Mine's a pint

Not that you're supposed to mention the weather on blogs but, it was raining, it really was, it has been on and off everyday since Sunday. Well that's what happens when you're in the Northwest Pacific, it rains, a lot. So its a Thursday, we think? The start of another weekend, so we did the only sensible thing possible in a situation like this, we went to the pub, a real pub, a pub-pub. A pub that brews it's own tipple on site. From start to finish. From the raw ingredients to the liquid hitting your lips.

The Pike Brewery Co. is a Seattle institution. A proud family owned craft beer brewery and pub. Their original yeast was purchased from Fullers Brewery in London 21 years ago and is still going strong! The water here in WA is very soft so they add extra minerals to make the beer more British like, great! All the hops is from WA bar one from which is from the Czech Republic. They brew 5 days a week and the brewery is completely steam powered. They have just started bottling it and so can now sell further afield.

After a great tour we had worked up a thirst and headed straight to the bar to order a 'taster tray'. This slab of wood with numbered holes held 6 small glasses of different brews ranging from a 5% IPA to a 9% triple ale!

We met Rachel and David from Denver that were in Seattle for a short break. They too loved beer and also owned a 100 year old house. So that was it, instant friendship! Another great thing about the trip, meeting real people from countries that turn out to be nothing like the folk the media portray.

Two cheshire cats: real ale, Simon & Garfunkel playing on the stereo, newspapers and golf live from Augusta on the tv.  What a great afternoon/evening. Rain, what rain.

"I would give all my fame for a pot of ale and safety"

Winston Churchill