“A bit more clumsy than a pub CRAWL.”
Written by Ye Olde Scribe
(Note: I pasted this first beer-related submission for Scribe as is, as he requested when he called: no editing. Oh, and the wisecracks are his and his alone.-Ken Carman)
420 Stockbridge Rd.
Great Barrington, MA 01230
(413) 528-8282
Here’s the column you asked for Mr. Carman:
Scribe knew this road. When the moon was in the seventh house, and Jupiter aligned with… oh, wait, that’s a SONG. Please excuse Scribe’s OLDE meandering mind. This is why he prefers BEER. It meanders enough already.
Scribe had visited Barrington Brewery before. He swung by again and had a slightly sweet-ish chili with cheese and sour cream: plenty of bread.
On tap: IPA, Black Bear Stout, Hopland Pale, Vienna and many, many more. All in a farmhouse resting like a jewel amongst a pristine Berkshire landscape. The restaurant part was a few steps down from the bar and looked homey: inviting. But Scribe stayed where he felt at home: right next to the taps.
The dining room was pleasant enough, and all seemed to be having a good time. Lots of laughter. It added to the very home-like atmosphere.
What an odd zip to the IPA! Did the brewer tell Scribe it had a smidgen of Cascade? You’d never know amongst the Tomahawk, Zeus and Golding: which together sounds a bit like and Roman Native American jeweler; but also makes an interesting hop mixture. Hopefully Scribe got that right. Mr. Andrew the brewer never responded back to Scribe’s attempt to verify this. Probably Scribe’s E-mail went MTA like the old late 50’s Trio song.
Yeah, Scribe’s that old.
The Vienna was smooth. The humor grand.
Why did Scribe just mention, “humor?” While the jokes at the bar flew by a black cat named “Shandy” crossed Scribe’s path. He was informed by a waitress, “He works the night shift.” She also mentioned previous cats included “Hops” and “Barley.”
What, no “Boiled Wert?” EWE. Scratch that bad suggestion. Perhaps Scribe shouldn’t joke about brewery cats and use “scratched” in the same sentence? Not that they would. He’s a nice kitty. Nice kitty. Scribe was teasing.
Andrew Mankin, the owner and brewer, was quite busy but did chat with Ye Olde briefly. He mentioned they have an amazing number solar panels and they use a lot of solar power for everything: especially hot water. And they use a LOT of hot water.
For those who might ask, it’s a brewery. Duh.
Sometimes they’re 100% solar.
He also mentioned he had a hopback in which he used Fuggles. “”Hopback.” Is that related to Victor Hugo’s character from Notre Dame? No? Sorry, Scribe just had a… HUNCH.
Well, it was time for Scribe to get back to his bunker, so he had to say “Ta, ta.” Stay tuned to this net channel for the author of Brew Biz: Werts and All, who will do a full review… Um, just a second. Scribe will E-mail and ask….
A full bloody YEAR from now??? Hurry up, Ken. Scribe will pause and wait like a woodland creature in the headlights.
Your DEER friend,
Ye Olde Scribe