We're only immortal for a limited time: Part II

Welcome to the conclusion of our weekend jaunt to Harpers Ferry, WV. When we last left you, we'd just enjoyed our visit to Dirt Farm Brewing and were on our way to another brewery just three miles up the country roads.

Situated in the historic hills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, B Chord opened its doors near the end of 2017 and is as much of a farm brewery as it is a music venue. Sticking with its music bent, the name of the brewery refers to an old Bluegrass slang term meaning “the best of its kind”. The space itself is pretty much a large pole barn with a bar at one end, a stage at the other, and some tables and other eclectic seating around the perimeter. We decided to set up show in the corner among some cozy chairs and sofas. Like some of the other breweries in the area, B Chord is dog-friendly. As a matter of fact, we befriended a little mutt named Toby, who kept coming over to us to beg for morsels of our giant soft pretzel we'd since ordered.

As for the beer, I decided to stick with something simple and sessionable, so I opted for Quail Ridge Pale Ale. Unfortunately, a distracting, off-flavor vegetal character really turned this into a disappointing beer. I tried some of the group's beers, and they seemed fine. Something had definitely gone awry during the brewing process. Oh well... sometimes you get stuck with a clunker. Usually it's Brewslut; this time, it was me.

We were on our way to Adroit Theory when we drove past Dragon Hops. Deuane had mentioned it mere minutes before we stumbled upon it, as it was a relatively new brewery on the local scene. Veteran owned and operated, Dragon Hops opened its doors in May of 2018 but had already been growing organic hops and maintaining their a hop farm in the picturesque rolling hills of Loudoun County. With so many "farm breweries" in the region, Dragon Hops established a mobile hop processing facility, which serves as a valuable resource to other local hop growers, allowing them to rent equipment to use on their own farms. What a great concept!

Dragon Hops the brewpub features a full food menu to complement its traditional-inspired beers and host a variety of live music. Oddly enough, I overheard a table full of people next to us mention "Rush tribute band." My head snapped around quickly and soon enough we were talking about my favorite band. Turns out there was a Rush tribute band called Caressing Steel performing there in a few weeks. I made sure to plug my own band and, later, gave them some Mad Elf after I found out that they all loved Tröegs beer. They were great people and it was cool to run into some fellow Rush fans during a delicate time for us all. 

After checking out the tap list, my love for peaches trumped my disdain for NEIPAs and I went with a beer called Sunova Peach. At 8% ABV, this was a refreshing, juicy peach-forward IPA not too heavy on the haze. This was quite enjoyable and exceeded my expectations. Unfortunately, this was a quick one-and-done stop, as we still had to get to Adroit Theory. Still, I'm glad we had enough time to swing by and check things out. Overall, it's a cool place with solid beer and a comfortable, casual setting. Plus any venue that hosts a Rush tribute band is alright in my book! 

Adroit Theory is about as metal as it gets as far as breweries go. Situated in Purcellville, VA, the brewery offers "esoteric and style challenging beers" with an emphasis on hazy IPAs, fruited sours, pastry stouts, and barrel-aging projects. Adroit Theory opened in 2013 and quickly emerged as a force to be reckoned with in the Virginia craft beer scene. We first visited the brewery in late May of 2015 during an overnight trip to the area to see Rush perform in Bristow, VA, on the R40 tour. Back then, the brewery was relatively new and I'd only found out about it after consulting my handy brewery map website. We were pretty blown away, and I'm glad to say that our opinion has not changed after almost five years away from this place.

When we arrived, the outside speakers were blaring some aggressive death metal. Well, it wasn't blasting like the music at, say, Three Floyds. It was, as Milton would say, at a reasonable volume. I mean, we could converse over it without being bludgeoned by blast beats. Turns out the weather was still cooperating nicely, so we sat outside for a while and had a nice chat with one of the locals.

Once we went inside, we realized that they totally changed the layout of the place. What used to be an "L" shaped room is now kind of a medium-sized rectangle. The space seemed smaller to all of us, but it had been a few years since our last visit so our minds were perhaps a bit hazy. As usual, the beer list was rife with unusual barrel-aged concoctions, all of which I needed to try. Sadly, two of the ones I really wanted to try had kicked. Still, there was plenty to be had. Androit Theory makes some legit beers, so it's no wonder why they're exclusive members of the "One Dollar Club" (i.e. breweries who charge basically $1 an ounce for beers). Ok, so we made that up. Not that I'm complaining, either; I'm happy to pay $4 for a sample-size glass. I'd rather pay a premium for a beer that's pretty much guaranteed to be good versus $7 or $8 for a pint from some local yokel brewery that might suck ass. (Believe me, it's happened on multiple occasions!) Case in point, check out these beers I was lucky enough to sample:

• B/A/Y/S (Ghost 811) - bourbon-barrel aged stout with Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, hazelnuts, toasted coconut,  and honey. Absolutely delicious!
• Therapy Sessions (Ghost 796) - apple brandy barrel-aged stout with toasted coconut, Belizian cacao nibs, and Tahitian vanilla. Love me some apple brandy barrel-aged beers, and this one was no exception.
• AAMEUL (Ghost 808) - imperial stout with black currants, black sugar and squid ink. Yes, you read correctly... SQUID INK! This one was earthy and a tad briny with a burnt sugar and dark fruit character. 
• All I See Is Carrion (Ghost 804) - Belgian-style Quad, heavy on the malt with a dark sugar character and fruity Belgian-style esters.

As anticipated, my favorite was the B/A/Y/S. Can't go wrong with a bourbon barrel-aged stout with coffee. The hazelnuts, coconut and honey were just added bonuses. Therapy Sessions was also quite delicious, with a tangy, apple brandy-soaked tropical quality followed by a wash of lush vanilla and dark chocolate in the finish.  

Group pic!

By this time in the evening, I think we were all getting a bit sloppy, so it was time to stick a fork in the night and return back to Highacre for a nightcap. Deuane and I stayed up until 2:30 a.m. talking about, well, everything... and the beer kept on flowing... and flowing... and flowing. Needless to say, I was yawning pretty hard come Sunday morning.

However, I wasn't too tired to help finish puzzle number two, a colorful selection of various birds perched on a wooden fence among tall grass and flowers. Beer and birds. I can't believe Deuane didn't get more involved with these. He did help out by finding one or two pieces we needed, so I guess that constitutes "helping."

After breakfast, we got everything packed up and hit the road. But the trip was far from over. Each time we travel to this neck of the woods, we always make a point to explore the ever-growing landscape of breweries in nearby Frederick, MD. First on the agenda was a brand new place called Idiom, which had just celebrated its first anniversary on Black Friday 2019. Before we arrived, Brewslut wondered if the names of their beers would all be idioms. Turns out they pretty much were! The impetus of the brewery occurred during a trip to Oregon to visit some friends. In addition to exploring the amazing craft beer landscape of Oregon, they were invited to join in a homebrew day and were immediately hooked. That inaugural stove-top batch of an Irish Red ale spawned countless recipe ideas and eventually led to Idiom Brewing Company.

Inside the spacious Idiom Brewing Company.

I loved everything about this place. It just felt so comfortable and inviting there. Our server was friendly. The atmosphere was perfect. But what about the beer? Dare I say it was my favorite of the trip? It very likely was. The beer I ordered, a 9% ABV beer called Just Desserts, was described as a "Rocky Road dessert stout with pecans and marshmallows." This beer tasted even better than I'd imagined! The marshmallow provided a hint of fluffy sweetness and the toasted nuttiness from the pecans worked well within the context of a thick, rich stout. This was a special beer for sure. So special, I believe it was my favorite beer of the trip. Not bad for a brewery with only one year under its belt.

Rocky... rooooooooaaaaad?!

Meanwhile, Brewslut was equally enamoured with her selection, a lemon meringue milkshake IPA called Shake on It. As a matter of fact, she enjoyed it so much that she ordered two full pours during our visit and took home a 4-pack of pounder cans to savor at home. Now that's saying something about Idiom's beers... the Brewslut stamp of approval.

We ended up scoring a free pour of Raise Your Eyebrow, a rye IPA brewed with Citra, Cascade and Simcoe Cryo hops that had just been the focus of a photo shoot a few moments prior. I was curious about "Simcoe Cryo" hops, which were listed as part of the beer's description. Of course I'm familiar with Simcoe hops, but what's this "Cryo" business? Turns out Cryo Hops® essentially eliminates astringency in beers. Extremely high in alpha acids, they produce intense flavors and aromas without the unwanted vegetal byproducts that traditional hop cones and pellets contain. This was a delicious beer with a juicy hop character and hint of dry spiciness courtesy of the rye. The mouthfeel was full and luscious, making it all the more enjoyable.

In the essence of time, we had planned to skip Attaboy because we needed to be back home around 4 p.m. to get ready for my monthly rock music trivia night. But Deuane said Attaboy was in walking distance (like a one-minute walk) of Idiom, so we decided to swing in for a beer. We'd been to Attaboy a handful of times in the last few years and have never been disappointed. The small, starkly decorated taproom features about eight taps, which run the gamut of a variety of IPAs to saisons and sours to oddball styles like Biere de Gardes and Grisettes.

I opted for a "light hopped saison" called Blanche, named after the feisty, sexually promiscuous cougar (or should I say GILF?) from the Golden Girls. The beer came across as quite floral with a hint of delicate summer melon and a touch of vanilla. It was enjoyable and provided a nice diversion from the types of beers I'd been enjoying thus far over the weekend. I'm usually good for a saison or two when we travel, and this one hit the spot. I should have nabbed something from the food truck, Boxcar Burgers, as we've enjoyed their food a few times in the past. But this was a quickie, and I was still able to enjoy an afternoon delight with Blanche.

Our final destination was another new-to-us brewery called Midnight Run. I'd actually been in contact with the owner, Brent, who recently had taken a group tour with his staff at Troegs, and I helped facilitate his visit by introducing him to our tour manager. I was hoping to meet him when we stopped in, but unfortunately he wasn't around. I did drop off a few cans of Double Blizzard for him and our bartender to enjoy, though.

I'll have the soup of the day, please!

Midnight Run began life in a garage more than a decade ago when two friends and homebrewers dreamed of one day opening a brewery. With degrees in both culinary arts and mechanical engineering, long-time friends Rich and Brent joined forces to start the brewery of their dreams. Taking a free-thinking approach to brewing, the duo's beers tend to throw out the style playbook. Using science and art, they strive to create unconventional beers for both jaded beer geeks and craft beer noobs.

View from my barstool at Midnight Run.

Since it was our last stop, I decided to go big. I was surprised to see not one but two barleywines on tap. I couldn't decided which one to get, so I got small pours of each, because... why not? The first,
Royal Gold, is a rye barrel-aged English-style barleywine weighing in at 8% ABV. This is surprisingly pretty light on the barleywine scale, and quite sweet too, with notes of caramel squares, toffee, brown sugar, and maple syrup.

Time Machine, on the other hand, is a 9% ABV barrel-aged American-style barleywine. American-style barleywines tend to be considerably hoppier and aggressive than their counterparts from across the pond. With that said, Time Machine does have a bit more gusto and hop presence than Royal Gold. Again, it was on the sweeter side of the spectrum but also boasted an orange candy hop character with hints of caramel and vanilla. I was expecting more of a resiny hop bite; instead, it was heavy on the orange. Of the two, I preferred Royal Gold a bit more, although both were enjoyable.

Despite the circumstances, we still enjoyed a pleasant weekend of checking out some new breweries. The surroundings were beautiful and the weather was pretty amazing for this time of year. Since we travel so much, I couldn't help but reflect on a few lines of lyrics from the Rush song, "Dreamline":

We travel on the road to adventure

On a desert highway straight to the heart of the sun

Like lovers and heroes, and the restless part of everyone

We're only at home when we're on the run

On the run

Our beer travels have taken us many places over the years. We're fuelled by adventure and, almost innately, follow our own restless hearts to wherever they might lead us. Whether its near or far, hither or thither, yonder or close, sometimes you just have to appreciate the moment and the people with whom you spend it... because we're only immortal for a limited time. 

Until next time...