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| Please note the Spike Photobomb |
Just sit right back
And you'll here a tale
A tale of a (beer-filled) trip,
That started from (drive in CO)
Aboard this (Rav-4)
The mate was a mighty (drivin' woman)
The Skipper brave and sure,
(Just two passengers) set (out) that day,
For a three (brewery) tour,
A three (brewery) tour.
Just like Gilligan and his friends, it was supposed to be a three brewery tour. Of course, the picture of the beer that came home with us, you can see our adventure took a detour. Let's start from the beginning. Danny and I had long talked about taking a road trip to Kansas City, and the fact that my White Sox were playing the Royals that weekend felt as though the stars aligned telling us to go. So I purchased the tickets, booked a room in Independence, Missouri, and started exploring things to do in Kansas City on Trip Advisor. As an aside, a resolution for 2016 is to contribute to Trip Advisor as I have become an avid consumer; if nothing else it sure is a fascinating sociological experience. I digress. Anyway, Trip Advisor listed three breweries in Kansas City, so those were added to our list of places to visit.
(The driving was windy)
The (Rav) was tossed,
If not for the courage of the fearless (ha!) crew
The (corn would get us)
The (corn would get us)
The (Rav arrived in Independence)
Of this uncharted area
With (Laurie)
And (Danny too)
No Millionaire (though that would be nice)
(Or) his wife
(Definitely no) movie star
The professor was missed and (so was) Marry Ann
Here in (Kansas City).
We arrived in Kansas City on Saturday evening with just enough time to change and head to Kauffman Stadium, arriving for the bottom of the first inning. I am fairly certain a beer was consumed at the game, but the real ridiculousness started on Sunday morning. Being Labor Day weekend we had to cram a lot in to Sunday as many things were going closed on Labor Day (i.e. the Wizard of Oz Winery). More on that momentarily.
The original itinerary went something like this: BBQ for lunch (because when in Rome...); National World War I Museum and Memorial; Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; Boulevard Brewing Company; 75th Street Brewery; Kansas City Bier Company; Truman Presidential Library. When I spell it out, I think we accomplished about half of those things. Here's a more accurate (read: actual) itinerary, and you'll see why we were as ridiculous as Gilligan and his fellow castaways:
- The place we were told (by a local) to go for BBQ was closed on Sunday, which led us to turn to Yelp, which suggested Fiorella's Jack Stack BBQ. Excellent food AND happened to be located across the way from Union Station. So their traveling exhibit from the National Football Hall of Fame replaced the WWI Museum.
- Next while driving to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (fascinating and well done) we stumbled upon Double Shift Brewing Company and Border Brewing Company. During this stop I was able to watch the Sox SWEEP the Royals (!!!) Those two breweries replaced Boulevard Brewing as that one is easy to get in Colorado. Then we drove to 75th Street Brewery and Kansas City Bier Company. Now this is when things got silly, and truth be told it was my fault. Just call me Gilligan...
While in the bathroom at Kansas City Bier Company I saw an advertisement for an upcoming event that included a brewery called Flying Monkey Brewery. Again the idea of "when in Rome" felt applicable. Well I became a little possessed and determined that Danny was going to try this beer. Apparently they do not have a tap room, they only distribute, which of course meant I had to find it at a liquor store. After dinner we (read I) was on a mission that I thought would be simple. There was a nice looking liquor store not too far from the KC Bier Company, so we stopped there, and they were sold out. Still the first two beers (starting from the left) came from that store. The second one from the left is actually from Nebraska (the horror!). After that the liquor stores were going down hill in quality - the last one of which was probably not the safest place to be, and included a proprietor who thought I was asking about Rum. I shook my head and gave up (for the night).
The next morning we started home, but not without stopping at the Truman Library. I even met a Truman impersonator! The Library was fascinating as it included all kinds of documentation around the decision to use the Atomic Bomb in WWII. After having visited Hiroshima, I found particularly interesting. One will never know if it was the right decision, but having the background helped understand the decision a bit better.
Driving through Kansas we had seen signs for the Eisenhower Library, and decided to stop there on our return trip. Of course just before crossing into Kansas (from Missouri) we did another liquor store search. This one yielded the middle bottle of beer, but still no Flying Monkey to be found. So our trek /quest continued. Now would be the time to mention that I try to get a shot glass for a dear friend on my travels, but decided that she probably already had a shot glass from Kansas City. So I wanted to get her a bottle of wine from the Wizard of Oz Winery in Wamego instead. Much to my dismay, the town of Wamego, literally the whole town, had shut down for the holiday. While there, we regrouped and did yet another liquor store search. This led us to a liquor store called, "The Library" in Manhattan Kansas (home to Kansas State University). I called and much to my delight they carried the beer! So to Manhattan we went. This liquor store produced the three beers to the right, as well as Kansas City Royals wine for Beth. Apparently the wine was sub-par, but the cork was fantastic!
If either of us had had a "library card" that would have yielded a discount. This exchange alone may have been enough to make the whole escapade worthwhile as the Flying Monkey beer was only so-so. I felt the same way about Eisenhower's Presidential Library as he was a very reluctant President. Much of the exhibits were dedicated to his time as a General in WWII. While I am not diminishing those accomplishments, it was just an interesting in comparison to other museums I have visited. Although I do have President Eisenhower to thank for the interstate highway system, which I use quite frequently.
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| Eisenhower's Electric Car |
So this is the tale of our (road trip)
(We were there for not such a long time)
(We sure made the best of thing)
(Not such an uphill climb)
I hope this proves a couple things: first, the beer escapades are not all Danny's fault, and I do get mine. The history lover in me really enjoyed this trip, and I am grateful that Danny goes without protest. We have an unspoken agreement: I don't complain about beer, he doesn't complain about meeting my various cultural needs.
Next trip though, I want to find that millionaire! Please join me in 2016 as I hope to re-engage in my blogging adventures/tales of ridiculousness. Never a dull moment here in the Pechie household, except perhaps on NYE where the two sickies will be lucky to make it to 10:00 PM (Mountain Time).
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