Cracking open a cold one with the boys
- Goose
- Sep 2, 2017
- 3 min read
Today's post is brought to you by beer. I work at Savannah River Brewing Company part time and last night was our first night with the new laws. Before September 1st, 2017, in the state of Georgia, beer was not allowed to be sold directly from the manufacturer, meaning customers had to purchase a tour that came with "free" 36 ounces of beer samples. Now they are allowed to sell from the establishment. Needless to say, we had a busy night last night and it was awesome. Great environment, cornhole, board games, dogs allowed! And of course, tons and tons of beer. Anyway, I wanted today's post to be about beer because last night inspired me; so I wanted to touch on a few of the great beers I have tried and where I have tried them. My beer taste varies but I generally stick to IPAs (India Pale Ales). If I am feeling something a little warmer with depth, I go for Porters or Stouts. Don't get me wrong, I definitely venture out but those are just my go-to's.
If you happen to find yourself in Belgium any time soon, make sure you head over to the Delirium Cafe in Brussels. Along with a cozy atmosphere somewhat underground, you have the opportunity to try over 2000 beers! They do have their own beers as well so be sure to try one. Plus chances are, one of the Delirium beers you get is bound to be over 8%.
Another city to go to is Bruges. We did a tour of the Historium followed by a few beers at the Duvelorium Grand Beer Cafe. There is a terrace where you can see the town square of Bruges. I really enjoyed Liefmans Fruitesse, I like a good fruit lambic on occasion.
In Ireland, of course tasty beer was not in short supply. I had quite a bit of Irish red ales like Smithwick's but also ventured over to the Guinness factory and had the most perfectly poured Guinness straight off the line (comes free with purchase of factory tour). One beer that surprised me was the Irish Pale Ale, which is very similar to the India Pale Ale, hoppy and very refreshing.
Moving over to the states, I recently had some delicious beer in Seattle. We went to two breweries, Pyramid Brewery and Fremont Brewing. Pyramid Breweries is also a restaurant and the food was awesome. Fremont Brewing had a more laid back feeling with picnic benches outside and free pretzels for munching. I had IPAs from both establishments and they were both very good.
And bringing it back to the East coast, if you are ever in Charlotte, North Carolina, make sure you go to The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery. I live about 2.5 hours from there and I have already gone multiple times because of how much I liked it. OMB is modeled after everything German, the beer, the tables, the food, everything. During the tour, they give you background information on how the owner lived in Germany for a few years and decided to bring that beer culture back to the states. They said that even the picnic benches were German (there are a lot of them). As you walk in these huge double doors, you will find the bar to the left and a big, open dining room filled with picnic benches, a la Oktoberfest, where you can order yourself a pretzel or pork schnitzel. When you head outside to their "backyard", there are even more picnic benches plus fire pits, cornhole, live music, and outdoor beer station so you don't have to go back inside to the bar. Another family friendly place with dogs allowed and it is just so much fun. It took the prize of having the best brewery tour in the U.S. back in 2014. Definitely put this brewery on your to-do list.
If you are a beer-lover like myself, look into the app Untappd if you don't already have it. It allows you to keep track of your beers, rate them, check in to where you got them, and earn fun badges while doing so. You can friend people and "toast" people's check-ins. My username is dguzmonster if you want to add me and see the different breweries I have been to. Again, enjoy your Labor Day weekends, and as the Germans say Prost!
Goose, out.
Comments