Strandz & Threadz is celebrating 25 years on Vincennes Street in Uptown NA.

A bit of trivia: When Strandz & Threadz was known as Beauty World, it was located in the south wing of the NABC Pizzeria & Public House (where the game room is now).

McAfee proves yet again that the local chain newspaper's writers are perfectly capable when given the column inches to explicate a topic. Too bad about the abysmal news room management, but maybe some day it will change.

Strandz celebrates on Friday: "The owners are celebrating the business' anniversary from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Friday with an open house that will feature door prizes, drinks, appetizers and a trivia contest with a prize of a $250 gift card."

I'm not sure I can make it, but congratulations and best wishes from the 1117 East Spring Street Neighborhood Association.

Strandz & Threadz celebrates 25 years in Uptown New Albany, by Brooke McAfee (Hanson's Softening Folly)

NEW ALBANY — For several decades, a family atmosphere has been a key element of Strandz Salon & Threadz Specialty Shop on Vincennes Street in New Albany.

One reason is because it is a family business owned by three sisters, Stacy Tunnell, Julie Young and Stefanie Griffith. Another is the connections among staff and clients at the salon — Stefanie says the environment is reminiscent of the iconic bar in the television show, Cheers, "where everybody knows your name."

Strandz & Threadz is celebrating its 25th anniversary in business at 322 Vincennes S., where the three sisters set up shop in 1994. The family business actually goes back to 1985, when their parents, Betty and Paul Lenfert, purchased the House of Rosemary and Men's Corner salons on Grant Line Road, where Stacy was working as a hair stylist. The siblings purchased their parent's business in 1993 ...

THE BEER BEAT: I guess if NABC isn't celebrating its 30th birthday, then I will, with a look back at the 25th.

Photo by John Wurth.

Yesterday (July 22) was the 5th anniversary of the New Albanian Brewing Company's 25th anniversary, which means the business entity variously known as Sportstime Pizza, Rich O’s Public House, the New Albanian Brewing Company (later, adding Bank Street Brewhouse, now dubbed NABC Cafe & Brewhouse) has celebrated its 30th birthday.

Ladies and gentlemen, the inimitable Tony Beard.

The exact date of inception is lost, but some time in June, 1987 is my best guess. My own involvement lasted from from 1990 through 2015, and as Mayor Jeff Gahan pointed out at a mayoral debate in 2015, my career as a double naught capitalist provoked unprecedented misery for the city of New Albany.

"(Roger’s) never done anything in a positive manner to help the city of New Albany.”

Actually, during the opening phases of Rich O’s Public House during the early- to mid-1990s, with Oasis and Nirvana playing deafeningly in the background, we often pointed to Kentucky license plates in the parking lot as proof of things working out just as we had hoped. Gahan probably didn't notice, given the pressing and frenetic weight of adulation that customarily accompanies a career in veneer sales.

This morning I scrolled back through recent Facebook posts at the Pizzeria & Public House and Cafe & Brewhouse to see if mention had been made of the anniversary.

I saw none, but then again, details like this always were my "area" during the period of my immersion, perhaps because I've always been aware we were constructing a narrative, and I'd be the guy writing the history.

The scribe departs and history ends; Fukuyama would be proud. Ironically, the past week may finally prove to be a watershed in our efforts to come to a monetary agreement about the professional divorce, absent the rigors of litigation. I remain hopeful. For those readers unfamiliar with the saga, I catalogued my consciousness in March.

By early 2015, themes and threads gestating for several years had combined into something approximating a personal resolve to do something different with my life, and I decided to sell my share of both NABC corporations to my two longtime business partners. Why, exactly?

Enough of that. There always was a dollop of Fleetwood Mac amid the pizza and beer, and today's objective is to celebrate the curiously neglected anniversary.

To begin, a few resurrected Potable Curmudgeon blog links from 2012, helping to provide background on the bacchanal of the 25th observance.

July 23, 2012
“New independent businesses are coming in and that’s what’s moving New Albany forward. We’ve all grown together and it’s great" ... There was a nice description of our 25th anniversary celebration in the Monday morning C-J.

July 21, 2012
Sarah models the NABC 25th anniversary t-shirt.

July 19, 2012
Beers, pours and pricing for "25 Years of Beer & Loathing."

July 17, 2012
NABC beer lineup for 25 Years of Beer & Loathing ... Here is the NABC beer lineup for 25 Years of Beer & Loathing, this Sunday at the Riverfront Amphitheater in New Albany. All the following will be ready to drink at 10:00 a.m., when the day kicks off.

July 16, 2012
Sara Havens in LEO: "A salute to NABC" ... All this week there'll be reminders of our anniversary posted here, leading up to the 25 Years of Beer and Loathing bash on the riverfront next Sunday. First up is my old pal Sara "Bar Belle" Havens of the Louisville Eccentric Observer, who interviewed me last week.

July 15, 2012
New "Baylor on Beer" at LouisvilleBeer.com ... I reworked an older column from 2010 into this "Baylor on Beer" submission to LouisvilleBeer.com, proving that it's always okay to sample oneself, especially when the schedule is too busy to be original. Seeing as this is NABC's 25th anniversary week, the following helps to explain a few motivations of my own.

Then, in closing, my ON THE AVENUES column of June 21, 2012: "25 years of Beer & Loathing." While it's true that the five years since then have been tumultuous and filled with nuggets of history, the 25th anniversary party it itself worthy of remembrance, in addition to being an apt summary of the first quarter-century.

But first, allow me to repeat something previously written.

In a space this brief, it would be impossible to recount the many life lessons I learned while at NABC, though one springs to mind: When business life is good, the employees get the credit, and when there are problems, it’s all on the owners.

The rank and file, and the workers on the shop floor – cooks, servers, dishwashers and staff members – do the heavy lifting and define the atmosphere. They’re the face of the business, and its esprit de corps. The job of the owner is to organize and manage them so they can thrive, and in turn, so the entity can succeed.

Yes, naturally there are exceptions. Firing someone isn’t fun, though occasionally it must be done. Employees make mistakes, and so on. The point to me is that so many of them, the vast majority, have been top-flight individuals, both before and after working for NABC.

We’ve had our share of teachers, media professionals, artists and musicians working as part-timers, supplementing their income with shifts. With IU Southeast just down the street from the original Pizzeria & Public House locations, there have been hundreds of students receiving W2s as they worked their way through school.

Just think of the local multiplier effect in human terms, for more than 25 years.

What’s more, so many of them have gone on to solid careers. If we had an NABC Alumni Association, it would include doctors, writers, sailors, lawyers, real estate moguls, gardeners, bar and restaurant owners, chefs, entrepreneurs, brewers, entertainers and distillers.

I see many of them on social media, raising their families and living their dreams. I’m pleased as punch to have played a part, however brief, in their formative lives. Cheers to them. I'm serene and looking forward to a new challenge, which I hope will be gathering steam quite soon.

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ON THE AVENUES: 25 Years of Beer & Loathing (June 21, 2012)

My pal TR called for a catch-up chat. It had been a week since my return from four months in Europe, and I was woefully depleted of gossip, so TR suggested lunch at a joint called Sportstime Pizza, apparently recently established somewhere near Grant Line Road. I couldn’t really form a mental picture of the place until he resorted to a past-tense directional comparison: “It’s where the Noble Roman’s used to be.”

It was 1987, and now, as thousands of years of human history pass by, I join the chorus of individuals always asking, “Where did the time go?”

I couldn’t tell you the answer, except to mischievously recall another friend’s longtime assertion that his eventual autobiography would bear the title, “What I Remember.” Not mine, which is slated to be called “Beer, Bile and Bolsheviks: A Fermentable Life," but there’s little time to write the book because the business I inadvertently stumbled into two decades ago still keeps me ridiculously busy amid a career of selling the idea of beer, a course that somehow took shape during gaps between bouts of drinking lots and lots of it.

Naturally, none of this could have taken place without the work, contributions and input of so many people, from co-owners Amy and Kate through all our employees, customers and folks far too numerous to count – past, present and future. At the risk of sounding trite, I’ll consciously echo Queen, who said it best.

I've taken my bows
And my curtain calls
You brought me fame and fortune and everything that goes with it
I thank you all

But it's been no bed of roses
No pleasure cruise
I consider it a challenge before the whole human race
And I ain't gonna lose

Unfortunately, as I’m channeling the late and lamented Freddie Mercury, the missus is assuming the voice of barrister’s mate Hilda Rumpole to remind me that any mention of “fortune” is utterly misplaced in my professional context. It’s true, although the value of enjoying one’s work and being paid to drink beer whilst performing it … that’s truly priceless.

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The New Albanian Brewing Company will mark its first quarter-century of existence with a day-long picnic and concert at New Albany’s Riverfront Amphitheater on Sunday, July 22, 2012.

As most readers probably know, nowadays the original location near Grant Line Road is known as the NABC Pizzeria & Public House, incorporating Sportstime, Rich O’s Public House (1992) and the 2002 addition of craft brewing on site. NABC’s most recent progeny (2009) is NABC Bank Street Brewhouse, located in New Albany’s historic business district downtown.

“25 Years of Beer & Loathing” is what we’re calling the fete, and NABC’s 25th anniversary celebration will be a day-long musical, family-friendly event with food, activities and refreshments suitable for all ages. The venue is New Albany’s Riverfront Amphitheater, from 10:00 a.m. to sundown on Sunday, July 22. The Amphitheater is located by the Ohio River in downtown New Albany, with ample parking available by the levee at the foot of Pearl Street.

There is no cover charge for this event, and it’ll be cash 'n' carry for food, drinks and vending. Proceeds after expenses will be disbursed in the form of grants to Rauch Inc., the Isabel Jade Pickhardt Fund and New Albany First.

So that all of our current employees can participate in recalling 25 Years of Beer & Loathing, NABC’s Bank Street Brewhouse will be closed on Sunday, July 22, although the Build Your Own Bloody Mary Bar will be operating at the Riverfront Amphitheater from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. (see below). Following in alphabetical order are details about what to expect.

Beer
NABC’s draft truck (Rosa L. Stumblebus) will be on hand with old favorites and special releases. We’ll be pouring all four of NABC’s 10th brewery anniversary beers: Bourbondaddy, Stumblebus, Turbo Hog and Scotch de Ainslie. There’ll also be a special 10th anniversary session ale called Get Off My Lawn. In addition, limited quantities of cask-conditioned Naughty Girl (double dry-hopped) and Oaked Choufftimus will be served while they last.

Build Your Own Bloody Mary Bar
A Bank Street Brewhouse staple at Sunday brunch, the bar will move to the waterfront, with Miss Sarah on hand to guide visitors through garnishes, sauces and fresh embellishments.

Charitable donations
Net monies after expenses will be used for grants to be given to Rauch Inc, the Isabel Jade Pickhardt Fund and NA1st. Our longtime friends at Rauch support people with disabilities through services designed to promote individual choices, growth and well being, while encouraging a community environment that acknowledges the value and contribution of all people. They’ll be helping NABC with the children’s area and site clean-up. The Isabel Jade Pickhardt Fund was set up to assist the daughter of the late Ryan Pickhardt, a local musician and keyboard player for the band Sativo Gumbo, with whom NABC has longstanding ties. NA1st is New Albany’s only grassroots independent business alliance, seeking to support and promote independent business owners and to educate community members about the importance of buying locally. On the 22nd, volunteers from NA1st will assist NABC in monitoring entrances and exits, and policing the grounds.

Children’s Area Activities
A duck pond, face painting, temporary tattoos, an art area and perhaps other activities will be available for the kids.

Food
Feast BBQ (116 W Main St) is roasting a pig, and will be offering these items: Pork sliders with pickles and onions; pork tacos with cilantro, lime, cotija, and crema; and smoked corn on the cob ... Shawn, TJ and Charlestown Pizza Company will be preparing chicken salad croissants, Asian slaw, pasta salad, fruit cups and other fare ... NABC is brewing root beer for the event, and of course there’ll be water and soft drinks.

Music schedule

10:00 a.m.: (house music)
12 Noon: Roz Tate
1:00 p.m.: Ben Traughber
2:00 p.m.: Five Foot Fish
3:00 p.m.: Beeler Attic
4:00 p.m.: Jed and the NoiseMakers
5:00 p.m.: Porch Possums
6:00 p.m.: Dust Radio
7:00 p.m.: Whiskey Riders
8:00 p.m.: Toledo Bend

Wine
River City Winery will be on hand to sell wines and Sangria.

We hope you'll be able to stop by and help us remember what we remember.

The Berlin Wall fell 25 years ago today.

If you're new to the blog, note only that my first visit to the city of Berlin came in the summer of 1989, during which I was part of a cultural exchange program and served as a paid employee of the East Berlin Parks Department for three weeks in August of that year.

Three months later, the Berlin Wall came down.

Seeing the reality of bipolar Germany in 1989, and observing the wall that defined it, has made an indelible impression on me. A quarter-century later, I can't shake it. Search NA Confidential for "Berlin Wall," and you can read all about my obsession.

Following are three readings -- inadequate, but informative.

First, a new book explaining how the wall actually came down. As usual, historically ignorant Americans tend to get it wrong. The book is called The Collapse: The Accidental Opening of the Berlin Wall, written by Mary Elise Sarotte.

If the Bookseller is reading ...

The fall of the Berlin Wall: The German open (The Economist)

... Many Americans, in particular, appeared to be under the impression that Ronald Reagan set an inevitable process in motion with the exhortation he made to the leader of the Soviet Union in 1987: “Mr Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” What happened had to happen, they seemed to think: the East German regime was weakened by glasnost and perestroika, the political opening and economic reforms that preceded the dissolution of the Soviet empire, as well as by its own ineptitude and the increasing number of protesters longing for the freedom and comforts of the West.

The reality was quite different, as Ms Sarotte shows in her meticulous account of what she calls the “accidental and contingent” nature of the opening of the wall and her portraits of many local activists.

Next, Al Jazeera explains the consequences.

25 years on: How the fall of the Berlin Wall changed the world: Twenty-five consequences of the earth-shaking events of a quarter century ago, by Tony Karon, Tom Kutsch, Christopher Shay and Massoud Hayoun (Al Jazeera)

The fall of the Berlin Wall, 25 years ago, not only reunited Germany and foretold the coming collapse of the Soviet Union; it signaled a profound change in global affairs. The Cold War that followed World War II created a bipolar world, in which relations between countries and contests for state power everywhere were subsumed by the binary conflict of a U.S.-led West vs. a Soviet-dominated East. Even though the U.S.S.R.’s final collapse came two years later, the fall of the Wall that had separated West from East in Berlin more than any other single moment symbolizes the end of the Cold War ...

... To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Al Jazeera examines 25 ways the world was changed in the aftermath of that moment.

Finally, a visit to the city of Görlitz. How has Germany itself changed after 25 years?

Germany looks east for new customers, by Nigel Cassidy (BBC News)

Twenty-five years after the long-detested "Iron Curtain" was torn down by people power, there's little left beyond the many monuments along the old route.

Yet travel some 200km (125 miles) to Germany's most easterly city, Goerlitz, and the legacy of 1989's abrupt change in the ruling political and financial system has a much longer tail.

Certainly the roads and communications provide little clue to the City's GDR past. The region shared in the fruits of the 2 trillion euros (£1.6tn) worth of rebuilding work paid for by West German taxpayers.

But in common with most of the old East Germany, the initial surge of departing young economic migrants left behind lower birth rates, higher unemployment and an ageing population.

Three cheers for delicious goat cheese as Capriole celebrates a silver anniversary in 2013.

I remember listening to NPR probably 15 years ago, and hearing an expert on cheese proclaim the greatness of Capriole. At the time, I knew the Schads made goat cheese, but realizing that their product was nationally renowned was a kick. It made me proud for our area.

Last year was NABC's 25th, and this year it's Capriole's turn. Following is their e-newsletter, which recounts the turning of a page formerly filled with goats as the next Capriole chapter begins.

Reinventing, transitioning, evolving ... these are the notions that keep small business owners awake at night. I suspect that the unexpected closure of Lynn's Paradise Cafe represents one way of her moving to a different phase. Capriole's solution to the logistical task of maintaining a herd of living creatures, milking them and making beautiful cheese is another. Satchel Paige was right when he warned against looking back, lest we see someone gaining on us.

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CAPRIOLE'S SILVER ANNIVERSARY

Wishing you a Happy & Cheesey 2013 ... (2013 is also) Capriole's Silver Anniversary, and 25 years of cheese making on our southern Indiana farm. It's been quite a family journey . . . and still is!

A little 4-H project that began in on our farm in 1977 with 2 goats grew over those years to a herd of 500. We've made wonderful milk and developed signature cheeses over those years, and 2012 was a year of even greater change. While the animals have always been a big part of our identity, we realized we still didn't have enough milk and that the farm couldn't sustain more animals. After months of angst, we were approached by a young, Indiana dairy family. They had years of goat experience and their own herd, but needed to grow and establish a more reliable market for their milk. In December, they moved the majority of our herd to their farm. While it's been a big change, it's also an exciting opportunity to grow and still work closely with our milk source, encourage goat milk producers in our area, and help preserve family farms . We're jazzed for a new adventure!

We've also been inspired over the years by the efforts of the cowgirls, Peggy Smith and Sue Connelly, to preserve the heritage of family farms through Farmland Trust oganizations. In 2012 we granted a conservation easement to the Sycamore Land Trust. The trust insures that our land will remain farmland, and its upland forests, open fields and caves, and natural springs will be preserved in perpetuity and provide habitat for a wide range of animals, as well as native and endangered plants.

In 2012 Sycamore Land Trust honored Capriole with their "Conservation Business of the Year" award.

We live where we work, and that's made a definite difference in both our business and our life style. My father and mother (Larry and Judy, who started Capriole) and now my son (Sam) and I, have homes here. The great -- and the not-so-great -- thing is that when the cheese needs us at 1 am, we're here. Our goal has always been to produce sustainable, artisan cheeses that can sit comfortably on shelves and cheese boards next to the best of Europe. Our life style has been part of making that happen. Over the years we've been honored with numerous national and international awards, including a Best-of-Show from the American Cheese Society and the designation "prudhomme' in La Guilde du Fromagers. 

The success of our cheeses has always, and will continue to, reflect the people who live and work here as a family, in close connection to the land, and in a place we call home.

Kate Schad and Judy Schad
Capriole, Inc.

We'll be celebrating 2013 with some very special, "reserve", aged cheeses

Capriole's aged, cheeses represent a very unique family of signature cheeses made with goat milk--a niche that's difficult to fill in the cheese case. Semi-hard to semi-soft, they run a flavor range from mushroomy and herbal to beefy--and always earthy, but clean.











Old Kentucky Tomme ... 4-5 lb. wheel with penicillium rind

 

Mont St. Francis 1 lb. washed rind



Julianna 1 lb. penicillium rind with herbes de Provence and pepper

Capriole
10329 New Cut Rd.
Greenville, IN 47124
P:812.923.9408
812.923.8901
caprioleinc(at)aol(dot)com