7641. Have a Spotted Cow

 After the hubby finished his conference and he found me, he asked where the pub was at the Kalahari Resort. I was like I didn't see it but we can go find it. He needed to meet up with colleague.

When we got to Wisconsin Brew Pub, we grabbed seats at the bar where the hubby could meet with his colleague. The hubby looks at me and said "You've been having adventures all day, have another one" meaning have a drink. 

I looked at the beer taps in front of me and saw one that caught me eye until I learned it was an IPA. I am not an IPA fan. Then I saw Spotted Cow by New Glarus Brewing Company. All their beers are only available in Wisconsin. Not one to drink beer regularly, I wanted to try their flag ship beer. I asked a glass of Spotted Cow.

Some how it took me 20+ years to try Spotted Cow and I am not sure why. Stacy thinks I had it once before but I don't remember it. It might have been the time we tried to party on Water Street in Milwaukee. 

Spotted Cow is a farmhouse style ale. It is on the sweeter side. It is the perfect beer for me when I can't get a sour or a shandy. 

As I was sipping my beer and watch whatever game is on the TV, I realized there was another set of taps I missed and realized there was more beers that I might have been able to try. They apparently had many beers on tap based on the board I saw as we left. 

I still think I picked the right beer. Spotted Cow has become my go to beer when there is nothing else I like is available. If you have not tried Spotted Cow, especially if you are not a beer fan, you better add it to your bucket list. You will thank me.. maybe

25 in 2025 -- Try at least one new beer, cider, or cocktail -- The Gray Stuff

 For each musical at the PAC, they have a special cocktail that is based on the show. For The Lion King, it was the Lion Drop. I was excited to see the drink for Beauty and the Beast was the Gray Stuff. I definitely wanted to try that. 

The Gray Stuff was Vodka, Pineapple Juice, and triple sec with Sprite. Even though I am not a huge fan of pineapple juice, it was tempting to try. It was $12 with the glass and $8 if you have your own glass.

The Gray Stuff was good. It did not have too much pineapple taste. It could have more vodka but I get it. They have to make huge batches of it at times to make the line move quickly. It was easier to have the Grey Stuff mixed and just have to add the Sprite to it. 

I did not see many people with the Gray Stuff. I hope they made the right option for the signature drink and the rest of the run drink is popular.

I will be very curious what the drink for Hamilton be. I will be ready to try. 

Always try the signature drink because you never know when you can have the gray stuff next. 

7473. Drink in a cornfield

Drinking a cornfield is probably one of those iconic teenage things kids in rural Wisconsin do all the time. Being not one to drink much and go out, I definitely did not have that experience. Now living across from a cornfield in the city, it has crossed my mind a time or two.  However, now there are houses by that cornfield and it just seems weird as an adult trying to sneak into a cornfield.

Then the perfect opportunity presented itself. As we were navigating our way through the corn maze in Kohler, I turn to Andrea and told it would be a great day to drink in a cornfield. We threw around ideas of going to the gas station to having her dad bring us some wine. Since they sold wine and beer at Flora Fields, we decided we could totally drink in a cornfield.

Looking at our options of three beers, a rose wine, a sparkling wine, or a margarita in a can, we decided to go with wine. We were given the Rose... for $13 a glass. 

Since we didn't want to walk the entire large corn maze, we headed to the small corn maze. To my delight, we found the hidden games. There was checkers and tic-tac-toe.

We were going to play pumpkin checkers but I decided that would take too long.

So we played pumpkin Tic-Tac-Toe. I beat Andrea. 

For $13, the wine was awful. It was a dry Rose. We are not dry wine drinkers. I finished mine but Andrea tossed the rest of hers. We did keep the glasses.

We drank our wine in a cornfield while playing pumpkin games. Okay so maybe not quite the teenage experience most kids have but it was fun. 

I am so glad I have friends to indulge in my crazy, random ideas. If day drinking in a cornfield is not on your fall bucket list, it should be. It is the adult version of drinking in a cornfield. Maybe next year, we will bring our own wine and sip it while we navigate the corn maze.

5274. Go to Cleo’s in Appleton

 After Danielle and I browsed the closing exhibit at the Trout, we decided we should get a drink. We debated between Dirty Snowballs at Cleo's or Limoncello at the Latin Fusion place. Since I was never to Cleo's, Dirty Snowballs it was. 

Cleo's Brown Beam is a cocktail lounge downtown Appleton famous for it's year round Christmas decor. It opens at 2 pm every day except Sunday when it is closed. Unlike most bars in Wisconsin no minors are allowed even with parents. 

Since it was a Friday, they also had Old Fashions on special. It was a toss up for me between the Dirty Snowball and an Old Fashion. I decided to go with the Dirty Snowball.

Cleo's dirty snowball is 1 part vodka, 2 crème de cacao and 2 parts coffee liqueur topped with a splash of cream. It was told it tasted like a boozy milkshake. It really did.

If I didn't know there was coffee liqueur in it, I would have not known. It was definitely good but not something I would probably order again. I would definitely do an old fashioned again.

The Christmas themed bar was just fun to hang out in. The Christmas lights made it nice and cozy. They had a nice collection of nutcrackers. 

It may have taken me 20 years to get to Cleo's but it was worth the wait. We said we should drag Janis with us next time. I may have to take Stacy in the future. 

If you have never been to Cleo's, you need to go and check it out. It is definitely a fun place to get drinks. 

7102. Have a Brandy Alexander

My parents introduced me to ice cream drinks. Dad likes Brandy Alexanders and mom prefers Grasshoppers. Whenever we would have ice cream drinks at Christmas, I would do a Grasshopper. I love mint. However, I always wanted to try a Brandy Alexander. This year I got the chance at Lyle's Light 'Em New Years Eve Party -- an annual gathering of a few of the hubby's officiating buddies. 

Our host, Turkey, decided we were going to have ice cream drinks after our fabulous dinner. He gave us a choice of Brandy Alexander or Grasshopper. I know the hubby would rather have a Brandy Alexander so I that's what I said too. Why make Turkey do extra work.

Ingredients

• Brandy 
• Creme de Cacao
• Vanilla Ice Cream
• Milk
• Cinnamon

Steps

1. Add a few scoops of ice cream into the blender

2. Add some milk

3. Add a shot of Creme de Cacao

4. Add a shot of Brandy

5. Blend

6. Pour in a glass and add some cinnamon

Enjoy

A Brandy Alexander is good but I still prefer a Grasshopper. A Brandy Alexander just seems boring. It needs more flavor. It is definitely a hubby kind of drink.

Now that I've tried a Brandy Alexander, the next after drink cocktail I want to try is a Pink Squirrel.