While Cuba was a delight and served me many mojitos, Cuba libres and pina coladas, I think it’s well known at this point that beer is my beverage of choice. Thankfully, work and play, have recently taken me to two superb brewing destinations, Austin and Richmond.
“Keep Austin Weird” they say….didn’t seem that weird to me, but it was packed with delicious beer.
The adventure started at Craft Pride, an all TX beer beer bar, with samplings of Pint House Pizza’s Electric Jelly Fish IPA and Fully Awake Imperial IPA. Topped these hoppy delights off with Via 313, Detroit Style Pizza.
Over the next few days, the I visited Zilker Brewing Co., Blue Owl Brewing and Lazarus Brewing Company for Bourbon Coffee Milk Stout, Anniversary IPA and the Parks and Rec IPA, Professor Black Sour Cherry Stout and Little Gose American Wild Ale, and Achille’s Heal, respectively.
And let me not forget to mention the food trucks of Austin-
^Las Trancas, Aimee’s Super Fantazmo and East Side King. Deliciously perfected street tacos, falafel and Japanese fusion!
And finally, Jester King Brewery for Le Petit Prince Farmhouse Table Beer, Colonel Toby Hoppy Farmhouse Ale and Funk Metal Sour Barrel-Aged Stout.
A few weeks later, David and I made our way North to Richmond, VA for a little 5 year anniversary getaway. Might not be somewhere often associated with beer, but it SHOULD! The city was reminiscent of Columbia for us, about the same size, capital city on the river and large university in the middle of town, so we felt right at home.
The beer, the food and the city were all charming and the perfect locale for David and me to celebrate. We stayed in the Jackson Ward neighborhood which, much like everywhere else in Richmond, is COVERED in street art!
Our first day we made a quick stop at Saison, a quaint beer bar and restaurant around the corner from our Airbnb.
^Stillwater Superluminal Sour IPA
Also enjoyed at Saison- Evil Twin Today is Yesterday’s Tomorrow Imperial IPA and AleSmith Nibs & Beans Speedway Stout
Days 2 and 3 were slam-packed with our favorite activities – morning run, followed up by brunch, cidery visits, beer stops and gallery browsing. Coffee stops in-between kept us going!
^Virginia War Memorial
^Belle Isle
^Brunch at Perly’s, a Jewish Delicatessen
^Brunch at Tarrant’s, a once pharmacy turned southern food and drink haven
^IPA Batch #14, Berliner Weisse with Blackberry Lime, Dry Hopped Cask Pilsner
^Hornswaggler French Vanilla Chocolate Milk Stout, Bee Humble Double IPA, Sitdwn IPA and Broz Broz Night Night Citra Double IPA
^Quadrahop Imperial IPA, Further and Farther IPA and Tropication IPA
The Answer Brewpub hands down had the BEST beer (and beer names:)) which we paired with their fabulous Vietnamese cuisine.
^Cash Me Outside How Bow Dah Oatmeal Stout, 2 Scoops Passionfruit and Guava Gose, Cosmic Crusher Triple Dry Hopped IPA, Benjemun Scholtz Imperial Brown Ale, Kromer Juice with Lychee and I’ll Have a Martini [pineapple, apricot, lychee] Gose.
Triple Crossing Brewing Company
^Double Falcon Double IPA
But our favorite stop overall……Blue Bee Cider! This place, not like any other cidery we’ve visited, is located in Richmond’s historical horse stables. The cider, styled more like a wine, was exquisite!
We enjoyed them all:)
^Hierophant, Charred Ordinary, Mill Race Bramble, Hopsap Shandy, Rocky Ridge Reserve, Harrison, Aragon 1904, Harvest Ration and the Firecracker.
And with that our anniversary/beer mini-vacation came to a close.:( We made our way back to Asheville and 3 local breweries to round out our weekend. Up next, Denver, Fort Collins and Boulder!
Eat.Drink.Run 