So I realized something. I decided to change my beer blog posts up, by changing to a monthly post, which I did for December…. and then I missed January… and then February and now we are to the middle of March.
Apparently, I need a personal assistant, not that I can afford to pay one, but someone who can hold me accountable for the things I say and then make me do them.
For now, I’ll have to hold myself accountable. So here it goes, March’s Monthly Beer Round Up.
I heard Madonna on the radio today and I became inspired. Now you’re probably thinking WTH does Madonna have to do with a beer post? Well, she does and but she also doesn’t.
Last week I wrote about the closing of two of my local breweries and the importance of drinking local as well as trying our best to give our money to small breweries and businesses as opposed to the big beer conglomerates like Bud, Coors, and Miller.
In the spirit of carrying on this support for drinking local, I am sharing my favorite local breweries in North Idaho.
As I write this my stomach is in knots. These knots are not the result of me being sick or that I have consumed too much beer but that in the last two weeks I have learned that two of my local craft breweries are shutting their doors forever. It is a crushing blow to them but also to my local craft beer world. It is why it is important to drink local beer.
Last year I lost a dear beer friend of mine. The Wookey Jack Black Rye IPA from Firestone Walker. Firestone discontinued the beer last fall and I went into full-on prepper mode hoarding any bottles of Wookey Jack that I could find. I collected a small stash that kept me going for a few months. My last Wookey Jack was enjoyed on May 18th, 2017.
Sometimes the beer world can be small. As I sat at Barbarian Brewery, 500 miles away from home, I ordered myself a tasting flight and glanced to the left as I waited. I locked eyes with a familiar face. But this face perplexed me as it made no sense to see this face 500 miles away from home. The face belonged to the owner of my local brewery. Then his brother appeared, the head brewer from the same local brewery. And then the manager of the same local brewery’s beer hall. We were all in town for the weekend and one thing was clear… we should have carpooled.
A year ago I was in Boise and stopped at Payette Brewery’s tap room. The spot was simple, located in an industrial part of town. A typical brewery with a small taproom attached. Nothing overly special, just a room with bar seating, some tables and or course taps. A window peaked into the brewery and the only food available was from food trucks.
I go to a lot of breweries by myself. Some may judge me for that because I drink alone. Not like George Thorogood drinking alone, but still alone. Fortunately, the bartenders at Boise Brewing were friendly and engaging, so I was a little less alone while trying out Boise Brewing’s Beer.
Sometimes there are benefits to traveling alone. Like when you arrive at a popular brewery and the wait is long… For some. When you are a solo diner, often your wait is not long. You can be squeezed into just about anywhere.
When I arrived at 10 Barrel Brewing in Boise this was the case. It was a busy Friday night in the heat of the dinner rush. A waiter whisked me away to a family style table and handed me a menu where I sat at the end of the table filled with strangers, who happened to also be beer lovers. At least we could use that to break the ice.
You know the saying “don’t poke the bear”? So it means don’t provoke the person, right? Well I have a similar saying except I replace the bear with a badger. Why? Because a badger is way more scary than a bear. Badgers are rarely seen, somewhat vicious and nocturnal. These are all things I can relate to.
OK… sometimes I’m awake during the day.