Astoria Day Trip for Beers & Baked Goods

One of the best things about living in Portland is the ability to take day trips at the drop of a hat. This includes day trips to the Oregon Coast, Mt. Hood, The Gorge or Wine Country. My brother recruited me to join him and his girlfriend on a drive up the coast to Astoria. Oh my gosh...what a day it turned out to be. It was an incredible November day. Look at those blue skies! 

Naturally, I center most my adventures around food but we needed to work up an appetite first! We decided to explore the Peter Iredale shipwreck and Fort Stevens State Park. I haven't been there since I was a kid so it was neat to read about the history this time. But of course, we still acted like kids and took turns climbing it like a jungle gym. 

Next stop, Fort George Brewery & Public House. This is probably one of the most well-known places in Astoria, except for the my recent discovery of Bowpicker Fish & Chips. Do you like food trucks? Well, this place is a food boat. Simple menu with fish and chips served on land from the bow of a boat. Anyway...back to Fort George. We did the tasting flight which offered over a dozen samples! Good thing we shared. I really liked their Oatmeal Pale Ale and their seasonal, Java the Hop. It is like this coffee, chocolate, smooth IPA. It is not dark like a stout and easy to drink. Oh and if you are feeling crazy but don't want beer, they have a Wasabi Ginger Ale. Yes, woah.

Next stop, Blue Scorcher Bakery & Cafe. Why? Because we needed a cookie after all those savory beers. It also helped that it was in the same building as Fort George. We sampled a Swedish Limpa bread...who has tried this? It was a first for me and such a nice treat with flavors of orange and fall spices. I tasted the anise seed instantly but was told their was fennel in it too. Delish! This is not their recipe, but I imagine this is similar to what I ate. We walked out with a large chocolate ginger molasses cookie and that poor cookie didn't make it a block. We devoured it on our walk to Buoy Beer Company.

Buoy Beer Company was neat, I wished I took more photos. Their taproom is right on the water so there are great views of the ocean and all the ships coming in and out. We went for clam chowder and sweet potato fries. The best kind of comfort food on a crisp, fall day at the coast. There was an incredible rainbow over the ocean that captured most of the patrons attention. We will have to visit again when we can spend more time sampling all the beers. The rain was coming, so we wanted to get on the road quickly.

We hit the jackpot in Astoria and I was pleasantly surprised with how far this little coastal town has come. Next visit will call for an overnight stay because I want to try the pre-Prohibition cocktails at Albatross.

Fort George Brewery & Public House | Blue Scorcher Bakery & Cafe | Buoy Beer & Co. 

all open seven days a week