On one rainy day in Poulsbo...

Last Saturday, while anchored in Poulsbo on one of those cold, blustery days with intermittent rain, Jane and I decided to seek out a brewery whose wares we had sampled at the Winter Brewfest here in Seattle.

The Valhöll brewery is located at the very, very, very end of Liberty Bay.  It is within walking distance for old duffers, although most of the walk is uphill for some reason.  And it is a little hard to find, when you reach the location.  You'll have to go up behind the fancy building on the corner - it's there, trust me.  And it's worth the hike*.

When we arrived, the tasting room was closed because Jeff, owner and brewmeister, was about to make a delivery. But he welcomed us in anyway.  And while he did the paperwork for the delivery, he served us some of his tasty products and we had a rousing great conversation covering a host of subjects, not least of which was beer styles and brewing in general.

By the time our beers were gone, the rains had (not surprisingly) returned.  But Jeff came to our rescue and offered us a ride back into town, which we gratefully accepted.  See, he still had to make that delivery.

Now the last bit of serendipity was that the delivery was a special cask of Valhöll's Whiskey Barrel Stout, which was being delivered to Tizley's for a cask tasting party.  Everyone was invited, and of course we stuck around for it.  Arriving at the same time as the guest of honor and the beer got us great seats, by the window.

Tho this was a public event, there were lots of close friends and relatives. And Jeff, gregarious soul that he is, introduced us to all of them.

And the beer.

Oh. 

My. 

Gosh. 

It was heaven in a glass.  Trust me - you never want to miss an opportunity to sample Valhöll's Whiskey Barrel Stout.  Or an opportunity to spend time with Jeff, for that matter.

It was a wonderful adventure, on a day which wouldn't seem to have much promise if we had spent it sitting and moping on the boat.


* Valhöll is in the process of moving their brewery.  Tho it is well worth the hike, soon that will be unnecessary, because their new location will be almost directly behind Tizley's.  Now you have no excuse whatsoever.

On one rainy day in Poulsbo...