The Breweries

Year Two Challenge: Tour a different brewery every month

1. Redhook Brewery: Woodinville, Washington USA (December 2011)
   Visited the brewery during a visit to Seattle to visit our daughters. Had been wanting to visit since about 2002, when we toured the nearby winery but the family vetoed a second tour in one day. Then we stumbled across it again when we were testing out our tandem bicycle on the Burke-Gilman trail, bus alas didn't have time for a tour. Third time a charm, although we traveled about 5,000 miles to get to this brewery!
   Tour is probably not the best way to describe the Redhook experience, nearly all of which takes place in one room. But you do get tasting size servings of at least 5 beers, and the presentation was funny in a tongue-in-cheek way.
2. Bierbrouwerij de Koningshoeven: Tilburg, the Netherlands (January 2012)
   As a fan of top-fermented beers (such as Belgian style ales), I had to include at least one of the Trappist breweries. This brewery, better known as La Trappe, is one of only seven Trappist breweries in the world, and the only one in the Netherlands (the other six are located in Belgium). After being directed by a silent, solitary monk in the gift shop (he pointed to a sign directing tour participants to the tasting room) we checked in and received a printed copy of the English-language version of the tour. Fortunately there were enough English speakers that the guide ended up giving the tour half in Nederlands, half in English. The tour was okay, and the full size beers we enjoyed at the end were even better. The tasting room kitchen was still open when we finished, so we were able to enjoy an early dinner as part of the experience.
3. Guinness: Dublin, Ireland (February 2012)
   Everyone knows about Guinness, "the Black Stuff". They say it tastes better in Dublin than anywhere else in the world. I'm not sure if that's true, but it does taste pretty good - and the view from the tasting room is amazing (on a clear day).
4. Achelse Kluis: Achel, Belgium (March 2012)
   This small brewery is located in a Benedictine monastery in Belgium, right on the Dutch border (so close that the parking lot is located in the Netherlands!). In addition to brewing their own blond and brown Belgian style beers, the monastery runs a shop with a fabulous selection of bottled beers and matching glasses. We've noticed in most cafes and restaurants, beers are served in a glass emblazoned with the brewer's mark, and the shape of the glass is optimized for the style of the beer. This results in an optimized taste experience.
5. De Pelgrim: Rotterdam, the Netherlands (April 2012)On a rainy Easter weekend trip to Rotterdam, we came across the Pelgrim brewery, located immediately next door to the Pelgrimvaderskerk (Pilgrim fathers church). This almost an icon for Americans - the best known early European settlers were English puritans who fled the decadence of Elizabethan England for Holland, living in Leiden and the Rotterdam before returning to England to board the Mayflower and sail away to what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts. The house beer at De Pelgrim is a  Düsseldorf-style altbier, one of my favorites.
6. Brasserie Béierhaascht: Bascharage - Luxembourg  (May 2012)
   On a wide ranging spring break that includes stops in Brussels, Bruges, and Mechelen (Belgium) as well Rouen and Caen (France) and ending in Saarburg and Trier (Germany), we paused briefly in Luxembourg. Arriving famished at the brewery/hotel/smokery/restaurant during the mid-afternoon kitchen closure, we were temporarily stymied. Finally, through my negligible French and the much-better English of one of the staff members, we were able to procure a platter displaying a mouth-watering selection of house-cured hams served with spent grain bread baked on the premises. Delicious, particularly with the amber ale. Next time we'll try to arrive when the kitchen is open.
7. Granville Island Brewing: Vancouver, Canada (June 2012)
   While visiting my daughters in Washington state, we took time for a quick trip over the border to taste some Canadian beer. Granville Island is charming oasis near the center of the city, with art galleries, a public market, and lots to see and do. We happened to visit on a particularly rainy day (rain is not uncommon in this region, but it's usually just a drizzle, not a downpour) so perhaps part of our experience was due to the weather. We found the beer to be surprising - and not necessarily in a good way. My daughter ordered and IPA and I ordered a dark ale. We ended up swapping beers - she found the IPA to be too malty, and the dark ale was too hoppy for me! We ended up refreshing our palates at the Keg next door with lunch and a Granville Island Pale Ale for her, and a Guinness for me. All's well that ends well.
8. Uerige Hausbrauerei :  Düsseldorf , Germany (July 2012)
9. Suomenlinna Brewery: Helsinki, Finland  (August 2012)
   In August we were on holiday in Scandinavia. In addition to Carlsberg (which was fun, but rather mass-market), we visited a brewery on an island in Helsinki's harbor. I slurped up a delicious bitter, then we dashed for the ferry back to the mainland. A bit of serendipity, as we had no idea before we arrived that there was a brewery at hand.
   also Carlsberg
   also brewery in Talinn
10. Les Brasseurs de Lorraine:  Pont-à-Mousson, France (September 2012)
11. Balmaha Brewing: Loch Lomond, Scotland (October 2012)
    On a brief holiday in Scotland, we spent most of our time in Edinburgh. Breweries are not thick on the ground in Edinburgh, and because of licensing laws, the one operating brewery (Caledonian) is not open to the public for tasting, only by a tour. Not wanting to dedicate time for a tour, I despaired of adding a Scottish brewery to my list. It was a very pleasant surprise therefore when our highlands day tour group stopped for lunch at the Oak Tree Inn near Loch Lomond. Not only was the house ale (Balmaha Blonde) on tap, it was delicious! So was the house smoked salmon (the best I've ever eaten) and the cullen skink (smoked haddock soup).
12. Päffgen Kölsch: Cologne, Germany (November, 2012)
    Our daughters were in town for Thanksgiving in November and while we didn't make it to any new countries, we did have a fun afternoon in Cologne that culminated in a very traditional German meal at a German brew pub. The local style, called Kölsch, is top-fermented then lagered. The taste was on the light side but not bad. We especially enjoyed the very thin glasses it is served in, and the way the servers bring fresh glasses around in a sort of tray that has a handle projecting from the center. The servers are quite snarky, which is apparently de rigeur for these braueries, and came through loud and clear, even in English.