Sunday Night Suds - HaDubim India Pale Ale & Sabro Session IPA

Just off the plane from visiting KB Jr in Israel, the next few Sunday Night Suds will feature the eight beers that I tried while in Israel for the week. Tonight's review looks at HaDubim's India Pale Ale & Sabro Session Ale.

One of my favorite stops in Shuk Machaneh Yehuda is Beer Bazaar where you can mix a six pack from nearly a hundred Israeli beers for the "low" price of 79 NIS. Well, maybe not a low price (about $24), but when on vacation its something that I am willing to splurge on. This time I chose two beers from HaDubim which I first tried during my last trip to Israel in 2019 (see review of HaDubim Phoenix IPA reviewed here - https://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2019/03/sunday-night-suds-hadubim-phoenix-ipa.html).

The first beer I tried was an India Pale Ale which the brewer called (translated into English) "White Smoke" and which they classified as a "strong beer" due to its 6.2% abv. The beer poured a rich golden color with decent lacing. I found the beer not to have a strong alcohol flavor and although there was some citrus and bitter, it lacked the hop bite that I was expecting.

The second HaDubim beer I tried (this one I shared with KB Jr) was the Vmash, Sabro Session IPA. Like most session beers this brew was lower in alcohol content (4.2% abv) but it was not lacking in flavor and held up very well with our schwarma & Jerusalem mixed grill dinner.

The Vmash poured a dark gold and had slightly below average carbonation. But the star of the beer was the fruit which began with the first sip and was tangerine in nature without being overly bitter. I had never tasted a sabro hopped beer and it was quite refreshing. KB Jr really enjoyed this beer and has developed a taste for the Yerushalmi version of mixed grill too!

Neither of these beers was reviewed on BA, which leads me to believe that BA could use a good beer guide in Israel!

The HaDubim beers are contract brewed for Beer Bazaar at the BB brewery in Kiryat Gat and they are certified kosher by the Rabbanut of Kiryat Gat.

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).

Lastly, 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's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Ki Tissa

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 quoting a Medrash that said that Moshe Rabbeinu had an Ayin Tova (often translated as a generous eye). It gave two examples in that Moshe received the Torah but did not keep it for himself and instead taught it to the Jewish people. The Medrash gave a second example in that when Moshe was commanded to be Somech Yehoshua he used two hands even though he was commanded to use one hand (singular). The Medrash used a parable to a man who was directed to give one bushel of grain to another, but rather than giving one, he gave two, showing that he gave with an Ayin Tova.

R' Frand quoted R' Berel Povarsky (sp?) who observed that when a person gives double, he at least has a personal loss. But when Moshe gave the Torah, what was his loss? And when he used two hands (vs one) to bless Yehoshua. he certainly had no loss. How are these example of Ayin Tova?

He answered that even when does not suffer a personal loss, he still may not act with Ayin Tova. You may see your friend who acquires something or is marrying off a child and be happy for your friend, but do you truly want him to have it as good as you?

R' Frand quoted the Ramban on the pasuk  וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵֽעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ (Vayikra 19:18). The Ramban writes that the pasuk is an "exaggeration" as how can one truly love another like himself? And aren't we taught that if there is one bottle of water which will not be enough to sustain you and someone else that your life comes first? So what is the mitzva? If you see that something good is happening to someone else, you should feel happy for that person and want that person to have it just as good as you.

R' Frand closed this portion of the vort by quoting R' Matisyahu Solomon who observed that after Birkas Kohanim there is a prayer said privately by the Kohanim where they state we have done what you decreed (gazarta) for us to do. But why is Birkas Kohanim a gezera? After all it seems like an honor that they get to give a special blessing that everyone stops and listens to! R' Solomon answered that the gezera is that the Kohanim must give the blessing "B'Ahava" that people are waiting for beracha and that the Kohain should want the recipient to have it as good as him, or even better. The Kohain may have issues with raising children or finding shidduchim for his children, but he must give the beracha to another to attain these things, even if the Kohain does not have them. This is the meaning of the gezera.

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!

Sunday Night Suds - Samuel Adams Golden Goat

 

In honor of the Super Bowl, this week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Samuel Adams Golden Goat.

The Golden Goat is included in Samuel Adams Gameday Beers mix pack which includes two bottles of each of four styles. In addition to the Reunion IPA, the mix pack includes Boston Lager (reviewed here in 2013 - https://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2013/04/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-boston.html); Alpine Lager (reviewed here in 2021 - https://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2021/02/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-alpine.html) and Cold Snap (reviewed here  in 2014 - https://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2014/06/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-cold-snap.html).

This beer is one which wont offend non beer drinkers, but also wont satisfy anyone looking for beer with character. There is some malt, but little in the way of hops, despite the fact that the Sam Adams website describes this beer as a "Golden Ale" (for my money this is more lager than anything else). The beer did pour a rich golden yellow with decent carbonation and some lacing. The beer claims to be 5% abv, but I did not detect any alcohol flavor.

This is a good pizza beer, but it did not stand up to Mrs. KB's Super Bowl supper.

The Golden Goat 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 - https://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35/581903.

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).

Lastly, 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's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Tezaveh

Although Rabbi Frand did not give a live shiur tonight, he did pre-record a a shiur on the OU Torah site which can be found at https://outorah.org/p/118096, which I have attempted to reproduce to the best of my ability in this post. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to the maggid shiur.

R' Frand noted that the first mitzva in the parsha is the mitzva of using the oil to light the menorah every day (the mitzva is more fully discussed in Parshas Beha'alosecha). R' Frand quoted the Gemara in Shabbos 22 which asks why there was a need for the mitzva of lighting the menorah in the Mishkan and Beis Hamikdash - does Hashem need the illumination? And Hashem provided the light when they were in the midbar anyway as Hashem is the light of the world! The Gemara answers that the menorah is a testament to the world that Hashem dwells among the Jews.

There is a Medrash in Beha'alosecha which asks a similar question, relating a conversation where the Jews ask - why are we lighting the menorah when You are the light of the world? The Medrash relates that Hashem said to the Jews - I want to give you the opportunity to return the favor. I had the lights on for you in the desert - now you can return the favor.

R' Frand observed that sometimes when a person does a favor for someone else, he wants the recipient to remember the favor and perhaps to feel beholden to the doer. By asking the Jews to do this, he gave them the opportunity to feel they had repaid the favor.

R' Frand then quoted R' Yerucham (Mirrer Mashgiach) who stated that when someone does a favor and the recipient wants to repay and is told "forget about it", while it appears to be great, its not. Let the person repay the favor so that they don't feel beholden. This is what Hashem did.

R' Frand then made reference to the Haftorah of Parshas Nasso which discusses the birth of Shimshon and the angel telling his parents of the impending birth and the rules to be followed. They then ask the angel his name and then bring sacrifices. When they brought the sacrifice the angel disappeared and never reappeared and because of this Manoach knew that he was an angel. But why does this mean that he must be an angel? Because he did not come back for the bris or any other event to get a "thank you." Most humans want to be able to lord over the other person that they had done a favor, but angel would not.

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!

Sunday Night Suds - Jed's Mule Kicker Moscow Mule

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Jed's Mule Kicker Moscow Mule.

A number of years ago, the good folks at Saranac started their Jed's line of alcoholic ginger beers which includes the Moscow Mule, Mexican Mule & Mojito. All three of the beers in this line are made with  spicy ginger beer and lime juice, but I had not seen any of them until coming across the original Moscow Mule in a beer store in upstate New York.

The Moscow Mule pours nearly clear with a little green hue. There was some white foam, but no lacing. The first smell when I brought the glass to my face was ginger and the initial sip was mostly ginger and spice. There are no hops, no pine, no malt, its just ginger and lime. This might be nice as a light mix drink at a social function (only 5.9% abv) but its not beer.

Jed's Mule Kicker Moscow Mule is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit as is every other beer produced at the Matt Brewery plant in Utica, NY. Keep in mind, Saranac brews some varieties off site, so check the cans/bottles for kosher certification from the Va'ad of Detroit.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about the brew, click you can search on  https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/287529/. 

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).

Lastly, 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's Parsha Tidbits - Parsha Terumah

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 prefaced his vort by stating that Parshas Terumah is a parsha which lends itself to homiletics as many derushim are made from the various Klei HaMishkan which are mentioned in the parsha.

R' Frand then focused on the Keruvim (often referred to in English as the Cherubs). The Torah states that the Keruvim were made of gold. The Mechilta (cited in the Rambam Hilchos Klei HaMikdash) states that all of the Klei HaMikdash which were supposed to be made of gold could be made of other metals such as silver if no gold was available...except for the Keruvim which must be made of gold.

R' Frand quoted R' Meir Shapiro who noted that the Keruvim had faces like children. He explained (al pi derush) that the reason why the Keruvim had to be made of gold is because when you are paying for your children's education you can't "go cheap." R' Frand observed that R' Meir Shapiro lived this way as while many of the Yeshivos in Europe were inferior buildings, R' Meir Shapiro made sure that Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin was an edifice.

R' Frand gave a second explanation as to the link between Keruvim-children and gold. He said that when you deal with children you need to let them know that they are as precious to you as gold. A child who knows that he is important to you will have a good self image, whereas child who thinks that he is worthless will have a very difficult time in life.

R' Frand noted that there was once a famous actor named Zero Mostel. He explained that the name Zero was a nickname (he was born Samuel Joel) and that this was because his father who was frum was frustrated that Zero did not want to learn in Yeshiva and would tell him that he was going to be "gournish."

R' Frand said a third explanation about the connection between Keruvim-children and gold. He said that much like the way that you safeguard gold, you need to keep your children safe. Even when your child asks you - but why can't I do what --- is doing, you need to respond "because you are special and I want to keep you safe."

R' Frand quoted R' Chaim Shmulevitz who connected this with the story of Shimi Ben Gera. When Dovid HaMelech was about to die, he instructed Shlomo on how to "take care" of Shimi for cursing him. The instruction was not to simply kill him, but use your wisdom to do so. Implementing his father's instruction, Shlomo instructed Shimi to build a house in Jerusalem, but you cannot leave it. And on the day that you leave it and pass Nachal Kidron, you will be killed as one who rebels against the king. Shimi swore that he would obey.

Shimi stayed in Jerusalem for three years, but then when his slaves ran away, Shimi chased after them and left Jerusalem. The word got back to Shlomo and he reminded Shimi of his swear and then had him executed. 

The question that R' Chaim asked was - there are many people who live in Jerusalem today who have never left. Its one of the nicest places in the world to live, so why did he leave? Couldn't he have sent someone else to chase down the slaves?

R' Chaim answered that people can stay in one place, as long as they are not required to stay. But if a person is instructed that he can't leave, then he is itching to go.

R' Frand quoted R' Shimshon Pincus who asked - why does the Kohain Gadol not have this problem? Why is he also not itching to leave? He answered that the Kohain Gadol is given this instruction as a badge of honor and the room in the Beis HaMikdash is a sign of prestige.

If a person is required to stay because of his honored role, he does not fight it. But if he feels its a burden then he wants to leave.

R' Frand said that there is a take home lesson for us as parents. We give our children rules and they always ask - why am I different? The answer needs to be - because you are special and we need to keep you safe.

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!