Beer & Romance

By Daria Labinsky and Stan Hieronymus

It's that age-old dilemma: Valentine's Day, or some other significant romantic holiday, is fast approaching. She (let's be stereotypical for a moment) wants to go someplace romantic, share a candlelight dinner, exclaim over scenery. He wants to drink beer.

One might think the two are mutually exclusive. Fear not, fellow traveler, the ideal weekend getaway awaits: the bed-and-breakfast brewpub. These havens, scattered around the country, provide cozy lodgings, fine food and fresh beer. And, like most B&Bs;, they're situated in scenic areas that have tourist attractions, including skiing, antique hunting, hiking, biking, shopping and more.

The Woodstock Inn and Brewing Co. in North Woodstock, NH (135 Main St., 03262; 800-321-3985), offers what may be the ultimate getaway for beer lovers-Brewers Weekends, during which guests get to work side-by-side with brewer Butch Chase.

"We start them at 7:00 a.m. in the brewery," said Eileen Rice, who owns the inn with her husband, Scott. "Of course, there may be some wives who want to go shopping, and some guys who want to sleep late, and they're welcome to."

The "apprentice brewers" get to run through the entire process, from milling the grain to filtering and racking already-conditioned beer to polishing the copper kettles. "We emphasize that the art of brewing is not as glamorous as it seems, but we only get as technical as [the guests] want it to be."

The number of guests is limited to 20 per weekend, and Rice said past Brewers Weekends have drawn folks who were interested in opening brewpubs, homebrewers, and "couples who plain wanted to drink beer." Guests are free to ask questions about all aspects of the microbrewing business, and to visit with a local breweriana collector.

On Saturday night, everyone gathers for a six-course gourmet beer dinner in the formal dining room. Prices for the weekend start at $125 per person, double occupancy.

The Woodstock Inn is worth visiting on non-Brewers Weekends as well. Six beers are brewed on the premises and served in the brewpub, in a pub built into an old train depot that was moved from Lincoln, NH, and in a formal (but casual-dress) dining room. Rooms are available in the Victorian-era inn, in a building across the street and in the old train station, and some have fireplaces and hot tubs. Best of all, the inn is set in one of the most beautiful parts of New England, the White Mountains. Nearby are hiking trails, outlet malls and the scenic Kancamagus Highway.

Beer-loving lovers on the West Coast have several options. Although McMenamins Edgefield in Troutdale, OR (2126 SW Halsey, 97060; 503-669-8610), is not exactly intimate, it is a romantic place with an intriguing past. This flagship of the McMenamins pub chain is the former Multnomah County poor farm and was later a nursing home. It was built in 1911 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Since 1990, McMenamins has been gradually turning the building and the surrounding 25 acres into a rambling retreat-a full-service bed-and-breakfast hotel with gardens, a vineyard, brewery, winery and pubs, with more amenities planned.

Visitors can choose to sample libations at the Power Station Pub, which is built into the old power station and is attached to a movie theater; the Black Rabbit Bar, adjacent to the dining room and named for the black rabbit that roams the premises; or the Little Red Shed, a tiny, red pub. The bars serve McMenamins beers and wines and also offer regional guest beers.

The Edgefield microbrewery makes most of the beer for the McMenamins pub chain, and it has a beer garden that is open in the summer. Guests can also tour the winery and visit its tasting room. The complex even boasts a resident glass blower and a masseuse.

Edgefield's 105 rooms include several suites, and no two rooms are alike. Mission-style furnishings and woodwork decorate the hotel. Rates run $65 to $105 double occupancy and include breakfast and admission to the movie theater. Among the options available is the "Romance Package," which includes a bottle of sparkling wine, champagne flutes, massage oil, candles and more.

The Edgefield staff gives daily tours that encompass the entire "village." The tours are highly recommended, especially to learn about the artwork that adorns the premises, including intricate murals depicting Edgefield's history and whimsical decorations on everything from heating pipes to door headers. Nearby attractions include the scenic Columbia River Gorge, and Portland, which is only 25 minutes away.

The Calistoga Inn, in Calistoga, CA (1250 Lincoln Ave., 94515; 707-942-4101), was the nation's first bed-and-breakfast brewpub. The inn is more than 90 years old, and its Napa Valley Brewing Co. began operating in 1987.

"I'm sure there are beer lovers who choose us because of the brewery," said owner Rosie Dunsford, "but I don't know if we've caught up with the 'romance curve' like wine."

Calistoga is at the top of Napa Valley, and has long been a health resort with natural hot-water geysers, mineral springs and mineralized mud baths. Both The New York Times and Wine Spectator have recommended the inn to readers, although it's not long on frills. None of the 18 rooms has a private bath, and the breakfast is continental. A room for two costs $60 on weekends, $49 during the week.

"We're the least expensive in the valley, and we get a lot of young couples on a budget," Dunsford said. The inn is also known for its food-Dunsford is the executive chef-with fresh fish a specialty. It annually offers a special Valentine's Day dinner.

Other choices
Fredericksburg Brewing, 245 E. Main St. (PO Box 1064), Fredericksburg, TX 78624; 210-997-1646. Located in a German town in the heart of Texas hill country, this brewpub calls itself a "bed-and-brew," and guests can opt for a beer sampler instead of breakfast. It's in a century-old building that was once a saloon and boardinghouse, with rooms decorated thematically: Western style; Spanish style; even in a patriotic red, white and blue. Since Fredericksburg is quite the tourist town, the brewpub isn't a place to get away from it all; it's more of a place to have fun.

Norwich Inn, 225 Main St. (PO Box 908), Norwich, VT 05055; 802-649-1143. The 200-year-old inn is the home of Jasper Murdock's Alehouse, a tiny brewpub that offers three of its ales at a given time. The inn is done up in a Victorian manner and has 25 guest rooms.

More beer, more romance A bed-and-breakfast doesn't have to install a brewery to be able to offer flavorful beer. Guests found craft beer in their room at the Mill Rose Inn in Half Moon Bay, CA, in 1988, and the Laughing Horse Inn in Taos, NM, put Santa Fe Pale Ale in its honor-system refrigerator before patrons could order the beer at most restaurants in town. Maybe beer is further along the romance curve than Rosie Dunsford realizes.

Those who want to add a little beer to their romance usually don't have to look far these days. B&Bs; that offer good beer selections include:

The Inn of the Hawke, 74 S. Union, Lambertville, NJ 08530; 609-397-9555. This inn has an excellent restaurant with a frequently changing menu, and serves a dozen good beers on tap and more in bottles. Accommodations include seven rooms, four with private bath. The Delaware River town of Lambertville is filled with antique shops and art galleries, as is its historic neighbor across the river, New Hope, PA.

Inn of Long Trail at Killington, VT 05751; 802-775-7181. The inn opened as Vermont's first ski lodge in 1938. Inside is McGrath's Irish Pub, which features Guinness, Harp and a craft beer on tap.

Bistrot Belgique Gourmande, 302 Poplar Alley, Occoquan, VA 22125; 703-494-1180. There's a lovely suite upstairs for those who want to stay in a traditional European inn (where a meal, not just breakfast, is included with lodging). The restaurant is open weekends and some week nights, and is as genuinely Belgian as a place gets, serving excellent Belgian food and offering a beer menu with more than 50 Belgian beers. Occoquan, situated about 20 miles south of Washington, DC, on the Potomac River, has many small shops.

If your idea of "The Love Boat" involves good beer and a classy yacht, look ahead to April, when you can enjoy a boat-and-breakfast in Annapolis, MD. The Schooner Woodwind sails four times daily from the Annapolis Marriott Waterfront Hotel (at city dock, 80 Compromise St., 800-336-0072) and offers a variety of craft beers for sale, most of them local.

"Most of our passengers are couples, and they love talking about the different beers they try," said Jennifer Kaye, director of marketing.

The 74-foot schooner carries 48 for each of the two-hour cruises, which cost $22 per person until the sunset cruise at 6:30 p.m., which is $25. The Tuesday evening cruise includes a complimentary beer tasting.

The boat-and-breakfast package costs $180 per couple, begins with the sunset cruise and concludes with breakfast on the boat in the morning. There are sleeping accommodations for eight on the schooner, which stays anchored at the dock at night.

This column originally appeared in All About Beer magazine in March 1996