Monday, November 30, 2009

Monday Musings on Sports - Larry Frank the Se'ir Hamishtaleiach

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. As Max has resigned from 1050 and has not yet resurfaced on the NY area radio waves, I have decided to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

This week's post discusses the debacle which is the New Jersey Nets and how Lawrence Frank lost his job through no fault of his own.

Following the NBA lockout, I decided that I could no longer root for the Knicks and began to look for another team to follow. I was never a big NBA fan, but I had attended a few Knick games and hung a poster or two in my room when I was in high school. After Patrick Ewing said his now infamous line "Sure NBA players make a lot of money, but we spend a lot too" I knew that I could never root for the Knicks again.

I began to root for the NJ Nets and soon thereafter they began to improve their play. A few short years later they acquired Jason Kidd and then made the playoffs for the next six years. Their coach for much of the time was Lawrence Frank who started his career with a bang, taking a .500 team and directing them to 13 straight wins. They made the finals a couple of years in a row and it seemed like the NBA championship ran through the swamp every year. Perhaps his best (but least heralded) year was in 2004-2005 when the team played without Kidd and RJ for most of the year and he somehow brought the team from ten games out into the playoffs.

Over the last few years the job became exceedingly more difficult for Coach Frank. The team ownership became obsessed with a planned move to Brooklyn and less interested in fielding a competitive team. Jason Kidd was the first player traded, but RJ went a few months later. A year later it was time to dump Vince Carter. Although Rod Thorn was always able to acquire value in return for the stars they traded away, the talent was young and at times raw.

Despite these issues, Coach Frank was consistently able to get his players to practice and play hard. However, the Nets were struck by an early injury bug this season and many nights only fielded seven or eight players. The losses began to mount and suddenly the Nets were looking at the real possibility of breaking the NBA record for futility to start a season. The only thing left to do was fire the Coach, as to paraphrase Michael Kay - you can't fire all the players.

Was Coach Frank responsible for the team's injury bug? Of course not. Was he the one who engineered the trades which dumped All Stars in exchange for prospects? The same answer applies. But sometimes there needs to be a scapegoat and this time it was Lawrence Frank - mercifully fired before the team tied the record for futility.

The concept of scapegoat draws its origin from the Yom Kippur service. The Torah tells us that the Cohain Gadol would have two goats - one of which was slaughtered and the other sent to the desert to be thrown off a cliff. The gemara in Yoma (41 and 67) explains that there was a red string tied around the goat and another around a rock at the top of the cliff. After the goat died from its fall, the string tied to the rock would turn white as a symbol that Hashem had forgiven the Jews. Thus was born the concept which was commonly known as the scapegoat.

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Sunday, November 29, 2009

Sunday Night Suds - Saranac Big Moose Ale



This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Saranac's Big Moose Ale.

The Big Moose Ale is another of the new beers which previewed in Saranac's 12 Beers of Winter box. To my knowledge, its Saranac's first foray into the name brewing game.

Numerous breweries have played the game of giving a brew a catchy name in order to drive sales. Recently when we were in Cleveland, I was browsing in a supermarket and I came across some beers produced by Ridgeway Brewing (England) with some truly bizarre names - Bad Elf and Santa's Butt. I successfully resisted the urge to buy them as I did not know their source and did not know if they were kosher. They were also priced about $4 per bottle, but that was less of a deterrence since they were available in singles and the bottles were oversized. I then checked on BA and found other bizarrely named beers produced by Ridgeway including: Criminally Bad Elf, Insanely Bad Elf (both with abv's above 10%), Lump of Coal, Pickled Santa and Reindeer Revolt.

While some breweries probably do the odd name thing in order to drive sales, the good folks at Saranac did not do this for the Big Moose Ale since its only available as part of the 12 Beers of Winter box which contains two bottles of the Moose. This is unfortunate as it was my favorite brew in the box.

Saranac classifies the Big Moose Ale as an American Pale Ale. The beer pours a rich copper color with a fair amount of lacing on the glass. The crisp taste is full of hops and went really well with left over turkey this evening. I had previously tried the Big Moose with Noah's Ark bbq ribs and it went really well with the sweet ribs. I seriously wish that they carried the Big Moose Ale in six packs as it could easily become one of my favorite offerings from Saranac.

Saranac Big Moose Ale is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit, as is every other brew produced by Saranac. To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Saranac Big Moose Ale, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/53202.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

As a final note, while I was at Saranac I noticed that they had begun bottling for Kirkland (Costco). I contacted the Va'ad of Detroit and this week received LOCs for Kirkland along with three other new brands which are newly kosher certified - Gordon Biersch, Trader Joe's and Joseph Brau. I have updated the September certification list to reflect the varieties which are under kosher certification.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayeitzei

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand in his shiur this evening. I have attempted to reproduce this vort to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

In Vayeitzei (29:1-30) we read of Ya'akov's arrival at Lavan's home and his interplay with Lavan and Lavan's family which ultimately results in Ya'akov's marriage to Leah and Rachel. When Ya'akov first meets Rachel, the Torah indicates at 29:12 that Ya'akov told Rachel that he was "her father's brother." This is an odd choice of words for Ya'akov as his mother was Lavan's sister and he was certainly not her uncle.

Rashi offers two explanations for this lashon. The first explanation is that he said to her that he was close to her father like a brother. The second (midrashic explanation) was that Yaa'kov told Rachel that he was like Lavan - if Lavan tried to trick him, Ya'akov was Lavan's brother in deceit.

Rabbi Frand then commented that many times the boys in his shiur will come to him for advice before they begin dating. They discuss many things, but he never has to tell them that its not a good idea to tell a girl that the boy is as good a trickster as the father. What possessed Ya'akov to tell Rachel that he was as good a con man as Lavan?

Rabbi Frand then asked a second question - how do we see that Ya'akov followed through with his statement that he was as good a trickster as Lavan. We actually see the opposite since when Lavan switches Leah for Rachel and then Ya'akov sees the true first wife's identity, Ya'akov approaches Lavan who tells Ya'akov you can marry Rachel in exchange for another seven years of work. If Ya'akov was such a good ramai, he would have taken Rachel and left without having worked the extra seven years!

Rabbi Frand quoted the Tolner Rav who answered the questions by making reference to a gemara in Bava Basra 89b (a Daf Yomi Crossover!) which discusses the various ways in which merchants could trick buyers or buyers could trick sellers by using uneven measuring devices. After discussing these various tricks, R' Yochanan Ben Zakai then questions whether he should openly bar these practices. He states that if he overtly discussed the tricks there is a possibility that people will learn "new" ways to trick others. On the other hand if he does not ban them the unethical people will think that the rabbis are not familiar with their tricks. The gemara then asks - did he or not? R' Shmuel bar R'Yitzchak said that they were openly barred based on a pasuk in Hoshea that the ways of Hashem are straight - the righteous will follow them and the wicked stumble upon them.

The Tolner Rav asked on the gemara - what difference does it make if the wicked think that the Rabbis don't understand their tricks? He answered that a person respects another if the other person knows the intricacies of his trade. By example, when I first visited the Square Rebbi, I knew that he was a great man and he certainly gives the appearance of being a holy man. But when I spoke with him and he asked me about my profession including the type of firm I work for and the type of work we do (all in perfect English) I was floored. Here was a chassidish Rebbi whose chassidim all speak yiddish and live in an insular community and he knew enough to ask whether I practiced civil or criminal law and the subcategories therof. This only served to raise my level of respect for him.

Rabbi Frand gave his own example of this principle in discussing Rabbanim who know a great deal about biology and how when a patient requires that a doctor consult with the Rabbi, the doctors are impressed with the level of knowledge the Rabbi has about the human body.

Rabbi Frand explained that R' Yochanan was concerned that the tricksters did not respect the Rabbanim. However, if they knew that the Rabbis knew the intricacies of their fraud the tricksters might respect the Rabbis. Rabbi Frand then quoted R' Chaim Vital who explains that R' Yochanan Ben Zakai was the gilgul of Ya'akov Avinu.

In telling Rachel that he was Lavan's brother in trickery, he was not saying that he would be tricking Lavan. Instead he was telling her that since he knew Lavan's tricks, maybe he could have an impact on and be mikarev Lavan. It was for this reason that Ya'akov never retaliated against Lavan - his intention was to try to earn Lavan's respect, not outfox him.

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Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Tuesday's Thoughts on the Daf - Bava Basra 95

While preparing Bava Basra 95, I was struck by how different our view of wine is today as opposed to the time of the gemara.

The mishna on Bava Basra 93b stated that one who contracted to purchase wine was required to accept 10% of the wine as "kossisos." The Rashbam on Bava Basra 95a explains that this was wine which was starting to go sour (but was still drinkable) and was the common wine which was sold by shopkeepers for immediate consumption.

The gemara on 95a contains a discussion as to which type of wine the seller intended to buy which would require that he accept 10% kossissos. As the discussion spills over onto Bava Basra 95, the gemara offers an opinion that when a buyer indicates that he wishes to use the wine to cook with, there is an obligation on the seller to provide him with superior quality wine. The Rashbam explains that wine which was used for cooking needed to last for a significant period of time as it was not rapidly used by the buyer. As such, the seller could not provide kossissos wine since it would go completely sour before the buyer will have exhausted his cooking needs.

In contrast to the gemara, when someone in this era buys cooking wine, the product is usually of the poorest quality since people do not use fine quality wine to cook with.

Still, there was one point made by the gemara which still rings true today. The gemara on the bottom of 95b discusses a dispute as to whether one who consumes wine which is truly going sour must make the heightened brocha of borei pri ha'gafen or only the shehakol. As part of this discussion, the gemara mentions R' Zevid's position that wine which is pressed from grape kernels is of such poor quality that one would recite the shehakol blessing. The Rashbam describes such wine as "extremely bad" which would only be sold in the outer corners of the city. Yes, even in the times of the gemara there was a "thunderbird" wine which you needed to be desperate to drink!

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Monday, November 23, 2009

Monday Musings on Sports - The Purpose of Injuries in Football

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. As Max has resigned from 1050 and has not yet resurfaced on the NY area radio waves, I have decided to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

Last Friday I heard an interesting discussion on the Michael Kay show related to Leon Washington's injury and his attitude during his arduous rehab from a broken leg. As has been well documented, this is the final year of Washington's rookie contract which pays him about $500K for the year. Before the season began Washington was unable to agree with the Jets on a contract extension and his future contract would depend on his stats for this year. Although his season started in promising fashion, Washington sustained a severely broken leg in the Oakland game a few weeks ago and his season is over. The injury was so bad that he was unable to fly back to New York and he needed to have surgery in Oakland.

The segment of the Michael Kay show began with some quotes that Washington gave when he visited the Jets' training facility last week. After the quotes, Michael and Don began to debate whether it was good idea for Washington to have played out his contract this year and Washington's quotes that everything happens for a reason and that he has made his peace with the injury. Michael asked - if everything happens for a purpose, why does anyone need to take any affirmative steps since everything is pre-ordained. Don responded that we still need to act as things do not come if we don't take action. Bonnie Bernstein then added her own view, explaining that she had sustained a severe knee injury and that while she would not wish the injury on anyone, the rehab process had strengthened her and showed her that she could overcome adversity.

The discussions on the Michael Kay obviously have their root in traditional Jewish hashkafa. The gemara in Ta'anis 21 mentions how Nahum Ish Gamzu used to say "gam zu l'tova" - this is also for the good about everything that befell him in life. Once the Jews wanted to send a present to the Caesar and they asked Nachum Ish Gamzu to be the courier. On his way, Nahum stopped at an inn. During the night, the innkeeper emptied the jewels in the chest and filled it with sand. When the chest was offered to the Caesar he opened it and saw the sand. The Caesar was infuriated and wanted to kill all the Jews. Nahum Ish Gamzu said, "Gam zu l'tova" - this is also for the good. Immediately thereafter, Eliyahu Hanavi suggested that maybe this sand was from Avraham who threw sand and it turned into swords. The Caesar's forces tried it in battle and were successful. The Caesar sent Nahum back with with great honors and a chest full of treasures.

While we may not be zocheh to see such an obvious display of how Hashem does everything for the good, we do believe that all that He allows to happen is for the best (or in the words of Rabbi Akiva in gemara Berachos - kol ma'an d'avid Rachmana l'tav avid) and that there is a positive purpose to what happens in this world.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Sunday Night Suds - New Belgium Sunshine Wheat Ale


This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at New Belgium's Sunshine Wheat Ale.

Although the city of Fort Collins, Colorado has a population of less than 140,000 people, it is home to six breweries including: Anheuser Busch, Odell Brewing, Fort Collins Brewery and New Belgium. As I recently learned, New Belgium produces a number of kosher brews including the Sunshine Wheat Ale.

The Sunshine Wheat Ale is classified by BA as an American Pale Ale and it certainly carries the moniker in that it is pale in color. However the taste of the Sunshine Wheat is more akin to a Witbier. This could be due to the fact the brew is flavored with coriander and orange peel, or it could just be the flavor of the beer itself.

I first tried the Sunshine Wheat while sitting at my kitchen table with a sefer. Sarah tried it at the same time and decided to cook our supper with it (grouper). It added a nice flavor to the seared fish and also went quite well with plated finished product. I had another one later in the week with pineapple chicken and it went equally well. It is easily one of the best American Wheat beers that I have ever tasted.

New Belgium Sunshine Wheat is under the Kosher Supervision of the Scroll-K of Colorado. Although the beer does not bear the kosher symbol on the label, it can be found on the bottom of the six pack carrier. Additionally, if you would like me to e-mail you the LOC for New Belgium Sunshine Wheat, send me an e-mail and I will gladly oblige.

Please note that not every brew produced by New Belgium is under kosher supervision. Please check my latest Kosher Beer List (http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2009/09/kosher-beers-semi-annual-kosher-beers.html ) for a complete listing of those New Belgium brews which are certified kosher.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about New Belgium Sunshine Wheat, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/192/1911 .

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Toldos

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand in his shiur this evening. I have attempted to reproduce this vort to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

The first pasuk of Parshas Toldos contains an apparent redundancy as the parsha begins "V'aleh Toldos Yitzchak ben Avraham, Avraham Holid es Yitzchak" -these are the generations of Yitzchak son of Avraham, Avraham fathered Yitzchak. Many commentators have asked the question why the language is repeated. During tonight's shiur Rabbi Frand explored two answers to the question.

The Ibn Ezra writes that the reason for the second mention is the use of the language of Holid whichnteaches that Avraham raised and taught Yitzchak. He brings a proof from the pasuk by Yosef and his grandchildren of "Vayuldu al Birkei Yosef." This does not mean that they were fathered by or born on Yosef's lap. Rather it is translated that they were taught by Yosef.

Rabbi Frand then mentioned the Sforno who notes that in Lech Lecha, Avraham says to Hashem that he has no children and the "ben mesek" of his house is Eliezer. The Sforno explains that Avraham was saying that he has no son at present to take over his mantle and while he may have a son in the future, it may be too late.

In a similar vein, the Sfas Emes explains that Avraham was concerned that he would be so advanced in age when his son would be born that he would not have the ability to teach his son about who Avraham was. A person wants to teach his child his family customs and lineage and this was Avraham's concern. The Sfas Emes brings a proof from the Gemara in Yoma which explains that Eliezer was called "damesek" because he was mashke Avraham's Torah to the masses. However, Avraham wanted his son to be able to perform this task.

According to the Ibn Ezra, it is for this reason that the Torah writes that Avraham holid es Yitzchak - Avraham got his wish and was able to raise Yitzchak in his customs and tradition.

The second explanation mentioned by R' Frand was Rashi's reference to the "letzanei hador" - the jokers of the generation who wondered aloud whether Avraham was really Yitzchak's father or whether the true father was Avimelech. It was for this reason that the pasuk contains the double language as Hashem made a miracle and Yitzchak was the carbon copy image of Avraham.

Rabbi Frand then asked - why are they called jokers? If a person impugns the lineage of another he is wicked, not merely a joker!

Rabbi Frand answered in the name of R' Pam that this position could not have been seriously believed in Avraham's generation. Previously, Avraham and Sarah had lived together for many years without having children. Then, Avraham has a child with Hagar - obviously he is not the reason they were childless. Therefore those who insinuate that he could not have impregnated Sarah are obviously just jokers.

This presents the question - if they were just jokers who were posing an illogical question, why did they even need to be dignified with a response?

Rabbi Frand answered that it was because in future generations these jokers' positions might be taken seriously and people might seek to revise history and opine that the lineage of the Jews did not continue down through Yitzchak.

Rabbi Frand then mentioned how when Eisenhower was commanding the American troops at the close of WWII he instructed them to take film footage of the concentration camps so that the atrocities of the Holocaust could not later be forgotten. Who could have surmised that sixty years later, people would begin to doubt whether there was a holocaust or whether it was on such a large scale. Even though there are still survivors who tell first hand accounts of the atrocities, there are people who seek to deny the holocaust ever occurred for their own political gain. It is for this prescient reason that Eisenhower ordered that film footage be taken of the camps and why the Spielberg films and the various holocaust memorials are so important to preserving the memory of the six million against the onslaught of the jokers who seek to deny the holocaust even existed.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Tuesday's Thoughts on the Daf - Bava Basra 88

Bava Basra 88 contains the gemara's version of "you break it, you pay for it." Towards the top of Bava Basra 88a, the gemara states in the name of Shmuel that if one takes an object from a craftsman to examine and through an unfortunate circumstance the item breaks, the prospective purchaser must pay the craftsman for the item, provided that the item had a known fixed price.

The Rashbam explains that this involves an item like a pepper grinder where the craftsman makes many at a time and does not derive any benefit from the purchaser picking it up to examine the item. Indeed, the purchaser at this point becomes like a shoel (borrower) and is thus responsible for loss through oness.

The gemara then offers another example of "you break it you pay for it" where a prospective purchaser had picked up a piece of thigh meat to examine it. While he was looking at the meat, a horseman passed by and grabbed it out of his hand. They went for judgment before R' Yemar who ruled that the purchaser must reimburse the seller, provided that there was a set price for the meat.

Before the new mishna on 88a, the gemara discusses whether a person who separates produce while in the market may return the produce, or whether his separation has acted as a kinyan. The question is of importance when the produce is demai and the purchaser must take off ma'aser, then return the remainder of the produce and reimburse the seller for the ma'aser portion. The gemara says that a yarei Shamayim like R' Safra would have done this, but the gemara does not explain why R' Safra was pious.

The Rashbam fills in the blanks - that R' Safra was once praying when a man came and offered to buy something from him. R' Safra did not respond as he was in the middle of prayer. Taking the silence as refusal, the man then doubled his offer. R' Safra finished his prayer, but would only take the lower amount offer because he had decided to accept the first offer, but could not answer during the prayer.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Monday, November 16, 2009

Monday Musings on Sports - Jones Drew, Belichek and DA.

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. As Max has resigned from 1050 and has not yet resurfaced on the NY area radio waves, I have decided to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

As I was loading our minivan in Chicago yesterday afternoon, I passed the time listening to the Jets-Jaguars game on Sirius Satellite radio. OK, I finished loading the car and then sat in it to listen to the end of the game, while Sarah got the kids ready and packed the food. Yes my wife is an angel, but that is a topic for another day.

After I loaded the last suitcase, the Jets scored a touchdown and with five minutes left found themselves up by one point with a decision to make – kick the extra point or go for the two point conversion. The question itself was not that difficult – if you make the two point conversion the other team needs a field goal to tie. If you kick the extra point, you only go up by two points and the other team can win with a field goal. If you miss the conversion, you are still winning by one.

The Jets went for the two point conversion and failed when Sanchez was unable to connect with Braylon Edwards. The announcers made it sound like the pass was late, but I have not seen the replay yet.

So now the Jets had to prevent the Jaguars from getting into field goal range. I sat in the car thinking the same thing that I recalled my father chanting for so many April nights when the Rangers were about to choke away a playoff game – “TOO MUCH TIME!”

At first it seemed that the Jets would pull it off. They had the Jags facing numerous 3rd downs, but each time the Jaguars would make a big play. Then, suddenly they were into Jets territory. And then in field goal range with two minutes to go. I start thinking Belichekian (more about him later) – just let them score and even if they put up 8 you have two minutes left to go down the field and tie the game or even go ahead.

The Jets players must have been given the same instructions as they allowed Maurice Jones Drew to run untouched to the one yard line. And then he stopped dead and took a knee. The Jets only had one time out left and the Jaguars were able to run the clock down to 2 seconds before kicking the game winning field goal. I was glad that I had not lost the entire afternoon sitting and watching (or listening to) the whole game.

Fast forward a few hours and the Patriots have a lead on the Colts late in the Fourth Quarter. Belichek has the Pats go for it on 4th down deep in their own territory, despite the fact that they are leading the Colts by 6. Going for it on 4th down is always a risk because the other team gets the ball if you don't make the first down. Doing this deep in your own territory is an even greater risk as you give the other team a short field. The upside in the Pats case was --if they made the first down they could run the clock down and the Colts would have no time to score.

For Belichek the gamble backfired as the Pats did not make the first down and the Colts marched 28 yards to win the game.

What do these two events have in common and what is their connection to Torah? The answer is DA.

When entering a synagogue one invariably sees a sign which says Da Lifnei Mi Ata Omeid - Know before whom you stand. When entering a shul, a person should be aware that they are in the presence of Hashem and need to act accordingly. The sign serves as a gentle reminder that since you are in shul you should not engage in frivolous activity.

In a similar vein - the key to the wins in the two games was knowledge of where the ball was on the field and what needed to be accomplished. By kneeling at the one foot line and not scoring the touchdown, Jones Drew was able to prevent the Jets from getting the ball back. By punting the ball and pinning the Colts back in their territory, Belichek could have won his game. By going for it on 4th down without regard to the ball's position on the field, Belichek lost the game. L'havdil, the knowledge of where one was factored in the decisions in each game.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Belated Sunday Night Suds - Shiner Smokehaus


This week’s Sunday Night Suds looks at Shiner Smokehaus beer.

While I was in Chicago this weekend for my nephew’s bar mitzvah, I visited Binny’s on Dempster (Skokie) to look for beers which are not available on the East Coast. For those not familiar with Chicago, there used to be two liquor outlet chains in Chicago – Binny’s and Sam’s. Both of these stores had their individual strengths – Sam’s had an incredible selection of wines, while Binny’s had superior beer choices and usually better prices on beer and harder alcohol. When I came in for the first days of Pesach (or when I found myself downtown) I used to shop at Sam’s. When I was looking for good prices on scotch or beer (or when I found myself in Skokie) I would shop at Binny’s.

In October 2009 these two chains merged, thus I found myself traveling to Skokie with Mrs. KosherBeers on a Saturday Night looking for new beer. I had checked the Binny’s website in advance and saw that they had a wide selection of New Belgium beer (which I recently learned had many styles with kosher certification). While perusing their many well stocked aisles (as usual) I noticed that they carried Shiner Smokehaus, a beer which is made with smoked hops.

[For a great article about Shiner Smokehaus and Rabbi Krupnik, the amicable Rav Hamachshir (certifying Rabbi) for many beers which are certified kosher by the Va’ad of Detroit click here http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/news/2009/sep/30/ab_m3_shiner_kosher_100209_67375/ ]

As my shopping cart already contained three sixers of New Belgium, I pondered whether I should invest in a six pack of the Smokehaus as well. I consulted with one of the knowledgeable clerks at Binny’s (always helpful and never pushy) and he told me that the beer tasted like “a barbecue in a bottle.” This of course only added to my concern about spending $7.99 +tax on a six pack when I might not want to drink more than one. I asked whether I could buy a single since I was already buying three six packs of New Belgium varieties, but the manager indicated that they did not sell singles except for specific oversized bottles. I kind of expected this response, but figured it was worthy asking.

As you can tell from the picture at the top of the page I did get a bottle after all. While I was being rung up for the New Belgium, they brought me a bottle of Smokehaus and presented it to me as a gift. I was shocked and grateful. They don’t know me, as I only shop there once or twice a year. They don’t know about my beer blogging hobby and certainly did not know that I had previously given their store a positive review on beer advocate two years ago. It was just a nice thing to do for a customer and shows why they are a great store.

So what did the beer taste like? Upon opening it, the beer did not smell like a BBQ. It also was somewhat pale in color and much lighter than the dark brown beer I was expecting. But the taste is undoubtedly mesquite. The beer basically tastes like a lager with a few mesquite chips floating in it (no I did not see any in the bottle). I don't know if I could drink a few of these at a time, but it was an interesting flavor and I would recommend trying one if you can find it.

I leave the food pairing for Shiner Smokehaus to your imagination, but if you can grill it, this beer probably would go well with it.

Shiner Smokehaus is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit, although the brew does not bear the Va'ad symbol on its label. If you would like me to e-mail you the Va'ad LOC for Shiner Smokehaus, send me an e-mail and I will gladly oblige.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Shiner Smokehaus, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/143/50270.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Tuesday's Thoughts on the Daf - Bava Basra 81

Bava Basra 81 is one of those dapim of gemara that come as a breath of fresh air in the middle of monotonous, hyper technical sugyos. The daf begins by quoting a mishna about whether the person who buys two trees in a field has purchased the field, or just the trees themselves. As explained by the Rashbam, the Tanna Kamma holds that the purchaser merely has bought the two trees and it is as if once the trees have borne their fruits for the year the buyer can cut them down and take them away. Meanwhile, Rav Meir holds that the buyer has purchased the land under the trees as well.

This is familiar territory as the sugya itself has made its appearance numerous times in the mesechta. But then the gemara in interpreting the mishna opens up the once monotonous fact pattern by seeking to compare the mishna to the law of bikkurim. The gemara quotes a mishna in Bikkurim wherein the Tanna Kamma states that the purchaser brings the fruit of the two trees up to Yerushalaim to be brought as bikkurim, but does not read the vidui bikkurim. R' Meir (who consistently follows his line of reasoning from our mishna) states that he does read the vidui bikkurim. Shmuel then says that according to R' Meir anyone who purchases fruit in the marketplace can use them for bikkurim as one does not need to own land to bring bikkurim.

The gemara then begins to bring pesukim dealing with bikkurim in an attempt to disprove Shmuel. One of these attempts asks the question - well what about the pasuk in Ki Savo which states that the bikkurim are brought from your land ("asher tavi me'artzecha"). The gemara answers that this is meant to exclude fruits from land outside of Israel as not falling within the law of bikkurim.

Tosafos d'h Hahu (one of the many fascinating Tosafosim on today's daf) asks why we need a pasuk to teach this - don't we already know from a gemara in Kiddushin that all mitzvos which are connected to the land of Israel are only kept in Israel? The gemara answers that bikkurim are mentioned in the pasuk in conjunction with the law of meat and milk (Shemos 23 - Reishis Bikurei Admasecha Tavi Beis Hashem Elokecha Lo Sivashel G'di BaChalev Imo) and there was a thought that people will believe that just like the people keep the separation of meat and milk outside Israel, so too would the laws of bikkurim apply there.

Tosafos also brings the opinion of the Rashba that bikkurim is not a mitzva which is unique to the land of Israel since the mitzva of bikkurim falls on the person, not the fruit. He explains that by teruma, ma'aser and challah, the unapportioned fruit is tevel and cannot be eaten until the portions are taken off. However, the law of bikkurim only applies to the person as he can eat any other fruit from the land prior to bringing the bikkurim up to the Beis Hamikdash.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Monday, November 9, 2009

Monday's Musings on Sports - Just a Regular Joe?

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. As Max has resigned from 1050 and has not yet resurfaced on the NY area radio waves, I have decided to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

Much as I dislike saying it - the Yankee$ must be given their "props" for buying, I mean winning the World Series. But rather than dwelling on the World Series, I would like to talk about what happened after the Yankees won the World Series.

About three hours after the Yankees won the World Series, there was an accident on the Cross-County Parkway - a somewhat twisty parkway about 15 minutes away from Yankee Stadium. The driver of the car was involved in a one car accident and she collided with a wall. This particular stretch of highway can be quite dangerous at night as news reports quoted the police that drivers regularly go around 80 mph at this blind curve.

A man dressed in a casual shirt and jeans pulled his car off the road and attempted to help the stranded motorist. He then jumped and down to flag down a police car to stop and help the stranded motorist.

The man never identified himself to the woman, who did not know the true identity of her benefactor. But the police officer who was stopped by the man knew exactly who it was - Yankee manager Joe Girardi.

Normally when you read stories about sports figures who were involved in something happening after 2 AM its usually not a good thing. I can recall a guest on the Mike & Mike show on ESPN saying once that "nothing good ever happens after 2 AM." Having said that, this event was the exception which proves the rule.

The Gemara in Eiruvin 13(b) teaches that one who runs after greatness (in the eyes of others) the greatness will run from him. One who runs away from great public stature, it will run after him. In this case, Joe Girardi was proving the concept perfectly. He had just won the World Series as manage of the Yankees. But in pulling over to help the stranded motorist he did not identify himself as the Yankees' manager, he was just a Joe trying to help someone out. By not revealing his identity, Joe Girardi made an ever greater name for himself when the police alerted the media that this Joe had done this selfless act without seeking honor for himself.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Sunday Night Suds - Shiner Light

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Shiner Light lager.

When I was in high school Budweiser ran a series of commercials where someone asked for a light and then received something other than a beer at which point he said, but I wanted a Bud Light. Why do I mention this when I am not reviewing Bud Light? Because some people cannot seem to tell the difference between a good beer and just a beer.

I was talking to a co-worker the other day who was telling me that when they went out to eat and asked for a Blue Moon the waitress brought a Corona. When another person at the table asked for a Yuengling they brought a Harp. Now its one thing when the restaurant tells you that they don't have something and offers you a similar beer as an alternative. Its completely different when they don't have a clue what they are serving. For example, when we took my brother out to a steak place in NYC before his wedding I asked for a Heineken. The waitress told me that they did not have any Heineken but offered me a Stella Artois instead. Of course, I wound up liking Stella better than Heineken, but that's not the point. If you have a liquor license you should have some understanding about the liquor you are serving beyond the fact that the item is an ale or a lager (or a whiskey for that matter).

Which bring us to Shiner Light. Yes, it is a light beer so there is some tradeoff of less taste in exchange for fewer calories. The beer claims to be 120 calories and 4% abv. It does not have a strong lager taste and if consumed by itself does not really seem to have any alcohol content. I had mine tonight with some burgers and it was like drinking a beerlike soda - you can drink it with your meal and not get filled up, but still have a beer flavor. On the other hand, its miles ahead of the Silver Bullet and other macro light beers.

One other interesting quirk about the Shiner Light. The label on the back of the bottle mentions that the residents of Shiner take pride in the Shiner beers and the bottle was actually signed by a resident of Shiner, Texas (population 2080). I took another Shiner Light out of the box and surprisingly it was signed by a different resident of Shiner Texas. I wonder how many different residents have put their names on the beer.

Shiner Light is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit, although the brew does not bear the Va'ad symbol on its label. If you would like me to e-mail you the Va'ad LOC for Shiner Light, send me an e-mail and I will gladly oblige.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Shiner Light, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/143/12415.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Thursday's Torah Tidbits - Parsha Vayera

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand in his shiur this evening. I have attempted to reproduce this vort to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

In Bereishis 19:29, the Torah recites that when Hashem destroyed the cities of the plain (S'dom and Amorrah) that Hashem remembered Avraham, so he sent Lot out from the upheaval when he overturned the cities.

Rashi asks why does the pasuk say that Hashem remembered Avraham since it was Lot who was remembered and saved? Rashi answers that Lot knew that when Avraham went down to Egypt (in Parshas Lech Lecha) that Sarah was really Avraham's wife and not his sister and he did not reveal the secret, therefore Hashem remembered his connection with Avraham and saved Lot.

Rabbi Frand then quoted the Maharal (Sefer Gur Aryeh) who asked why not just say that Lot was saved because of Hashem's love for Avraham rather than because of Lot's staying quiet? Additionally, if we were to discuss Lot's significant act we should mention that he followed Avraham out of Haran in the beginning of Lech Lecha.

Rabbi Frand said that the Maharal answers that the z'chus for Lot's being saved is a great "sod" and that Lot's staying quiet formed a connection and bond with Avraham. R' Frand prefaced that he did not truly understand the concept and was translating the Maharal's answer. He urged those listening to look up the Maharal inside and stated that he wanted to give the answer from the Tolner Rav instead.

The Tolner Rav began his answer by citing to Pirkei Avos 5:22 that a person who has the following three attributes is a talmid of Avraham - Ayin Tova (gives charitably to others) Ruach Nemucha (humble spirit - not being self impressed) and Nefesh Shefeilah (not being too materialistic). He quotes the Maharal that every person is born stingy wanting to have it all and for others to have less. One must fight their very nature to be happy that someone else has the same as you. The Mishna does not state that anyone who has emunah is a talmid of Avraham - rather the person must modify his natural inclinations and be like these character traits of Avraham in order to be a talmid of his.

The Tolner Rav then states that Lot was connected to Avraham based on his not revealing Sarah's identity because Lot also fought human nature to hold back from speaking. A person who hears a secret feels compelled to tell the secret. While knowledge is power, being the one who reveals the knowledge is the way to achieve greater stature.

Rabbi Frand then offered the following hypothetical scenario - Avraham and Sarah come to Egypt and are greeted by the King. Everone is talking about Avraham and his "sister." Meanwhile Lot is in a bar and hears the people talking. He could have opened his mouth in order to appear important and say "I know the real dish on Avraham's sister..." But Lot conquers his nature and does not reveal the secret.

Rabbi Frand then mentioned that the Tolner Rav said that Lot was the gilgul for Yehuda and that the neshoma then came back again as Boaz. Lot started the process of conquering his yetzer to speak out when he kept quiet about Sarah. This was later refined when (as Yehuda) he quashed the need for self-preservation and opened his mouth to say that Tamar was right. All of this culminated with Boaz where he could have rationalized to himself that since he and Ruth were single there was no problem with them being intimate. Instead, Boaz conquered his yetzer and was only with Ruth after they married.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Tuesday's Thoughts on the Daf - Bava Basra 74

Bava Basra 74 continues the stream of aggadita stories which began on Bava Basra 73. I would like to summarize of a few stories, and offer some thoughts and questions about them.

One of the stories recited in the gemara involves an individual who asked Rabba Bar Bar Chana if he wanted to see Har Sinai. He took Rabba Bar Bar Chana to the site where he observed that it was surrounded by scorpions which were as large as white donkeys. He also heard a bas kol which stated "Woe to me that I promised and now that I promised, who will revoke my vow for me?"

The Rashbam states that the vow referred to above was Hashem's vow to exile the Jews from the land of Israel. This was not Rabba Bar Bar Chana's understanding.

When Rabba Bar Bar Chana returned and told the story to the Rabbis they called him a fool since he should have said I revoked the vow. He replied that he was concerned that the vow was that Hashem had promised never to destroy the entire world by flood and he did not want to revoke this vow for Hashem. The Rabbis pointed out the flaw in this reasoning as if this case, Hashem would not have used the word "Woe" as it would be a good thing that the vow was made that the world would not be destroyed.

Tosafos asks the obvious question - why can't Hashem be mefer his neder and brings a proof from a gemara in Chaggiga 10(a) that Hashem can be mefer the promises made in anger. Tosafos does not offer an answer and I neither can I.

Another interesting story told on Bava Basra 74b involves a precious stone which was observed in the sea by R' Yehuda Hindua. The stone was being guarded by a sea serpent. They sent down a diver to try to get the stone and the serpent attempted to swallow the boat. Before it could strike, a large raven came and bit off its head. Then another serpent came and took the stone and put it on the dead serpent and it was revived. The (formerly dead) serpent then attempted to swallow the ship and again the bird intervened. This time the diver grabbed the stone and threw it in the boat. The stone landed on a pile of salted poultry which then came back to life and flew away with the stone.

Explanation? Not a clue. But I thought the story was cool so I repeated it in the post.

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Monday, November 2, 2009

Monday's Musings on Sports - Being Prepared for The Moment

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. As Max has resigned from 1050 and has not yet resurfaced on the NY area radio waves, I have decided to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

This year's World Series has not been without controversy. While Yankee pitcher CC Sabathia has made it known that he wants the ball on three days rest, Cliff Lee (the top Phillies pitcher) has not been willing to forgo the extra day of rest and will only be pitching twice in the World Series. Pundits have questioned whether this has to do with Lee's mettle, or whether he is being practical about his body's need to recuperate in order for him to pitch effectively.

The questions about the readiness for the big show have gone beyond each team's top pitcher. Tonight's game featured a rarity - both AJ Burnett and Lee were 1-0 in the series before game 5 started. Usually pitching matchups stay the same, but because Joe Girardi felt that only his top three starters (Sabathia, Burnett and Pettitte) were up to the task, he used Burnett on three day's rest as well. This move did not work out so well, as Burnett got pounded early.

Meanwhile a late breaking story came out about Cole Hamels, a Phillies pitcher who "could not wait to have the season end" and speculation abounded as to whether he would be used to start a game 7 given his attitude.

The speculation about whether the players could handle the big stage made me think about a shmooze I had heard from Rabbi Zev Cohen and the preparations athletes made for their one shot at the spotlight. Rabbi Cohen talked about how when he was in Virginia (I believe he said Berkley Springs) he was walking around the high school track and he heard a sound like a shot. The football team was practicing and the players would catch the ball and then get whacked with a chest protector to see if they could hold onto the ball.

Rabbi Cohen connected this with a mussar sefer which talked about being conscious of the day of death and preparing "tzedah l'derech." The twin concepts are not novel, but they are integral to mussar. One should be aware of his own mortality and treat each day like it may be his last so that he will be ready for judgment. In the same vein, taking tzedah l'derech meant would be doing the most possible mitzvos to take with him for olam haba.

L'havdil, these players are doing the same thing in being prepared for the moment. They are doing their best to be ready for the day that they will be on the stage. If we can harness the same type of energy and dedication as these players, who knows how many great things we could accomplish and how much of a kiddush hashem we could make.

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Sunday, November 1, 2009

Sunday Night Suds - Coopers Best Extra Stout


This week's Sunday Night Suds takes a decidedly international turn and looks at the Coopers Brewery Best Extra Stout.

I had purchased the Coopers Best Extra Stout about six months ago during my first post-Pesach beer run in Chicago, but had forgotten about the beers until a recent conversation with Lawrence Barker, the very knowledgeable GM at Le Marais. We had been talking beer and pairings and looking over the quite diverse beer list at (in my opinion) the finest kosher steak place in NYC when I noticed that the list included Coopers Pale Ale. We started to talk about this very underrated brewery and some of the finer beers that it offers (including the Extra Strong Vintage Ale which goes $24 for a four pack) when I remembered that I had this at home. It was at that point that I decided to review the Best Extra Stout for this week's post.

I am sure that some of you might be asking - how is this beer still good if its an Australian import which you purchased in April. Well, let me add to your confusion - this beer does not contain a manufacturing date or even a best before date - instead it bears a "best after" date of October 31, 2008. Why? Let me quote the explanation given by the folks at Coopers on their website:

Under Australia’s food laws, any product that lasts more than two years in the bottle does not require a best before date. The best after date was introduced to ensure that the minimum two weeks required for secondary fermentation has expired before the bottles are distributed for sale... Coopers Pale Ale, Mild Ale, Sparkling Ale, Dark Ale and Best Extra Stout are at their optimum upon leaving the Brewery but will still develop and mature, for in excess of twelve (12) months if stored in cool and dark conditions.

The Extra Stout poured a dark black almost cola like color (my son Moshe thought I was drinking soda) with an eighth of an inch tan head. Although this is billed as an extra stout it was quite drinkable and even Mrs Kosher Beers appreciated it, despite the fact that she is not a big fan of stouts.

No, you cannot chug this brew and it was a bit strong even for my wife's bison cholent. Still, if you are looking for a thick hearty beer to drink after a nice meal or even in between courses, this would be a good choice.

Coopers Best Extra Stout is under the kashruth supervision of Kosher Australia. For the experts take on the Best Extra Stout, please click here http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/491/2131 .

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver. Also, if you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

Finally, I would like to acknowledge a lead from Mottel who turned me on to the fact that New Belgium Brewing Company beers of Fort Collins, Colorado are under the kosher supervision of the Scroll-K of Colorado. I subsequently followed up with Rabbi Rosskamm who confirmed that many of the New Belgium brews (including the legendary Fat Tire) are under the Scroll-K. I hope to get a chance to sample some during my next trip to the Midwest (they are not available in the NY area to my knowledge). I have added them to the Semi-Annual Kosher Beer list (click here to see the updated list http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2009/09/kosher-beers-semi-annual-kosher-beers.html).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up.