West Flanders Brewing Co, 1125 Pearl Street, Boulder, CO 80302 phone: #303-447-2739   website: WFBrews.com/
Hours: M-Th 11am–10pm | F-Sa 11am–11pm | Su 11am–9pm
HAPPY HOUR - Monday-Friday 3-6pm -AND- Anytime the temperature drops below 20º

Experience before you go . . .

Well our Rocky Mountain experience continued through Fort Collins to visit some friends where I saw my life pass right before my eyes. After a drink and a big fabulous meal it was time to make our way to our tiny house located in our friend's backyard. I've heard of tiny houses but never stayed in one...I didn't find any gingerbread but it was cute and very comfortable! On my way through the main house to the backyard I hit a set of 4 wooden stairs leading to a landing and it was named approximately. My foot slipped right out from under me on the top stair and in a nano second I slipped down all 4 stairs and all I saw was the ceiling. Thank God my right hand had a tight grip on the railing or I think it might of been my time for the pearly gates. I stuck the flat footed dismount as the judges all gave me a decisive "10" for still being alive and being able to talk about it on the landing at the bottom of the stairs....pretty scary!!

Let's go to Boulder!! Next morning we hit the road and 2-3 hours later we're driving through Boulder on our way to the Embassy Suites. Basically brand new hotel and really nice, so later that day we decided to extend our stay for another day.....luv retirement and flexibility. Dinner that night was reconnecting with some old friends.....Ann and Pete! Ann and Kat were Alpha Phi sisters at the University of Illinois and we had visited them once before as a couple but that was over 30 years ago. Well we didn't miss a beat as great conversation and laughs took over and if it wasn't for the gray hair and smile lines you'd think we were still in our 30's....fun times. The whole next day Kat and I spent the day walking and checking out the sites. Pearl Street Mall is a stretch of 4-5 blocks located in historic downtown Boulder which is closed to traffic and lined with shops and restaurants. It was a beautiful day and we didn't have a care in the world. Kat walked in on a free yoga class and as I perused the street....looky here a brewery! West Flanders Brewing which has got to be located in the premier high rent district of Boulder...gotta pour a lot of Indian Pale Ales to cover that rent. So as Kat did the downward dog followed by a 2-minute plank and finishing with cat scratch fever I sat at the bar in West Flanders and drank a beer.

West Flanders is a locally owned Brewpub that is known for it's food as well as its beer. As I mentioned Pearl Street is the place to be if you're retail or a restaurant. It was lunchtime and there was a 15 minute wait for a table up front and the place was rocking. I used my famous side step, head fake on the hostess and continued to the back where the actual bar was located and in true Hoppin' Brewery Tour fashion I sat right down and got comfy. Clay was on me with a meet and greet and and I told him to pour me the West Flanders Flight which basically is....show me what's ya got!! To my left we have two Nordic looking ladies and I come to find out they are from Minneapolis /St. Paul located in the great state of Minnesota where there's 7 months of winter, 2 months of moderate and 3 months of somewhat warm summer temps. Now being the peacock/extrovert that I am sometimes I have trouble accepting that there are indeed owl/introvert folks out there. I know they exist, I've seen them and I've talked with them, I have a friend or two that are them (verbiage you can use if you have your own blog). And on the HBT I've run into several of them sitting right next to me at the bar. Easy to spot, looking straight ahead, no eye contact, one word answers to some of my famous ice breaker one liners...."Whatcha drinking", "Where you from", "What are your thoughts about brown bat migration"? The usual, and you'd think that with all this introverted first contact I've witnessed over the years that I'd learn you can not turn an introvert into an extrovert.....and the reverse is obviously true as well. But for some reason I continue to try and I'm thinking it's the extrovert in me.....go figure! I know they truly want to talk to me, "How are the Vikings looking this year", "Good"! Well I guess I'll just sit here and enjoy my beers.

Clay poured me up four of their brews to give me that Boulder feel. First was Pomdotcom - Pomegranate Sour (6.8%) Clay said drink first to open up the taste buds and that it did, lip smacking and taste buds open. Sours have gotten huge in the last couple of years but historically speaking sours have been brewed since the Middle Ages in Monasteries by Trappist Monks. For example, the monastery of La Trappe in Soligny had its own brewery in 1685 and from there other monasteries all across Europe began brewing. Monks brewing beer was originally done to feed the communities but now it funds their work and charitable causes. To maintain this level of excellence in 1997 the International Trappist Association (ITA) was formed consisting of eight Trappist Abbeys, six from Belgium, one from the Netherlands and one from Germany all adhering to strict production criteria. So next time you're in your local liquor store look for the Trappist logo and enjoy......history lesson for the day. Next up on my flight was Holy Wit - Belgium Witbier (5.1%, 18 IBU) smooth, refined, nice finish; next was Angry Monk - Belgium Abbey Ale (6.8%) good cold weather beer, complex; and finally I was sipping on the 3rd Kingdom - American IPA (6.7%, 67 IBU) good ole American IPA, hoppy and wise my favorite.

Since I was having no luck talking to my bar neighbors I was ecstatic when Kat finally arrived after her Boulder Yoga Class....can you say strike a pose! West Flanders has really good food and really good beer which is a successful combo right down there on high rent Pearl Street. Definitely check them out next time in Boulder and tell them Clyde sent ya!!

Until next time and remember.....

Go get'cha one!!!