Williamsville Adventure

It was February 24 and Bier Goddess was sick of the cold weather that had her trapped inside. She was itching for an adventure. What is far enough from Toronto to feel like you're getting out of town but not so far that a one day round trip would wear you out? Consumer's Beverage in Williamsville, NY at 8580 Transit Road.

The hour and a half car ride was well rewarded. There was a good selection of bottled American micros (Rogue, Stone, Great Divide, Avery, Victory, Bear Republic, Ommegang, Middle Ages, Clipper City, etc.) and bottled imports. The bonus was the tap station where there are 12 drafts to choose from for a take-home growler. (http://www.consumersbeverages.com/brew/new.html)

And it was at the tap station that we began chatting with a very patient gentleman named Tom who helped us navigate through the choices of beer - choices of which is not to be had in Ontario.

After a lengthy visit we checked out, giddy with excitement. Between the two of us, we agonizingly made our final choices. The cart was full and we were getting hungry so this was the result of the check out: 68 bottles (fifty 331 ml bottles and eighteen 650 ml bottles), $260 USD and $65 CAD taxes at Canadian customs). Just a sidebar about wine. We found out that there was a recent change to the duty charged on wine. I had purchased four bottles, each priced at $15 USD. The duty on these four bottles of wine was $50 CAD!! The customs agent explained that the LCBO got wind of Canadians going across to NY state to buy higher priced bottles because the duty was approximately $2 per bottle. Now the duty is calculated on the price point versus the volume. An expensive lesson to learn but at least I didn't buy a case.

With hungry stomachs we made our way down Transit Road a couple of minutes to Pizza Plant.





(http://www.pizzaplant.com/)
They are famous for their gourmet pizza & pods (calzone type stuffed pocket) and a good selection of micro drafts. I had a pint of the Rogue cask-conditioned Charlie and Beer Guide had an Avery IPA.



This was the take out...the pods are BIG. The marinara sauce that comes with it is so yummy. I should have asked for an extra for my leftover.



At home with a growler...or two...cheers to a good day out!