Category: Monterey Bay

Months and months ago, the Livermore Public Library contacted us to do a talk on our favorite subject. No, not ourselves. Beer travel. It thrilled us to be asked, but admittedly, it was hard to get overly excited because the date was so far off.

Last week, Chris reminded me that our talk was rapidly approaching. So we swung into action and put together something we thought would be entertaining and informative, as well as helpful in spreading the word about craft beer.

Today, the geeks went on parade in Livermore. We had a great time as we talked to a diverse crowd of fellow beer geeks, friends, and people interested in discovering the wonderful world of beer travel.

We described our transformation from a couple of kids running around the Bay Area to the beer obsessed seasoned travelers we are today. We related our experiences of finding unintended gems and of hard fought disappointments. And we shared what we’ve learned about traveling in search of beer. Just like our site, we aimed to encourage others to find their own beer adventures.

There were no major flubs and we didn’t argue on stage. No one threw tomatoes at us and we even got a few laughs. I’d say it was a successful day out.

Thanks again to the Livermore Public Library for inviting us to speak.

The year is over and it’s time to look back and reflect on 2009. Over the course of year, we made two trips to Europe and one to Australia. Closer to home, we participated in the first SF Beer Week, hosted Monterey Beer Festival and attended the eighth Sierra Nevada Beer Camp. We also managed to squeeze in our first trips to New York City and Maine. Adding 74 breweries to “the List” in 2009, the highlight of our beer year was both of us reaching 500 on our trip to Maine in October.

In compiling my ‘best of the year list’, I’m taking a little different tack for 2009. Following is a list of my ten favorite beer places of the year that were new for us.

Auburn Ale House – Auburn, CA: We visited Auburn Ale House on my birthday trip to Sacramento. Quoting myself from the blog about the trip… “I will admit that it takes a lot for a brewpub to ‘WOW’ us these days but Auburn Alehouse managed to do just that.” Great food (order the Asian Nachos with Ahi Tuna), great beer and good friends made Auburn Ale House one of the memorable breweries of 2009.

Avery Brewing – Boulder, CO: Avery had been on my list of ‘must visit’ breweries for some time. We finally got there on our trip to Colorado in February for Beerdrinker of the Year contest. Beer travel is about drinking beers at the source and to finally have beers like Maharaja and Salvation at the brewery was a wonderful experience. We also got to meet Adam Avery.

The Palace – Dublin, Ireland: Proof that craft beer is on the rise in Ireland, mainstream pubs are featuring the likes of Galway Hooker and Carlow Brewing. The Palace Bar, a cozy boozer in Temple Bar, is one such pub. Long noted as the bar for writers and journalists, the Palace is also a pub where I get to enjoy a pint of Galway Hooker in Dublin.

Cwellyn Arms – Rhys Ddu, Wales: It is always nice to find a beer place by chance. After a day of driving around Snowdonia National Park, we took the long route back to our B&B. Driving through a small village, Merideth spotted a sign that said “9 Real Ales 9 Days a Week.” We had to stop. Turns out Cwellyn Arms is a CAMRA award winning pub, catering to hikers, bikers and others enjoying the natural beauty of that part of Wales. A great place to spend the afternoon…

Königlicher Hirschgarten – Munich, Germany: The plan for our day in Munich was to visit three or four beer gardens that we hadn’t been to yet. We made it to just one, the Hirschgarten, the former royal hunting lodge just outside the city center. Our visit coincided with a Trachtentag, a day when locals showed up in traditional dress. We spent the afternoon in Munich’s largest beer garden people watching, playing scrabble and drinking liters of Augustiner.

Brauerei Schumacher – Düsseldorf, Germany: This is an acknowledgment of what a wonderful time we spent in Düsseldorf and the four Alt breweries we visited. My favorite of the four was Brauerei Schumacher, located a short ten minute walk from the Altstadt. Loved the food, the beer garden and their Altbier had a nice hop bite.

Brooklyn Brewery – Brooklyn, NY: Never a huge fan of Brooklyn’s beers, I became a huge fan of their Friday night brewery party during our August visit. Friends gather around large tables, drink Brooklyn beer, play games, and chat. Delivery pizza can be ordered from a number of nearby pizzerias. Despite saying that I am not a fan, I really enjoyed Local 1, Local 2, and Blast, their Double IPA.

Novare Res Bier Café – Portland, ME: Over the past few years, we have had the opportunity to visit some of best beer bars in the United States. I would now include Novare Res in that grouping. Besides the comprehensive, Ringwood-free beer list, Novare Res has a friendly and knowledgeable staff in a setting that made me feel like I was in Belgium. I can’t wait to visit during the summer to take advantage of their beer garden.

Bridge Road Brewers – Beechworth, Australia: It was a three brewery race between Sweetwater Brewing, Bright Brewery and Bridge Road Brewers for my favorite on the High Country Brewery Trail. I loved all three but if I had to pick just one for this list it would be Bridge Road. Loved the beer… loved the setting… I just wish they were open more during our stay in Beechworth.

Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel – Sydney, Australia: We love brewery/hotels and the Lordie had everything we look for in man’s greatest invention. Good beer, very nice accommodations in a historic setting made for a wonderful experience. And I can’t forget to mention the working WiFi, a rarity in our time Down Under. The Lord Nelson was an excellent home base for our past few days in Australia.

Now it is time to look forward to 2010 and what great beer experiences the coming year has to offer… stay tuned.

Last January I wondered what beer adventures 2009 would bring.  The Year in Beer experiences of 2008 would be a tough act to follow, that’s for sure. We definitely didn’t travel as much last year, but as I look back on it, I realize I have lots of great memories. Here are my memorable moments of 2009.

Making my Celtic sacrifice: While in Cork, Ireland for the Easter Beer Festival, I spilled an entire pint of Carlow Brewin’g Druid’s Brew, a Velvet Irish Stout, on our friend John (aka The Beernut). I have no idea what came over me. Chris described it as a “violent twitch.” I was extremely embarrassed and very apologetic, but John took my Celtic sacrifice in stride. Maybe the next time we make it to Dublin, I’ll bring him some California beers and a raincoat.

Holding onto my Easter eggs on Holy Thursday: In one of the roughest ferry rides ever, I managed to keep it all together for the four hour ride from Wales to Rosslare, Ireland. Bouncing up and down and rocking side to side, I stared at the floor as all around me people lost their Easter eggs. Chris made it to the bathroom (and toilet), which is more than I can say for some of the other passengers. I can still say, “I have never been seasick.”

Witnessing a match made in heaven: During our hosting duties at the Monterey Beer Festival in June, I met Mitch and Melissa. Due to some miscalculations earlier in the year, their wedding date fell on the same day as the festival.  Rather than become Bridezilla, Melissa problem solved and they brought their reception to the fest. Melissa looked beautiful in her dress, the cake was yummy, and grandma of the bride was hilarious on The Brewing Network broadcast!

Partying like a punk star: In July we traveled to Germany for our friend Wolfgang’s 50th birthday party, which included an awesome performance by the Dreadnoughts. The next afternoon, we spent hours with the band, Wolfie, and Ute outside their Mannheim local, the Zentrale, drinking beer and listening to an impromptu acoustic performance. Listening to a classically trained Canadian violinist with a mohawk play traditional Irish songs in Germany is truly partying like a punk star.

Turning the virtual into reality: We had been getting emails for a long time from a woman named Andie, who told us that she enjoyed hearing about our travel adventures and that we even inspired her to start her own List. I loved getting her messages because it meant that our mission of encouraging others to find their own beer adventures was working. When Facebook came along, I could finally put a face to the name. Then, better yet, in August, Andie and her husband Greg traveled from Pennsylvania to meet us in NYC. That afternoon, a virtual friend became a real one. Thanks for all your encouragement Andie! You don’t know how much it has meant to me (well, I guess now you do).

Loosing my identity in an SFO bathroom: Not very fun at the time, but it is one of the greatest travel stories ever. On our way to Maine in October, I accidentally flushed my ID down the toilet at SFO.  Already through security for the flight over there, my in-laws had to Fed-Ex my passport so I could get home.

Contributing to a revolution: Novare res means ‘to start a revolution’ in Latin. It’s also one of the hottest bier cafes in the country. We had a great time there during our visit to Portland, Maine in October. The beautiful interior, especially the beer cellar, and the upscale, yet not douchey attitude made it a night to (mostly) remember. We enjoyed many beers from the extensive beer menu with David Kleban from Maine Beer Company. Suffice it to say that the next day I felt the aftereffects of my revolutionary actions.

Experiencing a cool Australian summer: I love making connections in the places we visit and in Australia, it was Damian, Mark, and Todd from beermen.TV. They even allowed us to be in their Christmas Special 2009 episode! In one of the coolest things I have ever done (pun intended), we taped the California holiday beer tasting show in the 23 degree chill of the Ice Bar Sydney. While not exactly like the temps at home, it felt a lot more Christmassy than the 80 degree Sydney weather. Visit http://beermen.tv/ to watch the episode.

My 2010 resolution? Visit my 600th brewery.

Last night, I met some friends at the Ol’ Factory Cafe for one last beer. After months of trying to stay afloat, Ol’ Factory Cafe finally closed for good. Instead of mourning the demise of the only beer bar on the Monterey Peninsula or go into the establishment’s well-documented problems (maybe too well-documented), I would like to take this moment to celebrate the life of the  Ol’ Factory Cafe.

Since moving back here in 1994, we searched for a pub to replace Barclay’s, our local in Oakland. We frequented a number of pubs but they were always missing something. There were the friends, the good times but not the ‘WOW’ beer selection.

I can still remember my first visit to OFC. I had seen an Ol’ Factory ad in the local weekly touting their great beer selection. I quickly popped in after a Costco run to see what brews they had to offer. Seeing the selection, I immediately called Merideth and told her that we needed to go there that night. It was love at first beer and we quickly became regulars. OFC was the place we had been seeking all those years.

Soon after our first visit, we met the owner, Morgan Christopher. We had known of Morgan from his coffee days in Monterey but never had met him in person. Very likable, we were immediately impressed by his passion for good beer. In us, he saw people who could help him make Ol’ Factory the beer destination on the Monterey Peninsula. Soon, we were hosting our beer tastings at OFC. And over time, we became friends.

It wasn’t only beer geeks who congregated at OFC. For many people on the Monterey Peninsula, it was THE gathering place. Coffee fiends, musicians, artists, students, liberals of many varieties and Sand City locals all found a home at Ol’ Factory. My favorite was the knitters, a group who would hang out and… knit.

We met most of our Monterey Peninsula beer friends at OFC. Some came to one of our beer tastings; others we just struck up a conversation with over a pint. Walking up to the bar one day I overhead a couple discussing whether they wanted another Green Flash West Coast IPA. I thought they must be our kind of people so I started chatting with them. After about 20 minutes I returned to Merideth, who wondered what had happened to me. I told her about this couple, Billy and Kristin, who are our good friends today.

It all came together on my birthday in January which also happened to be Inauguration Day. A huge crowd, all of Ol’ Factory’s many groups, gathered to celebrate President Obama’s inauguration. We partied and danced (others danced… not me) the night away. We still talk about that January night… those of us who can remember it.

Other great Ol’ Factory memories include:

• Pouring our Sierra Nevada beer, Nuthin’ in Common
• Meeting Ken Grossman for the first time
• Christmas day
• Merideth in her dirndle at the Oktoberfest party

What will we do now? Probably watch a lot of DVDs at home with a roaring fire and the pups. And wait for Morgan to land on his feet again.

When asked by a local reporter why people should come to the Monterey Beer Festival, I replied, “Good beer, good friends and good weather.” Luckily, we got all three last Saturday.

Despite unsettled weather all week and some people (e.g. Krista) predicting rain, Saturday dawned  sunny and warm. Matt and I arrived at the festival mid-morning to help with set up. Merideth and Michelle joined us later.

It had been years since I was behind the scenes at a beer festival. I found the pre-opening hustle and bustle fun. Excitement was in the air as tables were set up and lines began to form outside. On the other hand, there was also the last minute stress of hauling ice and setting up kegs.

We set up our own table to sell some of our SWAG and Michelle to sell her Brau Frau Designs earrings and bracelets. We also poured Allagash White at our table, as Rob Tod wasn’t able to make the festival.

But the real advantage of getting to the festival early was pre-sampling the beers. In between setup duties, I found my two favorite beers at the festival; Uncommon Brewers’ Baltic Porter and El Toro’s Deuce Imperial IPA, a former Alpha King champ.

As hosts we had various duties to go along with the privileges. On a mundane level, we were asked a lot questions by festival-goers, the most common being “Where are the bathrooms?”

We introduced two of the three bands and made our first appearance on the Brewing Network, the highlight of our duties. We were excited to be hosts of the festival because it gave us an opportunity to promote the Monterey beer scene and our interview on the BN was a great chance to do that. We promoted ourselves and Merideth’s book, as well as plugged the Peninsula’s growing beer scene. The Brewing Network crew even echoed our sentiments about the increasing strength of Monterey County’s craft beer community.

The feel-good story of the day was Mitch and Melissa. Due to some miscalculations a few months back, they scheduled their wedding on the same day as the beer festival. Undaunted by the double booking, Melissa had the idea of having their wedding reception at the festival. We met them Wednesday night at Strange Brew and they told Merideth about their plans. Merideth offered her assistance to store their cake and provide a place for Melissa to change out of her dress, if she wanted.

Mitch and Melissa were the hit of the festival. They received frequent well wishes and applause as they wandered the festival in their wedding clothes. Melissa’s grandmother was also quite popular during her interview on the Brewing Network. Unfortunately, Melissa didn’t get married in a “girls are beergeeks too” t-shirt, but it went perfectly over her fairy tale wedding dress for a more casual look. Congrats to them and we wish them many happy years to come! We also look forward to having a beer with you in the future.

As the afternoon progressed and our official hosting duties lessened, we were able to man our table and relax for the first time in weeks. Some of our good friends joined us behind our table as we drank beer and watched the festival happen in front of us. It was a pleasant end to the day.