Abolitionist Ale Works

I think that smile says it all. That is a lady satisfied with the warm sun on her face and the cold beer in her hand!
As Lise and I were wandering the back roads of Northern Virginia, we actually wandered into West Virginia. Charles Town, West Virginia to be exact. So we did what we've done many times in the past and that is to ask Google if we have any breweries close by. And we did have a brewery in the neighborhood. And that is how we came to Abolitionist Ale Works. Their website invited us to "Come join us in our mission to abolish the predictable and the mundane, Come be an abolitionist."
With an invitation like that, we couldn't resist.
The building was built in the 1880's and is listed on the National Registrar of Historic places. The

tasting room is warm and friendly looking out onto W Washington St in the heart of downtown. The patio is sunny and private. To top it all off, when the waitress saw me posting a picture to our facebook page, she gave me a free sticker for my beer fridge!
Lise really liked the barrel aged offerings of the WV Tequila Bees - guess what kind of barrel that was aged in - and the Dirty Beard Stout aged in Cognac Barrels. I quickly became a fan of the Alpha Mayle IPA.
You should really check out:

Abolitionist Ale Works

129 W Washington St.

Charles Town, West Virginia 

(681) 252-1548

Hours:

Sunday 12PM-8PM

Monday - Thursday 3PM-10PM

Friday & Saturday Noon-11PM

Far Gohn Brewing Company

Lise and I love to hop in the car and go for a ride. Recently, we found ourselves riding around the beautiful, picturesque roads of Northern Virginia. Being a bit of a history buff, I knew that there were quite a few Civil War Battlefields in the area. I got my hands on a driving tour map of four of the battlefields and off we went.
This where I must pause for a moment to say just how awesome Lise is. I know this wasn't her top choice of thing to do for the day but she never let on. It was a beautiful day for ride and every time we showed up at a battlefield, she got out of the car and walked the grounds with me, read all the plaques with me, listened to the Park Ranger talks with me and absorbed all of the information me.
As we left the Civil War Battlefield of the Wilderness, we did one our favorite things when we are in unfamiliar territory: ask Google if there are any breweries in the area!
That is how we found ourselves in Culpeper, Virginia at Far Gohn Brewing Company. What a cool place! Located in a quaint, little village in an old brick building perfectly suited for a tasting room and a brewery, we couldn't have asked for a better place to relax and unwind at the end of the day.
The bartender, who used to live in Maine of all places, was friendly and knowledgeable and more than a little helpful.The weather was perfect to sit out at the picnic table and the beer was delicious!

Lise enjoyed a pint of Imberbrau Ginger Beer while I found the Mordor IPA quite tasty and satisfying. If you ever find yourself in Culpeper, Virginia looking for something to do, Lise and I recommend stopping by:

Far Gohn Brewing Company

301 S East St.

Culpeper, Virginia 22701

(540) 321-4578

Hours:

Sunday Noon - 9PM

Monday 4PM - 9PM

Tuesday - Closed

Wednesday 4PM - 9PM

Thursday 4PM - 10PM

Friday 4PM - 11PM

Saturday Noon - 11PM

Foundation Brewing Company

Portland, Maine is a great town to live in if you like fresh, good beer and visiting breweries.  In fact, we have one neighborhood where you can park your car and go to five breweries with three in one building including Austin Street Brewery and one our favorites, Foundation Brewing Company.
Featuring one of the best beer selections in the city and a comfortable tasting room, Lise and I often stop here for a cold one after work.

Just about every brewery in town has at least one solid, good IPA but, one of the best can be found right here in the Epiphany. Not feeling like an IPA? Then Lise would strongly recommend the bourbon barrel aged Forge, an Imperial stout that she really likes.

Regardless of your tastes, you are sure to find something here to enjoy!

You can visit Foundation Brewing Company at

1 Industrial Way #5

Portland, Maine 04103

(207) 370-8187

Hours:

Sunday 12-5pm

Monday 12-7pm

Tuesday - closed

Wednesday 12-7pm

Thursday 12-7pm

Friday 12-7pm

Saturday 12-7pm

Stars & Stripes Brewing Company

When Lise' daughter, Erin, gave me my first Maine Beer Trail checklist in a birthday card back in 2016, it featured roughly 70 or so breweries. I remember being surprised at how many breweries we had here in the great State of Maine and Lise and I have been from Lubec to Kittery trying to visit them all.
One of the coolest things we've seen over the last few years is how many breweries exist now that weren't on our original list. The latest version of the Maine Beer Trail checklist has well over 100 breweries on it! The other really cool thing that has us excited is how good the beer is. There is some really, really good beer being brewed here in Maine.
We recently had a chance to visit a brewery that has opened since our first checklist. Lise and I found ourselves in Freeport, Maine and stopped by Stars & Stripes Brewing Company.

Located just off Route 1 in Freeport, Stars & Stripes Brewing Company features a spacious tasting room with several large tables. And some delicious, fresh, cold beer! A veteran owned and operated brewery, a beer here actually helps to support our veterans as a percentage of all proceeds is donated veteran organizations.
Lise and I showed our support with Lise enjoying a glass of a double I.P.A. called Tap, Rack, Bang while I opted for the excellent Stout & Give Me 20:

You can visit Stars & Stripes Brewing Company at

8 Varney Rd

Freeport, Maine 04032

(207) 317-1115

Hours:

Wednesday - Saturday 12-9pm

Sunday 12-6pm

Closed on Monday and Tuesday

Austin Street Brewery

Long a fan of their Industrial Way location, Lise and I were excited to visit The Fox Street tasting room for Austin Street Brewery recently.

Where the original tasting room is small with just a couple of picnic tables in the colder months, the new location is big and bright, with three walls of floor to ceiling windows with several tables available for patrons. The original location does have quite a few seating options outside in the warmer months. The Fox Street tasting room will be able to open large sections of walls in the warmer months.

But, of course, the main reason for coming is the beer. I have been a fan of their flagship beer, the Patina Pale, since my first visit to Austin Street Brewery  Here is Lise enjoying a glass of Short Story Long: 

You can visit Austin Street Brewey at the original location at

1 Industrial Way, #8 

Portland, Maine 04103

or

115 Fox Street

Portland, Maine 04103

(207) 200-1994

The Alchemist

Leaving Magic Hat Brewing Company, we set the GPS for our next stop, The Alchemist. Do you know what you have to go right by on the way? Why, Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream of course! And of course we had to stop! And of course you should too!

After getting our fill of ice cream, we continued just a few short minutes up the road to The Alchemist. This place has a big building and big parking lot to match and for good reason considering the size of the crowd stopping by here on a Saturday afternoon.

Once we got inside, we realized why it was so busy and crowded. Free Beer !! All three beers being offered on this day were IPA's which was music to my ears. I would call it a tie between Heady Topper and Focal Banger for my favorite. IPA's are not Lise' favorite but she did say the Focal Banger was quite drinkable.

You can visit The Alchemist at 

100 Cottage Club Rd.

Stowe, VT 05672

(802) 882-8165

Hours:

Monday - Saturday 11am to 7pm

Sunday 11am to 4pm

Magic Hat Brewing Company

While Lise and I were in the Burlington, VT area, we decided to check out what our local brewery options are and were pleasantly surprised that Magic Hat Brewing Company was in the neighborhood! We set the GPS and off we went.
After short drive from downtown Burlington, we arrived at a windowless, one-story metal building with a bizarre, rusty, steel silo-like attachment and the GPS announced that we had arrived at our destination. The metal tower happened to be the entrance to Magic Hat Brewing Company and in we went.
Lise and I entered a large tasting room featuring a lot of Magic Hat merchandise for sale, several tables and, a large bar at the far end of the room. This room was an interesting combination of comfortable yet with an industrial feel to it.We made our way to the bar where we were greeted by a very friendly young man who offered to help us and was also quite knowledgeable about all of the beers being offered that day.
I opted for a pint of the TFG, touted as a 'Rock Solid IPA' while Lise ordered a flight.

Lise is a big fan of beer aged in bourbon and whiskey barrels. Her favorites were the Barrel Aged Strong Ale and the Barrel Aged Belgo Sutra. As for the TFG, it was, as advertised, a Rock Solid IPA.

You can visit Magic Hat Brewing Company at 

5 Bartlett Bay Road

South Burlington, VT 05403

(802) 658-2739

Hours:

Monday-Saturday 11am to 7pm

Sunday noon to 5pm

Zero Gravity Craft Brewery

Recently, Lise and I decided to head to Vermont for the weekend, specifically, the Burlington area. So, we packed up the car and headed out from Portland, Maine late on a Friday afternoon. When Lise' daughter Erin heard of our weekend plans, she said "you guys should really check out Zero Gravity. I think you'll like it". After almost 4 hours and 250 miles of driving we were feeling pretty hungry and thirsty as we approached Burlington. Remembering Erin's advice, Lise did a search on her phone for Zero Gravity only to learn that it was closed. Bummer!
We checked into our hotel and did a search for places to eat still open after 9:00 and found a place called Flatbread. We set off on foot and about 20 minutes later, we arrived. As  we made our way to our table, we walked past a chalkboard listing the beers available on tap. They were all from Zero Gravity Craft Brewery! I couldn't believe our good fortune!
We both ordered an adult beverage and some food. I ordered the Cheese and Herb Flatbread with a red onion topping that was absolutely to die for. Lise had an Evolution Salad that she said was fresh and delicious.
To wash down this meal, Lise order the Forty Thieves, a double ipa that she thoroughly enjoyed while I had the Kokomo, a very satisfying India Pale Ale.

You can visit Zero Gravity Craft Brewery at either the:

Pine Street Brewery

716 Pine Street

Burlington, VT 05401

(802) 497-0054

Hours:

Noon-9pm (10pm Friday and Saturday)

or

Brewpub at Flatbread

115 St. Paul Street

Burlington, VT 05401

Hours:

11:30am til Close Everyday

Nonesuch River Brewing

Recently, Lise and I had the privilege of visiting Nonesuch River Brewing, located in Scarborough, Maine at 201 Gorham Rd. We had spent a sunny Sunday driving around southern Maine. It was getting late in the afternoon and we were ready for a snack and a cold beverage and, according to our search, Nonesuch River Brewing was the closest place.

This place is visually awesome! From the roadside sign with the really cool logo to the actual brewery and restaurant, the need to pullover and come inside is irresistible.

And, even though I forgot to take any pictures, it is just as fun to look at on the inside. With high ceilings and lots of exposed wood, it is very comfortable and relaxing. 

Even though this place features a full menu, we had dinner plans and were only looking for a snack. Lise had the soup of the day, a Hungarian mushroom soup that she absolutely loved while I ordered the thin onion rings to snack on. They were superb.

To wash it all down, Lise had a pint of the Warrior Wheat beer, a German dark wheat beer that she thoroughly enjoyed. I had a glass of Santa's Reinbeer, a brown ale that the menu proclaimed 'tastes like Christmas'. It did not disappoint!

You can visit Nonesuch River Brewing at 201 Gorham Rd., Scarborough, Maine 04074

Phone 207-219-8948

Hours:

Monday 11AM-9PM

Tuesday 11AM-9PM

Wednesday 11AM-9PM

Thursday 11AM-9PM

Friday 11AM-10PM

Saturday 11AM-9PM

Sunday 11AM-8PM