My trip back east!

My family and I just got back on Tuesday from a week long vacation back east. For those who don't know, my wife and I lived in Delaware for a while, before returning to Colorado. There was a reunion of sorts last week for my wife at the Aquatic Resources Education Center where she used to work. It was also a retirement party for Captain Bob, who was her boss and is the guy who performed our wedding ceremony. I actually asked my wife to marry me in the middle of the boardwalk at the center, overlooking the salt marsh and the Delaware Bay in the distance. It was great to go back and see all the people and places that we knew. A lot has changed in the area over the 8 years since we left, but the friends were still as great as ever. We also took the time to spend a couple of days in DC, since I managed to not have gone and seen any of it in the time we lived there somehow. It was really cool to see many of the monuments and buildings that we see in literature and on the news, and is certainly a very different experience in person. Many of the sights are very powerful, if you've never had a chance to visit, such as the eternal flame and the Vietnam wall. Sitting on Einstein's lap is also really cool and is a must-do for all you scientific types like us.

The real part of this that makes it HAMs Blogworthy is the visits to the breweries though. While out there I got to visit several breweries, and sample some truly great beers.

The first visit was to Capitol City Brewing while in DC. The one we visited is located in the Postal Museum, which is right across the street from Union Station. Here I am pictured in front of the copper serving vessels, which are located prominently in the middle of the restaurant with the bar wrapped around them, also pictured is the immense sunday we had after our meal. I got to sample the Amber Waves Ale, a really good American amber ale with lots of American hop character, and the Oktoberfest. Both of which were excellent beers. Unfortunately I got there too late to meet any of the brewers in person, but could see the brewery on premise since it's not even walled off from the restaurant. I would definitely recommend that anyone stop there if traveling to DC. The beers were great, the food was really good and decently priced, and the atmosphere was excellent and very family friendly. Hopefully I'll get another chance soon to try more of their beers. I know I saw another one of their locations at the inner harbor of Baltimore.

The next brewery visited was the hallmark of the trip, and my main requirement while in Delaware, the Dogfish Head Brewpub in Rehoboth Beach. I'm sure you're all familiar with Dogfish Head, but if you've never had a chance to try their beers, I can't recommend them highly enough. The 90 Minute IPA has been voted the best beer in the US 2 years straight in BYO magazine, and is at or near the top of my all-time favorite beers as well. I know that their beers have been hard to find here lately, while they were adding capacity to their main brewing system in Milton, Delaware, but it should be getting better about now. I bypassed the beers that I know I can get out here, and went for the specialty ones I hadn't seen or tried yet. The first thing I got to sample, was the Sah'tea, a truly unique beer! I loved this, and could have drank lots of it (especially thanks to going down in elevation so much) but had others to sample as well. Here's the Dogfish website description for this beer: A modern update on a 9th century Finnish proto-beer. Brewed with rye, we caramelize the wort with white hot river rocks, then ferment it with a German Weizen yeast. In addition to juniper berries foraged directly from the Finnish country-side we added a sort of tea made with corriander, caramamom, lemon grass, Indian Black Tea, and ramps leaves. The spicing is subtle and balanced and Sahtea is a highly-quaffable, truly-unique brew with a full-mouth feel. 6% abv

After getting my Sah'tea and getting a break from people coming in, Matt Patton took me on a tour. Above the bar hang dogfish cutouts of many of the beers served here. The place is small, but in a cozy-full of Delaware beach ambiance-kind of way. All their grilled food is cooked over wood, and the small original brewery and pot still are on-site and still in-use today. The brewery at the pub is definitely not what I'd call high-tech. They use a very simple setup, much like a scaled up version of my own home-brewing equipment. Obviously they know their stuff though, by the type and quality of beers they're turning out and the rapidity with thich their brewery has expanded. They have 2 fermenters behind the brewhouse. One is used for beers being served in the pub, like the Sah'tea, the other is used for spirits. This fermenter is connected to the still directly above the brewhouse on the second floor, where they make their small-batch spirits. Their bottling line for their spirits consists of a tank and a bottling wand. It's great to see and taste such amazing products come out of such a small operation. Of course, all of the beer we get here in Colorado is made at the main brewery in Milton (about half an hour away from the pub). They still have a great selection of really interesting beers bottled from there too. Take the Palo Santo Marron that I got to sample at the pub on draught, served in 750mL size in a snifter. This is definitely a beer to savor slowly as it warms, and I managed to pack back 2 bottles of the 4 pack I bought to squirrel away in my stash for later. Pictured is the Palo Santo along with my excellent Oktoberfest style grilled bratwurst with saurkraut and beer fries. I had an excellent time along with my wife and daughter. Thanks again Matt for taking the time to show me around and answer my questions. Don't forget that you or any of the Dogfish crew coming to the Colorado High Country have a place to stay and go skiing. Hopefully I'll see Sam again at the Big Beers, Belgians, and Barleywines festival again this year. I hope to be there helping to judge the homebrew competition again this year.