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The Wonder Luster

For Those Of Us Whose Dreams Won't Die Between 17 and 65.

Life is wondrous! Feed your lust for life with the tools & inspiration to help make it a great one.

Sipping Along the Columbus Ale Trail

Travel | August 14, 2015

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my Disclosure Policy.

I had so much fun sampling all the amazing craft beers offered on the Columbus Ale Trail. The tours are so informative and the food is great, too!

Summer is excellent for two things – tasting new beers and traveling to new places. Luckily for me, I got to do plenty of both when we visited Columbus, Ohio for a quick weekend getaway.

Matilda, being a jetsetter of a pug gets really excited when we travel somewhere new so she can tag along. We hadn’t been to Columbus before, but since Le Meridien The Joseph is a pet friendly hotel, we absolutely had to try it out.

Le Meridien The Jospeh Matilda at the Le Meridien The Joseph

The hotel was right next to a pet store, so you might have seen on my Instagram that Matilda got a bit spoiled during our trip. We got her a new Kong treat dispenser, a pink shark and a flamingo toy.

Along High Street in the Short North neighborhood you can find an array of adorable locally owned shops and restaurants – it really is a cute spot to stay at if you’re in Columbus. But alas, this is not a post about my adorable traveling pug, but of the awesome craft beer scene in Columbus!

Life In Cbus Visiting Columbus Ohio

On our first night, we enjoyed some local brews and some stupid-good sauerkraut balls at Barleys Brewing Company. Like, stupid-good. Columbus is proud of its local culture and its food and beers are an infusion of various ethnicities and influences. You are sure to find something delicious to sip on along the way. In Columbus, throw a stone and you’ll find something good to drink, I promise!

We took two tours with Columbus Brew Adventures to learn the ropes, and we got lots of really great beers from local breweries and got to learn the history of the area along the way. We picked up some local magazines and the guide to the Columbus Ale Trail to help lead the way for some delicious beer adventures of our own. No matter what, our goal was to sip our way through the city, and I’m happy to report, it was mission accomplished.

Visit Columbus Life in Cbus

The Columbus Ale Trail consists of over 25 local breweries to help give you a fun and challenging variety of beers to try. Following the paper passport (known as a brew book), you can pick up at the local visitor’s office or most beer establishments, you can challenge yourself to try as many of the local spots that you can in a year. For those of us that are ready for the challenge , visiting 20 of the establishments earns you a really cool t-shirt. Now, that’s a challenge I can get behind!

For those of you who visit Columbus and love beer but aren’t quite sure you can tackle the tasty options by yourself, I highly recommend touring with the Columbus Brew Adventures. Our tour guide was a brand new father (congrats!) and did an excellent job of taking us from place to place for some of the best brews and pizzas in the city. We got to enjoy the Downtown Brewery Tour and the Pitchers & Pizza in the comfort of a beer touring van that took us from place to place, and also got us discounts at spots we wanted to revisit later.

Columbus Brew Adventures- Columubs Beer Tours with Jim

Needless to say, it was delicious….

Columbus Brew Adventures- Life in Cbus Columbus Pizza and Beer

We must have tried 10 different breweries, but my favorite was The Seventh Son brewery. We got to sit in the brew room and enjoy flights of beer samples and learn about the process. Most of us that enjoy beer know it consist of barley, hops, yeast and water – but did you know the local water really does influence the taste of a brew, yet it’s the unsung hero ingredient of the beer? I didn’t either.

I also learned that on average, 111 microbrews are started a day. A DAY. While many beers follow the same formula and process, because of the many variables- like the sourcing of the hops or the roasting of the barley, you will never taste the exact same beer twice. An IPA in northern Oregon will not taste like an IPA in Columbus- so when you find something you really like, take note of it, you may not find that exact blend elsewhere. It really makes the beer drinking experience as unique as our own palates!

Seventh Son Brewery Columbus Ohio

After all of that beer sampling and touring, you can also refresh at the Columbus North Market– which is an indoor market to pick up fresh produce, local fare and lunch to go. There’s also a beer area (of course), but you can sip on tea, soda or stop in for a cupcake too. Yummy!

Life In Cbus- Columbus Ohio North Market

There are a lot of reasons to love Columbus – the shopping, the mild summers and of course, the brews! You can seriously spend an entire week exploring the beer scene, though we only had a few days. If you’re looking for a getaway for the beer lover in your life, or are simply looking to develop your knowledge of beer and expand your palate, you’ll find Columbus offers a great value for your money and a fun experience! Happy sipping! Cheers!

For more info check out lifeincbus.com or follow the #lifeincbus hashtag on Twitter & Instagram.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of LifeInCbus via RhythmOne. The opinions and text are all mine.

Life is wondrous! Feed your lust for life with the tools & inspiration to help make it a great one.

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Some people just make the world a more vibrant pla Some people just make the world a more vibrant place, simply by being in it.  I can say that about these people- who make life more colorful, brighter and true just by being themselves. 

Grateful we could slow down to capture a little snippet in time for our family before we grow again. ❤️
IYKYK, bath time edition. 🛁. #bathtime #travelb IYKYK, bath time edition. 🛁. #bathtime #travelblogger #travel #familytravel #travellust
3 years since this photo was taken and my former k 3 years since this photo was taken and my former kidney became this guy's kidney. ❤️

I can say, I've grown to appreciate this moment a lot more as time has gone on.  It hasn't been an easy road for my recipient, he and his family have had a few health scares and ups and down, but I'm so grateful we are in each other's lives.

Chances are, you may know of someone in need of a kidney. 1 in 3 adults in the U.S., over 80 million people, are at risk for kidney disease.  While not every diagnosis leads to kidney failure, there are millions of people in this scary limbo hoping for good news.

I didn't know my recipient before this process started, but when I found I could live healthfully with one, I knew I had to try.  Donation is low-risk, my costs were generously covered by my recipient (both through insurance and the kindness of others) and I was back at work in 4 weeks.  Needless to say, it was easier than birthing a baby.

Candidates for kidney donation are thoroughly vetted to ensure the surgery, and life with one kidney are a good fit.  Trust me, your team will not ask you to donate if you have any risk factor of being in need of a transplant yourself down the road.  Testing took months and was incredibly thorough.  Your remaining kidney can do the job of two, and my kidney levels are normal and healthy 3 years later.

Even if you don't personally know someone who needs a kidney, please consider living kidney donation.  You can anonymously donate, be paired through a registry or find someone on social media who is in need, like I did.  There are literally thousands of people using Instagram and Facebook to try and someone who is even willing to get the basic tests.  You could be their person.  Have questions? I’m here for you! 

Being a living kidney donor absolutely enriched my life beyond imagination and has blessed my little family with a beautiful extended family to celebrate with.  Grateful for this day.
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Joey had been with us for nearly 4 years, made possible by the kind folks of South Texas Boston Terrier Rescue. I picked him up, intending on fostering him for a few weeks and ended up falling in love with his sweet spirit, exuberance for anything food related and his lovable derpiness.

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Adopt, don’t shop.  Support your local rescues and give your fur kids an extra squeeze for Joey tonight.
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I had years to find myself and don’t plan on losing that woman I forged. Being a mom has also helped me heal some of the hard parts of the experience I had with my own mom. (I didn’t see that last part coming.)

Being a mom can make you lose yourself.  For me, it’s helped me discover myself once more. Grateful for this day and so many days - I’m just happy to be here. 

Happy Mother’s Day everyone. I hope you discover yourself, heal what you need and feel the love today and everyday.

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