Tröegs Field Trip 2019

Hey kids! Remember last year when I got to join my fellow Tröegs co-workers on a sweet field trip to the Martin guitar factory with a few breweries thrown in for good measure? Well, turns out it's kind of an annual thing now. Once again, my beer cohorts and I traveled (by chartered coach... not some shitty school bus) to the fine city of Baltimore for a day of fun, beer, and a little bit of art appreciation.

First up was a visit to Union Craft Brewing for a tour, some beers, and lunch. Brewslut and I had visited Union back in August of 2017 when we traveled to see Dweezil Zappa for the umpteenth time (refer to the What's New in Baltimore? blog for an account of that trip if you're new to us and feel so inclined). Back then, Union was still shacking up in its old digs and in the midst of celebrating its 5th anniversary. This time, however, they'd set up shop in a big-ass warehouse situated along the Jones Falls river in the historic Woodberry neighborhood of Baltimore. Once inside, I realized this was a far cry from its previous location, which could be described as garage-like compared to the sprawling layout of its current facility.

Trippy, colorful mural adorning the wall outside Union Craft.

Our tour guide was Kevin Blodger, one of the co-founders of the brewery. I'm happy to say that Union has grown considerably since our first visit. Kevin talked a bit about the history of the brewery, which was founded in 2011. It also employs "Adult Swim" hours, meaning no persons under the age of 21 are allowed inside the tap room after 6 p.m. Now we're talkin'! I wish more breweries would embrace this philosophy. Bring the kids in the afternoon and leave the evenings for the professionals. Just sayin'.

Inside, the tap room is eclectic and cozy. It kind of reminded me of Weasel Boy to an extent. They even have a full-size camper complete with a photo booth inside the tap room. See?

The tap room is quite spacious, so we were able to break off and explore the space at our own pace. The floor plan is open and inviting, and includes a small gift shop and a pretty rad game room complete with additional seating, skee-ball and more! They also use this space for private events. Good idea!

Game room at Union.

Once we got settled after our tour, I was excited to see a collaboration beer done with Ocelot, one of my favorite breweries in Virginia, called Grand Royale. The beer, an 8% double IPA, is hopped with Citra, Mosaic, and an experimental variety known as U1/108. This one was dank and juicy with a good bit of heft and some bristle (not uber-soft and silky like most NE-style IPAs). Overall, this one was exceptionally drinkable and quite flavorful with notes of tropical fruit and a smack of grapefruit.

 

Up next was something from Union's "Rough Drafts" series called Green Ghost IPA. Born through its R&D (research and development) brewhouse, this West Coast-style IPA features a new-to-me hop variety called Grüngeist (aka The Green Ghost). This one boasts peach, kiwi, and passionfruit in the nose followed by hints of lemon zest and wildflowers with moderate bitterness on the palate. A touch of pine resin weighs in through the finish. This was pretty solid overall, but I wish I would have started with this one and then moved onto the Grand Royale. OK, so it was a classic rookie mistake. I guess I got excited when I saw it was a collab with Ocelot.

Inside Union's expansive tap room.

While we were enjoying our beers, we enjoyed an assortment of food from Union's on-premise Well-Crafted Kitchen, including a variety of pizzas, pretzels and popcorn. Everyone must have been pretty hungry, because they were pumpin' out the food like it was feeding time at the zoo!

Even though it was unseasonably warm for early April, I decided to go with a pour of Snow Pants next. I must admit that I opted for this based on its clever name (a winter warmer, of course), so I was thrilled that it was really tasty. An Oatmeal Stout, this jet black, full-bodied beer weighs at 8% ABV. Boasting a gentle, creamy body due to the addition of oats, it's a sweet stout tempered with Cascade and Columbus hops, which offer a tinge of citrus and pine.

Another shot of Union's interior.

I rounded out our visit with a pour of Old Pro, a German-style wheat ale brewed with coriander and salt. I think by now everyone knows what a gose is. A dash of salt and a hint of tart, Old Pro is a slammin' straight-up gose. No fruit, no frills; just damn tasty and super refreshing.

I don't remember enjoying Union as much as during our initial visit as I did this time. Perhaps it was the new location and the hospitality. Either way, the beers were fantastic and the space was fun. Everyone was just really inviting and friendly, which always helps too. Can't wait to go back with the wife!

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Tröegs has enjoyed a wonderful relationship with the American Visionary Art Museum, one of Baltimore's most unique non-beer destinations I've ever visited. These folks are responsible for the utterly awesome Kinetic Sculpture Race, whereby dozens of handmade, man-powered works of art traverse the streets of the city across a 15-mile course of various terrain. Sadly, the event is always the day before the Sly Fox Goat Races, so I haven't been able to attend. One of these years I'm just going to have to suck it up and attend both, because this one looks hella-fun!  

Outside the American Visionary Art Museum.

The exhibits at AVAM during our visit focused on children and parenting, two subjects I know very little about. I'd probably do better on a Chemistry exam, in all honesty. Still, the place is quite a sight to behold. I had the opportunity to visit the museum about two years ago with our marketing team at Tröegs, which took place just prior to our involvement with one of AVAM's signature events, the Kinetic Sculpture Race. We've since participated in the event as a beer sponsor, and even constructed our own human-powered Troegenator float (dubbed the "Nator Racer") to traverse the 15-mile course through the streets - and other terrain - of Baltimore. Sadly, I've never had the opportunity to experience the race, as it is always held the day before the Sly Fox Bock Fest and Goat Races, which is an absolute MUST-ATTEND event for Brewslut and I. 

After a nice guided tour of some of the key exhibits, we strolled around on our own for a bit and visited the kitschy, eclectic gift shop, where last year I'd purchased a sock dog (like a sock monkey) and a pair of Bob Ross socks for Brewslut. This year, though, I went home empty handed, although I almost bought a "chicken hat" (use your imagination with that one). I was considering wearing it to our next stop on the itinerary, but even I don't need that much attention. Here are two fun photos I snapped while walking around and soaking in the exhibits:

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The headline act of the day was a visit to the amazing Guinness Open Gate Brewery & Barrel House. We'd had plans to visit last June after the Primus/Mastodon show we attended in Baltimore (which you can read about in our Less is never more, especially in Baltimore entry). Long story short, we were going to visit on Sunday, which was the day after the concert, but the hotel overbooked and we were forced to drive home late Saturday night. So I was excited to finally check out the facility. And let me tell you... it's pretty damn impressive!

I'd met Oliver, our guide for the day, when he contacted me to make plans to visit Tröegs. This was about a year before the Open Gate Brewery opened its doors. He was kind enough to give me a sweet Guinness T-shirt and some extra-special limited barrel-aged beer, which was really damn good! 

After our group received a thorough tour of the facility, we made our way back to the tasting room for some much-needed libations. I was anxious to dig in and see what Guinness was up to at this experimental brewery. A few things I picked up along the way: 

1. This facility brews all of the Guinness Blonde that is sold in the United States; 

2. It's the first Guinness brewery situated on American soil in over 63 years (Guinness briefly owned a brewery in Long Island City, New York, from 1949-1954); 

3. The Guinness Draught we all know and love didn't actually launch until 1959, when Michael Ash invented the "surge and settle" effect and thus the world's first nitrogen-dispensed beer, and; 

4. Arthur Guinness started the brewery in 1752 after receiving a 100£ inheritance. Pretty good return on investment, eh? 

Now onto the beer. I must say that Guinness is cranking out some pretty impressive beers here. After perusing the fairly lengthy draft list, I opted for the Nitro Coffee Stout brewed with Brazilian roasted coffee from Vent Coffee Roasters. Silky and smooth thanks to the patented Guinness "perfect pour," this was pretty solid albeit the coffee flavor was a bit subdued. I find this pretty typical for nitro stouts; you trade flavor for texture. Still, this was a stunning beer to soak in even if it wasn't as coffee-forward as I prefer for the style. 

While I worked on my coffee stout, everyone seemed to be going on and on about this Dry Hopped Kolsch. Turns out it was a favorite of many of my co-workers, and it also happened to be my favorite of the lot as well. Floral, light and refreshing, this one really hit the spot. I'm usually not terribly excited about the style, but this one was money! 

Another favorite of the group was the Imperial Stout. Weighing in at 8% ABV, this came across as a Euro-style stout with a big, chewy mouthfeel and minimal sweetness. Instead of chocolate and vanilla sweetness, this one boasted lots of dark stone fruit with a tinge of earth and accents of molasses, coffee, tobacco and leather. Roasty and complex, just the way I like 'em!

I thought we were ready to load up the bus by now, but everyone seemed to be having a great time, so I figured I'd have time for a few more. Enter the Northwest IPA, a copper-hued IPA brewed as an interpretation of a style made popular in the Northwestern part of the US. Malt-forward and medium bodied with rich caramel notes, some subtle pine and resin crept through, but not quite enough for my hoppy palate. Brewed with Mosaic, Citra and El Dorado, this IPA features muted notes of melon, orange, and dark fruit. 

Finally, I opted for a small pour of Belgian Ale, a classic Belgian-style Tripel with notes of light clove, sweet bubblegum, fruity esters and hint of pepper. And with that, it was time to hit the rocky road back to PA. 

OK kids, there's a lot to see here, so this is gonna be a photo-heavy blog. Plus I've been working on it for a while and I just haven't been feeling very verbose lately. I guess I'm still in FOJ mode. 

Gift shoppe (sounds more European, right?)

Nitro coffee stout.

The Guinness toucan was first introduced in 1935.

Me with the Guinness seal.

Randomonium.

Barrel-aging room.

More wood for y'all!

Well, that's all, folks! Tune in next time as we make our annual Memorial Day weekend trip to NEPA and upstate NY for Detfest weekend! Until next time...