My five year plan is to visit, and thereby sample the wares of, every microbrewery in the state of California. I include the ‘big boy” craft brewers since the goal is drinking beer not business profiling. That being said, if they have multiple breweries, I consider one stop at one brewery a fulfillment of my goal.*

These are my personal ramblings about beer and should, in no way, be construed as the last word on either the subject or locations mentioned. And, since we are in the disclaimer business, let me just say two things... one, it is a lot easier to start up a webpage than an actual brewery and, two, when you are going headfirst into Chapter 11 the last thing you worry about is closing out your website. Combine that with the general uncertainty of the information highway and you won’t be overly dismayed when you track down a brewery and find it either DOA or something completely different as they say.

All these dire warnings and disclaimers will, of course, fall by the wayside every time you find that cozy little brewpub in some out-of-the-way burg where the food is good and the beer is great…

*See the amendment to this plan at the bottom of the February 26,2012 blog post...

Monday, December 17, 2012

YET ANOTHER GOOD REASON TO VISIT OROVILLE


Okay, let me say that when I first moved to California, up in the north end of the state, Butte Creek was my  “go to” grocery store beer.  Secondly, let me remind you all that I have said many times that there are two kinds of brewpubs… breweries that serve food and restaurants that also make beer.

When you go to check out a brewery inside a casino, well, your first thought is that it is just another hook to entertain gamblers.  So imagine my delight when I stopped in Oroville to check Feather Falls Casino Brewing Co. off my list. It was just gone lunchtime and the bar had just opened so service was slow starting… nobody’s fault but mine.  As soon as the gal behind the bar got her prep done everything moved rapidly into first class.  

I ordered a pint of Ocktober Fest Marszen because, hey, it was the two buck daily special. Knowing I had to drive another 70 miles up the canyon I also ordered a big bowl of clam chowder with bread for lunch. Excellent but no surprise there… casino food is always good. The beer was also excellent, delightfully so, and in talking to the bartender I found out why.  Seems that their brewmaster is Roland Allen, the guy who brewed and owned Butte Creek Brewing (and, coincidentally, the first stop on my quest to visit all the California microbreweries…)  Once I found out that little fact I felt compelled to order a pint of their award winning Black Jack Brew Sweet Stout.  Even better than the Marszen and I left a happy, happy man once again.

Even if you don’t have a fist full of dollar bills to feed the slot machines, if you are passing through Oroville I strongly suggest you add the couple of miles to your odometer and sidebar yourself in for a beer and a bite.
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