Pour Travelin' in NY: COVID-19 diaries - Part II

Saturday started off by calling another audible when we realized that The North, one of our favorite breweries in these parts, was going to be closed for the holiday. The previous week, they'd held a "Sidewalk Saturday" and asked folks to bring their own camping chairs because the city was allowing them to extend service to the sidewalk since their tasting room is so tiny. While I was disappointed we wouldn't be enjoying a few beers there, we regrouped and found a place in nearby Corning that piqued our interest (more on that in a few shakes). 

So I made a few tweaks to our itinerary, and after a quick breakfast at a nearby local eatery, we were off to make an early record store stop, which was on the way to Corning and was scheduled to open for about an hour prior to the first brewery of the day. We arrived a few minutes before 11 a.m., so I waited on the sidewalk in the increasingly warm weather. A young kid also waiting outside helped pass the time with some small talk. After about 15 minutes, the kid left so I decided to walk across the street and join Brewslut at Broad Street Pub, where she was enjoying a beer while I was supposed to have been sifting through some vinyl. When I arrived, she was already a few sips into a delicious beer called Juice Bomb by the NY-based Sloop Brewing Company. I'd heard of them, and after a few swigs of this fine beer, they're now on my radar. No sooner did I take a leak and get situated at the bar when the owner of the record store strolled in across the street and opened for the day... twenty minutes late. Better late than never, I suppose. At any rate, we probably would have just left, but Brewslut was already occupied with a cold one and a book, so I had some time to kill. Lucky for me, I found a really nice copy of the last King Crimson studio album I needed for my collection (Red, in case you're wondering). I also picked up a beautiful new pressing of Pink Floyd's Division Bell album. After about forty minutes of digging - and sweating! - I moseyed back across the street to find Brewslut just about finished with her beer. Perfect timing! And with that, we were off to our first brewery of the day.

Corning's hidden gem: Liquid Shoes Brewing!

As I said earlier, we called an audible once we learned that The North was closed, which lead us to the one and only new-to-us brewery of the day, Liquid Shoes. The name of the brewery struck me as rather peculiar, so I decided to dig deeper. Turns out the brewery is owned by two brothers whose surname is Shoemaker. One handles the brewing side of the operation, while the other attends to the business. The small tasting room opened for business in July 2018 in downtown Corning right on Market Street, and let me tell you, this place was the find of the trip! 

Based on their web site, I was already convinced that I'd made a good decision to visit here... but, then again, you never know. However, I immediately felt comfortable here and knew we'd be in for a treat. Brewslut quickly noticed an abundance of happy gnomes, which populated the entire tasting room. We're both pro-gnome, so that set the mood of our visit. Pleeps was a happy camper, too, and he even made fast friends with one of them. The tap list was small but eclectic, with just six house beers on tap as well as a guest cider. 

Inside Liquid Shoes' tasting room.

I was initially drawn to a beer called Twiggy Things, a chocolate and vanilla pastry stout brewed with roasted malts and milk sugar. This delicious stout was conditioned on cocoa nibs and Madagascar vanilla beans for 10 days to deliver a full-flavored beer with decadent chocolate notes and a hint of vanilla. Meanwhile, Brewslut worked on her pour of Natsu, a slightly hazy summer IPA brewed with a touch of milk sugar and hopped with Citra and Mosaic. While these two beers were exceptional, it was the next two beers that really wowed us beyond our expectations. 

Pleeps getting his first taste of Liquid Shoes!

For round two, we went with a pair of sours we'd been eyeing up since we arrived. The first, Umoja, is a lush sour ale conditioned on a butt-load of blackberries, blueberries and milk sugar. The other, O'Cyrus, is a sour ale is fruited with strawberry, pineapple and dragon fruit. Both of these beers were stellar and among the best of the trip. Umoja featured a blast of sweet-and-tart berry tang with a hint of vanilla and finished smooth thanks to the addition of milk sugar. O'Cyrus might have even been a notch better, with an artfully balanced touch of sweet strawberry amid dank tropical pineapple notes. The addition of dragon fruit, an exotic fruit of the cactus species that looks like a fireball belched up by a red dragon, in the mix lends delicate notes of juicy pear and kiwi. Both of these beers were absolute home runs.

We were also elated to learn that the gnomes populating the brewery were for sale! It's no secret that Pleeps has dozens of brothers and sisters (if you've ever visited our house, then you know what I'm talking about), but after our visit, we had a new member of the family. Meet Great Grandpa Thoughtweaver!

Pleeps with his new friend, Great Grandpa Thoughtweaver.

Liquid Shoes kicked off the day in style, and it reminded me that new breweries can still come out of the gate swinging and keep pushing the boundaries of what can be done with four basic ingredients and a ton of imagination. This place will definitely be in the running for my Top 10 breweries of 2020! 

Since we were driving right past the town of Horseheads (greatest name for a town ever, by the way), we decided to check to see if Horseheads Brewing was open. Turns out they were, and not only that, but they'd just put a fresh keg of their Pumpkin Ale on tap! That was enough incentive for us to swing by for a pint. When we arrived, we discovered that the tasting area had been completely renovated - for the better. I remember the tasting room being very rectangular and starkly white, with small barrels with glass tabletops and little uncomfortable stools scattered about the space. The transformed area felt much more cozy this time around, with woodgrain tones, hightop tables and sturdy stools with backrests, and a bit more color. 

Tap handles at Horseheads.

But back to the beer. Now, the thought of a pumpkin ale - especially in July - might be enough to make most folks bring up their lunch. However, Horseheads brews a truly world-class pumpkin ale. As a matter of fact, it might be only second to Selin's Grove's amazing pumpkin ale. Brewed with all-natural pumpkin and spices, this is everything a pumpkin ale should be. 

Pleeps is pro-pumpkin!

Meanwhile, Brewslut was chillin' with a pour of Tropical IPA, a tasty IPA brewed with blood oranges and orange peel. We had this during our last visit about three years ago and recalled enjoying it quite a bit, and this time was no different. If you like super citrus-forward IPAs, then you'll love this one. Since this was a quick unplanned, one-and-done stop, we finished up our beers and bid farewell to Horseheads. 

Pleeps' mask also doubles as a Shakespeare scarf.

Up the road in the town of Chemung is Diversion Brewing. We'd first visited back in 2017 during our annual Memorial Day Weekend Trail trip and liked what we encountered. Beer aside, the thing that I remembered most about the place was its use of recycled and re-purposed materials, including barn wood, metal siding, and a number of other things to decorate the tasting room. When we arrived, the outside area was brimming with customers, a food truck was up and running, and an acoustic guitar player was about to begin his set. Somehow, we managed to get a nice little table right inside the door of the tasting room. 

Inside the barn-like tasting room at Diversion.

After reviewing the beer list to find a pair of imperial stouts, I decided to go big. Both of my selections were variants of Diversion's imperial stout, which is called Reroute; an apt name, I suppose, for a mammoth, high ABV stout by a brewery named Diversion. After these two monsters, I was hoping we didn't need to reroute our itinerary back to the hotel for a nap!

The first variant, Reroute Coconut, is aged with toasted coconut and a touch of coconut rum to elicit a subtle island flavor. The other, Reroute Bourbon Barrel Maple, is aged in bourbon barrels with maple syrup. Sadly, I couldn't find any "geek" details about this one, like the type of barrel or brand of maple syrup. I always dig when breweries procure materials and ingredients from local purveoyrs, so I'm hoping this was perhaps the case with this beer (at least the maple syrup). Both of these were quite enjoyable. I'm the kind of beer drinker who can enjoy a big stout on a hot July afternoon. Hell, the last time we went to Great Taste of the Midwest, I think 60% of the beers I drank at the festival were barrel-aged imperial stouts... and it was the most sober I've been for the three times I attended the festival!

Afterward, we headed over to the familiar town of Owego for a visit to Farmhouse Brewery. There's always a ton of styles - everything from hoppy and light, to dark, sour, and just plain weird - represented here. We were able to grab a small table in the back of the tasting room, where only a few scattered patrons were hanging out and enjoying some afternoon suds. We've been here quite a few times in the past, so we've had just about everything they brew regularly. The first time we visited, I believe we shared the full flight of like 18 or 20 beers! So we have some favorites here and know which ones to avoid based on our personal preferences. 

This time around, I opted for a beer I'd had previously, while Brewslut tried something new on for size. My beer, a barrel-aged version of The Barb, is a saison made with local rhubarb, aged in a red wine barrel, and then soured. I'd had this before, but something just didn't sit right with me this time around. I was getting a weird, slightly off-putting pickled red beet finish with origins unbeknownst to me. I just couldn't get past it, unfortunately. However, Brewsluts pour of Forelsket, a new beer neither of us had tried before, fared much better. This tasty Berliner Weisse was fermented with 100% Lactobacillus and aged on blackberries, Aronia berries and vannilla beans. It was quite tasty, at least compared to The Barb. 

It turned out to be a one-and-done stop for us, but not because we weren't compelled to try something else. I think we were just too excited to get to the next brewery. 

Perhaps the brewery we were most excited about visiting again was Port Crane's Beer Tree Brew Co. We stumbled upon this place during last year's Memorial Day Weekend Trail excursion and were smitten. 

Port Crane, NY's Beer Tree Brew Co.

I was immediately drawn to a beer called Trippy Tree, and I quickly realized that this particular variation featured a combination of Cherry, Vanilla & Lemon. It sounded delicious on paper, and couldn't wait to have this in my gullet! A mixed fermentation sour NEIPA brewed with oats, white wheat, wheat flakes, barley and milk sugar, it's also hopped with a generous whirlpool addition of Citra, then double dry-hopped with Citra and Michigan Copper, THEN conditioned on sweet cherries, vanilla and lemons. Hot damn! Let me tell you, this might have been the beer of the trip (or at least tied with the two sours at Liquid Shoes). 

Brewslut started with one of the Slightly Fuzzy variations, this one brewed with Blueberry, Mango & Lime . The Slightly Fuzzy series features a variety of mixed fermentation ales conditioned on various fruit, this one obviously being the aforementioned blueberry, mango, and lime. During our last visit, we enjoyed the Strawberry, Rhubarb & Lime variation quite a bit, and even brought home some cans. While this Slightly Fuzzy variant was indeed enjoyable, I was too busy to full appreciate it because I was mesmerized by the Trippy Tree. 

Outside Beer Tree's spacious tasting room.

Since it was our last stop of the day and only a few minutes from our hotel, we decided to end on a high note... high gravity, that is! We followed up our initial beers with a DIPA called Uber Everywhere and a TIPA (yes, that's TRIPLE IPA) by the name of Leave No Trace. The former is a smooth, refreshing NE-style with notes of juicy citrus fruit, peach and apricot as well as a hint of pine. Creamery with moderate bitterness, this one went down all too easy with minimal alcohol presence. After a few of these, you'd most likely find yourself taking an Uber ride home. The latter beer, a behemoth 10.2% monster, features fresh Equanot, Mosaic, Michigan Copper, and Citra hops. Big, bold and delicious, this one didn't disappoint and held its heft at bay... as well as it could, anyway. 

Last time we visited, we enjoyed the on-site taco truck, so it was only natural that we'd relive that part of the experience as well. We each ordered three chicken tacos and split a large plate of seasoned hoestring fries with a delicious chipolte cream dipping sauce. Can you say "hit the spot"? 

I wanted to stay for another round, but they'd already kicked two beers before we got there due to the holiday weekend, so we decided to call it a day and head back to camp. At the hotel, we cracked open another one of our newly procured cans, this time a pounder of Blueberry Coffee Three Philosophers by Ommegang. The blueberry and coffee notes came through a bit, but the Belgian yeast and fruity esters really dominated the flavor of this one. It's pretty tasty overall, but when there's coffee in my beer, I prefer it to be the dominant flavor. After that, it was time to hit the hay and get some shut-eye before our final day in New York. 

Well, that's all for part 2, folks. Stay tuned for part 3, the conclusion of the COVID-19 diaries, which follows us northbound to Ithaca. Until next time...

The Memorial Day Weekend Trail: 2019 Edition - Part II

The Saturday of DetFest has turned into one of my favorite days of the year. Not only do I get to play music for some of my band's biggest fans and hang with great people, Brewslut and I have come to love the brewery loop we take before heading to the fest. This year, however, we were able to add a new place that has become a fast favorite of ours. That brewery is Beer Tree.

Based on the name alone, I must admit that I didn't have very high expectations. However, once I perused this new brewery's tap list and story, I was sold. As a matter of fact, I was pretty sure this place was going to be awesome. Fortunately, I was correct in my assumptions. Beer Tree is legit!

We arrived at around 10:30 a.m. (yes, they open at 10 a.m. people!) to a pretty empty house. There was a guy tending to a huge grill, prepping items for the impending food truck opening. So, first off... points for having a taco truck! Unfortunately, it didn't open until noon, and I made an executive decision to skip breakfast so we could eat at Beer Tree.

Situated in the small town of Port Crane, NY, about 15 minutes NE of Binghamton, Beer Tree Brew Co. is a farm brewery highlighting beer brewed with local ingredients and hops sourced from Willet Hop & Grain a neighboring raw ingredients provider based out of Willet, NY. Sometime in the near future, Beer Tree also plans to offer a variety of local farm goods and products for sampling and purchasing. Inside, the place was much bigger than I was anticipating. We set up shop at the large, wrap-around bar, which was the focal point of the tasting room. I also noticed that they host live music regularly. More bonus points! Once we settled in, we checked out the beer menu. We both quickly discovered that we wanted to try too many beers, so we had to choose wisely and share the wealth.

Tap list at Beer Tree during our visit.

After a few seconds of perusing the list, I honed in on my first selection: Morning Timber - Blueberry, a breakfast stout brewed with coffee and wood-fire evaporated maple syrup from Willet, and conditioned on blueberries. I'd been on a blueberry kick for a few weeks, so that sealed the deal. What better way to kick off the day (on an empty stomach, no less) than with an imperial stout? Well, it was a coffee stout, after all.

Pleeps getting his share of Morning Timber.

Meanwhile, Brewslut worked on her beer: Slightly Fuzzy, a mixed fermentation ale conditioned on strawberries, rhubarb and limes. This beer was crazy good! So good, in fact, that Brewslut had to take home a 4-pack, which she rarely does when we travel. So it's gotta be good, right?

By this time, we were both sufficiently impressed enough to order a second round. I was actually pretty giddy on this particular day, even more so than usual. For our next two beers, we decided to head into the hoppy end of the spectrum and try a pair of IPAs. There were several that sounded awesome on paper, so it was a tough decision. Ultimately, we went with Euphoric Colors and Feeling Cute.

The former is a mixed fermentation sour NEIPA. The malt base of oats, wheat and barley combined with the addition of milk sugar creates a soft canvas onto which a generous whirlpool addition of Michigan Copper hops shine. Double dry-hopping with Amarillo, Citra and Mosaic create a waft of dank citrus fruit and hard candy. But wait, this beer isn't finished yet! This sucker was then conditioned on passionfruit, almonds, and vanilla. Yes, there's lots going on here, folks. Almost too much, actually.

The latter, a milkshake IPA, features a similar malt backbone with the sweet addition of milk sugar. This time, Beer Tree double dry-hops with a combo of Idaho 7, Citra, and Belma before aging the beer on a blend of strawberry, banana, and vanilla. Belma is a newer hop variety said to impart an ambrosia-like melange of orange, melon, pineapple, and strawberry. My mom calls it "heaven" instead of ambrosia, and it's delicious!

Pleeps is always feeling cute!

The two IPAs were pretty solid but didn't wow us like our initial beers did. Still, these came across as forward-thinking flavor combinations, which we both appreciated. I really enjoyed our visit and can't wait to get back to Beer Tree next year... or even sooner!

We first visited to The Farmhouse Brewery back in 2016 during the very same "Memorial Day Trail" as we've come to call it. Situated in the quaint town of Owego, NY, the original location was on the outskirts of town and reminded me to drinking in someone's basement. The place was adorned with assorted chachkies you'd expect to find in your grandma's parlor (not living room, mind you... parlor; you know, the place where the Davenport resides). They even had a Nintendo Wii set up for customers to play, and we enjoyed some competitive 100-pin bowling during that inaugural visit. Last year, Farmhouse had moved and since set up shop on the main drag in Owego, which must have given the business a boost, as the town is brimming with little stores, boutiques, eateries, and antique shops.

Farmhouse loooooves the cock!

Speaking of eateries, I'd remembered a great meal we had during one of our previous visits at a place called The Owego Kitchen, which is basically two doors down from the new Farmhouse location. We were hungry, so we decided to order food and eat it at Farmhouse while we enjoyed our beers. I opted for the Gourmet Gobbler featuring turkey, Brie, cranberry chutney, and lettuce on a baguette. I'm a sucker for Thanksgiving sandwiches and typically order one when its available.

Back at The Farmhouse in Owego, NY.

Back to beer, though. Since we spent a little extra time at Beer Tree, we decided to slow down and share a sampler flight. Here's the skinny:

• Grinder - Saison brewed with 100% NY ingredients and aged in wine barrels with Aronia berries (aka chokeberries)
• Don't Miss a Beet - Saison brewed exclusively with NY ingredients including locally grown beets.
• Momma Maple Llama - Porter brewed with maple syrup, coffee and sweet potatoes. This one took home the gold medal at 2017 TAP NY. 
• Peat & Repeat - Wee Heavy brewed with peat smoked malt. 

Pleeps in his natural habitat.

Of the four beers we sampled, two were familiar and two were new to us. We'd both had Grinder and Don't Miss a Beet on previous occasions and remembered liking them quite a bit. The other two were up to snuff with the usual quality of their beers. Peat & Repeat wasn't too terribly "peaty" (good for Brewslut but not-so-good for me) and Momma Maple Llama might have been my favorite of the bunch. I mean, coffee and maple syrup? Come on.

Another angle of the ever-pleasant Pleeps!

The beers at Farmhouse are always full of flavor and experimental in nature. I usually stray from the "regular" beers such as IPAs because honestly we just don't run into too many beers brewed with ingredients like beets or peat smoked malt. That's what I love about this place. The beers are fun and whimsical, and Marty (the brewer and owner) definitely thinks outside the box. Sadly, he wasn't around this time. When he's there, he's always good for a few funny stories and available for you to pick his brain.

Tap handles at The Farmhouse Brewery.

After our flight at Farmhouse, we ducked into a cool little place on the same block called The Goat Boy. Yup, there was no way we were leaving Owego without a quick visit to this place. Because goats, of course! Turns out the coffee shop was situated next door. Featuring local art, live music and a variety of drinks, this place (actually now called Carol's Coffee & Art Bar; Goat Boy is a gift shop) was worthy of a stop. There's a lot to soak in, and it was welcome deviation to our typical rinse-and-repeat agenda of brewery followed by brewery.

You had me at GOAT!

As usual, I was most excited to return to The North. We'd first visited this small brewery based in the somewhat depressed town of Endicott, NY, back in 2017, and I loved the rough and tumble charm of the place. At that point, they'd been churning out some amazing beers on a pretty small system for about five years, and seemed to have a penchant for bold, complex barrel-aged stouts. To be honest, I can't believe the brewery had eluded us for so long! Still, better late than never, right? Now it is a place that we HAVE to visit at least annually. 

Since our last visit a year ago, the North added a small enclosed patio area (basically right outside the brewery's front door on the sidewalk), which added space for an additional ten people or so. I happened to be wearing my Mastodon tour shirt, and upon walking up to the entrance, I received acknowledgement from a fellow fan. I gave him the horns aka \m/ and we grabbed some beers at the bar.

Whatever this is, it's pretty METAL!

I started off with a pint of Eye Candy, a sticky, hazy IPA hopped with El Dorado and Azacca. After grabbing our first round, we decided to check out the patio and strike up a conversation with the Mastodon guy. He was visiting with his son, and they were chatting with a random young guy about his recent Tesla purchase, which was parked a few feet away. We spent a good deal talking about our beer travels as well as music (including Rush, of course), so it kept me occupied while we worked on our beers. The weather was perfect and conversation was plentiful, so we kept to the patio until everyone had to leave. Once our new friends vacated the patio, we decided to head back inside to see what was going on.

For my next beer, I went big with Pastry Klouds, a delicious whiskey barrel-aged Russian imperial stout aged on Vietnamese coconut and cinnamon. This kind of beer is what The North excels in. I first became enamored last year with one of its barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stouts called Big Bad Leather Daddy, which was one of my favorite beers of 2018.

The North is like a museum of strange toys.

I also sampled God Complex, a stout brewed with coffee, hazelnut and chili peppers. Tasty it was, but it was no Pastry Klouds. I love the name, though: God Complex. Of course, they have a few different variants of this beer, as well they should. Two years ago when we visited, someone bought a bottle of this beer - then apparently called Loaded God Complex - and cracked it open for all to share. I recall liking it quite a bit, although it was heavy on the hazelnut (not a problem for me, as I love the flavor of hazelnuts). The version we sampled during this most recent visit didn't have the same prominent hazelnut oomph. Perhaps it was because we'd just finished Pastry Klouds and this one paled in comparison.

As per usual, a small group was congregated at the back end of the bar and cracking open a variety of cans and bottles, some from The North and some from other breweries. Of course, I was quite prepared for this eventuality and had a few Splinter beers in tow. Here's what we sampled (the first three are from The North):

• Eight Banners - whiskey barrel-aged stout
• Oreo Klouds - imperial stout brewed with Oreo cookies
• El Chupracabra - rauch roggenbier brewed with smoked rye and habanero
• Triple Citra Daydream from Other Half Brewing - DIPA brewed with oats and lactose, and triple dry-hopped with Citra and Citra Lupulin powder
• Double Dry-Hopped Double Mosaic Daydream from Other Half Brewing - Imperial IPA brewed with oats and lactose sugar

The El Chupracabra was a 2016 vintage, if I'm not mistaken, and was drinking quite nicely. Oreo Klouds was a little too sweet for my liking, but it was better than the one The Veil did when we visited Richmond a while back. As for Other Half, they do a fine job with the dry-hopped IPAs, so no complaints there. 

Another random oddity at The North.

All in all, it was another fantastic visit to the North. We always have a blast here, and Brewslut even got to talk shop with a fellow English teacher, who also happened to be one of the guys sharing beers with us at the bar. This is exactly why we love "pour traveling." Drinking the beer might be the cake, but meeting cool locals is definitely the icing!

Since its located in Montrose a few miles from the festival, we always finish up our day of brewery hopping at Endless. Endless is a great example of the kind of brewery every small town should have. We always encounter friendly patrons each time we visit, and the owners (Jon and Morgan) are incredibly nice. Morgan is always tending the bar, while Jon is usually in the brewery concocting his next libation. And you'd think by now that I'd remember the name of the big, fluffy white dog who's always there... but nope, I suck.

Tap handles at Endless Brewing in Montrose, PA.

I started off with a pour of a new IPA called Texahio Armadillo.  I found it to be an odd name for a beer, so I inquired. Like the name of the dog, I also failed to save the story behind the beer to my memory banks. But hey, I got to try a new beer! If I recall, it has something to do with the hop variety, Texas and Ohio. It was the end of a long day of drinking, so excuse me if my mind was a little hazy. On a side note, armadillos are weird.

I followed this up with another new-to-me beer called Dunkel Yum, a dark German wheat ale. I like me a good dunkel, and this one was kind of middle-of-the-road. But it served as a quick diversion from hops so I could then move onto another hoppy beer.

That beer was Bombshell Blonde, a traditional West Coast style IPA. This is Endless Brewing's flagship beer for a reason. It's always fresh, tasty and consistent. It might be my favorite of their hoppy beers too, except maybe for Grasshopper, a really good pale ale that has eluded us for the past few years. We always seem to miss its release by a week or two. M'wah.

Full tap list at Endless!

After our visit to Endless, it was time to head over to DetFest to play some drums for a few hours. Although attendance was lower than usual and the weather was a bit spritzy, we played an awesome set and it was good to see some peeps I only get to see once or twice a year. 

Typically, our journey wound end there. This time, however, there's a brief post-script. We stopped by our hometown of Shamokin on Sunday to visit my mom and take her to an appointment in Danville, so we hit up Old Forge for lunch. It had been a while since our last visit, but my mom actually likes that place (for the food, though... not the beer). I always joke that I drink more beer in a day than my mom has consumed throughout her now 74-year existence. I enjoyed a pour of their new-ish IPA called Hopstache, which I'd never had before.

Anyway, it looks like Pleeps is already anticipating his next adventure. Until next time...

The Memorial Day Weekend Trail

By now, most of our readers are well aware of our Memorial Day weekend drill. To refresh your memory, feel free to check out last year's account (Part I and Part II) as well as 2016's blog (the one that brought me out of retirement...or at least off of a lengthy hiatus), both of which delve into varying degrees of detail about this beer-soaked long holiday weekend.

Since Brewslut and I no longer train at the gym on Fridays (we switched to Thursday so as not to disrupt our weekend travel plans when they manifest), we hit the highway shortly after I got home from work. Aside from enjoying an extra night of beer activities, departing on Friday has the added benefit of being out of town for Annville's annual Memorial Day parade (I heard it's the largest in Pennsylvania), which storms right past our house on Main Street bright and early on Saturday morning. It's not that I have anything against celebrating the sacrifices of our fallen veterans; it's because we are literally land-locked until the parade ends in the late afternoon due to the location of our house.

So, we were off to NEPA, baby! Our first stop of the evening? Benny Brew Co. in Wilkes-Barre. We first visited last year on the very same weekend trip to DetFest and were pleasantly surprised by not only the quality of the beer, but the space itself. Since we enjoyed the outside beer garden last time around, we decided to set up shop in the main tasting room area. I spied two open stools in the corner of the front bar, so we snagged them quickly, as it was pretty packed inside. Looks like business is good for Benny & Co.!

Pleeps is ready!

Upon perusing the beer list, we decided to forego flights and get a pint each and share. It would be a one-and-done stop for us. I settled on the Buck Tree 80, an 8% NE-style IPA brewed with flaked wheat and oats, and hopped with Citra and Simcoe. Now, some hipster brahs might not find this particular "hazy" enough, but I had no complaints.

We really enjoyed out last visit to Breaker Brewing Company back in April, when we had a beer called Lime Life, a freaking delicious sour key lime IPA. Brewslut and I both agreed that it was far and away the best beer they've ever released. We've been following Breaker since the beginning (partly due to its coal region roots) and admittedly their beers have always been hit or miss. Well, it seems like they have things pretty dialed in right now. I heard they recently moved brewing operations away from the kitchen where they also prepare food for the pub customers. This was good thinking, as I'm sure the likelihood of contamination is pretty high under those circumstances.

The beer menu was brimming with interesting-sounding beers that looked amazing on paper. Let's see how some of them translated to the glass. My first selection was a 13-oz. pour of Strawberry Shortcake IPA. The grain bill for this cloudy, pinkish ale included wheat, spelt and flaked oats. Citra and Mosaic hops lent a tangy berry character with some juicy citrus fruit notes. But Breaker went all out with this one, as they conditioned this beer on copious amounts of fresh puréed strawberries, milk sugar, and Mexican vanilla beans. As if that wasn't enough, they double dry-hopped this concoction with Ekuanot. Their flavor notes for this beer had me salivating before I even took a sip: Notes of strawberry sherbet, vanilla custard, canned berry jam, papaya chunks, peach citrus, and candied pine sap. This beer was quite enjoyable, and both Brewslut and I deemed it the best of the bunch we had at Breaker during this particular visit.

Photo session with Pleeps!

Meanwhile, my partner in crime was working on a beer called Pinekiwi, a sharp yet sweet and refreshing sour IPA. First, they brewed with a mix of wheat and Pilsen malt and loads of flaked oats and left to sour for an undetermined amount of time. After souring, Citra and Mosaic hops joined the party. For dry-hopping, they added even more Citra and Mosaic, then dry-hopped one more time with Sorachi Ace to add lemon and soft herbal notes. To top it off, they conditioned the beer atop puréed pineapples, juiced kiwi, and Madagascar vanilla beans. Again, this beer was accompanied by some serious tasting notes: Notes of pineapple lifesavers, kiwi sorbet, lemon zest, dill weed, mango chunks, and vanilla icing. While this one didn't wow us like the Lime Life, it was quite tasty and shows Breaker finding its own niche with this type of beer. I look forward to more of these sour IPAs on return visits!

In case you were wondering what day it was...

For round two, I chose Mule Driver Mango, West Coast-style IPA brewed with mango. Breaker wasn't as verbose with their description or flavor notes for this beer. As a matter of fact, there wasn't really much information on this beer at all. This one was pretty hazy and boasted a strong, sweet tropical fruit aroma with mango at the forefront, making me think they used a ton of mango puree or even blended in mango juice to the beer, perhaps. Either way, it was tasty but a little too sweet and maybe even peppery for me.

Our final beer we got especially for Pleeps. He's always asking about banana beers, which are few and far between. So we got a sampler of the Banana Hazelnut Ale to appease him. Quite simply, this was a brown ale brewed with bananas and hazelnuts. Sounds like it would make a sweet dessert of some sort, but unfortunately bananas really don't lend much flavor or aroma to beer (if any), so what you're left with is a slightly nuttier beer than your typical brown ale. Oh well. It was a cool idea.

Beer aside, we also had an awesome conversation with a beer-loving couple next to us at the bar. We talked in detail about beer traveling specifically, which is always fun to recall past Pour Traveler treks to breweries far and wide. I had one last business card in my wallet, so if you're reading, I hope you enjoy the blog!

As usual, we ended the evening at Sabatini's, NEPA's craft beer mecca. One can always be assured a well-curated and diverse draft selection at this fine establishment. The pizza is legit too! This time, we were meeting two friends - Kristen and Erin - for additional conversation and good times.

Perusing the beer list, I'd forgotten about the recent Pizza Boy collaboration, a stone fruit IPA brewed with plums and apricots called Pizza Party. This is the second Pizza Party collaboration beer from Pizza Boy Brewing Co. and Sabatini's, and it was tasty! I find that plum flavor rarely translates well in beers, but here is was apparent. There was a nice dark fruit note paired with a juicier apricot presence that made for a sweet and tangy combination.

We're having a pizza party!!!

The day before the trip, I checked out the tap list for all of the breweries (as I typically do to get an idea of what I might want to drink), and noticed Adam from Hair of the Dog was on the list! Apparently, this Portland, OR, brewery is back to distributing into PA! Great news to me, because I freakin' love their beers! It had been a while since we enjoyed this beer (or any HotD beers, for that matter), so we decided to splurge on a full pint of this 10% ABV hearty old world ale and share it. For all intents and purposes, it's a barley wine. Or at least a strong ale. Either way, it's awesome! I'm glad to see HotD stuff in PA again after an extremely long hiatus. Finding their Blue Dot DIPA on tap while we're out in California is always a rare treat!

Kristen posing with Pleeps.

For our final beer, I'd been eyeing up an imperial stout (something barrel-aged, I'm sure, but the name of the beer escapes me, unfortunately) but it had recently kicked. Out of luck, I settled for a pour of Atmospheric Black Metal by Separatist Beer Project (aka the brewery formerly known as SOLE). I'd had tried this previously during our brewery field trip to the Martin Guitar Factory a few months ago. (Check out the full blog post.) I love their description for this one: "Atmospheric Black Metal is our really fucking metal’d out Imperial Cocoa Stout, conjured into being using the blackest of malts and conditioned on cocoa nibs harvested from the devils loins." Sounds like my kind of beer!

By the time we'd finished that beer, I knew it was time to hit the happy trail. It was fun to sit outside at Sabatini's for the first time, and with the added company of Kristen and Erin, it was an enjoyable visit. We scarfed down a delicious chicken and banana pepper pizza (my favorite combo), so my belly would be plenty full until the next day.

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For Saturday travels, I put together an itinerary taking us into upstate New York and looping back around to Montrose, PA, where the DetFest festival grounds are located. Our first stop of the day was in the quaint town of Owego, NY, about an hour and twenty-odd minutes from our hotel in Scranton.

We'd been to The Farmhouse Brewery enough even for me to know that its location was just outside of town. The key word in that last sentence, folks, is was. We had to double and triple-check the address of our destination, because our GPS (more fun with Garmin later in the weekend) took us right downtown. Turns out Farmhouse has new digs! Yup, the new tasting room is situated in the heart of downtown Owego, two doors down from the Owego Kitchen, where we'd enjoyed a nice lunch during last year's jaunt.

We parked in a free municipal lot back behind the new location that we hoped was on the other side of the building. We took a shortcut (a narrow alley connecting the lot to Owego's main drag) and - lo and behold! - there she was!

Always tons on tap at the Farmhouse!

It's always a challenge to pick what beer to drink at Farmhouse because they always offer a varied and extensive selection. Customers can opt for a "Taste of the Farmhouse" flight for $25, which includes a 2oz. pour of EVERYTHING on the board (in this case like 19 beers). This time around, we settled on a flight of four beers each, with the caveat that we'd enjoy a full pint of something else afterwards. I love it when a plan comes together. Here's the dilly-o, yo:

• Peachy Keen - Sour peach roggenbier (aka rye beer) brewed exclusively with NY ingredients
• Imperial Post Hole - DIPA with Centennial, Cascade and Chinook hops
• The Barb - Barrel Aged - sour rhubarb saison aged in wine barrels
• Thousand Pound Sow - Belgian quad brewed with two pounds of local maple syrup per gallon

Pleeps has taken flight at the Farmhouse!

I'd have to say that the Imperial Post Hole was my favorite of the lot. It was pretty juicy and well-balanced with a smack of grapefruit and soft mouthfeel. The Peachy Keen, which I was most excited to try, fell a little short of my expectations, unfortunately. The peach was a bit muted, and the spicy character of the rye seemed to dominate. The Quad was solid but maybe just a tad a thin overall for the style. I dug The Barb quite a bit, and the rhubarb seemed to play nicely with the wine barrel notes of dark fruit, oak, and vanilla.

Bathroom break! Had to snap a pic of this clever sign.

Full pour of Blind Alpaca, a straight up classic Porter with plenty of roast and coffee notes. Brewslut wasn't feeling it for some reason, but I thought it was well done. Perhaps the body wasn't quite as robust as I prefer, but the flavor was nice and roasty with equal parts cocoa and coffee.

Pleeps and a Blind Alpaca.

Pleeps was extremely photogenic during this trip, so we were able to snap many extra photos of him in action. Here's another:

Pleeps and O-We-Gose.

Pleeps was already starting to get a little tipsy, and this was only our first stop of the day. Slow down, eh!

Two-fisted Pleeps and his monkey paws!

It was time to move along to our next stop, but first Pleeps needed a quick nap to regain his composure.

Time for a little nap.

The brewery I was most looking forward to re-visiting was The North. Situated in the somewhat run-down village of Endicott, NY, the brewery itself is kind of rough around the edges (as it should be); the beer, however, is anything but. We thoroughly enjoyed our initial visit during the previous year's trip, and we were eager to dig in to the small but constantly rotating tap list. Sadly, we missed a recent IPA and Coffee Stout, both of which sounded amazing.

Down North is where I should be!

This time, the tap list was stout-heavy, featuring three stouts: an American-style, a Milk Stout, and a Chocolate Oatmeal Milk Stout with lactose. So, three of the available five beers were dark... and we have no problem with that! With that said, we both kicked off our visit with the lone IPA on tap, named Floor Rachel. This easy-drinker was hopped with Citra and Simcoe to provide an abundance of orange and grapefruit notes. This one really hit the spot. The mouthfeel was nice and soft, and the finish was super-clean.

Backdrop behind the bar at The North.

In typical Brewslut fashion, she recognized the bartender immediately as the same woman who slung our beer last year. She also remembered that we had a mutual friend in common, but for the life of us, we couldn't figure it out again. I also noticed an inordinate amount of WWF wrestling action figures strewn about the brewery. Some were posed in the front window and some were dangling from tap handles, while others were piled in a large plastic tub off to the side of the bar area. Someone at The North is a huge wrestling fan. And you could tell he was a legit fan. Sure, he had Hulk Hogan, Randy "Macho Man" Savage, The Ultimate Warrior, and many A-class wrestlers represented, but he also had some obscure guys like Cowboy Bob Orton and even Kamala... you know, the Ugandan giant! I'm surprised I remember him because I stopped following (i.e. outgrew) professional wrestling by the time of the original Wrestlemania in 1985 (which premiered just days after my 11th birthday).

It's a steel cage grudge match at The North!

OK, let's get back on track. Moving on to more about beer because that's why we're here, right? After our enjoyable IPA, I was in the mood for something different. I'll typically follow up a tasty IPA with a dark beer, preferably a stout. With that said, you'd think I'd go for one of the three stouts available. Nope. Let's do the Japanese lager. Enter Kampai Ichiban, a 3.2% ABV Japanese rice lager. Crisp, light and refreshing, this beer was very saki-esque with hints of white grape, melon and rice. Apparently this is the only "year-round" beer they brew regularly. It's cool to see something a bit unusual as a session beer at a brewery, and this one fits the bill nicely.

Meanwhile, Brewslut was digging into her pour of Orthos, the aforementioned chocolate oatmeal milk stout with lactose. Perhaps her inner mythology geek drew her to this particular beer. Why? In Greek mythology, Orthos is the name of a two headed dog, who is the brother of Cerberus. I was familiar with Cereberus but not Orthos. Hercules killed him, that son of a bitch! Oh well, we killed Orthos too... the pint, that is. That stuff went down so smoothly and wasn't overly sweet. This sucker was lush, rich, and cocoa-rific!

Pleeps chillin' with Orthos.

Based on our initial visit, it seems that the folks at North are prone to opening beers and sharing with customers. Today was no exception. One of our bartenders cracked open a bottle of what turned out to be my favorite beer of the weekend - Barrel Aged Big Bad Leather Daddy. This huge 12% Imperial Stout boasted complex notes of chocolate, tobacco, peat, roast, and a hint of smoke. Thick and chewy, the way it should be! I absolutely loved this beer!

Peek-a-boo! No gimp mask for Pleeps!

Speaking of cracking open beers, one of the guys also cracked open two Equilibrium cans - Mmm...Osa and Tachyon - as well as Trillium Scaled to share. Sweet! More Untappd fodder! That was mighty nice of him! I reciprocated by bringing in four different Troegs cans as a gift, to which I was additionally gifted a bottle of the excellent BA Big Bad Leather Daddy to take home. Schwing!

It was now time to ship off to our next stop, which takes us to Binghamton, NY. We decided to skip Galaxy this time, even though its literally right around the corner from Water Street Brewing Company, our next destination. We were already feeling a little fatigued due to the extra liquid at The North, so we settled on a pair of pints for this one-and-done stop. Beer aside, I also like the owner's taste in music. Looking around the tasting room, I noticed Judas Priest and Iron Maiden artwork, and even a Lemmy action figure! Now that's metal! 

I opted for the Surf and Slam, NE-style IPA. For someone who bitches about this style, I sure do order enough of them, eh? Brewslut ordered Head Smash, a single malt and single hop (S.M.A.S.H.) IPA brewed with Marris Otter malt and Ekuanot hops. Both were enjoyable and helped wash down our killer nachos with queso, black beans and guacamole.  

Now, it was back to Montrose for our final stop before heading over to DetFest. Endless Brewing is a perfect example of the kind of brewery every small town needs. We always encounter friendly patrons each time we visit, and the owners are super-nice! We even got to meet the new brewery dog (although her name escapes me at the moment). It's true, I suck with names. 

Up first was a pour of Hop Session, a 5.5% sessionable beer somewhere between a Pale Ale and an IPA. This one featured caramel malt notes with citrusy hops and a hint of pine. We also shared a short pour of the NEPA IPA, their take on a NE-style IPA. This one wasn't terribly hazy, and it was a bit more malt-forward than I typically like, but it was pretty tasty. Plus... NEPA, baby!

Sticking with the hoppy offerings, up next was a new IPA called Workin' Fool IPA, another variation of an IPA with a similar profile to the Hop Session but with more gusto. We finished up with a shared pour of E.B. Loves Jayne, a crisp hard cider brewed in house. 

There's usually a good flow of people in and out the doors of Endless during our visit, and this time was no different. We chatted with the owners for a while, especially after the crowd thinned out, and it was nice of her to say, "I was wondering when you guys would be stopping by!" Usually, people remember us by Pleeps (as evidenced by the folks at both Farmhouse and The North earlier in the day). So it was nice for the two of us to be remembered for a change (although Pleeps definitely relishes in his fame). I shared some Crimson Pistil cans with them, and they gave us two cans of their recently packaged Hop Session to take home and enjoy. Don't mind if we do! 

The colorful new chalkboard at Endless.

Soon enough, it was time to take off my beer hat and change into my drum hat. Yes indeed, it was off to DetFest for my fifth year in a row to melt some faces with my band herbie. I think I played pretty well considering I was drinking all day. I finished out the night with a few Sunshine Pils cans and, later, Perpetual IPA. Oh yeah, and a shot of Jameson for good measure... because, why not?

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We woke up on Sunday morning somewhere in the vicinity of 9 a.m. The weather was cold and dreary. It rained all morning, making clean-up rather wet and, therefore, messy. We decided to skip Nimble Hill since we would have arrived more than an hour before they opened for the day. So, it was off to North Slope.

But first, sustenance!

We decided to use the address for Endless Brewing since we had no service with our phones, thinking our GPS would take us right past the civilized part of Montrose (you know, where there is actually stores and such). There was a pretty sweet convenience store called Pump N Pantry that had made-to-order food akin to your typical Sheetz or Wawa. However, our GPS went into full-on spaz mode and took us on an ass-backward route with unpaved dirt roads and lots of unnecessary turns. You know, the "scenic route." At one point, I experienced a slightly unnerving Deliverance vibe as we turned onto a narrow dirt road (strike that, a path) and drove by a few - let's call them dwellings - before I decided to turn the car around, opting instead for an actual paved road. The GPS would need to recalculate. Or, more appropriately, re-fuck-ulate, as Ricky would say. I think it took us half an hour to drive five-and-a-half miles when all was said and done. 

So, we finally made it to Pump N Pantry, where we enjoyed breakfast sandwiches, hash browns and coffee. We also enjoyed a quick wash up in the restroom, as we hadn't had the luxury of bathing this morning. 

After some much needed nourishment, it was off to North Slope in the town of Dallas, PA. We'd only been there once, (during our DetFest trek two years prior) so I was curious to see if they made any improvements, as I remember not being wowed by anything save for a dry-hopped Witbier (of all things). When we arrived, I noticed the sign on the door read "Closed." I thought perhaps someone forgot to flip the sign over to read "Open." As we parked, we saw a few women dressed somewhat fancifully (at least compared to my unbathed body donning soiled shorts, a sweaty wife-beater and unkempt hair) walking in with gifts and bottles of wine. I knew something was amiss. As I approached the entrance, I saw a white piece of paper taped to the door. Yes, indeed, they were closed for a private event until 1 p.m. I looked at my watch. It was barely 11:40 a.m. "Fuck this," I thought. "Let's get some tacos." 

Which is exactly what we did.  

Steve from Selin's Grove recommended an awesome taco truck called J Zapata situated in - of all places - Drums! I'd always wanted to visit the town (or as Wikipedia calls it, an "unincorporated community") for obvious reasons. We were familiar with the area, as we'd been to Conyngham Brewing a few times, which was about three miles south just down Rt. 93. Steve promised we'd enjoy "the most authentic Mexican food in PA." But do they have tamales? Answer. You bet yer sweet as they do! 

J Zapata taco truck in Drums, PA. Where else?

As we pulled up, I had to chuckle at the dichotomy of very loud rap music being blasted from a food truck serving authentic Mexican cuisine. There was also a sign that read, "So good, Trump wants to build a wall around it." Zing! We ordered three chicken tamales and three tacos Mexicanos with hot sauce and camped out in the dining area (two lopsided picnic table about 30 paces away from the truck). This shit was legit! I can't imagine ever visiting Conyngham Brewing without stopping here for tacos. Thanks Steve! 

Since we skipped Nimble Hill and were denied access to North Slope (hope you enjoyed your shower, bitches!), we decided on an impromptu visit to Conyngham Brewing, even though we were just there in April when Solar Federation played in nearby Wilkes-Barre at River Street Jazz Cafe. I was glad to see a few new beers peppering the menu. First up? Enigma IPA, a (yes, another) NE-style IPA brewed with hops from Australia and New Zealand. As the name implies, this one predominantly features the Enigma hop. I enjoyed this overall, but there was a faint nutty note in the finish that may have been the result of changing over the beer line to a new beer. This could have been the result of a previous dark beer that didn't get flushed out enough when the IPA went on tap. It was minimal, but perhaps my palate has become extra sensitive since I've been doing this for a while.

Brewslut went with the Peanut Butter Porter, a creamy, nitro-dispensed porter brewed with peanut butter. This was nice and creamy, but I already had my eye on my next beer, which would be a small 5-oz. pour while Brewslut finished up her PBP.

Did someone say peanut butter?

What beer, you ask? How about a Jalapeño Gose aged in Tequila barrels? This light bodied, mildly tart beer features sea salt, limes, and jalapeño peppers, which is then aged in tequila barrels. It seems like Conyngham has the pepper thing dialed in because I've enjoyed all of the jalapeño beers I've had there. Its Jalapeño Lager is a mainstay there, and I recommend it to anyone who stops by, even if you're hesitant about trying a beer with a bit of spicy heat. It's quite balanced and tasty with a pleasant flavor.

Meanwhile, Brewslut had moved on to her final selection, Somewhere on a Beach, a refreshing light bodied summer lager brewed with lemons and limes. Brewslut was digging this one much more than her previous choice. I had a few sips, and it was kind of like alcoholic Sprite, though not as spritzy as its soft drink doppelganger. This beer was appropriately named, though, as you could imagine sipping this refreshing, citrus-forward beer whilst relaxing beachside with your significant other. And with that, it was time to move on.

Since Berwick Brewing was in close proximity, we decided to swing by for a visit. I'll admit that our visits have been infrequent since Guy Hagner parted ways with Berwick many years ago. (Those of you who remember One Guy Brewing will remember Guy. Aaah, those were the days!)

The tasting room was pretty poppin' with peeps when we arrived, but we were able to snag the remaining two seats at the bar. Berwick always boats a full tap list of 20+ house beers, including 4 or 5 lagers at any given time, plus a variety of ales, wheat beers, darks and Belgian-inspired ales. I've always enjoyed the Hondo Keller Pils, an unfiltered Pilsner, but this time I noticed a Zwickel Pils on tap for the first time that I could remember. I was surprised to see this, as I always used the terms Keller and Zwickel interchangeably. Turns out they are slightly different. Zwickelbiers are weaker and not as full-flavored as a Kellerbier. The term "zwickel" refers to a small amount of beer taken from a barrel with the aid of a special siphon called a "Zwickelhahn." Another major difference is that a Zwickelbier is typically bottom-fermented, but a Keller is often top-fermented.

Brewslut opted for a full pint of the Dry Hopped IPA, which she wasn't too thrilled about. After my Zwickel Pils, I tried a half pour of a new beer called Fruhling Ale, a dry-hopped pale ale.

Unfortunately, both of us were less than thrilled with all three, as each featured a noticeable diacetyl finish. If you're not familiar, diacetyl is an off-flavor found in beers that elicits an unwanted buttered popcorn or butterscotch flavor. To delve a bit into brewing geekery, diacetyl is a natural occurring process of fermentation produced by yeast. The good news is, just as yeast produces diacetyl, it will also get rid of it. However, the beer needs to rest on the yeast for a few days after the fermentation process ends. This is a typical (for lack of a better term) "mistake" found in many beers, especially at small nano or microbreweries. I've encountered it many times, and my sensory panel training at my place of employment has only heightened my sensitivity of diacetyl. This is a blessing and a curse. I can deal with a hint of diacetyl. Unfortunately, I've encountered many, what I call "diacetyl bombs", where the diacetyl character completely dominates the beer's flavor. This is no bueno. While these three beers did have some promise, I just couldn't get past the diacetyl, which led to a less than enjoyable experience, unfortunately.

After our visit to Berwick, we headed over to our hometown of Shamokin to visit my mom before heading back to the ol' homestead. Sorry to end on a downer, folks. To remedy that, here's a sweet pic of Pleeps enjoying the day with us...

Stay tuned for our next installment of The Pour Travelers, a quick jaunt to Baltimore to attend a Primus and Mastodon concert with some beer worked in, of course. Until next time...