Tuesday 18th of August 2009 06:48:29 PM

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Had the pleasure of having lunch here this afternoon after a long drive over the North Cascades Highway (2 day trip for us). I've been trying to try it for a while, it just never seemed to work out.

First, the building is really cool. It's a round hut looking structure, with a second, smaller clone of itself attached for the brewing equipment. The inside seemed adequately spacious, with a somewhat small bar. We chose to soak up the sun in their awesome outdoor seating area complete with bird feeders and a horseshoes pit! We really enjoyed watching all the birds coming in for a snack!

The food was excellent. All four of us were very pleased with our sandwiches. I was also happy with the fresh baked cookie that came with it :)

The beer exceeded my expectations. Not all of them were necessarily my favorite, but they were incredibly well made. I was especially impressed with the pilsner. As a beer geek, I need to give one criticism for the pilsner and say that it really didn't strike me as a pilsner at all, but more of a Dortmunder Export, or even a Munich Helles. It was too malty to be a Pils... But that aside, I could drink gallons of the stuff. It was incredible. Props to him for pulling off a difficult style!

Overall, really liked this place. My only criticisms are that

1. The logo is very, very lame. I think a place that serves beer of this caliber needs a professional looking logo.

2. the brewers wife was very friendly and chatty, but the other waitstaff was kind of short and cold. maybe it was an off day, but that was the impression I got. and

3. Their samplers are the most overpriced I've ever seen. Charging $14,50 for what would equate to just over 2 pints is a bit excessive, especially when a pint is $4.50.

Either way, This will be a stop for any time I'm in the Skagit Valley!

Tuesday 4th of August 2009 07:38:00 PM

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It was a fun place to stop off at while on the way home from Newhalem. The beer selection is decent. However the kitchen is really small; it almost looks like they cook their burgers off of George Foreman Grills. But then again, the small brewery is housed in large sized gazebo. And it might have been for that day, but what staff that were on duty at the time weren't all that cheery. But over all, it wasn't a terrible experience. I'd stop by again while on my way home from camping.

Wednesday 21st of November 2007 12:25:40 PM

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This is a fun trip if you're looking for a "destination" brewery or are on your way across the North Cascades. The building itself is really quite interesting and the beers are pretty good. Their selection on our visit was pretty impressive with styles ranging from a light lager to porter. I was particularly impressed by their pail ale and the hefe. Any place that makes an authentic hefe (instead of an American wheat beer) is fine by me. Our visit was in the summer and the outdoor seating was really nice. I'm looking forward to returning this winter to hang out inside and sample the Lights Out ginger beer.