Day 103, April 13 / Stone Pale Ale

Day 103 / April 13, 2011

Stone Pale Ale

Stone Brewing Co.  /  Escondido, CA

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…and Scarecrow, I think I’ll miss you most of all…

Yesterday was my last day at the office.  I packed up all my stuff.  All the pictures, all the little diner sculptures, all my toys, all of the Batmobiles.  Yes, Batmobiles. 

I threw away all the old ketchup packs and plastic forks in the drawer.  Then I made the rounds, and said goodbye (see you later, see you soon) to the folks with whom that I’ve spent the better part of 7 years in the corporate trenches.  Yeah, I’ve done this before (not too often) and it’s always with a strange mixture of excitement, sadness and uncertainty.  One chapter ended, another begins.  But gladly, I’m taking a little time off in between gigs.

My wife, daughter and I celebrated this milestone with a nice dinner out at Argia’s, a great Italian restaurant in Falls Church, VA (plus we had a coupon).  Accompanying my roasted salmon with risotto cakes was a Stone Pale Ale, which is the flagship beer from Stone Brewing Company.  Stone makes a number of specialty brews, including three different IPA’s, that appeal to beer connoisseurs.

Their Pale Ale is probably their most “approachable” beer – most of the others are significantly more bitter and stronger.  The Pale Ale is a good, dark copper ale, with a bit of a bite and a moderate bitterness (41 IBU’s).