Noc Noc Noc-ing at Powell's Door: Nocterra Brewing

Funkwerks, circa our 2015 trip to Colorado. Like Fort Collins, Columbus'
beer scene is one where new breweries have increasingly to prove
their wares are worthy to the public early on or risk being left behind

Craft beer fans know that Colorado's breweries rate as some of the country's best. That fact did not escape our mind during our 2015 trip to visit my spouse's brother and his family in the Denver area. Thankfully, her brother (like most of the family) has been into craft beer for quite awhile - in fact, during his years in Columbus, his first homebrew kit came from the Clintonville's Winemaker's Shop from none other than Angelo Signorino, the longtime head brewer at the venerable Barley's Brewing Company.

For a day, her brother graciously chauffeured us to some of Fort Collins' finest breweries. During our journey, he mentioned that breweries there just simply couldn't open up and expect to be successful; they had to have at least a couple years planned out to even have a chance to make it in what was and still is a competitive beer scene.

Back then, that was nowhere near the case with Columbus, a beer scene that was still growing and evolving. Not so much anymore, though - in my mind, Central Ohio's scene has reached a point where a new brewery's chance to establish their footing has shrunk considerably. Indeed, many of the newer arrivals, including but not exclusive to Combustion, Somewhere in Particular, and Pretentious, have been received favorably fairly quickly by the locals. This notion was tucked in the back of my mind when my spouse and I dropped by to one of the area's newest in Powell's Nocterra Brewing for a sneak preview.

One Latte, One Lunch, One Beer - 2018 California Travel Wrap-Up

Well, the recap of a wonderful tour of California comes to an end with this blogpost. As usual, there were places that didn't quite conveniently fit in with any of our previous posts, but are definitely worthy of your consideration if you're in the neighborhood. And now, without further adieu...

Spearhead Coffee: Opened up a couple years after our first visit to Paso Robles, Spearhead Coffee has provided locals an elevated cup of coffee for their day's duties since 2015. Similar to many spaces with that modern industrial look, the interior of Spearhead used plenty of reclaimed materials from around the area as well as from space itself in its initial construction.

Two Do Right: Firestone Walker and Russian River Brewing

The welcoming fronts of Russian River Brewing's Santa Rosa, CA brewpub
and Firestone Walker's Barrelworks facility in Buellton, CA

Those who have read my blog before know that we are huge fans of two well-known California breweries in Firestone Walker and Russian River Brewing.  With the former, we had visited their two co-joined facilities in Buellton (their taproom and then their sour-focused Barrelworks facility - this blogpost details how we ended up visiting each separately), and for the latter, their iconic Santa Rosa brewpub seems is something of a mandatory stop when we're in the area, even if it is just to buy a couple of bottles of Pliny The Elder or one of their lovely sours to bring back to Ohio.

One would think that we're traversing over well-trod ground by writing about these two breweries again, but two recent developments for each brewery offered an opportunity to explore some new ground for us, and we were only more than happy to venture in again.

The House That Sarah Built: The Winchester Mystery House (San Jose, CA)

The front of the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California

Way before San Jose, California, transformed into the anchor of what eventually became known as Silicon Valley, I had two personal mental associations with the city. One was the Dionne Warwick song "Do You Know The Way to San Jose", one of the first songs I remember listening to and liking immensely.

The other association was The Winchester Mystery House, which I always perceived as something of a cheesy attraction, based on both the promo ads I heard and read as well as the story (essentially, superstitious rich widow, in this case, Sarah Winchester, takes fortune teller’s crazy story to heart and builds a likewise crazy house to match in the quest for immortality.)

However, as we were happy to find out on our first visit ever, the tale behind The Winchester House is far more nuanced than that, with aspects about Winchester herself as well as the house she ended up building wouldn’t realize upon first glance.

Princely Waves and Pumpkin Weighs - A Half Day in Half Moon Bay

Pigeon Point Lighthouse, one of two lighthouses that bracket
the cozy town of Half Moon Bay (Photo courtesy of
visithalfmoonbay.org/Jonathan Warren)

Half Moon Bay, named for the picturesque crescent-shaped bay north of the main downtown area, packs in a surprising amount of history and big-name event cred into a decidedly laid back and small town package. Formally incorporated in 1959, the land which holds this community of roughly 12,500 was the long time home for the Costanoan Indians, whose trails into the area were mirrored by the two current main roads into the town during their construction.

Once Mexican settlers moved in 1840, the settlement became known as Spanishtown due to the large numbers of Spanish speakers before adopting its current moniker in 1874. The area became infamous during the era of Prohibition as the home for local moonshiners and rum runners, mainly due to its isolated location and constantly foggy conditions.

Surly and Spectacular - Big Sur Revisited

"And if you listen carefully

The winds that ride

On the high tide

Whistle a melody

So the people started to sing

And that's how the

Surf gave birth untold to

California soul"

"California Soul" - Marlena Shaw

I cannot say with certainty that the Big Sur on California's Central Coast is the most spectacular stretch of coast in the world. But I will say that this stretch of coastline, which ranges from San Simeon in the south to Carmel Highlands in the north, is most certainly one of the most spectacular places I have had the privilege to travel through, and this area is a must visit for any visitor with some extended time in the Golden State.

From the south, Hearst Castle in San Simeon is a natural jumping off point for your journey, but if touring millionaire mansions isn't your thing, the publicly accessible elephant seal rookery a few miles to the north is most definitely worth your time.  As one might imagine, the seals are an incredibly popular attraction, and on this day, the line of cars trying to turn into the parking lot of the main viewing point reminded us of the queue that crawls on the Golden Gate Bridge to try to enter the Vista Point areas.

The House That Julie Built: Hearst Castle (San Simeon, CA)

Hearst Castle's Roman Pool, which is inlaid with fused gold tiles and
currently acts as the fanciest bus depot you'll find just about anywhere

While it may not have originated with them specifically, the modern practice of glamping (camping without the rough edges) can trace its lineage to folks like the Hearst Family. As it turned out, the hill near San Simeon where the Hearst Castle now resides was a favorite warmer weather destination for George Hearst (who purchased 40,000 acres of ranch land in the area around the time of the Civil War; the acreage eventually grew over sixfold) and his family.

With many of the rough edges taken away (their campsite was prepared months ahead of time), George’s children, including future media magnate/politician/art collector/eventual inheritor William Randolph Hearst, were allowed to roam the land relatively freely. This fostered a love of the area in William that eventually led to the stately grandeur that embodies Hearst Castle, which we both got to visit for the first time.

Central California Adventures (Pt. 2) - International Bright Flung Things

Statue of Ignacy Jan Paderewski, famed pianist, former Prime Minister of
Poland, and one of the most famed residents of Paso Robles

As it turned out, our dalliance with an Paso Robles' Pappy McGregor's (an Irish Pub detailed in my last blogpost) was just a sign of the unexpected international tour we would end up getting with our Paso Robles travels.

Obviously, California has more than held their own in the wine making world the past few decades, and much of that has come with grape varietals such as Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Blanc that originated on French soil (on a side note, Zinfandel, one of California's big players in the wine-making world, actually traces its origins to Croatia.)

However, less familiar stateside are wine styles from France's Rhône Valley. Grenache and Syrah will probably ring bells for even the casual wine drinker, but seeing other grape varietals such as Marsanne, Mourvèdre, Picpoul Blanc and Counoise are still somewhat uncommon.  As it turns out, many of the wineries around Paso Robles feature the perfect climate and soil to grow these grapes, and we heard word that the wines coming from the grapes grown at Tablas Creek Vineyard, a pioneer in the state for these Rhône varietals, are among the best.

Central California Adventures (Pt. 1) - Don't Paso Me By

Built from 1907-1908, the Carnegie Library in Paso Robles' Downtown City Park
operated as such until 1995; it now is home to the town's historical society

While the town may officially be known as The City of El Paso de Robles (The Pass of the Oaks), the town's residents go much simpler and call it "Paso." Of course, that designation is helpful as well to tourists like us, who decided that a revisit of this somewhat quiet Central California hamlet nestled roughly three hours (with favorable traffic) south of San Francisco on Highway 101 was in order.

Our last visit several years ago was more of a strategic one: Paso Robles allowed us a central and relatively inexpensive jumping off point to go exploring parts farther south such as San Luis Obispo, Solvang and Buellton. This time around, we figured we'd give Paso and its surroundings a sampling this time, and it turned out to be a still too short but highly enjoyable two days in and around this town of roughly 32,000 people.

Return to California (aka The More Things Change...)

The courtyard of Vallejo's version of Seafood City, a Filipino-focused
supermarket sporting seven locations in Northern California and
30 total locations in the United States and Canada

Our return to California this year to visit my home of some three decades revealed some inescapable trends that I've noticed in the last few visits. In terms of this blog, the Bay Area and California in general has really transformed in my mind into much more tourist destination than a former home. I experienced a bit of this feeling driving through San Francisco last year, but this year it became even more prominent. 

Familiar landmarks were now gone (most prominently the grandstands of the horse racing facility of the Solano County Fairgrounds), businesses I grew up with were now closed (like Country Creamery, which never had the best ice cream but made up for it by charging a buck per scoop), and the ongoing development of the Springs area just outside of Sonoma. Even the still familiar, as in the Seafood City pictured above, sported some changes, including the closing of a store in which we bought our first Christmas parol.