Ahh finally, a full day to venture! Initially we were going to solicit tourism advice from the visitor centre down the road, but soon realized that we were already greatly more informed on “things to do” and services to use. We grabbed some brochures and wandered toward the Little Creatures Brewery.
Little Creatures interior
Little Creatures bar
Little Creatures bar
Bardo, our friend from Sydney, put us in touch with his buddy, Ben, who now lives in Perth. So we met Ben and Kirei, his girlfriend, for a liesurely lunch and some beers at the brewery. Britt and I started off with a sampler of all their most popular beers on tap (6 in total). We stocked the bright ale and pale ale at The Russell Wine Bar, and I just assumed the pale would be more girl-friendly because that was the more popular seller for us. However, the bright ale was significantly better and more flavourful in my opinion. And Britts and Kireis and Bens. The Rogers amber was probably my second favorite… that is until I tried the White Rabbit white ale from the bottle. I’m not a particularly huge beer drinker. In fact I usually stick to Coors Light back home in the States. However, I think I’ve found my beer-mate. The white ale reminds me of a wheat beer like Blue Moon, except the main flavor is HONEY! It’s delicious!
White Rabbit white ale - HEAVEN!!!
We spent a good amount of time just chatting away at Little Creatures, drinking our brews, and munching on some wood-fired pizzas and super salty frites. When Ben and Kirei parted ways, Britt and I conducted a self-tour of the brewery. All the workings were showcased through glass along the borders of the restaurant. A 2nd level walkway leads curious visitors through the entire brewing process. I really don’t see why they haven’t put together a formal tour, at least for weekends or something. It seems like an easy way to make a few extra bucks while also creating hype. But I guess in a small town like Freo, it’s already got a steady crowd of uni students to keep them busy.
After lunch, Britt and I went back to our hostel to make some formal plans for our next few days in Perth / Freo. Our hostel room is a dorm-style with 8 girls, including ourselves. The funny thing about hostels is you never know who you’re going to meet. Sometimes everyone shies away into their own corners, but other times it’s a madhouse. Today we met a really interesting woman from Milan, age 33. At first glance, I never would have considered her someone I would typically befriend. There was the obvious age difference, language barrier, style choices, etc etc etc, that clearly indicate we don’t have alot in common. But then again, she was to blame for getting Gossip’s song “Heavy Cross” stuck in my head. And she was a pretty decent conversationalist. Next thing you know, we’re negotiating plans for a joint trip to Margaret River. I was pretty fired up about throwing this curveball into the mix, but she was adamant about staying in Margaret River for 5-6 days, whereas Britt and I were thinking more on the lines of 1-2 days. What a shame. I wish her the best on her travels!
Britt and I decided to take a hostelers recommendation for dinner, so we ended up at the Mexican Kitchen. Their specialty? Any of their 100+ tequilas! We weren’t feeling quite up to that challenge, so we washed our tacos down with some tap water then headed over to Sail and Anchor for a beer. Again we were faced with a huge assortment of unique beers on tap. After a couple tasters, I settled on the Rogue Somer Honey Orange Ale, an American wheat beer of all things. You would think I was on a honey kick, but this one actually tasted more strongly of orange than anything else. Still yummy. They closed their doors shortly after we sat down, so we wandered home tuckered out and eager for an adventurous day at the beach tomorrow.
Chasing 'Roos 