Tag: Brewery

San Diego Round 2

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Restaurants, Trips, vacationsLeave a comment

I’ve been out there before, but I was in town for work and I got to explore a few more places.

San Diego never has rain and it decided to rain the three days I was there a few weeks ago. Not sure who up top I pissed off, but come on you couldn’t give me a little sun shine?

San Diego is a truly beautiful area. I really enjoy La Jolla. We grabbed dinner one night at George’s at the Cove. Amazing short rib.

Also had the chance to visit a couple breweries too. I checked out Karl Strauss and 32 North. The bartender at Karl Strauss was fantastic and the beer was good but the food kind of reminded me of food from the frozen aisle. At 32 North, I enjoyed a good Hefeweizen but I was the only patron in the place. Damn you rain.

My last night I went down to the little Italy area to meet up with a former coworker that was also in town for work. We grabbed drinks at the Waterfront, this old navy bar. Then we proceeded to have dinner at the Kettner Exchange. Thanks to my company for the 75 dollar dinner of duck meatball, Philly cheesesteak toast and fried turkey leg. Corporate travel ain’t bad and San Diego never disappoints.

The Burg

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Restaurants, Trips, vacationsLeave a comment

Again I’m late on this like a girl who forgot to take her birth control. While I still hate their football team, I have to say Pittsburg was a fun time. About a week ago, we spent a Saturday across the border bouncing around from different bars. Shoutout to Mark and Katie for being great hosts and tour guides.

We hit up quite a few bars and I even had Pittsburgh’s version of bud light, IC Light. I’ll pass on that next time. We stopped at the Sly Fox, a Philly based brewery and I had a delicious IPA, Route 113 IPA.

While the beer was good throughout the city, I had to satisfy the belly too. The full size wings, you know the kind with both parts, at Coughlin’s Law were some of the best I’ve ever eaten. The banana bread French toast for brunch the next day at Urban Tap was a nice twist on a classic. Despite the questionable actions of their QB, Pittsburg had quite a lot to offer.

I love Boston (despite Tom Brady)

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, baseball, Brewery, Football, History, Restaurants, Trips, vacationsLeave a comment

As I sit here on the stationary bike, trying to burn off the 7.3 lbs I gained this weekend and sweat out my disappointment that tribe playoff baseball doesn’t exist this year, it is a challenge to describe how awesome Boston is. Cleveland will always have my heart but Boston has so much to offer. Easy to get around, clean, a lot to do no matter your interest. It’s New York without all the terrible aspects of New York. Only downside is they allow Tom Brady to live there.

Now, I have been to Boston before but this time I visited a bunch of new places and walked the whole freedom trail. Drinking a beer in the Green Dragon Tavern evokes a sensation knowing that some of the most important decisions and conversations in American history were had there.

And have I mentioned that Boston has such good beer. I’ve wanted to go to Trillium for years and finally made it. The variety of sours they have is splendid. The Sour Cherry Soak was my favorite there. Just around the corner from there was Hopsters. Another cool Boston brewery right in Seaport.

My favorite beer of the trip though was a can I had at Bell in Hand Tavern. Another revolutionary era bar. The 617 Title Town Hazy IPA from Lord Hobo Brewing Co. was so delicious. Perfect New England style IPA. I just wish it had a different name in stead of honoring all those damn championships. Have I mentioned I hate Tom Brady?

On the last day, we also visited the Fenway area. Boston Beerworks has a good IPA as well and the area was full of energy as the Pats played and the last Red Sox game of the year was about to start. To finish her off we grabbed food and drinks in the Bleacher Bar. This is a bar like no other as it’s located under the stadium and literally looks out to the field. During warmups the players can look right into the bar in outfield. I can only imagine a guy like Manny Ramirez slamming a beer out there. It’s an experience like no other and Boston is a town like no other (despite Tom Brady).

In West Lafayette…

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Restaurants, TripsLeave a comment

In West Lafayette born and raised, on the playground…ok I’ll stop. I took a work trip last week to Indiana to the home of Purdue University. Boiler Up! While I was only there for just over 24 hours, I did manage to make a stop into downtown Lafayette and visit Lafayette Brewing Company.

Now, I know this is a college town and the school year hasn’t started, and this was a Wednesday night, but downtown was dead. More dead than a Clinton opponent (cough Jeffrey Epstein).

Nevertheless, I still enjoyed a great dinner at East End Grill and then a delicious EZPZ Lemon Wheat beer. This was like drinking a large lemon drop shot or maybe a better version of a summer Shandy. I enjoyed this one.

The city looks like its downtown area could be a great Thursday night drink spot in college and I’m sure the place comes alive for college football Saturdays. It just was not doing much on an early August Wednesday. But if you find yourself in this little part of America, there is good food and beer to be had.

Knocking a few back in Knoxville

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Restaurants, Trips, vacationsLeave a comment

I went for the cheesy title here. Just deal with it.

After spending last weekend in the Smoky Mountains, we spent our last day in Knoxville, Tennessee before flying home. While we didn’t have a ton of time to see everything, we did manage to get to three breweries.

Started off the day crushing brunch and mimosas followed by a beer, all at Downtown Grill and Brewery. Good brunch spot and they had live jazz music coupled with a 25 cent mimosa for your first one. I can get behind deals like that. From there, we took the long 20 foot walk to Blackhorse Brewery. I really enjoyed the flight I had there. The Cream Ale was delicious. Think Genesee but with a lot more quality.

The last brewery we went to was Pretentious Beer Co. I ended my drinking day with a New England IPA called Hazy Bottom Boys. The beer naming quality there was superb. See the first picture above for evidence.

I would definitely like to catch a Volunteer football game at some point back in Knoxville and maybe knock a few back with Peyton Manning. I just assume he would be up for that.

I have no idea what this statue is but I liked it anyways. Cheers! Go Vols!

Smoky Mountain Vacation

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Distillery, Trips, vacations, whiskey1 Comment

There is a quote or something about man going into the woods to search for the meaning to life. I could look that quote up and get philosophical on you all, but let’s skip that part.

This past weekend my girlfriend and I took a trip to the Smoky Mountains in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. I went for the hiking mainly, well and the the variety of alcohol. The area has beautiful views (see picture below for proof), but I think many of the people visiting in downtown Gatlinburg could use a hike or two. I’m not a doctor, but I think a little exercise could do some good.

Ok end of my rant, now onto the drinks. There are so many places to do tastings in that city, it’s hard to hit them all. We didn’t even come close to getting to all of them. We did visit some good ones though. Doc Collier’s moonshine was a really great stop that will get you the cheapest buzz you can find. $5 for 18 sips of moonshine. That’s a deal I can get behind. If the 125 proof at the start doesn’t put some hair on your chest, the brandy at the end will.

If you’re more into beer, like I typically am, Gatlinburg has two breweries plus a craft hard cider maker. Both Smoky Mountain Brewery and Gatlinburg Brewing Company make very good beers. Make sure to try the pizza at Gatlinburg Pizza. That was a tasty late night snack. The Barleywine IPA at Smoky Mountain was a really great beer in the city too. And Tennessee Cider Company is a must visit. Such a wide and unique variety of craft ciders plus free samples. You had me at free. All in all, I definitely ate well and drank well and now need to spend a solid week in a sauna.

Royal Easter Beer

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Trips, vacationsLeave a comment

This weekend I was up in Michigan for Easter or Zombie Jesus day, whichever terminology you prefer. While I may have grown up in Michigan, I honestly don’t know the area that well. We tended to stay in my West Bloomfield bubble. Now, I like to try out the different breweries in the area when I can.

Saturday night we grabbed a few at The Royal Oak Brewery. This place has been around since the mid 90s. The taproom reflects the working class vibes Royal Oak tended to have till it became a millennial hotbed. The brewery makes really solid beers. I went with the Royal Pride IPA and the Northern Kolsch. Both were good beers. Nothing crazy or spectacular that stood out but both good beers that I would have again. Having been around for much longer than many craft breweries, it is clear that they know what they are doing. Sometimes just doing the little things is enough to be good. Credit to The Royal Oak Brewery for recognizing that.

Quality in Fairfax

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Restaurants, TripsLeave a comment

A big reason I took this job 9 months ago was because of the travel I get to do. This past week I flew off to Fairfax, Virginia for a few days. While my free time is limited on these trips, I do make an effort to try out at least one thing while I’m there. This time I made a visit to Ornery Beer Company and visited a few local bars near George Mason University.

While the beer was great, I would say the best part was the quality of the bartender, Corey. He very well may be the best bartender I have ever had. From offering suggestions to a good conversation, Corey made my visit top notch. Well done man.

Now, the beer and food was pretty good too. The Bull IPA was a really delicious too. This came off a recommendation from Corey. The IPA had a great floral taste to it and was extremely drinkable. A well made IPA.

I honestly don’t know if I will ever be back to Fairfax again in my life, but that is what is great about this job. The opportunity to see little towns and pockets of America I would normally never have checked out. If you ever do find yourself there, check out Ornery Beer Company. Hopefully Corey is bartending that night.

Viva La Beer

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Trips, vacationsLeave a comment

I could start with a cliche Vegas saying here. But I’ll refrain. And for the sake of my mother, who is one of the 13 people who reads these, I’ll spare most of the details from this trip.

Luckily, I did miss the shooting at the Bellagio by 30 minutes or so. That was more lucky than I was at the tables this trip.

Vegas has pretty much everything you could want but finding a good beer on draft in that city is damn near impossible. And no Mark, Blue Moon is not a craft beer you asshole.

I did manage to get to the Sin City Brewing bar on the strip and have some beer there. Their seasonal Double IPA was one of the most drinkable DIPAs I have ever had. Crushing a few of those by the pool could get dangerous.

Overall, Vegas needs to up their craft beer selection in the casinos on draft. Do better Sin City.

Thank God We aren’t in Kansas Anymore

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, TripsLeave a comment

It has been almost three weeks since I came back from a work trip to Kansas, and it is time I  write about it. Kansas itself was fine. I travel for work a decent amount so I am use to sleeping in random hotels and eating dinner in airports. It is part of the job and for the most part I enjoy the airline miles and credit card points. However, getting back from Kansas was travel purgatory.

Trapped in an airport for 9 hours, my coworker and I even lowered ourselves and tossed aside our dignity to get massages in those big leather chairs randomly placed in terminals that if they were a little bit larger could double as casting couches. Word to the wise, hopefully you like a little butt play because those chairs grab hold of your calves and every couple minutes shoot a little rod up just enough for you to jump up wishing this chair had at least taken you to dinner first. We will always have that moment together Wichita.

Now, why were we trapped there for 9 hours you ask? You probably didn’t ask but I will tell you anyways. Our flight coming in from Chicago was late due to fog and Wichita, Kansas is not exactly a travel hub. Flights out were limited and our gate agent wanted to send us to Baltimore because Baltimore is close to Cleveland. I kid you not, this guy actually thought Baltimore and Cleveland were close by. The apparent lack of geography knowledge by some people is mind boggling. I was ready to hang this guy by his 70s porn stache. United, not only do your flight options suck, but your employee screening process clearly is lacking.

When we finally flew out, we landed in Chicago but with no available flights that we could get on for at least 12 hours, we grabbed a rental car and drove back to Cleveland arriving home at 7 am. I even made it into work at 1 PM. I’ll accept my award now for Employee of the Year.

Oh yeah, I had some decent beer at River City Brewing Co., and a pretty good pizza but the overall mess of that flight back overshadowed the whole thing. Never fly through Chicago people or you will end up sitting in a airport massage chair questioning your life choices. Happy New Year!