Sunday, November 12, 2017

Three Beautiful Things 11/11/17: Breakfast Buffet, Distillery and Brewery Run, Steak Dinner

1. Mike, Ed, Terry, and I got off to a solid start this morning at the breakfast buffet with a full breakfast and some good yakking and laughing about all we had done the night before.

2. Terry and I jumped into his pickup and headed into the Willowa mountain country for a gorgeous drive to Joseph and Enterprise.  We had miles and miles of top notch conversation about all kinds of things, political and familial, including the situations we each faced with our now deceased mothers as they grew older and what is happening with Terry's over ninety year old mother-in-law.

At Joseph, we visited the Stein Distillery, a maker of fine whiskey, vodka, and cordials. I don't know the woman's name who hosted us and served us half ounce samples, but she was delightful and knowledgeable and generous. Terry and I loved Stein's moonshine, bourbon, rye whiskey, and vodka and I learned more about each. Both of us bought a bottle of 5 year aged rye whiskey and left warmed by both the spirits we consumed and the warmth of our host.

Next stop? Terminal Gravity Brewery and Pub in Enterprise. The pub is in a handsome older house, slightly similar to the High Street Pub in Eugene. I was a little bit fired up to see they had a strong ale and enjoyed my 9 oz pour a lot. I ordered chicken skewers and a cup of clam chowder, a perfect light lunch, and finished with a 9 oz pour of light and delicious golden ale, covering both ends of the beer strength spectrum.

3. Back at the casino, Ed, Mike, Terry, Jake, and I met at the Wildhorse's Plateau Steakhouse. I enjoyed a superb whiskey and ginger ale cocktail before diving into a juicy pepper-crusted Pendleton Whiskey Steak with rice pilaf and baby carrots. We had a great time yakkin about all kinds of stuff and our meal was deeply satisfying.

This great meal finished my night. I watched a little college football on television and, before long, fell into a relaxed and deep sleep.

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