Monday, May 30, 2016

Waiting on the West

The Finals begin June 2nd...
Game 7 | Western Conference Finals
Thunder v. Warriors
6pm | TNT
Tonight



eightychoices.

Friday, May 20, 2016

Mighty #10

You Make Every Hour Golden.
There are so many amazing things you do.
Thanks for loving me.
You're numero uno.
You're my best friend.
You are Mighty.
With the softest touch.
Happy anniversary—The Big Diez!
I love you so damn much! 


"The exhilarating ripple of her voice was a wild tonic in the rain."

- F. Scott Fitzgerald








Your Husband,
eightychoices.

Monday, May 16, 2016

And Then There Were 4

Point Guard Battle Royale | Western Conference Finals
The Conference Finals are set. The Warriors and Thunder get things started tonight out west and the Cavs will battle the Raptors on Tuesday, May 17th. Each conference has ebbed and flowed to create their own intrigue. With that said, I think every basketball fan is salivating over the Western Conference Finals—what a matchup of talent.

There will be three scoring champions, two MVP's, and most likely, five all-NBA selections on the court for game one at Oracle. Durant and Curry have taken home the last three most valuable player awards. Westbrook, Durant and Curry are the last three scoring champs, plus KD held that title from 2008-12. This series is going to be fire! Another amazing subplot to this star-studded, best-of-seven, is the likelihood that Curry, Thompson, Green, Durant and Westbrook will be named to the All-NBA team. I can't remember a time when that many top 15 guys squared off in the Conference Finals. All of this leads me to one thought; OKC might be the only team in the Association that can claim to have two of the three best players on the court when pitted against the Warriors (KD, Russ, Steph)—there's an obvious debate. I can hardly wait for this series to get started.

Speaking of my lack of patience; I can't wait to see what the Cavs have been drawing up with over a week's worth of rest and preparation. As the NBA approaches June, LeBron sets his sights on another title shot. Can he make a sixth straight Finals? Will it be a rematch against Golden State? Or will he face-off against OKC's dynamic duo for a second time in his career? First, he and his teammates will have to get through The North. Only in the NBA!

eightychoices.

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Sneaker Con Bay Area

Calling all Sneaker-heads...
Sneaker Con is a continuous cycle, like most things in life, coursing its way throughout major cities in America. This year's Bay area stop takes place in Santa Clara, a bit too far for this sneaker freak. Enjoy everything kicks on May 14th (12pm-7pm).

I would like to stress however, that I am all about the comfort and stylings of both the latest and greatest, as well as the vintage throwbacks that got this thing started. Case in point, my Hare Jordan's 1's and my canary LeBron X's only touch the hardwood of basketball courts. Whereas, my KD VI's and KD trey-5 II's are for mobbing the streets. And if you haven't yet picked up a pair of the Chuck Taylor II's with Lunarlon cushioning, check 'em out. They're super comfy and still have that classic silhouette.


eightychoices.

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Brew Detective: Boonville Beer Fest

The Legendary Boonville Beer Fest
The best little hideout in Northern California, or at least one of them, is Boonville. The Legendary Boonville Beer Fest turned 20 and provided a gorgeous backdrop, good times and ample draught beer. This is one of those events you just shouldn't miss, unless you live too far away or despise oat sodas. Thankfully I live an hour and a half away and love consuming craft beer. There were more than enough brewers to get lost amidst, or inebriated by. Most of the breweries on my hit list were scratched off the journal and noted; a few however escaped my investigative intentions. Considering there were well over 100, my goal was not to get destroyed, but rather, to find new ales and explore the craft brewers new to me. 

This year we started out on the far west side of the grounds, and to my delight, it happened to house a majority of the brewers I was hoping to enjoy. Many of the individual tents later ran out of barley pops. On a side note: this may have been the first year in which I thoroughly enjoyed the non-IPA selections far more than the Hop-centric ales I tend to gravitate toward. Blondes, Tarts and Pale Ales dominated my best of note taking. The list below represents my favorite tastes of the day; arranged alphabetically by brewery name. 

Bagby Beer Company | Hop Crop extra pale ale | 4.8% ***
> This was my favorite Pale Ale of the day. It's always a treat to find something new and delicious. Single hopped and super palatable; I could have pounded this all day. 

Central Coast Brewing | Kiwi a la Tart | 5% ***
> A Berliner Weisse brewed with kiwi, who'd a thunk? This was my surprise hit of the day and perhaps, the best beer I tasted. I so want to get my hands on this. Central Coast was also the only beer maker to have more than one beer make my list of favorites. The other...

Central Coast Brewing | Monterey St. | 5.5% & 45 IBU
> This pale ale won the gold medal at the 2015 GABF. It's brewed with 4 types of malt and brought to an extremely high temperature (154 degrees). I only know because I was able to pick the mind of one of its brewers, god I love beer fest. Monterey Street was my bronze medal winner of the day in the category of pale ale.

Devils Canyon Brewing Co. | Belle CA Sparkling Ale | 6% ***
> One of my three favorite ales of the day. It was so refreshing and bouncy. Brewed with a champagne yeast, this beer was so new to me that the intrigue alone made me get a second pour. I probably should have just posted up there and kept crushing. 

Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. | 101 Blonde | 4.8% & 16 IBU
> Last year was my first experience with Figueroa. The last time I was in SLO county I loaded up on their 22oz. bottles. This time around I was engaged by the complexity of this dynamic blonde. A couple of hop varietals and a few kinds of malt go a long way.

Half Moon Bay Brewing Co. | Strawberry Rhubarb Belgian Blonde | 5.5% & 20 IBU
> C'mon, strawberry rhubarb, what's not to like—one of the few that led me back for a second helping. I want to drive south just to sip this again while staring a Mavericks. (HM)

Uinta Brewing Co. | Ready Set Gose | 4%
> A refreshing and mildly tart Gose with a slight herbal note. Gose's are so in right now. On side note: The marching band was on fire inside the barn. They played a thunderous cover of, "Sweet Caroline," the crowd provided vocals. As they segued into a Bowie cover, we ambled back into the sun.

Woods Beer Co. | Crusoe IPA
> A Brett IPA that surprised me. I'm somewhat going out on a limb, but this was the tastiest IPA I had all day. Keep in mind, I was not seeking out the heavy-hitting IPA producers that I readily have access to. (HM)

Fifty Fifty Brewing | Citra Pale
> This may have been their California Pale, but the brewer's board had it labeled as a single hop, Citra Pale. Either way, this was my silver medalist pale ale.

Thanks Boonville, Anderson Valley and our crew (night time dance parties rule). That's a wrap.

eightychoices.

[***  denotes my 3 favorite & (HM) = honorable mention]