My wife and I took a trip. We were going to spend a week on Lake Superior's North Shore. M H Stroh had a poetry reading - her great poems from the self published collection "Mouthful of Agates". Friends were there. Fans were there, too. I also had a show at one of Duluth's newest breweries, Ursa Minor. It was a great space, with delicious beer and fantastic merchandise. The sound system made it hard for me to hear what I was sounding like, but the folks in attendance seemed to enjoy it all right. So, it was a working vacation of sorts. Our cabin was situated 25 to 30 feet from Lake Superior so we were able to fall asleep, and wake up to, the sound of the waves crashing on the rock. Hiking through Tettegouche, Split Rock Light House, and Gooseberry Falls State Parks afforded some great views. The weather was mostly nice, save the over-night blizzard we endured. We lost power and rode out the storm playing board games by flashlight.  
 
Beans, Messerole. They're here for the beans.

Before making our trip up the shore, we spent a couple of days in the Twin Cities metropolitan area where we ate and drank to our content. One of the first stops we made was the highly touted Modist Brewing Company. They didn't have a kitchen, but were accompanied by a food truck. An increasingly common site among the plethora of tap rooms I've visited. The Big Red Wagon had a variety of foods to offer, but we settled in on an order of cheese curds and a cup of baked beans. Health food. The beans from The Big Red Wagon were served in a nice sized paper cup, and they even provided me with a spoon. Read about that in the last few posts. From what I could gather, there was a couple different types of beans in this mixture and they were cooked very well. There were no vegetables to be found in this offering, but there was  hearty amount of pulled pork thrown into the mix. That coupled with the well cooked beans made for a fantastic consistency in the dish. The meat and beans were served in a robust sauce that carried your taste buds off in a variety of directions. Left scattered like dandelion pappus in metaphorical fields of sweet, spicy, and smokey flavors. These baked beans were served up in a great bean-to-sauce ratio, as well. If I can find a downfall to this dish, it's that they were served borderline cold. That, certainly, doesn't make it impossible to eat, it's just not what I had expected. Hence the 3 point consistency rating. Otherwise, these were nearly perfect.

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 4
Flavor: 5
Mouthfeel: 3

Total Score: 12
Tied for the highest score yet. 

For what it's worth,
​Modist Brewing's Apiary Drip: 5

My wife and I were headed up to St. Paul, MN for the Northern Lights Rare & Vintage Beer Festival. It was the 4th year that we've made the journey up to sample 3 floors worth of incredible craft beer inside the gorgeous Minnesota History Center. It's a fundraiser for Pints for Prostates, so you're really drinking for a good cause. As if I need one. Hunger struck us in southern Minnesota. Megan launched a full scale investigation into our dining options. Thank you, Google. 3rd Street Tavern was new to us, and their menu sounded delicious. In an otherwise bland stretch of food territory, it was a welcomed site. The restaurant itself was a trendy space with a kind staff.

​Kind staff? Sure. But, bring on those beans...

At 3rd Street Tavern they were served up in a nice sized, classic two-toned, ceramic ramekin. There was a large sized helping of the beans at least. Unfortunately, I wasn't given a spoon to eat them with. It's become an increasingly common problem. Am I crazy to want to use a spoon? Fork and beans. Fear not! I was able to overcome. The order itself was a single bean variety, and those beans were over cooked. I mean, well on their way to being refried. There was little substance to them and they'd best be described as mushy. Yes, mushy. I've used it before and, unfortunately, I'll probably have to use it again. The culinary minds behind these beans were not shy with the white onion. At all. Unlike the beans, the onions could have used a lot more time in the pot before they were dished up. The onion flavor was nearly overwhelming in contrast to the brown sugary-sweet sauce the beans were served in. Onion wasn't the only vegetable in the mix, these beans were also cooked with diced red bell pepper. I found this to be a nice addition, and uncommon. There were all sorts of textures in this dish. The mush of the beans and the crunch of the onion were complemented by a plethora of chunks of pork belly and smoked sausage. Easily the best part of the dish. The smoked meat helped add a smokier flavor that the side dish was otherwise missing. The addition of the meat saved this from being a complete mess, with the beans being way over cooked and the onion being under cooked. 

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 3
Flavor: 2
Mouthfeel: 2

Total Score: 7

For what it's worth,
​Northern Lights Rare & Vintage Beer Festival: 5

Yankton, South Dakota has become something of a second home to me while I’m out on the road. I have good friends in Ted & Alice Miller that live just outside of town, and I’ve had some of my more enjoyable shows at The AME Church, Ben’s Brewing, and The 6th Meridian Hop Farm. The second weekend in November had me back in Yankton for two more shows at the aforementioned Ben’s Brewing and AME Church. Friday night and Saturday night respectively. I got to split the Friday evening bill with The Millers and both of my shows went off without a hitch. Well, save getting pulled over Saturday night. No worries though, the Cedar County Sheriff’s Department deputy was kind. In between shows, my wife and I found more Midwest sushi and, you guessed it, BBQ.

If you’re still reading, it’s for the beans.

At Backroad BBQ, you have two different baked bean sides to choose from. I, of course, picked the "Smokey Baked Beans". My order was served up nice and hot in a classic ceramic bowl. This side dish was intriguing at first glance. Even though it was only a single bean variety, there was brisket and plenty of black pepper sprinkled in. These beans were cooked to a near perfect consistency and the brisket cooked down to be even more tender in the pot.

On a side note, I had their brisket burnt ends as a main course and they were delicious. Perfectly tender, served without sauce, and given a simple salt and pepper rub down before being smoked.

Anyhow, there was finely chopped white onion cooked in with the beans and that helped add to the sweetness of the sauce these beans were served in. Overall, this side dish did not have the smokey gusto that their name would suggest. Though, the brisket did help add a little smoke flavor to the dish.

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 3
Flavor: 3
Mouthfeel: 4

Total Score: 10

For what it’s worth,
6th Meridian Hop Farm's Craft Beer Garden: 5

My right hand man, and drummer, Tim Schroeder took a trip up to Mason City to work an afternoon show at Fat Hill Brewing. I had really been looking forward to this show and getting into this new venue. The show went well, despite being subjected to being background for some newlyweds wedding pictures. The joke is on them, though. They’re going to have my mug peeking up behind them in their wedding pictures for the rest of their lives. I must say, "Sweat Equity" ended up being a pretty decent first dance song. On top of that excitement, J.D. Scholten happened to stop into the tap room towards the end of our set. I did have a chance to talk to him, and he’s a fine man. I’m really disappointed his senate run didn’t turn out differently. Tim and I ate at The Rib Crib after the show. Then, like real “rock stars”, we grabbed several specialty bottles of beer and drank them in the hotel room. It had a pool, and we used it.

But, back to that dinner

At The Rib Crib, the baked beans are served up in the customary small black side dish. This batch was a single bean variety. The beans were over cooked and slightly mushy, unfortunately. However, there were large chunks of bacon and diced green peppers in the mix to help improve the dish’s consistency. The sauce on these beans was straight sweetness and there was no heat or smoke flavor present in this traditional BBQ side. My offering had a very high "sauce-to-bean" ratio, bordering on soup.

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 3
Flavor: 3
Mouthfeel: 2

Total score: 8

For what it’s worth,
​Fat Hill Brewing’s Brut IPA: 5

It was a Saturday afternoon and I was heading back to Marshalltown, IA for another show at Iowa River Brewing Company. I split the night with a pop country trio and the plates on their RV showed they were from Minnesota. That was...what it was. Anyhow, the weather was nice that evening and I got to play outside on Iowa River Brewing's beautiful patio. I had a good group of folks turn out to the show and show some love for my songs. A standing ovation had never happened for me, until that night. But, back to the trip. Fortunately for me Bondurant was on the route, directly. I swung into Reclaimed Rails Brewing Company that has, again fortunately for me, partnered with the next door barbecue joint Boxcar BBQ. Craft beer and barbecue. My heart, and stomach, were full. 

​Getting sappy. Back to the food!

These beans were served up in the classic white styrofoam cup and they were steaming hot. These were of a single bean variety and came served up in a sweet sauce. If they had had a little more spice to them, these would have been near perfect baked beans. In addition to the beans, this dish had a small amount of finely diced white onion cooked in it. The geniuses behind this concoction also threw in large chunks of their pulled pork, which added a nice change in consistency from the perfectly cooked beans. Plus, you get a sampling of their delicious pulled pork as a bonus. 

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 3
Flavor: 4
Mouthfeel: 5

Total Score: 12
The best beans I've had all year. 

For what it's worth,
Reclaimed Rails Brewing Company's 1884 Coffee & Cream Ale (not pictured): 5

I made my way down to Omaha on a Friday night. I had thrown my hat in on a 4 songwriter bill at The Barley Street Tavern. It's situated on a side street, next to an alley, in the "up and coming" Benson neighborhood. The Barley Street Tavern was a diamond in the rough...except the opposite of that. An old tree stump in the middle of a wildflower field. That doesn't quite have the same ring to it, but you get the point. It was comfortable being a dive bar in an otherwise gentrified part of town. A dive bar of the first order, I'll have you know. Neon sign and all. I had a short set that went well, and it was a pleasure to share time with 3 other talented guys. I especially liked Tom Bartolomei's songs and I think you would too. 

Unsolicited artist promo over.

Let me tell you. These beans were...sold out. They must have been good. If the green beans, ribs, or cornbread were any indication, I'm sure they were delicious. Also I got creamed cucumbers instead of coleslaw, but I'm not complaining. 

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 0
Flavor: 0
Mouthfeel: 0

Total Score: 0

For what it's worth,
​Tom Bartolomei's songs: 5
(Now the unsolicited artist promo is over)

The Stone Horses and I had set ourselves up for a weekend of adventure. I borrowed a 1986 Winnebago Chieftan RV from a friend in town. I loaded myself, the band, all our instruments, and a documentarian into that thing and pointed it towards Sioux Falls, South Dakota. When we were done in Sioux Falls, we'd make our way to Auburn, Iowa where we'd record our first full band album. It was a long, drunken, music filled couple of days. But, don't let me get the cart ahead of the horses. Saturday, April 21st was record store day, and it was our turn to record a few songs for a great TV series, based out of the lower level of the The Last Stop CD Shop in Sioux Falls, called The White Wall Sessions. The guys at The White Wall Sessions are top notch and make a really great program. We were honored to be a part of it. We got all but one song done in one take. I sure had trouble with Henrietta, Queen of the Highway. We eventually got it all down and it felt good. I know, working with those guys, that it will sound good by the time it hits the airwaves. Anyway, there was this food truck, Harry's Yellow Submarine, parked out in the parking lot at the studio and the guys we worked with told us that Harry's baked beans were "the best in the world", or at least that's what he told everyone.

​I knew I wasn't getting out of that parking lot without trying these things.

These beans were served up, as a healthy portion, in a paper cup. They were warm, but not too hot. This appeared to be a single variety of bean, and they were definitely over cooked. With regards to consistency, these things were closer to refried beans than they were to baked beans. On the plus side, Harry has thrown in all kinds of meat scraps with the beans and that helps with consistency and flavor. These beans were in a  mostly sweet BBQ sauce. There was some spice to the sauce, but no smoke flavor to be found. I never thought I'd be eating baked beans from the driver's seat of a Winnebago, but there I was.

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 3
Flavor: 3
Mouthfeel: 2

Total Score: 8

For what it's worth,
Handling in a 1986 Winnebago Chieftan: 0

I was right in the middle of a two night run in central Iowa. The night before I had played at Back Country Winery outside of Stratford, Iowa and I was killing time until my first performance at Iowa River Brewing Company in Marshalltown. Aside from the brewery and this BBQ joint, I didn't find much to do in Marshalltown (if you've got recommendations for things to do in the area, let me know. I'm going back two more times this summer).  The "Smoked Philly Sandwich" from Smokin' G's was delicious. Packed full of great smoked brisket, fresh peppers and onions, and plenty of cheese.

But, you're here for the beans.

For starters, I wasn't supplied with a spoon to eat them. That's not the end of the world, but it's less than ideal. The beans were steaming hot when they were brought to my table, and served in a small bowl. The beans themselves were a single bean variety and were firm in their consistency. The sauce on these particular baked beans were full of brown sugar sweetness. Unfortunately, there was no heat or smoke flavor to the sauce. There was a small presence of finely diced white onion in the dish, but all onion flavor was masked by the brown sugar flavor. I don't want to go so far as to say these baked beans were straight from a can, but I'd be very surprised if they weren't.

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 1
Flavor: 2
Mouthfeel: 3

Total Score: 6

For what it's worth,
Back Country Winery's Frontenac Gris: 5

This first blog post is me playing catch up from February 17th. The boys in the band and I stopped at Jethro and Jake’s in Altoona, Iowa on our way back home from a show at Big Grove Brewery in Iowa City the night before. We drove through a freak snow storm, and wound up stalled on the highway for over an hour while they cleaned up a multi-car pile up. We got out of it ok. However, we pulled into the parking lot and some dude hits the door of our rig with his car, and he has the nerve to call the cops and interrupt our meal.

But, I digress.

​This serving was of a satisfying size. Sure it's only a side dish, but that's what I'm coming for. This dish had a variety of beans to it. White, red, and black. The addition of bacon helped add consistency to the dish. The beans were cooked to a great consistency, not mushy but not hard. The sauce was mostly sweet with a slight vinegar kick. There was no discernible heat or smoke flavor with these baked beans. Strong. Right out of the gate.

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 4
Flavor: 3
Mouthfeel: 4

Total Score: 11

For what it’s worth,
Altoona Police Department: 5

As I travel for shows, I'm going to rate baked beans as I try them at different restaurants. I will include a rating system as well as pictures. Exciting, right?