A None Beer related post.....

This past weekend, a friend of mine, Brad and I decided to take a day, and head deep into the Bradshaw Mountains in Central Arizona, and search for a number of “ghost towns” reported to be in the area.

After consulting a number of websites, I put together a route that I thought worked well for us, sites that we could reach in a normal, 2WD truck.

I learned later that day, these websites, are not always all that reliable when it comes to conveying information as to the location of the various sites we were looking for.

All we could find of Gillette

Our first stop was an old stage stop by the name of Gillette. A town founded in 1878. The town was originally started as the milling town for the nearby Tip Top mine, about 7 miles up the mountains from the site. It later served as a stage stop for the Prescott to Phoenix Stage Line. A fairly typical “old west town”, with several gunfights, murders and lynching taking place in the towns short history. The Earp brothers we said to have stopped here, and spent the night on their way to Tombstone.

Not much remains of the town site, even though, at its peak, a few thousand people called Gillette home. We were not successful in finding the ruins of the old Burfind Hotel, which is really the only remaining recognizable structure. Later I learned we were only about a quarter mile from that site. We did find remains of a bridge, as well as countless bricks, and timber. Hard to believe just 100 years ago, we would have been standing in a fairly sizable town.

Not having a lot of success finding Gillette, we thought we would head north, a few miles up I-17. We got off the freeway on the Horsethief Basin Rec site exit, and made our way towards Crown King. According to the website, there are several sites of interest along the way. First off, just 5 miles off the freeway, was Bumble Bee. Not what I was expecting in a “ghost town” I must admit. All the buildings we could see from the road, except for one, appeared to still be lived in. However, Bumble Creek just south of the town site was a beautiful example of a riparian environment. Lots of green!

Cleator Saloon

The next site, about 10 miles past Bumble Bee, was the “ghost town” of Cleator. Again, most of the buildings appeared to be lived in. However, there was a lot of evidence of long since abandoned mining operations. Old trucks, mine cart etc were scattered about the area. The highlight of Cleator however, was the saloon. A still operational saloon makes up the towns only noticeable business. A very authentic, somewhat run down building that you rarely see in Arizona. The building still maintained it connection with the old mining towns. We couldn’t see any evidence of any renovations to the saloon. The lady behind the bar was more the friendly, as were the 3 or 4 dogs roaming at will around (in and out) the property. Still being 10am, and not sure where the day would take us, we elected to forgo a beer (however tempting it was) and make our up into the mountains.
What followed was a about an 8 mile stretch of road that made its way up 3000+ feet of elevation, starting in the desert, and climaxing in the high pines of Crown King, some 6000 feet above sea level. An amazing drive, and the road is good enough for just about any car to make it up (we even pasted a Mustang on our way down).

Again the “ghost town” of Crown King was not at all what I expected. At this point, I was beginning to question as to weather or not I understood the definition of a ghost town. There was nothing ghostly about Crown King at all. In fact, quite the opposite. We actually a hard time finding a place to park. We finally squeezed into a spot, between a large pick up, and several ATV’s (ATV’s appeared to be the preferred mode of transport up here) and made out way up the road to the Crown King saloon.

Bar at the Crown King Saloon

This was one of those places you immediately feel comfortable in as soon as you step in. Although it was obviously full of “locals”, it was a very unthreatening, even welcoming atmosphere in here. We easily found a spot at the bar, and ordered Crown King Ale (made by Redhook, and a pretty decent beer I must say). This was one of the most enjoyable beers I’ve had. I was sitting 6000+ up, in a historic town, at a bar that was over 100+ years old! Turned out, the very bar we were sitting at was moved from the old milling town of Oro Belle in 1910, after the mill closed. This struck me, as Oro Belle was next on our list of stops. We enjoyed listening the casual, slightly intoxicated banter of the locals (and it was just barely noon!) for a time, while we enjoyed our beers, and explored the many historic artifacts hanging on or around the bar. After a few minutes, we settled up, and explored more of Crown King for a few minutes, then made our way south/west out of town, toward the aforementioned Oro Belle, some 4 miles away.



Road to Oro Belle



Oro Belle ruin



After a few wrong turns (one that turned out to be down an old fella’s mining claim, and he did not look happy to see us) we finally found Oro Belle Rd (Fire Road 191) and made out way, carefully down the hill. After some time, the road leveled out and cut across the side of a hill (almost a cliff). The road got increasingly more narrow to the point where we were getting worried we wouldn’t be able to find a place to turn around. After some exploration, we found a turn around, and decided we should do just that, since the road was getting worse and worse, and more and more narrow. As we were turning the truck around, I spotted some ruins just a little ways down the hill, so we parked, and made our way to some real ruins finally! They appeared to be a residence, albeit a good size one. The house looked down onto the old site of the long since vanished town site in the valley below. After enjoying a Bells Oberon and cigar at the site of the ruin, we made our way back.

Bumble Bee Creek

We tried heading back through Prescott but found the road to be a little too much for our truck to handle, so we made our way back through Crown King, back down the hill. Passing the now familiar sites of Cleator, and Bumble Bee. We did stop at Bumble Bee Creek, so named because the earlier settlers said Indians in this area were “as thick as bumble bee’s”. We spent some time at the creek bed, taking pictures and enjoying the company of a few cows roaming the area. What a gorgeous place for some camping we both decided! This strip of lush, greenery in the otherwise reddish brown desert is more then a welcoming site, and made a very peaceful end to our trip

Although I was a little disappointed that the “ghost towns’ we were seeking out turned out to be little more then authentic, historic sort of tourist trap, it was still a very rewarding trip. We found a few local watering holes that you only find a few times in a life time. These places are honest, genuine and comfortable, and well worth a day trip to experience not only their hospitality and warmth, but also the fairly recent history this region has to offer. Although the highlight of the activity in this area was little more then 100 years ago, it seems like ancient history, and hard to imagine my grandparents were alive while men still struggled with this harsh environment with little more then a mule, and pick ax.
If you have a day, and are looking for something to do, I suggest you head north, and take a drive up to Crown King. Bring you camera, a good pair of walking shoes, and leave your cell phone at home, and for a few hours, enjoy a small slice this great state has to offer, yet so little have get the privilege to experience.

Current Favorites...

Every now and then, you try a new you know from pretty much the first sip, that it is something special. This very thing happened to me last weekend when my lovely wife brought home a new beer for me to try. Sierra Nevada released a beer to commemorate their 30th Anniversary. Right off the bat, I figured it would be good, as SN is one of my favorite breweries, and I have a tremendous respect for what they do. Then I read the label First of all, it’s an Imperial Stout, one of my favorite styles. Then I see it’s collaboration with Fritz Maytag of Anchor Brewing out of San Francisco, whom many agree is the god father of the craft beer movement, and one of the most respected brewers in the country.

So, we opened it, and poured our selves a couple of glasses. It was almost pitch black, with a tan, kaki, fluffy head. It smelled of chocolate, little roasted coffee and hops.

From the first sip, this beer went directly to one of my top 5 favorites! It has a slight roasted coffee/espresso bean flavor, with a hint of chocolate and caramel roasted malt. A smooth beer, and easy to drink for its 9.3% abv. I immediately told my wife that I am going to get a few more bottles of this to store away, and that I hope the decided to put some of this in some barrels for aging, because this beer, after an 8 month to a year stint in a barrel, would be truly incredible.

I really feel like this beer is what can (and should) happen when true artists come together to produce something that is extremely special. My already great respect for both of these brewers only grew with each sip of this amazing beverage. I am going to have to stock up on this one, as I am not sure how long it will be available, but if you see it, buy it, even if you don't want it, I'll take it off your hands for you!

Barrel Aged Beers.

It really hasn’t been around all that long. In fact, it really just started to be in fashion since the mid 90’s, but hasn’t really taken off until the last 5 years or so. I’m talking about barrel aged, or “oak” aged beers.

Much like wine, some beers just get better with age. Normally, these beers are higher in abv, and quite strong (flavored) to begin with, something that is normally exaggerated with some time in a barrel.

Beers are normally aged in used bourbon or port barrels. Adding to their complex flavor profiles.

Over the last year, I’ve been lucky enough to try a number of these beers. Including Acadia’s Ship Wreck Porter, Great Divides Yeti’s Espresso Stout, Allagash’s Vagabond, Stone's Oaked Arrogant Bastard,  Deshutes Abyssand XXI Black Butte Porter, and so far, my favorite has been New Holland’s Dragons Milk. These are fast becoming some of my favorite beers!

What excites me about these beers, is their complexity, and range of flavors. As you would expect, there is a almost always a hint of oaky wood (in Dogfish Heads Palo Santo, the wood flavor is a very green wood flavor, almost cedar like), some port notes,  to sour apple/plum (in the case of Vagabond). They almost all have that warming, numbing effect in the mouth, (which I just love) due to the normally high abv (11% or higher in some cases). This also makes them a good after diiner beer, and a great beer for a chilly winters night (which is why I think I love Dragons Milk so much, I had it sitting by the fire in the cadin in northern Arizona).

I recommend seeking out and trying these beers to anyone that is serious about beer. They aren’t for beginners, as they are normally quite strong, and can be a little (or very) heavy. They are, however, quite balanced, and again, very complex.

If you like a more full flavored, complex profile, these are the beers for you. If you have tried a good aged beer, I would love to hear about it.

Allagash Vagabond!!!!

Just a few days after I wrote about beers that are hard to find, and the thrill of hunting them down, I struck gold!!! Allagash Brewing just this morning released a beer that has been aging for 4 years in Oak Barrels! Very limited release, only 500 bottles! You could only get it at the brewery, and limited to 2 bottles per person. Well, being in Arizona, I am about 2000 miles away from the Brewery in Maine. So, as luck would have it, my brother and sister in law live in Maine, not far from there. My sister in law went over this morning, and got THE LAST TWO BOTTLES!!!! It went on sale at 9am, and she got the last 2 bottles at 11:05. Damn did I luck out! I can pretty much rest assured I will have the only 2 bottles in the state of Arizona.

I should be getting this treasure in the next week or so, and rest assured, I will be writing about it! Probably more then once! Check back for details!

Learn more about Allagash Brewing at http://www.allagash.com

Battle of the Arizona Beers!

This past weekend, we (my wife, daughter and I) attended a “Battle of the Arizona Beers” at the Whole Foods Market in Chandler, Az.

This was a small gathering of breweries from through out Arizona, coming together with a sample of their different (hopefully best) beers, and allowing the public to “vote” on which one was their favorite via a secret ballot.

There was a total of 7 Brewery’s attending. BJ’s Brewery and San Tan Brewery, both from Chandler. Four Peaks out Tempe. Old World Brewery and Sonoran Brewery both from Phoenix. Prescott Valley Brewing from Prescott, and Nimbus Brewing, making the drive up from Tucson.

Each brewery had between 3 and 5 beers each to sample. I have to admit, that Arizona is getting better when it comes to beer. I had a good number of beers I would consider good. There was only one I didn’t care for, and that was The Old World Wit, but not because it was a bed beer, I just don’t care too much for Wits. Although, it’s a pretty typical example of the style

I did have a couple of beers I LOVED. They were both from Four Peaks One of my all time favorite “hop bombs” is their Hop Knot. A very citrus, pine flavored glass of hop juice! Not a lot of malt, just ALL HOPS! One any hop head would enjoy. By far, the BEST beer I have all afternoon was their Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout, called Sirius Black. A dark, almost black, rich, heavy, high abv beer, that after just a 2 oz sample, I felt warm after! Probably the best beer I tasted out of Arizona. My far and away #1 vote. Followed by Hop Knot at #2.

My #3 was an odd choice. It was Cordillera Blanca from Sonoran Brewing. It means White Chocolate, and that is JUST what this beer tasted like. It tasted like liquid, carbonated white chocolate. I have NO idea how they did it, but everything about this beer was white chocolate. Not the greatest beer I have ever had, in fact, I’m not even sure I could drink a whole 12 oz’s, but what a unique, but pleasurable surprised. I gave them my #3 for the sheer uniqueness of this brew.

All in all, I was pretty impressed with the beer that was on display. While we might have a ways to go to catch up with other states, like California, Michigan, or Oregon, Arizona has come a long way in a few short years, and it seems I keep hearing about more brewery’s opening up. Who knows, in a 10 more years, we may just be up there with those states. Every year it gets better and better, and I am excited to see what the next few years have in store.

The Thill of the Hunt!!

After weeks of dragging the baby into Whole Foods, or calling liquor stores, stopping by Total Wine on the way home from work, I finally found it!


Over the last year, Stone Brewing (one of my favorite brewers) has been releasing one time run collaborations with different brewing companies. These beers are run in one fairly small batch, making them fairly hard to find. I had not had one at all, but then I heard about the most recent one, I made it a point to get one.
It was collaboration with Maui Brewing, and Hawaii home brewer Ken Schmidt. It is a Kona Coffee, Macadamia Nut, Coconut Porter. Coffee, and Porter, 2 of my favorite things, and I LOVE coconut, so I figured I had to get one of these.
It was released the middle of Sept. The day it was, I was at Whole Foods, talking to the beer buyer, whom had never heard of it and not sure if, they would be getting it. I stopped at Bevmo, AJ’s, Cost Plus, and Total Wine, none of which had heard about it yet. I started calling Sun Devil Liquors, Topps Liquors, no luck. After a week, I started getting discouraged. I ended up talking to a person at Whole Foods that stated she didn’t even think they would be getting it!
Another week or two went by, and I basically gave up. Yesterday, for what ever reason, after picking up my 8 year old daughter, we were driving to pick up my baby daughter, and we drove past Whole Foods, and I decided to swing in and grab a case of Bigfoot for the up coming camping weekend. Well, they didn’t have any more Bigfoot, and am I glad they didn’t. I went down to the Stone section, and low and behold, there it was!

I grabbed 3 12 oz bottles ($6.99 a piece!)

I was going to save them for a special occasion, but last night, I could wait, I poured one, and sat back, ready to enjoy.

It was VERY dark. Had a slight coconut, toasted coffee aroma. I was excited!!! I took one sip, and was a little disappointed. Not as much flavor as I would have figured. Then I realized that it was VERY cold. So I decided to let it sit for a few minutes, and let it warm. Boy, am I glad I did!! Totally different beer after a little warming. Very complex! Not a lot of coconut flavor, but a pretty strong macadamia suggestion. Mostly coffee however. Not like brewed coffee, but more like a taste of a roasted espresso bean flavor. A very rich, full flavor. Very complex. It finishes with another hint of coconut, and a sort of chocolate covered macadamia nut.

This is the first beer I ever “set out” to buy. Most of the time, when I find something in limited release, I sort of happen upon it. This is the first time I ever made a point to get something hard to find.

Honestly, this may not have been the greatest beer in the world, but the quest I went through to find it, I think really added to my enjoyment of it. The “thrill of the hunt” so to speak. It was a lot of fun, and I plan on keeping an ear out for something else to try and hunt down. When I do, I’ll be sure and write about it!

Learn more about Stone at http://www.stonebrew.com/

Seasonal Brews..

My favorite season for beer is coming up! Some of my favorite styles are coming up! I really like the fall/harvest beers. I love pumpkin ales (as long as the pumpkin is quite faint, and subtle. Fall is followed by all the Christmas/winter ales, which are among my all time favorites. What seasonal brews would I recommend? Glad you asked.

For fall, there are some really good brews. Sierra Nevada normally releases their anniversary ale around fall. Always something nice to look forward too. Normally a pretty hoppy/ IPA style brew (surprising coming from SN, I know). Dogfish Head offers up great pumpkin ale called ‘Punkin Ale’. It has more spice in it then pumpkin, but a nice, refreshing fall beer.

Winter Warmers are just great! Some good ones to look out for. Get the Sam Adams Christmas 12 pack, and in it, you will find Old Fuzziwig. A very smooth, drinkable Winter Warmer. Deschutes Brewing does Jubalale, another great one. And as always, look out for Anchor Brewings “Our Special Ale” which is one I always look for, and set a few aside, because it callers really well!

After Christmas, most breweries will release their Barelywine’s. My highest rated style. I love them. Great balance of malt and hops, and high ABV to keep you warm on those chilly winter nights (we don’t have a lot of them in Arizona!). My favorite? Sierra Nevada’s Bigfoot is just a great beer, and one of my all time favorites. Stone’s Old Guardian is always a good one to try. As is Anchor’s Old Foghorn. Great Divide’s Old Ruffin is a great example of the style.

Barelywines caller very well too. I have a number of them set aside, including Alaskan’s Barelywine, Avery’s Hog Heaven, and Moylan’s Bareleywine. Can’t wait to break into those either!

A new favorite........

My favorite beers are always changing. There are however, always a few beers that are always in my 5. Three Philosophers, one of my all time favorites always, as is Sierra Nevada’s Bigfoot Barelywine (I have a 6 pack of 09 sitting in my cellar!). Stone's Ruination is always awesome. Devil Dancer by found, although I've only ever had one, is one of my all time favorites, and is the highest rating I've ever given a beer.

Lately, I've been drinking a lot of Dogfish Head brews. I've always liked the 60 minute, and really loved the 90 minutes, and always thought the Midas touch was interesting, and enjoyable. However, a while back, I attended a tasting a Whole Foods in Chandler, hosted by Sam Calagione, founder and owner of Dogfish Head. We tried the 60, and 90 and the Midas touch, which was fine with me, all beers I like. However, we also tried the India Brown, which as pretty good, and Rasion D-etra, which was awesome! I ended up bringing a 6 of it home. Since then, I've bought many more! I've since, tried Black and Blue, very good, and Theobrama, which is awesome.

However, a new beer in my top 5 has got to be Palo Santo Marron. It is a dark brown ale, brewed in 10,000 gallon brewing vessels (the largest made in N America since prohibition) made of palo santo (holy wood), gives the beer a smooth, vanilla, caramel mix that is almost breath taking. At 12% ABV it’s pretty strong, but almost goes unnoticed. It’s smooth, some what heavy, but still easy to drink.

Since that tasting, my respect (as well as my knowledge of) Dogfish Head has increased 10 fold. I think they are one of the most daring, experimental brewery's out there, unafraid to take chances, and extremely good at what they do. My hats off, and my glass of Palo Santo is raised to Sam and his crew at Dogfish Head!

Am I a Beer Snob??

One term I have really come to hate is "Beer Snob". I have been called one more then a few times. What is a beer snob? I've heard the term "wine snob" as well. What is a snob? According to an on line dictionary, a snob is defined as




"a person who believes himself or herself an expert or connoisseur in a given field and is condescending toward or disdainful of those who hold other opinions or have different tastes regarding this field"

Well, for one, I don't consider myself an expert, just a fan. While I do have knowledge of beer that most of the people I know don't have, I'm no expert. Also, I don't hold in disdain anyone that doesn't drink what I consider "Good Beer". A friend of mine and I were having a discussion a while back at a bar after a softball game. He asked me, after ordering a pretty decent craft beer they had on tape, in an un-chilled glass "why do you have to be such a beer snob?" I asked him what he meant by that, and his reply "you only drink those girly beers". Well, for one, the beer I was drinking had almost 3x's the amount of alcohol as the one he had, and was, by anyone’s definition, heavier then his. So, why is this considered "girly" for one, and why am I a snob for ordering something the bar offered anyway? He told me, he only drinks Coors Light. I have tried over 200 beers in the last 3 years, he only drinks Coors Light, but I am the snob? I've never understood this line of thinking. I have nothing against the big brewers, Anheuser Busch, Coors etc. I don't like their product, but they have their place in the beer world. If you offered me a Bud Light, I wouldn't take it. If you offered me a plate of broccoli, I wouldn't take that either. Does that make me a vegetable snob?

When to drink this.....???

I grew up in a small town in western Maine. Since moving out of this small town, one of the top rated beer bars in the country has moved in (the top rated beer bar according to Beeradvocate.com a few years back). Ebenezer's Pub is a small bar in Lovell, Maine. The have what is probably the best selection of Belgian Beers that can be found on this side of the Atlantic. Over 35 taps, and over 700 bottles to choose from.

They have a beer brewed especially for them, called Black Albert, brewed by De Struise Brouwers (rumor has it this beer will no longer be brewed?!).

My dad was recently back visiting Lovell with my brothers. He was kind enough to pick me up a bottle of Black Albert ($16 for a 12oz bottle). This beer is almost impossiable to get your hands on here in Arizona, and if they are going to stop making it, I am left with a delemia? When should I drink this beer???

I think it will be sometime soon, but want to wait for the best time. I will be reporting back when I do, to let you know how good the beer was.