, and Austin.

We pony up to a bar and ask the bartender to pour us his favorite thing on tap.

Just because we want to try it.

Andrenna favors light, floral beers.

Lauren gravitates toward a nice smooth porter.

A typical order: "One light & one dark."

Orders that, ironically, mirror our natural hair colors. Guess which one buys her blonde locks?

(here's a hint - she favors coffee flavored beers & she's wearing a purple scarf)

And this our blog.

A beer and food blog that will follow our obsessions, tell you a lot about what we think of certain beers, and reveal way too much about who we are and the lives we lead in Sacramento.

But will hopefully be a lot of fun.

Stay tuned...