The last thing Ruth Colbert needs is something else on her plate. She has a restaurant to run, a chef to replace, and a cranky twelve-year-old to raise, but a steamy night with Liam was just what she needed. The only problem is, now she wants more, if only she could find the time for him. Just when things seem to be working out and she can see a possible future with Liam, someone from her past shows up to throw another wrench into everything.
Behind the scenes with Saison for Love
Writing Saison for Love, the second of my Brewing Love books, involved research—pleasurable research, but research nonetheless. When I first moved to Colorado a few years ago, I didn’t know much about beer. I mostly drank the big commercial brands like everybody else, and I didn’t drink much of those. But Colorado is craft beer central—we have over 200 breweries in the state—and you can’t live here without learning something about beer and brewing.
With the help of my hubs and my sons, great beer-drinkers all, I started experimenting. Right off the bat I discovered I’m not much of a hops head. Super bitter IPA’s do nothing for me. On the other hand, I loved the really substantial stuff like stouts and porter. I’m also a sucker for anything with coffee or chocolate (if you’ve never tried a chocolate stout, you’ve got a treat in store). Lately I’ve started doing wheat beer and red ale; Scotch ale is great too. On the other hand, I’m not crazy about fruit beers like apricot ale or raspberry wheat. They seem a little one-note.
Saison, the beer the hero of Saison for Love crafts for his lady love, is sort of in the middle. It’s not as light as, say, a wheat beer, but it’s got a lot of carbonation, which makes it crisp. It’s usually made with barley and it comes originally from Belgium (one of the great beer making places). To make it unique, the brewer adds spices like coriander. In Saison for Love, Liam uses basil, which is a little unusual but not unheard of.
If you can manage to hit a craft brewery when they’re not super busy, the person who’s pouring is usually happy to steer you to brews you may like, and they’ll tell you everything you want to know, along with some things you wouldn’t think to ask.
My next beer book, Wild Love, involves a sour, but I have to admit I’m not a fan. Or anyway, I’m not a fan yet. Breweries like Avery and Crooked Stave are only too happy to educate people like me on the wonders of sour beer, and I may yet be a convert.
Research. It’s all research.
With the help of my hubs and my sons, great beer-drinkers all, I started experimenting. Right off the bat I discovered I’m not much of a hops head. Super bitter IPA’s do nothing for me. On the other hand, I loved the really substantial stuff like stouts and porter. I’m also a sucker for anything with coffee or chocolate (if you’ve never tried a chocolate stout, you’ve got a treat in store). Lately I’ve started doing wheat beer and red ale; Scotch ale is great too. On the other hand, I’m not crazy about fruit beers like apricot ale or raspberry wheat. They seem a little one-note.
Saison, the beer the hero of Saison for Love crafts for his lady love, is sort of in the middle. It’s not as light as, say, a wheat beer, but it’s got a lot of carbonation, which makes it crisp. It’s usually made with barley and it comes originally from Belgium (one of the great beer making places). To make it unique, the brewer adds spices like coriander. In Saison for Love, Liam uses basil, which is a little unusual but not unheard of.
If you can manage to hit a craft brewery when they’re not super busy, the person who’s pouring is usually happy to steer you to brews you may like, and they’ll tell you everything you want to know, along with some things you wouldn’t think to ask.
My next beer book, Wild Love, involves a sour, but I have to admit I’m not a fan. Or anyway, I’m not a fan yet. Breweries like Avery and Crooked Stave are only too happy to educate people like me on the wonders of sour beer, and I may yet be a convert.
Research. It’s all research.
He leaned toward her slowly, so slowly that she had to fight the urge to grab hold of his shoulders and pull him close. His lips touched hers in a faint brush, the tip of his tongue slipping in to taste her.
She did take hold of his shoulders then, holding him steady while she turned her head to let him plunge deeper. He slid one arm around her waist, pulling her closer so that her breasts pressed against his shirt. Her fingers glided into his hair, letting the smooth strands slip across them like silk.
Heat gathered in her belly, and her hips moved against him, feeling the swell of his arousal. Should she slow this down?
He seemed to be thinking about the same thing, pulling back to look at her. “Is this okay? I don’t want to push you.”
She licked her lips. “Sure. But I’m not really… This isn’t something I do much.”
He drew back a little farther. “It’s all right. We won’t do anything you don’t want to.” He gave her a tentative smile, probably trying to gauge just how skittish she was feeling.
She took a deep breath, centering herself. “But that’s just the thing,” she said slowly. “I do want to. Do it, that is.”
Maybe she shouldn’t. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea. But she really did.
Liam’s teeth flashed white as he grinned. “Good. So do I.”
She did take hold of his shoulders then, holding him steady while she turned her head to let him plunge deeper. He slid one arm around her waist, pulling her closer so that her breasts pressed against his shirt. Her fingers glided into his hair, letting the smooth strands slip across them like silk.
Heat gathered in her belly, and her hips moved against him, feeling the swell of his arousal. Should she slow this down?
He seemed to be thinking about the same thing, pulling back to look at her. “Is this okay? I don’t want to push you.”
She licked her lips. “Sure. But I’m not really… This isn’t something I do much.”
He drew back a little farther. “It’s all right. We won’t do anything you don’t want to.” He gave her a tentative smile, probably trying to gauge just how skittish she was feeling.
She took a deep breath, centering herself. “But that’s just the thing,” she said slowly. “I do want to. Do it, that is.”
Maybe she shouldn’t. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea. But she really did.
Liam’s teeth flashed white as he grinned. “Good. So do I.”
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