April Update on 2026 Fitness Goals

As you know if you follow this blog, I generally give a monthly update on fitness / Strava goals. I guess we can say that it is another level of accountability to share these publicly.

Plus, from time to time I'll look at older updates just to see where I was way-back-when.

In previous years, my goals have been mostly around cycling, but starting this year, I've started running as well.

If you're interested, I always track these workouts on Strava. 

So far, I'm tracking pretty well to my 2026 Fitness goals.

My 2026 Fitness / Activity Goals are:

Chelsea Dagger Pre-Prohibition Lager (Batch 390)

I'm not brewing very much this year. As I've discussed, I'm on track to brew the least amount of homebrew for the year ever.

By a bunch.

But, I did brew a batch of beer this past Sunday.

Hopefully, I'll get another batch of beer in on Big Brew Day, which is coming up this Saturday.

So ... maybe I'll catch up some.

Even if I do, I don't anticipate catching up enough to get over that 100 gallon homebrewing limit.

Regardless, I got up early Sunday morning to start up the Anvil Foundry and brewed ....

Chelsea Dagger Pre-Prohibition Lager

B is for Bent Barley Brewing Company

As you know if you read A to Z Denver Breweries Round 6, we finished up our alphabet exploration of Denver-area breweries for the 6th time.

You also know we were not sure how to progress with this series of posts. Or ... should we even continue on at all.

The Colorado Brewery Map & List still has quite a few breweries left for us to visit, but there are enough challenging letters that we probably won't be able to fill them all in.

As it turns out, the first few letters fall in place pretty well, so we decided to go ahead and proceed with the beginning of the alphabet.

We don't know how to handle letters we cannot find a brewery for, but that is a problem to address another day.

In the meantime ... 

B is for Bent Barley Brewing Company

A is for Alley Brews Brewery & Coffee Shop

As you know if you read A to Z Denver Breweries Round 6, we finished up our alphabet exploration of Denver-area breweries for the 6th time.

You also know we were not sure how to progress with this series of posts. Or ... should we even continue on at all.

The Colorado Brewery Map & List still has quite a few breweries left for us to visit, but there are enough challenging letters that we probably won't be able to fill them all in.

As it turns out, the first few letters fall in place pretty well, so we decided to go ahead and proceed with the beginning of the alphabet.

We don't know how to handle letters we cannot find a brewery for, but that is a problem to address another day.

In the meantime ... 

A is for Alley Brews Brewery & Coffee Shop

Tengu vs. Samurai®

One of the beers I have on tap right now is "Whisper of the Tengu" Rice Lager.

"A rice lager brewed with reverence and restraint. Whisper of the Tengu is not a beer that shouts—it listens. It’s subtle, sharp, and quietly powerful, honoring the spirit of the mountain trickster with every clean, deliberate note. Ideal for quiet reflection, shared toasts, or moonlit mischief."

This is the first rice lager I've ever brewed (at least as far as I remember), and I think it turned out fantastic.

Rice lagers seem to have jumped in popularity somewhat recently, and I see them much more at commercial breweries than I did 5 and certainly more than 10 years ago.

I thought it would be fun to pick up a Rice Lager from a local brewery and compare it with Tengu.

So, I bought some of Great Divide's Samurai and this past Sunday I compared them side-by-side.

A to Z Denver Breweries Round 6

The SheppyBrew Beer Model and I are done with Round 6 of our A to Z Denver Breweries series of posts.

Hurray for us! 

In late 2024, we started off this round with A is for Arms, Call To Brewing Company (sadly now closed)

We recently just finished with Z is for MestiZo Brew Cantina.

In this round, we had to take way more "Artistic License" to slot breweries into letters than I like, and (obviously) a Round 7 would be even worse.

For most of the round, I thought the A to Z Series would now be complete. The Beer Model and I would need a new way to pick new breweries. 

However, the Colorado Brewery Map & List does still have lots of Denver-area breweries, and we probably could come up with some brewery for most letters. We'd have to come up with what to do if we cannot find anything that works for a particular letter. Let me know if you have ideas.

🍺 Chelsea Dagger Pre‑Prohibition Lager

Brewery: SheppyBrew 
Style: Pre‑Prohibition Lager
ABV: 5.4%
IBU: 30
SRM: 3.6

Appearance

Brilliant pale gold with a bright, sunlit clarity that shows off its lean grain bill. A tight white head forms quickly and lingers in a thin lace, just enough to remind you this is a lager with backbone. The color sits right in that classic pre‑Prohibition range — light, but not fragile.

Aroma

A clean, crackery malt note leads, softened by a faint sweetness from the flaked corn. Cluster hops add their unmistakable American heritage: a mix of herbal spice, light floral tones, and a subtle rustic edge. The overall impression is crisp and inviting, with just enough hop character to signal that this isn’t a modern macro‑lager.

Z is for MestiZo Brew Cantina

Ok ... here we are at the end of Round 6 of the A to Z series of posts.

Yes, we've gone through the alphabet 6 times, visiting a brewery for each letter.

At the beginning, we were able to find Denver-area breweries (one was actually a meadery) that literally began with all 26 letters of the alphabet.

As we progressed, we had to take more and more "Artistic License", and without actually counting, For round 6, I'd say we were at about half breweries that began with the letter and half that we had to stretch a little.

Round 6 began late November of 2024 with A is for Arms, Call To Brewing Company (sadly closed now).

And ... now ... we are at the letter "Z"....

Z is for MestiZo Brew Cantina

Platte River Half-Marathon

I ran my first official Half Marathon yesterday.

As you know if you read 2026 Fitness Goals, I've been training for a Half Marathon, the "Platte River Half Marathon", and Sunday was the day.

I finished the whole thing. I actually was able to run it faster than I thought I would be able to do it. So, I'm happy with my results.

While working through the training plan, Runna gave me a project goal pace of 9:50 to 10:25 per mile, meaning it expected me to finish in 2:09 to 2:16.

Quite frankly, I thought that pace was ridiculously optimistic based on my longer training runs. I'd never really maintained that pace for more than a few miles at a time. 

2026 Easter Ham

Well ... I let my kids talk me into making ham again for Easter dinner.

While ham is not my favorite holiday food, I aim to please, so I went ahead and decided to do my "typical" Double Smoked Ham.

My wife got the standard spiral cut ham, around 10lbs.

On Easter morning I made a glaze / sauce with a coke base, a little honey, and various spices. 

I also made a special "rub" for the ham.

After church, I placed the ham in a cooking pan and applied the rub and let it sit while I prepared my Weber Kettle.

2026 Q1 SheppyBrew Stats

It is already April. The first quarter of 2026 is done. Time to report on the Q1 SheppyBrew Brewing stats.

Both last year and 2024 yielded 95 gallons of beer, which is lower than any year since 2016. 

If the first 3 months are an indication, 2026 will be an even less volume. Significantly less. As I type this, I'm tracking to less than 60 gallons for the year, which would be the least amount of beer brewed EVER!

I'm not sure if the brewing will pick up this year or not. I guess we'll see.

So far in 2026, I've brewed 3 batches of beer.

• Hop-cember Pale Lager
• "Whisper of the Tengu" Rice Lager
• Mud Blood Baltic Porter

This 3 batches of beer totaled 15 gallons. I'm not sure when I've brewed only 3 batches of beer in 3 months. It may have occurred, but I don't think it has ever happened.

Hop-cember Pale Lager

March Update on 2026 Fitness Goals

As you know if you follow this blog, I generally give a monthly update on fitness / Strava goals. I guess we can say that it is another level of accountability to share these publicly.

Plus, I from time to time I'll look at older updates just to see where I was way-back-when.

In previous years, my goals have been mostly around cycling, but starting this year, I've started running as well.

If you're interested, I always track these workouts on Strava. 

As I mentioned in Random Things, a vacation slowed me down in March, but even so, I'm tracking pretty well to my 2026 Fitness goals.

SheppyBrew Brewery Replaced by AI Brew Master!

LITTLETON, CO – April 1, 2026:

Well, folks… it finally happened.

After years of brewing by hand, experimenting with styles, and occasionally arguing with the Beer Model about whether fruit belongs in beer (it doesn’t), SheppyBrew Brewery has officially entered the age of artificial intelligence.

I am both proud and mildly horrified to announce the newest member — and now sole decision‑maker — of the SheppyBrew team:

BrewBot‑9000™

“Optimizing Beer Since 3:14 AM This Morning”

Random Things

The SheppyBrew Beer Model and I went on a cruise. My first. Her second.

I don't really consider myself a "Cruise Guy", but the drink package and the people we were with made it lots of fun.

I ate too much. Drank too much. Didn't get enough sleep. My Garmin watch health stats said "what the hell are you doing?"

It was a ton of fun, and I'm only now feeling recovered from the trip.

 

🍺 Mud Blood Baltic Porter

Style: Baltic Porter Brewer: SheppyBrew ABV: 6.4% IBU: 27 SRM: 26

Appearance

A deep, opaque mahogany that borders on black, glowing with garnet highlights when caught by a strong light. The pour builds a dense, tan head with fine bubbles and excellent retention, leaving tight rings of lace as it slowly recedes. The beer looks rich and substantial without appearing syrupy — a classic dark lager sheen.

Aroma

Smooth layers of dark chocolate, toasted bread crust, and subtle roast rise first, followed by hints of dried cherry and plum. A clean lager fermentation keeps everything crisp and uncluttered. Beneath the malt depth is a faint whisper of earthy hops and a touch of caramelized sugar. Nothing sharp, nothing burnt — just deep, polished malt complexity.

Y is for Ye Olde 121 Public House

Well ... the SheppyBrew Beer Model (aka my wife) and I are winding down on Round 6 of our A to Z series of posts.

A couple of weeks ago, we posted X is for MaX Taps Colorado, which means we're up to "Y", meaning we only have one more letter to finish up this round of brewery visits.

There are certainly a bunch more Denver-area breweries to visit on the Colorado Brewery Map & List, but there are quire a few letters in the alphabet that will be difficult to fill.

So, I'm not sure there will be a Round 7. We might have to figure some other way to pick new breweries to visit.

Anyway, we still have the letter "Y" of this round to get to....

Y is for Ye Olde 121 Public House

Mud Blood Baltic Porter (Batch 389)

I brewed my first Roll-a-Style beer of 2026 this week.

If I'm counting correctly, I've brewed 91 of the 108 styles in the BJCP Guidelines. My Roll-a-Style list is getting pretty thin.

It's already mid-March and this is only my 3rd batch of beer of 2026, so I'm not really brewing much so far this year.

It is already my third lager of the year and my third new recipe of the year.

If you read Roll-a-Style 4: 9C. Baltic Porter, you probably realized this was coming.

Mud Blood Baltic Porter

Hop-cember Pale Lager

Style: West Coast Pilsner ABV: 5.7% IBU: 35 SRM: 5.0

👀 Appearance

A brilliantly clear pale‑gold body with a touch of deeper winter sunlight from the SRM 5 hue. A dense, white, rocky head forms immediately and lingers with excellent retention, leaving tight lacing down the glass. Effervescence is lively but refined, giving the beer a crisp, sparkling presence.

👃 Aroma

Bright citrus and pine leap out first — grapefruit zest, lemon peel, and a clean resin snap. Beneath that sits a subtle floral note and a faint hint of fresh‑cut grass. The pilsner malt supports everything with a light crackery sweetness, never competing with the hops. Fermentation stays clean and neutral, letting the hops shine with West Coast clarity.

👅 Flavor

A crisp, snappy bitterness leads but never overwhelms. Citrus (grapefruit, orange pith), pine, and a touch of herbal spice define the hop profile. The malt character is lean and crackery, adding just enough backbone to keep the bitterness in balance. The finish is dry, brisk, and refreshing — a classic West Coast bite delivered through a pilsner’s clean, streamlined frame.

I Ran 13.1 Miles Today

I've been training for the Platte River Half Marathon in mid-April. It is one of my Fitness Goals to finish a Half Marathon in 2026.

Other than running while playing and practicing for various sports when I was younger, I've never really been a runner. In fact, my first run on Strava was in April of last year.

So, in about a year, I'm basically going from running zero to running a full Half Marathon.

According to ChatGPT, 0.6% of Americans run a half marathon in a given year. 1-3% of adults have ever run at least one half marathon in their lifetime. About 11% of runners have completed or are training for a half marathon.

I don't care enough to double check ChatGPT's stats on this; I'm just going to trust that they are close. 

So, by finishing a Half Marathon, I'll be an elite group.

February Update on 2026 Fitness Goals

I'm actually pretty active for an decrepit old couch potato. 

With all the BBQ I make and eat, and all the beer I brew and drink, cardio exercise helps keep me somewhat in shape.

In the past, this has been mostly cycling, but starting this year, I've started running as well.

If you're interested, I always track these workouts on Strava. 

Last month, I shared my 2026 Fitness Goals, and although no one else really cares, it is time for me to post an update.