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In fact, Skagit Valley Malting has taken advantage of the area’s perfect barley-growing environment to produce malt that shares characteristics with North European varieties. It’s no coincidence that there’s a distinct leaning towards British and German beer styles within the Skagit County breweries. It comes from the habit of male dogs licking their testicles (bollocks) and that they must taste good as they spend so much time in this activity. Something like Dog’s Bollocks British Brown Porter.Īnd, for those of you wondering what the hell I’m talking about, here’s a definition according to In UK slang, the “dog’s bollocks” means “the best”. I’m getting the Sex Pistols connection but – if I could be so bold – I’d suggest renaming it with something that better reflects the quality of the beer. We also couldn’t help notice their nod towards English-speak with the abruptly-named Bollocks British Brown Porter. Including, when we visited, Ten Pin Brewery’s obscenely good Gutterball Hazy Pale Ale (5.5% ABV). Located close to Mt Vernon railway station, it’s housed in an old character-laden brick building and boasts an old saloon-style piano at the entrance.Īnd, unlike the other brewpubs in our guide, it also features guest beers from other breweries. Probably the Skagit County brewpub that most reminds us of a typical British town pub. But hopefully, you’ll have the opportunity to at least try one or two of the breweries in the area.Īnd if you do, our Complete Skagit Brewery Guide might just become your new best friend.Ĥ04 South Third Street, Mt Vernon, WA 98273 / Established 1995 / Website

Now it’s possible that you won’t have as much time as we had during your visit to this beautiful part corner of the world. Either via the long route (working your way through a pint of each one) or the short route (by buying a flight of one-third pints ranging from six to nine beers).

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But, having long-thought that American beers were defined by mega-corporates and the occasional usurper such as Anchor, Sierra Nevada and Blue Moon, it’s been something of a revelation to discover such a localised and quality-driven beer scene.īetter still, the breweries themselves provide their own taprooms where the full range of their beers can be sampled.

That’s not to say that the region’s production of wine is to be sniffed at either. And, to be honest, having spent the winter months in rain-soaked Skagit County, up in the far north-west of Washington State, the plethora of craft beer breweries on our doorstep has been a major positive. To our surprise – and enormous delight – the craft beer scene in the USA is as good as everyone seems to suggest.