On Friday and Saturday a couple of my coworkers, Abby Holmes and Jefferson Robbins, and I headed up to the Methow Valley for a features department field trip. We want to know what makes the area tick. I think I can speak for all when saying we had a good time, met a lot of neat people and came back with good stories. We also ate some pretty good food and drank some pretty good beer.

The first day of the trip ended with a stop at the Twisp River Pub to listen to a little live music from the The Eagle River Band with Terry Lee Hardesty and sample the pub’s brews. It seemed like everyone in town made their way to the pub for the music, dancing and chatting with friends.

While there, Jefferson, Abby and I us sampled five 7-ounce beers brewed at the pub. We tried the Cream Ale, Hefeweizen, Vienna Lager, Porter and the India Pale Ale. It turns out that we all liked the sweet and smooth Vienna Lager a lot. If I hadn’t planned on bringing a bottle or two of the stuff home, I would have pouted about Abby getting the rest of the sampler.

As we tasted and talked, it also became apparent that none of us really ever like India pale ales, no matter where they were brewed. The three of us aren’t bitter hops fans. The Porter was strong and chocolaty, a flavor I always like. The Hefeweizen tasted like a good hef and the Cream Ale was tasty too. Hoping to take a bit of the pub with me, I headed home with two bottles of Vienna Lager and one bottle of Cream Ale.

Every time I go up to Twisp, I think I want to live there. It’s a vibrant community. As for the food, the pub made some pretty good hummus, and I’ve raved about their Buffalo wings from previous visits.

I’m going to have to go back pretty soon.