A Midday Brew at Midnight Brewery

Source: Midnight Brewery's Facebook

Birthday + Beer = Bliss

This past Saturday I confirmed the veracity of this formula with a visit to Midnight Brewery, a locally-owned and operated microbrewery in eastern Goochland County.  Although relatively young to the craft brewing scene, Midnight has already established a local reputation for flavorful, great-tasting beers, with two beers in particular - Not My Job, a Southern English Brown Ale, and Christmas at Midnight, a spiced ale - capturing my birthday taste buds. 

As we cozied up to the bar for a tasting, my attention was first drawn to the F.D.T., a Hefeweizen with a 5% alcohol content.  It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of wheat beers, and having recently returned from a two-week stint in Germany, I was eager to compare the F.D.T. with German Hefeweizens.

The F.D.T. did not disappoint, but it didn't blow me away either.  It had a golden, honey-colored tone and a good-sized head, which faded quickly.  Compared to a Paulaner Hefeweizen or Erdinger Weissbier, though, it wasn't cloudy enough and lacked a more vibrant wheat-punch.  The wheat was more of an accessory rather than principal flavor, making the F.D.T. light-tasting for a hefeweizen.  However, for a comfortably warm day, it was a refreshing summer brew, and I must admit I prefered Midnight's F.D.T. to Hardywood's HYPE wheat beer.

Two F.D.T.s, Christmas at Midnight, Not My
Job & Rockville Red!

Luckily, Midnight had more than just the F.D.T. on tap.  As my friend couldn't stop praising her Christmas at Midnight spiced ale, I opted for a taste... and was sold.  Featuring a warm, reddish-brown color with a fragrant scent of cinnamon, the Christmas at Midnight beer is a semi-sweet beer that's absolutely magical on a summer day, and probably equally so if paired with Christmas cookies on a snowy night! 

Finally, I stole a taste of Midnight's Southern English Brown Ale with the tongue-in-cheek moniker of "Not My Job."  The name is not the only intriguing thing about this beer, which is medium-bodied and drops hints of chocolate and coffee in every sip.  I've never gravitated towards dark beers, thinking they were all as thick and bitter as Guinness, so both Not My Job and the Christmas at Midnight beers surprised me - in a great way!

Enjoying the picnic table seating.

Midnight Brewery has all the trappings of a good micro-brewery: a solid and varying line-up of beers, a convenient location (just west of the ever-expanding Short Pump), and an owner and brewer passionate about producing quality beer.  Prices are average for the craft beer scene (hovering around $5 per cup), and food trucks make regular appearances on the weekends.  Midnight Brewery has already created quite a buzz within the community and was awarded the honor of concocting the official beer for this year's State Fair of Virginia: the Virginia Midway, touted as a wheat and pale malt beer and featuring local honey as an ingredient (you can read the Times-Dispatch article about it here).  With a move into a larger facility slotted to happen soon, the sky's the limit for Midnight Brewery, and I look forward to seeing what other tasty brews they create in the future.

F.D.T. (Hefeweizen): 3.5/5
Christmas at Midnight (spiced ale): 4/5
Not My Job (Southern English Brown Ale): 4/5
Price: $5-6 
Location:  Five minutes west of Short Pump off Ashland Road (Rockville exit on I-64).
Website:  www.Midnight-Brewery.com

Linking up with #SundayTraveler!

Throwback Thursday: Shenandoah Valley (2009)

Taken the day before my university graduation on a scenic overlook of the Shenandoah Valley (and back when Danny was just a lowly Lance Corporal! :)

The Great Pizza Throwing Incident of Pompeii

Since I've alluded to the "Great Pizza Throwing Incident" of our Euro Trip at least three times (here, here, and here), I figured it's about time I tell you just exactly what happened.  (And no, the pizza shown above is not the one that met a swift, untimely end...)

It began innocently enough, as do most awkward and embarrassing situations.  Overcome by hunger and seeking the cool relief of the Pompeii ruins' one and only air conditioned building, we went into the cafe to buy an overpriced slice of pizza, a coke, and a Peroni.  It was a hot (91'F/33'C), sunny day and at least half of the tourist horde could be found inside this cafe.  We placed our order, somehow got bamboozled into buying keepsake aluminum Coca-Cola bottles, and turned with laden trays to find two empty seats somewhere in the noisy seating area.  My heart sank as I scanned the room, seeing no available seats.

"Oh, look - over in the corner there are some open seats," Danny said.  Sure enough, a couple sat alone at a table with six seats.  We began to weave our way through the narrow space between all the tables and made it to the corner.

"Uh oh!"

"Are these seats free?" Danny asked.  "Si, si," the gentleman said and gestured.  Danny squeezed in behind him, and I followed suit on the other side.  I raised the tray up to my chin level to clear the heads of the gentleman's companion and the tourists behind me.  The tray, already precariously loaded with a Coke, a pizza, napkins, utensils, and the ridiculous aluminum Coca-Cola bottle, shifted, and as my purse got caught against a chair behind me, the whole tray went flying.  It was like a slow-motion scene.  I could only stare, aghast, as my pizza flew across the room, smashed against the bottom part of the wall and slid to the floor, accompanied by a dust-storm of napkins and the thundering of my Coke hitting the chairs.  It's always nice when a room full of people, representing dozens of nationalities and speaking many languages, all turn to see the mess you've created!

Anyway, it could've been worse.  The pizza didn't land on anyone, I didn't break any glass, and after another 5 euro bill, I had a replacement slice.  Too bad it wasn't the best pizza I've ever bought!

And unfortunately, this was merely the first installment of mishaps while in Italy.... stay tuned for more traveling mishaps!

Ever been in an embarrassing situation while traveling?  Dish it out!

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