Surf 'n Turf, the Rogue's session notes.

Cerebral day on the Right Coast. Holiday's & 66th, 7/24/2020.

   Week or so without a ride. Began feeling the pull. Decided to head out for a Friday sesh with the Wife. Set up at Holiday's. Beach was more crowded than the break. Water now well into the mid-70's. Small right breakin' curlers. Semi-clean. Slight bump. Managed to churn through quite a few including a long drive that had me damn near draggin' my skeg along the sand. Even though we've had the humidity set in, the on-shore winds created a comfortable stage for both observation from the sand, and stoke on the water. 

"Surfing to me is like playing music. You play different melodies with
different boards." -Skip Frye   Playing a Town & Country tune, 7/24/2020.

  Earlier on, my Wife had done some groceries shopping and brought home a couple of winning New Your Strips. 'Lil turf with the surf. Ready for that. Hank Rub...my new favorite all-around. Drizzled some Olivins Espresso Balsamic oil. Some pepper, some garlic herb. And then...a liberal amount of Hanks. Both sides. Pat 'em down and lay 'em on a hot grill. Some bad-ass steaks to top off an outstanding session. Add our Eastern Sho' sweet corn, and beer. Divine...like the beer that was paired with it. Union Craft Brewing outta Baldamore (Baltimore). Divine IPA. 6.5% ABV. Fizzy, near 2-finger, bubbly, white head from the clear amber-gold pour. Boatloads of grapefruity hop aromas. Dank- some pine. Hint of hop florals. Resinous taste with plenty of mango and citrus. Juiciness in each swig. As hopped as this was, even at 50 IBUs, not an overly bitter finish. Kinda silky going down. Had a sixer. This is one that tasted better with each can.  Add the 'Strip steak...rated a B+/A-. 

"That's what I do. I drink and I
 know things." 
-Tyrion Lannister, Game of Thrones

Summer Deck, the Rogue's session notes.

"'Cause a little bit of summer is what the whole year is all about." - John Mayer
Steamed Blue Crabs, beer, and sweet corn...Maryland's summer deck feast. Lookout Point, 7/9/2020.

   Pandemic, riots, and now the f*#king Redskins being forced by the political machine to change their name. In terms of the peripheral, don't have a good run goin' so far this year. But, Summer's here! Time on the water always seems to unravel life's twists. Boat, boards, and rods. All ya need.

The sights on the cruise out to the Inlet/Harbor fishin' grounds.
Talbot Street Pier, 7/9/2020.

Lines in. Taking advantage of the current across from Assateague Island.

Finally hooked the
first decent flattie.

Brother pullin' out the dualie.

SweetWater Brewing

420 Pale Ale, 5.7%

ABV, 39 IBUs. 

Amber-gold light

haze pour.2-finger

 white head. Citrus

and pine aroma. 

Grain and grapefruit

in the taste. B- rated.

Or, push it all off into the trenches and fields. The more it stinks like manure, the better it is for the crops. The corn and soybeans are 'a growin'. My roadside visual for seasonal advance. Reaching mid-summer.

Rt. 90 from Pines Point Marina. More fishing means more supplies.

Dogfish Head's

Slightly Mighty. 

LoCal Session IPA.

Copper pour. 

Finger-plus head.

Citrus and grain in

aromas. Kinda a

 watered down

grapefruit-hop 

taste. 4.0% ABV, 

30 IBUs. Rated a

  C+/B-.

Feel the sway. Post Fay conditions outside of Salted Vines. Countryside of Frankford, Delaware. 7/10/2020

Leafy bunches of soybean fields stretching across the Eastern Shore. Row upon row of emerald green stalks of corn, their peanut brown tassels swaying in the wind, hiding smaller stalks of sweet corn... a must have for any summer meal on the deck... especially crabs.

Key Brewing, Semi

Charmed Pale Ale Poured a 

deep amber with eggshell

 white 2-finger head. 

Herbal spice in aroma.

 Bitter fruit and malt flavor.

Dry finish. 5% ABV.

30 IBUs. Rated a B-/C+.

An injection of sunshine and coastal salt making everything better. First half of July. Heat wave in effect. Prime-time for Family. It all comes together. Peak travel conditions. Vacation time.

Yeah, Tropical Storm Fay, kinda dumped on us. Wind, rain, and chop. Wasn't able to go after a surf until after. And, the cleaner conditions occurred before...

But, we did get in more fishing.

Not much in terms of Fay's leftovers.
47th Street mushies, 7/16/2020.

Flying Dog Brewery.

Pool Hopping Deck Beer.

Hazy Session IPA.

A brew made for this post.

Hazy straw-yellow pour.

Thin white head. Thin lace.

5.4% ABV, 25 IBUs.

Hint of lemon grass and

grapes in smell. Tastes of

citrus and lime. Some tart-

ness. Dry, hop finish.

Summer pounder.

Gave a B rating. 

Burley Oak's Sea

 Heathen. Seaside

 Pilsner.  A Dark Seas 

 collab. Est.40 IBUs, 

4.8% ABV. Strong 

aromas of lime

(made w/ Kaffir Lime)

 and spice. Flavors

 of more lime and

 tart zest. Dry bitter

 finish. Clear gold pour.

 Thin white head.

Quenching beer.

 Another B rating.

Balmy air and water temperatures. Got some boating in. Some lines in. Finally...some fish on.  Squeezed a surf in, even though Fay left only dribs and drabs behind. Crabs, shrimp, and corn steamed and ready. Chicken and brats on the grill. Beers chillin'. Summer on deck.

Summer bliss...her mother's fascination with the Ocean. Inlet Beach, 7/8/2020.

Gotta Go To Know, the Rogue's session notes.

"You know the Russians often like to talk in proverbs and there's one that might be useful. You're an actor, you can learn it in a minute, 'Trust, but verify.'"  -historian Suzanne Massie to President Ronald Reagan
Surf verification, 47th Street Break. 7/1/2020

   Nuthin' worse than misinformation. Seems we got a lot of it lately, and that's been a bit annoying. Media full of rumors and fake news. Even infected the surf reports. Last week called out for ankle-biters, and instead got stoked on a sweet semi-clean thigh to stomach high swell at the 47th-48th Street lineup. . Don't get me wrong... not complaining, but this is where the the surf cams come in handy. Nice night in a lineup more crowded than most of the time. Young groms just happy to get a ride. I really need to learn to appreciate what is handed to me. The waves were far from A-frames, but every bit as fun. And everyone hoopin' and hollerin' and having a good time. Water in the mid-70s, mostly front-side breaks, but enough of a mix to grab a few lefties as well. Starting to realize, at the end of the end of the day you gotta go to know.

Seeing is believing. 47th Street, 7/1/2020.

   At the end of most of my evening sessions, I end up with a coffee. Dunkin mostly. Pick-me-up for that ride back to the homestead. So, this brew was an appropriate post-sesh beer. Not for this evening, but it fits for afternoon, or late morning. Burley Oak's Coffee-n-Cream Ale. At 5.1% this one is capable of being a 2-fer if you can handle the sweet aftertaste. Poured a clear amber with a creamy finger or so white head. Plenty of coffee in the smell, some malt and dairy as well. Coffee was in the taste, but faded. Sweet bread and toffee. Light hop bitterness (18 IBUs) provided balance. Initially, a very good beer, however the lingering sweetness got to me after a while. Rated a B-.

"We could say Democrats spend money like

drunken sailors, but that would be unfair to

drunken sailors. It would be unfair, because

the sailors are spending their own money."

-Ronald Reagan