It has been a busy stretch. Busy with the kids' school starting up again. Busy now that all the co-workers are back from the hodgepodge of summer vacation schedules. Busy with the political news, the garden... Busy with life. Life has rhythms and we are moving to that beat into the next season. As part of that, the beer discussion is getting a bit back to substance:

♦ Jeff poses an excellent observation about the role of the critic and triggers a reconsideration of things Jacksonian: Yes. I think this whole thing begs the question: where should we move? What's the role of beer criticism now? Leave the idea of the "next Jackson" behind. I'm with you. I like that.
♦ An end of the day burst on Twitter about blogging on bad beer and the resulting implications led Martyn and I to disagree with the economic implications of a shift to good beer. I am not as positive about what happens if craft were to get to 20% of the market.
♦ When will good brewers of craft beer also learn that humour is also way to sell?
♦ The news about Beau's Oktoberfest is getting better and better, especially with me because I have been asked to participate on a seminar on pub and beer games. Craig is in on the panel as well. He road bowls. Who knew? And all of a sudden my applewood skittles logs in the shed are coming along in a dufflebag. Bow. Nis.

So, autumn is approaching. Sure, it is still summer but, really, not acknowledging where we are is to fail to celebrate the first of March as the great escape that it is. We need that. More acknowledgement. More speaking up. More road bowls. Actually, I am now terrified by the prospect of driving the back roads of central New York for fear of getting a bowl in the grill. The things you learn as you approach fifty.