I did not know Elizabeth Ridgeway, my wife did though, and we attended her memorial service yesterday in DC. I’ve been to a few funerals/memorial services in my life (more than I care to count), and aside from my father’s this one was probably the most emotionally taxing, which seems strange given that I did not know the deceased. With over 200 people in attendance and five personal remembrances it was clear to me that I would have liked knowing her. The collective pain was palpable. By all measure, she lived an amazing life that was cut short by a horrible accident.
Mrs. TKD and I drove to DC, Friday night with the plan to spend the night since the memorial service started at 11:30 AM on Saturday. We arrived in DC around 5:00 and quickly made our way to the restaurant The Birch and the Barley. With over 500 different beers on the beer list, I was excited for this trip. What I hadn’t expected was excellent food to go along with the beer.
Over the course of the dinner, I had four beers that I’ve never had before and will likely have trouble finding again. Perhaps the most memorable was a German beer made with smoked barley. I’ve had a few smoked beers in my life, but nothing ever like this. One sip and I was all in. If you’ve ever enjoyed a smoked pork shoulder, then you’ve got an idea what this was like. I hadn’t read the description on the menu very carefully, but after a few sips, I noticed the description was “smokey and meaty.” Maybe that doesn’t sound appealing, but let me tell you it was fantastic.