Highland, MD August 4, 2019
On a hot Sunday, we decided to go for a drive. This was an excuse to try out our brand new, electric vehicle, a Chevy Bolt. It provides about 240 miles on a fully charged battery – sweet!
Continue reading Brewer’s Art Comes to HoCo
Ellicott City, MD
Last night, about 15 Howard County bicycling advocates attended the Howard County Council Capital Budget Public Hearing, showing support for County Exec Calvin Ball’s proposed $2.2 million budget for bicycling infrastructure. Thank you, Doctor Ball!
Continue reading Howard County Budgets $2.2 Million For Bikes
Columbia, MD Saturday, March 9th, 2019
Five intrepid explorers braved the wilds of Columbia, MD, determined to reach their final goal – Sapwood Cellars.
Continue reading The Trek to Sapwood
Ellicott City, MD
For the month of March, Allview Liquors has all the 2018 Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout varieties. Plus a raffle to basically give away bottles to the winner!
Just a quick note. Hysteria Brewing, the makers of Trash Panda and many other fine ales, is now open 7 days a week! Continue reading Hysteria’s new hours
Columbia, MD December 26, 2018
I am the cooler king of raffles! For the second time, I have won a cooler at a Frisco Tap House raffle, this time a Terrapin Beer Co. airtight cooler.
Continue reading Cooler King
Columbia, MD December 19, 2018
I’ve been reading Tristan Gooley’s The Lost Art of Reading Nature’s Signs and starting to develop a keen eye for natural clues about our world. For instance, did you know moss grows on the north side of a tree and contrails predict bad weather? So, when I spotted a Tröegs Mad Elf at Frisco Tap House, I knew winter was just around the corner.
Continue reading A Mad Elf Night
Ellicott City, MD December 12, 2018
More than 35 helmet-clad Howard Countians attended Dr. Calvin Ball’s first budget hearing as Howard County Executive. We were there showing our support for safer cycling in the county and hoping that Dr. Ball would find more money for our cause in this year’s budget.
Continue reading Bikes, a Budget Hearing and the Judge’s Bench
Columbia, MD December 7, 2018
It has been a terrific Friday night. First, I spent the afternoon at Guinness Open Gate Brewery and Barrel House with my oldest friend, David. Then, I stopped by the Black Flag Brewery for their collaborative brew with Sapwood Cellars, Shared Kingdom.
The bar inside is a whirr of activity with great service. When I think of Guinness, I think of their draught, one of my favorites. However, their head brewer trained from the great Stone Brewery of San Diego, so they are much more than just a stout producer. In fact, their Hazy IPA was fantastic. (I know, it’s like going to a seafood restaurant and ordering a hamburger). However, I found it a zesty pineapple and grapefruit tasting beer, refreshing, light and easy drinking with a surprising sweetness. Another surprise was the Nitro Vanilla Cream Ale. (Thanks to bearded Vinnie for this recommendation). This light colored ale had a vanilla nose and initial vanilla flavor with some mildly bitter hops and a lingering sweet finish. An unusual beer. I found the Milk Stout too sweet to be delicious with a bitter chocolate flavor. When at Guinness, I recommend ordering the 6-ounce pours until you find the beer you really want to commit to with a 16-ounce pour.
Besides an enormous beer garden and the bar inside, Guinness has a restaurant on the 3rd floor plus, they offer free brewery tours. I talked to one of the hosts who suggests making online reservations as the tours fill up rather quickly. Tours are restricted to 21 people.
I intended to just head over to Black Flag for a quick sample of the Shared Kingdom and pick up a 4-pack (if I liked it). Instead, I met some new friends, let’s call them Kelly’s Heroes from Ellicott City. We talked about breweries in the area, this blog, and Ellicott City and Columbia.
Of course, I liked this Black Flag/Sapwood Cellars collaborative hazy pale ale. It was refreshing, soft and easy drinking. Well done, Black Flag and Sapwood Cellars!
Cheers!
Warren
Congrats to the terrific blog, Village Green/Town Squared, for being selected the Best of Howard blog by the Baltimore Sun. Also, thanks to my readers who voted for Warren’s Beer Adventures which gained an honorable mention.
Cheers!
Warren