last friday i took my camera to work and took some pictures around the office.

then amanda and i headed out to visit 4 breweries in the ballard area. i've been taking notes on our beer tastings and it's great to be able to refer back to them, but i'm quickly going to have an unwieldy amount of information. for now i'm just typing them in notes on my iphone, but soon i'll either find or create a better way to organize my beer tasting notes.

we started by visiting theo chocolate and taking a walk (and pictures) along the fremont canal. the weather was nice and the cormorants in the trees were cool. later while walking around ballard we stopped by a wood furniture store, which had a lot of nice local wood furniture at fair prices, but they say they just can't compete with asia for the little things. right now i only have room and need for a couple of small things, but i'm simply not interested in pieces that aren't locally made. so i'm still investigating local woodworkers. does anybody know a good place to buy wood products in the pacific northwest?

brief overview of the 4 breweries we visited:
fremont brewing: good beers, great casual neighborhood brewery. we'll definitely be back.
jolly roger taproom (maritime pacific brewing): good beers, but maybe a bit skewed malty except for the IPA. we had deep fried bacon (very good) and their onion rings (unique, but too smoky for us). despite good beer and interesting fried foods, we will be hesitant to return because of the atmosphere. they just moved to a new bigger location and they already can't accommodate the demand. it was VERY LOUD and crowded. try to go at an off time!
hale's ales: they had more than a dozen beers on tap. the sampler we had was a mixed bag. we'll try the rest of their beers sometime. the atmosphere was like a family restaurant and the brewery area was open for viewing. it was quiet and felt like a refuge after jolly roger.
naked city taphouse: they only had two of their own beers on tap, but both were excellent! their big lebrewski imperial stout is among the best stouts we've had. we split a sandwich and salad and both were very good. we'll be back!

overall it was a great experience and a very fun friday. by doing so much on a friday evening it made the whole weekend feel longer (in a good way). i'll be increasingly utilizing that technique as the days extend and the weather warms.

on saturday we returned to the uw campus for the final time for a while. the cherry trees are in full bloom now and certainly a sight to behold. however, it's like a circus in the quad with all the photographers and videographers and tourists and prospective students! i was happy to see the trees, but i don't think i'll make it a tradition. there are pretty trees elsewhere to see! we also swung by the botanical garden (it's closed on weekends) and the herb garden (too early in the season). we'll probably go see those sometime in the summer.

Labels: adventures, breweries, pictures

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