Little Cabin in the Woods: Part I

For the last several years around my birthday, Brewslut and I have continued a streak of traveling with our long-time friends Deuane and Carolyn to partake in some casual brewery-hopping amid the picturesque landscapes of the Appalachian Mountains. Rather than hotel rooms or even Air B&B rentals, our lodging for these long weekends comes in the form of rustic cabins usually situated in quiet, remote areas. 

For this particular weekend, we'd be "roughing it." We'd been informed by Deuane in advance that there'd be no running water or indoor bathroom; instead, we'd have to schlep water from a nearby spring or perhaps bring our own. The bathroom situation? We'd be required to use an old-school outhouse or, easier for us dudes with dangling bits, whip it out and use a nearby tree or bush. As someone who showers once daily (or more, depending on my gym schedule) and uses the "facilities" more often than the average person, the thought of not having these amenities at my disposal was nudging me to the verge of bowing out this time around. Of course, Brewslut talked me into it. Not since I'd traveled to northern Maine for a Phish festival had I not bathed in several consecutive days, and this trip would undoubtedly put an end to that streak. 

So we set off one Thursday afternoon to Syria, VA, for a long weekend at Meadows Cabin, a dwelling of which Laura Ingles would likely be proud. The drive took about three-and-a-half hours (about the same time as it takes for us to get to Pittsburgh). We drove past GearHouse, Homaide and Cushwa along the way, and it killed us not to swing in for a beer at each. But it would have put the kibosh on our timeline, as we'd hoped to arrive before the sun set. After all, we had about a quarter-mile jog from our car to the cabin and would need to make a few trips.

In addition to D&C, we'd be joined by Taylor (whom you may remember from our trips to Delaware and Dogfish Head) as well as Deuane's favorite "beer son," Tristan, who has been in our close-knit circle of beer friends for quite some time (though he'd be joining us the following day). 

The cabin is regularly available to members of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club, of which D&C are long-time members. In a nutshell, the PATC acquires, maintains and protects trails and land on the Appalachian Trail as well as adjacent trails and facilities in the region, and endeavors to provide a dynamic outdoor experience to hikers, nature lovers, and other outdoorsy folk. The PATC also maintains 42 cabins to provide hiking and outdoor experiences for its members as well as the general public. These cabins in its network extend from Charlottesville, VA, through Maryland and West Virginia, reaching as far north as Shippensburg, PA. To quote the PATC: "Each cabin tells a unique, vibrant story; constructed by forest rangers, PATC members and benefactors, the Civilian Conservation Corps, or even Prohibition-era moonshiners." As you will soon discover, Meadows Cabin will unravel the story of a dingy, unwashed middle-aged man who is forced to sleep in a chilly second-floor loft overcome with ladybugs and reduced to using a make-shift piss jug his wife fabricated from a used plastic one-gallon water bottle. While that all sounds abysmal to someone who takes for granted such necessities as hot running water, a microwave, and flushable moist wipes, it was a pretty amazing weekend. 

Meadows Cabin is a semi-primitive chestnut log cabin built in 1913 by Edgar Meadows. It's located west of Syria, VA, on the east side of the Central District of Shenandoah National Park and features two rooms with an eat-in kitchen on the main floor and a large single room upstairs. Brewslut and I decided to take the loft, and the reason I opted for the piss jug is because the stairs were so narrow and the headspace was tight that I could see myself stumbling in the middle of the night to relieve myself only to crack my dome on the way down the stairs. While the cabin does have electricity, heat is provided by a wood stove, and the kitchen stove (which we didn't use) also requires wood. Here are some lovely photos Carolyn took of the cabin and its rooms:  

Exterior shots of Meadows Cabin.

Upstairs loft area where Brewslut and I slept.

Kitchen and dining room area.

We arrived to Meadows Cabin as we'd hoped: before sunset. Although daylight was beginning to fade quickly, we made the jog to the cabin without incident. Once we got settled in, we enjoyed a plethora of beer brought by Deuane, Taylor and I. With no internet connection in such a remote part of the world, we didn't have the luxury of being able to access Untappd - first world problems, right? - but you can rest assured we sampled a fine assortment of beers including several one-off DFH beers brought by Taylor. 

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After a quick mile-long hike the following day, Tristan joined us and we were back to civilization with a few visits to some nearby breweries. First up was one that was new to all of us: Octonia Stone Brew Works in Ruckersville, VA. The brewery's curious name is derived from an historic boundary marker, The Octonia Stone, located near Stanardsville, VA, which marks the westernmost boundary line of the Octonia Grant. A quick history lesson: In 1722, King George granted 24,000 acres of Virginia land to Lieutenant Governor Spotswood. Much of the grant was the very same land that Spotswood explored with his Knights of the Golden Horseshoe. On July 20, 1722, Spotswood passed on the grant to the Octonia Company, a group of eight prominent Virginians, who engraved an indigenous stone along the border with a figure (a cross atop a figure 8), which is incorporated into the brewery's logo. 

Cool quilt at Octonia Stone Brew Works (note the logo).

Oddly enough, instead of a pre-Revolutoinary War vibe that would have been consistent with its origin story, we were greeted by a fairly modern-looking dwelling that was decorated with movie and music posters and memorabilia (especially the Grateful Dead). They even had a working Atari 2600 in the upstairs area, and I managed to sneak in a game of Adventure, one of my all-time favorite Atari cartridges!

After perusing the menu, I opted for Lode Star, described as a smoked brown S'more ale. Despite being called an ale, this dark porter-like beer is actually fermented with lager yeast. Smoked and roasted malts lend a chocolatey backbone with just a hint of campfire smokiness. The addition of chocolate and toasted marshmallow syrup sweeten the pot - a bit too much, perhaps - and temper the smoky notes I'd hoped for. It was enjoyable overall, albeit not as complex as I'd hoped. With that said, I seemed to have been the clear winner of the group, because the rest of the beers ordered by our group (save Carolyn) were complete duds. Brandi's Milk Shake on You Crazy Diamond - while we appreciated the Pink Floyd reference - was completely undrinkable. We passed this abomination around the group and were greeted by a similar reaction and facial expression from all (I'll let you use your imagination). Everyone seemed to enjoy my Lode Star, though, and Deuane even decided to get his own pour after being disappointed by his selection. Sadly, he'd thought it was No Fracking Way, a fluffernutter stout that Tristan had and was equally as unappealing as Brewslut's IPA. Needless to say none of us helped him choke that one down. Aside from Deuane, this was a clear one-and-done visit. Time to move on to (hopefully) bigger and better things.

Up next was another familiar brewery, one that we'd visited during the Old Rag Shizzle weekend: Bald Top. Bald Top is one of Virginia's many farm breweries, a trend that continues to grow steadily in the state due to legislation passed in 2014 allowing farms to begin operating breweries on their properties. As of August 2020, there were 31 licensed farm breweries throughout the state. Touted as "Virginia's first historic farm brewery," Bald Top is nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the shadow of Bald Top Mountain. The brewery is situated on 53 acres of farmland that's actually listed in the Virginia Landmarks Register and also the National Register of Historic Places. On its farm, they grow five different varieties of hops to use in its beers. 

I kicked things off with a pour of Schwarzbier, the traditional dark German-style lager I've been ranting on about for the last few blogs. This was pretty solid overall, with a dominant roasty malt character and hint of cocoa with a smidgen of crispness one would expect with the style. Not bad at all.  

Pleeps likes BOTH kinds of beer: dark and light.

I followed up the Schwarzbier with Secretly Smoked Lager, a beer the folks at Bald Top promise "hints of smoked ham." The base beer is actually light amber lager but it definitely has a smoked ham flavor in the backend. This one was enjoyable, and it's always nice to see the words "smoked" on a beer menu. Meanwhile, we grabbed a few pies from the on-site wood-fired kitchen. I'm pretty easy to please when it comes to... well, just about anything... but Taylor wasn't down with the 'za here. I was more than happy helping him finish his pie, though. 

Like many of the breweries in this region of the country, the view at Bald Top is impressive. With that said, we were having a nice time and decided to stay for another round, so I went big and black with a pour of Russian Imperial Stout. According to Bald Top, this beer is a direct descendent of its original 2017 RIS. Brewed the previous July, it had been aging ever since. This one was definitely pretty heavy on the boozy bourbon character, but notes of chocolate, coffee and vanilla mingled with the warm alcohol notes. 

Friday was a short day. After hitting just two breweries, we decided to head back to the cabin, as Deuane was preparing an epic meal featuring wild-caught Alaskan salmon as the entrée. Plus we had plenty of beer to drink. To add to the ambiance, Taylor brought his portable turntable to the sparsely appointed cabin for our listening pleasure. He had asked me to pick out about ten records I thought he'd like, which I was happy to do. I actually put quite a bit of thought into my selections, and I had to narrow down my picks to twenty. I went heavy on jazz/rock/fusion with a few prog rock favorites. Herbie Hancock's Man-Child proved a favorite of the weekend, and he was also really excited that I brought along "Weird" Al's In 3-D, the only of his I have on vinyl. The record player provided plenty of entertainment throughout the weekend as we cracked open beers and enjoyed the warmth of the wood-burning oven. After a fine evening session, it was off to bed (thankfully it was much warmer in the loft compared to Thursday night... and I only had to use my piss jug once during the middle of the night). 

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After some breakfast and a lengthy morning hike on Cedar Run Trail in Shenandoah National Park (including some fantastic views of three different waterfalls), it was time to get cleaned up as best as we could and venture off to a new-to-us brewery called Skyline. Also known as Little Washington Winery & Brewery, this hidden gem of a place is tucked away in Virginia Wine Country's sweet spot near the Thornton Gap entrance to Shenandoah National Park. While they've been handcrafting old world-style artisan wines from its estate vines for more than seventeen years, brewing is a new venture for them. In addition to well-appointed tasting rooms, they have a wonderful deck area, sprawling, well-kept grounds and even a disc golf course. Also, they offer sixteen different classes in an attempt to educate folks on the finer points of wine and food pairing. 

Pleeps exploring the grounds at Little Washington aka Skyline.

Right off the bat, though, I felt like I was at some upper echelon country club, as a 16oz pour of beer in a plastic cup was $10 plus tax. We were all pretty vexed by this, and I joked that "the place down the road charges $10 for beer, so why can't we?" (That place is Pen Druid, a brewery I wouldn't bat an eye at spending $10 for a beer.) At any rate, I decided to go with a safe bet, a Cacao Nib Porter. While it wasn't worth almost $13 after tax and tip, I think I made the right decision, as some of the others weren't too jazzed about their beers. This was solid enough, with ample body, smooth creaminess, and a pleasant dark cocoa flavor amid the sweetness. The scenery was magnificent, so perhaps they worked the ambiance of the place into the cost of the beer. 

Weather-wise, it was turning into a lovely day, and we had no issues setting outside on the patio while we worked on our beers and conversed with each other. I took a little stroll around the grounds and snapped a few photos, the following of which is my personal favorite. That Pleeps... what a social butterfly. He's always busy making new friends. 

Pleeps and his new pink friends.

After our one-and-done visit to Skyline, it was time to head to the brewery I was most excited to visit again: Pen Druid. I was anxious to check out the new brewery, as they'd just moved to a brand new location in Sperryville, VA, last October. Pen Druid is owned and operated by the three brothers: Lain, Van and Jennings Carney (who also perform in a psych-rock band called Pontiak that's apparently big in Europe). In conjunction with Black Hops farm, the three brothers opened Pen Druid in August 2015. The brewery takes its name from an old family farm, which sits on the Thornton River in Rappahannock County, just a few miles downstream from the brewery. 

One of my favorite aspects of this brewery (and also one of its most unique) is that it focuses on wild and barrel-aged beers, spontaneous fermentation, and natural carbonation. Shortly after opening its doors, the brothers cultivated its own proprietary blend of wild yeasts and bacteria from the Virginia Piedmont, which represents the terroir of its native Rappahannock County. It's in this spirit that the Pen Druid brothers also began their spontaneous fermentation program utilizing two copper-lined coolships. Quick lesson for you: A coolship (based on the Flemish word "koelschip") is a broad, flat, open-top fermentation vessel, which allows wort to cool and simultaneously collect airborne yeast and bacteria to inoculate the beer naturally, thus creating spontaneous fermentation. 

As if using a coolship wasn't traditional enough, these guys brew on a 10bbl wood-fired brewhouse. Yes, you read that correctly... a wood-fired brewhouse! Now that's old-school! I can only imagine how labor-intensive their brewing process is, not to mention how difficult it must be to control the temperature of the mash boil. Brewing beer is a finicky science, so Pen Druid's archaic way of crafting its beers is a lost artform during a time of automated, push-button brewing systems with all the bells and whistles. Methinks those brewing Belgian monks of centuries past would be proud of Pen Druid!

Pen Druid's wood-fired brewhouse (above) and coolship (below).

As soon as I spotted Amaro on its short but diverse tap list, I immediately knew I wanted it. An 11% ABV dark sour ale aged in bourbon barrels, this deep, rich amaretto-colored beer is then aged in fresh oak barrels before finally resting on organic oranges. The beer is most likely based on the Italian herbal liqueur of the same name. Amaro (Italian for "bitter") is commonly consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Its bitter-sweet flavor and thick, sticky texture was well-represented in this beer. Though it was an absolute joy to drink, I wish I'd ended with this one! 

The vibe at the new location was in stark contrast to the one I'd experienced two years ago. Of course, we were sitting outside on a beautiful early spring day rather than inside an old farm-style building in the evening. However, both visits were enjoyable and quite memorable for very different reasons. One thing still remained, though: the amazing beer: Up next was a pour of Spiritual Nurse, a lightly hopped, wild Virginia amber ale brewed with a portion of local 2-row malted barley and fermented with Pen Druid's proprietary "Flower" wild culture strain. This beer encapsulates everything this brewery is about: old world craftsmanship with a true taste of the region. 

I was in a charitable mood, so I excused myself to snap a few pictures. However, when I returned to the group I was joined by a recently procured 750mL bottle of a beer called Spontaneous Raspberries. As the label reads: "Brewed in the traditional spontaneous method. Made with malt, raw wheat from the farm at Sunnyside, aged hops, our well water and wood-fires. Conditioned on raspberries." I knew we simply all had to try this beer. I don't regret it.

Pleeps gets in on the action... of course!

My expectations were high, and Pen Druid did not disappoint. Of course, I knew the beers would be top-notch (I didn't mind paying $10 for a pour of this beer). Add a table full of friends and a happy-go-lucky little monkey mascot, and you've got the makings of a perfect Pour Travelers day. This photo succinctly sums up our collective mood during our visit to Pen Druid:

Cheers to Pen Druid for a memorable afternoon!

Up next was more familiar territory with a fun visit to Hopkins Ordinary Ale Works. We'd been there just once before, about two years prior (also for my birthday weekend, as told in Old Rag Shizzle: Part 2) and enjoyed it quite a bit. Not only are the beers solid with a traditional bent, the place reminded me a bit of Selin's Grove, if only for its diminutive size and quaint atmosphere and colonial décor.  

Situated in the cellar of an operating Bed & Breakfast, Hopkins Ordinary is a small-batch brewery made with locally sourced barley that's malted right up the road by Copper Fox Distillery as well as other local, seasonal ingredients like hops, honey, fruit and herbs, when available. While the tasting room is tiny yet charming, it's the Biergarten - sprawled out under a huge elm tree and surrounded by plants in the summer or a fire pit in winter - that's the focal point of this small brewery. 

Entrance to Hopkins' tasting room.

I started with a beer I'd enjoyed on our first visit: Mary's Rauch Smoked Honey Rye Ale. As you already know, rauchbiers are a favorite of mine and due to their scarcity, I'll almost always order one. Occasionally I'll pass if I really craving hops, but 9 times out of 10 I'm going to order one when I encounter one. The smokiness here is fairly mild but pleasant and nuanced, with traces of applewood, tobacco and campfire all propped up by a sweet-and-spicy backbone courtesy of honey and rye added into the mix. I find this one to be a very approachable smoked beer that is equally enjoyable for novices and hardened aficionados alike.   

I kept things traditional and went with Stony Man ESB. I hadn't had an ESB in quite some time and I suddenly had a hankering for this - despite its name - malty British style. An "Extra Special Bitter" is somewhat of an antiquated style that, though once popular in the early days of the American craft beer movement, has all but disappeared at most small breweries... especially the "trendy" ones. The style is known for its balance of malty sweetness and hop bitterness. Tröegs HopBack Amber, for example, was born out of its original ESB recipe. Back in the day, it was commonplace for - to borrow from the nomenclature of the times - "microbreweries" like Tröegs, Appalachian, Stoudt's, etc. to have an ESB in its arsenal of beers. This one was a pretty solid interpretation of the style, although I prefer a tad more hop potency in my ESB. There's something about those faint fruity esters and flowery perfumes when they blend with that big caramel and toffee malt character that gets me. This style is especially magnificent on a traditional beer engine (aka "on cask"). 

Me and D acting like idiots at Hopkins.

I don't remember a whole heck of a lot at our final stop of the day, Shotwell Run. It was a one-and-done stop for us, as the day was quickly coming to an end. Nestled in the gorgeous country surroundings of Old Rag, Shotwell Run focuses on classic beer styles rather than hazy juice bombs, fruited sours, pastry stouts and the like. In addition to brewing beers in small batches, it also operates its on-site sister company, Blue Quartz Winery, which produces a variety of wines and ciders. 

Outside Shotwell Run

I opted for the old-school Centennial 5 Cent, an IPA named not only for its contents but also the hopping process it employs. This moderately bitter IPA boasts five additions of classic Centennial hops from the Pacific Northwest for a blend of grapefruit and orange notes accent by traces of pine resin. Nothing mind-blowing here; just a solid, well-crafted IPA with a pleasant malt-hop balance and some bitterness in the backend. What else can you ask for? 

Pleeps is ready to raise the white flag.

By this time, we were ready to head back to the cabin and break into some of the beers we all brought to share, which was quite a haul. By the end of the weekend, the mantle of the fireplace was littered with stacks of (mostly) cans and a few scattered crowlers and bottles. We didn't hit it as hard as we did on Thursday or even Friday, as we'd already enjoyed a long day of brewery hopping. 

Stay tuned for Part II, as we make our way back home, but not before hitting up some new breweries as well as an old favorite. Until next time...