Monday, November 10, 2008

Newton of Newport

Before we left to start our journey back home on rt. 95 (complete with torrential downpours) we decided to take a walk to the end of Bannister's Wharf. Outside the Black Dog General Store we couldn't help but notice the EXTREMELY large dog chillin' outside the cafe. The only information we uncovered was that his name is Newton and contratory to popular belief - mine - he is not the Black Dog Company's mascot or owner's dog, just the owner of the average coffee goer.

Despite his LARGE size, Newton was surprisingly docile ... but I still kept my distance. Far enough to snap this picture (inconspicuously I'm sure) but close enough to catch his name. Unfortunately, the garbage can in my line of vision cuts down his magnitude, but I think you get the picture.

Sunday, November 9, 2008

A long post for a long day in Newport

My husband and I took a long trip up to Newport, RI this weekend. Since we're not much mansion-touring people we opted to take tours of another huge presence in Newport; the bar scene.

We visited Buskers pub for dinner Thursday night where we learned that there is a limit of how much meat should be allowed on one plate. Friday we took a short drive to Middleton and tasted wine at Newport Vineyards and GreenVale Vineyards. While we enjoyed the wine more at Newport (purchased 3 bottles) we definitely preferred the atmosphere at Greenvale (bought 1 bottle) - it had the traditional vineyard feel with a pourer that was actually personable. She even recommended our favorite locale of the night, but I'll get to that later.

Following our winery visits/tastings we traveled to Coddington Brewing Company for some much needed lunch ... and beer, thus beginning our beer tasting portion of the afternoon. Mike ordered his 2nd sampler of the weekend, the first coming from our lunch stop during our drive up at SBC Restaurant & Brewery. After chowing down on our lunch, we needed to pass the time before our 5:45 call time at our next destination, so we played a couple games of pool - victor was Laurie, both times. While we enjoyed the Pumpkin Ale most, we opted to purchase a growler of the Golden Ale.

Now close to 5:00, we decided to make our way to our most anticipated venue of the evening, Coastal Extreme Brewing Company. While we arrived close to 5:15, I decided to take advantage of our promptness and enjoy a 15-minute power nap ... again, very much needed. As Mike was keeping tabs on the line, he noticed it getting longer and longer so we felt the need to join the crowd ... as we were informed once again by our Greenvale pourer that they only allow 30 people for the tour.

While most tours are boring, this one far surpassed other ones we've visited since they gave two pint-size samples during it and two more after the tour, you can't beat that! Our favorite by far was the Rhode Island Blueberry Ale. It was a perfect blend of fruitiness and beer and we actually find out that Blueberries are frequently harvested in Rhode Island, hence the many varieties of blueberry beer we saw during our travels.

After we ate dinner at a less than stellar establishment on Bannister's Wharf, we made our way over to Celctica Public House. A great pub with friendly people who welcomed this first time Karaoke singer; my song of choice, "American Girl" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Following a couple of high-fives and "awesome" comments, I witnessed a rather interesting menu item ...

God Bless America!