This is it--the final day of Dry January. Well, mine's been mostly dry. I had a cheat weekend away with Michelle and had a few drinks when we visited her parents at the beginning of the month. But, that's it.

I don't think I've ever talked about it here on the blog, but I'm a huge Spider-Man guy. The character's been my favorite superhero since I was a kid. When Tom Holland took the mantle as the MCU Webhead, I was impressed with how seamlessly he could be both Spidey and Peter Parker.

When he announced BERO last year, I told myself I'd be on the lookout for it for this year's Dry January. I found a variety pack of the stuff at Target the other week, picked it up, and drank all but one. That's what we're doing today: BERO's Kingston Golden Pils.

For my second and final Dry January (well, in my case, more like Damp January--I had my planned hiccup weekend and a one-beer, post-moving-out-a-friend unplanned hiccup) post, I'm doing something special. 

I was at a local bottleshop trying to decide what non-alcoholic beer to grab next. The lady working there suggested the Guinness, saying that she's been having customers report to her after trying it, saying "It's as good as the real thing!" With her recommendation (and an observation that it was the cheapest non-American macro option), it was a done deal. This evening, I'm doing up Guinness 0.0.

This month, I'm trying something new. Well, new to me. You see, Dry January's been a concept I've know about for something like five years. I've never done it, but it's always interested me. As a beer blog guy, I've tried to take a step back occasionally to examine my relationship with alcohol. This year, I decided in mid-December, was going to be my year. I'd do Dry January (with a slight, planned hiccup that'll I'll atone for in February).

So far, it's been fine! I've noticed neither benefits nor disadvantages. I'm the same weight, my sleep hasn't improved, my mental health's the same, and my energy level hasn't changed. On the flip side, I don't have any symptoms that would denote a risky relationship with booze. I'm the same, only I've spent a little less this month (craft beer's getting expensive!).

But, I still want to drop in with a blog post. Remember four months ago when I said I'd get to more Athletic brews? Well, here we are: Athletic's Upside Dawn.