It's now officially Beer Week in the Bay Area, and there's nothing my cycling friends love more than their bicycles than beer (well, perhaps coffee is a close second.)
The local bike shop pushbike organized a fun social ride to the Marin Brewing Company in Larkspur, and over 30 of us gathered to make the 40-mile round trip to the brewery. It was also a benefit ride for the local cap maker and home brewer Kachusha "Chuey" Munkanta.
After crossing the Golden Gate Bridge, we stopped at Cibo in Sausalito for some caffeine (like I said, we love our coffee.)
Cibo's the home of 2girl Coffee, which has some clever descriptions for their assortment of beans.
After getting fueled up, we headed onwards to "Paradise Loop," a scenic and popular route located just past Tiburon.
Marin Brewing Company was packed to capacity as it was a beautiful Saturday afternoon.
Just behind the bar, there's a window where you can see their selection of fresh beer currently stored on the premises.
They also serve up the usual array of bar food including burgers, sandwiches and wood-fired pizza.
I ordered their Platypus Venom, a strong 10% ABV Imperial Stout (which I had to try since the platypus is my favorite animal) seasoned with star anise and blackstrap molasses. It's a pretty hefty brew that would go well with a dark chocolate dessert.
After a leisurely lunch, most folks opted to take the ferry home afterwards from Larkspur.
But a small group of us slowly rolled back to SF -- after waiting for our beer buzzes to wear off - so we could spend more time in the warm winter sunshine. Bicycles + beer = bliss!
Marin Brewing Company
Address: 1809 Larkspur Landing Circle map
Larkspur, CA 94939
Ph:(415) 461-4677
Facebook: Marin Brewing Company
Twitter: @MarinBrewingCo
Chuey is also participating in a free event at the Cervecería de MateVeza this upcoming Monday.
Cerveceria & Chuey Collaboration Benefiting the Glen Hay Falconer Foundation
February 11
5:00pm – 9:00pm
"Our good friend and prolific homebrewer Kachusha "Chuey" Munkanta came over to brew a Falconer's Flight hopped, yerba mate infused collaboration beer. We brewed only 20 gallons, so get it while you can! Proceeds of our collaboration will benefit the Glen Hay Falconer Foundation, a non-profit organization created to commemorate and celebrate the life, interests, and good works of a well-loved and leading Northwest brewer."
Address: map
Cervecería de MateVeza
3801 18th Street
San Francisco, CA 94114
Ph: (415) 273-9295
Admission: Free