Frontier Ruckus, Omaha, April 5th, 2011

On Tuesday, Stacie, Nick, his girlfriend Megan (remember them, from The Great Iowa Beer Fest) and I drove across the state of Iowa to see Frontier Ruckus in Omaha.

I first told you about Frontier Ruckus a few years ago in a "READ/LISTEN/WATCH/RENT", and we saw them in concert in October of 2009 in Ames. At that show they signed an album for us congratulating Stacie and I on our engagement. Well, married for some months now, it was great to get the chance to see them again.

Now, "Deadmalls and Nightfalls" was my favorite album of 2010, so I was excited to hear the newer songs off of it live. And, since we asked Dave (banjo) before they went up, they played "Mona and Emmy" for us too. So that was great. And then, for the last 2 songs, they stood on the floor and played close to the crowd, which was very cool to see. Concert couldn't get much better right?



Well, it did.

After the set was over, we asked Matt (guitar/singer) if they were planning an encore. (Nick wanted really wanted to hear "The Upper Room" and I was hoping to get "I Do Need Saving" out of them.

Instead of a standard encore, the four of us followed Matt upstairs, and in a small room we drank and talked and Matt played songs for us. It was amazing. It was surreal.

We talked about 90's rock (Matt would go in and out on covers of Gin Blossoms and Lisa Loeb), Walt Whitman, and just life in general.



We were up there for about an hour, and we got to hear "The Upper Room", "I Do Need Saving", a new song titled "Blackhole" which was of course great and after the rest of the band joined us, he finished with "The Tower".

It was the best concert experience I have ever had. It was one of those things that it would have been great to have on film, or a recording of it, but, since there wasn't a tape player or camcorder it made it so much more intimate. A moment Nick, Stacie, Megan and I shared with this great band that we'll always have.



I really liked talking with Matt and hearing him talk about what he loved. Nick and I would comment about something, and his eyes would light up. It was like, giving him that validation that yes, we're hearing you and not just that, were really listening. As a fan it's one thing to root for the band, but after meeting them, and getting to know him (even just a little bit) it makes it so much more real.



Before we left, Matt signed a guitar pick for me, on which he wrote "Patrick is my friend". And the best thing about that friendship is I know that every year or so, this band will put out another great record that continues these stories. These trials and tribulations of this Orion town, a land I've never been but doesn't seem much different from a place called Glenwood. And with these records, I, as well as my friends, will have an on going soundtrack to our lives. And I can handle that.


"I hope everyone else made a funny face." - Ryan "Smalls" Etzcorn
(L/R: Zach, Matt, Nick, Dave, Me, (Ryan, kneeling), Stacie, and Megan)

Go to www.frontierruckus.com to find music, and tour dates. If they come near you, see 'em.

Below is a video the band shot earlier in the day on Tuesday in the old market (the same alleys Stacie and I shot our engagement photos.) The video is for one of my personal favorite songs, "Mona and Emmy".

Frontier Ruckus: Mona and Emmy from Love Drunk on Vimeo.

The 2010 Great Nebraska Beer Fest

So Saturday Stacie, Schenck, Melissa and I went to the The Great Nebraska Beer Fest at Shadowlake Town Center in Papillion. If tickets would have cost us only 15 bucks a person (like the festival of Iowa Beers will cost us next weekend), then the whole day would have been wonderful.

However, the tickets were $30 a piece, and at that price, the beer fest wasn't all that great. There was a lot of great beer, don't get me wrong, but for that price, I expected more.

With 20-25 breweries represented, he illusion of quality was there. However, some of those breweries sent nothing but a few bottles, and volunteers poured them. Not knowing anything about the specific beer.

Also, there was no free stuff. Not that I am cheapskate (read: I am a cheapskate) but for $30 a person, I want to walk outta there with some stickers, glasses, key chains... the like. When we left, all I had was a drunk (which was very nice), 2 stickers and a coozee. Bullshit.

But, instead of ragging on what I didn't like, let's get to what I did like: the beer.

(I'll go down the list of breweries and name which beer I liked best, or what I liked least or whatever.)

Upstream Brewing Co. - Omaha, Nebraska

I don't care much for Upstream, but I tried the Harvest Peach Saison and loved it. That and the Ebenezer are my two favorite beers they got.

Empyrean - Lincoln, Nebraska
I love Empyrean. My favorite from them was the Better World Wheat. I was saddened by the Cask Condiioned Lazlo's Limited Summer Ale, but only because the keg wasn't cold, and it was a very hot day out. Empyrean still wins in my book.

Lucky Bucket - Omaha, Nebraska
I first heard of Lucky Bucket last week at El Bait Shop (the best beer bar in the world). I was intrigued, but hadn't got a chance to try the Pre-Probition Style Lager yet. Well, Schenck tried it at the beer fest and did not like it. For one, it was out of a bottle. That's like going to Iron Chef and trying to serve a McNugget. I tried the Oktoberfest Sour Belgian Porter, because it was kegged, and it wasn't bad, but it wasn't great.

Thunderhead Brewery - Kearney, Nebraska
This was one of my favorite beers of the day. Thunderhead couldn't send a representive down because of a scheduling conflict and was almost going to have to pull out of the beer fest all together, but the guys from Empyrean went and picked up a keg of Grand Ale Grand Cru and had it side by side with the Empyrean beers. The Grand Ale was a wonderful wheat beer, like a wit, that made the temperature go down with every sip.

Schilling Bridge - Pawnee City, Nebraska
I tried the Cherry Wheat from these guys and I was pleasantly surprised. It came from a bottle but tasted great. Although, they have a beer called "Git-R-Done", nuff said about this brewery.

Gottberg - Columbus, Nebraska
I really liked the Tin Lizzie Hefeweizen.

Tallgrass- Manhattan, KS
I only had one of the Tallgras brews, because they were mainly darker beers and came in a tall boy can, but the Buffalo Sweat Stout was really good, and this was Stacie's favorite beer.

Boulevard - Kansas City, MO
I don't like Boulevard, so I didn't drink anything from them. But, they did bring stickers, so there's that.

Boston Beer Company - Boston, MA
Sam Adams was represented well, but only in bottle form. The dumbest thing was they had the imperial bottles on the table where everyone could see them, but they wouldn't taste them because of some Nebraska law. Bullshit. I drank the Oktoberfest.

Left Hand Brewing Company - Longmont, CO
I really like Left Hand, and if I could remember when we visited the brewery, I am sure I'd cherish the memories. I drank some Milk Stout, but it didn't taste the same with out 10 or 11 basic menthol lights.

Avery Brewing Company - Boulder, CO
I had never heard of them, apperently Schenck really wanted to go to them back in March. I loved the White Rascal belgian white. It was crisp a delicious.

Odell's - Fort Collins, CO
Another brewery we missed on our brew tour last spring, Odell's didn't impress me. THe Easystreet Wheat wasn't anything special, but I didn't hate it.

North Coast - Fort Bragg, CA
I liked the Bluestar alright, I was looking forward to trying North Coast for a long time. I was surprised to see them at the beer fest.

Breckenridge Brewing - Breckenridge, CO
I drank 2 glasses of the Vanilla Porter, and loved it. I wish I hadn't been so hung over when we went there back in March.

Schell - New Elm, MN
I drank the Lakemaid just to try it out. I remember seeing this all over Minnesota. It wasn't terrible for a lager, but I don't see myself going out of the way to drink it again.

Rock Bottom - DSM, Iowa
I hadn't tried Rock Bottom Brewery before, but I was happy with the Liquid Sun Wheat. It was very good.

Crabtree Brewing Company - Greeley, CO
This is my most memorable brewery of the day. We followed the truck to Shadow Lake, they were funny, nice and had good beers. The Ginger Beer was way better than it sounded. Also, they gave us a sticker. Great showing.

My "Best in Show" award would go to the Railroaders Brew Club. A group of homebrewers who brought the best beers I drank. Plus, they were the most energetic and social brewers of the day. The best beer was the Watermelon Wheat (served with a piece of watermelon) and a hoppy beer, served with a hop garnish. They were side by side with the South Omaha Brewers, another homebrewer club that also had some great beers.

There were some more breweries there that I didn't drink. (most notably, the Nebraska Brewing Company, who held the event. However, thanks to Julianne I do have a growler now, waiting to be filled.)

So like I said, if the tickets would have been half price, it would have been a wonderful afternoon. Instead, it was just an expensive day of drinking with some great friends. Which really, isn't all that bad in retrospect.

I fully intend on writing a review of the 6th Annual Festival of Iowa Beers next week. So stay tuned.

The 50 States of Beer - Oregon

Oregon

Rogue Ales - Newport, OR
Best Beer:

Dead Guy Ale

You'll find that if I didn't discover a beer at the good ol' Old Chicago in Ames, then I probably first found it at the Crescent Moon while I was living in Omaha back in 2007. That's the story with Dead Guy Ale, and it's also the story of the first time I ever went to the Crescent Moon.

On Tuesday nights, the Crescent Moon has a deal where you can go, pay five bucks for a glass and fill it with the "beer of the night" for a dollar or two all night. Then, you get to keep the glass. Anyone who knows me, knows that I love things I can take home.

That first night, I was with my roommate at the time Garrett who suggested we go there in the first place. The "beer of the night" was Dead Guy Ale, and definitely had a unique taste. It was the first maibock I ever tried. I easily refilled that glass six or seven times that night.

This night was also the first time I ever heard of Rogue Ales. It wasn't long until I found Kessler's and their wide selection of Rogue brews. Which lead to me drinking several 24oz bottles of the MOM's Half-E-Weizen (with this picture on the bottle), Brutal Bitter, but I always found my way back to the Dead Guy Ale.

The only Rogue beer I don't like, is the rauchbier, aptly named "Smoke Beer". Nick bought it and we all tried some, and it is forever known as "Bacon Beer".

For more reading on Rogue Ale, go here.
And visit the official Rogue Ale website, here.

Also, here is a funny tour of the Rogue Brewery. Enjoy:


Up next, Pennsylvania