It's been a crazy couple of weeks what with Dave waiting to hear about the possibility of being laid off (Rohm and Haas had a downsizing last Friday which did not end up affecting him -- thank goodness!)and then subsequently getting sick (which I seem to now be coming down with -- geez!) Stuck in there was a day of babysitting (see next post) and a day out and about with Mark and Mary.
Last Saturday was our most recent "A Team Adventure" and this time we headed off to the Custom Brewcrafters microbrewery for a tour and sampling. The new location is in the Honeoye Falls area and is newer and much bigger than we expected.
When we arrived, they were just about to start a tour so we got lucky and were able to join in. We spent the next hour or so learning about the different ingredients that go into beer (malt, hops, yeast, and water) and the process that's used to actually brew the beer. Microbreweries are cool because they can create different recipes for all the different locations that they sell to. It was interesting to go into the cooler where they store the kegs and see the labels indicating the places these beers were brewed for (Duffs Anchor Bar in Buffalo, for example, and The Cottage Inn in Honeoye Falls -- where we ended up going for a late lunch.)
After the tour Dave and Mark bought tasting tickets and "bellied up to the bar" so to speak. Mary and I opted to stick with the Iron Man's Root Beer since neither of us are crazy about beer (and Mary was our designated driver.)
Dave had fun trying to decide which six beers he wanted to sample (tasting cards allow you to sample six different beers for $3.) Mark, on the other hand, dove right in and start taking notes for his beer sampling log and before long, our tour guide John had become Mark's best friend :) The two of them talked beer and Mark seemed to be catching a bit of a buzz ... hmmmm ... could that be due to all the extra samples that John was giving Mark to try?
They had a nice gift shop there and sold not only mugs, outerwear, books, games, and complimentary beer foods and mixes, but also growlers of all the different beers (and root beer). Great prices too -- $8 for a growler which could be refilled if you brought the jug back for $3. We bought a couple of root beer glasses and a growler of root beer to bring home and make Black Cows (aka root beer floats -- a childhood favorite of mine that bring back good memories of time spent with my dad.)
After running into Mary Bishop Partridge and deciding that the girl that kept staring at us was most likely one of our favorite Bugaboo waitresses named Precious, we headed over to The Cottage Inn located in the center of Honeoye Falls for a late lunch.
The restaurant was in an old house and former Inn. It has a very rustic, home town feel to it and I imagine it's a local hotspot in the evening as they have bands come in and a nice bar. Even though it didn't look like much, we were all blown away by the food. Yummy clam chowder for starters, and then one of the best burgers I've had in a very long time. Definitely worth a return visit if we happen to be in that neck of the woods again.
I loved the drive out in the country and being a passenger instead of driver gave me a chance to gawk at the beautiful homes and yards in the Mendon area. It was a beautiful day to be out with friends!
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