Holiday In Usa!

[Snowdog]

Maybe just because it is getting a little old hat for them, but I would still say it was happening. Lot of people were talking up the Mid West brew scene when I was there. It could just follow trends like that (think rock music - and how over the times there have been scenes based in certain cities/regions in the US. Just because grunge is no longer the trend of the day, Seattle still has a great rock scene - just less crowded).

Lol! Not to mention many of the Seattle grunge clubs that were opened in low rent semi-industrial Denny Regrade were torn down by Paul Allen to build high-rise condos (RCNDY), went upscale and lost the atmosphere (Crocodile Cafe), turned into a sportsbar (Sit n Spin), or became a hip-hop or rave club (too mny to name). A couple noteworthy exceptions is the Offramp (now called El Corizone) that still has local bands and still has that grunge bar piss and puke scent to it, and The Central Saloon, which is ... well, the Central, where they advertise live music every night of the week. The Offramp is on a block right next to the freeway that Paul Allen hasn't gotten his hands on yet, and the Central is a historic pub in the Pioneer Square Historical district.

And Pete Critter, you should start your trip in Seattle, and hit Portland on the way to the Craters & Yellowstone. There's some great breweries along the way, starting with Walking Man in Stevenson Washington. Grand Teton Brewing in Victor Idaho makes some good beer too.

Anyway, I'm rambling ... I myself am planning on heading back to hometown Seattle mid-year sometime if everything falls into place.

 

[WildebeestAttack]

Lived in NY for 2 years.

Bars in order or preference:

Burp Castle (just great, Belgium influence)
Jimmy's 43 (next door to Burp Castle)
Blind Tiger (pretty busy, go early arvo)
Peculiar Pub (down the road on Bleecker St)
The Ginger Man (midtown, 70 odd taps of micros)
Rattle & Hum (try the IPA brined fries)
Shaffer's City (a quiet local favourite, great micros)
The Beer Table (Brooklyn - very pricey, but unusual beers)
Brooklyn Brewery (packs out with hipsters)
The Waterfront Ale house
Chelsea Brewery (beers aren't great, but views of the Hudson and NJ are)
Zum Schnider

Cheers, should keep me busy.

Any ideas on Boston and Providence also?

 

[aktim]

May

If you are going to the 21A, you had better go to the Torondao beer bar, it has the best all round selection of craft and belgian ales in the city. It is located at the corner of Haight and Fillmore. Then take the bus west on Haight to the corner of Ashbury and go to Magnolias, they brew great beer and also carry several visitor taps of hard to find craft beers. Thenif you are going to be at Stone
Brewing then you need to go Ballast Point and the Lost Abby, they are all very close together. If you are flying into LAX, go to the International hotel near the airport, they have a massive selection. If you want to travel a bit north of San Francisco you should go to Russian River Brewing in Santa Rosa, Bear Republic is about 30 miles to the west and Downtown Joes in Napa is 30 miles to the East. hope you have a dedicated driver.

 

[jonocarroll]

I'm more or less booked now.

I will be in and around (places with sufficient time for a beer):

Chicago
May 21 - May 26

Williamsburg
May 31 - Jun 4

Washington D.C.
Jun 5 - Jun 9

Boston/NY (?)
Jun 10 - Jun 12

Knoxville (?)
Jun 14 - Jun 15

Seattle
Jun 16 - Jun 18

Vancouver
Jun 19 - Jul 14

Las Vegas
Jul 15 - Jul 23

Los Angeles
Jul 24 - Jul 26

Some of the dates are still subject to change. The gaps between dates are more or less at my discretion still, so I might just take my time traveling between the cities - and if I happen to find a lot of beer along the way then so be it.

Any AHBers who will be similarly located and who would like to catch up for a beer (particularly in the earlier parts of the above) please feel free to contact me.

Anyone with more suggestions on where to get great beer at the above locations, please let me know!

 

[Franko]

Try to find the Yard House in those areas here's the Link.
They have up to 250 different beers on tap at various locations.I visited the Yard House in Hawaii and never wanted to leave.

Enjoy
Franko

 

[Jez]

I'm gonna be in LA for a week this May and have been told to check out these bars for great beer:

Surly Goat
Blue Palms
Stuffed Sandwich
Library Bar
Fathers Office

Check out the "Beerfly" section of www.beeradvocate.com - they have descriptions of where to get good beer for a heap of US cities.

Jez

 

[mxd]

I'll be in the state last week of May, so I am certainly going to try to get to a yard house (wonder if they have an around the world sample platter)

Try to find the Yard House in those areas here's the Link.
They have up to 250 different beers on tap at various locations.I visited the Yard House in Hawaii and never wanted to leave.

Enjoy
Franko

 

[BrenosBrews]

Why so long in Vegas? I know not everything in life revolves around beer but you'd be much better off cutting your time in Vegas short and spending a couple of days/nights in San Diego.

 

[jonocarroll]

Why so long in Vegas? I know not everything in life revolves around beer but you'd be much better off cutting your time in Vegas short and spending a couple of days/nights in San Diego.

It's something I've always wanted to do, and do right (plus the wife will be along for that leg of the trip). The time there is also part of the 'subject to change' bit. The plan is to use it as a base for going to see the Dam & the Canyon (that's a day), at least three nights seeing shows and different casinos, and a night either side for rest/sleep/relaxing after a long trip. In doing this while not rushing, I plan for it all to take that long.

But, yes, I may find an extra day or so to go to San Diego - I'm told I should by many people, but haven't factored it into the plans just yet.

 

[jonocarroll]

I used this guide while I was over there

http://beermapping.com/

Most awesome

+1

I stumbled across this site also, but noticed they've got an iPhone app that rocks my socks off... WOW. Instantly purchased (AU$1.19).

Lists brewpubs, breweries, pubs, liquor stores, and homebrew stores with a map and GPS 'near me' function. The app even works here, but doesn't seem to show me all the available places to buy beer (an okay list, but by no means complete). Still, will be very useful.

 

[Josh]

I'm more or less booked now.

I will be in and around (places with sufficient time for a beer):

Chicago
May 21 - May 26

Williamsburg
May 31 - Jun 4

Washington D.C.
Jun 5 - Jun 9

Boston/NY (?)
Jun 10 - Jun 12

Knoxville (?)
Jun 14 - Jun 15

Seattle
Jun 16 - Jun 18

Vancouver
Jun 19 - Jul 14

Las Vegas
Jul 15 - Jul 23

Los Angeles
Jul 24 - Jul 26

Some of the dates are still subject to change. The gaps between dates are more or less at my discretion still, so I might just take my time traveling between the cities - and if I happen to find a lot of beer along the way then so be it.

Any AHBers who will be similarly located and who would like to catch up for a beer (particularly in the earlier parts of the above) please feel free to contact me.

Anyone with more suggestions on where to get great beer at the above locations, please let me know!

QB
Our itinerary is pretty much set in stone, if you wanna have a beer in Washington or Boston, look me up...
30/5-7/6 New York
7/6 - 8/6 Philadelphia (During Philly Beer Week)
9/6 - 11/6 Washington
12/6 - 14/6 Boston
14/6 - 20/6 Minneapolis (National Homebrew Conference)
20/6 - 30/6 Road trip loop from Las Vegas through Utah, Colorado and Arizona
30/6 - 7/7 Las Vegas
7/7 - 10/7 Road trip to San Francisco
10/7 - 19/7 San Francisco
19/7 - 21/7 Road trip to Portland
22/7-25/7 Portland (Oregon Brewers Festival)

 

[jonocarroll]

QB
Our itinerary is pretty much set in stone, if you wanna have a beer in Washington or Boston, look me up...
9/6 - 11/6 Washington
12/6 - 14/6 Boston

That looks like a good possibility of overlap. There's a PM coming your way once I sober up and figure out which day I need to leave D.C., but I reckon it should be no problem to catch up for a beer or three either there or in Boston.

Cheers!

 

[kenlock]

Anybody going to the Great American Beer Festival 2010 in Denver?

 

[Shed101]

Anybody going to the Great American Beer Festival 2010 in Denver?

Not personally ... but wouldn't it be fun to go to the Great Canadian Beer Festival in Victoria the weekend before, then spend the week driving down the Rockies to the GABF?

(i can but dream)

 

[kenlock]

Not personally ... but wouldn't it be fun to go to the Great Canadian Beer Festival in Victoria the weekend before, then spend the week driving down the Rockies to the GABF?

(i can but dream)

Now that could have been a plan!

Instead I'll have to make do with Yellowstone NP and Mt Rushmore to build up a thirst.

 

[hopcycle]

When you are in SF. There is a great BBQ joint called Memphis Minnies (lower haight).....excellent meat and cool merchandise to bring back


Have fun. I am jealous...SF and California is a great place to visit for experiences, food, beer and wine...not neccessarily in that order

 

[MarkBastard]

Not personally ... but wouldn't it be fun to go to the Great Canadian Beer Festival in Victoria the weekend before, then spend the week driving down the Rockies to the GABF?

(i can but dream)

Unfortunately you can't really do this. Trust me I tried.

Hire car companies don't really let you do one way trips including border crossings. The only ones that did had some ridiculous fee like $700.

What you can do though (and I've done it) is use public transport to get from Vancouver to Seattle, and then pickup a car there, or get a plane.

I saved something like $800 by catching a bus from Vancouver to Seattle to get a plane out of Seattle instead of Vancouver. The wife still hates me for it but the Vancouver airport really is a rip off. It was going to cost more to go from Vancouver to LAX than it did from BNE to LAX.

 

[jonocarroll]

Unfortunately you can't really do this. Trust me I tried.

Hire car companies don't really let you do one way trips including border crossings. The only ones that did had some ridiculous fee like $700.

What you can do though (and I've done it) is use public transport to get from Vancouver to Seattle, and then pickup a car there, or get a plane.

I saved something like $800 by catching a bus from Vancouver to Seattle to get a plane out of Seattle instead of Vancouver. The wife still hates me for it but the Vancouver airport really is a rip off. It was going to cost more to go from Vancouver to LAX than it did from BNE to LAX.

I'm not sure that the border crossing is the cause of the expense - one way rentals over here (USA/Canada) are roughly double the cost of returns.

The train ride between Seattle and Vancouver is excellent - only $6.50 more than the bus, great view travelling along the coastline, plenty of room, $13 upgrade to business class, and minimal security checkpoints (i.e. none in Seattle). I'm currently in Vancouver and I took the train up from Seattle (as opposed to taking yet another flight - I've been on 8 in a month). I compared prices yesterday for getting to SF and it's about $100 cheaper for two people to catch the train down to Seattle and fly to anywhere on the west coast from there. If you saved $800, then your original flight must have been a massive rip off, since a Vancouver - LAX flight can be had for sub $200 (expedia rocks!).

Back to cars though - I think I'm going to go via train to Seattle, fly to SF (stay a while), then fly again to LAX, rent a car and drive to Vegas, then San Diego, then return it to LAX before my flight home. Total rental cost ~ $450.

This trip would be going great.... if I wasn't currently in a wheelchair. :angry:

 

[bum]

Back to cars though - I think I'm going to go via train to Seattle, fly to SF (stay a while)

Wise choice. SF is a really nice city (if you stay out of the (urine drenched) Tenderloin). If I had to relocate to the States (which is not beyond the realms of possibility, tbh) I'd make sure it was in SF (pretending for a second we could afford it).

then fly again to LAX

I've driven from LA to SF (and vice versa) more times than I care to mention and each time my research has shown that plane beats train in every manner on that route. Plane often beats car too but I usually have to fit in with others who want to go by road.

This trip would be going great.... if I wasn't currently in a wheelchair.

Previous comments on my part notwithstanding, I really hope this isn't as bad as it sounds and that you have good travel insurance.

 

[jonocarroll]

I've driven from LA to SF (and vice versa) more times than I care to mention and each time my research has shown that plane beats train in every manner on that route. Plane often beats car too but I usually have to fit in with others who want to go by road.

Google suggests it's about 10 hours driving from SF to LA, which I would need to double to avoid a one-way car rental. With my leg in the condition it is in, I reckon that's a little too long for me. It would no doubt be a nice drive though.

Previous comments on my part notwithstanding, I really hope this isn't as bad as it sounds and that you have good travel insurance.

My work has me covered for travel insurance (yet to be shown, but they had better reimburse) but that doesn't make the up-front costs feel any better. While a Canadian hospital won't turn you away, they will ask for CAD$750 to get in the door.

8 Flights in a month: ~$3000.
Hotels for that month: ~$4500.
Patellar dislocation 4 days in to a three-week conference being held in a building without an elevator: Priceless.

Mastercard; Thank F&CK.