Bike and Brew: Tox Brewing Company

Once the explosion of craft breweries in Connecticut began to hit a fever pitch, I wondered how long it would be before one was established in New London. Even with the popular Outer Light Brewing Company located just across the river in Groton, eastern Connecticut still has a pretty low number of breweries per capita and a brewery would certainly bolster New London's efforts to be a "hip little city."

New London finally got its own brewery this spring when Tox Brewing Company opened its doors. Heading directly there would make for a pretty lame Bike and Brew; after all, the place is about half a mile from my house with hardly anything along the way other than an intersection stuffed with car dealerships.

So I figured a ramble along the coast before hitting the brewery would be a better outing.

New London faces a lot of challenges: it's a tiny city, measuring about six square miles. Its downtown has quite a few vacant storefronts, and many properties are tax-exempt (including a hospital, three colleges, and a plethora of churches).

Still, quite a few people are upbeat about New London's present and future. I took the photos above from a single spot, showcasing the "Whale Oil Row" of Greek Revival buildings and the Garde Arts Center, a beloved local theater.

Biking in the city is a bit of a challenge, but drivers are usually pretty accommodating of cyclists. After making my way through the center of the city, I paid a visit to the Fort Trumbull peninsula. There's an impressive fort preserved on the waterfront here, and it has some fascinating history to it. Late in the Revolutionary War, a British force led by Benedict Arnold attacked the fort as well as another one across the river in Groton. Fort Trumbull was later used as a Navy research center, and has only been a state park for about two decades.

Unfortunately, people probably know Fort Trumbull more for its association with the infamous Kelo v. New London case. The Supreme Court narrowly decided that pharmaceutical giant Pfizer could use eminent domain to take over property on the peninsula for a development to support the nearby headquarters it had built in New London.

Then they never actually carried through on the development, and abandoned the headquarters as soon as their tax incentives ran out. So there you have it: the company that makes Viagra is run by a bunch of dicks.

I should point out that the empty parcels are clear and ready for development, though. Some armchair activists out there have screamed that the site is now being used as a garbage dump, probably because it was briefly a staging ground to take care of fallen trees and other debris after Hurricane Irene.

From Fort Trumbull, Pequot Avenue allows a lovely route along the Thames River where it empties into Long Island Sound. It terminates near Ocean Beach Park, a popular white sand beach with a half-mile boardwalk and plenty of summer amusements.

Continuing along the coast, you soon cross into Waterford and find yourself at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. This campus-style environment has several different performing stages, plus a collection of cottages for actors and other residents to stay. It also has a nice-looking little pub on the premises, but unfortunately that was heavily damaged by a burst pipe and is currently under repair.

Just below the theater center is Waterford Beach, which has the same white sand as Ocean Beach but none of the development.

Much the the coastline in this area is preserved, with Harkness Memorial State Park being the next site you come across. The park is the former homestead of a family who made a bundle of money on Standard Oil and later invested it into several philanthropic causes. They left the property to be used as a state park, and tours of the Harkness mansion are available in summer. The home also has stunning gardens, which were already coming into bloom during the early spring ride.

Farther along down the coast is Seaside, which recently became a state park under more controversial circumstances. A former tuberculosis sanatorium, and later a mental health facility, the site was popular with urban explorers before being fenced off by the state. It's still a nice secluded place to take in a view of the water.

Continuing along Shore Road brings you along an inlet with several palatial houses and a place called Pleasure Beach. This beach is a bit of an odd one: it's divided into thirds, with one part open to the public, another open to nearby residents, and another open to members.

We New Londoners sometimes see the Waterford crowd as a bit high-and-mighty, especially those who turn their noses up at the city rabble, and this sign might be the best illustration of that. This is just one of several signs set up along the area bordering the public part of Pleasure Beach, angrily warning off potential trespassers and demanding that qualified beachgoers wear their identification badges to show that they belong.

All for a tiny beach with a view of a nuclear power plant. Whatever floats your boat, exclusive Waterford crowd.

That about covered the interesting things to see along the coast, so I made a straight shot back to New London to stop in at Tox.

Tox Brewing Company is set up in a former fruit market. The name refers to one of the founders' background in toxicology, which also explains the poison dart frog logo. I'm still hoping they'll figure out a way to slap some glow-in-the-dark paint on that.

This was pretty close to the opening weekend of the brewery, so there was a rather large crowd. Still, I was able to get a seat at a comfortable lounge area set up in one half of the space. The brewery has done a great job with the interior; the toxicology theme is carried on with a wall display of old pharmacy bottles (and beers from other local breweries), and the taps are shaped like mushrooms. Just for fun, they've also housed the iPad used for transactions in an old Macintosh.

As a new brewery promotion, Tox was offering a deal where for $10 you got a keepsake tasting beaker and four pours to be tracked with wooden nickels. I was also happy to see them support the local paper (which happens to be my employer) and that they had a robust game collection.

I sampled some of their IPAs and darker beers, and was impressed by both. In particular, the Deadly Nightshade coffee milk stout was excellent.

So much, in fact, that I opted to get a growler of it. That's certainly a benefit of ending a Bike and Brew just a few minutes' ride from home.

Total mileage: 18.97 miles

Previous Bike and Brew Outings:
Outer Light Brewing Company
Beer'd Brewing Company
Fox Farm Brewery
Shelter Island Craft Brewery and Greenport Harbor Brewing Company
Barley Head Brewery
These Guys Brewing Company and Epicure Brewing
Mohegan Cafe and Brewery
Noble Jay Brewing Company

I Make Fun of State Quarters: Indiana

Parks and Recreation has ruined Indiana.

The sitcom, which ran on NBC from 2009 to 2015, is based in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana. Early episodes did more to lampoon the ridiculousness of small town politics and town meeting grandstanding, and Pawnee and its residents maintain a certain degree of insanity throughout the series. But the show quickly became more character-driven, dominated in particular by two leads: Leslie Knope, who is fiercely devoted to her community and tirelessly seeks to use her position in town government to improve the city, and Ron Swanson, a libertarian pillar of non-toxic masculinity.

So why would the portrayal of such likable characters and a quirky but pleasant town be a bad thing for Indiana? Well, because the show was filmed in California. So while Indiana does have some impressive forests, the towering peaks that appear in a few episodes put something of a grandiose spin on the state's natural areas. Especially when its tallest point, Hoosier Hill, tops out at a measly 1,257 feet.

The mighty heights of Hoosier Hill (Source)

And while I'm sure Indiana has its dedicated and likable civil servants, Knope and Swanson set a pretty high bar. It's a bit tough to imagine anyone with political persuasions as different as theirs having their respectable and productive relationship in this era.

Perhaps the most aggravating thing for the purposes of this blog is that Parks and Recreation is the first thing I thought of when doing my usual association game with the state. It was a fictional city, followed by Mike Pence, Indianapolis (showing up in my head as an indistinct collection of blocky skyscrapers), Mayor Pete (rising in the polls as he is), a city full of oil tanks that Stephen King had Trashcan Man burn down in The Stand, and that crummy Indianapolis mayor I wrote about once who promised he would run all of his public works appointments by a Ku Klux Klan grand dragon first.

It's kind of a desultory selection, with the exception of Mayor Pete (who was still in college at the time the Indiana quarter was selected, and has actually been compared to lovable Parks and Recreation nerd/policy wonk Ben Wyatt). Maybe Indiana's quarter should just make their quarter mimic a basketball and be done with it. Is that what they did?

(Source)

Oh right, that car race where drivers go around in circles for 500 miles. That somehow slipped my mind.

The Indy 500 is probably the best the state could have done in terms of quarter design, to be honest. I perused the Wikipedia page for Indiana to see what sort of interesting attractions and history and whatnot that I might be overlooking. And the resounding response was, "Really not that much."

Now I know that might seem a little mean, but let's review some of the other finalists for the state quarter:

(Source)

"Indiana: Trains and boats pass us by."

(Source)

"Indiana: Iowa's not the only state with corn."

To be fair, the same argument could probably be applied to most states. I live in Connecticut, which wound up going with the storied history of the Charter Oak; of course Nutmeggers probably know what this is while everyone else sees the message as "Connecticut: We have trees."

Which, incidentally, is similar to another suggestion that was included among the Indiana finalists.

(Source)

"Indiana: We have rocks."

Bike and Brew: Noble Jay Brewing Company

Note: Noble Jay Brewing Company closed sometime around September 2020

This past winter marked the first time I used a bike trainer over the winter. I mentioned to a friend that I had been looking into trainers as a way to stay in shape during the colder months, and he happened to have one he wasn't using. It was a fairly simple setup, allowing me to mount my bike and conveniently do some mild resistance training whenever the spirit moved me.

But after a long winter, the first warm day of the season immediately beckoned me to get the bike out on the road. My wife and I were already planning to meet with some friends to check out the Noble Jay Brewing Company, which had opened in the late summer of 2018. It was simple enough for me to leave early by two wheels, with my wife following by car a couple of hours later.

Within a few pedal strokes of setting out, I was reminded how different it is to ride outside. For one thing, the wind can be pretty fierce and chilly - especially in March. And it's easy to forget how bumpy the roads are when you've had a smooth ride all winter.

I struck out for East Lyme along Broad Street, which happens to pass by the first brewery scheduled to open in New London in ages. It was just about ready to open when I did this ride, and has since entered Connecticut's ever-growing craft beer scene. More on them in a post in the hopefully near future.

East Lyme is just two towns away, with the community of Waterford in between. The easiest bike route there, in my opinion, is a pair of back roads that bypasses a small glut of supermarkets and other heavy development and traffic. It brings you out just beyond Jordan Village, one of Waterford's many little neighborhoods. It's characterized mainly by a terrific little restaurant, When Pigs Fly, that inadvertently annoys its neighbors by bringing in so many visitors that it stresses the available parking.

This way into East Lyme proceeds along a pleasant route known as Rope Ferry Road, with a few rolling hills along the way. A particularly grueling one is just beyond Jordan Village, but thankfully didn't present too much of a challenge. Winter training pays off!

I went biking on a fairly cloudy day, so these pictures unfortunately don't do much justice to what a beautiful place the Niantic village of East Lyme is. You approach this neighborhood on a drawbridge over the Niantic River. On a warm and sunny day, the river and its nearby cove are full of boaters and the wide expanse of Long Island Sound glitters off to the left.

I'll get a second chance to get a photo of this view, though, because I'll need to head back to check out a second brewery in town. Normally I would have just included it with this ride, but this second business (The Niantic Public House and Brewery) was closed - on Sunday of all days.

Speaking of the bridge, that's where I ran into another aspect of outdoor cycling that you don't experience on a trainer: flat tires. I've probably had more flats in Connecticut than anywhere else I've ridden a bike. I'm starting to suspect that the drivers in the state (who, to be fair, include a surprisingly large amount of New Yorkers and New Jerseyites) are just a neverending stream of assholes chucking bottles out their car windows.

Luckily, this was just about the best possible ride and place to have this issue. The village has a nice bike shop, Niantic Bay Bicycles, which keeps Sunday hours. One quick repair and I was good to go, with the determination that I'll finally start carrying a spare tube and tire levers to go with my portable pump and patch kit.

Noble Jay isn't far from Rocky Neck State Park, one of East Lyme's premiere attractions. The park is quite extensive, with hiking trails and campsites filling in the space between the highway and the shore. Once you get there, you're rewarded by a beautiful, expansive beach. Even on a gray chilly day, people were out enjoying the scenery.

Rocky Neck also has an impressive stone pavilion overlooking the water. This was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps and is still periodically used for weddings and such.

 

Plenty of breweries are located off the beaten path, and this is particularly true of the Noble Jay Brewing Company. There's a small industrial park near Rocky Neck, butting up against the access to the interstate, with an odd mix of businesses. These include an insurance company, gym, and wholesale bakery. The brewery has taken over a space in one of a group of four small buildings that are home to everything from welders to tiny gyms.

Noble Jay focuses primarily on craft lagers, but they do other styles as well. I'd been to the brewery once before and tried a flight, and didn't want to imbibe too much beer before the ride home, so I limited myself to one beer: a nice, smooth Irish stout made for the St. Patrick's Day holiday.

Bike and Brew has changed a bit since my daughter was born late in 2017, as evidenced by the snacks and milk my wife brought to the brewery along with a growler. Newborn responsibilities made these rides all but impossible last year, but now she's flexible enough that I'm hoping to do at least a few journeys in 2019, most likely similar trips where I rendezvous with my wife at the destination.

Millennials with young children are becoming a pretty common sight at breweries, and Fox Farm merits special credit for a) having a children's play area and b) putting changing tables in the men's room. Noble Jay is much more of a bare bones setup, but my little girl still had a ball exploring the space.

Niantic is a terrific little village, very friendly and walkable with a lot of great shops and restaurants; again, this photo doesn't really do it justice. There's also a nice boardwalk that runs along the sea, along with some pleasant beaches and parks on the shore.

I'll save a more in-depth dive into Niantic for my next visit to the town, whenever I get around to seeing the Niantic Public House and Brewery.

The ride back introduced me to another aspect of outdoor riding that I'd forgotten about: it's a lot more tiring to do a lengthy ride than it is to hop on the trainer for half an hour and hop off whenever you feel like it. I was feeling wiped out well before I arrived back home.

The return journey pretty much retraced my steps, although I decided to switch it up enough to swing by Stenger Farm Park. This town park on a former farm has pleasant, easy trails running through it; it also has a dog park, which probably attracts the lion's share of visitors.

And that's the Noble Jay trip! Stay tuned for a journey to Tox Brewing.

Total mileage: 23.9 miles

Previous Bike and Brew Outings:
Outer Light Brewing Company
Beer'd Brewing Company
Fox Farm Brewery
Shelter Island Craft Brewery and Greenport Harbor Brewing Company
Barley Head Brewery
These Guys Brewing Company and Epicure Brewing
Mohegan Cafe and Brewery

Trailer Play by Play: Stranger Things Season Three

The second season finale of Stranger Things could have served as a concise end to the series, if they had wanted to give it a British-style wrap-up after a limited number of episodes. Everything's wrapped up in a nice package: the portal to the Upside Down is closed, the sinister Hawkins National Laboratory is shuttered, Sheriff Hopper has taken guardianship of Eleven, there's been #JusticeForBarb, and our heroes all seem to be having a pretty good time at a 1984 school dance.

But they also teased a shot of the formidable Mind Flayer in the other dimension, hinting that all is not well in fictional Indiana. And thus the story continues with the third season of the series, set to debut on July 4, and a trailer recently dropped.

Well this seems like a fun candidate for a play-by-play. Let's see what's in store:

In an opening vignette, Dustin returns home from camp feeling depressed that no one is around to give him a welcome except his turtle. Takeaway #1: Yertle managed to survive Dart's ravages. Takeaway #2: Tews does not care that Dustin is home, because he is a cat.

Dustin is lured into his living room after his electronic R2-D2 and companions come to life and shuffle away. Like all good pals, his friends have broken into his house and are planning a surprise "welcome back" using telepathy. The last part is Eleven's doing, naturally. She's apparently a bit out of practice, given that she was throwing boxcars around last season and now she's getting a nosebleed from piloting half a dozen toys roughly 50 feet.

It's all part of a sweet attempt by Dustin's friends to give him a surprise, though maybe they should have realized that it isn't the best idea to surprise someone who's had to fight hellbeasts for the past couple of years. Lucas gets some Farrah Fawcett hairspray in his eyes for his trouble. Also, Dustin apparently lost his front teeth again.

The trailer fades to a rendition of "Baba O'Riley," which is a bit on the nose since it literally shows the gang out there in the field. They're erecting some sort of antenna, which I'm sure is going to lead to all sorts of speculation about what it's for. Given how casual they're all being, and a later shot where Dustin glumly watches a couple of girls traipsing away from the site at nighttime, I'm guessing it's some sort of nerdy AV club thing and not anything related to the Upside Down.

On to the hometown newspaper, where Jonathan and Nancy are pensively waiting in the hall. Are they interviewing for a job? Do they have another shadowy government agency to take down? Speaking of which, I sure hope they included the hometown paper in last season's media blast that shuttered the Hawkins National Laboratory.

Sam's near-homicidal brother is working as a lifeguard, which doesn't really seem like a good fit for him.

Sheriff Hopper is in a restaurant, where he's able to light up a cigarette because it's 1985. Joyce is dining alone with a glass of wine, looking sad. There's a lot of people looking sad in this trailer.

But at least Eleven and Sam are having fun, and have apparently become closer friends as evidenced by a brief shot of them bopping along to some music. I'm going to guess it's Dire Straits' "Money For Nothing." We gotta install microwave ovens...

In a voice-over, Mike says they're not kids anymore and asking if they thought they'd be playing games in his basement for the rest of their lives. I'm kind of sad that Mike et. al. are about a quarter-century away from being able to do just that with Settlers of Catan and Terra Mystica.

This voice-over is also accompanied by a drenched and mournful Will looking at a photo of the group dressed as the Ghostbusters from the previous Halloween. I'd scoff at Will getting teary-eyed over something that happened eight months earlier, but I seem to remember fifteen being an age where you realized that you were going to look back wistfully on your high school years, so I'll cut him some slack.

Eleven and Sam hit the mall, with Eleven being particularly awed by the spectacle of modern commercialism. Elsewhere, a group of protesters decries Hawkins' mayor and the mall, expressing its love for downtown. I'm also guessing the department store Joyce works at isn't competing too well against mall discounts.

Said mayor is probably going to be a bit of an antagonist this season, given that he's enough of a narcissistic ass to add a "Mayor Kline Presents" sign to the Fourth of July fair. In the midst of Hopper telling someone, probably Joyce or Eleven, that he wants the town to be a place they feel safe in, we see that he's apparently going to do battle with a gun-wielding hitman in a house of mirrors.

Eleven is going to find herself back in the creepy zone, with some crimson lightning reminiscent of what we saw last season. Better get those telepathic powers back up to speed.

I mentioned in a previous post that maybe Billy would be humbled enough to do a Steve-like transition out of douchebaggery. He's apparently going to be possessed by some sort of demonic creature instead.

Star-Lord is going to show up to lend a hand. That's nice of him.

And then we get quite a few rapid shots, including:

Eighties Mike Pence welcoming everyone to the Fourth of July fair.

Lucas again fighting evil with a slingshot, a full year before Stephen King made it common practice with It.

BUTTS!

The continuing proud tradition of Steve getting the shit kicked out of him. Can he finally get the chance to turn the tables this season and give someone else a well-deserved beatdown? Or at least get a girlfriend?

And this season's horrific creature from another realm, chilling out in the administrative offices of the mall, maybe.

And as a palate cleanser, Steve and Dustin are even better friends now and have an adorable imaginary sword fight at the nautically themed ice cream shop where Steve works and is contractually required to wear an embarrassing uniform. There's a maybe love interest for Steve working behind the counter, but she's currently more concerned about how many children he's friends with.

Best of luck, Steve. We're all pulling for you.