Have you ever wished you could choose your own size of a beer poured at a taproom? Maybe you don’t want a full pint, but you also don’t want just a sample. I recently visited a new place called Grace in Growlers in Kailua, on the east side of Oahu, that lets you do just…
Author: amyotravel
Ponderosa’s renaissance man takes the brewing reins
Ponderosa Brewing is about to celebrate their second anniversary with a party on Saturday. The festivities include a special release, a 2014 barley wine that has been aging for 18 months. The impressive, or at least unique, fact is that beer was made four brewers ago. Ponderosa has seen a lot of change in two…
Gaining a fresh perspective at year one of a new beer fest
Beer festival “season” is in full swing, and it is easy to get overwhelmed and suffer from fest overload. And yet, Albuquerque welcomed another festival to the late summer/fall lineup back on Saturday. The new Alibi on Tap at the Albuquerque Rail Yards featured some new breweries in attendance, so I really didn’t want to…
ABQ adds more options for local pizza and craft beer
On the way to meet some friends at Left Turn Distilling/Palmer Brewery and Cider House (by the way, their newly remodeled tasting room is fabulous!), I stopped in just to get a couple of pictures of Eclectic Urban Pizzeria and Tap House. This new establishment’s proprietors are the original owners of Torinos’ @ Home, so…
Hopfest 2016: The first fest of the season keeps it fresh
Newcomers and summery, fresh-tasting, hoppy beers helped to keep interest alive for the ninth annual Albuquerque Hopfest. Each year the crowds get larger, and each year I wonder how in the world Marne Gaston puts on such a large production. But, she does, flawlessly, and I am in complete awe of her. I would be…
A chronicle of summer beer adventures — Quick trips from ABQ for new brews
July was just crazy hot. In Albuquerque, and all over the Southwest. I must have been out of my mind to continue the summer road tripping. I love Las Vegas. I mean, I really must, because I go there two to three times a year. But, sometimes it’s nice to feel less “Vegas-y” when you…
A chronicle of summer beer adventures — Beating the heat in Phoenix
The kids are back in school, and the heat is finally starting to break a little. Just like when you were a kid and had to write an essay at the beginning of the year about the past summer, I recently took time to reflect upon the summer of ‘16. Since I have some big…
Old cars and new beer: Checking out the new brewery in Grants
I will admit I was way too curious. When I found out a new brewery would be opening at an actual junkyard in Grants the same weekend friends and I would be driving back through there from Vegas, I had to stop by and see the place for myself. First off, it is really hard…
Alien Brew Pub expands their (beer) universe
This week, I had the pleasure of briefly speaking with Ben Couger and John Gonzales at Alien Brew Pub to get an update on their small batch program. I am really glad I stopped by, because there is exciting news. John tells me that ABP will be starting a Firkin Friday (hopefully beginning next week,…
ABQ Beer Week Recaps: Beer Premier brings in sophisticated crowd
Friday night’s New Mexico Brewers Guild Beer Premier and Matanza was a unique event and it was my first time attending this festival. It turned out to be my favorite event of Beer Week. As is the case with any event, there were some bumps in the road, but overall it was fantastic. All the…
DARK SIDE BREW CREW 