The Beer Thread

Yada wrote:

Space wrote:
Regarding Yada's trip:

Wow, that's a pretty impressive trip and brewery list! You drove all the way to at least Portland (I'm guessing you went further north but probably didn't hit and breweries north of Portland?) with two young children? That there is a Space-approved vacation! Sadly, My wife would never let me plan a vacation with that much driving.

I did the Boston to Acadia drive and back a few years ago, with my mom. Documented well somewhere in this thread. Included in the list were the middle five on your list. Bissell was in the same complex as Foundation at the time, Trillium only had their South Boston location, and Oxbox only had their location up in Newcastle.

Maine is currently running as our second choice for Summer Vacation 2018 (only picking one though,) behind the Canadian Rockies. If beer were the highest priority, pretty clear it would be in the lead….

Many, many, many, many discussions were had about the logistics of this trip. We took our first trip with two children to Florida in March and it was an airport/rental of items disaster and I really didn't want to go down that path again.

Additionally, we didn't want to fall into the doing the same trip every year (rehoboth/obx), so we decided to switch it up. We definitely considered flying (but see Florida issues), so we drove. I also found a pretty cool website that factored in time/effort/gas/airport time/rentals/expenses; definitely space approved) and in the end, we probably lost a few hours driving, but that was about it. The drive up really couldn't have been worse we we even looked at one way flights home for my wife/children, but ended up leaving at 3pm on our way home (kids slept from 8pm to 2:30am), so it wasn't too bad.

Yes, we went north of Portland (Rockland, Linconville, Camden, etc) but it was pretty much a beer desert and I stuck to drinking the TH cans I purchased and Budweiser bottles.

So Maine Beer Company didn't make the cut? Their space feels like a factory outlet store, and the bottles are as nearly overpriced there as they are here, but a pint of Lunch is never a bad thing. That said, I'd go with Allagash and Bissell Brothers and perhaps even Oxbow over MBC.

Space wrote:

Yada wrote:

Space wrote:
Regarding Yada's trip:

Wow, that's a pretty impressive trip and brewery list! You drove all the way to at least Portland (I'm guessing you went further north but probably didn't hit and breweries north of Portland?) with two young children? That there is a Space-approved vacation! Sadly, My wife would never let me plan a vacation with that much driving.

I did the Boston to Acadia drive and back a few years ago, with my mom. Documented well somewhere in this thread. Included in the list were the middle five on your list. Bissell was in the same complex as Foundation at the time, Trillium only had their South Boston location, and Oxbox only had their location up in Newcastle.

Maine is currently running as our second choice for Summer Vacation 2018 (only picking one though,) behind the Canadian Rockies. If beer were the highest priority, pretty clear it would be in the lead….

Many, many, many, many discussions were had about the logistics of this trip. We took our first trip with two children to Florida in March and it was an airport/rental of items disaster and I really didn't want to go down that path again.

Additionally, we didn't want to fall into the doing the same trip every year (rehoboth/obx), so we decided to switch it up. We definitely considered flying (but see Florida issues), so we drove. I also found a pretty cool website that factored in time/effort/gas/airport time/rentals/expenses; definitely space approved) and in the end, we probably lost a few hours driving, but that was about it. The drive up really couldn't have been worse we we even looked at one way flights home for my wife/children, but ended up leaving at 3pm on our way home (kids slept from 8pm to 2:30am), so it wasn't too bad.

Yes, we went north of Portland (Rockland, Linconville, Camden, etc) but it was pretty much a beer desert and I stuck to drinking the TH cans I purchased and Budweiser bottles.

So Maine Beer Company didn't make the cut? Their space feels like a factory outlet store, and the bottles are as nearly overpriced there as they are here, but a pint of Lunch is never a bad thing. That said, I'd go with Allagash and Bissell Brothers and perhaps even Oxbow over MBC.

We really didn't drink much at any brewery other than Bissell and the goal was to get out of distro beers, so Maine Beer Co was easily removed from the equation. Also, other than Lunch/Dinner, no interest in wasting my calories on any of their beers.

Space wrote:

Hyper-hatch wrote:
Mmm… Had some Love child #8 by boulevard..  so good

Indeed it is. Super sour, a definite sipper.

Mine was on draft at Rustico…but was like $8 for 10 oz
but got surprise today when in Safeway…big bottle for $6.99!
space pricing on aisle 8

Hyper-hatch wrote:

Space wrote:

Hyper-hatch wrote:
Mmm… Had some Love child #8 by boulevard..  so good

Indeed it is. Super sour, a definite sipper.

Mine was on draft at Rustico…but was like $8 for 10 oz
but got surprise today when in Safeway…big bottle for $6.99!
space pricing on aisle 8

Wow, that's sweet. Which Safeway?

I recently discovered my nearest Safeway actually has a decent beer selection, much better than the Giant near my house, but not as good as the Whole Foods near my house.

Yada wrote:
http://tenemu.com/news/founders-rereleasing-canadian-breakfast-stout-part-2017-barrel-aged-series/08/2017

Great! My wife is going to hate this news. I won a lottery at one of the VA Whole Foods back in 2011 that allowed me to purchase a bottle. Maybe it will be a little easier to come by this time around.

Central New York State is a beer wasteland compared to a lot of places, so I never expect much in terms of beer when I go to visit relatives there.

However, I did find out that Prison City has the best IPA in America, at least according to Paste Magazine.

https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/08/247-of-the-best-american-ipas-blind-tasted-and-ran.html?p=4

Was it the best? Probably not, but I was still pretty surprised by how good it was.

Space wrote:
but got surprise today when in Safeway…big bottle for $6.99!

there is unintentional fake news in there

People of the country are deciding to go brewery.  It is amazing the sudden growth of the public brewery in Loudoun, Fauquier, Rappahannock, Frederick, Shenandoah, Warren Counties, and the talk of people who are excited about the prospects of not having to always go to a bar or store to get "beer."  Just the other day, in the office, there were customers talking about the ideas of costs versus plans of doing such a venture in the area.

fas,cinating to see first hand how beer is attempting to rival all, the damn wineries in our area.

Did a weeklong vacation that we split up between Lake George and Vermont. Let's just focus on the latter part in regards to the beer element…

Drove to Waterbury first and hit up the new Alchemist brewery. Gorgeous space with no line, was able to walk right up and buy two cases of Heady, Skadoosh, and Crusher with ease between my wife and I. We then hit up Idletyme for lunch before going to Sunflower Natural Foods to buy some Sip. After that, we checked out Cabot and Champlain Chocolates before going on the Ben and Jerry's tour. Once we checked into the Stagecoach B&B, we grabbed dinner at Prohibition Pig (poutine topped with chopped pork!) and then got beers at Blackback, one of my all-time favorite bars.

The next morning we hiked the Pinnacle trail at Stowe, then drove up to Hill Farmstead where I proceeded to buy a ton of bottles for friends as well a case of cans (!) which they don't advertise, thankfully to avoid a #lines situation a la Tree House. We then made our way to Burlington where we grabbed dinner at Farmhouse and called it a night after a very filling dinner that featured their trademark skillet cornbread. The next day we stopped at Foam where I got some growler fills before driving back down to Lake George - was a day shy of their can release but what can you do. Considering we only spent two nights in VT we definitely made the most of it.

BrettnotBritt wrote:
Did a weeklong vacation that we split up between Lake George and Vermont. Let's just focus on the latter part in regards to the beer element…

Drove to Waterbury first and hit up the new Alchemist brewery. Gorgeous space with no line, was able to walk right up and buy two cases of Heady, Skadoosh, and Crusher with ease between my wife and I. We then hit up Idletyme for lunch before going to Sunflower Natural Foods to buy some Sip. After that, we checked out Cabot and Champlain Chocolates before going on the Ben and Jerry's tour. Once we checked into the Stagecoach B&B, we grabbed dinner at Prohibition Pig (poutine topped with chopped pork!) and then got beers at Blackback, one of my all-time favorite bars.

The next morning we hiked the Pinnacle trail at Stowe, then drove up to Hill Farmstead where I proceeded to buy a ton of bottles for friends as well a case of cans (!) which they don't advertise, thankfully to avoid a #lines situation a la Tree House. We then made our way to Burlington where we grabbed dinner at Farmhouse and called it a night after a very filling dinner that featured their trademark skillet cornbread. The next day we stopped at Foam where I got some growler fills before driving back down to Lake George - was a day shy of their can release but what can you do. Considering we only spent two nights in VT we definitely made the most of it.

Sounds like an awesome trip! Did you take the kiddos to all of those beer stops?

Space wrote:

BrettnotBritt wrote:
Did a weeklong vacation that we split up between Lake George and Vermont. Let's just focus on the latter part in regards to the beer element…

Drove to Waterbury first and hit up the new Alchemist brewery. Gorgeous space with no line, was able to walk right up and buy two cases of Heady, Skadoosh, and Crusher with ease between my wife and I. We then hit up Idletyme for lunch before going to Sunflower Natural Foods to buy some Sip. After that, we checked out Cabot and Champlain Chocolates before going on the Ben and Jerry's tour. Once we checked into the Stagecoach B&B, we grabbed dinner at Prohibition Pig (poutine topped with chopped pork!) and then got beers at Blackback, one of my all-time favorite bars.

The next morning we hiked the Pinnacle trail at Stowe, then drove up to Hill Farmstead where I proceeded to buy a ton of bottles for friends as well a case of cans (!) which they don't advertise, thankfully to avoid a #lines situation a la Tree House. We then made our way to Burlington where we grabbed dinner at Farmhouse and called it a night after a very filling dinner that featured their trademark skillet cornbread. The next day we stopped at Foam where I got some growler fills before driving back down to Lake George - was a day shy of their can release but what can you do. Considering we only spent two nights in VT we definitely made the most of it.

Sounds like an awesome trip! Did you take the kiddos to all of those beer stops?

Had my parents watch them back at their house in upstate NY, hence took advantage of every second of it! A lot off it was family-friendly, though. We almost took the ferry back from Burlington to NY, but we might save that when we bring the kids next time.

Space wrote:

BrettnotBritt wrote:
Did a weeklong vacation that we split up between Lake George and Vermont. Let's just focus on the latter part in regards to the beer element…

Drove to Waterbury first and hit up the new Alchemist brewery. Gorgeous space with no line, was able to walk right up and buy two cases of Heady, Skadoosh, and Crusher with ease between my wife and I. We then hit up Idletyme for lunch before going to Sunflower Natural Foods to buy some Sip. After that, we checked out Cabot and Champlain Chocolates before going on the Ben and Jerry's tour. Once we checked into the Stagecoach B&B, we grabbed dinner at Prohibition Pig (poutine topped with chopped pork!) and then got beers at Blackback, one of my all-time favorite bars.

The next morning we hiked the Pinnacle trail at Stowe, then drove up to Hill Farmstead where I proceeded to buy a ton of bottles for friends as well a case of cans (!) which they don't advertise, thankfully to avoid a #lines situation a la Tree House. We then made our way to Burlington where we grabbed dinner at Farmhouse and called it a night after a very filling dinner that featured their trademark skillet cornbread. The next day we stopped at Foam where I got some growler fills before driving back down to Lake George - was a day shy of their can release but what can you do. Considering we only spent two nights in VT we definitely made the most of it.

Sounds like an awesome trip! Did you take the kiddos to all of those beer stops?

I ask in part because once the kiddos hit the age of 10 or so, the question is no longer "Is the brewery kid friendly? (To me, that just means how many patrons are of  the 20something "you better not bring your kid into my adult playground" mentality, because, otherwise, I've always found pretty much all breweries/brewpubs/tasting rooms themselves to be kid-friendly, except for Flying Dog, which I guess is a SUPER COOL place because it's adults only.) At about 10 or so, the question becomes "Is the kid brewery friendly?" Meaning, they start having their own opinions about where they want to go, and if you're going to drag the kid to a beer establishment, that brewpub better have French fries, or that tasting room better have a pinball machine/skee ball/pool table/foosball, or the kid is going to protest going.

We made it up to a couple of new (to us) breweries up in the Watkins Glen area a couple of weekends ago. Beer was nothing to write home about, but the presence of pinball machine/skee ball/pool table/foosball was greatly appreciated.

Aslin has bocce courts coming!

There was a time you couldn't bring kids to a bar, not sure how breweries got around that.
I guess if they are accompanied by an parent, the law is more lax?

I think kid friendly means having some outdoor space that they can run around and play on things.  Board games can sometimes help…especially life size jenga
Food or Food truck is a must…if my kids are bored and we are putting a halt to screen time…food calms the savage beast every time

if a dc area brewery had pinball/skee ball…I'd be there regularly

Vanish is probably the most kid-friendly brewery I've been to thus far. Between the live music, frisbee golf, large picnic areas, and kid-accessible menu, it's a great spot with plenty of options to keep the kids entertained. And the beer is pretty good, too!

nice tip BnB!
been turning the kids on to Disc Golf this summer…now a perfect destination
"hey, let's go play Frisbee golf kids"
"yeah!!"
"oh wow had no idea there was a brewery here"

Is this indoor disc golf??  (only info I found online)

I've found live music to be annoying at most breweries
too loud and they typically suck (other wise they'd be playing 930 ;)

Drank a good amount of beer this weekend. Killshot from an epiQ share on Saturday, too many high lights but my favorites were Vinalla Rye, Cellador Ales, Monkish, De Garde, and a few 3F bottles.



Additionally, had a BBQ on Sunday with two sixtel kegs from Ocelot. Break My Balls IPA was soft, tropical, and delicious. Sunnyside Dweller was a nice, crisp pilsner.

Both kegs were #spaceapproved at roughly 12 cents an ounce, can't beat that price even at whole foods growler stations!

jez…I really need to find new friends
what's the little pill bottle in the center?

Hyper-hatch wrote:
jez…I really need to find new friends
what's the little pill bottle in the center?

Liquid LSD that we all took prior to the tasting….























kidding. Inside joke about a beer that was shipped inside a medicine bottle, it was a Fundamental Observation stout if I recall.

New gastropub opens in Frederick

What will it be like, based on this photo of the owners?