I was gonna do a quick overview of the trip and then launch into a post about Rogue, but the trip went far better then expected, and with all the awesome beer related stuff I think I should start at the beginning.
We drove up shortly after 10am Friday morning, thinking we would grab some lunch at a little pub on the way to the Rogue Brewery. The pub turned out to be the highlight for me though, rather then a side trip. As we walked in to Nana’s Irish Pub I think we were both impressed. An Irish flag fluttered outside the door, and the walls were bedecked in memorabilia from UK beer companies that included an old school Guinness poster on the wall. We found a seat at a table near a window and ordered beer from our waitress.
The Irish imports are impressive here, and we ended up with a Smithwicks Irish Red, and a Stella Artois (Belgium import). Honestly though I could have spent the day beer tasting here and would have thoroughly enjoyed myself. But if I thought the beer was impressive the food was even more so. The fish from my fish and chips was so fresh and moist it was amazing, and the Reuben was made with their very own corned beef that they make in the morning, The friendly wait staff, and the locals made lunch a very pleasant experience. My only regret is that this pub is in Newport rather then Keizer. This is the kind of pub I would swing by on my way home from work every night.
As we were packing up it was let slip that we were there for beer tasting at Rogue, and to do some research for my homebrewing. The waitress recommended that on our way we stop at a little homebrew shop called Beir One that apparently had an amazing selection of beer. The directions we received were it’s on the right, just before you cross the bridge to get to the brewery. We ended up passing it since it was such an unassuming little shop, but found a parking spot a couple buildings down. Turns out not only did they have an amazing beer selection, but also the biggest selection of mead I’ve seen a store carry. We ended up sampling some of that mead, and also a barleywine, and an awesome double chocolate stout while we were there, and I ended up walking out with way more beer then I’d planned on buying. Although the store was light in terms of equipment and ingredients for brewing the lady was awesome, and knowledgeable, especially about meads.Next time your in Newport I recommend you stop in and look around.
Monday will be about Rogue.
Normally I try to get some background on whatever recipe I’m making, whether it’s the history, or some obscure facts. This one is simple however, and I don’t want to muddy it too much. The only thing I’ll say is that technically this is a liqueur since blueberries are a volatile substance, but tincture sounds better.
I apologize for not getting this up earlier today, I was having internet troubles. Today I’m gonna clean some house in terms of posting since I have several things to cover.
I attempted to make my first foray in to the world of video stardom on Saturday night. I grabbed my camera, fired up the home brewery, killed the radio star, and tried to make a video. I failed epically. I’m almost tempted to post it just for laughs, but basically during the whole video all you can see is my chest. Nothing above the waist, nor below the neck. Next time I promise to bust out the tripod though and make a quick how to brew video starring me, and not my man boobs. Since I failed to deliver though I’m giving a choice for people to vote on by way of comments. Would you rather see how to make a