Best Place, Beer History Tour (Set 2)

The rest of the tour moved on,

but I wanted to get a closer look at the office I saw.

Recently on a show called Abandoned, this desk was featured.

It was once used by Captain Frederick Pabst.

Jim Haertel, the owner, was not keen on anyone sitting at it.

Once again, the rest of the tour moved on.

This gave me an opportunity to take my time photographing.

In another room, older decorations of the building were found.

Not sure where this was found, but it's a generic beer.

Does anyone remember generic black/white labels?

Does anyone remember buying generic beer?

Another piece of "art" found was this Schlitz poster.

Schlitz, owned by Pabst, brewed by Miller.

If anyone is paying attention, you can add this to my wish list.

We really didn't have a lot of time so I called my friend Dan over.

You see I needed an accomplice.

I needed to sit at Captain Pabst's desk.

I just had to!

Best Place, Beer History Tour (Set 1)

Welcome to the Pabst community! Lots of beer history in Milwaukee.

This impressive building has a 'castle' feel to it.

Another photo of the building outside.

In the main court, a statue of Captain Frederick Pabst welcomes everyone.

This was found inside one of the buildings.

Before we actually tour, we are entertained with some history and a beer.

For those unaware, the "B" stands for Best.

Jacob Best is the founder.

On our way to tour one of the buildings, we are greeted by King Gambrinus, the patron saint of beer. This particular statue is on loan from the Illinois headquarters of Pabst.

But as 'Best Place' owner Jim Haertel reminded us, possession is 9/10 of the law.

Lots of great architecture can be found inside this building. 

Also older Pabst signs and memorabilia.

As we toured some of the common areas, 

we learned Jim intends to turn this into a Beer/Bed/Breakfast. 

Each room containing it's own beer tapper.

As this photo shows, there is a lot of work to be done.

Beyond this point we were forbidden. Not all of the building has been cleared for tour groups.

Vacation Day 2 - Dublin, Ireland

Our next full day in Dublin, we travelled to the Guinness Storehouse. What else? Foremost on our mind was attending the Guinness Academy where we learned to pour the perfect pint of Guinness.

Here we see Dan crafting the perfect pint. I succeeded as well and have the documentation to prove it.

One of my favourite things is antique or vintage products. So it was nice to get a chance to see some of Guinness' older bottles and packaging. They even had a video display of some vintage Guinness adverts. I could have stayed all day just checking those out. Here's a few examples of ones I saw:

The tour (though really more of a museum) showcased how the Guinness storage barrels were originally created by hand. Hard, strenuous, meticulous work. Walking through the barrel designed entrance offered up video and displays of original tools used.

After a hard session of learning to craft the perfect pint of beer, we stopped in the Guinness Cafe. Learned a few new Guinness recipes, had a proper Irish Sheppard's Pie and enjoyed a Guinness Foreign Extra.

When I look for things to photograph there are usually several things I look for. One is breath-taking scenery. I found this scene so captivating because in Wisconsin where I live, we just don't have views of mountains in the background. Hope you enjoy this!

One of the other things I love to take photographs of are buildings. I never figured out what this was exactly, but think it was some sort of a school. Either way, a very impressive building.

On our way back to our lodging for the evening, we stopped at this pub, the Porterhouse Brewing Co. for a pint. They have locations in London and New York as well.

Chicago: Goose Island Brewing Company

During a recent trip to Chicago, I had the opportunity to tour the Goose Island Brewery. Who doesn't like to see how beer is made? Oatmeal Stout. Mmmmmm, one of my favorites.


To be honest, I wasn't very familiar with the beer company. Truth be told, I generally stick to either Import beer, or local breweries. But it's always nice to try something new for a change.


The tour was a bit smaller than I was accustomed to. A lot of us were crammed into a small space. But if you can get past that, it's an interesting tour set inside the actual pub where the beer is then sold.


During the tour we were able to enjoy whatever beer we already purchased up in the bar, while waiting for the tour to begin. Our tour guide enjoyed one as well as he described some of the uses of the various equipment.


After the tour was complete, came the taste testing. A selection of 6 different beers for available to sample, via taste, smell and looks. Also provided was a pint glass.


As we did our sampling, the tour guide was available to inform us of what each beer was, and what some of the additional ingredients were, outside the typical four; water, grains, hops and yeast.