Saturday, April 27, 2013

New brewery!!!

There are some days where I think I am too old for Facebook.  I don't care if your cat got a haircut, or that you checked in at Rubio's and ate 3 fish tacos or that last night you and 3 of your best buds (who all pose with their arms on their hips and one leg bent) went out and got really wasted at some club in Scottsdale.

And then there are some days when I realize the power of Facebook for adults.

I discovered a few beer writers groups and few local beer groups on Facebook (which I prefer to call "the book face") and this unlocked a wealth of local knowledge for me.  After combing through recent posts in these groups, I discovered that there was a new brewery in Queen Creek.  Sweet!

https://www.facebook.com/OwlsOrchardBrewery
The posts made it sound new and small.  Then I found the brewery's Facebook page and I learned that yes, it is a brewery but no, it is not a tap house.  More of a beer-to-go kind of place.  Wait ... based on the address, it appears to be located in a neighborhood.  I started to get excited -- I went in and told my husband "it's just a dude selling beer out of his garage!!!"  So I found the phone number and called to get more details.  A super friendly guy answered and told me he'd be home all afternoon and to come by when I had time.  So we packed the kid up and headed over to check it out.

Located approximately 25 minutes from Downtown Chandler, Owl's Orchard is just what I described above: a very friendly dude selling beer out of his garage in Queen Creek.  We arrived and I'm not going to lie, it felt a little strange driving up in the driveway of a random person's house to buy something.  But Marty (brewer/owner) came out of the garage and greeted us right away.  He showed us his setup and talked to us about what he's got on tap.  He had a wheat, a stout and an IPA that he said needed another day or so in the keg.  We opted for the stout.

Stout
Owls Orchard Brewery
Queen Creek, Arizona

The stout was full and creamy without being heavy and syrupy - which I think is the biggest downfall of stouts.  It was very light on the roasted/burnt grain taste.  Overall it was a very flavorful (without having too many flavors going on) and clean finishing stout.

Recommendations:  Call or text the number on the Owl's Orchard Brewery Facebook page before you go to make sure it's open and ask what's on tap...then next time you are in the East Valley, go check this place out.  Bring a clean and legal growler of your own and have him fill it ($12) or buy one of his ($15) and promote his brewery.  Kegs available as well.

If you're a hiker or mountain biker, make a trip to check out San Tan Mountain Regional Park and then stop by to get your growler filled after your hike/ride.

CHEERS!

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Canned beer festival - can you drink it?


SanTan Brewing presents the 3rd Annual Amer-CAN Canned Craft Beer Festival. The festival features a craft can award ceremony, live entertainment, craft food, VIP quarters, nano beer garden, beer Olympics and over 150 local and national beers celebrating the canned craft beer revolution.  Tickets start at $25/person.

https://www.facebook.com/AmeriCANfestival
There are tons of great breweries from across the country (21st Amendment, DC Brau, Snake River, Hopworks Urban, Lost Rhino, Santa Fe, etc) who have already committed to coming and the list is growing by the day.  But don't take my word for it, check out the list of who will be there for yourself: http://www.cannedcraftbeerfest.com/breweries.html


When:  May 18, 2013 from 12-6pm

Where:  Scottsdale Civic Center (3939 North Drinkwater Blvd., Scottsdale, AZ 85251)


Fun fact: beer cans were first sold in January 1935, by the G. Krueger Brewing Company in the test market of Richmond, Virginia.  

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

FFFoamy Chef Series

Opening a bottle of any of the Sonoran Chef Series brews is always exciting because each brew is always something risky, bold and uniquely unlike anything you've ever had before...

FFF (4.2% ABV)
Sonoran Brewing Company
Scottsdale, Arizona
The unique ingredients this time? Basil and grapefruit.

First sniff is basil and citrus.  First taste and my mouth told me WOW, there's a lot of both the basil and the grapefruit.  I like basil and I kind of like grapefruit but as it turns out, I like basil better in food than in my beer.  This one was not really my idea of a good combination.  The basil was far too strong and the grapefruit was slightly off (but that may be my personal taste because like I said, I'm not a huge fan of grapefruit to begin with).  My good friend from the loot bag story also was not a fan of this beer.

However, my sister really enjoyed this combination and thought it was a refreshing, crisp and clean beer.  The Husband was on the fence.

Rating:  out of 4 taste testers, this one got 2 thumbs down, 1 thumb up and 1 sideways wavering thumb.

Recommendations: like most beers, this is definitely worth a try...especially if you like grapefruit and basil.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Help!! Drink Local, Part 1

az.worldclassbeer.com


Hey Arizonans --- consider skipping your $4 latte/coffee/bagel for a day and instead put your money to work and help support these three guys and their dream to produce more local beer!



Home of the future Sentinel Peak Brewing Company:

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Mommy victory + suburban fail

This may be giving away my age, but I remember back in high school when Applebee's was a new invention, at least in the mid-sized bedroom community of Fredericksburg, Virginia, and MAN, it was the place to be!!  I remember going on dates with my high school boyfriend after we both got off work (me as a bag girl at the Virginia equivalent of a Whole Foods/AJ's blend and him as the lumber guy at Lowe's) in his Nissan Pulsar in the summertime with the t-tops off.  We didn't have a care in the world.  No cell phones.  No Facebook to update with where we were or who we were with.  No cameras.  No interruptions.  Simpler times.


This is exactly what I didn't want to end up with.
Anyway, a few weeks ago I was tasked with preparing goodie/loot bags for my daughter's 2nd birthday (Earth Day) party.  I roamed the aisles of Party City and Target a few times and was uninspired by the endless piles of cheap imported junk.  It's always very low grade and very very cheap.  I am slighly opposed to all this junk because I have a hard time with how/where it is made and knowing that despite a mini-slinky only costing me $0.25, the manufacturer, the shipping company, Target/Party City are all still making money.  That means it cost like $0.01 to make...which means they couldn't have paid their workers very much - nor are they disposing of their waste properly or providing their workers with safe conditions.  The math doesn't work.  And this is where I draw the line.  I didn't want to fill a crappy little plastic bag with imported junk only to have the other parents do what I typically do -- let my kid play with it for a few hours and then throw it away once they go to bed.

So I was stumped.  But I had to figure things out tonight because I was shopping while the kids were asleep and I wouldn't have another chance to do this before the party.

I texted a wonderful friend of mine who happens to be the mother of three.  I simply said "Did I mention I HATE loot bags?  Do I really have to do them??!?"  She called me within 3 seconds and said 100% agreed and we needed to think of something clever.  Within 10 minutes, she was by my side roaming the aisles of Wal-Mart (I know, I know...I hate them too but what else is open at 8:45pm and has everything you might need for an alternative loot bag idea?!?).  Within 15 minutes of her arrival, with are departing with a cart full of potting soil, flower pots, seeds and sand toys.

I offer to buy her a drink for her help saving me from falling into the trap of bags full of shitty $0.35 imported toys and knock-off crayons.  The time is nearly 9 and we figure that because we live in the suburbs, most places are closed already.  It IS a Thursday night.  So we joke about making this a stereotypical night and going to Applebee's.  The idea is funny and it sticks.  Off we go...

There are about 6 cars in the parking lot so we go in and walk up to the bar.  A few random dudes around the bar and two couples sitting at tables in the bar area.  We ask for their beer list and the best I can find is a Blue Moon (I should note that they did have Four Peaks Kiltlifter on tap, but it gives me a headache so I rarely order it).

So I order a Blue Moon and the not-so-friendly neighborhood bartender does not ask me what size I would like ... so out comes my giant Blue Moon (for $5.75).

After our beers arrive, my friend remarks about the smell inside the restaurant.  Yeah, now that you mention it ... it smells like total $hit.  Like dirty bar rag + dirty socks + wet carpet + sewer.  The waitress returns to ask if we'd like to order food and the thought of food in this stinky place makes me gag a little.  Seriously.  Moments later I overhear the couple seated at the table behind us trying to flag down their waitress.  I look over and see the woman poking at her food with her fork and a disgusted look on her face.  Her boyfriend/husband/whatever is looking inquisitively at her plate.  Now she's pulling a hair out of her food so the waitress can see.  <gag>  <stomach doing flips>  The waitress doesn't seem too concerned about this discovery.  She takes the plate from the woman and as she turns around I see her roll her eyes and walk back to the kitchen with it.  I'm sorry -- are you annoyed with your customer or your kitchen cleanliness?

I look at my friend and nearly simultaneously we both yell out, "Check please!?!?"

End result: flower pots full of marigold seeds with a straw/paper flower.
Happy Birthday/Earth Day!