The Flatlanders Go to Vermont !

What a way to break in the spring. Neil and I needed a weekend away from my piles of never ending school work and his “work” around the condo building. I mentioned to Neil last week that we should get away, being a long weekend for both of us due to Patriots Day here in Massachusetts.

I really wanted to head to Portsmouth NH, being near the water and away from here sounded like a gem. Neil had mentioned heading to Vermont, he wanted to check out Brattleboro which is less than 2 hours away. So we started looking at places to stat, being last minute I was worried we would be stuck at a Days Inn, and sorry but those run of the mill hotel chains gross me out, maybe because I have worked in them myself and I know they are not as clean as most people would like. Neil found a cute Bed and Breakfast that she quickly sent me to the link. Forty Putney Road B&B was the place. This bed and breakfast was not your standard stuffy B&B. The home was on the old grounds for the Belmont Asylum/Retreat, the home of the president of the institution. It has the looks of a home rural France. The grounds even this early in the season are beautiful, the summer grounds are that of long term gardens and the “biggest” of Japanese Red Maple trees.

We also noticed that they offer something not founds in many other places, they have an intimate pub located in what looks to have been an office in the home. They have about 30 beers in bottle, a selection of wines and three beers on tap. They focus on local Vermont beers for the purity of buying and supporting local businesses. Tim and Amy Brady as I connected the two later are the power “Beer-Geek” couple behind Here for the Beer.com . The website has in-depth interviews and their combined knowledge of all things beer. I was now excited about spending Saturday here, the opportunity to meet and learn from other beer people. I know a lot about beer but I far from know everything, I have never attempted to homebrew so my knowledge is more geared towards the end result.

Saturday morning we packed up the car and headed north. Since we could not check-in until 4pm we figured we could hit up some breweries and brew pubs. Saturday ended up being just that a day of drinking, I drank more beers than one should drink during the day. We pulled into Harpoon’s Windsor, VT location around 11am, yes 11am. The tour time for this location is 3pm each day, so you are able to go to the viewing location, have a look around. They were brewing a wheat based beer so the air smelled of warm wheat, enjoyable. We had a look around the shop and decided to sit and have a bite to eat. Yes we ate lunch and drank beer at 11am. I had the Leviathan Quad which is a Belgium ABV 11.75%, the malty full body taste was a great wake me up; I had to purchase a four pack to take with me. Neil tried the Crystal Wheat, a great summer beer, light, drinkable and with a lemon aftertaste. When we were leaving there we grabbed one of the “Drink Vermont Beer” cards which you have each brewery/brew pub stamp when you go there. Outside the pub is this “art” project called the “Path of Life” garden. It starts from birth to death with reflection and ambition located between the two. I am not sure how to explain it but the hemlock maze was fun.

We decided the Norwich Inn was not that long of a drive so why not head there and try some more beer. Adjunct to the Norwich Inn is the pub what serves Jasper Murdock’s Alehouse Beers. Neil tried the IPA and I had the Stout, good beer but I was not blown away, pretty standard as far as taste and impression.

We headed “down the road”, which I have come to see as a Vermonter’s term for 50 miles away to Bridgewater Corners on Route 4 to Long Trail Brewing Company. Thank god for Brewmasters special beers because I tend to find the normal Long Trail beer line up to be pretty basic, as in your standard amber colored ales and golden IPA’s. Both Neil and I ordered the Coffee Stout, which was enjoyable, at this point I had drank about 1200 calories in beer alone, feeling a tad bloated with heavy stouts and high alcohol contented Quads. We each got a “souvenir” and hit the road.

Rolling into Brattleboro around 5pm, we head to check-in at the Inn. Knowing that 5:30pm was the Beer Tasting, where 8 beers were sampled, some basic brewing educating and exploration of beers that even I wouldn’t normally sample. We had booked one of the rooms in the Carriage House, so we got ready for the tasting and headed into the main house. The tasting was 15/per person or $30/per couple and I believe it was a huge hit. There were 4 other couples with Neil and I talking and learning about different beers. Tim (co-owner) of the inn has extensive knowledge of beers and easily moves into some fantastic stories about beer experiences. A couple of us stayed long after the tasting had ended talking with Tim about beers and trying others.

The breakfast that was prepared this morning was fantastic, a cheddar soufflé and Apple Cinnamon Pancakes with Coffee and Blueberry juice. Amy is a fantastic cook and the passion to present the foods in such a wonderful way.

We headed out after exchanging some information with another young couple that was interested in looking at the lofts. The great thing is both Amy and Tim are young innkeepers it is a nice change from the B&B’s I have stayed in over the years. The talented couple that together runs the most perfect of inns I have been too. We headed into town and checked out a couple stores, I love the “small-town” feel while still having all the amenities that are needed. The Brattleboro Food Co-Op’s size is much to admire. I bought a Keen bag at Sam’s Outdoor Outfitters half price and we perused through the many small independent book stores. Only in Vermont can these small independent owned stores thrive, while in places like Massachusetts we kill all that is local, Vermont encourages more local business. A quick trip to the Grafton Village Cheese Company to buy some Taylor Farm Cheese, a much raved Maple Smoked Gouda, I have already had some and it is wonderful.

On the way home we made a detour to Northampton to have a bite to eat at Northampton Brewery. The food took forever but the beer was good, it is about my 6^th or 7^th time going there and I have never waited for food so long. Bummed around Faces and then headed home.

Overall drank a lot of beer and had good conversation. I need more of these weekends.

P.S We sent to this silly antique store and they had this doll, I had her when I was around 7 years old, along with her robot dog and her buffing bed…