So I wanted a pint, it was a hot afternoon and I wanted to be in a nice air-conditioned pub drinking ale. I thought, and thought, yes Honey Creek Inn was the place I wanted to be. So I biked a loop at Cannonsburg State Game Area and checked out the new improvements; it's very nice. I then headed to Honey Creek Inn for a pint of whatever was on cask. Train Wreck Ale from Mt.Pleasant was the cask ale. A bit heavy for a cask ale, I was really looking for something hoppy, but it was good. I saw an odd sides Hoplicated on tap, thinking this would be a great ale, I ordered one. Holy lactic acid Batman, it was sour milk with hops. I finished it, and honestly I can't be too critical except to state that this may be an acquired taste. It was hoppy, cloudy, and a decent ale, with a flavor and mostly strong aroma of sour milk. It was one of those things that really turns you off, sour milk, what more could tell your palate, DON'T DRINK THIS, while at the same time my brain is saying, if this is was they were trying to accomplish they really nailed it, they must have just poured the lactic acid in by the gallon. I like a bock with a little sour, this was all sour. Not something I would drink again however. Honey Creek Inn is awesome, I could not remember the name of the brew and called them back, they were all too helpful getting me the name. Their food, service, and ale is one of a kind. Who else is Kent County serves cask ale? Not to mention the cool people you meet there.

I once again stopped in at Brewery Vivant, this time for lunch. I had "The Burger", it came with a bacon onion and raisin marmalade which was excellent along with tomato, lettuce, onion, mayo, and fries. I sampled their Belgian Wit. While I am not a fan of Witbier I enjoyed its mild character, it did not overwhelm the senses with spiciness like some Witbiers. I also sampled their Kludde Strong Ale, a dark beer with a pronounced black olive and root beer aroma, and a deep roasted malt taste. I would recommend it for a selection. Their Triomphe Belgian IPA is interesting in that it's a divergence from the traditional Belgian and French styles. It is a great IPA, however it's pretty hoppy for an ale with the word Belgian in it. They also have an Abbey Ale that seemed a bit more like a down to earth brown ale to me. The one thing that is very impressive about all their brews is their clarity, everyone of them is crystal clear. The service was excellent, the food was served hot, and the ale was fresh. Pretty hard to beat. If you are new to the brewery it's helpful to know that there is parking in the back so in most cases you probably don't need to find a spot on the street.

This evening I stopped off at Brewery Vivant, aside from the hipster overload, I was impressed. Their food smelled great, and their brews were top notch. It's a brewery with a french/belgian cloister theme. Set in an old church they have Belgian and French-style beer and food. Their bar service was very good considering how busy their were. When I did find a table I found their wait staff a little unresponsive. As a result I made my own 'Belgian' fries when I arrived home from the brewery. Had I had the opportunity, I would have ordered one of their many scrumptious looking entrees.

        
My second ale was their Sgt. Peppercorn Rye, it had a very distinctive malt character, not the sweet malt flavor of a German beer, but the dusty roasted taste of malt running through the grain mill. It was amber in color with no hop aroma or taste, very drinkable like a session beer.

One thing that stuck me as unique, as if having your brewery in an old mortuary in not unique enough, was their bright tanks. They are horizontal storage tanks that have been, according to their website "repurposed from dairy tanks" that "give our French style "biere de garde" the extra time it needs to develop".

I give it a thumbs up. From the time I stepped in and was greeted at the door I thought it was a great place. Their bathroom sinks are a one of kind, check them out when you're there. So aside from my deep concern that the hipsters, those young folks who are so confused about who they are they have to be just like everyone else who pretends to be 'different' watering down the craft brewing movement by making people think we drink good beer to be cool - we don't - we like good beer - it was great. And to all those hipsters out there, just be yourself. You look like a bunch of immature posers. Take it from someone who is their-self,  it's better to just relax, not worry and have a homebrew.
 

Each fall Founders Brewing does a Breakfast Stout Breakfast with the motto, "You can't drink all day if you don't start in the morning". In the past it has been catered by San Chez Bistro. This year it was catered by Gilmore catering.The food was excellent and it did not seem to run out as it has in the past. This year Jeremy Kosmicki, head brewer at Founders also brewed up a hazelnut and a vanilla bean version of the Breakfast Stout. Both were not overpowering but had just a hint of character from the bean and coffee. I asked him about pitching the vanilla beans. He just dumped them in and hoped for the best, without a lot of worrying about what evil they might impart. After all it would be quickly consumed by Founders patrons. Here's looking forward to next years Breakfast Stout Breakfast!

Founders IPA. If there is a stand-by IPA, this is it. If you haven't picked your tickets up yet, this Saturday is Founders Breakfast Stout Breakfast. http://www.foundersbrewing.com/

Finding myself in Savannah Georgia I did what I always do when I am somewhere new, look for the local micro brewery. Georgia is home to a few breweries and brewpubs. The most popular local beer on tap in Savannah is the Sweetwater 420, a full bodied pale ale. Downtown Savannah is home to Moon River Brewing Company a local brewpub that has cask ales on Wednesdays and thirteen or so brews on tap. Located in the building that formerly housed the historic City Hotel built in 1821, it sports an oak and brick interior with an extensive beer can collection.

I first had their Swamp Fox Indian Pale Ale, it has a great hop character reminiscent of a Simcoe, I never got a chance to ask the barmaid what hops they used. I also had their porter and ribs with sweet potato fries. The food was excellent, the service decent, I would recommend stopping in if you get the opportunity.

 

I want to say that Graydon's Crossing is my favorite pub. But I have already said that about Honey Creek Inn. So maybe I have two favorite pubs, so sue me. It burnt down a while ago, fortunately not too down, as it's back up again. Last week I stopped in and had a Flying Dog Gonzo Porter. In the bottle it's a great porter, but on tap it takes on a whole new persona, still great, but with a hop and sharp malt character undetectable in the bottle.

Tonight I stopped in and had their soup of the day (incredible) a spicy little curry and whatnot in a cup. I also had their fish and chips, a meal for two really - I was over stuffed for the next three hours. But the best part was the pint I sipped on for three hours, the Barrel Aged Plead The 5th from Dark Horse. I have already ranted about how it's the best ale in the world in my brewfest blurb. It comes out in November but Graydon's being Graydon's has a keg of it. But the story get's better, they let me take a growler of it home - Whoo Hoo. I am bottling it up right now so I can ship a sample to my favorite beer drinking buddy south of the Mason-Dixon line.

Wow now here was something new, Founders Bourbon Apple Cream Ale. I just tried a small sample of it. It tastes just like it sounds, and it was very good. It was like an Apple Jack on the rocks that had been melting for a while. It had the taste of cider, water and bourbon. I am not sure I would want an entire pint of it but perhaps a wineglass of snifter of it. The small sample size glass in the picture is the Apple Cream Ale. I also sampled their Endurance Ale (the pint glass pic) it was a very light pale ale with a real nice hop aroma and bitterness, sort of a session ale.

When visiting South Haven Michigan a couple that were staying at our hotel recommended Amicarelli Vineyard. Not only was the food incredible, so was the service. I had my favorite dish which includes sausage and red sauce. It was the best Italian I have had since New York. My son was unhappy with the pizza so the server made him up his own custom slices. Well beyond anyone's expectation. I had a Phin and Matts Extraordinary Ale from Southern Tier Brewing in NY. It was rather unique. It was a very pale ale but hoppy. Most American IPA's have an all around body and flavor in addtion to the hop bitterness and arouma. Not this, it was a pale ale with a super light body, and a rather odd flavor. It was sweet and sour at the same time. I could not tell if it was just old, or that sour funk was actually part of the intended flavor profile. It did have a great hop bitterness. I think my jury is still out on this one till I try it again.

I have the famous John Sloan painting of McSorley's Old Ale House as my wallpaper. My son was looking at it and I started telling him about McSorley's. In the process of Googling for pictures I came across one of Chumley's and was telling him about the secret exits. As I was looking for more pictures I discovered some sad news. Back in April 2007 while maintenance was being done on the building, the front wall collapsed. While initial reports indicated a quick reopening it's still closed with little indication that anything will change. The Observer had a great article about it back in November 2007. I  used to frequent Chumley's and I wrote a small blurb about it in May of 2002. At the time I had no idea that they paid $17,613 in rent a month. You have to sell an awful lot of burgers and beer to pay for that. Goodbye old friend, rest in peace.