The long and winding road leads to beer

There's something charming about grown men gathering on a back porch oohing and aahing over the souvenirs a friend has just brought back from vacation. Like moths to a flame, the beer nerds from central Indiana came buzzing to our house yesterday within minutes of Captain Reed parking his craft beer-laden Subaru.

He'd driven to Maine and back on a circuitous route that took him to Fattey's Bottle Shop, the City Wine Merchant and Noble Root in Buffalo, NY, Fiden's Brewery in Albany, New York, Tree House Brewing in Charlton, Mass., the Armsby Abby and Austin Liquors in Worcester, Mass., RSVP Discount Liquors, Bow Street Liquors, the Bier Cellar and Allagash Brewing in Portland, Me., Maine Beer Company in Freeport, Hill Farmstead in Greensboro Bend, Vt, the Craftsbury Vermont "Genny," Freak Folk Brewing in Waterbury Village, the Stowe Public House in in Stowe, Vt., and the State Liquor Store/Beverage Warehouse in Winooski, Vt. Those were added to the assist from brother-in-law Peter Chase, who filled an order at the Vault in Auburn, Maine.

In addition to the beer stops, he picked up a bottle of champagne for me and while in Craftsbury, he also bought cheese. A soft-sided Yeti full of cheese that, to be honest, smelled like feet when I unzipped the thing. And they were all double-bagged in Ziplock bags.

It was in Burlington where - 9 cases of canned beer, 5 cases of bottled beer and a case of bourbon later - he decided that either the cargo hold was full or he'd exceeded his budget. To be fair, a lot of the beer and bourbon was destined for others. But still. The boys who came to pick up their look literally cooed and exclaimed at the sight. 

If the Zombie Apocalypse comes in 2022, we'll be all set for beverages.

The beer trip was an add on to Jeff wanting to bring home two small tables from his dad's house. Shipping was going to be in the triple digits, so, back when gasoline was less than $3 a gallon, he thought it more economical to drive for a summer family visit. 

Ali and I flew. It worked out really well because Jeff got to geek out at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY, as well as a Buffalo Bisons Triple A baseball game. You might think his
beer/bourbon habit is all-consuming but it pales next to baseball. His few hours at the HoF were not enough.

"I started to feel like I was a the Louvre," he said. "I got so overwhelmed, I had to stop." 

I feel there's another beer/baseball trek in his future... 

We had a wonderful time in Maine, as we always do. Most of the time we chilled at China Lake where Jen and Peter have a camp and did the usual camp things: water-skiing (Jeff & Ali with Peter as boat captain) canoeing (Jen & me) jigsaw puzzle (Jen, Ali & me) reading (Jen, Ali & me) paddle-boarding (Ali) floating in the lake (Jen, Ali & me) boating (all of us including James) hiking/walking (all of us) and just relaxing.

We spent more time with Peter's family than usual, which was delightful. On a hike through Thurston Woods, we attracted more bugs than I thought the State of Maine could hold, but we survived. We're all ready to go back.  We also took in a Seadogs Triple A baseball game and a play at the Lakewood Theater where Betty White, Milton Berle and other luminaries once performed in Summer Stock.

Oh, here's a fun fact: Auntie Jen thought Ali could use Marian's Kitchen Aid mixer, and we planned to have Jeff wedge it in the car between the beer, our laundry and his suitcase. But we forgot. A counter-top Kitchen Aid mixer weighs approximately 38 pounds. When you split it up from its bowl and mixing paddles, it will fit in carry-on sized suitcases. We can only wonder what the airport security people thought, but it made it home just fine, and I suspect Ali is baking this weekend.

Also fun fact, as we deplaned in Indianapolis after a couple of short delays, we were walking to Baggage Claim to learn the fate of the mixer, when who do we see walking toward us but Kevin, her room-mate. He was off to Baltimore to visit his family. Without our delays, we never would have been there at the same time.

It's back to work on Monday for Jeff and me. Alison is taking advantage of an empty apartment to focus on her grad school application prep work, which has taken a back seat to a couple fun cosplay conventions. She, Rebecca and Kevin were in Chicago the early part of our Maine weekend.

Good thing we all have a couple days to rest up! Thanks again, Jen & Peter for the hospitality, and happy anniversary today!