Ellensburg's Brewing Trifecta

Any road trip going through Eastern Washington deserves a stop in Ellensburg.  Named after a trading post owner's wife and home to Central Washington University, this rodeo town has a lot more brewing than meets the eye.  A stop at Iron Horse Brewery's (www.ironhorsebrewery.com) tasting room off of Prospect Street for some samplers, pints, and popcorn was a must.  Enjoying their Double Rainbow on tap along with a new favorite, Insane with the Grain, the sunny afternoon soon beckoned us outside to a parking lot discovery of two more notable pit stops.

Ellensburg Distillery  (www.wildcatwhite.com  amethystgin.com)

Right next door to Iron Horse, with a rolled up garage door, sits Ralph Bullock's distillery.  Waving us in to come and taste his goods, Ralph quickly poured a sample of his Wildcat White, an unaged whisky made with some Irish Death from Iron Horse.  While tasty, I was anxious to try the lavender gin named Amethyst.  Lately I have been pleasantly surprised with many craft distillers' creative take on gin.  Ralph vapor infuses his with lavender grown on his own farm right outside of town.  Imagining this liquor over ice with fresh berries and lemonade, per his suggestion, made me immediately yearn for summer.

Central Washington Biodiesel  (centralwashingtonbiodiesel.com)
In the market for a new car, and road tripping in a biodiesel/veggie oil burning rig, this facility was intriguing.  A quick peek in the shop along with a business card exchange, we promised to call on our way back through the next day to fill up.  Doug met us there on Sunday evening, within an hour's notice, and let us traipse through his place.  Learning more about the incubating process of used frying oil than I ever knew was possible, I instantly committed to making sure that my next car would be able to utilize this nontoxic, biodegradable fuel source.