Roslyn Brewery

[Kiltlifter]

Was up in Roslyn, WA this weekend for the first time. About 20 of us were up there mountain biking on some of the trails right outside town. I won't bore you with those details but after we were done riding, we hit the town in search of some food and beer. A friend and I gave up on waiting for food because there was just one waitress and at least 30 people in there. We couldn't find anywhere else to eat so decided to just bag the whole food thing and head straight for the beer.

The Roslyn Brewery is pretty small. Room for maybe 20 people max in there with a beer garden out back. The two beers they brew are excellent though. The Brookside lauger is smooth and satisfying with just a hint of the hops. My favorite was the Roslyn Dark beer. Good hop flavor with the backbone of the porter like body to back it up. If you combine the two of them together (very tasty combination ... highly recommended) you get a Brooklyn.

The lady who was in there said the owners were looking to sell. Hope that someone steps up and keeps the good brew flowing in this NW town. Roslyn still has that sorta quirky "Northern Exposure" flavor to it, IMO. There's some big changes on the horizon with massive developments planned for the area. I hope that somehow they're able to steer their way though and emerge little changed on the other side.

So ... if you're going to be in the area or just going through, drop off the rat race called I-90 for some time in the Roslyn Brewery. I daresay you won't be disappointed.

BTW - if you're looking for some info on the good mountain biking around there, let me know.

[batkins]

Where on earth is Roslyn? I'm in Vancouver, Wa but have only been here a couple of years. What type of trails? Singletrack? Anything the wife could handle? Sounds like a pretty good plan for a day.

[Kiltlifter]

Head up I-5 to Seattle and take I-90 east towards Spokane. After you go over Snoqualmie Pass and just before you get to the small town of Cle Elum, you'll see signs directing you to Roslyn.

Check out the link for more info on the Rat Pac (http://www.geocities.com/ratpactrail) trail. Depending upon your wife's technical abilities, she should be able to handle the trails around there. There are go-arounds for every "stunt" situation on Rat Pac. Signs direct you to the Easy or Hard route. There's lots of other good singletrack and also miles and miles of dirt roads with killer views of the Cascades.

[batkins]

Sounds good. I'll check into it further!

[Arassuil]

I used to live near Roslyn Washington, and as of October 2007, the Roslyn Brewery (http://www.roslynbrewery.com/) was still going strong. The brewery has a small taproom where you can get cheap pints or samplers of their three offerings (Brookside Pale Lager, Roslyn Dark Lager, and Number 9 Root Beer). There is no food here though, and its only open on Friday, Saturday, & Sunday afternoons. The 'Pastime Bar' is next door and attached to the brewery building-wise but I think it was sold off as a separate entity. Their food is average and overpriced, and the pints are a buck fifty more than the taproom next door! Avoid this place if possible and opt for the Brick Tavern on the corner as they have good food and a decent selection of brew with the Roslyn's two in the mix, and the pints are cheaper than the Pastime. The Caboose Tavern in Cle Elum has a nice selection as well.

I'll be back for my daughter's graduation in early June and plan on visiting these places.

[BrewDog]

I haven't been in there. Thanks for the writeup, Kilt.
We still need to get together one of these days for a beer now that I'm working over on the east side again.

[Arassuil]

Its good to see that The Roslyn Brewery (http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2008/03/23/news/doc47e484f387c39962280728.txt) is increasing their capacity, but not over-expanding. I think their Roslyn Dark Lager is one of the best brews. I'm looking forward to bringing a couple back with me in June!