Savannah, GA - The Distillery

The front entrance to Distillery, a trendy craft beer bar. 

The Distillery is a lively bar in Savannah noted for it's craft beer selection.  Clearly one of the current trendy bars in town, The Distillery prides itself for offering "no crap beer, just craft beer." If you're looking for Bud or Miller, go elsewhere. With over 20 beers on tap and over 100 total to choose from, you should be able to find something you like.  Housed in the old Kentucky Distilling Company, the ubiquitous exposed brick and wood that you'll find all over Savannah is present. Tables out front allow the smokers to congregate. This bar is very popular with students from the Savannah School of Art and Design (SCAD), so it has an artsy vibe.  We were thrilled when we arrived to find two seats available at the bar, and the Charlie Chaplin movie, Modern Times, on the big screen TVs.  I'm told that sports are usually on the screens, but with no big games that night, we really enjoyed the silent classic while we sipped our beer.

A flight of Yuletide winter warmers surpassed expectations. 

What did we have:  Since it was the holiday season and a chilly evening, I chose the Yuletide flight of winter warmers.  Along with the flight, they give you a rating sheet that you can take notes and rate the beers on appearance, aroma, palate, flavor and overall.  That was a little too much work for me, so I just sipped, enjoyed and just marked my favorites.  The flight consisted of Highland Cold Mountain, Weyerbacher Winter, Bell's Winter White, Dog Fish Head Raison D'Etre and St. Feuillien Belgian.  This was a fantastic selection of quality craft beer.  I liked them all. My favorite without question was Dogfish Head Raison D'Etre.  Such a superior and flavorful brew, especially on tap.

A great bar and a classic movie is a fun combination. 

What's fun: The Distillery is a great craft beer bar with a hip vibe.  The crowd is interesting, the bartenders knowledgeable, friendly and helpful, and we thoroughly enjoyed a lengthy stay.  There was something so right about sipping great craft beer and watching the silent classic comedy at that bar.  It's a night I'll long remember and I highly recommend you check out the Distillery when you're in town.  You may have to wait for table, but it will be worth it.

Savannah, GA - Moon River Brewing Company

We are so fortunate to live in Athens, GA, a wonderful and unique college town.  It's location couldn't be better. It's wedged in between two of my favorite small US cities. Drive three and a half hours to the northeast and you're in Asheville, NC.  Drive three and a half hours southeast and you're in Savannah, GA.  And that's just what we did on the weekend before Christmas this year.  We've been to Savannah many times, but not during the holidays when it's all dressed up in it's holiday finest.  It was just as lovely as we imagined. On this visit we went to two blog worthy establishments.  The first was Moon River Brew Pub.

The entrance to Moon River Brewing Company. 

Located right in the heart of historic Savannah, the Moon River Brewing Company building has an interesting past.  It was once the first city hotel in Savannah, established in 1821. All the beer is brewed in the three story building where the pub is housed.  There is exposed brick and wood throughout the warm and friendly pub located on the main floor.  There is also seating on the second floor, and reportedly there are a few ghosts that inhabit the building as well. The huge stainless steel beer vats are visible through the side windows.  My husband and I arrived shortly before 5 pm on a Friday evening and were lucky enough to get a comfortable booth right next to the lively bar located in the center of the pub. Moon River offers their own brewed beer and a few additional guest beers on tap. In addition, wine, mixed drinks and bottled beer are offered. Within a half hour there were folks outside waiting to be seated at this popular brew pub.  At 5 pm, the bartender rang a bell, recited a poem and declared a beginning to the weekend festivities.  A rousing cheer went up from the locals, and I knew we were in for a fun filled evening.

Moon River offers many enjoyable beers. 

What did we have:  As usual I ordered a sampler since I wanted to try all six beers they produced and their one cider.  The waitress also brought us a taster of a guest brew that they carried, the Heavy Seas Martzen which is one of our favorites.  The sampler consisted of Wild Wacky Witt, Apparition, Swampfox IPA, Rosemary IPA, Captain's Porter, Brown Sour and Cider.  Moon River makes some very good beer with a few brews that were outstanding.  My husband particularly liked the Apparition, a lovely brown classic English pale ale.  I was enthralled with the Rosemary IPA.  This beer is infused with rosemary, and since I'm a big fan of the herb, and could really taste it, I loved this beer.  It had a nice hop finish as well.  I imagine it's one you either love or hate.  I also liked the cider a lot.  It was quite dry, with a full apple flavor.  The waitress told me that the apples come from the north Georgia mountains and is only made in the fall after harvest.  Quite special.While we sampled our beer we enjoyed two tasty appetizers, fried green tomatoes and crab cakes. The menu has lite fare, burgers and sandwiches, and full course entries.

The beer is brewed and stored right next to the pub. 

What's fun:  The lively clientele consisting of a great blend of the unusual  mix of Savannah locals, as well as tourists add to the atmosphere. The historic setting, comfortable seating, quality beer and food, and friendly wait staff all add to the experience.  The banter between the poetic bartender and the local patrons made happy we were part of the scene on this pleasant winter evening.

Hood River, OR - Mt. Hood Winery

The tasting room at Mt. Hood Winery. 

In northern Oregon the cold weather has set in and heavy snow is in the forecast, but I'm remembering a visit we took to Mt. Hood Winery late last summer.  It was perhaps the most beautiful setting of any winery I've yet to visit. Scenically nestled between Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens, surrounded by acres of orchards and fields of wild flowers, it offfers awe inspiring vistas.  The wine tasting experience was pleasant as well.

The winery is located on the famous Hood River Fruit Loop, a 35 miles route through orchards, lavender fields and alpaca farms. Once entering the contemporary tasting room, you immediately notice the wall of windows along the front and side walls, opposite the tasting bar, offering spectacular views of the fields and vineyards.  But there was no reason to stay inside on the gorgeous day we visited, so we asked for our first glass of wine and headed to the patio, conveniently located right outside the tasting room.

Enjoying our wine on the patio. 

What did we have:  We had five wine enthusiasts in our family group, and together we sampled all the wine available that day. The choices for white wine included the Pinot Gris, Reisling and Chardonnay. There was one rose, the Pinot Noir Saignee, and three selections of red, Pinot Noir, Syrah and the award winning Tempranillo. All the wines were very drinkable, but the Tempranillo, a unique Spanish wine with rich flavors of black currents and spice, was definitely my favorite. I purchased several bottles for us to bring home. We also bought a bottle of the Saignee for our daughter who enjoys a sweeter wine.

Can you spot Mt. St. Helens in the background?

What was fun: It's all about the location of Mt Hood Winery.  We could have spent hours hanging out on that patio, drinking wine and taking in the scenery.  Unfortunately, we had a two hour drive ahead of us, so we could not drink as much wine as we would have enjoyed.  I do recommend that if you find yourself anywhere near Hood River, Oregon on a beautiful day, be sure to visit the winery, you will not be disappointed.