Woolybear
07-22-2011, 03:48 PM
7-16-11 V&B’s RI a long day but a good day
Don C, Peter S, Mike S (Woodzy), & Paul S (Woolybear)
Wasn't sure about posting this but what then why not.
First thanks in advance to Mike for driving on this long travel day.
Not counting the long drive in through MA our Views and Brews day began at Purgatory Chasm is MA on the way into Rhode Island. I had visited Purgatory Chasm previously with the kids and family and though nice found it VERY, VERY crowded a experience that was not enjoyable. Today was the flip side of the coin. Got in at 8:15 am and the only other people there (even at this early hour these people were incredibly loud and obnoxious) were doing the hike the opposite direction from us so we had the chasm all to ourselves allowing us to take our time and really take in the chasm. It was only after we had begun the return leg of our loop that the other group came upon us again (we heard them long before we saw them) but that was ok since we were on our way out. Great timing since as we left the park the masses were starting to fill in. So having seen Purgatory Chasm now at both extremes if you’re going to go then you should go early. From hike one we headed down through RI toward Port Judith and the ferry to Block Island. The traffic of course got progressively worse the closer you got to the shore since it was expected to be a nice day and everyone was going to the beach. The traffic was bad but not nearly as bad as going out on Long Island to Montauk. Honestly though as you drive the RI shore is indistinguishable from Long Island or for that matter south Jersey. The ferry was crowded (go figure) but we opted for the slightly pricier option of the high speed ferry to save time (ultimately this did not work). Calm seas, easy passage and a half hour (or so) later we were walking into the Mohegan Café. Luckily we beat the crowds for lunch by about 20 minutes or so. The short version nice atmosphere, reasonable prices, generous food portions, good quality food, good friendly service, the beer not so much. Basically the majority of the beers are underperformers low on flavor and frankly just not finished. None of the beer in the sampler made us want to go the distance and actually order a pint. There was also a moment that I have to say rendered me speechless to the amusement of my companies especially after 40+ brewpubs. Here is the exchange, ME “excuse me miss do you sell your beer in growler”, WAITRESS “what’s a growler? Is that a clam dish?”. After all the cost and effort of getting to Block Island and the Mohegan Café the beers just didn’t deliver with one amazingly strange exception. Now I am NOT a hopes and definitely NOT an IPA guy in fact no one at the table was a IPA guy. That said the Mohegan Cafes IPA was pretty good all of us found it enjoyable and to be a nonstandard IPA. If it had just a hair less hopes I would have even ordered a pint. As to Block Island well it was more disappointing than the beer. For starters you really can’t do it as a casual day trip. There is nothing within easy walking distance of the harbor you really have to spend money and rent transportation or take a whole day. We were told (ironically the day before on Blackhead while doing trail maintenance by a nice couple me met while they were hiking) that there were many great walking trails on the Island and there probably are but once again you have to spend more money to get to them. We spend about 3 hrs walking the beaches and roads and found the island to be your run of the mill tourist trap it does not live up to the hype or ego of its residence. Here is some advice to any future people working on the RI list as it pertains to Block Island:
1) There ferry is pricy so plan your Block Island trip with extreme care and be ready to spend money. If you only have a short time forget about seeing anything on the island.
2) Check your ferry tickets carefully. The ferry company is amazingly inflexible with their policies and schedules and this can turn into trouble quickly. The teller screwed up my tickets and had we not caught it before we left the docks I would have had to pay for another ticket. Since after you leave the dock there is no way to prove they made a mistake.
After spending half our day (actually more) on Block Island we now headed off to a nice little park called Beaver Tail. It’s a nice little park with a lovely little light house and some very nice sweeping views. A wonder place for a laid back walk, picnic, or just to lounge. We didn’t relax to long though as we needed to get back to beer and on to Coddington’s. Now Coddington’s the short version is that it’s a dud. The atmosphere was good and held promise as did the beer list but as soon as we got our sampler it all went to hell. Their pilsner like beer was bad and their fruit beers were basically (not kidding here) the lite beer with fruit just dropped into the glass specifically some blueberries and some watermelon chunks. The other beers were off in taste or not fully developed. The only somewhat bright beer spot ironically was the IPA again. There IPA was the only beer that they had that had only flavor or quality not as good as Mohegan Café’s but at least you could drink (some) of it. The food was of low quality and the service had attitude (now our waitress did make a small effort to correct this but the damage was done). None of us wanted a pint of anything and a I got a lot of lip when I asked for a empty growler to take out with me (I have for no good reason started to collect growlers form brewpubs I am visiting). I did get the empty growler eventually but at a higher than average cost. Frankly we will likely never be back to Coddington’s and that’s for the best.
And so our journey continued and it was also starting to get late. Off to providence. Found parking about two blocks from Trinity. Ah Trinity the brewpub that redeemed Rhode Island. With our last two not so good brewpub stops we were apprehensive about Trinity and it turns out that was for nothing. The service was amazingly good and friendly. They really made you feel welcome and at home. The atmosphere was funky and fun. The food was great and I think Mike would say amazing. As to the beers well about half were good and to our likely the other half not so much (I’m sorry guys but the heffewiessen was a disaster). They also had a strawberry Belgian whiskey cask aged beer that was frankly amazing and that I had a pint of sadly though they do not give that out in growler. And apparently it goes quick it seems last year’s batch went in 6 days. Trinity we love you and we will likely be back. Now we set off the walk the .6 miles to the Union Station brewpub and our direction sucked but that was ok since we were intent on walking providence and that was well worth it. To begin with Providence is a really nice town with great architecture, atmosphere, and people. They also had an open air free opera concert going on situated on boats in the canal with floating bonfires up and down the canal in every direction the water went. It was a nice show (the little we caught) and a nice culture experience bringing out a lot of people. If I had to move to a city somewhere in New England I think after visiting Province that it would be a series contender. We did eventually get over to the brew pub and managed to squeeze into a small space at the bar. The Union Station Brewpub is very popular so crowed. The food looked and smelled go but we did not partake since we were still full from Trinity. The beer was average thought their abbey ale was good, a winner. After we left the bar we walked a little more of Providence before heading back to the car. We like the city so much that it was hard to leave but the hour was very late and we had a long, long drive home.
Another state done.
Don C, Peter S, Mike S (Woodzy), & Paul S (Woolybear)
Wasn't sure about posting this but what then why not.
First thanks in advance to Mike for driving on this long travel day.
Not counting the long drive in through MA our Views and Brews day began at Purgatory Chasm is MA on the way into Rhode Island. I had visited Purgatory Chasm previously with the kids and family and though nice found it VERY, VERY crowded a experience that was not enjoyable. Today was the flip side of the coin. Got in at 8:15 am and the only other people there (even at this early hour these people were incredibly loud and obnoxious) were doing the hike the opposite direction from us so we had the chasm all to ourselves allowing us to take our time and really take in the chasm. It was only after we had begun the return leg of our loop that the other group came upon us again (we heard them long before we saw them) but that was ok since we were on our way out. Great timing since as we left the park the masses were starting to fill in. So having seen Purgatory Chasm now at both extremes if you’re going to go then you should go early. From hike one we headed down through RI toward Port Judith and the ferry to Block Island. The traffic of course got progressively worse the closer you got to the shore since it was expected to be a nice day and everyone was going to the beach. The traffic was bad but not nearly as bad as going out on Long Island to Montauk. Honestly though as you drive the RI shore is indistinguishable from Long Island or for that matter south Jersey. The ferry was crowded (go figure) but we opted for the slightly pricier option of the high speed ferry to save time (ultimately this did not work). Calm seas, easy passage and a half hour (or so) later we were walking into the Mohegan Café. Luckily we beat the crowds for lunch by about 20 minutes or so. The short version nice atmosphere, reasonable prices, generous food portions, good quality food, good friendly service, the beer not so much. Basically the majority of the beers are underperformers low on flavor and frankly just not finished. None of the beer in the sampler made us want to go the distance and actually order a pint. There was also a moment that I have to say rendered me speechless to the amusement of my companies especially after 40+ brewpubs. Here is the exchange, ME “excuse me miss do you sell your beer in growler”, WAITRESS “what’s a growler? Is that a clam dish?”. After all the cost and effort of getting to Block Island and the Mohegan Café the beers just didn’t deliver with one amazingly strange exception. Now I am NOT a hopes and definitely NOT an IPA guy in fact no one at the table was a IPA guy. That said the Mohegan Cafes IPA was pretty good all of us found it enjoyable and to be a nonstandard IPA. If it had just a hair less hopes I would have even ordered a pint. As to Block Island well it was more disappointing than the beer. For starters you really can’t do it as a casual day trip. There is nothing within easy walking distance of the harbor you really have to spend money and rent transportation or take a whole day. We were told (ironically the day before on Blackhead while doing trail maintenance by a nice couple me met while they were hiking) that there were many great walking trails on the Island and there probably are but once again you have to spend more money to get to them. We spend about 3 hrs walking the beaches and roads and found the island to be your run of the mill tourist trap it does not live up to the hype or ego of its residence. Here is some advice to any future people working on the RI list as it pertains to Block Island:
1) There ferry is pricy so plan your Block Island trip with extreme care and be ready to spend money. If you only have a short time forget about seeing anything on the island.
2) Check your ferry tickets carefully. The ferry company is amazingly inflexible with their policies and schedules and this can turn into trouble quickly. The teller screwed up my tickets and had we not caught it before we left the docks I would have had to pay for another ticket. Since after you leave the dock there is no way to prove they made a mistake.
After spending half our day (actually more) on Block Island we now headed off to a nice little park called Beaver Tail. It’s a nice little park with a lovely little light house and some very nice sweeping views. A wonder place for a laid back walk, picnic, or just to lounge. We didn’t relax to long though as we needed to get back to beer and on to Coddington’s. Now Coddington’s the short version is that it’s a dud. The atmosphere was good and held promise as did the beer list but as soon as we got our sampler it all went to hell. Their pilsner like beer was bad and their fruit beers were basically (not kidding here) the lite beer with fruit just dropped into the glass specifically some blueberries and some watermelon chunks. The other beers were off in taste or not fully developed. The only somewhat bright beer spot ironically was the IPA again. There IPA was the only beer that they had that had only flavor or quality not as good as Mohegan Café’s but at least you could drink (some) of it. The food was of low quality and the service had attitude (now our waitress did make a small effort to correct this but the damage was done). None of us wanted a pint of anything and a I got a lot of lip when I asked for a empty growler to take out with me (I have for no good reason started to collect growlers form brewpubs I am visiting). I did get the empty growler eventually but at a higher than average cost. Frankly we will likely never be back to Coddington’s and that’s for the best.
And so our journey continued and it was also starting to get late. Off to providence. Found parking about two blocks from Trinity. Ah Trinity the brewpub that redeemed Rhode Island. With our last two not so good brewpub stops we were apprehensive about Trinity and it turns out that was for nothing. The service was amazingly good and friendly. They really made you feel welcome and at home. The atmosphere was funky and fun. The food was great and I think Mike would say amazing. As to the beers well about half were good and to our likely the other half not so much (I’m sorry guys but the heffewiessen was a disaster). They also had a strawberry Belgian whiskey cask aged beer that was frankly amazing and that I had a pint of sadly though they do not give that out in growler. And apparently it goes quick it seems last year’s batch went in 6 days. Trinity we love you and we will likely be back. Now we set off the walk the .6 miles to the Union Station brewpub and our direction sucked but that was ok since we were intent on walking providence and that was well worth it. To begin with Providence is a really nice town with great architecture, atmosphere, and people. They also had an open air free opera concert going on situated on boats in the canal with floating bonfires up and down the canal in every direction the water went. It was a nice show (the little we caught) and a nice culture experience bringing out a lot of people. If I had to move to a city somewhere in New England I think after visiting Province that it would be a series contender. We did eventually get over to the brew pub and managed to squeeze into a small space at the bar. The Union Station Brewpub is very popular so crowed. The food looked and smelled go but we did not partake since we were still full from Trinity. The beer was average thought their abbey ale was good, a winner. After we left the bar we walked a little more of Providence before heading back to the car. We like the city so much that it was hard to leave but the hour was very late and we had a long, long drive home.
Another state done.