#92 Fat Jacks, Burgers and Taps

I needed to buy cat food and kitty litter.  An excellent reason for a three brewery day, don't you think? 

The cat food I buy is at Costco, and Costco is two hours away, but --- within minutes of some of my favorite Montana breweries.  Enough said.  So I rounded up a couple friends, we hopped in the Huckleberry (my purple Honda Fit), and off we went to Billings.  My ultimate goal was to make it to my 92nd brewery.  Mission accomplished.

We first stopped at Target to load up on some of the necessary staples not found at Costco.  That worked up my appetite.  As my pals were game for anything, I suggested we stop for lunch at Überbrew, a relatively new brewery in Billings I was already acquainted with.  I'm not a fan of their brews, unfortunately, but their burgers are some of the best I've ever had, and their cheddar ale soup... I can't think about it without salivating.  I opted for an ice tea over a not so tasty beer and made short work of my Beer Bleu Burger.  As expected, I was not disappointed.  The girls seemed extremely happy with their choices as well.

We got in and out of Costco as fast as we could - cat food and kitty litter acquired - and hightailed it over to Yellowstone Valley Brewing.  The night before leaving for Billings I found out that this great all girl band I'd seen once before was going to be the opening act for that Saturday's musical entertainment.  They're called Maxie Ford and they are something else.  Extremely talented, all cute, and very, very impressive, especially considering they're all in high school. 

 

Maxie Ford

Note the girl in black, second from the left.  She's their percussionist.  Her instrument, tap shoes.  That's why she's a bit of a blur; she's tapping her ass off.  That is also where they get their name.  Maxie ford is a tap step.

I enjoyed a lovely Black Widow Stout and the band.  If it had worked out, I would have enjoyed the band that followed, Cure for the Common, as well.  They sounded pretty damned good during their warm up.  However, we still had plans to make it to #92.  We couldn't stay.

 

 

 #92 - Fat Jack's Tap Room in Laurel, MT

Oh, what fun!  The place was busy.  Every stool at the bar was taken, one long line of men.  Nearly all the tables in the place were also taken.  We found a table across the room and staked our claim.  Immediately, one of the bartenders was there to take our order.  I asked if they did tasters, thinking I'd like to try a sample flight.  "Sure!" was the reply.  I selected three beers off the board - the Vanilla Oat Stout, the Honey Porter and the Aiming Oil Pale - and within a minute she was back with three little tasters, no charge.  How great was that?  Usually, if it's not going to be a sample flight, you have to head to bar for the little tasters.  Nope, she just poured them and brought them over without batting an eye.  All three choices ended up being tasty, too, but I opted for the Pale since I was going to be driving home and it was a lower octane than the others.  I paired that with some goodies the Tap Room had laid out:  chips, dips, chili, deviled eggs, and little pigs in a blanket.  Happy sigh.

While we enjoyed our choices, and the snacks, we got to know our neighbors at the next table, a funny bunch of ladies.  We all kept each other entertained for quite a while.  I told them about some of my brewery adventures, and they asked how soon they would be visiting my brewery.  Oh, how I wish!  "As soon as I win the lottery," I told them.  

Since the next day was Black Out Superbowl Sunday, I had been sure to bring a bunch of growlers to fill.  I went with the stout and the pale and nearly polished off that stout at the party - one glass left.  I also filled up another with the IPA as requested by a fellow proper beer-loving friend.  I could find no takers for the rest of my booty at the party, though; it was a Busch Light sort of crowd.  What is wrong with those people?  Oh well, more for me!

Groundhog Brew!

If there's a way to tie beer into it, I'll find it!  Groundhog Day is one of my favorite "holidays" and Groundhog Brew does exist.  It's a German-style alt-bier brewed by Straub Brewery in St. Marys, PA.  I just finished reading some reviews on beeradvocate.com.  Of the first two I read, I have to assume they are either fans of typical domestic lagers (like Straub Beer) or they have no taste in beer at all since the few reviews I read gave it high ratings and mentioned things like "...I would easily pick this up over a case of Yuengling lager," and "Heavy grain bill loads this one up, there is a few notes of hoppiness to this beer but just hints scattered here and there. Lots of toasted malts some caramel."  However, beeradvocate.com's overall rating for Groundhog Brew is POOR.  As I've had it, right there in Punxsutawney, on Groundhog's Day, I can fully agree with that rating.  It is downright awful, disgusting swill.  But they put a different label on it each year, making it collectible.  And, as I have a pint or tasting glass from most everything beer related I've been to, I have a Groundhog Brew pint glass, circa 2007 or 2008 - also collectible, if you're into all that groundhog nonsense (and I am).

Me at Gobbler's Knob with a wanna-be Phil, 2007

I attended my first Groundhog Day event at the source, Punxsutawney, in 2007.  There were only four of us who made the trek, but oh, what a great time we had!  As lodging is VERY limited in Punxsutawney, we ended up staying a half hour away at the Super 8 in Brookville, PA, off Interstate 80.  We drove up right after work, grabbed some grub at the neighboring truck stop, then hit the beds for as much snooze as we could squeeze in before our 2:30am departure for Gobbler's Knob.  We arrived in Punxsutawney just in time to make it to the pick up spot for the first Knob Bus to to the Knob.  My friends tried to sneak in some alcohol to this non-alcohol event.  One nearly had his flask confiscated until he promised to leave it in the car.  But SJ was smarter and put hers down the front of her pants.  No one was going to pat down that area so off to the Knob we went with small flask of whiskey to keep us warm until sunrise.

Three and a half hours of well below freezing temperatures (I think it was around 17°F for a low that night), a lot of really cheesy, yet entertaining entertainment, and a nice fireworks display brought us to that crucial moment - when Punxsutawney Phil, the Prognosticator of Prognosticators, is taken out of his "hole" and asked whether or not he saw his shadow.  We were completely frozen, but we had a ball.

All that fun was followed up by all sorts of groundhog-related activities back in town, including at a showing of the Bill Murray movie, Groundhog Day, which we, of course, had to watch.  The real deal is a bit different than it is portrayed in the movie.  Gobbler's Knob is out of town a couple miles, not right in the town square, and there are a hell of a lot more people in attendance.  People come from all over.  The couple next to me for most of the night had gotten married on Groundhog Day, but hadn't had a honeymoon.  Several years later, there they were at Gobbler's Knob, enjoying a belated one and celebrating their anniversary.  For some people, Groundhog Day is such a big thing that the event organizers include a mass wedding ceremony every year after the main festivities.  I tell you, if a wedding day every comes for me, I'll be hard-pressed to decide between the Groundhog Day fanfare and a drive-thru Elvis wedding chapel in Vegas.

After we had enjoyed all that we could find to do, we stopped in at the only bar in downtown Punxsy for a brew.  That's where we discovered Groundhog Brew.  It was a boring place, though, so we did some investigating and found there was another bar about a mile or so away on the other side of town (yes, only two bars in all of Punxsutawney - at least that we could find).  There was already an abundance of snow in town, but it started falling in earnest as we began our walk to the other bar.  By the time we reached it, we all looked like abominable snow creatures.  I can't say it was much of a place, but we had the right people and ended up having a great time.  Fried foods, more bad beer, excellent company - what more could you ask for after all that groundhog fun we'd had?

It was such a goofy, entertaining experience, I just had to make the trek again the following year.  There were a lot more than four of us who made that journey, though events followed much the same.  Instead of the movie, though, we went to one of the many pancake breakfasts offered around town, waiting in line forever and not getting enough.  I recommend finding a snack at the Civic Center or somewhere else along the way if you find yourself hungry after all that bitter cold fun on the Knob.  Then we ended up at the main square where we actually got to meet Phil himself (or herself, there is some debate about that).

 Me and Phil, 2008

Phil and one of his handlers, 2008

I really hope that I can make the trip to Punxsy for Groundhog Day again sometime.  I will happily endure another Groundhog Brew, if only for the bottle.

#91 The Front and a Homebrew Competition

On the 19th, The Front in Great Falls became my 91st brewery.  It was a long weekend, the weather was beautiful and I wanted to get out of town.  I've nearly tapped out all my reasonably distanced options, but The Front was still on my list and only a bit of 100 miles away - an easy day trip.  My friend, JT, volunteered to go along for the fun.  We got a little unnecessary shopping done before our stomachs demanded attention.  I wasn't sure if The Front had food, but we decided to risk it.  Rewarded!

The Front has a yummy-sounding selection of sweet and savory crepes.  I chose a turkey bacon and avocado crepe and it was delish.  The bacon was plentiful and thick.  The turkey was smoked and shredded.  It was loaded with spinach, and the crepe was perfect.

But you wanted to know about the beer, didn't you?  Well, I'd had their Mountain Man Strong Ale previously since it can be found all over town locally.  I really didn't like it.  And I'd had their IPA at a beer fest or two and I don't recall liking it much, either.  Consequently, I was bracing myself for disappointment.

JT and I ordered a taster board that included their session ale, a pale, a blonde, the porter, the stout and what they called and XSB - extra special brown.  I liked them all!  The stout and the porter the least, but they were certainly drinkable.  The XSB was wonderful.  Very earthy.  JT gave two thumbs up to the session, and she like the blonde as well.

Some Great Falls friends happened to show up while we were there and we had a lively discussion about beer and music, my two favorite topics.  Grins!!!

We made few more shopping stops before heading back to town, and somewhere along the way we decided to stop by Harvest Moon in Belt to see if they might be open.  They have never been in the past, and this was no exception.  But we had a back up plan:  the Belt Brewpub.  It's one of those cool places with the original brick walls, wooden posts and high ceilings all covered in old junk, signs and license plates. It also has a nice little selection of micros on tap, including Harvest Moon's.

We didn't even have a chance to make our selection when this cute old man told the bartender that our drinks were on him.  His name was Tom; at least we think his name was Tom. We do know that he lives across the street from the Brewpub (he mentioned that repetitively) and that he's 74, or 73, or maybe 72, possibly 71 - he got younger with each story he told us. Adorable old fart.  Incidentally, JT and I chose a Beltian White and a Pigs Ass Porter, respectively.

Thanks for the beers, Tom!  

*********************************

Last weekend was the Montana Winter Fair, and I was roped into being one of the assistants for the Chili and Cinnamon Roll Competition.  My friend, DR, is the organizer.  She does a wonderful job.  Except for the old wiring in the hall where we held the competition, it went off without a hitch.  We had so many chili entries, we kept popping the circuit breaker with all the crock pots we had plugged in.

DR wanted to make sure we had enough entries this year, so I promised I'd have an entry.  There were two categories:  traditional and other.  Knowing that most entries would fall in the traditional category, I opted for other.  I made my usual recipe, but added zucchini in lieu of hamburger.  Woo hoo!  I took second!  Unfortunately, though, most of the folks who came in for the tasting that followed the judging, were turned off by the "vegetarian" label.  This is cattle country, after all.  "I don't go for that vegetarian crap."  The servers got smart, though, and started calling it "no meat" chili.  After that, there were a lot more takers.  Gotta love it.

That was fun, but the highlight of the Fair for me, is the Homebrew Competition.  No, I don't brew, but like the chili competition, after the judging was over, the brews were available for public tasting.  How could I pass that up???

There were quite a number of entries this year.  They split them between two tables.  Every sample at the first table was very commendable, particularly one of the porters which I chose as my People's Choice.  The second table, though, was not my thing at all.  Fruity beers (very fruity), mead, and a couple ciders.  I do like ciders, but not these.  One wasn't bad, but too much like apple juice.  It was redeemed a bit by having caramel tones as well.  The other tasted just like exceptionally strong applesauce - blech!

To make the whole occasion that much better, my friend snagged a spot at a table that happened to also hold the grand prize beer winner, Matt, and his friend.  He'd had a number of entries, and took the win with his Irish Red.  Of his entries, though, I liked his Scottish Ale the best.  Strong stuff, though.  10.9%!  I'm always in my happy place when I get to talk beer, breweries and anything else related to them.  My friend is a non-drinker and she said she was totally entertained hearing our talk and not understanding any of it.  She said it was like hearing another language where you only understand every fourth or fifth word.

Even better still, Stan and Steve (and Neil and Charlie) did their picking thing on the mandolin and guitar.  Good, old time country.  Beer and music.  Happy sigh.

Stan, Neil and Steve

Where My Journey Began

My very first brewery visits were back in the days when I thought beer was gross; of course, I still think that sort of beer is nearly useless.  My memories of my visit to the Coors brewery are vague at best - I was about five, but I do remember being very excited about getting to drink "pure Rocky Mountain spring water".  I have better memories of the Lone Star brewery in San Antonio, or more specifically, their museum.  I got see a real flea circus, a two-headed calf, goofy mirrors and the hall of horns.  I thought it was the coolest place.  Everyone was given a wooden nickel to use in the saloon, and while the grownups got a free tasting of Lone Star beer, the kids got root beer - just as cool, we thought then.

Years later, I discovered that beer could, in fact, be tasty.  Very tasty.  It all started in Boise, ID, home to several great craft breweries (and several more recently).  My mother was a fan of hefeweizens - American style hefeweizens - and after getting past the fact that it looks like horse piss (her words, and she'd know), it became my gateway beer.  Crazy enough, my next favorite style was porters.  Thanks to The Ram's Total Disorder Porter, my love of good beers became a near obsession.  Pales and browns followed.  IPAs were beyond my palate at that time, but I came around, thank you beer gods! 

There began my quest to visit the origins of some of my favorites.

I spent a summer working for the Tahoe National Forest, and over one of my weekends I followed a whim to drive down to Chico and the Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.  I was not a fan of their pale ale, but I thought it would be fun to try some of their other flavors.  Total disappointment.  I didn't like any of the ones I tried.  I still don't.  I was, though, (and still am) a huge fan of Deschutes Brewery's Black Butte Porter.  So, on my return trip to Boise, I decided to go through Bend, OR.  While I was at it, I wanted to visit the Oregon coast.  Rogue Ales happens to be in Newport, OR, and I kind of liked their beers so I added Rogue to the trip as well.  After that, my travels, if not entirely revolving around brewery visits, certainly included them.

I'm now at #90, or more depending on how I want to count them.  I go to beer festivals whenever possible.  I've even been known to search for matches on online dating sites based on whether or not they mention "craft beer", "brewery", or "microbrew".  I recently ran across one of my best friends doing such a search (we now live about 2,000 miles apart).  Of course I dropped him a hello.  We always did bond happily over a good brew. 

I've lived in Montana now for two years.  During that time I've made it to 24(+) of its breweries.  I only have about 15 to go to finish off my Montana list, but my goal for this year is to get to my 100th overall.

I decided to start this blog to document my brewery journeys.  I'll probably throw in a bunch of other stuff, but most things in my life directly, or indirectly, involve beer so it's all good! 

A Good Place to Start - Breweries I've Visited... SO FAR

Breweries I've visited... I'll update the list as I go.


USA

California (1)
Sierra Nevada - Chico

Colorado (19)
Tommyknocker - Idaho Springs
Breckenridge - Denver
Wynkoop - Denver
New Belgium - Ft. Collins
Pumphouse - Longmont
Left Hand - Longmont (took lots of pics outside, but the tap room was closed)
Golden City Brewing - Golden
Coors - Golden
Fort Collins Brewing - Fort Collins
Funkwerks - Fort Collins
O'Dells - Fort Collins
Pateros Creek Brewing - Fort Collins
Coopersmith - Fort Collins
Equinox - Fort Collins
C.B. & Potts - Fort Collins
Strange Brewing - Denver, CO
Great Divide - Denver, CO
Avery Brewing - Boulder, CO
Mountain Sun - Boulder, CO

Idaho (6)
Table Rock - Boise 
The Ram - Boise
Highlands Hollow - Boise
Payette Brewing - Garden City
Sockeye - Boise
Crooked Fence - Boise

Maine (2)
Bar Harbor Brewing - Bar Harbor
Atlantic Brewing - Bar Harbor

Massachusetts (1)
Salem Brewing - Salem

Michigan (2)
Detroit Beer Co. - Detroit
Bell's - Kalamazoo

Minnisota (2)
Herkimer - Minneapolis
Great Water - St. Paul

Montana (25)
Yellowstone Valley - Billings
Carters - Billings
Montana Brewing - Billings
Angry Hanks - Billings
Great Northern - Whitefish
Glacier Brewing - Polson
Madison River - Belgrade
Neptune's - Livingston
406 - Bozeman
Bozeman Brewing - Bozeman
Lone Peak - Big Sky
Red Lodge Brewing - Red Lodge
Lewis & Clark - Helena
Blackfoot River - Helena
Bowser Brewing - Great Falls
Outlaw Brewing - Belgrade
Tamarack - Missoula
Kettlehouse (both North & South) - Missoula
Bayern - Missoula
Draught Works - Missoula
Überbrew - Billings
Himmelberger - Billings
The Front - Great Falls
Harvest Moon - Belt (the tasting room is never open, but their pub down the hill is)
Fat Jacks - Laurel

Nebraska (2)
Empyrean - Lincoln
Gottberg - Columbus

Nevada (1)
Brew Brothers - Reno

New Hampshire (1)
Woodstock Inn - Woodstock

North Carolina (3)
Green Man - Asheville
Lexington Ave Brewing - Asheville
Asheville Brewing - Asheville

Ohio (1)
Great Lakes - Cleveland

Oregon (2)
Deschutes - Bend
Rogue - Newport

Pennsylvania (10)
East End - Pittsburgh
Rock Bottom - Pittsburgh (though one of many)
Rivertowne - Pittsburgh
Church Brew Works - Pittsburgh
Penn Brewery - Pittsburgh
Haufbrauhaus - Pittsburgh
Appalachian (ABC) - Harrisburg
Troegs - Harrisburg
Yuengling - Pottsville
Straub - St. Mary's (the Eternal Tap was closed)

South Dakota (1)
Firehouse Brewing - Rapid City

Tennessee (1)
Smoky Mountain - Gatlinburg

Texas (1)
Lonestar

Utah (3)
Moab Brewing - Moab
Eddie McStiffs - Moab
Wasatch Brewing - Park City

Virginia (3)
Blue & Gray Brewing - Fredericksburg
Hops - Alexandria
Gordon Biersch - DC

West Virginia (3)
Morgantown Brewing - Morgantown
Mountain State- Thomas
Blackwater - Davis

Wyoming (1)
Wyoming State Brewing - Casper

*********************************************
CANADA

Ontario (1)
Syndicate Brewery (Niagara Falls Best Brewing) - Niagara Falls