My Kids and thier thoughts on Whiskey

I talk a lot about following your dreams and pursuing your passions. You have read that I fully support my husband and his journey of becoming one heck of an awesome Whiskey Master Taster. By now, you may be getting the sense that I look forward to planning trips for my entire family to enjoy while still allowing time for distillery tours and whiskey tastings. But have you every actually wondered, “What do those two boys ACTUALLY think of their parents and the whiskey???” (If you haven’t, I bet I just put it into your mind!)

A couple posts ago, I mentioned that I would discuss what my two boys think about their father becoming the “Whiskey Lover” and me writing as the “Whiskey Lovers Wife”, talking about their thoughts and feelings about whiskey (and alcohol.)

I strongly believe in transparency. I am an open book. And for better or for worse, that is how Josh and I parent. Open, honest, hiding nothing. I am not an expert parent. I am not perfect. I do have a lot of schooling that says I am knowledgeable in the areas of kids, teaching, counseling and coaching. But still, I can honestly tell you, Josh and I have had some major parenting fails. I hope and pray that Josh’s desire to educate others on whiskey is not going to end up as a parenting fail, or that my excitement to tie whiskey tastings into family vacations will not mentally scar my children!

So, what do Luke and Lane really think about the whiskey tastings?
Well, you can see from this picture that they get the chance to play on some sort of technology (they were playing on a Minecraft app!) Really though, that doesn’t add to their thoughts one way or another.

First, let me back up a bit…around 6 years backing up! Our youngest was 3-ish, probably edging close to 4 years old. We live near Olympia, WA where, once upon a time, Olympia Beer was created and produced. Olympia Beer is no longer in Olympia (having been bought out and produced back east, thus losing it’s popularity) the big brewery building lays deserted, decrepit, and a constant reminder of what used to be. Slightly down the Deschutes River is the old brick original brewery. You can see it from the freeway, or by taking in the lovely sites at the Tumwater Falls park or Pioneer Park, both in Tumwater. Well, when our wee one was such the young age as mentioned above, he was at the parks with his grandparents (my parents) and he told them, “See that building over there? I’m going to buy it some day and make beer.” Here’s the weird thing…he didn’t know it had been a brewery. Also, while my hubby did try his hand at brewing beer as a hobby (yes, this was YEARS before he became a Whiskey Lover!), our little guy did not know anything about breweries! Crazy!

That little guy is now 9 years old. He still constantly talks about the brewery he is going to buy. We take him often to look at this building. 

It is a beautiful building. And he has his business plan really laid out. Originally he was going to finance this dream by being a Seattle Seahawk football player first, but as he now realizes that is a long shot, and he is VERY talented in the world of Minecraft and all things technology, he figures he will go to college, get some sort of computer degree, be a YouTuber, AND find people that will loan him money to buy a brewery business and make his beer. Now that dad is quite knowledgeable in whiskey, our little guy said that by being a brewer, he can then distill. He also wants to have a restaurant in his brewery and says every Tuesday and Wednesday he will feed the homeless, but they aren’t allowed to drink any of his alcohol! Seriously, he has had this game plan for over half his little life now!

And the oldest child? He is into Agriculture and sees his future in Ag Engineering. He also had a long conversation with little brother on how he could be a business partner someday, ensuring the correct hops are found and purchased, that the barley, wheat, corn, etc for the beer and distilling were certified organic, and sourced locally. My boys have learned how many of the smaller distilleries we have visited sends the by product of the mash to nearby farms for their pigs and cattle to eat. Our oldest loved that and tells little brother that his services will be very useful with farm dealings. So, it sounds like this will become a family thing, someday!

As you can see, many dreams and passions are rolled into this Whiskey Loving adventure. Additionally, my kiddos have loved going on day trips, and longer trips, seeing new places, doing cool things in the towns and cities we visit. My oldest son would like everyone to know, “You must be responsible when you drink. But, you must be responsible with every thing you do. Don’t drink until you are legal. And never drink to get drunk, because then you act stupid and nobody likes a stupid person.” Preach it son!

 

 

To Skamania, and Beyond!

   It’s Spring Break, and I have to confess, this year the Whiskey Lover husband and I were a bit selfish. Okay, a lot selfish. We took ourselves on a little get-a-way, which means our boys were not included on this trip! The little dude stayed with Grammie and Grandpa while the teen was with his dad, which meant, ahhhhhh, a night of child-free sleep, eating and drinking what we wanted, and quiet r&r sitting in a 21 and older hot tub at the beautiful Skamania Lodge! 

We made a last minute decision to do this little vacation just a week prior, and, being the budget savvy (some might even call me cheap) wife I am, I headed to Groupon and found an incredible deal for the Skamania Lodge! And booked it immediately. We enjoyed drinks at the River Rock lounge, went into the town of Skamania and ate a DELICIOUS dinner at the Red Bluff Tap House (while also watching the Final Four championship game, rooting for the Gonzaga Bulldogs!), then came back to the lodge to enjoy the hot tub and then relax in front of the fire place in our room. It was delightful! 

Then we headed to Hood River, OR the next morning. I had never been to Hood River, and it was just short 30 minutes away. I was excited to taste some wine a the Cathedral Ridge Winery and boy, oh boy, oh boy! Their wine did NOT disappoint! It was sooooooo good!!! I particularly liked their Rusty Red Reserve (with the black Lab on the label!),  their Cab Franc, and their Riesling.

Then, it was off to the Hood River Distillers Inc. Oh WOW! Should you get the chance to take a trip and do a tasting there, you’ve GOT to do it. (And here’s a secret, I did not try any whiskey!!!) So, this Whiskey Lover’s Wife did not join in tasting whiskey with the hubby. NO, instead I tried the Pear Brandy, three different fruit liqueurs, and a Nordic peppermint spirit called Ullr. Oh my lanta, soooo good! Josh was impressed with the whiskey’s they carried, purchasing the McCarthy’s (from Clear Creek Distillery) Single Malt Whiskey. “McCarthy’s Oregon Single Malt Whiskey is distilled in a Holstein pot still using one pass distillation, this premium, non-chill filtered product is then barrel-aged in air-dried Oregon oak barrels. The result is remarkably smooth for a 3-year-old whiskey.” I am going to assume that Josh will have something to say about the smokey peated flavor of this whiskey on his Whiskey Lover’s Blog.  He also purchased the Hood River Delicious Apple Brandy, because once it is gone, it’s gone! I had to have the Clear Creek Raspberry liqueur (because it tasted like jam off a spoon! Oh my!!!!) and the Ullr. I told Josh I really loved the Ullr because it tastes like toothpaste, which kind of is totally true, but makes me giggle because when my sister and I were younger, she used to like drinking mouthwash! hahahaha! That’s the truth! I can’t even make that up! SO, I am willing to bet that my sister is going to love this!

To finish off our trip, we stopped by the Edgefield McMenamins in Troutdale, OR to try their whiskey from the distillery on that property. Josh purchased the Single Malt Hogshead Whiskey, and the barley for that whiskey comes from Vancouver, WA. While Josh enjoyed a distillery tour, I enjoyed this Pear Royale drink! I would love to tell you what was in it, because it tasted like a little sliced of heaven, but honestly, I have no idea. I just sat back, enjoyed the flavor and made small talk with the bartender! (I always tend to draw people into some great conversations, and I learned that this young man would be traveling to Japan soon and was excited for his upcoming adventure! Totally cool! I shared with him our plans for Scotland this summer, and we had a great little conversation about travel!) Soon, Josh was back from his tour and we were ready to go eat at the Black Rabbit restaurant on the property. We ate a lot of great food on this trip! And luckily, I have an amazing hubby who woke me up at 5am today to make me go lift weights with him since I was complaining that my pants were tight! You know, eating and drinking good things does come with a price!

During our little get-a-way, I was able to talk to Josh about all I had learned at my Saturday Gottman leader training on the “Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work”, and it was great to refresh our communication skills and engage in thoughtful and deep conversation. (If you’d like more info on that, or to talk with me about marriage coaching and learning the tools and techniques to have and maintain an awesome relationship, visit me at www.staciestoneycoaching.com)  What a wonderful two days spent re-connecting while also allowing for Josh to get his whiskey tasting on!

Oh, and our little dude said he didn’t really miss us at all because he had more fun at Grammie and Grandpa’s house…and he enjoyed his little get-a-way as well!!!

Thanks for reading this week’s adventure with the Whiskey Lover’s Wife!