#nugget nectar

"A bright spot in the dead of winter.” 

This is Prana. She is not only a seven month old, adorable, happy, cuddly bundle of boundless energy, but she’s the inspiration for today’s Word of the Day.

Now, typically, it’s my job to explain the Word of the Day to you. But today, I’m going to ask you to explain it to me…or at least, to explain how it got into my head. 

I guess that requires a little explanation. 

All our dogs end up not only with their regular names (like Prana), but with one or more nicknames. My wife often calls little Prana “Nugget,” and when I heard that, something clicked in my brain, and I started calling her “Nugget Nectar.” I’m not sure why. I didn’t even know what “Nugget Nectar” referred to. So I looked it up. “Nugget Nectar” is the Word – or Phrase – of the Day. 

Apparently, Nugget Nectar is a kind of beer. Actually, it’s an “Imperial Amber Ale” made by the Tröegs Brewing Company of Hershey, PA. “Nugget Nectar” is a seasonal beer, which comes out in January or February and is only available in about ten states for five weeks or so in the dead of winter. The “Nugget” in Nugget Nectar refers to the type of hops used in the brewing process. Nugget hops were developed in the 1980’s.

My online research showed that people rave about Nugget Nectar. It was named one of the Fifty Best Beers in the world in 2011, and here’s some of what the judges at TheFiftyBest.com had to say about it: “Nugget Nectar is a perfect balance between sweet, malty flavors and bitter hops… Sweet apricot flavors in this amber colored ale wash over the palate before being sliced by a crisp, bitter hop bite.”