North Carolina Girls’ Pint Out: We’re Busy Bees

Hey there friends and neighbors! Hope you’re all surviving Irene, that clap-having jezebel who seems to be ruining everyone’s plans. I was supposed to be in Ocean City, NJ prepping for my cousin’s bridal shower. Instead, the whole island was put under a mandatory evacuation, and I spent some time gathering the essentials in the Wilmington, Delaware Total Wine. Which. Is. Epic.

3 bottles of wine, a handle of rum, pick six, pretzel crisps, AND 40 lbs of ice. We're ready for anything.

And I have a hot date tonight with this little scene:

As I said before, Happy hour is my happy hour.

But even though my spirit of choice is rum and coke with my mom and dad tonight, it wasn’t too long ago that I joined the fine ladies of North Carolina Girls’ Pint Out at Busy Bee Cafe in downtown Raleigh. Not too long at all…….

(cue hazy cloudy mist that brings us back to August 18th, 2011. Or maybe just imagine Wayne and Garth waving their hands for a flashback….)

Party on Wayne, party on Garth.

After another successful glass night at Rockfish with the folks representing Palm Brewery (a new tasty beer from Belgium!) I bid everyone a fond farewell.

Thanks, for repping it hard, fellers.

I only enjoyed a single brew, but knew that there were some tasty ones in store at Busy Bee.

The Hive gets a little crazy with their beer list!

The options seemed endless. The two beers I personally featured in my writeup were:

Dogfish Head Namaste, often translated as “The spirit in me respects the spirit in you”, is Dogfish Head’s way to respect your thirst for beer in the hot summertime. This Belgian White is made with dried organic orange slices, fresh cut lemongrass and a bit of coriander, and is perfect to pair with spicy fare, so try to get some kick from Busy Bee’s Pork Burger, featuring sriracha and Bok Choy slaw.

and

St. Louis Gueuze Fond Tradition: (alas, this beer ran out faster than we had the chance to feature it!) Interested in stepping up your beer game? Step outside the bottle and try this sour, traditional Geuze style beer. A tart beer with lemony fruitiness, you can enjoy the crisp, clean mouthfeel that puckers the lips and makes you crave the creaminess of cheeses, such as Busy Bee’s Baked Mac and Cheese.

Here's me screaming my face off as I talk about beer. (photo credit to Ben Woodward, click to hit up the facebook source)

There were some amazing little treats (for free) provided by the glorious host, Busy Bee!!

Tots are ALWAYS part of my happy hour.

Although this was only our second event, we had over 30 craft beer lovin’ ladies (and some especially brave gentlemen!)

Wow. We're popular.

We upped our profession game:

We also met some local folks who are keeping it real in the craft beer scene!

Ted from Bottle Revolution!

Ted from Bottle Revolution came and handed out some camo koozies (in case we have to drink while undercover… in the forest). His store’s going to be opening soon with awesome features like A Year of Beer Club and pre-packaged craft beer coolers (LIKE IF YOU NEED THEM FOR FOOTBALL TAILGATING!!)

I may have even met my soulmate in Somer, a fellow blogger in the Triangle who’s interested in reproductive health and advocacy, UNC, craft beer, and my brother! (well, maybe not my brother yet…. but one day.)

True True and we didn't even know it!

I’m so proud of my fellow planners and coordinators, and I hope that they’re all proud of what we put together!!

Just a few of the founding gals. Again, photo credit to Ben Woodward, click for source!

If you’re a lady, and you like craft beer, and you live in/around the Triangle (or LOVE to travel wicked far), and/or you want to be my friend (duh.), follow NCGirlsPintOut on Twitter or check us out on facebook!

Word on the street is we have another excellent event coming in Mid-September…. Stay tuned!

What’s your favorite appetizer to pair with beer?