Beer Travel: Rochester, New York

This post comes from Matt, the Beer Baron. Follow him at @geekcanuck

We were recently planning  a weekend getaway and mulling over our go-to list of favourite cities in driving distance, including Lexington, Chicago, Montreal, Detroit and Toronto. However, we’d recently been to most of them and were itching for a new adventure, so the Clockwatching Tart had the bright idea to visit the Finger Lakes region of New York state, specifically Rochester.

It didn’t take much online research for me to realize that Rochester has a very good craft beer scene and where there is craft beer, there is good food (as well as bearded dudes, pun-named beers, and sparsely decorated concrete tap rooms with friendly vibes). Just like that, we were off to Rochester!

The drive from London, Ontario to Rochester, New York is really only about three-and-a-half hours but with the border crossing, it was more like four hours -- which meant we were ready for lunch! Our first stop on the way in was the Rohrbach Brewing Co. Buffalo Road Brewpub.

The atmosphere inside was a bit of a throwback - less the aforementioned concrete tap room and more the wood-paneled, dimly lit and comforting bar you might remember from decades past. The service was friendly and the portion sizes were more than generous.

I tried their Space Kitty Citra Double IPA and found it a little underwhelming. The most interesting beer I tried at Rohrbach was definitely their Rainbow Street IPA, which was meant to evoke rainbow sorbet through the use of milk sugar, raspberry puree, lime concentrate as well as tangerine and vanilla extracts. There was a lot going on and it was only lightly carbonated but the raspberry and lime came through clearly and it was a nice way to start our adventures in Rochester.
Final score: 2.5/5

Our next stop was AJ’s Beer Warehouse, which was the mostly highly rated local bottle shop on ratebeer.com - and for good reason. The shop itself was spacious, which isn’t as common as you might expect - some stores make you feel like you are going to knock something over any time you turn around. The staff also took the time to show me around and point out a lot of the most popular options from local breweries, which was a nice touch. They also had a very good craft cider selection, much to the delight of the Clockwatching Tart.

I focused on choosing mostly local beer from New York State, which also meant I was able to stick to my guns and not buy any Founders KBS. While KBS (and especially CBS) stouts are lovely, there is enough great beer in the world not to have to buy beer from companies who might not treat their employees particularly well. Of interesting note to Ontario beer nerds, there was a really prominent display of Collective Arts gose with guava, which was further proof of their goal to expand into the U.S. market.

I was more than happy with the little collection of local cans we left with. The only exception to the local can rule was a bottle of B.O.R.I.S. the Crusher, an absolutely wonderful oatmeal imperial stout from Hoppin’ Frog in Akron, Ohio that I discovered back during our early trips to Chicago. Final score: 4/5

After we checked into our hotel (the Hilton Garden Inn, which we chose for its pool and downtown location, but also had inexpensive parking and brightly lit hallways thanks to a large atrium), we walked to Fifth Frame Brewing Co., which immediately made us feel at home. It is the type of taproom you’ve encountered countless times if you visit many newer craft breweries. You feel relaxed but also excited at the possibility of finding just the right thing from the draft list. Thankfully, Fifth Frame didn’t disappoint in that regard. There was cider for the Clockwatching Tart and I had Bounce House, a triple-fruited gose with guava, mango and pineapple that was just wonderfully aromatic and alluring.

I followed that up with Pull Out Couch, a petite pastry stout with cocoa nibs and coffee that was really nicely balanced with lots of coffee up front. The coffee aspect was an important part of Fifth Frame, as they have lovely coffee bar and breakfast menu that tempted us to go back for breakfast (and cans of Bounce House to take home with us) the morning after. My only tiny complaint about Fifth Frame was that I couldn’t really figure out what their evening food menu was without looking at their website but overall it was fantastic.
Final score: 4.5/5

Dinner was proof of why the Clockwatching Tart and I travel so well together. She loves to map out places on Google Maps and make spreadsheets and itineraries; I just tend to just check out Ratebeer and be more spontaneous about things - but you definitely need both mentalities to have success. In this case, I think I just Googled “unique dining Rochester” and stumbled upon Nosh. A quick Lyft ride later, we were seated and had (very good) cocktails on the way.

I don’t normally show photos of myself in these posts, but this one is fitting as I feel the dish is absolutely perfect. As you might remember, I’ve become an absolute nut for sushi-grade tuna and especially poke bowls so it should come as no surprise that I ordered the Ahi Noshos, which were a take on nachos using wontons instead of tortillas and covered with ahi tuna, cucumber daikon, salsa, seaweed and tobiko (fish eggs). It was only $14 and it seems to me that it should be on every menu in North America (albeit in smaller portion sizes) in the coming years.
Final score: 4/5

A few years back, we discovered our first retro arcade / craft beer bar in Lexington, Kentucky and ever since then, I look for them whenever we travel. Thankfully, Rochester once again came through, this time with The Playhouse. There was a combination of older fare like Frogger and Donkey Kong and more modern titles. The place was swarming with kids but made up for it by having Caffe Americano, a double stout with coffee and vanilla from Cigar City Brewing, on tap.

We ended up spending most of our time at a sit-down racing game before retiring back to the hotel for a well-deserved swim.
Final score: 3/5

Before leaving Rochester, there was one last place I wanted to check out, the Genesee Brew House, which was equal parts museum, restaurant, pilot brewery, and tasting room. While not exactly a craft brewery, it was still an incredibly fun place to visit. We learned about the history of brewing in Rochester and checked out all the artwork on their cans and bottles over the years.

We also had a flight at the tasting room where we discovered something the locals clearly already knew: that the Genesee Ruby Red Kölsch is absolutely wonderful. The ruby red grapefruit was fresh and strong on the nose and the beer itself was just really light and balanced and approachable, earning it’s “beer of summer” moniker. They had only recently released it and we’d seen people with the little, yellow cans around town, but this was our first chance to grab some for ourselves.

The cans were sold out, but the next best thing was amazing deal on a filled growler along with two pint glasses for only $20, which I happily said yes to.

The Brew House itself is located right on the Genesee River and its High Falls, which made the stop all the more worthwhile.
Final score: 4/5

To cap off our trip, we were in a Wegman’s picking up a few things for friends and I stumbled upon 12-packs of the highly sought-after Ruby Red Kölsch. Given its close proximity to home, ease of getting around the city, emerging craft beer scene, good food, and location at the heart of the Finger Lakes region (spoiler alert: nearby Geneva, New York is adorable and awesome too), Rochester has now been added to my list of go-to cities.
Final score: 5/5  

  

  

The Beer Baron - Get It While You Can: Oskar Blues Ten FIDY

Do you like stout? Do you like things that are awesome? If so, please stop reading this and head over to the LCBO website to check to see if there is any Oskar Blues Ten FIDY left at a store close to you. Yes, it is just a little can. And yes, it is $4.85 for that little can -- but it won’t be around for long and you’ve probably had coffees that cost that much.

Now that I’ve said the important part and assuaged any guilt I might feel if you don’t get any Ten FIDY, let’s move on with some context: Ten FIDY is a Russian Imperial Stout (which I’ve lovingly written about in the past) from Oskar Blues Brewery in Colorado. It has a near-perfect score of 100 overall / 98 style on Ratebeer. It was among the first really epic craft beers to be available in a can. And before now, it has never been available in Ontario.

So, what’s it like?

It’s the Chewbacca of beers, that’s what. 

It is strong (10.5% abv), powerful but friendly, dark, wonderful, aromatic and it comes out of a grey metal object -- like the Millennium Falcon -- that some people might underestimate at their own peril. Also, if you have too much of it, I have to assume it would rip your arms off.

Geekery aside, we are lucky to have Ten FIDY at the LCBO. It has a viscous pour like engine oil, a beautiful dark brown head, aromas of roasted malts, vanilla and toffee, a deliciously sticky smooth mouthfeel, and tastes of bitter chocolate, dark roast coffee and molasses that would embarrass any $4.85 drink from Starbucks.

So, a high five to Oskar Blues for sending their delicious Ten FIDY up to Ontario. Get it while you can (that’s a pun because it comes in a can) because it won’t last long.

This post comes from Matt, the Beer Baron and you can find him on Twitter & Instagram @geekcanuck

Road Trip - Grand Rapids

Back in 2012 we visited Grand Rapids, Michigan for the first time and we loved it!  At the time it was the #1 beer city in the USA.  Since it is less than 4 hours from home, we had to check it out.

This summer, circumstances conspired to get us back there again.  We wanted to see Dolly Parton on tour but the dates close to home were on weeknights meaning booking a day off work so we could stay overnight rather than drive 2 hours home after a concert.  But she was playing Grand Rapids on a Saturday night, so we could make a mini-vacation out of it! 

Some things have changed a lot since we were last in Grand Rapids.  It's still a beautiful, clean, vibrant city, but there are so many new breweries, bars and restaurants.  The hotel we stayed in had only been open for two weeks!  We visited lots of new places and some old favourites from our last trip.  Here are the highlights:

We stayed at the brand-new Homewood Suites downtown.  The hotel is nice and the location is fabulous.  All the rooms have a full kitchen.  The building is a converted furniture warehouse and has some odd features, like interior windows that face into empty hallways, and a second-floor lobby that can be hard to find from the street.  But we really enjoyed the room and location.  We could walk anywhere downtown easily. 

But the first thing we did after checking in was hop in the car and head to Siciliano's Market for local craft beer and cider for our hotel room fridge.  Then it was off to Greyline Brewing Co. for our first drinks of the day.  

The Beer Baron - Bonne Bière et Cidre en Montreal!

This post comes from Matt, the Beer Baron. Find him on Twitter & Instagram @geekcanuck

Amazingly, the Clockwatching Tart and I had never been to Montreal together and I hadn’t been to the city myself since the Unity Rally on October 27, 1995. My absence came down to matters of the heart, as I was heartbroken over the departure of the Montreal Expos while also becoming smitten with Chicago and Lexington, both of which are more or less equidistant to Montreal. So, with an open mind, an empty stomach and a deep thirst, it was time to revisit Montreal.

Since it was easily accessible right off the highway, our very first stop was the Terrasse St-Ambroise, a brand new and absolutely beautiful patio bar. Although many St. Ambroise beers are ubiquitous in Ontario (including their wonderful Oatmeal Stout), I was able to try a lovely Double IPA that was a perfect start to our trip.

Road Trip - Montréal

Last week we celebrated my 40th birthday in Montreal!  We wanted to go somewhere fun and, surprisingly, have never been to Montreal together, and neither of us has been since we were teenagers. 

Montreal is about a 7 hour drive from home. On the way, we stopped to visit family for a couple of nights in Eastern Ontario, then headed into the city.  

I'll let Matt, the Beer Baron, talk about all the beer he tried in an upcoming post, but one of our first stops was Atwater Market to check out the beer and cider selection at the Fromagerie.  We collected several selections to enjoy in our hotel room.

We chose the Delta Montreal as our hotel and it was great. The Jazz Fest was on while we were there and it was right next door. It was an easy walk to Old Montreal and shopping downtown. 

Southern USA Road Trip - Lexington, Kentucky

We spent the first night of our road trip in Lexington, Kentucky.  Normally when I plan our trips I verge on over planning.  I research hotels and restaurants and make spreadsheets of the best locations and an itinerary of things to see each day.  We can be flexible, but it's nice to have an outline so we don't miss anything we really want to see. 

But on this road trip we wanted to be a little more spontaneous.  We hoped to make it all the way to Lexington on our first day, about a 7-hour drive and we'd read we could get a hotel easily enough without a reservation so we played it by ear. Unfortunately we don't follow horse racing.  Little did we know, two of the biggest horse events of the year were happening in Kentucky the two days we would be travelling through.  In Lexington, it was the Rolex, Kentucky and the city was almost booked to capacity.  A week later we hadn't learned our lesson and had to skip Louisville because it was Kentucky Derby weekend.  So we've learned to check the calendar for horse events when visiting Kentucky in the future.  

But we managed to find a room for the night, and Lexington was good to us.  Everything came together almost magically without planning.  We used the Rate Beer Places app to find a bar with craft beer that was open nearby.  When we arrived we saw a taco truck in front of another bar across the street.  So we went over and ordered some tacos.  

We were shocked and delighted when the taco guy asked whether which bar we wanted our tacos delivered to.  He said he'd bring them to us across the street!  It was a nice change from our home town where they've just voted not to allow food trucks on city streets at all.