This Now May Be The Ultimate Road Trip For A Kalamazooan
Thirty years, a Kalamazoo teacher wrote a book about what I always have believed would be the ultimate roadtrip for me. Now I may have an even better idea.Kalamazoo's Bob Wood wrote the book, literally, on what would be the best road trip ever. I read with envy his tales from the road as traveled every major league ballpark in one summer.
But times change as do tastes. And while, with advances in technology, you can see baseball pretty much all the time, you can't just taste every interesting craft beer just like that.
Which leads to this interesting little piece on SimpleMost.com; visiting all the top breweries in the country, all in one road trip.
While Bell's Two-Hearted Ale has been at or near the top of most best beer lists, its partner at the top, Pliny The Elder from Russian River Brewing in California only distributes in less than a half dozen states (and only one distributor, in Philadelphia, is east of Colorado)
The SimpleMost story keeps the list to 70 breweries, which means you'd need a ton of vacation time saved up, but maybe breaking it up into three, four or five trips might just work. That might also be easier on your waistline. (For the record, they claim you can do it in twenty days. That may be a tad optimistic.)
Looking at SimpleMost's map, maybe the best place to start is in California, with either Russian River, Lagunitas and Sierra Nevada all within close proximity. (And here's a major beer snob factor for planning: Pliny the Elder is a Double IPA. It's next of kin is Pliny the Younger, a Triple IPA. Russian River only pours it at their facility. That's it. And for only two weeks in February. (Think Mango Habanero Oberon is a more condensed time frame).
The map takes you up to Washington state and down into Colorado, and once you head east of Michigan, the only other big concentration of must taste stops is in New England. Allagash Brewing has a street fair and all. (Allagash White comes highly recommended, and if you have someone who's not a beer lover, they make a Lambic)
But back to us here in the Midwest. There's a bunch within several hours of us that are worthwhile. Three Floyd's in Munster, Indiana is really a trip. Oh, my. For the beer lover/heavy metal lover. Try Zombie Dust and Yum Yum. Don't ask, it's good.
If you're in Chicago, Revolution Brewing has fine food and fine beer.
It's #BeerBQue Monday at the brewpub. Today's plate features Dark Matter Smoked Tri Tip, Venison Kielbasa, Mac & Cheese, Collard Greens, freshly baked bread, and a pint of our Baphomet Bock. Served with a side of Kansas City Style BBQ sauce. $15. Served all day! #beerbq #bbq #revbrew #barbeque #chicagofood A post shared by Revolution Brewing (@revbrewchicago) on
Bottom Line...Look at the map in the story. We are the beer capital of the world. Bell's, Founders' and Dark Horse are all musts on the list. I must say I'm surprised and a bit disappointed for the lack of love for the east side of the state. Old Nation's M-43 is maybe my favorite beer right now. Rochester Mills and Atwater's are also very very good. So make your own road trip. Don't take the word of some random website. Cheers.
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