last weekend / cornelius pass roadhouse microbrews at dusk:

 

                       my RUBY ale ~~~ *** what a  l o v e l y *  pink l’il gal ~~ !

{ mcmenamins was the first brewery in the country to legally use fruit in the creation of ales. 42 pounds of oregon-grown and processed raspberry puree are used in every batch. ;) }

                            carmen luvin’ his ~~ sunbeam citra gold ~~

 

 

dan ordered the switchback summer bitter english pale ale, but he was actually disappointed. (that’s his disappointed face. no matter what, it’s still beer! LOL. and imagine what his pure happy face looks like!)

he joined carmen on the citra-wagon but was also interested in the flower power IPA {vienna malt with hints of caramel and plenty of hop flavors, including pine resin and citrus blossom…} has anyone tried that one?

save the ruby, these are brews from the roadhouse location only, which also happens to be one of our favorite pubs, especially in the summer with the picnic tables, the white shed and bonfire, and the twinkling lights among the trees.

 

******

 

while we were sipping and talking, we noticed the sound of a marching band practicing at the nearby high school. dan, lorri, and i were all in marching band in high school and/or college (dan was a drum major!) and we respectively collapsed into ooohs and ahhhs at the sounds drifting our way in the summer air. lorri promptly checked her iphone for details when the next DCI (drum corps international) show would be in town and we all agreed to go together. before she could see the calendar, both her and dan commented on how the high school band sounded really good. really, really good. to our surprise (and delight!) it WAS dci performing NOT a local marching band rehearsal. ;) we finished our drinks and met at the stadium a few miles away. lorri stopped and bought blankets to keep us (girls) warm, i scored some popcorn, and we waltzed in wide and free to catch the last three performances, including the blue knights’ finale.

 

i can’t even begin to articulate the nostalgia i felt hearing the music (those drum lines!) and from sitting in the bleachers, watching the lines and shapes shifting across the field. we will definitely plan ahead for next summer’s show. ;)