We sit mere days away from Thanksgiving. It ranks as our favorite holiday. Well, probably. We say probably because in the summer, we herald the Fourth of July as our favorite but in the winter, we declare it to be Thanksgiving. Whatever. Each is a great American celebration. You’d be unpatriotic if you made us choose between the two. On Thanksgiving, we act as consummate freeloaders. We attend three separate, full-fledged family celebrations. Each has turkey and green bean casserole and stuffing and mashed potatoes and pie. On our family’s Italian side, they even have meatballs and pasta. We feast. We show up—having neither prepared a thing nor helped a bit—and we gorge ourselves. Then, we collapse onto the couch and alternate between watching football and napping until the time comes to move to the next house for the next...

Surprises! Aren't surprises the best? Pleasant surprises, at least. Last Saturday, we were at a local drinking hole cheering on our alma mater's football team. (They won.) Glancing down at the table, we spied an ad for Leinenkugel's Cranberry Ginger Shandy. What? Thanksgiving-flavored beer! Yes, please.