Passport – A Craft Beer & Culinary World Tour

I heard about this for the first time on Facebook…don’t know why I’ve not heard of it last year, as we are members of Strawbery Banke Museum.  Don’t know why this was never announced in the member newsletter.  But that’s okay, we know about it now, tickets have been bought.

Passport is an event that will be held on the grounds of Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth, NH, on September 25.  It will feature fine craft beers from New Hampshire and other parts of New England, paired with foods from some of Portsmouth’s best restaurants.  Please watch the video below to get an idea of what to expect.

If you can’t see the video here, try going to the Passport website and see it there.  Seeing this video definitely makes me all the more excited to go.  It’s clearly not a mob scene, as those Phantom Gourmet Food Festivals are, and you get more than a little teeny-tiny cup sized portion, also a hallmark of the Phantom Gourmet festivals!  The grounds of Strawbery Banke are gorgeous, and the weather should be lovely at the end of September.  It’s certainly a lot more fun than attending an SEM Chicago event, and certainly nicer than that Phantom Gourmet crap!

We decided to splurge and get the VIP tickets, which include a special reception with the brewmasters, and tastings of beer and food not included in the regular event.  And a VIP goodie bag, too!  VIP tickets are $85 per person and are very limited.  If you don’t want to spend that much, general admission tickets, to the regular event only, are $45 until August 15; after that they’ll be $60.

The VIP reception goes from 4-5PM, the regular event runs from 5-9PM.  All proceeds go to benefit Strawbery Banke and New Hampshire Public Television; both excellent causes and well worth supporting.  For more information and to buy tickets, go HERE.

Cheers!

Save with HHonors Points!

It does pay to be loyal to one chain or another.  Mike and I often stay at the Hilton Garden Inn in Manchester, NH, because we go to a lot of Fisher Cats games.  And we’ll likely be staying there a LOT more next year, because we are getting season tickets.

So I decided to sign up for the HHonors Rewards Program.  Why not, we stay at this place enough, why not earn some points to use for free future stays?

It’s a cool program, you can also choose to earn airline miles, as well as room stay points.  Or, if you are like me and don’t fly, you can earn HHonors Points and HHonors Points, earning 150% points in lieu of airline miles.  Not too shabby.

A cool thing they do is offer Point-Stretcher periods…these are only in selected hotels at selected times, but if it happens to be where and when you want to travel, you can make out very well.  You can get a free room for 40% less points than normal.  This worked out very well for us – we are planning to go to Manchester, NH in November for the New Hampshire Brewers Festival.  Naturally, we have to stay at a hotel nearby, as we don’t want to be driving all the way home drunk!  Rather than staying at the Radisson, where the beer fest is taking place, I checked and saw  that the weekend of the beer fest was a Point-Stretcher period at the Hilton Garden Inn.  So I booked with them…the room will be free, and they also have a free shuttle van that will take us to the Radisson and back, we stayed there for last year’s fest and used it.  Even so, it’s still a reasonable walk.

The points can be earned and spent at the entire Hilton Family of hotels.  When we visited Mystic Seaport, and I had a choice of hotels, I chose the Hampton Inn in Mystic, because I could earn some HHonors points for staying there.  Sadly, they are not a Point-Stretcher hotel, but the Hampton Inn in Sturbridge is.  And they have Point-Stretcher periods every weekend in December, right when Old Sturbridge Village has their Christmas programs.  Yay!  Another free hotel stay!  Yeah, we’ve been normally staying at the Super 8, which is closer to the Village and also walking distance to the Piccadilly Pub.  Nothing wrong with it, but who am I to turn down FREE?  I did sign up for the Wyndham Rewards thingy through Super 8, but we don’t stay at any of their properties enough to ever maintain membership or qualify for any freebies.  So why bother?

The Hilton properties are nice – the Hampton Inns are a small step down from the Hilton Garden Inns, mostly in that most rooms do not have refrigerators.  But we have a portable mini-fridge, so that is not a problem.  Still, they have a lot of amenties, such as cable TV, free internet, free breakfast, and a well stocked bathroom.  No acne treatment gel, if you need that, as I do, you gotta bring your own. But they have shampoos, conditioners, nice soaps, lotions, and more.

I’m so glad I signed up for this!  We’ll be enjoying many freebies now!

Military Appreciation Weekend at Mystic Seaport

This coming weekend, July 10-11, visit Mystic Seaport Museum and help celebrate Military Appreciation Weekend.  Visitors can tour a real Navy ship and meet real Navy men and women who work on board.  And all active duty and retired military of all branches, and their families, will receive special discounted admission!

If you will be in the Newport, RI area and like to sail, there are still some spots left for the Mystic Seaport America’s Cup Regatta.    The yachts all have nice names and a lot of history, none of them are called prototype 37-c or anything like that. I suppose if you are not sailing, you’re allowed to go down there and just watch.  The race will take place on Saturday, July 10.

Finally, back in Mystic on Sunday, wind down your weekend with one of the Seaport’s Summer Sunday Evenings by the River. These free events run from 5-8PM every Sunday during the summer.  The exhibits will be closed, but visitors are still allowed to stroll the grounds, listen to live local musicians, and enjoy outdoor dining and a cash bar at Schaefer’s Spouter Tavern ($ applies to food and drinks).  Beat the heat by enjoying the lovely evening breeze from the river!

4th of July at Old Sturbridge Village

Are you looking for an interesting way to spend Independence Day?  Don’t want to deal with the mob scenes that will no doubt be all over Boston, especially at the Esplanade?  Then why not come out to Old Sturbridge Village, where you can enjoy not one, but TWO special holiday programs?

Come for the day, and enjoy an 1830′s Independence Day.  Or come for the evening program, and enjoy entertainment, games, and to cap it all off – FIREWORKS!  Or choose to come for the day, and stay for the evening!  Please note that two separate admission fees are involved.  Daytime activities are regular Museum admission costs, a separate ticket is needed for the evening program.

Regular Museum admission prices are $20 for adults, $18 for seniors (65+), $7 for kids (3-17), free, for kids under 3.  Museum members are admitted free.  For the evening program, current prices are $10 for members and $12 for non-members.  Kids under 3 free.  As of July 1, all tickets will be $15.  This sells out every year, so get your tickets ASAP!

Beer Tastings Aboard the Mayflower II

Back in May, I blogged about summer beer tastings aboard Plimoth Plantation’s Mayflower II.  Well, now the schedule has officially been announced.  These tastings will take place aboard the ship every Wednesday evening, from 5:30 – 7PM.  The cost for the tasting is $10 in addition to admission to the ship; Plimoth Plantation Museum members get to board the ship free.  Participants must be 21 +, and the cost includes a special Mayflower Ale pint glass to take home.

The only one of Mayflower Brewing Company’s beers I have tried so far is their Pale Ale.  They have it on tap at the museum’s restaurant.  I am anxious to try their other brews, most notably their Summer Rye Ale, I’ve been hearing great things about that stuff!

Come dressed comfortable and casual, no need for protective clothing – the ship doesn’t sail, it stays docked. I haven’t had a chance to see it yet, but I hear that the exhibit is staffed with costumed role players who will talk about what it was like to be a sailor back in the 1600′s. Yes, and the exhibit will actually be open, it’s open evenings now all summer.

Looking forward to our first visit, and to the beer!