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‘Autumn of my Life’
courtesy of ‘LaTur’
Summer may be over, but good food goes on. You can eat your sad feelings about colder weather and fewer hours of daylight coming at some of these events happening this month in the city.
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Monthly Archives: September 2011
By Tom Bridge
Talkin’ Transit: Metro’s New Map, and a Survey
Part of Metro’s new Map
Metro’s iconic map is at a turning point. The new Silver Line that’s being constructed out to Dulles Airport presents a challenge for the transit system’s existing map, as it would push outward the boundaries on the system past the edge of the page. As part of the upcoming changes, Metro has released a draft map (that we’ve excerpted from above) and a survey to go with it.
The heart of the changes, for now at least, have to do with changes in the green line (to more correctly display its geography), and the orange and yellow line service extensions that operate during Metro’s rush hours. The yellow line now shows a dashed line (though a striped line is also proposed in the survey) down to Springfield, and up to Greenbelt, and the orange line has a dashed section out to Largo. Mysterious and ghostly is how they’ve chosen to draw the Silver Line outward through Tysons to Dulles for now, largely postponing the question of where the map’s new boundaries will be.
Greater Greater Washington’s David Alpert has dissected the map with regard to the site’s mapping contest, and has a series of great recommendations and observations. Definitely give it a look. Also, Metro’s Barbara Richardson spoke with the Post’s chat group this morning at 10am, and that chat will likely be instructive with regards to what Metro was considering with regard to the map.
Personally, I think the new map is a welcome improvement in a number of ways: it highlights the increased service to Fort Totten on the yellow line and differentiates between the extended yellow line service to Greenbelt in a manner that’s elegant, and also does the same for the orange line out to Largo. It also thickens the orange/blue line between Rosslyn and Stadium-Armory to allow for a silver line when the time comes for it to actually run. This is a ground-work laying map that will hopefully serve us until 2013 when the new map, and new line, debut service out to Tysons.
Food Truck Tracker
‘Sol Mexican Grill’
courtesy of ‘ekelly80’
Welcome back to the work week, food truckers. Ease the pain of getting back to the grind with lunch from a food truck.
By Michael R
Weekend Flashback: 9/4-9/6
Birth of a Day by specimenlife
Hey DC, hope you enjoyed your long weekend. Let’s take a look at some of the best shots from our local photographers.
By We Love Sports: The Wounded Warrior Amputee Celebrity Softball Game
“Not many people get an opportunity to actually come down on the field,” 21-year-old Josh Wege said after his pre-game warm up at Nationals Park with ball and glove in tote. “Well … they actually get to come on the field but to actually play a game on this field, this is incredible.”
It’s true. More often than not, the people playing ball on a Major League field are professional players employed by Major League Baseball. On Sunday, though, the giant state-of-art sandlot located in Washington’s Navy Yard neighborhood hosted the Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team in an exhibition game against a group of D.C. celebrities. Continue reading
By Tom Bridge
Nats get to Dodgers’ Kuroda for 5, win 7-2.
‘Lannan delivers’
courtesy of ‘afagen’
The Nationals’ offense exploded for four runs in the first inning on the overcast Labor Day afternoon, all on home runs, to give John Lannan a lead to work with against the Dodgers. While Lannan would at times struggle against their lineup, he still went 5 1/3 IP of 1-run baseball. Lannan would strand 5 trolley-dodgers on the base-paths, strike out four and walk two to earn his 9th win.
The Nats tore through Hiroki Kuroda today, getting to him for 5 runs on 8 hits, with four home runs, but Kuroda also put up a season-best 9 strikeouts against the Nationals today. The Dodgers’ bullpen added three more Ks for an even dozen against the Nats, four by Danny Espinosa, who’s in a bit of a slump of late.
Nats Can’t Find Offensive Groove in 6-3 Loss to New York
‘Wind up of the first pitch’
courtesy of ‘BrianMKA’
It’s time for the young talent to get their chance. That’s what Nationals Manager Davey Johnson has said and continues to say about the upcoming crop of homegrown pitching. It’s September. Therefore, based on previous trends of calling up the younger guys to play ball in the big leagues, Johnson is correct. With that said, right-handed starter Livan Hernandez made his final start of the 2011 season Sunday. Washington lost 6-3 versus the New York Mets.
Hernandez was informed by Johnson on Friday that we would not start again in 2011. The team would like to get a look at Stephen Strasburg and other pitching prospects during the final three weeks And, although the outcome was not desirable, Hernandez approached his final appearance as a professional. Continue reading
By Brittany
Back to (Drinking) School at EatBar
‘Eat Bar’
courtesy of ‘voteprime’
Arlington, VA’s EatBar wants to help you go “back to school” this month to learn more about just the kind of thing that might end a character up on an after-school special: Alcohol. They are presenting a series of three “lessons” this week on beer, wine, and spirits.
On Tuesday, the team from Left Hand Brewing will be on hand to discuss their brewing process and give out free Left Hand glassware with every purchase. They will be pouring their Milk Stout, Polestar Pilsner, and 400 Pound Monkey IPA. Wine is the focus on Wednesday, when Pacific Northwest winery Owen Roe stop buy for a tasting and brief lesson in oenology.
Thursday evening, stop by to hear about a local distillery that has been making spirits in Virginia since Prohibition. The master distiller of A. Smith Bowman in Fredericksburg will discuss his small-batch and single-barrel bourbons and Virginia gin while students enjoy tastes and special cocktails made from the ingredients.
By Tom Bridge
Milone debuts with a bang, Nats win in the 9th over Mets 8-7
‘home away from home’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’
The Nats added another chapter to the Ryan Zimmerman, “Mr. Walkoff” legend book tonight, as he brought the game back from a deficit in their last at-bat yet again this season. The bloop single off Mets closer Bobby Parnell with the bases loaded in the 9th was his 14th game-winning plate appearance of his six-year career. The Nats have now won 20 games in their last at-bat, and 10 in sudden death situations.
The major league debut of Tom Milone on a comfortable September night in Washington was something of a preview for Nats fans. Milone, whose 12-6 year at Syracuse came with 155 strikeouts and just 16 walks, is a fearless medium-velocity pitcher with pinpoint command. What the fans will be talking about, though, isn’t how he wasn’t afraid to come in on the hands of the righties, it’s about what he did with his bat.
Milone jacked the first pitch he saw in the 2nd inning into the Nationals’ bullpen for a 3-run homer. This wasn’t a barely-clears-the-fence job, either, it was a bona fide legitimate home run that had all of Nats Park standing up. Soon as he made contact, that ball was clearly out. He became the 27th player in MLB history to hit the first pitch he faced for a home run, and the 8th pitcher. The last pitcher to do it was the Cardinals’ Adam Wainwright in May of 2006.
By fedward
Friday Happy Hour: Long Drinks for a Long Weekend
‘01497-07Crop’
courtesy of ‘furcafe’
A long drink, a term with which you might not be familiar, is a bartender’s term for a cocktail which is longer on non-alcoholic mixer than it is on base spirit. You may already know some long drinks as highballs, a slightly younger name which refers to a long drink made with just a single base spirit and a single mixer, often with a fruit garnish. A gin and tonic is a highball, but a Tom Collins (containing not only gin and soda but sugar and lemon juice) is a long drink. The Tom Collins, by the way, gave its name to the archetypical tall glass in which these drinks are served. A highball glass is usually synonymous with a Collins glass (and vice versa).
Cocktails follow formulas, and the combination of a single base spirit and a particular mixer often lends its name to some other concoction made with the same mixer and a different base spirit. The Tom Collins, for instance, begat the Vodka Collins. You could ask a bartender for a Whiskey Collins, and while he or she might look at you funny they’d know exactly what you mean without having to stop to think. Some names have lost popularity over time (Mamie Taylor, anyone?), but others are still current and show up in all sorts of interesting combinations. The Mojito, by the way, is also a long drink; replace the rum with gin and it becomes a Southside; add lemon to that and it turns into a Major Bailey. Formulas! They’re magic!
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By Alexia
Q&A with Volta Bureau
Photo by Josh Sisk
Volta Bureau is the new electro/house/dance collaboration of DC’s movers & shakers of the electronic music scene Will Eastman, Micah Vellian (Miguel Lacsamana) and Outputmessage (Bernard Farley). I have known Will and Miguel for several years, initially through my old band Soft Complex. Miguel (then under the moniker Person) did a remix for our 2006 EP, and we had the pleasure of performing a live set at Will’s Bliss Pop dance party at the 930 club in 2007. I was super excited to hear they had come together to form this new group, along with Bernard Farley- they all have talent, drive and style in spades. I have a feeling this trinity is one to watch!
This week I had a chance to chat with Miguel, aka Micah Vellian, and ask him a few questions about Volta Bureau. Continue reading
Food Truck Tracker
‘Foodie Fever’
courtesy of ‘Phaesia2011’
Happy Friday and enjoy the long, labor-less weekend! Kick it off with lunch from a food truck.
By Tom Bridge
Homestand Preview: The last long one
‘crazy eyes’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’
The dog days of August are done, and we’re into the last month of baseball season. The Nationals, while still better than previous years, are a long way from the playoff hunt. That does not mean, however that you can’t see some good things at Nationals Park. This homestand brings with it the return of Stephen Strasburg, the debut of a new rookie in the starting rotation, a free concert, and the start of Fan Appreciation Month.
There are a lot of reasons to find yourself down at Nationals Park for an early Fall game, and there just aren’t that many left to go before we head into the dark of winter. Capture the light while it’s still present, folks, and see the Nationals play some solid baseball in the meantime.
By Addison H
We Love Weekends: September 2nd – 5th
‘Four Friends’
courtesy of ‘MudflapDC’
Fedward: The social chair returns tonight from a week at the beach (they left DC Sunday night after the storm had passed), and goes straight into the Page to Stage Festival at the Kennedy Center. I’ll use my spare time on Saturday to drop off a couple more decommissioned computers at the District’s monthly Household Hazardous Waste collection (if you can’t go Saturday, there’s also a special preview day today). Saturday night we’re planning a visit to our friends at Eventide Restaurant for some cocktails, dinner, and pretzels (seriously, have you had those pretzels?). Sunday night you’ll be able to find us at the hangover brunch at the Passenger. As usual.
Food Truck Tracker
‘DC Empanadas – La Venganza de Tio Shawn’
courtesy of ‘bonappetitfoodie’
Almost time for a long weekend! Click through to see where the food trucks are roaming today.
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By Jenn Larsen
Drinks Special: Bibiana’s Aged Cocktails
‘Ready to Mix’
courtesy of ‘Jenn Larsen’
You’re probably familiar with the fact that wine and whiskey are aged in barrels. But cocktails? It may seem like a trend, popping up in bars in London, Portland and New York for the past year or so, but it’s actually a much older revival – aging cocktail ingredients in oak barrels was a popular technique back at the turn of the last century. But for Bibiana‘s general manager Francesco Amodeo, it’s not a matter of trend. It’s practical.
“I was talking to my mother about their cellar at home,” he tells me, referring to the family home on the Amalfi Coast, “what to do with all the barrels?” His grandfather makes wine, and his mother was looking to get rid of the excess refuse. Francesco jumped at the chance to put them to another use. Starting with two sizes, 1 and 5 liter barrels, he’s crafted two cocktails for Bibiana that were just uncorked for the first time Tuesday evening after three months of aging.
Try out the best cocktails as if you were a professional, visit https://www.gattertopdrinks.com/ to find tips and recommendations for the preparation of the cocktails.
As they’re produced in small quantities (at least until Francesco’s grandfather finishes crafting a 250 liter barrel for him) they’ll go fast, so get over to taste them. Aging cocktails gives the liquor a beautiful toasty quality, rounding out the flavor. Let’s take a closer look at Francesco’s two drinks and the process.
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