Friday, January 27, 2017

Friday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Va'era

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha last evening. [As I am currently in Israel, I was unable to blog this immediately after the shiur]. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts 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 the vort with a story about a formerly rich man who came to the Chasam Sofer and asked for a beracha and an "eitza" since he had fallen on hard times. The Chasam Sofer told him that he should give money to another Jew who had fallen on hard times.

The man responded to the Chasam Sofer - but I need help, I have fallen on hard times!

The Chasam Sofer answered him based on a pasuk in this week's parsha (Shemos 6:5) wherein Hashem states "V'Gam Ani Shamati Es Na'akas Bnei Yisrael" - and I have also heard the screams/cries of the Jews. The Chasam Sofer asked - what does it mean that "I have also heard? Who else would have heard besides Hashem?" He explained that when a Jew cried out, the other Jews heard and cried as well. Hashem then heard those Jews crying for the others and that is what reached Him. 

R' Frand said that this is the segulah for help - when you cry for another Jew, it reaches Hashem and makes Him want to help you.

R' Frand quoted the Meshech Chachma on Shemos 6:13 where the Torah states that Hashem spoke to Moshe and Aharon and commanded them them to instruct the Jews and Pharaoh to take the Jews out of Egypt. The Meshech Chachma explains that Hashem commanded Moshe to instruct the Jews about freeing slaves. The Meshech Chachma asked - why would this be the time to instruct Jews to free slaves? Who had slaves?

The Meshech Chachma explained that there are also wealthier and not so wealthy people. The wealthy Jews bought some Jewish slaves from the Egyptians and employed them. This is again the message to the Jews - if you want to merit release from slavery  - release your slaves.

R' Frand told a story in the name of the Rebbi from Zlotov. The Rebbi was in a concentration camp and came across another Jew who was dying from hunger, so weak that he could not even get up. The Rebbi decided to give his portion of bread to the Jew. The Jew then said to the Rebbi, I give you a beracha that you will get out of here alive.

At some point later, the Rebbi was locked into barracks and he was dying from hunger. A kapo saw the Rebbi and gave him some sugar cubes and the Rebbi said that this sustained him. He said that this was in a zchus of what he gave the other Jew.

This is along the same lines of the concept that if a Jew davens for another Jew who is suffering from a problem, he himself will merit and be saved from the problem.

R' Frand said an additional vort on the pasuk in Shemos 5:23 in which Moshe states that after he came to Pharaoh, its gotten worse for the Jewish people. The Sfas Emes explains that according to the Medrash, Hashem responded to Moshe with a pasuk from Koheles that the end of something is better than the beginning. 

The Sfas Emes explained that Moshe was right and that it was too much, but even so, the Jews had to go through this, so that there would not be suffering in future generations.

R' Frand linked this to the vort he said in the name of the Sfas Emes on Vayigash that Yosef cried when he saw Binyamin because had he been able to sustain the charade with the brothers a little longer, there would not have been a churban. Had they suffered a little longer, they would not have had to go through the exile.

The Sfas Emes explained - that this is the meaning of the pasuk in Koheles - the end is better, because of what they endured in the beginning. Hashem is telling Moshe, the end will be better, because of what they are going through now.

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Thursday, January 19, 2017

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Shemos

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts 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 began the parsha portion of the shiur by quoting the Sfas Emes who cites an interesting Medrash. The Medrash states that Moshe saw the Jews suffering in Egypt (Shemos 2:11) and was confused. He wondered, what had the Jews done to deserve being enslaved and suffering in a way that no other nation was suffering.

Later in the same pasuk Moshe saw the Egyptian hit the Jew and thereafter he saw one Jew hitting another Jew (Shemos 2:11-2:13). When Moshe attempted to intervene, he was reproached by the aggressor and he was frightened. (Shemos 2:14). Rashi explains that Moshe concluded that because the Jews were "informers" he understood why they were not fit to be redeemed.

The Sfas Emes asked - how can it be that Moshe went from being confounded by the Jews suffering one day and the following day, drawing the conclusion that it was their fault for speaking lashon hara.

R' Frand quoted the Sfas Emes who explained that this indicative of the strength of the sin of lashon hara. The sin is so powerful that it explains the reason why they were suffering. R' Frand then added that when the Jews were suffering, he saw them as a nation and with all of their merits, why do they suffer? But once he saw that they were speaking lashon hara, he saw disunity and dissension. This was no longer a nation, it was a group of individuals and bad things can happen to individuals. When they spoke lashon hara they were no longer a nation, they were just a group of people.

R' Frand then said a second vort in the name of the Sfas Emes involving the pesukim in Shemos 3:9-11 wherein Hashem tells Moshe that He has seen the Jews suffering and that Moshe should lead them out of Egypt. Moshe then responds - who am I to lead them out? I'm a nobody, I can't be the one. The problem is me.

But Rashi quotes Chazal who explain that Moshe was actually saying - what kind of merit do they have that I can take them out?

The Sfas Emes wonders - how is it that Moshe can say both of these things? He just said that the problem is him, but he also says that the Jews don't merit a redemption!

R' Frand gave the answer in the name of the Sfas Emes who explains that the problem was Moshe and his being different from Aharon. As opposed to Moshe, Aharon was the "nice guy" and his soul was chessed. But Moshe was the law giver and was the living embodiment of Torah which is law. Moshe was saying to Hashem, Aharon can take them out because he will be able to convince You that even though they are flawed, they should be released. But me? I can't do that because I don't see that they are worthy of getting out. You chose the wrong person, You need an Aharon if You want someone to lead the Jews out.

Hashem then responds to Moshe - I will be with you (Shemos 2:12) and they will get out. Why? Because I see that they will say Na'aseh V'Nishma and be worthy of release.

The Sfas Emes then asked - but this is out of sequence! They have not yet said Na'aseh V'Nishma! The Sfas Emes responds - they are a nation which acts and asks about it later. Its in their nature and I know that when I take them out they will do it.

He then tied it into a Medrash about an apple. Usually a tree gives a flower and then a fruit. But the Jews are sweet from the beginning, like the apple. And I am judging them based on what they will become. Its a lesson - don't judge people on how they are now, judge them on what they will be.

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Sunday, January 15, 2017

Sunday Night Suds - Samuel Adams Ginger Beer


This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Samuel Adams' Ginger Beer.

As mentioned in last week's review of the Samuel Adams' Hopflake White IPA, the Ginger Beer is one of the new brews included in this year's winter mix box which also contains: Boston Lager; Winter Lager; the old time favorite Old Fezziwig and the Chocolate Bock (which is DAIRY again this year).

As I sat down to write this review, I realized the anomaly which is the Ginger Beer. The overwhelming majority of breweries choose one of two methods for naming their brews - either the beer has a descriptive name like ___ Ale or ___Stout, where the first word modifies or describes the defining style of the beer, or they just give it a cute name which has nothing to do with beer.

The Ginger Beer is none of the above as they just call it "beer". 

When trying the brew, I tried to pin it down to a particular style, but there was no hop bite, no phenols, and no perceptible malts. The good folks at BA have categorized it as a herbed/spiced beer which they explain: 

"This style takes on and beer that is specially herbed and or spiced. This is anything from the common spiced Fall Pumpkin beer to Christmas beers with nutmeg and cinnamon to ginger beers to heather ales. Some brewers will throw just about anything into the brew kettle; hot peppers, hemp, ginseng or spruce needles. Keep you mind open when you are trying some as brewers will always keep on trying to expand the limits of what beer is."

The beer itself tastes like ginger ale, plain and simple. Although there is a 6.0 abv, I did not detect the alcohol as it is masked by the ginger. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with ginger ale and unlike some of the hard ginger ales which I have tried (reviewed here http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2016/03/sunday-night-suds-henrys-hard-ginger.html) the Samuel Adams is not overwhelming sweet. Having said that it just does not taste like beer.

The Samuel Adams Ginger Beer is under the Kosher Supervision of the Star-K and has a Star-K certification mark on the label. To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about this brew, please follow this link - beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35/241782.

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 are reading this post more than six months after it was written, please note that it is possible that the product is no longer still certified kosher. To verify that the product is still certified kosher, please click on the kosher beers list link on the top left corner of the blog.

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!

Thursday, January 12, 2017

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayechi

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts 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 the vort by noting that Ya'akov's beracha to Reuven implied that Reuven could have had both the role of priests (Kehuna) and kings (Malchus) but he lost these opportunities. As stated in Bereishis 49:3, Ya'akov said to Reuven that that he was his first born and "Yeser S'iais V'Yeser Az." Rashi explains that the word S'iais is an allusion to the priestly blessing and Az is an allusion to the might of being a king. However, in the next pasuk, Ya'akov tells Reuven that he lost these roles by being impetuous like rapidly flowing water in that he jumped to move Ya'akov's bed from the tent of Bilhah to the tent of Leah. 

However, when it comes to the blessing of Yehuda, he is given the beracha of malchus as it states in Bereishis 49:9 that although he was part of the conspiracy to murder Yosef and claim that he was killed by a wild animal, but he escaped it by changing his mind. Rashi explains that Ya'akov was also alluding to how Yehuda changed his mind from wanting to have Tamar killed, but after reviewing the evidence she presented, he took back his directive and admitted that he was wrong.

R' Frand quoted R' Bukspan from Florida (presumably from his sefer Classics & Beyond, Parsha Pearls) who says that the quality of being a leader does not lend well to someone who is impetuous and does not contemplate and rethink whether he is making the right decision. Reuven stood up for his mother's honor, but at the cost of embarrassing his father. Reuven did not think things through, he just acted. Meanwhile Yehuda also had reactions, but then he took a step back and said maybe this is not right - this is a quality that a king needs. But the attitude of shoot first and ask questions later is not the way of a king. And if you can't say "I was wrong, I made a mistake" you can't be a king.

R' Frand also quoted a Medrash which describes Reuven's teshuva and shows that he learned from his mistakes. The Medrash states that Reuven made for himself a mikveh and he immersed himself therein. R' Frand noted that there are two forms of mikvaos - a mikveh of collected rainwater or a ma'ayan - a spring of fast flowing water. When Reuven did teshuva he immersed himself in a collected water mikveh which showed that he realized that you need to slow down and think.

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Sunday, January 8, 2017

Sunday Night Suds - Samuel Adams Hopflake White IPA


This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Samuel Adams Hopflake White IPA.

The Hopflake White IPA is included in this year's winter mix box which also includes another new beer (Samuel Adams Ginger Beer); Boston Lager; Winter Lager; the old time favorite Old Fezziwig and the Chocolate Bock (which is DAIRY again this year).

The beer poured a golden yellow, but a little pale for an IPA. In fact, although they call this an IPA, the Hopflake White IPA is not heavily citrusy and is somewhat watered down. Having said that, there is some pine and some lemon which may or may not be from the lemongrass.

This beer is very drinkable, but not a classic IPA and even a bit light for a winter beer. I would recommend pairing this with pizza or other spicy, saucy fare. If you have had a combination which works for you, please post it in the comments below.

The Samuel Adams Hopflake White IPA is under the Kosher Supervision of the Star-K and has a Star-K certification mark on the label. To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about this brew, please follow this link - beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35/241737.

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 are reading this post more than six months after it was written, please note that it is possible that the product is no longer still certified kosher. To verify that the product is still certified kosher, please click on the kosher beers list link on the top left corner of the blog.

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!

Thursday, January 5, 2017

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayigash

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts 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 44:31, Yehuda tells Yosef that if Yehuda did not return Binyamin to Ya'akov, it would kill Ya'akov. This statement seems to convince Yosef that he must let Binyamin go and leads to Yosef's unmasking of himself.

R' Frand asked - how is it that Yehuda knew that this was true? Yehuda would not have said this to Yosef if it was untrue, but how did he know that if Binyamin was not returned, it would be the death of Ya'akov?

R' Frand answered this question by quoting the Sfas Emes who observed that people are driven to work because they have a goal of building and supporting their families. But the Avos had a greater vision and wanted to build Klal Yisrael and they were willing to do whatever was necessary to build it.

Ya'akov had a very difficult life, but was able to accept it and get through it, because he knew it was part of building Klal Yisrael. But he knew when he spoke with Yehuda about bringing Binyamin down to Egypt that it would be the end of his troubles. He even expressed this to Yehuda in Bereishis 43:14 when he used the term Kel Shakai - which Rashi explains based on the Medrash was Ya'akov's way of telling Yehuda that Hashem has said that with this, Ya'akov will have had "enough" troubles.

If Ya'akov who had survived running from his house, living with Lavan, seeing his daughter taken and son "slain" and then said that this would be "enough" for his troubles, then Yehuda knew that Ya'akov actually was saying (sans melodrama) that Ya'akov would die if Binyamin did not get back.

The Sfas Emes then applied this reasoning to the age old question -  after Yosef became the viceroy in Egypy, why didn't Yosef send a message back to Ya'akov that he was still alive? He explained that Yosef knew that Ya'akov's mission was to go through all these troubles and that they came from Hashem for a reason. So I wont be the one who changes things and tells Ya'akov that I am alive.

The Sfas Emes then applies this to later in the parsha where Yosef and Binyamin embrace and cry (Bereishis 45:14). Rashi explains that Yosef cried because he saw that two Batei Mikdash which would be in Binyamin's land would be destroyed. But why was that Yosef's vision when he hugged his brother for the first time in more than 22 years?

The Sfas Emes answers the question by citing to the language in Bereishis 45:1 where it says that Yosef revealed himself because he could not hold back. This implies that if Yosef could have held back, then he would have done so. But was Yosef a sadist? No, but Yosef realized that the brothers had to go through this suffering in order to save the Jewish people from other worse troubles which would have come upon them. Yosef knew this and that all the problems would pay dividends and the Jews would be saved. Yosef could not hold back any longer - but if he could, then the Beis Hamikdash would not have been destroyed and the Jews would not have been sent into exile. This was why Yosef cried - because he knew that if he had been able to hold back, the Jews would have been saved from future troubles, including the destruction of the Batei Mikdash.

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Sunday, January 1, 2017

Sunday Night Suds - Blue Moon Cocoa Brown Ale


This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Blue Moon Cocoa Brown Ale.

As in previous years, this year's Blue Moon Brewmaster's Sample Box includes a new beer. For 2016-2017, the new brew is the Cocoa Brown Ale.

This brew is a typical American Brown Ale to which they added some Belgian Chocolate Malts to bring out the richness of the beer. The beer has a nutty flavor, somewhat reminiscent of the Saranac Season's Best, but with a bit of hop bite. The beer pours a rich brown - not as dark as a Guinness, but definitely on the darker side.

I tried this beer by itself and also together with some rich chocolate cake. The beer does not have the added chocolate nibs that a Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock has introduced to the brew process (BTW - The Star-K confirmed to me that the Sam Adams Chocolate Bock is DAIRY again this year). Since the beer does not have the additive it was a decent pairing with the chocolate cake, but you can also drink this on its own without being overcome by the cloying sweetness of some sugar aided brews.

If you have tried this brew with a pairing which worked for you, please post it in the comments below.

Blue Moon Cocoa Brown Ale is certified kosher by the Orthodox Union, as is every other current variety of beer produced by Blue Moon. For the experts take on this beer, please click here beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/306/258357.

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 are reading this post more than six months after it was written, please note that it is possible that the product is no longer still certified kosher. To verify that the product is still certified kosher, please click on the kosher beers list link on the top left corner of the blog.

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!