Never heard of a spurtle before. Thank you for bringing that into my life. I've also not added beer to my award winning chili recipes (three different chili cook off wins with three different variations on my recipe!). I'll definitely give that a try on a batch this winter.
And you're so right. There is NOTHING like beef or pork fresh from the farm. It's even better when you knew the cow or pig yourself. I know that's not always a popular viewpoint but as a farm girl, it's one I'll keep with me for life.
That Spurtle set is pretty cool. We use them for a lot of things and if you can wait until QVC has them on sale or free shipping, it's a steal. I don't think my chili would win any awards, but it's pretty tasty. This batch could have been better as I said. I feel like I dropped the ball on it.