Brewery Tours are Free Fun!

So that last post about the ZON got me thinking about Boulevard. And what kindof Free Fun could be had involving Boulevard. Duh - they give free tours at the brewery! There aren't many spaces left in 2009, and it looks like they don't have the schedule for 2010 posted yet. A lot of people are taking advantage of this free fun, which includes samples. (Yes!)

Luckily, Schlafly in STL also gives tours - and they are also free! Yeah, I know. Driving to St. Louis is not free, and if you're there to check out Schlafly you'll probably have to eat and drink at one of their two brewpubs, which means you probably shouldn't drive the four hours back to KC and will probably also have to spring for a hotel room, unless you have friends or family to offer a free bed for the night. But the tour is free! Unlike that other brewery in STL *cough*Anheuser-Busch*cough*InBev*cough* who charges twenty-five bucks for the Beermaster Tour. What a bunch of BS that is, huh? Like they don't have billions and billions of dollars. Plus, Boulevard Pilsner kicks Bud's ass any day of the week. Schlafly has a pilsner, too, that I haven't tried, but am also certain is better than Budweiser.

I guess ZON is a winner....

I never really cared much for Boulevard's summer seasonal, ZON. But after not touching it for a couple of years, I tried it again this summer. The Case Man and I were stocking the beer & meat fridge with the Boulevard sampler packs from Costco, so we ended up with the ZON by default. So I tried it again, and to my surprise, I kinda liked it. Actually, I really liked it. It was nice and refreshing and citrusy on a warm summer day. I guess my palate has matured and developed a little in the last couple of years. Must have something to do with turning 30.

Anyway, after re-discovering ZON this summer, I was surprized and excited to read today that it was a gold medal winner at the 2009 Great American Beer Festival in the Belgian-style Witbier category. Yay Boulevard!

Blogging is free fun...

I had some free fun here and changed around the looky loo I had goin' on the ol' blog. I like it! New colors for winter. Let me know what you think. Well, I know Neighbor Shane will, because he's the only one who ever comments.

Where's (Free Fun In) Waldo?

Waldo Fall Festival 2009 is this weekend! There will be the usual festival festivities - police cars and firetrucks and clowns and whatnot. You know. Family fun for all! Those of us in the neighborhood can just walk there and then walk and have an afternoon beer at Lews or on the roof at the Well and then walk home! See - it's all in the area and Saturday should be a beautiful day, weather-wise. However, I will be enjoying some free fun at the pool for the last swim Saturday of the season.
Also, this Saturday is the Falldo Waldo Crawldo! Not free. Tix are five bucks in advance, ten at the event, and it's a pub crawl, so you have to buy beers. And, if you are smart, cab fare home. Or just walk home - that would be the free fun portion of the evening, I suppose. This year is bigger and better than ever - fourteen neighborhood drinking esatablishements are participating! Since Kennedy's has re-opened in the last year, and The Well opened recently, that adds two new spots on the roster. And The Well is a pretty sweet addition to the neighborhood, I have to say. Swagger is also a new on the list. I hear they have some pretty serious bar food, and some serious beer on tap. Although the Case Man and I have yet to make it up there for a meal and a brew.

Indy at the Library

Later this month, you can catch a couple of Indiana Jones flicks at the Plaza branch of the Kansas City Public Library - September 26th they are screening The Temple of Doom, and The Last Crusade on October 3rd.

Mama Ray @ BB's

Not exactly Free, because you'll have to drinks some beers, and probably eat some BBQ, but there's no cover charge, and you'll have to eat (drink) some lunch anyway, right? BB's Lawnside BBQ hosts Mama Ray's Blues Jam every Saturday from 2-5:30pm. Definitely Fun.

This Weekend in Free Fun

As usual, it's 2nd Saturday up in Weston, MO - Shopping and tastings 'til 8pm, dining and entertainment 'til midnight. And it's a nice late-afternoon or evening drive up to Weston. A lovely little town, it is.

It's 2nd Saturday in KCK, too. They have an Artwalk.

More free fun in KCK - the Strawberry Hill Festival. Click the picture of their poster below for details:
The 30th annual Art Westport is this weekend, as well. Not that exciting to me. But it is all local Kansas City area artists. And it's free - unless you stop for cocktails. Which probably makes it a

LOT more fun, but a lot less free. (This is the problem with a lot of free fun, I am finding. Free stuff is more fun if it involves alcohol, but the alcohol portion of the fun is generally not free.)

Also, there is the usual wine tasting at CVS at 75th & Wornall, in Waldo. Gomer's South has their usual tasting @ 3pm on Saturday, as well as a witbier tasting on Monday evening. Gomer's Lee's Summit has a Friday night wine tasting.

By the way, the Case Man and I drove past the Gomer's in Parkville on our little road trip north. It's really really nice looking. We didn't go in, but it looked pretty cool- like a giant wine barrel and they had grapevines growing outside the building and a nice looking patio, too, I think. They have a beer tasting at the Parkville location this evening from 4-7, and a wine tasting tomorrow afternoon from 12-4.

Camping in the back yard....

Is a LOT of fun. Just ask Neighbor Fran how much the Case Man and I were laughing. She'll tell ya.

Also...

It's First Friday in the Crossroads, people! Go have some free wine or beer and look at some local art!

Camping for Free

Yes - in the backyard. I know Neighbor Shane and Neighbor Fran will be perplexed when they see our tent set up in the backyard on Sunday evening, so now they'll know.

The Case Man and I really wanted to go camping this holiday weekend, but there is just too much going on - pool parties, planting new grass, blah blah blah. Plus, even though it's really cheap to pay for a campground at a state park or whatever, you still have to pay for it. And the bathrooms aren't as comfortable as they are at home. And we have a fenced yard at home so Libby won't have to be tethered. And all we would have to pay for are the S'mores and the beer. It's basically free. So we are going camping in the backyard this weekend.

Although, and I'll have to run this past the Case Man, but I think we should have some backyard camping ground rules. Like you can only go in the house to go the bathroom, or if you need medical attention. I think we should actually camp - just in the yard, right? We'll have to establish these rules this weekend, and then I'll post them later for reference.

Road Trip!

So last Saturday, after a nice morning at the City Market, the Case Man and I went on a free fun road trip. It was a beautiful day to just drive around and site see, so we journeyed north of Kansas City through Parkville on our way to Weston. We tried to take as many country roads and stay as parallel to the Missouri River as possible for the most scenic drive possible. Weston is so charming - lovely old (several antebellum) homes and charming little shops and cafes - couldn't really go inside any because we had the dog with us (Libby loves a good road trip) but we enjoyed walking around town and through the historic neighborhood.

Then we continued north up to Atchison, KS, where we saw a really cool Victorian house with gargoyles!

There is also a road called Riverview in Atchison that runs above the Missouri River. All these neat houses are along it and they have a beautiful view of the river and the fields and stuff on the other side, which is actually in Missouri.

And we saw a couple of foxes! I had never seen a fox before. I didn't get a photo but they were really pretty.

Our way back into the city took us through Leavenworth, past the Penitentiary, and back down through Parkville. It was a really nice way to spend about five hours, and the only money we spent was on lunch - and we could have packed a picnic lunch (we will next time) and saved ten bucks. So it was really pretty much free fun!