Three Simple Glasses: The Interesting, the Wise and the Wicked!

Three simple glasses was all it took. One with a simple name and two that are somewhat unpronounceable, but still three simple glasses of beer. It framed the evening, formed a triangle, and bounded it.  No one ever said beer drinking was not without its surprises!

Simple Life by To Ol

The first was the most exotic and came with the most straightforward name: Simple Life by To Ol of Denmark. It was complex and alive, so many facets coming to life all at once, it felt like an explosion of brilliant colors. It is one of those that starts off smooth and then builds, weaving a taste through out your mouth and then it just melt away. Each and every time. It was like feeling a someone just tying your mouth into a ball of fine velvety threads and then wanting them to come back for more. It was wonderful and I did not want the glass to end. Powerful stuff and oh so smooth. It rated a 5 star on Untappd.

The next round was kind of confusing, so I asked Zach, my server, for his advice.  He kind of surprised me because he said they were the same thing, just two varieties of cherry. I asked him again and he said "cherry": one wild and the other refined. Very refined.

Spontanframboos by Mikkeller Brewing

So, I ordered the very refined cherry and was pleasantly surprised. Spontanframboos, made by Mikkeller, takes its cherry formula from the cherry itself. This was the formal cherry. You will not find a bit of it that is not cherry. Not a bit. It was like drinking cherry juice with a small hint of alcohol in it. You simply will not find a higher volume of cherry in a drink and it was simply fantastic. There is no better way to describe it. If you can find this somewhere, try it and you will not have cherry taste again.

Slaapmutske FLOSS by Browwerij Slaapmutske

Before I even taste the second glass, I knew what to expect. It would the cherry, but it would be something that had a flaw, something that I would say was almost there but it failed that test. Boy, was I ever wrong! Slaapmutske FLOSS by Brouwerij Slaapmutske

is a really good wild cherry, totally different from the Mikkeller and almost as good. It had the charms of a wild cherry, the kind of berry that you plucked off the tree and savored in July and August. You wanted to savor it, sitting out one a summer day, just kind of day dreaming, and occasionally biting into one of these wild berries. It was distinct, different and good.

It was time to call it quits after a total of five beers (we did not even get into the other two beer which were also quite good) and head for home. Zach, who is a regular bar tender at the ChurchKey in Washington, DC really made it a special evening and I will make this page tonight dedicated to him. He knowledge, experience and willingness to make the evening special really made tonight a bonus. Congrat, Zach!