It is,
in modern technology parlance, Trivia 2.0—a flashy upgrade on Captain Lawrence
Brewing Trivia Night, featuring a little Name That Tune, a speed round, and winners
of the various 5-question rounds receiving tickets redeemable for a gift card,
keg, and other Captain Lawrence-related swag. For the first time, the trivia
derby is in the brewery itself, as opposed to the tasting room, the fermentation
tank skyline serving as a dramatic backdrop to the proceedings.
If there’s
a favorite going in, it is The Angry Seamen--frequent visitors to the CL winners
circle. So revered/reviled is the Seamen crew that another team assembled with
the sole purpose of taking them down: Angry Seamen’s Worst Nightmare is the
name of that upstart outfit, with a risqué word tacked on for good measure.
“They
win so many weeks, we decided to name our team after them,” says Jean Barrow of Tarrytown as she enjoys a
Kolsch with teammate Lindsay Santoro
of Hawthorne.
The
Seamen take it as a compliment. “It means we’re doing something right,” says Rich Zerbo of Valhalla.
After a
few rounds of straight-up question and answer, the format switches to Name That
Tune. The first song is a lively R&B number that gets people moving. The
second is a riffy rock track that prompts some spastic air guitar from one player.
Following that is a tune from Duran Duran; CL bartender Rob C. is comfortable enough in his masculinity to sing along with the
foppish New Wavers.
The team
No Second Place came up with a moniker that was all about not finishing
anywhere other than first, but halfway through the competition, they’d be
pleased to be runners-up. The foursome came straight from work and is enjoying the
Freshchester Pale Ales and Village Dog grub as much as, if not more than, the
trivia. “If any ladies ask what we do, tell them ‘astronauts,’” quips Greg Gilliam of Bronxville.
In fact,
they work at a law firm in White Plains, and their very presence at Captain
Lawrence is a testament to their knack for sniffing out legal loopholes. “My
wife won’t let me out unless it’s a work event,” says Bill Kelly of Dobbs Ferry. “This is a work event.”
No
prizes are awarded for Best Dressed, but if they were, the hardware would go to
Han Yolo—a play on the phrase “You Only Live Once,” which apparently young
people say a lot. The ladies of Han Yolo, friends from their time at Maria
Regina High School in Hartsdale, are sporting Burger King crowns.
I ask
how the crowns came to be. “We, uh, went to Burger King,” deadpans Monica Olive.
Carol Murray, half of the Murray twins in Han
Yolo, adds that the crowns are an homage to the BK Lounge brown ale on the brew
menu.
Talk
about your crowning achievements—there’s a system in place at Han Yolo, where
those answering questions correctly get a crown, and those botching the answers
abdicate their headwear.
Carol
eyes the gold-painted barrel, past winners’ names scrawled on it like “a
Stanley Cup for a sport that’s actually being played,” as she puts it. “We
might not get the golden keg,” Carol says longingly. “But someday…we will.”
As the
competition winds down, it is Green Monkeys and Human Santapede who are tied
for the top spot. (“We tried to think of something funny, tried to tie it into
the holiday season,” says Santapede skipper Chris Stiglin of Ossining.) A guy from each squad comes to the
front for a tiebreaker 5-ounce chug-off. Chris makes short work of his Kolsch
(“Relax the jaw, open the throat,” Stiglin says), and “Human Santapede” is Sharpied
onto the golden keg.
The
favored Angry Seamen take the upset in stride. “We may not have won,” rhymes John Ruvo of Thornwood, “but we had fun.”
Captain Lawrence Brewing, at 444 Saw Mill River Road in Elmsford, is open Tuesday through Friday (retail 2-7 p.m., samples 4-7 p.m.); and Saturday, with retail and samples 12-6 p.m., and brewery tours on the hour, starting at 1. The author is paid by Captain Lawrence, partially in Freshchester Pale Ale, for “Notes From the Tasting Room.”
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