Zwicklemania

This is not a Beer Blog. So sit back, relax and pour yourself a tall cold one as I tell you about two beer pubs I discovered thanks to Zwicklemania.




Zwicklemania just had its 5th annual event. Breweries across Oregon celebrate their craft by welcoming the public with free beer samples, free tours and sometimes a free bus to take participants from one brewery to another.



Skipping the 40 passenger school bus in Salem, my husband and I opted to drive between breweries. Five of them were offering the whole tour/sample welcoming of Zwicklemania.



We made it to two of them.



The first one was Gilgamesh Brewing. The tour started by one of the owners telling us a bit about his family who owned the brewery and then left us in the hands of the brewer Mark. He sure loves his craft and gave plenty of detail on the processing of beer. This brewery is nestled off the beaten path in Salem in an industrial part of town with a pretty awesome deck space with a stream view (can’t quite call it a river). In the summer time this would be the place to hang out and enjoy a well-rounded craft beer. The beer flavors are unique with good variety of flavors from mint, cherry & orange.

The second one was mere mile away discreetly hidden in an industrial park with poor signage. Santiam brewery started by 9 home brewers who meet regularly to support and drink each other’s beers. The 10 beers they have crafted are quite smooth, well balance and quite frankly wonderful. We purchased a growler of the beer brewed with merlot. My husband tells me that is a type of wine. I just know it made some pretty darn fine tasting beer. We skipped the brewery tour of this place because we didn’t think we’d all fit into the tiny space plus we wanted to sit at one of the two long German-beer-style-tables to enjoy the experience instead of standing at a wooden beam outlining what is going to be the bar. (Are you impressed with my long, run on sentence??)



After the growler purchase and our bellies full of beer we needed food. We went back to Gilgamesh to have some upper end/restaurant style pub food.

With our bellies full; back home to drink the growler. 

Prost!

Going to the Dark.....Beer Tour

On joyous day just a few weeks ago, I received an email from Rogue Ale Farms about a Going Dark Tour. My husband, the agreeable man that he is concurs this is a pub crawl we can’t miss out on.



Rogue Ale, oh wait you already knew that!



We arrived to Rogue Ale Farm in the middle of, well farm land in the area of Independence Oregon. You would never go to the farm on accident or find it by happy circumstance. However, the veterans that we are can drive there blind folded.

The farm would be the first stop of our tour. I had a Double Dark Chocolate Beer. Yum. A seasoned Rogue Ale Farm drinker tells me it’s rare to have that on tap and I should fill my growler while I have the chance; like he is doing. Unfortunately, my growler is on top of my refrigerator collecting dust. As the seasoned Rogue Drinker pedals away with growler attached firmly to his bicycle, my husband and I board the Rogue Bus, alone. Are we to be the only ones on the tour? I worried that this pub crawl will be uneventful. We quietly view the farmers pruning trees as the bus makes it way to the first stop in Monmouth Oregon.



Turn your head ...it's a cool picture from Yeast Beast. Really.

 First stop, Yeasty Beast. As we walk into the well light pizza/bar joint a table of 10 cheers for us, “Yea, more tour people.” I cheer right back and call out “Prost!” We sat at the bar and the server promptly gives us a chocolate brownie. She tells us all tour people get a brownie to start. I’m going to like this tour. I order a S’ more beer brewed by Base Camp in Oregon. Prost! The guy sitting next to me is also on the crawl and he himself is a beermeister, or brewer. The table of four women behind us offers to take our picture, for as they too are on the tour and “plan on seeing us rest of the day.”

Second stop, taster of six dark beers at a wine bar name appropriately Crush Wine Bar and Tasting room. All the people we had met are already present and accounted for. Again, we sit at bar. The Wine bar is a super cool old building with exposed brick walls and dark wood floors. The owner tells us it used to be a bank. We enjoyed our samples of dark beer while watching whatever ball-sports-game is on television. Unfortunately I commit a beer sin and spill a taster. I sure that would have been my favorite beer of the day as well. Forty five minutes later the bus rolls up and the bartender/owner announces the arrival. Many stay behind the in the relaxed quite atmosphere of the Wine Bar.

Independence Bar with Chocolate & Cherry Beer.

Third Stop; Independence hop bar in Independence Oregon. The bar was packed with tour people we hadn’t meet yet. We quickly plop down on the last two bar seats and let the other people on the bus fend for themselves. Live music plays directly behind us. The inattentive bartender finally asks us what beer we want after she has served all the other bus people who managed to find a table. I ordered a Chocolate Mint beer made by Gilgameshale and my hubby a Chocolate Cherry. I got the better beer. The mint was surprisingly smooth and quite nice. We prost our beer and listen to the music. The bus rolls up before our beer is done; however we board the packed bus and back to Rogue Ale we go.

Back on the farm, the Rogue Ale house crowded. But heck, with only five tables inside that’s not hard to do. I tell all the tables to pick up their stuff and get on the bus to make room for all of us off the bus. Hey, they listened to me….I sure know how to clear a room. A chocolate lady is present giving samples of her homemade toffee made with peppers.

At this point, I don’t buy another beer but I do buy a bottle to take home, Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana beer. Doesn’t that sound divine? We do buy a bowl a Beer Cheese soup and chat with the people we’ve meet along the way. At each stop, we get a stamp on our “passport.” Our passport will entered into a drawing of prizes donated from bars.

(Blogger’s note….two weeks later and still no telephone call that I’ve won a prize. Maybe they will give it to me right before next year’s Going Dark Tour.)

In the meanwhile, I sign up on more blog sites for receive email of places I like.



Until then, PROST!

BWW

“Are you ready?”

“It’s only 10 am.” I whined to my husband.

Smart man didn’t say anything. He just stood by the front door with his jacket and hat on ready to go.

“Okay, Okay” I’m ready. I whined some more. It was my husband’s birthday, and since that is what he wanted to do; I’d tag along.

We had only been to Buffalo Wild Wings once before; and that was on vacation in Sierra Vista Arizona. We just happened in on .59 cent wing night. The wings were great and there was enough visual entertainment to make an ADD person go crazy. We loved the place. Back home, we read in the newspaper one was being built in our local area we were exciting about going back.

It was opening morning at Buffalo Wild Wings. It was also the end of a long weekend. As we pulled up that Monday Holiday Day, the parking lot was already filled and there was a line. Yes, a line. It appeared as if people had been there awhile since they had sleeping bags, blankets, lawn chairs. It was a brisk 27 degrees that morning so I could understand the blankets, but lawn chairs??

Reluctantly, we got in line. I wish I had my gloves. It was 30 minutes before the store was scheduled to open. Looking around at the long line, it also appeared we were the oldest people in line. Odd. Only college kids eat chicken wings at 11 am??

Lucky for my cold, icy hands the restaurant opened 10 minutes early and the line moved quickly. We were in the lobby within 20 minutes. A gentleman dressed in black was standing at the open door with a box in his hands. As we approached, he looked in his box and told us he had just a couple more coupons. Coupons? I like coupons. I said thanks as he handed me a coupon book. I was going to tell my husband we only need one coupon book but he was asking for his book. Odd. Since when has my husband actually asked for a coupon? Much less a book of them? The college kid in line behind us seems totally disappointed (or his words bummed) that we got the remaining coupons. What is it about these coupons?

We were ushered to our bar seat table. I wanted to be as far as possible from the front door and the constant cold. I wanted some feeling back into my hands again. Our waitress came by to explain the specials and the menu when she noticed our coupons on the table. She stated she wasn’t quite sure how those worked, but do we want to use them now? Sure. She asked how we wanted our twelve wings.

After placing our order of a plate of wings and being distracted by the the twenty thousand televisions, I opened the coupon book. Very simple coupons. Not a discount thing, not a buy one-get-one-free type of deal, but simple in that it six wings a week a year. No purchase necessary. The coupons are dated….once the week is over the coupon is expired. I asked one of the regional trainers about the coupons. He explained the company started that as a promotion when a Buffalo Wild Wings would open and they’d advertise in the newspaper the free wings each week for a year, until it turned in people camping out for days. The company didn’t withdraw the promotion, they just stopped advertising.

Looks like I have a date with my husband once a week for a year. Sorry to the college kids behind us who didn’t get the free wings every week for a year. You should have set your alarm clock.

And Thanks Buffalo Wild Wings; you may get sick of me.

Late Night TV Talk Show Adventure

Distillery Row





The Spirit Taster Blogger



I have to record late-night talk shows. I can’t stay awake that long. A few days later, I’ll watch them. Sometimes. But not always. One guest changed my life, and that was Kevin Pollack. During his seven minute interview with the host promoting his new book, “How I Slept My Way to the Middle” my husband and I roared with laughter. He was just about the funniest comic we’ve heard. Oh sure, you may know him from “A Few Good Men” (you are thinking of Tom Cruise or Jack Nicolson but if you search the memory banks you’ll recall him) or “Usual Suspects” (now you are thinking of one of the Baldwin Brothers; no Kevin the short guy, balding.) However Kevin Pollack is known for being a comic and his keen imitations. At the end of the late night show, the host said he’d be in Portland at the Helium Club in four weeks. No other city was mentioned. It had to be kismet we go see him since we live close to Portland.

After I booked our tickets, I looked on Google Map to get ideas on what we could do before the show. Heck, if we are going to drive to Portland we might as make the day of it. And that is when I saw the distilleries. Many distilleries; so many that area of town is called “Distillery Row.” Perhaps a better name would be “Distillery Lane or Avenue” but I digress.



My husband, helping me with my Spirits



There are five Distilleries within what I’d call an easy walking distance. (Less than half a mile.) The row sells passports in which you can pay one fee ($20) to conduct five samples at each vendor, or it’s a buck a shot. Several Distilleries give tours. I, being the planner than I am called them all to get the skinny and to make sure we could be a participant in a couple of tours.

The first Distillery we sampled at was House of Spirits. The tours on Saturdays are at 1 & 3. However, the distiller was out sick. No tours. Bummer. We did our five samples in a very quaint showroom. At first, we weren’t given full attention by the ladies pouring but I think it had to do with the fact we arrived by bus (and the bus stop is directly in front of the distillery.) Once they ladies realized we were there indeed to taste spirits; and not just in there to warm up from the 30 degree weather; we did. The most unique spirit we tried was Oregon Raki. Raki is the national drink of Turkey, with a strong flavor and even stronger after taste, much like Ozo. Oregon Raki was smooth with light under tones of flavor made with anise flavored brandy. Nice. We bought a bottle. First batch, bottle #10. Coolness.

A mere few blocks away (we walked) was East Side Distillery. I called. Tours every hour, on the top of the hour. We squeezed into the small, unattractive showroom packed with people. The Spirit-tender would describe the spirit and ask for a show of hands who wanted to try it. I raised my hand several time. The most interesting spirit was the Cherry Bourbon. Sweet, very sweet. Almost sugary sweet. They also make a variety of Potato Vodkas. As more people packed into the show room and as it neared the top-of-the-hour, I weaseled my way to the back sitting area to ask where and when the tour starts. The gal told me I was in the right spot. Excellent. Did I have my coupon? Coupon… no one said anything about a coupon over the telephone. She said I had to get it on the internet from KATU Channel two. Needless-to-say, we didn’t get a tour. And we didn’t pay for our spirit tastings either.

Next stop was a block away. New Deal Distillery. I wondered if we were indeed going into the right place since only a sandwich board directed people into an unmarked green door. Bravely, I opened the door and was visually delighted. The door opens into the distillery and off to the one corner is a neatly set up bar, bar stools and spirit tasting. The Spirit-tender was kind and told us our shot glasses are included in the cost. Yea! I like freebies. One spirit was hot as fire called Hot Monkey. I had my Hot Monkey fire-spirit mixed with ¾ pineapple juice. My husband tried his straight and had tears instantly streaming down his face. This is the drink in which you need to make Sunday Morning Bloody Mary’s. If that doesn’t get you up and going; nothing will. We didn’t purchase a bottle of fire, but we did buy the best tasting Coffee Liquor we’d had that day. Yeap, we tried it at the previous two places but this one you could tell the coffee beans were roasted and brewed just right. The spirit-tender told us the distill-master was a former barista. The flavor spoke for itself.

Across the street was the last stop of self-guided tour. After all, one can only have so many shots in one day. The last one was called “Vinn.” This family makes their spirits from rice in crock pots in Wilsonville. All they have in Portland is a showroom and a super interesting story how there family emigrated from China to Vietnam where they were deported from. Michelle & Lee treated us well as we drank their spirits. They even mixed the rice-infused spirits mixed with drinking vinegar. You read that right; drinking vinegar made right in Portland Called Pok Pok. Yeap, it was good. We bought a bottle, of both; Vinegar and Baijui Vodka.

An afternoon of spirits, led us to Cascade Brewing for a beer and we’d hope for dinner. I really wanted to drink something I know well. However, no real menu to speak of…just beer cheese soup and about the best homemade corn bread with honey butter I’ve had. (My lucky day afternoon.)



We stumbled a couple blocks to the Helium club and roared until our stomachs hurt with Kevin Pollack’s stories of the stars and entertainment.

Back on bus #4, 6 stops away from Voodoo Donuts. (The line was only 20 minutes long at midnight Saturday.) Now my day was complete.

Now set your DVR’s and start watching Late Night Talk hosts. You never know where it will lead you.