Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayigash

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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 45:8, Yosef meets his brothers and he tells them not to be upset since Hashem sent me here to be the patron for Pharaoh and I am the master in Pharaoh's house and the ruler of the land of Egypt.

R' Frand noted that Yosef's statement is not technically correct. Yosef was not the ruler of Egypt, he was the second in command.

R' Frand further noted that when the brothers came back to Yaakov and told him that Yosef was alive, they did not tell Yaakov about all of Yosef's titles. Instead they just told Yaakov that Yosef was the ruler in Egypt.

R' Frand quoted the Chasam Sofer who answers both questions. The brothers told Yaakov that Yosef was alive and living in Egypt, but Yaakov was not interested in knowing anything about Yosef, other than that Yosef was still living as a Jew. By telling Yaakov that Yosef was the ruler in Egypt, they were telling Yaakov that Yosef was not a slave to Egypt, he was the master of it. This also answers the first question as to the technical incorrectness of Yosef's statement to the brothers that he ruled Egypt. Yosef was telling the brothers, I am not being controlled by Egyptian culture, I am above the culture and was not influenced by it.

R' Frand then said a vort from a dayan in Manchester who commented about the famous Rashi that Yaakov saw the wagons and thus knew Yosef was alive. The dayan told a story about a child of a couple who went to university and then moved to Alabama. The son called his family every Friday afternoon to wish them a good shabbos, but they knew nothing about his personal life in Alabama. One Friday afternoon, the parents said - we haven't seen you in a long time, we will come and visit you. The son responded - don't come, I will go and visit you. This gave the parents the impression that the son has something to hide. In this week's parsha, Yosef sends the wagons, as if to tell his father - come and see the life I have made for myself, I have nothing I need to keep from you. This invigorated Yaakov.

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Monday's Musings on Sports - Napoleon, Joseph and the NBA

Sunday marked the return of the National Basketball Association. To some, this was a matter of life and death, like the two high school freshmen who host the 1050 ESPN Radio midday show on weekdays who were deeply depressed at the prospect of no basketball for the year.

To others, the possibility of a season without professional basketball was not all that scary. Some pundits have professed that they would not miss the NBA, as college basketball offers all of the action and skill and without all the strutting and showboating.

[I must confess that other than the NCAA Tournament or when I am sitting in the car and need a sporting event to listen to, I have very little interest in basketball - professional or college. This was probably the result of growing up in a home where the big sports were hockey and baseball, but I digress...]

As a result of the lockout and the long delay before labor and management came to an agreement (which was virtually the same offer made by management many weeks earlier), this year's NBA season has been shortened to sixty six games. Most opinions that I have heard on sports radio programs have not lamented the loss of approximately 20% of the season. Instead, these sports jocks have opined that the NBA regular season games only start to matter after New Year's, since the first part of the season is like an extended training camp when players are still learning how to play with their new teammates.

Personally, I don't understand why the shortened season would eliminate this feeling out period. Drawing a parallel to the NFL season, many teams suffered at the beginning of the NFL season as players (especially rookies) lacked a training camp where they would learn the coaches' systems. Similarly, coaches suffered from not having a period to evaluate their players' strengths and draw up schemes to accommodate their talents.

The debate as to whether the lockout and the shortening of the season was a positive or negative made me think about a story about Napoleon that I heard in a R' Mansour shiur. When Napoleon conquered a certain region in Eastern Europe, the local dignitaries came out to greet him and sing his praises. After the program ended, Napoleon asked -- how come no Rabbi had come out to meet with him. The local politicians began to look for a Rabbi and found one in a small shul. They brought him to meet with Napoleon, who asked the Rabbi to address him. The Rabbi said - I am not a man of words, I only know the Torah. Napoleon said to him - I have had enough false flattery, please tell me words of the Torah. The Rabbi responded with a vort about Yosef and the butler.

The Rabbi said to Napoleon - after Yosef interpreted the butler's dream, he said to the butler - Ki im zechartani - because you will remember me, you will be returned to your position of power. The Rabbi then asked rhetorically - what was the connection between the interpretation of the dream (that the butler would be returned to his position of authority) and the statement that the butler will remember him?

The Rabbi explained that Yosef was telling the butler - you were rightfully imprisoned for serving Pharaoh a cup of wine with a fly in the cup. You are now getting a second chance, but it is because of me that you are being returned to the king's court. Your second chance at serving comes so that you may remember me and cause my release from prison.

The Rabbi said to Napoleon - why do you need Eastern Europe? This land is poor and lacks the natural resources and culture of Western Europe. It must be that the reason that you have conquered this region is because the Jews were being oppressed and could not freely worship Hashem. As such, you have been sent to liberate the Jews of this area so that they can freely worship.

And it was known that Napoleon was good towards the Jews and allowed them to live their lives without government interference.

As to whether the lockout shortened season will be good or bad for the quality of basketball being played or the NY teams, I cannot hope to predict. But everything happens for a reason and it is only at the end of this season or possibly two seasons down the road, that we will be able to see who ultimately benefited from the lockout shortened season.

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Sunday Night Suds - Blue Moon Spiced Amber Ale

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Blue Moon's Spiced Amber Ale.

When I was in my early twenties, Snapple came out with an iced tea called Snapple Apple Pie. It was spiced with cinnamon and tasted like a cross between iced tea and apple pie. I recall driving around the South Shore of Long Island looking for convenience stores which carried it, before finding a store in Island Park which had a cooler with a dozen or so bottles in it (yes, I bought them all).

So what does Snapple have to do with beer? Not very much, but my first sniff of the Blue Moon Spiced Amber Ale brought flashbacks of the Snapple Apple Pie. The beer has a sharp cinnamon aroma which carries through to the first sip. However, the brew is not overly sweet to the point that it loses its character as a beer.

American Amber beers can vary from hoppy to mild, but they generally have a good amount of malt and this beer is no exception. The malt mixes nicely with the hops and blends with the cinnamon to produce an excellent dessert type beer.

I would recommend this beer with apple pie, apple kugel muffins or maybe some vanilla ice cream. Mrs KB gives her thumbs up as well and feels that it rivals Saranac's Maple Porter as a dessert quality brew.

The only negative about this beer is that you can't buy it on its own. It is a limited edition winter release and comes packaged in a 12 pack which contains three Spiced Amber Ales, three Winter Moon (also quite delicious), three standard Blue Moon (can't go wrong with those) and three Pale Moon (I am not too fond of those).

Blue Moon Spiced Amber Ale is certified kosher by the Orthodox Union. For the experts take on the Spiced Amber Ale, please click here http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/306/75358.

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, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Sunday Night Suds - Lakefront Brewery Fuel Cafe Stout

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Lakefront Brewery's Fuel Cafe Stout.

A number of months ago, I was approached by a friend who was looking for a coffee flavored brew. At the time, I was unaware of the (yet unreleased) Samuel Adams Black & Brew, so I pointed Dan L. in the direction of the Lakefront Brewery Fuel Cafe Stout, which at the time was the only coffee flavored brew which I knew to be under kosher supervision. While Dan L. was unable to find the Fuel Cafe Stout, I noticed it on the shelf at Beverage Barn in Garden City Park and I picked up some up for a refresher course in this coffee flavored brew.

The Fuel Cafe Stout poured a deep black color, to the point that one is unable to see anything through the brew. There was some tan lacing after the pour which was mostly dissolved within ten minutes of pouring in the glass.

Although the color of the beer is dark, the beer itself is light for a stout. I did not notice much body in the brew and the one note is the heavy coffee flavor which hits you the moment that you bring the glass to your face. Although the beer claims to be close to 6% abv, its alcohol flavor is more akin to a light beer.

If you are looking for iced coffee served in a six pack holder, this brew is for you. However, if you are looking for a traditional stout with a little coffee flavoring, you would be better served with the Samuel Adams Black and Brew or even just drinking a Guinness (which Mrs KB thinks tastes like coffee anyway).

Lakefront Brewery Fuel Cafe Stout is under the kosher supervision of the Star-K (there is even a Star-K on the label).

For the experts' take on the Fuel Cafe Stout please click here http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/741/2870. 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, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayeshev

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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.

Rabbi Frand quoted a Rokeach who explains that Parshas Vayeshev has 112 pesukim and Tehillim chapter 92 which we say on Shabbos morning and Friday Night (Mizmor Shir L'Yom HaShabbas) has 112 words. Rabbi Frand asked - what is the connection?

Rabbi Frand began his answer by quoting a Ramban on Vayehsev 37:15 which states that Yosef was looking for his brothers and was "found" by a man in the field. The meforshim teach that this was an angel. The Ramban states that when Yosef got to Shechem and could not find his brothers, he could have returned and said to his father - I looked and I could not find them. However, the Ramban writes that the gezera of Hashem will happen and all the efforts of man will be meaningless. [R' Frand then used the Yiddish expression - man thinks and G-d laughs]. The Ramban explained that while logically Yosef should have gone back, Hashem wanted this to happen and this why the word "ish" appears three times, because Hashem used three malachim to make sure that Yosef would meet the brothers - this was Hashem's plan.

R' Frand then used a l'havdil analogy to a puppet show. Hashem is the puppeteer and Yosef, Yaakov and the brothers are the puppets.

In this week's parsha, Yaakov makes the cardinal parental mistake of treating his children differently. Yaakov gave Yosef the multicolored coat and the brothers became insanely jealous. How can Yaakov make this mistake? The brothers also make a mistake as they think that Yosef wants to kill them. How could they be so far off the mark? Yosef also makes a mistake as he wrongfully suspects his brothers of eating from live animals. How?

How did all this happen - Hashem has his plan and these seemingly irrational things can happen so that the plan can be put into effect.

The Torah also writes at Vayeshev 37:14 that Yosef was sent from the valley of Hevron. Rashi notes that Hevron is on a mountain, not in a valley. He explains that this is a code for the one who is buried in Hevron - Avraham who had the vision that the Jews would be in galus - the Jews needed to go down to Egypt.

The questions continue with Yosef living in Egypt. Yosef manages at the age of seventeen to withstand the enticement of the wife of Potiphar. What is Yosef's reward? He winds up in jail for twelve years. One who views the story asks - why did this happen? The answer is that if one sees the whole story, he is aware that Yosef needs to meet the servants in prison so that he can rise to assist Pharaoh in interpreting his dreams. The story needs to be seen completely to understand it.

This is the connection to Tehillim 92. Adam HaRishon was shown the entire world - 6,000 years of history and how everything fits in. So in writing Tehillim 92, Adam writes that the fool will not understand this - how the wicked prosper and are successful while the righteous suffer. The answer is that I see it all. Mizmor Shir L'Yom HaShabbas has the same theme as Parshas Vayesehev - things need to be seen from the outside to understand the whole picture. The message of Tehillim 92 - is me'od amku machsivosecha - how deep are Your thoughts.

R' Schwab in writing on Job, a story of Tzadik v'ra lo, explains that to understand, one must take the long view of history, because if one takes the short look they will not understand it.

This is how Tehillim 92 ends - there will be old people who will have all their faculties and will be vigorous and vital in their old age. If a person lives long enough they can say - now I understand why this happened.

R' Schwab writes - imagine if a person died in the middle of the Yosef story and did not see the end. A person needs to see the end of the story to realize that Hashem is just and that things do all work out for the best.

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Sunday Night Suds - Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock.

The Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock is a sophomore offering from the Boston Beer company. The Chocolate Bock was first introduced by Samuel Adams last winter and it has been included again in this year's Winter Classics box. Similar to last year's version, this season's Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock is kosher DAIRY (chalav stam).

Some beer styles have names that make one think that there might be dairy in the brew process. By way of example, there are cream ales, which BA explains were "spawned from the American light lager style, are brewed as an ale though are sometimes finished with a lager yeast or lager beer mixed in. Adjuncts such as corn or rice are used to lighten the body. It is no uncommon for smaller craft brewers to brew all malt Cream Ales. Pale straw to pale gold color. Low hop bittering and some hop aroma though some micros have given the style more of a hop character. Well carbonated and well attenuated."

Then there are milk or sweet stouts which BA defines as "stouts that have a larger amount of residual dextrins and unfermented sugars that give the brew more body and a sweetness that counters the roasted character. Milk Stouts are very similar to Sweet Stouts, but brewers add unfermentable sugars, usually lactose, to the brew kettle to add body and some sweetness."

The Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock is not one of the above beer styles which can typically contain dairy. I am unaware of what specifically was added to the brew which makes the beer dairy, but the Star-K has confirmed to me by e-mail that the Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock is dairy and that the Star-K will not be including the Chocolate Bock on their LOC.

So once I became aware that the Chocolate Bock was dairy, I needed to wait until I had a proper dairy meal to share the brew with. You can't pair a bock with pasta or eggs or cereal, so I saved the brew for a night that Mrs KB was making tilapia. While I can't say that the Chocolate Bock melded with the fish, it was quite tasty. The beer was silky smooth and the chocolate flavor was very pronounced. To quote Mrs KB, this is one of those beers that can be served over ice cream. I wished that I could serve this after dinner on Friday night to friends, but alas it cannot follow a meat dinner.

The Star-K has indicated that the Chocolate Bock is kosher dairy, but there is no Star-K on the label and it does not appear on the LOC.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about the Chocolate Bock, please follow this link - http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35/14309.

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, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayishlach

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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 this week's parsha there is a discussion in Bereishis 32:25-33 of the story of Yaakov's battle with the angel of Esav. The Torah relates that Yaakov and the angel fought all night, until the angel struck Yaakov in the thigh and that as a result Jews may not eat the gid hanasheh.

R' Frand related that there are many perushim on the story and there is much symbolism found in the events. Having said that, R' Frand stated that he recently saw an explanation of the story that he had never seen before.

R' Frand quoted the Chizkuni who explained that the punishment of not eating the gid hanasheh is a punishment that applies until today (as Jews cannot eat the prime cuts of meat such as the porterhouse or sirloin). The Chizkuni explains that it is only right that we cannot eat the gid hanesheh because Yaakov's sons allowed him to go unattended, even though they were strong boys. Because the sons did not provide an accompaniment to their father, they are prohibited from eating the gid hanasheh.

R' Frand said that similar statements are also made by the Rosh and the Sefer Chasidim.

R' Frand then quoted a sefer called the Shabbas U'Moadim which provides a deeper understanding of the events involving Yaakov and the angel. He notes that Yaakov went back alone to retrieve the pachim k'tanim and was struck by the angel. He quoted the Drashas HaRan who explained that the reason that Yaakov was struck by the angel now was because the angel wanted to reclaim the bechora at this juncture. Why now?

The Derashas HaRan answers the question by first referring back to the story of the day that Yaakov bought the bechora. Avraham had died and Yaakov prepared a meal for his father who was mourning for Avraham. Where was Esav at this time? He was out in the field and was not distressed by his father Yitzchak's mourning. Esav then came in from the field and saw that Yitzchak was in mourning. However, Esav did not sit down and console his father. Instead, Esav demanded food.

When Yaakov saw Esav acting this way he said to Esav - you are the bechor? The bechor should be acting like the father. You see that your father is in mourning, yet you are thoroughly unmoved? You are not like your father, so sell me the bechora!
You have not showed your father any respect and have neglected him. I can show proper respect and will be like my father, so sell the bechora to me.

Now in parshas Vayishlach, the angel says to Yaakov - you may have respected your father, but you have not passed this on to your kids. Look! Your children have neglected and abandoned you! Your rationale that you should have the bechora was because Esav was not like Yitzchak and showed no respect - your kids are not respecting you, so I should be able to reclaim the bechora for Esav.

This manifested in a shot to the thigh. The gemara calls descendants - yotzei yereicho - those that come from the thigh. They are also called the supporters of the father - like the thigh supports the person. The Jews are punished that they cannot eat the gid hanasheh, because we must pay the price for failing to properly support and respect Yaakov.

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Belated Monday Musings on Sports - Santo and Saying Thank You

[Its been more years than I can count since Mrs KB and I went to a hockey game. As we were treated to tix to last night's Rangers Maple Leaf game, I was unable to post a Monday Musings on Sports post last evening. Rather than leaving the week without Sports+Torah, I have posted this evening instead.]

This morning, news broke that former Chicago Cubs 3B Ron Santo had been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The news was truly bittersweet, as Chicago area baseball fans had been advocating Santo for the Hall of Fame from the moment that he became eligible. During his career with the Cubs, Santo was selected to the All Star Team nine time and won five gold gloves. After Santo retired from baseball, he continued his service to the Cubs and to endear himself to Cubs fans by joining the broadcast team as WGN's color commentator.

Despite Santo's accomplishments, he was not elected to the Hall of Fame during his initial period of eligibility. Thereafter he was "eligible" to be voted in by the Veterans Committee, but he also failed to gain the necessary percentage of votes required for entry to the Hall. Although Santo was finally selected to the Hall of Fame today, the ceremony will be held without him as he passed away last December.

While driving to work this morning, I heard a piece on the Mike & Mike in the Morning Show on 1050 ESPN Radio in which they discussed the posthumous induction. Greenberg recollected his time working as a journalist in Chicago and how beloved Santo was by the fans. He also talked about how year after year, the media would descend on Santo for comment as to what he felt about the present year's Hall of Fame voting and his prospects for election in the following year.

Golic on the other hand ranted about why players take 10-15 years to get voted into the Hall. His position was - if the player is deserved of induction, he should be voted into the Hall in his first couple of years of eligibility. After all mused Golic, what about his statistics or accomplishments changed over the next ten years which would make the player now worthy of admission to the Hall?

The question of posthumous honors and the proper way to say thanks made me think about a vort that I heard on a R' Mansour shiur that I downloaded from www.learntorah.com. In last week's parsha, Leah names her fourth child Yehuda as now she can thank Hashem. The gemara states that Leah's action was the first time in Chumash that someone had shown thanks to Hashem. However, the gemara requires explanation as it is inconceivable that others did not thank Hashem. By example, Avraham & Sarah certainly must have thanked Hashem after being blessed with a son at advanced age.

R' Mansour answered the question on the gemara by quoting a vort from R' Paam ztl. R' Paam explained that thanks can be fleeting and easily forgotten, even if the gift or act was meaningful when received. Leah did not want to forget that Hashem had blessed her by giving her a fourth son which was more than a proportional 1/4 share of the 12 tribes of Israel. In order to remember this, Leah named her son Yehuda, so that every time she called or referred to him, the boy's very name would remind her of how thankful she was to Hashem.

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Sunday Night Suds - Saranac Chocolate Lager

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at the newest Saranac brew - Saranac's Chocolate Lager.

To my knowledge, the Saranac Chocolate Lager is the first new beer introduced by Saranac in about two years. The Chocolate Lager has been included in the beers of winter box which also includes the superior Big Moose Ale and Lake Effect Lager, along with the India Copper Ale, Bohemian Plisner and Vanilla Stout.

Not to be confused with a prior Saranac offering called Saranac Chocolate Amber Lager (reviewed here http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2008/06/sunday-night-suds-saranac-chocolate.html) the new Chocolate Lager is more of a bock then a lager. The beer pours a rich copper color with a fair amount of foam which disappears soon into the brew. The first smell of the brew was actually reminiscent of a macrolager, but that soon dissipated as well. When I tried my first sip I was struck by the chocolate flavor additive, but it was not overpowering and rendered the beer quite drinkable. Perhaps this is because they (according to the Saranac website) added cacao nibs, rather than pure chocolate flavoring.

Because the Saranac Chocolate Lager is more of a bock than a lager, the alcohol content is a little higher than one would expect (6% abv). Having said that, the alcohol flavor is not noticeable.

Saranac Chocolate Lager 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 Chocolate Lager, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/75739.

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).

Finally, if you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayeitzei

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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.

This week's parsha begins with a summary of Yaakov's travels. The Torah recounts that Yaakov left Be'er Sheva and went to Charan. However, not long after Yaakov gets to Charan, he turns around and travels back to Yerushalayim. The Medrash explains that Hashem did a chessed for Yaakov and folded up the land so that he could expeditiously return from Charan to Yerushalayim.

R' Frand quoted the sefer Machat Shel Yad (R' Frankel) which asks - why did Yaakov get all the way to Charan before he remembered that he had passed Yerushalayim without davening there? The distance between Beer Sheva and Yerushalayim is quite short, whereas the distance from Yerushalayim to Charan is many hundreds of miles. Why did he wait until he got to Charan before he suddenly remembered he had passed Yerushalayim.

Before answering the question, R' Frand quoted R' Kaminetsky to further expand on the vort. We know that after Yaakov left Beer Sheva he did not go straight to Charan. Instead, Yaakov spent 14 years learning in Yeshivas Shem V'Ever. But why did Yaakov need to go learn there? He had spent 15 years learning by Avraham and then another 45 years learning from Yitzchak. What was he missing in his education that he needed to learn at the Yeshiva Shem V'Ever?

R' Kaminetsky answered that there was something that Yaakov needed to learn in the yeshiva. Shem was a product of the Dor Hamabul while Ever was a product of the Dor Haflaga. Despite their toxic surroundings, Shem and Ever were able to stay true to their learning.

When Yaakov was learning by Avraham and Yitzchak, he was learning in a pristine environment. The Beis Medrash and the people there were not distractions and Yaakov was able to learn without distraction.

However, Yaakov was aware that the land of Charan was anything but stable and pleasant. Therefore, Yaakov wanted to learn in the Yeshiva of Shem V'Ever so that he could withstand the populace in Charan.

R' Frand then quoted a Rashi on next week's parsha which discussed the Torah taught by Yaakov to Yosef. Rashi explains that the Ben Zekunim present was the Torah that Yaakov learned in Yeshiva Shem V'Ever. Yaakov knew through ruach HaKodesh that Yosef would be in a dangerous environment. Yaakov did not know the details, but he was concerned, so he taught Yosef what he learned in the Yeshiva.

But returning to the original question - why did Yaakov go back to Yerushalayim. R' Frand answered by giving a mashal about a man who lives in the sticks and wants to visit NY City. The man studies and prepares for the trip, but when he gets off in Times Square he is assaulted by all the noise and lights and bustle.

When Yaakov got to Charan he was overwhelmed. He had learned in the Yeshiva, but was still very concerned that he would be unable to resist the insanity of Charan. At that point, Yaakov said to himself - I need more than Shem V'Ever. I need the tefillos where my fathers davened. It was for this reason that he went back to Yerushalayim.

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Monday's Musings on Sports - How to Avoid Shooting Yourself in the Foot

In the fall of 2008 I wrote at least two posts which were critical of Plaxico Burress for his personal conduct which led to his arrest and ultimately his two year prison sentence. After serving his time in prison, Burress rejoined the NFL and currently plays for the New York Jets. Two stories from this weekend's NFL games demonstrate how far he has come.

In Thursday's second NFL game, the Detroit Lions took on the Green Bay Packers. During the game, Lions' Defensive Lineman Ndamukong Suh, pushed a Packer player's head into the turf, before attempting to stomp on him. Suh's infraction was caught by the referee and he was ejected from the game. After the game, Suh attempted to apologize to the fans, but did not seem contrite about his actions. [He has since been suspended for two games by the NFL].

Suh has not been a player above controversy. In his short time in the league, the former 2nd pick overall has earned a reputation as a dirty player. After being fined numerous times by the league, Suh asked for and received a meeting with the league president earlier this year so that he could learn the proper way to conduct himself. Evidently, he did not learn very well and now he faces the prospect of missing important games during his team's playoff drive.

Another interesting event occurred during the NY Jets - Buffalo Bills game on Sunday. After scoring a touchdown, Stevie Johnson pretended to shoot himself in the leg, before mimicking the Jets touchdown celebration and diving to the ground. Johnson earned himself a 15 yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, which (when added to a poor kickoff), gave the Jets a short field and resulted in the Jets scoring a touchdown.

[Johnson's misdeeds in blaming G-d for his inability to catch a potential game winning pass were highlighted in this post last year - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2010/12/mondays-musings-on-sports-little-stevie.html].

After the game, Burress was interviewed and asked whether he had any reaction to Johnson's attempt to make fun of Burress' self shooting which led to his incarceration. Burress responded that the "old Plaxico" would have met Johnson in the parking lot after the game, buyt he was not like that anymore.

The gemara in Shabbos (105b) teaches that one who become angry is akin to worshipping idols. The reason given for this comparison is that one who becomes angry is challenging or expressing displeasure for Hashem's decision that things should turn the way that they did. Through Suh's unchecked anger, he has hurt his team and himself and has earned the ire of the league and the fans. In contrast, Burress' maturity which came at the expense of his freedom has allowed him to accept the events as they happen and earned him respect of the fans.

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Sunday Night Suds - Samuel Adams Black and Brew

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Samuel Adams Black and Brew Coffee Stout.

Every year, breweries use their winter boxes as a means to introduce beers which they have deemed experimental. Occasionally, breweries will use the winter mix boxes to gauge the public's interest in possibly having one of these new beers become a regular member of the breweries lineup.

This year, Samuel Adams mixed together some of their most loved winter classics including Old Fezziwig and Holiday Porter along with its trademark Boston Lager and the underrated Winter Lager. To this predictable mix, Samuel Adams added last year's newcomer - Chocolate Bock and this year's experimental beer - Black and Brew Coffee Stout.

[Ed. Note - Last year the CRC published on their website that the Chocolate Bock was kosher dairy - chalav stam. The Star-K did not include the Chocolate Bock on last year's LOC, but they did verify in an email that the 2010 Chocolate Bock was kosher and was in fact dairy. This years Star-K LOC does not list the Chocolate Bock as certified kosher. I have e-mailed the Star-K and am waiting to hear back from them. Obviously, once the issue has been clarified, I will post the resullts here].

Much like its name (aka k'shmo kein hu) the Black and Brew is a stout which has been infused with coffee. The resulting beer is not as heavy as Guinness, but the added coffee flavor is noticeable. In the past I have tried beer with coffee additive, specifically the Lakefront Fuel Cafe Stout and have not been impressed. However, the Samuel Adams Black and Brew has balanced the beer so that the coffee does not clash with the hops. The result is a beer that went exceptionally well with our turkey dinner. Here's to hoping that the Sam Adams people will someday give this beer its own run in six packs.

Samuel Adams Black and Brew is under the Kosher Supervision of the Star-K. Like many other Samuel Adams brews, this bottle does not have the Star-K certification mark on the label. The kashruth can be confirmed by clicking on the link to the Star-K LOC here -- http://www.star-k.org/loc/kosher_letter_6635_bostonbeercompany.pdf.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about the Black and Brew, please follow this link - http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35/74390.

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, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Toldos

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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.

R' Frand began by quoting a gemara in Makkos 24 which states that Yaakov was reluctant to trick his father in order to get the bechora. R Frand then made reference to a gemara in Sanhedrin which states that lying is akin to idol worship. So why did Yaakov do this? Rashi in Makkos states that Rivka told Yaakov that Hashem told me that you must do this. This was the reason that Yaakov did it.

This begs the question (as asked by R' Yaakov Kaminetsky) - since Hashem wanted Yaakov to get the berachos, couldn't He have found another way for Yaakov to get the brachos, short of lying? Yaakov had the middah of truth, surely there must have been a way for him to get the bechora without challenging his nature.

R' Kaminetsky explained that each of the avos symbolized a different middah. Avraham was chessed - he looked at Hashem and saw that the world reflected Hashem and he brought people to recognize G-d by emulating the chessed he saw. But Avraham's tests were opposed to the middah - he was told to leave his father. He was required to send away Hagar and Yishmael. At the top of the pyramid was being told to slaughter Yitzchak. After spending a lifetime doing chessed, he was told to sacrifice his son. This is why it was a test - Hashem was saying - if you want to prove your devotion, then go against your nature and leave your father, send away Hagar and sacrifice your son. If you do these acts, I will know you are doing them because you are devoted to Hashem.

Yaakov saw a similar type of test. Yaakov's midda was emes - truth. Hashem said to Yaakov, I want to see if you are devoted, so I will test you by challenging you to go against your natural inclination of emes.

R' Kaminetsky asked - what is Yitzchak's test? It can't be the akeidah because his midda was gevura and he used gevura to follow his father to the akeidah! Rather the source can be seen in a gemara in Shabbos 89b, where R' Shmuel Bar Nachmeni states that in the future Hashem will come to the Avraham and say - your sons sinned and Avraham will respond - punish them. Hashem will come to Yaakov and he will react similarly. But when Hashem comes to Yitzchak and says your sons sinned, Yitzchak responds - are they only my sons and not Yours? When they said na'aseh v'nishma you called them Your sons - now they are only mine?

The gemara then goes into an analysis of people's lifetime wherein it gets parsed down to only 12 years that a person could have sinned. Yitzchak says to Hashem - I will split them with You - You take 6 and I will take the other 6 years.

R' Kaminetsky explains that this is Yitczhak's test. He is forced to against his midda of din and save the Jews. Although his natural inclination is justice, when the Jews need it, Yitzchak will go against his nature and save the Jews.

R' Frand closed by saying that all of us have our nisayon, our own akeidah. Our souls according to the Gaon have gone through a gilgal process and we have returned to fix the errors of the past. How do we know what we should be fixing? What we find difficult is the prior error and this is what we must work on. Be it a problem with anger or freely spending on tzedakah. Now that a person is here a second time, he should review his deeds and see where he stumbles - this must be what is needed to pass our nisayoin, our akeidah.

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Sunday Night Suds - Lake Placid Hefeweizen

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Lake Placid's Hefeweizen.

I know that summer is long gone, but sometimes I get a craving for a summer type beer. So looking at my beer shelves before shabbos, I eyed the Lake Placid Hefeweizen that I had bought during the summer at Beverage World in Peekskill. I put the Lake Placid in the fridge with the intention of having it shabbos afternoon and then promptly forgot about it. Midway through shabbos, Mrs KB reminded me that we were invited out for a birthday party by a friend who likes good beer, so I mixed a sixer of the better beers from my refrigerator and brought them over to P&P.

Which brings me to this evening when I sat down to review the Lake Placid Hefeweizen, only to discover that I had given away the brew I had intended to sample over shabbos or this evening. After triple checking the fridge, I remembered that I had given the beer away, but I did not panic because Hefeweizen are equally good cold or room temperature (no I am NOT British).

As an intro to Hefeweizen, I present the style definition at BA, which explains that it is:

A south German style of wheat beer (weissbier) made with a typical ratio of 50:50, or even higher, wheat. A yeast that produces a unique phenolic flavors of banana and cloves with an often dry and tart edge, some spiciness, bubblegum or notes of apples. Little hop bitterness, and a moderate level of alcohol. The "Hefe" prefix means "with yeast", hence the beers unfiltered and cloudy appearance. Poured into a traditional Weizen glass...

Often served with a lemon wedge (popularized by Americans), to either cut the wheat or yeast edge, which many either find to be a flavorful snap ... or an insult and something that damages the beer's taste and head retention.

The good folks at Lake Placid (OK, the Saranac people, since all the 12 oz bottles of Lake Placid beers are brewed at the Matt plant in Utica) have kept a firm hold on the traditional Hefeweizen style. The beer has an instant snap of banana/clove which lasts through every sip. Unlike some other "doctored" Hefeweizen brews, the Lake Placid version is not overwhelmingly spicy and holds its dryness well - perhaps another reason why it can be consumed equally well when served at room temperature.

Lake Placid Hefeweizen is under the kashruth supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit and bears a kosher certification on the bottle. For the experts' take on Lake Placid Hefeweizen, please click here http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/1888/11786.

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, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Chaye Sarah

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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.

This week's parsha discusses the first burial in the Torah. Although we know that Adam and Chava are buried in Ma'aras HaMachpeila, this week's parsha is the first time that the concept of burial is discussed.

R' Frand asked a question - why do we show respect for the body after death? The body is only holy while the person is alive, when the body possesses a neshama. After the person dies, the body is an empty vessel - so why do we care about the niftar? However, the halacha requires that the deceased be treated respectfully.

R' Frand quoted a sefer called Machat Shel Yad which answered the question by drawing a distinction between tashmishei kedusha and tashmishei mitzva. Tashmishei kedusha are items which have holiness due to their proximity or use in conjunction with holiness. These are items like the mantel on the sefer torah or the boxes of the tefillin.

On the other hand there are tashmishei mitzva such as a lulav or esrog or tzizis. These items are used to accomplish a mitzva, but do not retain holiness. We may have minhagim to destroy them in conjunction with another mitzva (such as using the lulav to burn the chametz) but there is no obligation to destroy them respectfully.

What is the difference between these two items? Since the tashmishei kedusha were used in conjunction with Torah, they are forever imbued with Torah, even after they are no longer being used to support Torah. In contrast, the esrog was only used to accomplish a mitzva and when the mitzva is done, it can be disposed.

The body of a Jew has the same holiness. At one point it was used to speak words of Torah and say words of praise to Hashem. Although the soul has left the body, the body still has holiness because it was previously used for Torah.

R' Frand then connected this concept with a gemara in Sotah which asks - why are women zoche to reward? The gemara answers - because they assisted their husbands to learn Torah and brought their children to yeshiva to learn.

The Chafetz Chaim asks on this gemara - don't women have merits on their own? Women give tzedakah, and daven and do many other mitzvos - why is their reward only from the acts in support of their husband or children?

The Chafetz Chaim answers that the gemara is not talking about olam haba. Women will absolutely merit olam haba based on their own actions. However, the gemara was talking about Techiyas Hameisim. In order to merit Techias Hameisim one needs Torah. Lulav and esrog will get a person to olam haba, but to get to Techias Hameisim one needs Torah.

With this insight we can ask - what is the gemara's question? The gemara is really asking how can women get olam haba if they don't sit and learn. The gemara answers that the women get olam haba because they are enablers of Torah and as such they should receive a greater reward. R' Frand remarked that the men learning Torah and the kids in school are enjoying, but there is no enjoyment in driving car pool or staying up late to wait for the husband to come home from learning. The reward for their actions is derivative of the Torah learned by their husbands and children and as such they merit olam haba by being a supporter of Torah.

And if you have ever met my aishes chayil, you will know what a true selfless enabler of Torah is. Or in the words of R' Akiva - what is mine and what is yours, is truly because of her...

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Monday's Musings on Sports - What Happens When No One Keeps Their End of the Deal?

Well before I met Mrs KB, I was a big fan of Mike Ditka. When he was a coach of the Chicago Bears he always seemed to give great quotes and his image as a coach was larger than life. Once Ditka retired from coaching (the first time) he began to dabble in broadcasting and thus had a greater venue for airing his unique views on sports and life. After making the mistake of returning to coach the Saints in 2001-2003, Ditka retired from coaching for good and became a network fixture and earned the nickname "America's Coach."

One of Ditka's regular weekly appearances is on the Mike & Mike in the morning program on Monday mornings. The hosts have joked on more than one occasion that on Mondays the show should be renamed the Mike & Mike & Mike in the morning show. During the Monday morning spot, Ditka usually comments on the previous day's NFL games and opines as to the outcome of the Monday Night game.

During this week's morning spot, Ditka was asked about the Eagles' benching of WR DeSean Jackson. For those unaware of the story - the thirty second version is that Jackson missed a team meeting, so the team left him off the active roster in their game against the Arizona Cardinals. While the game was expected to be a cakewalk for the Eagles, they wound up losing the game to the Cardinals. Adding injury to insult, they lost other WRs for part of the game and really could have used Jackson.

Ditka speculated as to the real reason that Jackson was suspended. He mentioned that Jackson was unhappy with his contract and that Jackson may have been vocal or disruptive in an attempt to force the Eagles to renegotiate or extend his deal. After giving this opinion, Ditka explained that when he played football (Ditka was also a HOF Tight End in the 1960s), players had one year contracts and if they performed well the contract was renewed. Ditka opined that if someone signs a contract they should honor the contract. To quote Ditka "Once the contract ends, you can go in there with guns in both hands and hold them up for a better deal...but when you are under contract you need to honor the deal."

My problem with Ditka's take on the scenario is that the owners often times do not honor the contracts. Unlike many other sports, most NFL player deals are not guaranteed. As such, often times a team will cut a player before the contract expires so that they can save the team from having to pay a bonus or a few years of contract on a player who has seen better days.

The fact that an owner can terminate a player at will while the player is vilified and punished for holding out or "faking" an injury is an interesting study. I have heard countless commentators pontificate about why most fans sympathize with the NBA owners and feel that players are greedy. I have no answer as to why fans favor the NBA owners, (although this may be due to the fact that personally I would not really care if the season was cancelled).

The owner vs worker scenario plays out in a story in a parsha we will read in a few weeks. Yaakov wants to marry Rachel and asks Lavan to permit the marriage. Lavan agrees and Yaakov works for seven years, but Lavan backs out on the deal and gives him Leah instead. Yaakov is then forced to work another seven years for the right to marry Rachel. However, Yaakov is not left defenseless in his battle with Lavan. As part of their deal, Lavan agrees that Yaakov would have the right to all spotted sheep, while the pure unblemished sheep would go to Lavan. Yaakov manipulates the scenario with the tools available to him by placing spotted sticks in front of the sheep while they drink so as to influence them to give birth to spotted sheep. Once Lavan sees that the spotted sheep population has increased, he reverses the deal, but Yaakov then withholds the spotted sticks and the sheep only have pure unblemished sheep. Each side attempts to work the leverage they have available to them and everyone (or no one) is truly happy with the result.

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Sunday Night Suds - Leinenkugel Red

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Leinenkugel Red Lager - one of the four beers in their Autumn Sampler Pack.

I am generally leery of beers which are named after colors. This is largely an outgrowth of a bad experience with Laker Red (reviewed here http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2008/08/sunday-night-suds-laker-red.html) another beer which was simply named "Red." I initially thought the Laker Red was "OK" is served coled enough, but I soon learned that even when cold, it was less than passable fare.

The Leinenkugel label states that the the Red Lager is a Vienna style lager. The Leinenkugel website indicates that the Red Lager won awards in 1998 and 2002 in the Vienna Style Lager category. Having only reviewed a Vienna style lager once before (excellent Saranac Winter Lager - reviewed here http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2010/02/sunday-night-suds-saranac-winter-lager.html) I thought it appropriate to once again define the style. As explained by the folks at BA:

Named after the city in which it orginated, a traditional Vienna lager is brewed using a three step decoction boiling process. Munich, Pilsner, Vienna toasted and dextrin malts are used, as well wheat in some cases. Subtle hops, crisp, with residual sweetness.

Although German in origin and rare these days, some classic examples come from Mexico, such as: Dos Equis and Negra Modelo. A result of late 19th century immigrant brewers from Austria.

The Red Lager was an easy drinking beer, with very little foam on the pour and a minimal amount of carbonation. There is some caramel in the first part of the sip, but the flavor is light and almost watery. I tried the Red Lager tonight with wings and it was not really up to the challenge. I would recommend this beer to those who are looking for something a small step up from a macrolager, but not too heavy on taste.

Leinenkugel Red Lager is certified kosher by the Orthodox Union, although the product currently in the marketplace does not yet have an OU on the label. If you would like a copy of the LOC please contact me via email.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Leinenkugel Red Lager, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/710/2355.

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, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayera

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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 this week's parsha mentions that when Hashem appeared to Avraham (through the angels) he was sitting in Elonei Mamrei. Rashi asks - why is the city named after Mamrei? Rashi answers - because Mamrei gave Avraham advice to go forward with the bris milah.

R' Eliyahu Mirzachi asks - Hashem told Avraham to get a bris milah, why would Avraham need to check this with Mamrei?

R' Frand brought two answers to the question - both from the Maharal. The first answer of the Maharal is that Avraham consulted with Mamrei so that people will not say that Avraham made a rash decision. By so doing, Avraham showed that he thought this out and made a calculated decision to go forward with the bris. The Maharal says that this can also be seen in that it took Avraham three days to get to Har Hamoriah for the akeidah. By taking his time to get there, Avraham showed that the akeidah was not a rash decision and that he had deliberated over the three days that it took to get there.

The second answer of the Maharal is that friends consult with one another before they act. If a person decides that he is going to move, its only right that he goes to his friends and let them know what he is doing, so that they don't find out through others. This is the way that friends act. Thus Avraham consulted with Mamrei.

R' Frand then quoted R' Ya'akov Kaminetsky who explains that when Avraham got the command to do a bris milah, he was concerned. Why? R' Kaminestsky explained by quoting a gemara in Sanhedrin which describes a conversation that the satan had with Avraham when Avraham was going to the akeidah. The satan says to Avraham - how can you do this - you will destroy your life's work and drive off all those that you drew close by bringing your son as a sacrifice. Avraham responded to the satan - you have a good question, but I will follow Hashem.

R' Kaminetsky said that the same concept applied by the bris milah. Avraham had no doubt about the bris. However, Avraham was concerned that those who were observing would say that the bris was a cruel act or commandment from Hashem. Avraham thought to himself - maybe I should do this privately so that people will not be aware and question. Therefore, Avraham went to Mamrei to ask how he should do the bris. Mamrei answered - this is Hashem who saved you from the fiery furnace - don't ask, just do the bris.

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Monday's Musings on Sports - Discipline, Messier and Shoelaces

This morning I did something that I normally do not do. As regular readers of this blog know, I am a big fan on Mike & Mike in the morning and my radio is usually locked into ESPN radio most mornings so that I can catch the show on my way to work.

This morning, I was sitting at a traffic light about five minutes before the hour and the ESPN guys made it sound like they were going to commercials and the next guest would be after the hour's update. So I switched my radio to WFAN (660) a station which I usually avoid in the morning as the Boomer and Carton show is usually too off color for my tastes.

Upon switching to 660 I heard the tail end of an interview with former NY Rangers captain Mark Messier. The fifty year old former hockey player was being interviewed about the NYC marathon which he had run on Sunday. The interviewer drew out information including that Messier had to be treated at the medical tent after the marathon and the details of the treatment.

What really caught my interest was a series of questions about Messier's attendance at the Ranger game on Sunday night. One of the hosts asked Messier why he was wearing a suit and tie at the Ranger game just a few hours after he had completed the marathon. Messier responded at first with one word - discipline. He quickly followed this with the explanation that the Rangers require all staff attending the game to wear a suit and tie and that although he was sore from the run, he wanted to follow the team's dress code for employees.

Listening to this interview, I could easily picture Messier giving these answers. With his shaved head and intimidating glare, Messier always gave the image of being determined and singularly focused on his goal. Although he has been retired for seven years, he does not sound any less determined or focused. If the Rangers require a staff member to be dressed in a certain manner while at the Garden, the rule needs to be followed.

Messier's response made me think about a halacha that we learn from last week's parsha and a story told by R' Frand. After Avraham assists the four kings in defeating the five kings, he is offered a share of the plunder, but declines. In so doing, Avraham states that he will not even take a shoelace from the spoils of war. From this we derive the halacha that when putting on shoes we are to tie our left shoelace before our right shoelace.

R' Frand told a story last week about a boy whose father took him out of day school because of the shoelace rule. The boy's father had been in a rush and wanted to leave, but the boy insisted that he first needed to retie his shoes. The father asked why and the boy said that he had learned in day school that shoes must be tied left and then right. The father was incensed and pulled the boy out of Jewish day school.

Years later, the boy had grown up and was engaged to marry a non-Jewish woman. The morning of the wedding, the man was tying his shoes when he flashed back to the conversation with his father. The man thought to himself - do I really want to give up my religion and history? He called his fiancee and told her that he could not go forward with the wedding because his Judaism was more important to him.

The man then moved to Israel and began to learn in a Yeshiva. Years went by and the man continued to learn, but was unable to find a proper shidduch. One day, his Rebbi came to him and told him that he had a girl for the man. There was only one catch - she was a convert, would this be OK.

Of course, the girl was the fiancee that he had left behind. She decided that if Judaism was so important to him, she needed to know what it was all about. The girl went to classes and eventually converted, before going to school in Israel to continue her studies and meet her "sole mate."

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Sunday Night Suds - Sprecher Black Bavarian

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Sprecher Black Bavarian.

As the weather gets colder, the beer served gets darker and darker. But merely because the beer is dark in color, it does not necessarily mean that it is a heavy brew. A beer can be dark because of its malts, but it does not mean that the beer has the heft of a Guinness or other quality stout.

With this introduction, I turn to Sprecher Black Bavarian, a very dark beer which still bills itself as a lager. The label of the brew (besides bearing a Wisconsin K) indicates that it is a Kulmbacher style lager, but this is not a style of beer that I am familiar with. I did a little googling and learned that Kulmbacher is a brewery in Germany (their website indicates that they are the secret capital of beer), but this really did not help me.

The experts at BA have labeled the Black Bavarian as a Schwarzbier, which they define as:

[S]imply German for black beer. It doesn't mean that it's necessarily heavy or light in body, although they tend to lean towards light. Unlike other dark beers, like porters or stouts, they are not overly bitter with burnt and roasted malt characteristics that the others tend to depend on. Instead, hops are used for a good portion of the bitterness. Very refreshing and soul lifting beers, they also make a great alternative for the Winter. Especially when you are looking for a lighter beer, but one with depth of colour and taste.

The Black Bavarian fit some of the definition provided by BA, as it was not overly bitter, but I did not detect hops in the brew. It went extremely well with the barbecue beef that Mrs KB served Friday night as the roasted malt and the beef meshed very well.

The Specher Black Bavarian is one of the more widely available versions of Sprecher which can be found in New York. I have seen it in DeCicco in Westchester and in a few Brooklyn beer stores as well.

Sprecher Black Bavarian is certified kosher by Wisconsin Kosher and there is a kosher symbol on the top label on the individual bottle. For the experts' take on the Sprecher Black Bavarian please click here http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/144/96.

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, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Lech Lecha

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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.

Towards the end of this week's parsha, Hashem tells Avraham at Bereishis 17:16 that Avraham will have a son with Sarah. Avraham then responds that Yishmael should also live. Hashem then says to Avraham in Bereishis 17:20 that Yishmael will be fruitful and he will increase and that Yishmael will father twelve "n'seim."

While n'seim is usually translated as princes, Rashi takes a different approach and says that the neseim will disappear like clouds, quoting a pasuk from Mishlei 25:14 which calls n'seim clouds. R' Frand explained the reference - during the summer there may be dark clouds and wind, but there is no rain. Rashi is telling us that the n'seim of Yishmael will dissipate like clouds.

R' Frand then quoted the Tolner Rebbi who asked - Rashi teaches the pshat - the simple, concrete explanation. Why is he explaining n'seim as clouds?

R' Frand noted that the question asked by the Tolner Rebbi had also been asked by other meforshim, including R' Eliezer Mizrachi who said that Rashi is telling us that this is pshat. Had the pasuk intended to mean the head of a tribe it would have used rashei shvatim or sarim. However, the answer of the Mizrachi does not clarify the pshat, since had the pasuk used sarim, we could have similarly asked - why not write n'seim?

R' Frand then quoted the Tolner Rebbi who said that the reason why n'seim is used can be learned from a Medrash Tanchuma in Parshas Vayechi. At the end of Ya'akov's life, he blesses the brothers. The Torah uses the words in Bereishis 49:28, "cal aleh shivtei yisrael shneim asar" -all these are the tribes of Israel, twelve. The Medrash Tanchuma then contrasts the description of the tribes as shivtei with the language in our parsha of the 12 n'seim of Yishmael.

But why is this opposite? R' Frand answered that the key is from the pasuk by Yishmael where it says that he will father/give birth to the n'seim. A person does not give birth to a nasi, the nasi earns the title. So why does it say it by Yishmael? Because it means that the nasi had a lot of potential at birth, but the potential needs to be developed. R' Frand gave the example of a child prodigy who needs to be channelled to the proper schools to develop the talent.

By using the words n'seim, Hashem says to Avraham, you want a blessing for Yishmael? Fine, he will have 12 n'seim, but lets see if he develops their talents. This is the point of the medrash, Yaakov had 12 sons by his deathbed - they were not perfect and Ya'akov was giving them musar there - because you need to keep developing. Yishmael had talent but did not work to develop it.

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Monday's Musing on Sports - Tip Your Cap to Pop

This past motzei shabbos, I turned on my computer and saw that the St Louis Cardinals had won the World Series on Friday night. From all reports, it seems that the final game was anticlimactic as the true drama played out in Thursday night's game six.

Although I was aware of the final score of Thursday night's game and the multiple times that the Cardinals crawled back from the brink of elimination, there was a story that I only first became aware of Saturday night. At the end of Thursday night's game, just after 12:30 Friday morning on the east coast, St. Louis Cardinals Third Baseman David Freese hit a walk off home run. In so doing, the Cardinals earned the right to host a game 7 and the baseball season continued for one more day. However, the call of the home run by Joe Buck made the event ever more special.

There are some announcers who when I hear them speak, even about mundane topics, I am immediately reminded of their signature sports. For many years, Pat Summerall, John Madden (on TV) and Howard David (on the radio) meant football to me. Similarly, Marv Albert and John Davidson (on TV) and Mike "Doc" Emeric (on radio) made me think hockey.

But no sport has announcers like baseball - legends like Tim McCarver, Vin Scully and Mel Allen narrarating This Week in Baseball, were the voices of my childhood, be it TV on a Sunday afternoon or listening under the covers on a school night.

While many sportscasters tried to bridge from one sport to another, quite a few failed miserably and sounded completely out of their element. But there were a precious few who could be at home in many sports such as Al Michaels and the late Jack Buck, who both rank among my all time favorites.

In the late 90s, I became aware that Joe Buck (son of Jack) had begun to call baseball games. While his voice at times can be monotone like, his descriptions of the games, much like his late father are pure magic. I can remember a beer commercial that aired a number of years where Joe Buck is sitting in a bar, talking sports and people come up to him to tell him their memories of sport. The commercial has a sports game audio on in the background and you can hear the late Jack Buck's call of the game. If anyone can find a link to the commercial available online, please email me or post it as a comment.

Which brings me to the end of Thursday night's game. As the game ended on Freese's extra inning home run, Joe Buck intoned the words "we will see you, tomorrow night." This was a tribute to his father's call of the end of the Minnesota Twins - Atlanta Braves game twenty years and one day earlier where he called Kevin Mitchell's home run and announced "and we'll see you, tomorrow night." [For a great video comparing the two calls and mixing father and son, click here - http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Video-Buck-8217-s-8216-We-will-see-you-tomor?urn=mlb-wp25699 ]

Many people are lucky enough to go into a profession where their parent or parents have earned a reputation of greatness. Some succeed in the field because of the head start that they received from their parents, while others fail because they cannot live up to the parental legacy. Whether or not Joe Buck will ever be Jack Buck is still in doubt, but his tribute was touching and in the words of Mrs KB - ma'asei avos siman l'banim.

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Sunday Night Suds - Leinenkugel Oktoberfest

As mentioned in the October 9, 2011 SNS which reviewed Shiner's Oktoberfest (http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/10/sunday-night-suds-shiner-oktoberfest.html), over the course of the three plus years that I have been blogging KB, I have had the pleasure and/or the privilege or perhaps just the pride to blog on various Oktoberfest beers such as Brooklyn Brewery's in October 2008 (http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2008/10/sunday-night-suds-brooklyn-brewery.html); Saranac Brewery's in October 2009 (http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2009/10/sunday-night-suds-saranac-octoberfest.html); New Belgium's Hoptober Golden Ale (http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2010/09/sunday-night-suds-new-belgium-hoptober.html) and Joseph's Brau's Oktoberfest in 2010(http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2010/10/sunday-night-suds-josephs-brau_31.html).

As the calendar is telling me that October is nearing its conclusion, there is time for just one last Oktoberfest review - Leinenkugel's Marzen Oktoberfest.

The Leinenkugel version of Oktobefest is unlike many other beers of this variety. The beer poured a very light orange with a small amount of foam. The malts in the Oktoberfest were prevalent, but there was very little else to the beer. The beer lacked any whisper of hops and had very little body. I guess that if there was a light version of Oktoberfest, this would qualify, but the brew is not even true to this moniker either. The Leinenkugel Oktoberfest has 170 calories and is 5.1 %abv, so it truly would not qualify as a light beer, but it seems like they just removed the taste from the beer and left the calories and alcohol.

I tried the Leinenkugel Oktoberfest with sushi and (Mrs KB made) Chinese food and the beer was simply not strong enough to stand up to these mild flavors. By this I mean, the alcohol and malt came through the food, but there was no melding of the beer with the various flavors of the food.

Leinenkugel Oktoberfest is certified kosher by the Orthodox Union, although the product currently in the marketplace does not yet have an OU on the label. If you would like a copy of the LOC please contact me via email.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Leinenkugel Oktoberfest, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/710/5757.

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, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Noach

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand on the parsha 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 9:5, Hashem instructs the world as to laws against murder. In so doing, the Torah writes "V'ach es dimchem l'nafshoseichem edrosh, m'yad kol chaya edreshenu, oom'yad ha'adam, m'yad ish achiv, edrosh es nefesh ha'adam." [The translation of the pasuk into English lessens the meaning of the pasuk as some of the more important words do not translate into English properly, as such I will leave it in the Hebrew for the purpose of this vort].

R' Frand quoted the sefer HaKisav v'Hakabalah to explain a seeming redundancy in the pasuk. He noted that although the sefer was written several hundred years ago, the more things change the more they stay the same.

When reading the pasuk it appears to state twice in the second half of the pasuk that if a man kills another man, Hashem will seek to punish the killer. However on closer inspection, the language of the pasuk changes slightly as it uses both the term ish and adam for man. The author of the sefer explains that it appears to him that there are two types of killing. One person kills because he hates the victim or seeks to benefit from the death of the victim. The second person kills to help the victim, as for example when the victim is suffering with some form of grave physical or mental illness.

Both of the above scenarios are seen in the pasuk. The Torah uses the term "adam" which is the lowest form of man in Hebrew. However the pasuk also states that Hashem will punish an ish (a higher form of man) who kills his brother. The sefer explains that even one who kills his brother to save him from misery or suffering, is viewed as a murderer.

R' Frand then told a personal story about his mother o'h who at the end of her life was suffering with Parkinson's disease and also had a heart condition. When they went to see a cardiologist about putting in a pacemaker, the doctor told them that "he would not do this to his mother." However, R' Frand did not listen to the cardiologist as Judaism favors life over social engineering.

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Monday's Musings on Sports - Rex, Norv and Video, or why LH is relevant

An interesting side note to this Sunday's NY Jets - San Diego Chargers game was the press coverage of NY Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan's interaction with San Diego Chargers Head Coach Norv Turner.

Last week, a reporter asked Rex Ryan whether he would have been more successful with the Chargers team than Norv Turner has been. Ryan responded that he would have won a few championships, but this was said in jest. The story made its way back to Turner who remarked something to the effect of - how many championships has Rex won with the Jets?

The "back story" to the dueling media barbs is quite interesting. Ryan had been considered for the San Diego head coaching position before it was given to Turner in 2007. After becoming head coach, Turner took the Chargers to the playoffs three times, but was unable to get his team to the Super Bowl. [Meanwhile, Ryan would wait another two years before getting the Jets job]. This continued a pattern of playoff ineptitude as the Chargers of the 2000s often won their division but never tasted playoff success. Much like previous HC Marty Schottenheimer, the Chargers fans blamed Turner for their team's failure to reach the big game.

Another interesting angle to the story is that Turner and Ryan are good friends and have been for some time. The answer that Rex gave was most likely Rex being Rex, but it apparently opened old wounds for Turner.

When Ryan and Turner met on Sunday prior to the start of the game, Ryan gave Turner a bear hug and the two seemed to have "made up." However, the damage was already done as Ryan's jest had exposed Turner to old criticism.

The Ryan and Turner story made me think of the rhyme we used to sing as children - "loshon harah lamed heh, go to hell the easy way." The Torah's prohibition of loshon harah bars a person from speaking about another, be it positive or negative. Unlike the trite expression - "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it", loshon harah bars all speech about another, except under certain limited circumstances.

Had Ryan simply refused to comment about his friend Norv Turner, the story never would have gotten off the ground. Indeed, under the rules of loshon harah, Ryan should not have given his thoughts about Turner. However, Ryan needed to be funny (or perhaps wanted to deflect attention from his team) and he answered the question in a way which wounded his friend.

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Sunday Night Suds - Samuel Adams Latitude 48 Deconstructed - Vol V

This week's Sunday Night Suds takes a final look at the Samuel Adams Latitude 48 Deconstructed series and reviews the Zeus variety.

As mentioned in my July 31, 2011 post which reviewed Samuel Adams Latitude 48 - Hallertau Mitterfreuh (found here - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/07/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-latitude.html), the August 14, 2011 post which reviewed Samuel Adams Latitude 48 - Simcoe (found here - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/08/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-latitude.html), the September 11, 2011 post which reviewed Samuel Adams Latitude 48 - East Kent Goldings (found here - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/09/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-latitude.html) and the October 3, 2011 post which reviewed Samuel Adams Latitude 48 - Ahtanum (found here - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/10/belated-sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams.html), one of the best new IPAs introduced during the last few years is the Samuel Adams Latitude 48. The name of the beer draws from the five types of hops used in the brew process which all grow along the 48th latitude within the "hop belt" of the Northern Hemisphere. Earlier this year, Samuel Adams introduced its limited edition Deconstructed Box which features beers brewed with just one of the five hop varieties used in the Latitude 48.

For this week's post I sampled the Zeus version of the Latitude 48. The back of the bottle indicates that the Zeus hops grow in the Yakima Valley in Washington State. The label further provides that the Zeus hops "contribute bitterness and an intense, pungent resinous pine flavor." The label further states that brew "leans strongly toward the hop character, but is softened by the malt's sweetness."

I tried the Latitude 48 Zeus on its own in a Samuel Adams tulip glass that I purchased at the Samuel Adams brewery a few years ago. I did not have this with dinner so the review is based solely as a stand alone brew.

The beer poured a rich copper with a fair amount of lacing that coated more than half the glass. The hop flavor was quite intense, even a little too intense for me. I did not find that the hops were balanced by any malts. I guess that you could say that the pine/resin is prominent but since the beer lacks balance it just stays bitter without any redeeming qualities.

In grade school our teachers ingrained the concept - acharon, acharon, chaviv - last is the best. Having tried the Latitude 48 which combined all the hops and the various single hops versions, I can honestly say that this version which I tried last was the poorest effort from Sam Adams. Oh well, even a solid brewery can have a skunky brew once in a while.

The Samuel Adams Latitude 48 Zeus is under the Kosher Supervision of the Star-K. Like many other Samuel Adams brews, this bottle does not have the Star-K certification mark on the label.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about this version of Latitude 48, please follow this link - http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35/68403.

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, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Monday's Musings on Sports - There's Always A Choice

In the days leading up to tonight's Monday Night Football game, there was an interesting story which broke about Dolphins WR Brandon Marshall. Marshall is a highly talented and yet high strung athlete who essentially forced his way out of Denver due to his antics. Since leaving the Broncos, Marshall has never regained in his All Pro form. This could be in part due to: (1) his having a better quality QB in Denver; (2) Denver being a better run organization than the train wreck Miami Dolphins or (3) Marshall's overall inability to focus on being part of a team.

This season, Marshall had been having what could best be described as (for him) a sub-average season. Plagued by drops and an inability to score when it counts, Marshall became frustrated with the state of the 0-4 Dolphins. As such, Marshall informed a number of reporters that tonight he planned on having a big game for the first quarter and a half and that he intended to do something to get ejected from the game in the second quarter. What Marshall intended to do and why he was planning this was not revealed. However, Marshall was outspoken that something would occur.

[Ed Note - I write this post with the game not yet decided. As such, I am unaware of whether Marshall has or has not followed through on his threat].

Given that Marshall is easily the most talented WR on the Dolphins, one has to wonder whether Dolphins Head Coach Tony Sparano had a sit down with Marshall to perhaps talk some sense into him. Indeed, Sparano himself is coaching for his job as the Dolphins have been regressing under his watch. I could imagine the conversation going something like - Brandon you don't need to make a spectacle out of yourself just to make a point. If you get thrown out of the game you could be suspended by the NFL without pay. You have a choice to prove your worth on the field instead of being thrown off of it.

The Brandon Marshall saga made me think about a story I heard in a R' Zev Cohen derasha over sukkos. R' Cohen told a story which he heard from a Rabbi who is the brother of R' Paysach Krohn (I can't recall the brother's first name). R' Krohn had been called to go to Israel to talk to a boy who was considering leaving orthodoxy. Together, R' Krohn and the boy went to see R' Grossman. The boy told R' Grossman that he had been having doubts and was considering going off. R' Grossman responded to the boy with the following story:

A number of years prior, R' Grossman had traveled to a city in Israel with his family. After Friday Night dinner, R' Grossman went for a walk with his son. They passed a disco where Israeli boys and girls were dancing. The boy who at the time was 12 became very upset. He said to his father - we need to tell the mayor. R' Grossman tried to dissuade the boy, but was unsuccessful. So at midnight the two went to knock on the door of the mayor's home.

When the mayor eventually came to the door he was quite upset. The boy responded to him - Mr. Mayor there is a fire. The mayor asked where it was and the boy said that there is a spiritual fire. The mayor became enraged and began to berate both R' Grossman and his son until the mayor's wife came downstairs. She recognized R' Grossmam and said to the mayor - don't you know who this is? Its the famous R' Grossman.

The mayor calmed down and began to tell R' Grossman his story. He explained that he had been raised in a frum home and had gone off the path. He had two children, a daughter who married a non-Jewish boy and wanted nothing to do with the mayor. His son went to play soccer overseas and was involved in a serious injury which resulted in an amputation. The son would not speak to the mayor as he was upset that the mayor was not there for the surgery.

The mayor concluded - my siblings have stayed frum and I am envious of the weddings and bar mitzvas they make. I wonder what would have happened if I stayed frum.

R' Grossman then turned to the boy and said - I am a great grandfather with more than a hundred grandchildren - all frum. You have a choice in front of you to follow the path or to chart your own course away from religion. Which end result would you prefer?

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