Tag Archives: Independence Day

Back to Boston

I got to take an extended vacation thanks to the holiday week. I gotta tell you, post vacation blues SUCK. Back to reminisce on the good times.
am36First things first – had to swing by the Chive to grab a beer with the guys and the Berries, and watch Elliot play the didgeridoo.
am35Legit Australian-style. Then  we caught a red eye out with hardly any sleep. Yay.
AMGreeted with a local and patriotic brew.
AM1Along with a delicious, piping hot bowl of chowda. Only bad thing about this picture? It was about 90 degrees with about 90% humidity. Still delicious.
AM2Dinner was swordfish, caught that morning by a local fisherman, along with freshly roasted asparagus and potatoes.
AM3And chardonnay. Gotta have the chardonnay on a hot night.
AM4I was a member of the clean plate club. My first time having swordfish – I’m ruined. Never again will I be able to enjoy frozen fish.
AM9On the 4th of July, we woke up bright and early and grabbed a shady spot on the street to enjoy the local parade. It was even hotter out than the day we arrived.
AM5AM7AM6Military veterans getting their due recognition. They even had a car with some WWII vets drive through.
AM8Aaand mermaids and clowns…. With bubbles nonetheless…
AM10We took Commander Matt’s parental units’ boat out every day we were there. I enjoyed the sun. It enjoyed me.
am34It enjoyed me a little too much. I spent the rest of the trip coating myself with aloe and cool, wet towels. Lesson learned – the sun is, indeed, evil.
AM11Erasing that painful memory with another beautiful view of the yacht club.
am33I got to go sailing for the first time ever! Matt’s uncle owns a Hobie Cat that we power-boated out to and took around the bay. I didn’t die. I consider that a win.
am32Afterwards we refueled with fried clam bellies – something my parental unit told me was a must on the east coast.
AM12We also refueled with Uncle Dave’s famous fish tacos he grilled up at his house.
AM13I hate coleslaw. This coleslaw made me a convert. Pardon my drool.
am31The next day was a ride out to Martha’s Vineyard. In case you didn’t know, there is no vineyard. I was thoroughly confused.
AM14The Black Dog is THE place to go in Martha’s Vineyard. We waited almost two hours for a table and took advantage of the time to stroll through the town.
AM15Mad Martha’s is also incredibly well-known. Matt and his family used to frequent there when they lived in MA.
AM16Mother-son love.
AM18FINALLY the wait was up!
AM17Hash ‘n eggs with a gigantic bottomless coffee. Drool again.
AM19And that evening it was time for even more food. The family brought over fresh clams which they steamed with beer, onions, celery and hot dogs.
AM23I ate one. One and done…
AM24Not a joint. Clam neck – in case of any confusion.
am21Clam pie – butter, clams, more butter, bread crumbs, butter, butter and bacon!
AM25And then it was time for the massacre.
AM26Twenty lobstas.
AM27Twenty gigantic lobstas.
AM28I couldn’t even finish my one – these things were out of control.
AM22Luckily I had some guidance – very  helpful after the painful attempt I made last time.
AM29The sun was thankfully setting and a cool breeze was flowing through the yard. We all sat lazily with beer in hand until it was time to go watch some of the best fireworks I’d ever seen being fired from a barge about 100 yards off the beach. Pictures omitted because I was enjoying myself and pictures of fireworks are hard ‘n stuff.
am20AM30Of course nothing went to waste – lobsta rolls the next day before we packed up and flew back!

Yet another amazing trip out east. Thank you to all of our wonderful hosts! I had an amazing time. Again.

Now to kick some post vacay blues butt.

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Bravery Brewing

Bravery Brewing had its grand opening in Lancaster on Independence Day. After working the taproom at Enegren, we all headed over to check it out.
I was able to see the space a few months ago before they’d even begun brewing. It’s come quite a long way.
They’re a 3bbl system with two 3bbl fermentors and two 7bbls.
Instead of being hardpiped, the entire system is run with removable hoses for transferring and easy cleanup.
In the middle of the paint job back in April…
And during the grand opening. It’s too bad the turnout was so small…
The line for beer wrapped around the room, outside and around to the end of the building. Every single table was packed, as was the bar.
Luckily there were some cool hop plants to look at as we waited outside at the very end of the line.
And luckily since Enegren helped out with a lot of consulting with Bravery while they prepped to open, the owners brought some brews to tide us over during the long wait in line. Brighton ESB – a nice malty ESB, dry finish with just a hint of chocolate and toffee.
Randall: Citrus Bitter – their flagship bitter is run through a type of filter that contains freshly grated orange zest. This one was light and sweet with a heavy perfume of orange and a nice touch of sour rounding out the end.
Once we finally made it indoors, we got to enjoy the view of Gunnery SGT. R. Lee Ermey’s chopper. R. Lee Ermey is a co-owner of Bravery Brewing.
I also found a Chiver in the midst of the chaos! Bill Effin Murray! (Whoever can score me one of these would be the love of my life. Just sayin’)…
Once we finally made it to the bar (conveniently we had also just finished our “waiting in line” beers), Brewmaster Brian Avery served us up an array of tasters.
Ginger Witbier – thick wheat beer with a soft ginger aroma but a spicy kick of it at the end. Korova Sweet Stout – chocolatey stout that’s rich, but very light in ABV (5.6%). Honey Saison – a dry, crisp Saison brewed with honey, and Pineapple Boo (not pictured) – a wheat beer brewed with pineapple that has a surprisingly pleasant tropical aroma and flavor that ends with a noticeable pineapple zing.
No one was enjoying themselves at all. Especially while being encompassed by the soft leather couches with a perfect view of the brewery and tasting room in the “Brave Cave”. Try to sit on one of these couches and then try to get up. It’s nearly impossible except for the necessity of needing to refill your beer.
With 5,000 square feet, this place is spacious and airy, even with the masses of people that showed up for the opening.
The lights came on over the beer lists that were slowly dwindling as each beer was gulped into oblivion by the thirsty patrons.
And then R. Lee Ermey showed up. I was just trying to get a picture of the chalkboards but he kept getting in the way. Oh well. Creeper photo it is!
It was a perfect day for the opening and we had a delicious time! We grabbed a growler to go and headed back to Moorpark to enjoy the festivities.
I hope you all had a wonderful Independence Day! God bless America and craft beer!

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