Beerventure

Payette Brewing Black Friday 2015

December 21, 2015 by Ben Leave a Comment

The Friday following the Thanksgiving holiday, for many it’s a day filled with standing in line, braving the cold, and fighting the crowds to save a few bucks on electronics. What if I told you that there was a much better way to spend your day? Payette Brewing’s “Black Friday” is day filled with a possibilities and incredible beers from around the region! You can sate your need for deals with a few minutes online in the morning before you head out to enjoy the a breathtaking selection of Stouts and Porters that will delight your palate and ensnare the spirit. Ok, ok, that may be a little deep, but seriously… this event and theses beers are worth blocking out the day on your calendar and shipping the kids off to the grandparents so you can maximize your experience.

This year, Payette Brewing hosted the event at their new facility in downtown Boise off River Street. Since the building is still being renovated, a large tent was erected in the parking lot filled with tables, music, lights, and thankfully a generator nearby to provide power and some heat! To say that it was cold out is an understatement. To say that the generator was unruly is too kind, especially for those employees & volunteers who were on-site getting everything ready hours before the event started. I arrived at 10, an hour before the “League of Outlaws” members early access and you couldn’t miss the frost that was forming on the inside of the tent walls. Once things really got hopping around 1:00 there was enough heat inside from the heaters and warm bodies that the ambient temps were getting bearable although we had some intermittent rain from all that melting frost. By that time however, I don’t think anyone noticed… or cared. There were simply to many people to talk to and way too many beers to dive into….

Radio Boise Pre-Fat Event (New Belgium Shout Out)

August 24, 2015 by Ben Leave a Comment

New Belgium Brewing, not a name that requires much introduction for their wide variety of beer and of course the traveling Tour de Fat festival. This summer, on the evening before the bicycle parade and TdF festival, Radio Boise (our non-profit; community radio) hosted their annual Pre-Fat street party to raise money to support the station. This block party on 8th street between Idaho & Bannock from 4pm-11pm featured a variety of live music and Radio Boise DJ’s, street vendors, food, and of course beer.

I wanted to send a shout out New Belgium for donating all the beer, which was sold throughout the evening to raise funds for KRBX. As a volunteer, selling beer for four hours or so, I have to think that we must have sold (at least) a few thousand cans. At $5/each that adds up to a nice contribution to a local non-profit.

The evening went off without a hitch, as far as I could tell. The crowd was in good spirits, thirsty and the music was varied enough to keep the groove going. It’s always nice to see craft beer giving back and I see it it regularly on the local level, but to see large regional brewers step up to the plate as well is refreshing. Craft beer, from brewer to consumer continues to have a healthy sense of community that macro brew will never have; not to mention flavor and good beer.

Here is to the continuation of great beer, good people and incredible events.

Sacramento Beerventure Day 2

July 16, 2015 by Ben Leave a Comment

It’s Sunday morning and I’m feeling fine, surprising as that may be. It’s time to get up, get ready and jump in the car to check out as many breweries as possible before it’s time to jump on a plane and head back to Boise!

TRACK 7 BREWING

This place is HUGE, you could probably park a 737 in here.

This is another brewery that has seen explosive growth recently, having just relocated to a new facility that looks to rival Knee Deep in sheer size. It is enormous, and I’m talking on a scale of 1.5 to 2 aircraft hangers humongous. On our way into the brewery, being that this is California, we made the required stop at In-N-Out burger to grab some lunch before rolling into Track 7 and starting the day. At the time that I was here, they were still waiting for quite a bit of brewing equipment so the space seemed especially vast, and empty. The people however, both staff and patrons, were chatty and very friendly. After spending 15 minutes at the bar tasting all of their offerings and chatting about beer in California & Idaho I settled on their Panic IPA which paired exceptionally well with an “animal style” In-N-Out burger & fries. After lunch and some quiet reflection time I was presented with Track7’s Left Eye Right Eye Double IPA which is also outstanding. Hoping that I’d make it home with at least a few souvenirs I grabbed a Track 7 tulip glass as we headed out to make our way to over to Yolo Brewing. Hopefully the fine folks at Track7 will start getting some of their beers up North and into Idaho in the near future.

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Sacramento Beerventure Day 1

July 13, 2015 by Ben Leave a Comment

After so much pain on the train it was time to get serious and start checking out some of what Northern California has to offer when it comes to our most favorite hopped beverages!

AUBURN ALE HOUSE

Bright and early Saturday morning in Sacramento. The sun’s out and the first thing we need is coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. The plan is to meet up with some friends in Auburn (40 min outside of Sacramento) for lunch then make our way to Knee Deep Brewing before heading back to Sacramento & Device Brewing. The Auburn Ale House, which is a restaurant with it’s own brewery attached (similar to The Ram, or Grind Modern Burger) put out quite a spread for us. Being that this was California, IPA’s are quite prominent. The black and blue burger paired with the Gold Digger IPA set the stages for a great day of tasting with a combination of loads of protein and bread to help soak up some of the impending flood of alcohol. If this had been a leisurely trip with no agent and no burning desire to hit as many incredible breweries as possible it wouldn’t be any trouble spending a half day here or more. In fact, they were setting up for a street party which was closing down the entire block as we were heading out. Clearly these guys know how to have a good time!

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California Beerventure Summer 2015 Intro

July 10, 2015 by Ben Leave a Comment

It’s hard to believe that it’s already come and gone, but the trip to California this year was everything that I could have hoped that it would be. In short it was an adventure in which I made a host of new friends, got to see and experience a ridiculous amount of great beers and made my Hollywood debut all in one trip.

Leaving… on a jet plane!

Everything is better in first class.

Kicking off the trip was un-eventful, grabbed a morning flight out of Boise to Seattle for a brief layover before making the second jaunt on to L.A. It was boarding the second flight out of Seattle that I knew, beyond any doubt, that this was going to be an incredible trip. I lucked out and took advantage of a Delta promotion to upgrade my 3 hour flight from Seattle to First Class and if you ever have the opportunity I highly recommend it (on any kind of extended flight at least). Aside from far superior seating, you’re actually treated like a valued customer with extremely attendant flight service. Before I was even settled in my seat, a flight attendant was ready to take my drink order and I started sipping on whisky while the rest of the plane was boarding. Hot towel, yes thank you I would like to freshen up. I mean come on, this is over the top in an all sorts of wonderful way. Ohh yes, I would like another whiskey while the rest of the plane is boarding, why thank you very much!

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