37 Days Later…

To be gone from blogging for over a month is tantamount to a cardinal sin in the digital age. To launch into lengthy explanations as half-veiled excuses for said absence is not as egregious, but may come off as tedious.

And there is no place for these things on a blog that is supposed to be about beer. In lieu of them, I will only offer a humble apology for my prolonged absence from the digital world. Life, as it tends to do, had gotten so hectic I barely had time to stumble from one destination to the next, let alone reflect upon and write about it. When I did finally decide to rededicate some time to throwing my thoughts into the digital void, a three thousand word volume began to emerge. I fear that I am already too verbose and did not want to have the few readers I draw back vomit due to my self-indulgence.

The solution is thus: a bland introduction (see above) followed by a brief synopsis of my adventures and then reviews of the breweries and events I attended.

From the point of my last post, I had already been away from home for a week while working and visiting breweries in Orange County, California. I returned late one night, just to do some laundry, repack and then jump in the car the next morning to leave on an epic road trip from Washington to South Dakota and back. I returned from almost two weeks on the road, once again late at night, and then did more laundry and got on a plane the next morning to fly to Davis to check out the campus and to look for potential places to live. I then got four days at home before road tripping west to Seattle and Portland for some concerts. The next weekend was filled with the first annual Spokane Oktoberfest. When does it end? Not now, because I am currently preparing to fly to California for work once again today.

The South Dakota trip got transformed into a beercation thanks to some research and a little ninja persuasion technique employed on my girlfriend. That is an utter fabrication: Janelle loves beer. We set up a regimen of driving so that one could enjoy some ales with lunch, for the other would be driving afterward.

Wallace Brewing Co. – Needing an early pit stop, we drove into Wallace and found the brewery closed, but the bar next door (which features the brewery) was open and serving lunch. The tap list was not extensive or challenging and the same could be said for the beers. They were quite drinkable, just not outstanding in any way.

Montana Brewing Co. – Nestled in a huge historic building in Billings, the Montana Brewing Company makes a good name for itself with some solidly made beers. What else would you expect from a Siebel trained brewer? Their new India black ale was superb, tending towards hopped chocolate with very little roasted tones. Their Irish red was also fantastic. I did not get to try it, but I bought a t-shirt for the brilliantly named “Custer’s Last Stout.”

Sanford’s Grub, Pub and Brewery – While the front room definitely telegraphed that this was the first store of what became a chain, the 36 taps behind the wall proved that Sanford’s meant business. The only problem being that the taps were above the glass window into the keg room. The Oil Can Stout was delicious and most impressive once I saw that the brewery consisted of a three tiered home brewing rig.

Ben’s Brewing Co. – After setting up camp near Yankton, we drove into town to find this establishment only to find that Ben had stopped brewing. Luckily, the bartender was very friendly and wanted to share the local ales that were available on tap. Millstream Brewing’s Amber was a surprise favorite of mine, due to the fact that I normally do not care for the style.

Granite City Brewing Co. – Sioux Falls is the home of the original store in what has become a chain. The bar staff had very little knowledge of the beer they were serving, but the quality of the ale itself was top notch. Their IPA was the highlight for me, but the light lager and stout mixed (known to the locals as a Two-Pull) was actually quite tasty.

Dempsey’s Pub and Brewery – Just a short drive from Janelle’s hometown is the slightly larger city of Watertown, which I was surprised to learn had a brewpub. We met some of Janelle’s friends from high school there and, while the company was fantastic, the beer and food were dismal. The beers were flawed to the point that I was tempted to leave a comment card that read “lower your fermentation temperatures, please.”

Brau Brothers Brewing Co. – For the wedding that we attended, the bride and groom secured three kegs from a local brewery based in the small town of Lucan, Minnesota. Their IPA was in the west coast tradition and my lupulin cravings were satiated. Their cream stout was also quite tasty, but a little heavy for the warm weather and dancing. They had a light lager that was very full flavored, but I couldn’t keep away from the IPA.

Crow Peak Brewing Co. – Spearfish seemed to be a cool little town with an amazing little café that served vegan food and this gem of a brewery. The building it is housed in is gorgeous, right down to the growler shaped fireplace. The beer was solid, if not outstanding. We were lucky enough to visit twice, as I left my laptop sitting at our table and we had to drive back to get it. I would say I planned it that way, but pulling in to the hotel we reserved in Billings at 1 am was only barely worth it.

Neptune Brewing Co. – Livingston, Montana is hiding a gem. A large array of beer styles was on tap and all of them were spot on quality. We arrived as they were opening but were treated very well by the bar keep. She cooked us a meal and kept slinging tasters our way until we had to deny them on the grounds that we had to get on the road. I hope to pass through here again someday.

Sudwerk Privatbrauerei Hübsch – While getting a feel for Davis, we made a sojourn to Sudwerk for lunch. My step dad thought their stout was over-hopped, but we both found the seasonal Oktoberfest to be fantastic. I am looking forward to exploring the area more when I move, because we were unable to find a beer bar besides the brewery.

Spokane Oktoberfest – Great initial event and I was proud to be a part of it. The twenty breweries the Washington Beer Commission assembled from all over the state was quite impressive and they all seemed to have brought something special with them. Highlights for me were the Lucille IPA from Georgetown and the Hop von Boorian from Leht Neppur. I liked the soured EsteLager from Northport as well, but I barely got a taste from my glass before Janelle had drained it. This new found love for sours she has found might prove to be a problem.

In as few words as I could hold myself to, that is it. Over a month’s worth of craziness condensed into fewer than 1500 words. Moving forward, this blog will be updated more frequently and will become more interesting as I make the move to Davis and begin Master Brewer's school in just a few short months. Thanks to anyone who held out hope I would post again!