Cannery Row Brewing Company and De Tierra Vineyards

Michael and I decided to have a little impromptu celebration of our year and half anniversary. We drove out to Carmel and Monterey for the day. We got massages from A Petite Retreat, which was soooo relaxing. While Michael was getting his I explored downtown Carmel (check out my previous post about Carmel). I received a free wine tasting coupon at De Tierra Vineyards Tasting Room from the massage, which I was more than happy to try.

When I got to the tasting room, they were technically not open yet, but let people who came by in anyways, which I thought was very nice. Anna runs the tasting room, she is very friendly and very knowledgeable. I tried the 2009 Monterey Syrah and the 2008 Montery Pinot Noir, both very nice.

She was extra nice and let me try the dessert wine, the 2006 Ekem Late Harvest Pinot Gris. I am not usually a big fan of dessert wines or liquors, but this was different. I overheard Anna say that sometimes they can be syrupy and that is exactly what I do not like. Why would you want a class of sugary goo after you just ate a delicious dinner? This wine, however, is just sweet enough and not syrupy at all. I bought a bottle :-) Although Michael is not a big wine fan, but I cannot imagine he will say no to some of this poured over ice cream.

Afterwards we headed over to Monterrey. We had lunch at El Torrito. It is just a standard chain Cal-Mex restaurant, good but nothing special. The reason we went is for the view! It hang out right over Monterrey Bay with tons a wildlife in plain sight. There were tons of gulls, adorable harbor seals just loafing on the rocks, a few sea lions went by, and I even as a manta ray jump!

The view from our seat by the window!

Afterwards we walked over to Cannery Row Brewing Company. I cannot find much information on the history of the brewing company itself, I will update this later if I get more information. I can assume they chose the name because they are located on Cannery Row. Cannery Row is located in the New Monterey Section of Monterey (New in the sense that is was not founded back in the early 1800s) right along the water front. From 1902-1973, the area was home to numerous sardine canneries. It was immortalized in John Steinbeck's novel Cannery Row. However, over-fishing caused a major collapse in supply and the business had to shut their doors. Today many of old cannery buildings have been refurbished into restaurant and shops, making the area a tourist attraction.

In side of of Cannery Row Brewing Company looks pretty much like a restored cannery. Bare wooden beams and metal fixture.

There is a prohibition theme throughout the place, which I thought was a nice twist. More seaport bars either do the nautical or tropical theme (as beautiful as Monterey is, it is far from tropical).

Since we already ate dinner, we just ordered fries to munch on. They were good, no complaints.

They have chalk boards on the walls by the bathroom. 

Now for the beers...

There are so many on tap, it is hard to chose! According to the website, there are 73 beers on tap plus several bottles. 

One side of the menu is just for beer!

We arrived during happy hour, so the Signature Beers were only $5. I got the Monterey Bay Brown Ale. The Brown Ale was excellent. A simple, well-made malty brown ale. Michael wants to make one exactly like it. At first I did not know how I felt a brewery that only makes three beers but when you make that quality of beer, it does not matter.

Then I had a hard time deciding what to get next, so I consulted the bartender. I did not catch her name, but she was awesome. Not only did she know how to pour beer of the tap correctly (a lost skill nowadays), but she knew everything on tap by heart. I told her I liked wheat beer, so she gave me a few fruit ones to try. They were nice, but not what I wanted. Then she pulled out a classic German wheat, Erdinger's Drunkel Weizen. I want to make a beer exactly like that one!

I ordered one more beer, knowing that Michael would probably finish it for me since I was pretty full.  I picked something we both would like. I asked the bartender for something oatmealy and chocolately, and she brought me a glass of Port Brewing Company's Board Room. It was exactly what I wanted. We both want to make a beer like this one.

We then walked around Cannery Row for a while and headed back to the Silicon Valley. It was nice to celebrate our love and have awesome beer.

Auburn Ale House

Just noticed Michael got in the picture...at least he's cute!

A few weeks ago Michael was a groomsman in his college friend's wedding in Lake Tahoe (check out the post on my other blog). We stopped had dinner with his sisters and brother-in-law since we would be passing by and have not seen them in awhile. For her birthday last year, we had brunch at awesome little place and wanted to go back again, the Auburn Ale House.

Auburn is small gold rush town about 40 minutes from Sacramento. Old Town has been restored, giving a nice Gold Rush era feel. We have only explore the brewery and a few shops, but plan on checking more of the historic places out soon (Michel promised me a Gold Country camping trip before the summer ends).

Auburn Ale House opened in 2007 in Old Town. The decor theme is mix between Gold Rush California and Nostalgic American. Interesting mix of Americana. It was founded by Brian and Lisa Ford, who hoped to create a family-friendly destination that would both standout culinary and compliment the history of the building. They wanted to go beyond the old standard of basic burgers and pizza---and trust me they did.

When we went last year for brunch, not much on the direct menu was vegan. However, they were more than happy to accommodate me. They made me sourdough toast with no butter, fresh fruit, and homefries with veggies. And not to mention the bottomless mimosas...

This time I ordered Barley Burger with no cheese or aioli. I love barley burgers and I hardly ever see them in restaurants, so I was very happy. Cooked perfectly and loved the sweet roasted red pepper on it.

Michael got the Alehouse Reuben, as usual whenever he sees it on the menu. He said it was great too.

Ok, now for the beer...

I got the American River Pale Ale First (and so did the brother-in-law). A classic IPA that smells very citrus-y. This will go well with almost anything. "Highly drinkable" as they describe it.

Michael got the Old Town Brown, I am not sure I agree with calling it a "Session Ale" as the website describes. It was slightly mild for brown ale, but not enough that the word "session" ever came to my mind. Loved the balanced malty chocolate flavor.

He started drinking it before I got a pic...

His sister got Gold Country Pilsner, she said it was good and very drinkable. I loved the straw color.

And, we grabbed a growler of American River as a present for the bride and groom, and one of Fool's Gold Ale for us. We bought a bottle of this last time and loved it. It reminds me of hoppy Oregon beers. Lovely rich gold color and pretty strong (7.8%) for a pale ale. Nothing not to love.

We LOVE this place. I love history of the area. The staff is very friendly (our waitress, without hesitation, brought a few samples so we could decided what to get in the growlers). The atmosphere and decor are warm and inviting (who doesn't love a pin-up girl their beer?). And the beers are amazing.  You HAVE to try this place. Take a trip out the Gold Country and have a delicious craft beer on the way, serious worth the trip.

Seabright Brewery

source

Last weekend Michael and I went for a bike ride long the coast in Santa Cruz. It was a lovely clear and sunny day, but VERY cold. Afterwards, my frozen bones were ready for some warm food and a tasty beer. Michael told me about Seabright Brewery before, having been there when he went to college at UC Santa Cruz. So, we stopped in for dinner after our ride.

The place is an eclectic mix of college kids, old guys chatting at the bar, sportsfans, hippies, and surfers--- like the general population of Santa Cruz. I cannot find much about the history of the brewery, nor can I find an email address to contact anyone for more information. I will update this post later when I get more information. The website states that it features regular and seasonal beers. There is Neighborhood Night on Tuesdays (Michael says it is awesome) and live Music on Fridays.

Loved the veggie patty!

I got the Hawaiian Five-O Burger with no cheese and a vegan vegetable patty. The patty had real chunks of veggies, which was a nice change from a plain Garden Burger.  The pineapple was juicy and sweet. And it was not smothered in teriyaki sauce like most restaurants do, just enough to taste. No complaints! 

mmmm, garlic fries!

Michael got the Buffalo Chicken Sandwich, he had no complaints either so I assume it was good too! We both had garlic fries, which were very good. 

Ok, the beer...

Since were meeting some friends and knew we will come back, we decided to get full glasses rather than a sampler. 

An unholy ale and a smooth stout.

I started with the Sacrillicious Ale. The menu describes this beer as pungent, and that is right. I could smell the it minute I picked up the glass. It is very malty, but the malt is instantly taken over by the hops. I would describe this as a dirty red ale, because it is high in alcohol and is far from a classic red ale. Michael first had Oatmeal Stout. It is very smooth and I loved the hint of coffee. 

I totally see why this beer can make your nigh a blur.

Then I got hesitantly got The Blur. I torn between wanting a traditional Pacific Northwest IPA and being worried after reading the reviews on FourSquare about how strong it is. The Oregonian in me won out and I am glad it did. It reminded me of all the great IPA's back home. It is strong, but big on flavor. 

Light but very drinkable 

Then Michael tried the Loose Lucy Scotch Ale. It reminded me of a more flavorful and jacked-up Budweiser. A very drinkable beer, I see this going nicely with some spicy hot wings. 

I couldn't get a better picture,
but yeah, drawings of naked women.

I really liked this place, dirty beers to drawings naked women on the walls included. This was so my kind of place, we will definitely be coming here again. And hopefully the next bike ride will be warmer! 

Golden Valley Brewery

I spent Christmas this year in Oregon with my family, and Michael came too. It was nice to show him my hometown and have him meet my friends. However, there is not much to do in Hillsboro. So we drove a few towns over to McMinnville. There is the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum, home of Howard Hughes' infamous Spruce Goose.  While the museum itself is awesome, the cafe isn't anything special. So a quick check on Google Maps revealed a microbrewery nearby!

Golden Valley Brewery is located in the country side of the Willamette Valley. The building is a 1920s warehouse with huge local timber pillars. I felt like I was pioneer walking into the local tavern for a drink, a good way to represent Oregon.

It began in 1993 by Peter and Celia Kircher. I contacted Peter for more information about the brewery and he stated that "The key focus for our brewery is to produce consistent quality traditional style beers of great balance and rare complexity." Their aim is produce "more classic style" beers. 



The restaurant features a standard Oregonian brewpub food. For those of you not familiar with Oregonian cuisine, that means an eclectic mix of standard bar food, regional specialties, and anything else the chef feels like making. 

I had a Garden Burger, minus the cheese. It had sautéed mushrooms and nice crisp lettuce and red onions. No complaints! 

Michael got the Pastrami Reuben Sandwich. Rubens are his favorite and always orders one when he sees it on the menu. He said this was the best one he had in awhile!

Ok, now for the beer...

I knew it would be able awhile before we could be able to visit again, so we got a sampler to try them all.  The sampler has 10 beers, from lightest to darkest: 3rd Street Wheat, Perrydale Pale, American Pale Ale, Chehalem Mountain IPA, Red Thistle Ale, Exit 65 IPA, Atlas Elevator Bock, Tannenbomb, Dundee Porter, and Muddy Valley Oatmeal Stout.

All the beers are heavily loaded with flavor, but perfectly balanced. A good example of this is the Red Thistle, very malty but counterbalanced with the right kind of hops. This beer was interesting---in a good way!

I have two favorites. The first is the American Pale Ale. Slightly malty and a little citrus, very drinkable and smooth. This is a great beer to drink year round with any meal. My second favorite was the Muddy Valley Oatmeal Stout. It was so smooth, almost like drinking desert.

Michael liked the Atlas Elevator Bock. It is dark with a smokey/meaty taste. He collects growlers so I bought him one filled with the Bock.

I drove past by this brewery a million times,  I am glad we finally stopped in! They also have a pub in Beaverton if you do not have the time to drive to McMinnville. But I suggest you take the scenic route out through the Oregon countryside and get some good beer from Golden Valley Brewery next time you are in the Willamette Valley.

Sources:
http://www.goldenvalleybrewery.com/ranch.htm
Background information sheet provided by Peter Kircher, owner