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1st time to Seattle! Where to go??

Discussion in 'US: Northwest' started by OoReFLuXoO, May 14, 2015.

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  1. OoReFLuXoO

    OoReFLuXoO Initiate (0) Feb 2, 2012 California

    I'm going to visit some family in Seattle in July. Is there any locals here to recommend and brewerys to stop and visit?

    I'm from the SF Bay. I have the privilege of some great local brewerys. Drake, Pyramid, Russian River esc esc.

    Other than a Google search. Fremont and Black Raven are in the scope. Looking for that fine Single ours Double IPA!

    Your thoughts or comments are appreciated! Thanks in advanced!
     
    #1 OoReFLuXoO, May 14, 2015
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  2. BuckeyeOne

    BuckeyeOne Initiate (0) Mar 9, 2008 Washington

    #2 BuckeyeOne, May 14, 2015
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  3. OoReFLuXoO

    OoReFLuXoO Initiate (0) Feb 2, 2012 California

    EXACTLY what I was looking for. You killed it! Thanks!!
     
    #3 OoReFLuXoO, May 14, 2015
  4. sukwonee

    sukwonee Initiate (0) Dec 13, 2011 Washington

    Do this!

    1st stop(s) - Fremont area - Fremont Brewing (Must!), Brouwers (Must!), Sixgill, (Paseos or Royal Grinders for sandwiches!)
    2nd stop(s) - Ballard area - Reubens Brews (Must!), Stoup (optional - i.e. not a must visit) - there are a bunch of breweries near this area that (imho) are pretty... much... all optional... but boy there are a lot of them all within walking distance from each other.

    I feel Fremont and Ballard are just a must - no brainer here. Black Raven is cool but it really depends on what they have on tap and also it's quite far away from Seattle. I feel like their service is so inconsistent (sometimes very unfriendly!) that even though it's much closer to where I live, they just don't quite become my go-to brewery.

    Other cool spots to hit up before or after 1st and 2nd stops above:

    Bottleworks
    Toronado
    Burgundian
    Pine Box (so cool! - probably my 1st or 2nd fav bar)

    If you're going to Black Raven on the Eastside, make sure to stop by Malt and Vine (which is a bottle shop / beer bar-ish). I wouldn't bother hitting up Hi Fi Brewing. If anything check out Bellevue Brewing (although I feel like this is also VERY optional) and Geux Brewery.

    Cheers! hope this helps!
     
    #4 sukwonee, May 14, 2015
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  5. sukwonee

    sukwonee Initiate (0) Dec 13, 2011 Washington

    How dare I have left out Chucks and Beer Junction! Silly me.
     
    #5 sukwonee, May 14, 2015
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  6. BBThunderbolt

    BBThunderbolt Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,294) Sep 24, 2007 Kiribati
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    If one considers a 20-30 minute drive "quite far". Seattleites have this weird notion that anything outside the city limits might as well be on Mars.
     
    #6 BBThunderbolt, May 14, 2015
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  7. sukwonee

    sukwonee Initiate (0) Dec 13, 2011 Washington

    I would agree with you during non-traffic hours... but yeah traffic from Seattle to Redmond makes this drive seem a lot farther away than it actually is.
     
    #7 sukwonee, May 14, 2015
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  8. t4h2c0

    t4h2c0 Initiate (0) Jun 5, 2007 Washington

    Fremont Brewing, best brewery in WA state IMO
     
    #8 t4h2c0, May 14, 2015
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  9. Orca

    Orca Grand Pooh-Bah (4,553) Sep 18, 2010 Washington
    Pooh-Bah

    I basically avoid getting on any of the major roads anymore whenever possible during weekends between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., as well as weeknights before about 8 p.m. What should be a 20-minute drive can often end up being an hour or more. It's not unusual for it to take me 20 minutes to get from my house in Maple Leaf over to Crown Hill (less than 4 miles) in what has now become pretty standard traffic. I avoid the Eastside like the plague.

    So yeah, it seems like a weird notion until you've lived here for a while.
     
    #9 Orca, May 14, 2015
  10. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,497) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I don't live in Seattle (obviously), but this is pretty consistent with my experience as well.

    Last time I drove up to Fremont brewing from Tacoma (a 40 mile drive, according to google), it took me roughly an hour and 15 minutes to get there, and I felt like I hit the lottery, because I made the trip so quickly. A previous trip up to Black Raven took nearly an hour and a half, with more than a half hour of that trip dedicated to dodging traffic on 85th Ave/Redmond Blvd. In both instances, I went during what is/was supposed to be off peak travel times (dealing with Seattle rush hour traffic is a nightmare I try to avoid at all costs).

    Frankly, if it wasn't such a colossal hassle, I'd visit Fremont brewing every time I'm in the area, as I love the layout of the beer garden, and am a huge fan of their beers. However, whenever I consider what I know the drive is going to be like, I quickly drop that idea, and take a look at the current seletion over at the Red Hot, E9, Pint Defiance and the Parkway Tavern instead. Those places are all pretty solid, which is a further incentive for avoiding the drive up to Ballard, Fremont, Redmond, etc.

    Like Drahiem I gather, I always think long and hard before making any sort of drive up to and around the Seattle area.
     
    #10 John_M, May 14, 2015
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  11. Orca

    Orca Grand Pooh-Bah (4,553) Sep 18, 2010 Washington
    Pooh-Bah

    Well, except that I live in the middle of it, so I often have no choice. I just try to build in as much extra time as possible and never assume traffic will be light, regardless of whether it's a weekday, weekend, rush hour or off-peak. All bets are off.

    Fortunately for me based just on where I live, Fremont is probably my closest brewery and regardless of traffic almost always about a 10-minute drive. Hence (in addition to the great beer) my zealous loyalty to the Heron.
     
    #11 Orca, May 14, 2015
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