Modern Monks

Anybody that knows Brother Bob, probably knows that he is a big Frank Zappa freak. He wanted everybody to know about a new show on KZUM 89.3FM Lincoln.

The show is called Freak Out, and Brother Bob believes a man named Joe is the host on Tuesdays from 1pm to 3pm. The KZUM website doesn’t list it yet. A phone call to the station resulted in assurances that Freak Out is in that time slot, although the DJ couldn’t recall the name of the host either. He said he listened to it last week and it was really good, featuring a lot of early stuff. The name of the host isn’t so important. It is really important to Bob that everybody tune in, though. Frank may not have been a drinker, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a beer while you listen to his music. It is probably necessary…you might need several beers!

A call was received from Nichole Aksamit the restaurant reviewer for the Omaha World Herald last Thursday morning. She had heard something about the Modern Monks and wanted some details. We chatted for about a half hour.

She put a little blurb in her Dining Notes section on Friday about the Monks. She did a fine job conveying the spirit of the Monks and Brothers’ Cup in just a few words. Thanks Nichole!

Here is a cut and paste of the notes:

Funky monk-y

Brothers’ Cup, a Belgian-style beer from Nebraska brewing company Modern Monks, has shown up on tap at three Lincoln eateries and may come to Omaha soon.

The four Lincoln guys behind it — beer distributor Matt Dinges, drywall man Robert Myers, accountant Dave Oenbring and respiratory therapist Chris Vejnovich — are neither monks nor brothers. They’re friends and home-brewers who kept their day jobs and launched Modern Monks last fall as a more formal version of their hobby.

Dinges said Modern Monks is a subdivision of Thunderhead Brewing Co. in Kearney and brews on Thunderhead’s license at the Chicken Coop brewpub in Grand Island.

Brothers’ Cup is a Belgian-style blonde made with German hops. Dinges said he designed it after a September visit to Achel, a Trappist monastery-brewery in Belgium.

It is available on tap at Thunderhead and Chicken Coop, and in Lincoln at Bread & Cup, Yiayia’s Pizza and PieZano’s. Dinges said the Monks hope to have some available soon at specialty beer-havens in Omaha such as the Crescent Moon.