Drank: The Drunken Cobbler (Widmer Brothers)

By Martin Cizmar

The Drunken Cobbler, an oil painting completed by French artist Jean-Baptiste Greuze just prior to the George Washington administration and now hanging in the Portland Art Museum, doesn't make me thirsty. The canvas depicts a buffoonish middle-aged man, bleary-eyed, arms awkwardly spread for embrace, as his wife and two small children reach out to him with empty palms. Presumably, he drank up their grocery money. Yet, I'm inclined to give the painting a second look after previewing a Widmer Biere de Garde by the same name brewed for a June 13 Art & Beer event at the museum ($12 for samples of beers from Widmer, Breakside, Ecliptic, Humble and Laurelwood; portlandartmuseum.org). It's a light reddish brown color, dry but bready, with a soft woodiness thanks to being fermented and aged on French oak. It's subtle in a way the painting is not, and not so strong you'll end up making your kids beg for bread or the dog cower in the corner. Recommended.

WWeek 2015

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