#laughingdogbrewing

[goprospecting]

Laughing Dog Pilsner out of Sandpoint Idaho was an excellent Beer! #laughingdogbrewing https://www.instagram.com/p/CkCmAE7L5oU/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[tragedystrikesfirst]

Thrift store finds! #laughingdogbrewing #redhookbrewery #fullsailbrewing #sessionslager #only99centseach #ihaveaproblem #givemeallthebeerglasses #itstoolatetostop

[pugznbeer]

Laughing Dog The Dogfather Bourbon barrel-aged Imperial Stout. Made with 7 Malts & 4 Hops. 11% ABV. #beer #beerporn #craftbeer #beerstagram #laughingdog #laughingdogbrewing #thedogfather #bourbon #stout #idaho #ponderay

[bigvaka]

Dinner date night with my girls. I love #CallawaysBistro so much. #HuckleBerryCreamAle #LaughingDogBrewing #MadeInPonderayIdaho #FatBoyApproved #FreeRatBoy #FreeRatboyJr (at Callaway's Bistro)

[billpichette]

You’re Driving All The Way Down There?

11/16/13-Today I made a new discovery and visited a corner of the little state I grew up in for the first time.

But first a few quick shots about being back in Rhode Island. Cities in RI are usually made up of villages, many of which were born and developed around small rivers that powered various mills (textile, grains, etc.) or were fishing ports. My Mom now lives in an apartment in Centredale, a mill town from the early 18th century until the death of the mills in RI when I was a kid. There are number of small businesses (unfortunately also a number of empty storefronts) within the old village center. One place is Chillie Willie’s where I’ve gotten my hair cut over the holidays the last two years. I had a unique experience there last week, which some of you may not be able to fathom. Keep in mind I’ve been gone from here for over 30 years and rarely see most of my Father’s family-too long of a story why. I was sitting waiting for a haircut and my cousin walked in the door. We both looked at each other like, “Hey, I know you”. The one member of my Father’s family I see regularly, I usually only see him on Christmas Eve at my sister’s.

One of the things I am looking forward to doing with my Mom is holiday bazaars, or craft and food fests at local churches. She was feeling a little tired when I went to the Greek Orthodox Church fair last week, so I brought back dinner and snacks-roast lamb and chicken dinners and what I think were almond cookies. When I went to St James Episcopal Church last week, I learned their event was this week. Remember the cousin I ran into? Behind us at the church fair were his wife, their daughter, and her son-three generations of cousins in one day. Funny thing was we were supposed to go earlier. My Mom is still laughing!

I look forward to one certain kind of pizza from one place every time I’m here. What sets Tommy’s sausage and peppers toppings apart is the way they make the pizza with cooked bell peppers, so they’re not mostly raw and crunchy like most when you take a bite. Such a simple thing makes a great pizza and makes me wonder why every pizza can’t be that way. Funny thing you have to remember there is cheese is a topping and has to be ordered like any other. We’ll be talking about food a lot here-I have a list of unique favorites.

On to new discoveries. Last year when I was here for Christmas, I sampled some local beer. One impressive brew was an imperial stout from Grey Sail Brewing. The brewery is open for tastings and tours, but only on Saturdays. The Christmas holiday season is usually a full of calendar of events for us, including four birthdays. I managed to have one Saturday free on the schedule last year, and it snowed. Today, I managed to drive to the brewery in Westerly, a town on the extreme southwest corner of the state, and yes, it 19 plus years of living here, a place I never visited. After all, it’s about an hour away from where we lived. I could almost hear my Father saying, in true Rhode Island fashion, “You’re driving all the way down there?”

Grey Sail has four beers available at the brewery-extra pale ale, octoberfest, porter, and their 2nd anniversary beer, a belgian strong dark. They’re all good, and I can’t wait for the holiday beer shopping to begin. Like some breweries, they can most of products and recently started using an automated canner, though the owner was hand labeling 22 ounce bottles while I was there. I also discovered that the imperial stout I enjoyed last year was a limited edition, but they will soon make another stout that will be aged in bourbon barrels. I wonder if it will measure up to Laughing Dog’s!

Westerly RI was founded in 1669. In 1745, the colony’s government decided to build and man a watch tower and beacon near town on a spit of land jutting into the Atlantic and the tony village of Watch Hill was born. Today it boasts an historic lighthouse-current buildings constructed in 1857, Victorian-era summer mansions built by New York elite, and the oldest “flying horse” carousel in the country. This is the type without a platform, with the animals suspended from chains. The Watch Hill Carousel belonged to a carnival company that abandoned it here in 1879. Like many attractions and hot spots here, it was closed for winter.

Off season here on the RI coast makes for some great moments, though. I was able to park near the carousel and walk a private lane to photograph the lighthouse, sunset, and a moon just moments after it awakened. I saw a few fishermen, but I don’t think I was related to any of them.

Staying old school today, listening to OMD, The Smithereens, and Erasure.

Just not enough to silence me, you're only a memory-The Smithereens