Beer and Conversation with Pigweed and Crowhill

Latest Episodes:

280: The Red Trickle of 2022 Nov 10, 2022

Show notes

Pigweed and Crowhill drink and review two beers from Springfield Manor Brewery, then discuss the disappointing results of the 2022 midterm elections.

The proverb says "Hope deferred makes the heart sick," and that's certainly the case here.

What in the world happened to the Red Wave?

The modern Democratic Party has gone so far past the insane label that it's hard to believe anybody would vote for them. But ... apparently a lot of people don't feel that way.

Republicans severely under-delivered. Why?

Part of it is candidate quality. Some of the Republican candidates were not that great, and some of them were too Trumpy. Abortion also played a larger role in the vote than many polls predicted.

One lesson from the midterm election might be that the country wants normal, and both parties are offering crazy.

Despite the poor showing, there are some good things from the election. First, this might be the end of Stacey Abrams and Beta O'Rourke. Second, Democrats are losing their iron grip blacks and hispanics. Third, this might be the beginning of the end of Trump.

279: An intro to wine Nov 06, 2022

Show notes

Mr. Energy, who knows a bit about wine, returns to the show to review three Chilean Cabernet Sauvignons, and discuss some basics about wine.

The boys discuss white vs. red grapes, vintages, tannins, price vs. value, etc., as they drink their way through three cabs.

What's the right way to buy wine? Is there a price where you can be sure you're getting good wine? And what about pairing wine with food? Do you have to drink red wine with red meat?

How should a newbie approach the topic? What do you do if you want to bring good wine to a dinner party?

Wine can get so complicated. What's the role of aging with wine? Should you turn up your nose at wines with a screw top? What do you do if you try a wine and don't like it? And what do you do when the waiter comes to the table and presents the cork?

P&C and Mr. Energy try to demystify the topic.

278: Mr Energy confronts P&C over their energy show Nov 06, 2022

Show notes

Along with special guest Mr. Energy, the boys drink and review The Glutenberg, a gluten-free IPA, then discuss energy policy.

In a previous episode, the boys made fun of California for requiring more electric cars in the very same week they asked people not to charge their electric cars because the grid couldn't handle it.

Mr. Energy -- an old friend who has covered energy issues for decades -- wanted a chance to chime in on the topic.

While he shares some P&C principles, like the need for a market-based approach, an all-of-the-above approach to energy, and the need for a national energy policy, he disagrees with the boys on a few points, especially related to global warming.

The discussion is lively and interesting, and Mr. Energy brings some good news about the future of modular nukes!

277: Vlad the Impaler, vampires, and Dracula Oct 29, 2022

Show notes

With special guest Longinus, P&C drink and review Bloodline, an IPA by Flying Dog, then discuss Vlad the Impaler and Dracula.

The boys discuss the origins of vampire stories and the association between vampires and Dracula.

Bram Stoker loosely based his story on Vlad the Impaler, who was a 15th-century badass in the general area of modern-day Romania.

P&C review the basic historical situation and life of Vlad, and his reputation for cruelty. Some reports say he was a psycopath, worse than Caligula and Nero.

Stoker's book (and a few contemporary works) introduced many of the elements of the modern-day vampire story. No reflection in the mirror. Doesn't sleep at night. Fear of crosses and holy objects. Can change into a wolf or a bat. Is seductive and sophisticated.

The boys then review a series of Dracula movies based, to one degree or another, on Stoker's work.

To celebrate Halloween, they wrap up the show with a series of 2-sentence horror stories.

276: Edgar Allan Poe Oct 24, 2022

Show notes

As part of their ongoing and popular "shortcut to the classics" series, Pigweed and Crowhill, with special guest Longinus, review Tell Tale Heart IPA, then discuss Poe's life and works, including his connection to Baltimore, Maryland.

They review several Poe short stories and poems, including The Fall of the House of Usher, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Cask of Amontillado, and The Raven.

For each story, the boys give a brief review of the basic details, then delve into some interpretation and commentary.

The stories play off common horrors: being buried alive, tortured, crushed to death, betrayed by a friend, falling into madness, your dead body carved to pieces, and losing the love of your life. Poe uses them all perfectly, creating suspense and horror out of common experiences, echoing normal human reactions, but in a unique and frightening way.

275: Review of the "Commitment to America" Oct 21, 2022

Show notes

P&C drink and review yet another offering from the Pastryarchy -- an Almond Brittle Imperial Stout -- then discuss the Republican Party's "Commitment to America."

Newt Gingrich famously engineered a Republican revolution with his Contract with America. Contemporary Republicans are trying to imitate that strategy with their Commitment to America. It's an attempt to put forward a positive message.

The boys love the idea but are not impressed with the details.

Overall, the commitment expresses nice sentiments, but it doesn't provide enough detail. The Contract with America put forward ten specific pieces of legislation which people could read. The Commitment to America is just a bunch of vague sayings with no details.

The Commitment also seems to tread on federalism, promoting to make changes that are not in the federal government's purview.

Overall, the boys are not pleased with the effort. It seems too wishy-washy.

274: Happy Yorktown Day! Oct 19, 2022

Show notes

P&C review Kentucky Pumpkin Barrel Ale, then discuss the annual celebration of Yorktown Day.

Why do we celebrate the day that we declared our independence rather than the day we actually won it?

The boys review the history leading up to the battle of Yorktown, in which the main British army surrendered to George Washington.

During the phase of the war just prior to Yorktown, the Brits moved south, hoping to collect recruits and support from the loyalists. It didn't work out that way, and they had to hold up in Yorktown. With the help of the French navy and French troops, Washington beat Cornwallis and forced his surrender, which effectively ended the war.

Pigweed believes we should acknowledge and celebrate this victory.

273: Why male employment matters Oct 12, 2022

Show notes

The boys drink and review Pigweed's D.C. Bro, an attempt to clone D.C. Brau's India Pale Ale. Then they discuss male employment.

Does it matter if men are unemployed? P&C say yes, it matters. In fact, it's a serious problem, and our culture is not addressing it.

As a general rule, young men need to be reined in. A successful culture needs to steer the aggressive, competitive instincts of men towards something useful for society.

We're not doing that. Men are falling behind. They're killing themselves more, suffering more addiction, and getting less education. They commit more crimes, are more likely to go to jail, and are more likely to be obese. Testosterone and sperm counts are falling. Men are not getting married. This is a societal disaster that no one is talking about.

If women are getting 60% of the college degrees, and aren't interested in "marrying down," what's going to happen to the marriage rates?

This is a crisis, but nobody is paying attention. Why? Pigweed and Crowhill explain.

272: The Vodka Challenge Oct 08, 2022

Show notes

The boys take a break from beer and do The Vodka Challenge, in which they do a blind taste test between Titos, Skol, Smirnoff, and a mystery vodka.

They start off with a general discussion of vodka -- what it is, what it's made from, how it's made, etc.

If vodka is a neutral spirit, why should you spend more on expensive vodka? Does it matter? What are the characteristics of a good vodka?

The mystery vodka was simply grain alcohol, diluted down to 80 proof, with a little glycerin and sugar to round it out.

After doing their 4-panel test, they tried another common vodka story, which is that you can transform cheap vodka into top-shelf vodka by running it through a Brita filter.

271: Friedrich Nietzsche and his provocative ideas Oct 07, 2022

Show notes

With special guest Longinus, P&C drink and review Warsteiner Dunkel, then discuss the philosophy of Nietzsche.

He's famous for his declaration of the death of God -- which is not the smirky, triumphalist statement of a modern atheist, but a lament at the loss of traditional foundations of meaning, morality, and purpose. Once you've pulled out the foundations that come along with belief in God, what do you have left?

Nietzsche is considered one of the early existentialists. He says that since our lives have no inherent meaning or any meaning imposed from outside, we need to create our own meaning.

He tries to avoid the nihilism and pessimism of Schopenhauer by building his own ideas about how to find meaning in a meaningless world. He criticizes Christianity as slave morality and urges a more aggressive form of self-assertion.

Nietzsche sees "will to power" as the essential element of who we are, and rather than suppress that, we should recognize and rejoice in it.

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