This pretty girl has floppy ears and expressive eyes that will melt your heart - a 7 year old super sweet terrier pittie mix, who has been at the shelter since March - her foster family says she’s the kind of well behaved guest you want to stay!  Zero accidents, and she even puts herself to bed. Hera is a people pup - just like a people person, but so much better, so she’ll make a great only copilot. 

You can meet plenty of potential copilots at the Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter and of course foster homes are always needed. You can also help the shelter through donations, supplies or volunteering. Consider a Cage Sponsorship or contributing to their Medical Relief Fund. Every little bit helps!

This week our cocktail is a weird one. It's the Dirty Pasta Water Martini... but hear me out. My first reaction was Ew(!) then WHY?! But after reading about it, the science makes sense - pasta water is considered liquid gold in cooking for a reason; it adds a velvety smooth texture to sauces, and the silky mouthfeel is the point of this odd concoction. Being someone who loves the science and chemistry of cooking, I was now intrigued. If you like a classic or dirty martini - you'll most likely enjoy this oddball drink. 

It’s truly just the name “Dirty Pasta Water” that’s off putting, because yes, of course I tried it, and as promised, it had a silky feel, and I do like a good classic martini. The recipe is (if you dare). They really should rename it something more appealing, like the Silk Martini… or Velvet Gin Martini. Not long after trying this, I had a regular dirty martini - but something was missing. It just wasn't as good. I added pasta water and viola! It was delish. It really does enhance the flavor and texture...I think I'm hooked.

Dirty Pasta Water Martini

1/3 oz Dirty Pasta Water, cooled to room temp and strained (straining is a very important step)

2 oz Gin

Splash of Dry Vermouth

1/3 oz Olive Brine

Olives or Cocktail Onions for garnish

Pour pasta water, gin, vermouth and olive brine in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until well chilled. Strain into a martini glass with your favorite olives or cocktail onions. After you try this, you just might be ruined for a plain classic martini...

First, a huge thank you to you for sharing our featured dogs' information! Because of you, senior bonded pair Lilo & Stitch, the sweet mastiff Esmeralda, Stratus, the perfect gentleman and couch potato, Hank, the gentle giant and Buckley, the ladies man, all have their happily ever after homes!!

The final segment of my trip to Southern Tier covers why I went to begin with - there’s a new member to the Pumking family, Caramel Pumking, and to get a fall preview for you, but Lydia shared so much more and let me pick her brain for beer knowledge. In Part 1, we covered late summer brews and food pairings - plus Lydia’s personal concoction of a double IPA and a Sour, called Berry Gusher, which is refreshing, delish (and dangerous at 9% ABV). In Part 2, I was also introduced to a very unique brew that’s technically a red beer, but wine drinkers will enjoy, plus, an IPA for fall that I actually liked! 

So as we conclude this series, we look at those amazing fall brews that Southern Tier is best known for,  the amazing fall flavors of the Pumking Family and in using my new knowledge of how to properly taste beer, it was kind of like being reintroduced to them.

Now Pumking is described as “pumpkin pie in a glass,” delish, right? Well, not for some, and for those who don’t “pumpkin” but do enjoy spice, Lydia suggests trying Warlock, an imperial stout that is a part of the Pumking family. I heartily con​cur with her advice, as I fell in love with Warlock before Pumking. I now love both equally and it’s a fall staple for many craft brew enthusiasts. Caramel is the newest addition, and it is glorious. I feel like it adds a little extra depth and flavor that makes it even better. It may be my new fave. At their tap house on Prospect, you’ll also be able to enjoy a rum barrel version (Rumking) as well as a Chai Pumking…. and then, THEN, are you ready for this? There’s a Pumking Whiskey. Um…. If you notice I’m missing this fall, I’ll be at Southern Tier….

​An absolute MUST try, is their dessert pretzel bites, which goes amazingly with any of the Pumking beers, but especially well with Caramel Pumking. Remember, Pumkingfest is tomorrow September 9th at the tap house on Prospect!

A HUGE thank you to Lydia for letting me hijack her evening and tap her brain for all kinds of brew info! 

M​eet Mary Poppins​!! She is the lovely pup we want to introduce to you!! Mary is a 5 year old​, white and tan pittie mix and according to the folks at the shelter she is practically perfect in every way! She’s calm, loves other dogs and would be excellent with kids!! If you’re looking for a super sweet family pup, she just might be your spoonful of sugar. You can meet Mary Poppins in person at the Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter, or, if you can’t adopt, Mary Poppins does need a foster home to finish recovering from heartworm as she finishes treatments and remember, you can always help by sharing her information. 

You can meet plenty of potential copilots at the Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter and of course foster homes are always needed. You can also help the shelter through donations, supplies or volunteering. Consider a Cage Sponsorship or contributing to their Medical Relief Fund. Every little bit helps!

You can also take a look at our previously featured pups, such as Bruno, an energetic 1 1/2 year old fresh out of school with Miracle K9. Hera, with great leash manners, expressive eyes and floppy ears, or, consider Jewels, a fun loving energetic gem who loves to play and would make a great addition to a family with a lonely pup.

For part 2 of my trip to Southern Tier on Prospect, we’re taking a look at the transitional summer to fall beers on offer - for days like we had this week - chilly, but not cold, yet, warm but not hot. There are a few brews Southern Tier offers for this transition, and I think their Praise the Haze IPA is a good option - very, very piney, a classic east coast IPA, (just like a Carolina Pine Forest), is one for those days that are definitely still summer like. Southern Tier recommends their Harvest IPA. Now, I don’t generally like IPA’s, yet, I love this one. It was also my favorite to pair with their brisket meatballs with IPA Marinara. All their IPA’s are great with that dish, but, there’s something I love about the Harvest with that pairing and as an IPA in general. It’s a fuller body IPA that’s surprisingly smooth. Lydia from Southern Tier refers to it as her “leaf blowing beer,” a perfect end to a day of cleaning up fallen leaves. I also highly recommend any of their IPA's with their fried pickles with Nashville Hot Aioli... especially if you like the heat to linger (if you want to cut the heat Legacy Lager is the brew for you). Speaking of the Nashville Hot Aioli, it's a game changer in the world of aioli and heat. Truly delish.

Next, the beer I personally think is perfect for transition, the Redwood Redemption - and even early winter.This is described as a beer that’s like a red wine - it’s a “wine drinkers” beer, and a good one to stock for those “I only drink wine” guests, because it’s my bet that they’ll no longer adhere to their “wine only” rule.It’s an incredibly unique beer - quite possibly the most unique beer I’ve ever tasted. It’s like someone brewed a wine. “She’s a breed all her own - she’s a unique brew” is what Lydia says concerning Redwood Redemption. So far, it’s been great with anything you’d pair with red wine. Marinara, pizza, a rich burger. It’s smooth, but not sweet, not too heavy or too light. I also think it’ll be great with a bonfire on a cold night. Lydia and I both thought it’d make a great companion to a hearty chili, and if you put beer in your chili, this one is a great choice. Considering we’re definitely not done with the hot weather, be sure to check out the Southern Tier brews still on offer for summer in That’s What She Drank Jaci’s Visit to Southern Tier Part 1. Again, big thanks to Lydia for sharing all her brewery information and taste guidance and to Nikki who took care of us.

We of course explored the flavors of the Pumking Family, (including the new Caramel Pumking), and if you're a Pumking fan, one date to put on your calendar is Saturday, September 9th because it's Pumking Fest starting at noon at Southern Tier Brewery. Another prominent date is the following day, Sunday the 10th as they are releasing their CLE Brew'd Brown Ale and celebrating the game with $5 dollar drafts of the football season's brew.

To be continued...

This week, we've been giving away Cedar Point single day passes with the Easiest Trivia Ever which has been about the rides, past present and future, and we've been having a great time reminiscing - we've had listeners chime in who've worked there with the amusement park's motto burned into her psyche, some remembering how rough a ride Mean Streak was (truly mean indeed), and the Blue Streak was one of our listeners very first real coaster ride.

We are SO talking about Bruno!! That is the name of the pup we want you to introduce you to this week. Bruno is a fun, energetic guy who came to the shelter when he was just 9 months old - he’s now almost a year and a half, which means he’s spent almost 1/2 of his life in a shelter, and doesn’t know much of a home life. The folks at the shelter realized this and hooked him up with Miracle K9 training for 30 days and he came back with leash manners and knows all kinds of cammands - he even comes when called, and he is continuing to learn off leash commands. His new family gets his training info plus follow up visits with Miracle K9! Bruno would make a great jogging or hiking buddy. He loves the water and his toys and could become quite the agility pup. Bruno does like playing with other dogs, but will probably be happiest as an only copilot. He also likes kids, but they recommend his new family have kids 14 and older.

You can meet Bruno, (or any featured pup) in person at the Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter, and if you can’t adopt, please share his information. Foster homes are always needed. You can also help the shelter through donations, supplies or volunteering. Consider a Cage Sponsorship or contributing to their Medical Relief Fund. Every little bit helps!

You can also take a look at our previously featured pups such as Hera, with great leash manners, expressive eyes and floppy ears, or, consider Jewels, a fun loving energetic gem who loves to play and would make a great addition to a family with a lonely pup.

Last night, I met with Lydia from Southern Tier at their taproom on Prospect with the intent of doing a fall preview… but… when you get two people together who are passionate about beer, food and love their jobs, well, it turns into something bigger, and well, we ended up closing the place down.

The thing is, everything I've ever had from Southern Tier, I've liked, (and would go as far as to say loved), so it was truly a pleasure to hang out and learn the methods to their insanely delicious madness. They take flavor seriously, have a great work environment, (similar to 107.3, the coworkers really care about each other), and have an incredibly knowledgeable and passionate staff. 

We covered the seasonal layers of flavor, food and beer pairings, (along with what's a bad idea to pair, but that one was all me), and how it changes what you thought you tasted, local ingredients, and what makes Cleveland such a great beer city. So this is now part 1. Some of what I learned is if you’re testing out a new brewery, do what actual brewers do and check out their pilsner, or a lager as they’re harder to perfect than you think, so testing that will reveal more than trying a hazy IPA that can cover flaws. I learned how to appropriately taste a beer, and it starts with a quick pass of the nose. Second, take a little longer to sniff. Take a tiny taste, give it a beat then a bigger sip to get the full experience of the flavors of the beer. Even though I had already had some of the beers in the flight, doing this really was like taking a moment to enjoy the beer fully. 

Even though I did preview some fall flavors, we are still technically in summer, so if you just can’t with pumpkin yet, Lydia showed me what is still on for summer, starting with a sour. Sours seem to have become increasingly more popular since we first saw them on brewery menus. This Year's Anything Gose is a watermelon sour, and as someone who is "meh" about sours, this one is great. Light, very refreshing. Even though it’s a sour, it still maintains the characteristics of a beer (not all do). If you’re looking to give sours a try, this one is a good one to start with. I also highly recommend the Fried Pickles (made in house) with Nashville Hot Aioli. IPA fans - definitely try Praise the Haze, North East IPA - (Also great with the pickles). Southern Tier's Legacy Lager Is probably my favorite to date, it's so incredibly smooth - it tones down the "hot" in the Nashville Hot Aioli, and is pretty much their baseball season beer. My Secret Weiss - a lovely wheat, great on its own but also delish if you decide to add a slice of orange to it. Harvest IPA Is a great accompaniment to their Brisket Meatballs with IPA Marinara, and great for the Fried Pickles as well. Ideally, Lydia recommends pairing IPA's with fattier foods in general. 

Then... There's Lydia’s own personal concoction, coined "Berry Gusher," a fruity combination of Southern Tier’s Juice Jolt mixed with Victory’s (their brother brewery) Berry Monkey; it packs a hella punch and goes down dangerously easy. Very fruity and oh so good, and yep - still very (or berry), summery, and just SO GOOD. I highly recommend her brilliant combination.

BIG Thanks to Lydia for letting me hijack one of her evenings, and big thanks to Nikki who took great care of us.

To be continued...

Buckley is a handsome bulldog mix - and if Petey, the Little Rascals dog and the RCA dog Nipper had a love puppy - it'd be Buckley! Am I right? Buckley is a bit of a lady's man since he knows he's got it going on in the looks department and the ladies pups do too - a home with girl fur kids will work, not so much with boys as Buckley likes being the boss. As for humans? He loves all, big and small! He does need a little help in the leash department, but, once he gets up to speed on his leash manners, the folks at the shelter believe he’ll be the whole package. You can meet Buckley at the Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter

You can meet Buckley, (or any featured pup) in person at the Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter, and if you can’t adopt please share his information. Foster homes are always needed and it's free to do! You can also help the shelter through donations, supplies or volunteering. Consider a Cage Sponsorship or contributing to their Medical Relief Fund. Every little bit helps!

Take a look at our previously featured pups! Adorbs with a 'z' Hera, or Stratus, the nice, good guy gent, Jewels, a fun loving bulldog mix who loves to play and would make a great addition to a family with a lonely pup, or, Esmeralda, a lovely 3 year old brindle mastiff mix with good leash manners who loves attention, although once the zoomies kick in, because of her size, she can't really stop on a dime, so a house with older kids is ideal.