Little Cabin in the Woods: Part II

The weekend was quickly coming to its inevitable conclusion. Tristan shipped off pretty early on Sunday morning and Taylor decided to head back to Delaware to take care of some chores, so by early afternoon the group had been reduced to the "four regulars" - D&C, Brewslut, and yours truly. Considering we had to work the following day and had a three-and-a-half hour drive ahead of us, it didn't stop us from undertaking a fairly ambitious schedule. Turns out we'd hit five breweries on this particular day, four of which were new to us Pour Travelers. 

First up was another farm brewery, the brand spankin' new Death Ridge. Situated on Higher Ground Farm on the outskirts of Culpeper County in the small town of Jeffersonton, VA, this brewery takes its inspiration from the American Civil War. The streams that wind through the property are part of what's called "Delridge Run." Originally known as "Deatherage Run," the name stems from William Deatherage, who settled in Culpeper County in 1675 after he and his two brothers had been granted 950 acres by King Charles II of England. Since the brewery is situated on part of this land, the owners decided to combine these two similar names and adopt Death Ridge as the name of the brewery. The actual site of the brewery was once used as a campsite during the Civil War, and many relics have been found all over the surrounding fields. 

Doesn't say anything about monkeys, so...

I noticed quite a bit of variety on the beer menu, so I decided that I flight was in order. Here's the run-down:

• Dark Mild - an easy-drinking 2.5% English dark mild ale with notes of chocolate, toffee and lightly toasted bread. 
• Bonfire Lager - clean, crisp Helles lager brewed with German malts and Noble hops. 
• Coffee Lager - coffee-infused Vienna lager
• Blackpowder Stout - American stout offering traces of dark chocolate and coffee flavors. Brewed with Maris Otter, chocolate, special roast, and black malts.

Like me, Pleeps prefers sitting in the shade.

Although the main tasting room area is quite large, we decided to sit outside on the patio since Magpie was in tow. The weather was cooperating and it was a shady spot, so I had no qualms with getting some fresh air. As we worked on our beers/flights, we had a fairly long conversation with one of the owners, who told us all about the land, how the brewery got its name, and the history of the farm. He was also more than happy to chat about the beers, not to mention offer a discount when I told him I worked at Tröegs. 

After finishing my flight, I decided to go with a full pour of Brass Button IPA, a hop-forward American IPA hopped with Citra and Cascade. I had a sip of Deuane's and it passed the taste test, so a pour of my own was in order. This old-school style IPA came across as more West than East coast (fine by me!) and hinted at notes of grapefruit and tropical fruits with a sweet, malty backbone and pleasant hop/malt balance.

The beers here were all solid and respectable, especially for a brewery that had just opened a few months earlier (January 2021). I particularly enjoyed the Brass Button IPA, of which I had a full pour after the flight. Otherwise, I'd say I liked the Mild best of the lot from the flight. It's always nice to encounter this traditional albeit scarce beer style in our travels.  

Outside Powers Farm & Brewery

Our next stop brought us to another farm brewery. Based in Midland, VA, Powers Farm is an integrated sustainable farm, hopyard and brewery that sits on 21-acres, although the majority of its operations take place on just two-and-a-half acres. On this land, the farm grows almost all of the ingredients it uses in its beers. Most of these come from organic and heirloom seed stock, and everything is grown sustainably without chemicals or pesticides. The farm even goes as far as to practice "companion planting," whereby it grows a wide variety of flowers to help attract beneficial insects such as bees. Its on-site hop yard is comprised of traditional American varieties, and they conduct an annual hop harvest each August. Powers Farm brews on a 5bbl brewhouse adjacent to its hop yard and garden, which churns out fresh "farm to glass" beers using the fruit, herbs and vegetables grown on-site. The farm even offers a produce CSA! 

And what they can't grow, they purchase from local purveyors and farms. Every batch of beer is fermented with custom-propagated yeast from a local lab called Jasper's Yeast, and 100% of its specialty malts are Virginia-grown and locally malted in Charlottesville by Murphy & Rude. If you're as intrigued as I am, you can read all about the history of the farm, its ingredients, and more by clicking here. 

Pleeps gets to know the beers at Powers Farm.

With lots of interesting beers to be had, I opted for the Lemongrass Pils. I find the flavor of lemongrass to be refreshing and its aroma quite pleasant. This crisp, dry pilsner starts with a soft malt bill steeped with dried, farm-grown lemongrass added during the boil, which coaxes delicate floral aromas and the slightly citrusy flavor of this unique ingredient. This was quite refreshing and packed with flavor. I was off to a good start!

Pleeps has extraordinary powers!

I decided a second beer was in order, so I went with a pour of Appalachian Corn, an American-style lager brewed with a large portion of Virginia-grown red and yellow-hued, fully flavored Bloody Butcher and Golden Butcher corn. According to the folks at Powers Farm: "Bloody Butcher corn is an open pollinated heritage variety traditionally grown in Appalachia where seed savers have preserved this variety for centuries." This lager was very light and slightly crisp with a smooth, creamy texture. 

Meanwhile, we were starting to get hungry, and luckily a food truck called Rolling Wraps was on-site during our visit. After perusing the menu, I settled on a falafel wrap and a side of fries that was absolutely delicious! Brewslut and I also shared a pour of Cold Moon, an easy-drinking IPA brewed with a Virginia-cultivated yeast strain and hopped with 4lbs. per barrel of Citra, Mosaic, and Cascade. This was a light, citrusy, well-balanced IPA with a touch of bitterness in the finish. Nothing crazy; just a good, solid old-fashioned IPA. Sometimes you just need that kind of simplicity. 

What's a farm without a tractor?

We kind of stumbled upon our next stop, Altered Suds. This new brewery opened for business in 2019 with a simple business plan: to brew quality beer and have a cool place at which to enjoy it. (I think that's pretty much the goal of every small-town brewery, isn't it?) The brewery's owners and master brewer all grew up and went to school in town, which by the way happens to be Warrenton, VA. Like its off-centered beers, the brewery incorporates its collective passion for music, the arts, and - to quote them - "all things a little weird." The long, narrow tasting room ends with a small deck in the back overlooking a makeshift beer garden in the parking lot. If you're hungry, Molly's Irish Pub is right upstairs and offers a limited pub menu for guests Altered Suds. 

Outside Warrenton's Altered Suds Brewery.

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After examining the eight available beers on tap, I narrowed my decision down to two IPAs. I got the low-down from the bartender and ultimately landed on Late to the Tea Party, an unfiltered IPA that was first released when the brewery opened its doors and has remained a fan favorite since the beginning. This was damn tasty, especially for a new brewery. The fact that they led with this beer is pretty impressive. I'd be happy if I was a local and this was the IPA I had to drink day in and day out. 

Colorful beer boards at Altered Suds.

After a nice diversion frolicking through the farmlands of Virginia, it was time to continue our homeward trek. It seems like every trip we've gone on this year has included a stop at one of our favorite Frederick breweries, Attaboy. It was fairly busy when we arrived, so we snagged a table outside. Once we got situated, Deuane and I went inside to order beers. When we got inside, there were two lines: the first was for people who knew what they wanted (i.e. no samplers); the second line was for those people who simply can't commit to a beer without trying it first. Heaven forbid! So wouldn't you know it, the people in front of us ask to get a flight, to which I replied, "C'mon man, didn't you see the sign?" The two of them looked at me like I was speaking another language. I was only kidding (half, perhaps), but I do wish people had more situational awareness. I suppose it comes from staring at a phone or similar device and "scrolling down" for hours on end. Oh well... I'd have to wait an extra 90 seconds for my beer. 

Obligatory "Attaboy, Pleeps!" caption.

Since we've been talking about Attaboy a lot this year, let's just sit back and focus on the beers this time, shall we? This time, I opted for The Whistler, an old-school West Coast style IPA, which I don't ever recall having at Attaboy before. Hopped with Simcoe and Nelson Sauvin (I almost always order a beer when I see it features the latter variety), this crisp, slightly dry IPA boasts hints of citrus and juniper berry. To my good fortune, it finishes with a solid bready malt backbone and wash of good old bitterness across the palate. Imagine that. An IPA that's actually bitter.  

I followed this up with another IPA called Boss of the World, a 7.7% ABV hazy orange delight hopped with Citra and Strata. With hints of orange marmalade and mango, this was another winner in a long pedigree of fine beers from Attaboy. Strata hops are known to be both dank and fruity with somewhat of a weed-like aroma. A versatile variety that's been around for a little over a decade, this hop harnesses layers of fresh fruit flavors - think bright tropical fruit and juicy grapefruit - with a hint of sweet strawberry and mild cannabis vibe. 

Extreme close-up!

We ended the evening at Smoketown Brewing, which happens to be at the other end of the same block as Attaboy. We'd visited Smoketown's original location back in 2018 on my On the verge of 44 birthday weekend jaunt. While we weren't terribly impressed, I always enjoy revisiting a brewery after a hiatus to see how they've evolved during the down-time. I seemed to have remembered this place more for the people-watching and less for the beer (check out the blog for details and a story about a guy we dubbed "Feets on Fire"). 

The brewery's main location is actually in Brunswick, MD. In the early 1900s, the town of Brunswick coined their famous nickname, Smoketown, after the valleys of the town were blanketed in smoke from coal trains passing through. This Frederick location opened in October 2019, complete with a 10bbl brewhouse and total brewing capacity of 40 barrels. Not too shabby! 

This was our final "one and done" stop of the trip, so I had to make it count. There's nothing worse than ending an amazing drip on a down note with a shitty beer. I eyed up my choices and settled on Smokestack, a black IPA. Hopped with Citra and Centennial, this was a straight-up old-school black IPA with notes of bitter grapefruit amid chocolate and coffee notes. I was pleasantly surprised with this one, and was ultimately glad we swung by to check out this new Frederick location. 

And with that, it was all over. By this time, it was already dark out and we still had an hour-and-forty-minute drive ahead of us... with the new work week ready to rear its ugly head. We parted ways with D&C (and Magpie) and set the ol' GPS to the familiar "home" setting. 

Well kids, another "birthday weekend" is in the books (although this was technically the week after my birthday). Somewhere out in the woods, there's a cabin that's calling my name. I'm already looking forward to next year's adventure... I just hope there's a working shower and shitter that flushes! Until next time...