We met before 11:30 AM at Cushwa's Columbia taproom, which had opened Labor Day Weekend, and by Thanksgiving had the Rad Pies kitchen up and running. I got small pours of:

• Falling Upwards (quite good 11% ABV coconut stout)
• Barrel-Aged Only the Present (good 12% ABV coffee stout)

We left a little after noon and it took about an hour and a half to get to our first NoVA brewery, Mustang Sally Brewing, which opened about 8 years earlier. Most of us ordered flights. Mine consisted of the following, all of which were good:

• Flight Risk (11% ABV NETIPA)
• Something Strange (NEDIPA)
• Sugar Plum Fairy (barrel-aged sour)
• Oh Biscuits! (imperial stout)
• Hear Me Roar (13% ABV imperial stout)

We arrived at Ocelot Brewing just after 3:00. I tried two beers, both of which were good:

• Barrel-Aged Sorrow (13.3% ABV barleywine aged 2 years in maple syrup barrels)
• My Only Friend (12.2% ABV barrel-aged imperial stout)

Around 4:45 we arrived at Lost Rhino Brewing, which had been open for about 12 years. I tried one beer:

• Coco Caliente (pretty good chocolate chili stout)

Shortly before 6:00 we arrived at The Craft of Brewing, which opened about 5 years earlier. It's a pour-your-own place with a festive atmosphere. The back room has a stage where bands play on Saturday nights. There are 20 taps, 16 of which had beer at the time. I tasted:

• Cars & Cigars Founder's IPA (pretty good)
• Cashburn IPA (good)
• Hop-Tyranny (so-so NEIPA)
• Hopitis (fairly good IPA)
• Hazy Day Trip (so-so)

Several of us played shuffleboard.

Les and Lauree aced one game.

We returned to Cushwa after 8:00. Trevor, Jeff, Lauree and I went inside and met Chris, who wanted to visit breweries with us but had to work at her store.

It had been a great adventure, and Trevor managed to go the entire day without drinking a single seltzer.