I’ll admit, it’s kind of weird when you realize one day that you’re living in the future.  Admittedly, it’s not exactly the future that some sci-fi auteurs envisioned (witness poor Stanley Kubrick and 2001–no Pan Am flights into space quite yet;  hell, there isn’t even a Pan Am anymore), but the technology is making things change at a pretty good clip.  Nowhere is this more true than in the world of media.  Think about what was strange and exotic only a few years ago–Netflix streaming, e-books, downloading a movie–and then think again about how much we now take these things for granted.  Your average teen probably doesn’t even know that buying music once meant a trip to the record store, or that Must See TV required you to plunk yourself down in front of the tube at the same time every week.  Nowadays, they’re all watching that stuff on their smartphones, in between tweets and Facebook pokes.

Of course, all of this revolutionary tech has got the content providers running around like a drunken man in a square house after being told to go pee in the corner.  Everything is moving so fast that they can barely keep up–and so it also goes with the publishing industry, which, like everyone else, is standing at the digital crossroads and wondering, “How do we make money off of this?”  I’m glad to see, though, that publishers are largely embracing the new reality, rather than going down the Hollywood path of trying to stuff the genie back into the bottle.  In fact, in the last few days we’ve seen Apple throw down a rather significant gauntlet in just this area, with their hard push into the textbook market and their release of some cool free tools that anyone can use to make content.  You can be sure that those of us who write fiction will also be hopping on this bandwagon.

So what does it all mean for traditional publishing?  Well, for one thing it means the rules have changed–assuming that there are still rules.  Anybody can be his own publisher.  Retailers are now content providers.  For those who still want paper copies, publishing on demand eliminates the cost of print runs.  The possibilities are endless.  To cite a recent example, the actor James Franco recently inked a deal to sell his first novel to Amazon.com.  My guess is that they probably gave him a better share of the royalties than he would have gotten from a “regular” publisher–because they can afford to!  With Amazon handling the acquisition, editing and distribution, they cut out the middlemen and keep the costs down, which means more profit for everyone–including the author.

My guess is that you’ll see this catch on more and more as time goes by.  Eventually, some brand-name writer–a Stephen King, a John Grisham, or even a (choke) Stephanie Meyer–will head in that direction, and inspire a lot of others to follow.  As for the rest of us mere mortals, I think that these big changes will lead to a lot more opportunity for newer voices to be heard.  It’s always been a huge risk to launch a new writer because of the considerable expense involved in printing and distribution;  but with digital distribution, that isn’t such a problem anymore.  If anything, these emerging technologies may well herald a new golden age in publishing.

Fall is getting closer–and it’s not just wishful thinking on my part.  One of the highlights was taking my daughter Lexie to her first college football game (Gators chomping down on UAB).  Well, technically it was my wife who took her to the actual game, as we only had two tickets;  yours truly spent the evening in a Gainesville movie theater watching The Smurfs 3D with my son Christian–and even that wasn’t half bad.  Still, we all got to bask in the electric thrill that is campus life in the fall, which really took me back to my own days at Texas A&M (was it really over twenty years ago?).  Even if you’re not a football fan, you gotta love it.

The fall seasonals have also been coming in fast and furious.  Keeping up with them all is as dirty a job as you can imagine, but I’ve been doing my best not to be derelict in my duty.  Here are a few more selections for you to peruse.

Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin

It was one of those things–you know, when you say to yourself over and over again that you’re not going to do it, but then you do it anyway?  Sigh.  At eight bucks a bottle, I thought this probably wasn’t worth the risk–but since my only experience with Imperial Pumpkin ales has been with Weyerbacher, I thought it important to expand my horizons a little.

For this kind of style, you’d think that the Smashed Pumpkin would come on pretty strong.  But I have to give ol’ Pugsley credit–in spite of that 9.0% abv, he’s crafted himself a subtle ale with hints of cinnamon and nutmeg, and dare I even suspect cloves?  The pumpkin doesn’t assert itself until the finish, which is nice and smooth without the slightest bitterness, nor any of the overt sweetness one would expect from such a heavy duty beer.  In short, it goes down easy–way too easy, in fact, which is why it’s a good thing that this is on the expensive side.  I could easily see this one turning into a habit.  There’s a reason fall only comes ’round once a year!

Tommyknocker Small Batch Pumpkin

Oh, those mischievous Tommyknockers!  I’m a big fan of Colorado beers in general, and this brewery makes one of my all-time faves, Jackwhacker Wheat Ale (which also has one of the best labels I’ve ever seen).  This is the first year that I’ve noticed the Small Batch Pumpkin, and it may even be the first year Tommyknocker has made this particular brew–and like their others, they put their own unique spin on a traditional style.  What’s the secret?  Believe it or not, molasses.

That’s right, molasses.  Not only does it impart a dark smoothness to the taste, it makes it rather fuller bodied without knocking you over with alcohol.  This is definitely one you drink for the flavors rather than a warming effect, much like a porter–though without the roastiness.  In all, a worthy effort that I would have again.  Definitely worth your while.

Boxcar Pumpkin Porter

Speaking of porters, this one struck me as a pretty unusual combo–so I figured what the heck.  No guts, no glory, right?  I have to admire anyone who tries to do something different with a pumpkin beer, though some fare better than others–and in this case the results were a bit mixed.  The Boxcar started off pretty promising, with a robust maltiness offset by the slight sweetness of pumpkin, but it seemed as though the hops they used to balance out the finish were a bit too bitter.  The aftertaste was a bit unpleasant, and only seemed to heighten after subsequent sips, especially as the beer warmed over the minutes in my glass.  My advice if you pick some up, although it might seem anathema to you dark beer lovers out there:  chill thoroughly and drink it down while it’s still very cold.

As promised, the sudsy adventures continue.  The nice part is that as the weeks go on, more and more seasonals are starting to appear on the shelves!  That also means that the summer ales are starting to go on clearance, so there are more temptations to distract me from my journey–but never fear, I will not be daunted!  Slightly detoured, perhaps, but not daunted.  In the meantime, here’s what made it into this weeks’ shopping cart:

Southern Tier Harvest Ale

I’ve been  trolling for Southern Tier’s Pumpking Ale, but so far haven’t found it at any of my local retailers.  This, however, popped up and looked like it might be a good way to tide myself over.  I’m happy to say it didn’t disappoint.  The Harvest Ale provides a nice balance between malt and hops–enough of the former to give it a slightly bigger taste, with enough of the latter for a smooth, clean finish.  You might call it a “bridge” beer between the lighter summer ales and the winter warmers.  Like a slightly off-color jest, it does its best not to offend while at the same time offering some worthwhile flavor.  It doesn’t boldly go where no beer has gone before, but it’s definitely worth a try!

Breckenridge Autumn Ale

This one caught my eye because I’ve a big fan of Breckenridge’s Vanilla Porter, and Colorado craft beers in general.  And like its marvelous vanilla cousin, the Autumn Ale reveals layers of complexity you might not expect.  It starts off on the mellow side, making you think that this might be a lightweight beer, until the malts kick in and finish off that first swallow like a gust of cool air from the first cold front of the season.  And trust me, if you haven’t lived in Florida you don’t know how welcome that gust can be.  Even so, I’d rate this as a highly sessionable beer–not too heavy on the ABV, but with bold enough flavors to keep things interesting.  I’d certainly buy this one again–and if you happen to find some in your neck of the woods, don’t hesitate to pick up a six pack.  As the label says, it goes pretty good after some rakin’!  Or bush trimmin’.  Or lawn mowin’.  Aw, shoot–maybe I should just get a yard service and watch while sippin’ on this.  Yeah, that sounds like just the ticket…

Believe it or not, autumn is coming.  Football is back on the tube, the kids are heading back to school, and–here comes the best part–the fall beers are starting to make their appearance, like the natives returning to their beach towns after the summer tourists have finally fled.  It’s a mighty fine time of year!

This time I decided to go on an adventure of sorts, with the goal of mixing it up a bit between the seasonals I know and love and as many new contenders as I could find.  Given my appreciation of all things malt and hops, and seeing how it’s still early on, that’s a tad more difficult a task than you might imagine.  Luckily, however, my local beer retailers have been more than up to the task, and I’ve had the pleasure of finding a few things that I haven’t found before.  So let’s pop open a cold one, shall we?

Magic Hat Hex

For some reason, I’ve always been wary of Magic Hat brews.  Perhaps it’s because I took one look at their summer ale, saw that it was made with beet juice, and recoiled as if someone had just presented me with Bud Light Chelada as a gag gift.  After trying their Number 9 at my local Bonefih Grill, though, I took a leap of faith on this one and gave it a try.  It didn’t disappoint.  In fact, as American Octoberfests go, this one ranks among the tastier I’ve had.  The crisp mouthfeel offsets the notes of caramel quite nicely, leaving you with a damn clean finish–quite a feat for a malty beer.  You could easily have two or three of these in a session and not regret it.  With a nice label evocative of the witching season, it even makes a nice decoration for your Halloween party.  Definitely recommended.

Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin

Sure, the name of the brewery is a mouthful–but so is this beer, an annual favorite of mine for a while now.  Apparently the brewmasters heeded the complaints about running out of stock early last year, and ramped up production of this extraordinary ale.  It was actually the first of the pumpkin beers to hit my Total Wine, and boy was I happy to see it there on the shelf–in early August no less!  I even sent a few four-packs to a buddy of mine in Colorado, spreading the joy a little after a long, hot summer.

Imperial Pumpkin lives up to its name.  At 8% abv, it has a kick (as most Weyerbacher brews do)–so you’ll definitely want to go easy on this one, in spite of it going down remarkably easy.  Cinnamon and cloves give this beer its big taste, balanced out by the slight sweetness of the pumpkin.  It’s quite subtle, really, and an all-around great beer.  I’d put this one up against any of the winter warmers in terms of complexity.  Let’s just hope it stays around long enough for the weather to get colder!  Highly recommended.

Harpoon UFO Pumpkin

First year I’ve seen this one.  I’ve had Harpoon’s Unfiltered Offering (hence the UFO) before, so this one seemed like a nice safe bet.  I expected something just okay, kind of like Post Road’s pumpkin ale, but was pleasantly surprised by how much flavor gets packed into those twelve fluid ounces.  Of all the beers of this kind I’ve tried, this one by far tastes the most like a liquid pumpkin pie.  The fruit definitely takes front and center here, resulting in a beer that’s almost hefeweizen in its taste and texture–which I guess is to be expected, since that’s the style of Harpoon’s flagship beer.  Light on the alcohol and highly drinkable, you can quaff a few of these sitting on the front porch while contemplating the change of seasons.  Hardly spectacular, but quite pleasant nonetheless.  Recommended.

To be continued…

I’m seriously starting to believe that, like bacon, there’s nothing that beer can’t do.  From a recent snippet in National Review:

Minnesota governor Mark Dayton (D)…demanded a $37 billion budget, funded by a more “progressive” income tax on individuals making more than $1 million.  When Republicans refused, Dayton forced a 20-day government shutdown, the longest in state history.  Two weeks into it, however, he caved, jettisoning his calls for tax hikes…  It’s not hard to see why compromise was reached:  When MillerCoor’s liquor license expired, the paper pushers at the licensing agency were on furlough.  The brewer, which supplies 38 percent of the beer sold in Minnesota, almost had to take its products off state shelves, and the public was less than pleased.

Imagine that!  MillerCoors beer notwithstanding, that’s a pretty impressive feat for a few cans of suds.  Makes me wonder if we might be able to accomplish the same thing on a national level.  In that vein, I’ll make a modest proposal:  the total, complete, unequivocal ban, without exception, of all alcoholic beverages in and around Washington, D.C.  After all, how can those jokers be feeling our pain when they can’t even feel their own?  Let’s make life for them so dull, so miserable, so dry that they can’t wait to get the hell outta town.  Only then, can we all truly be free!

Can I get an amen?