When in Ithaca

When in Ithaca, NY you must drink what the Ithacans do.  I didn’t spend enough time there to do a formal poll of the residents, but if I lived there the beverage(s) of choice would definitely be beer from the Ithaca Beer Company.

Before moving on with that, I must share a few things about travel and food that I experienced on the way to Ithaca.

• During the accelerated walk to catch my connection at JFK, I noticed how beautiful the JetBlue terminal appeared to be.  I guess it has been a while since last flying through JFK, so it was my first time in the new digs.  I think a longer layover will be in my future to really get a better feel for the place.
• Picking up a (reserved) rental car should be a much quicker process than it always turns out to be.
• Driving into Syracuse and seeing familiar places again made me feel pretty comfortable even though I was there for only a short time.
• It is pretty much impossible for me to put into words how much I love Dinosaur BBQ.  I can say that there are very few things in life that I am willing to wait in line for and I would wait in line for hours at that place barefoot standing in broken glass just to get a spot inside so that my clothes could absorb the smell.  Fortunately a few friends and I did not have to wait that long to get a table when I met up with them in Syracuse for lunch.  For their sake I did not take their pictures while eating to save them from being seen with sauce all over their faces.  Thank you to Ann Marie and Rob for helping me get my fix!  If only the pictures were scratch-n-sniff . . .

Be sure to look both ways . . .

Slide into a seat . . .

Grab a bunch of napkins . . .

Do work!

Back to Ithaca and just a few beers (I was there for a wedding after all).

• Before getting into the Ithaca brews, I started with a Great Lakes Brewing Co. Edmund Fitz Porter.  I had to give a try after hearing good things about the brewery from a few friends.  It did not disappoint and only left me really wanting to try some of their other beers.

Edmund Fitz Porter

• From my somewhat limited experience, the Ithaca Beer Company really makes some excellent beer.  The Nut Brown and the Pale Ale were quite good, leaving me bummed that I did not have enough time to get to the brewery for some additional samples.  Lucky for me The Wife stopped in and gifted me some photos and glasses as souvenirs.  An even bigger surprise was Cousin Daniel’s gift of some or their more unique brews as a parting gift.  Pretty awesome family I have!  The next time I am town I think we will all make the trip to the brewery together.

Ithaca Pale Ale

Inside the brewery

• Pre wedding I enjoyed some Magic Hat Odd Notion.  Post ceremony I enjoyed (among others) a few Saranac brews and some Magic Hat #9.  Not a bad day for beer!
• We happened to be there during an apple festival downtown so I had to try some pumpkin whoopie pies, grab a few fresh off the tree apples, some apple cider doughnuts, and just take in the aromas of it all.  Not a bad time to be in town.

It's best to have a few to share.

Syracuse and Ithaca were an awesome start to a fantastic trip north.  If you are interested in a bit more of the goings on in Ithaca aside from my beer/food adventures (such as the wedding and some cool dogs) The Wife took care of that some days ago.