Recreational Beverages – Life In & Around Martinsville-Henry County

A Onesie Party, a Popup Art Sale & a Daintea Pairing

Somewhere there is an inventory manager scratching his head at the sudden demand for animal-themed onesies in Axton, Virginia.

At least, we’d like to think so.

Mountain Valley Brewing threw such a successful onesie/pajama party this past Friday that it may become an annual event. After all, a lot of people have onesies. now.

Some people wore pajamas. Some people wore a onesie. Some people wore normal clothes. The winner wore traditional red long johns with a blasting area warning on the back flap. Owners Herb and Peggy were Beatles-themed with a walrus and an octopus.

The temperature was perfect for the event. Cold enough to wear something warm but warm enough to not need a bath robe accessory. Brett Bass played old country (think old Hank) and Daddy Q’s BBQ food truck provided hearty BBQ dinners complete with ho cakes.

Saturday was glorious. Warm and sunshine-y. It was a perfect day to take a hike or catch up on deferred yard work. Sunday was more weather-challenged but packed with things to do.

Martinsville UP has been organizing these pop up art sales in Uptown Martinsville and they’ve been very successful. This one was held at 20 Walnut Street, just across from the circus mural and a door or two down.

The sale was from 12 to 6 and we had rain, snow and sunshine all in that span. Henry’s Fresh Roast warmed up visitors brewing up samples of sumatra coffee and selling whole bean bags and macaroons.

Henry’s Fresh Roast Sold Macaroons and Coffee

Next to Henry’s Fresh Roast was a very shy artist. I didn’t catch her name but, if you like her work, you can follow up with Martinsville Up, the organizer of the event, to find her.

Fused Glass Artist Aleen Wilson (whose studio, Gallery 22, is next door) had a selection of functional glass art and hanging pieces. Her specialty is fused glass but she’s been teaching me stained glass over the past few months. She’s very versatile. If you are interested in any of the pieces pictured below or would like to commission something in particular, her contact info is (276) 806-7186 and aleen.gallery22@gmail.com.

I particularly liked this piece that looks like a fish to me.

WoodWoRx had a beautiful display of jewelry. I really failed them in the photo department because their display was so striking and my photos were so … not. They have many good photos on their Facebook page and I encourage you to check them out.

Their earrings are incredibly lightweight. One of these pair will start working its way to an owl-loving friend in Houston next weekend.

Kay Martin Wagoner is the artist behind Kalela Designs. I have a fondness for her screen-printed glass art but take a look at her Facebook page to see a variety of different glass art as well as faux leather earrings!

Screen Printed Glass Plaque by Kay Martin Wagoner

Glass Fusion Screen Printed Art Piece by Kay Martin Wagoner

Charm Cat is the greeting card business of local Bassett water color artist, Ashleigh Pritchard. She is a phenomenal artist and has a great sense of humor that she has combined in her greeting cards and blank note stock. Her website is set up for online orders so be sure to check it out.

Charm Cat Watercolor Stationery and Fine Art

Last but certainly not least, Grattan Creek had a large selection of handcrafted soaps and wood work for sale. They also have online ordering available through their web site.

Besides the lavender, honeysuckle, and olive oil bars you may have heard of before, they also have several beer soaps made with hops from Henry County’s Mountain Valley Brewing. Lime Ginger Sour Beer, Cedarwood & Sage, and Bourbon ‘Backy are all beer soaps that boast the amino acids, antioxidants, and antibacterial benefits that come from the hops and the rich lather that comes from the carbs and sugars in the beer.

Handcrafted Artisan Soaps from Grattan Creek

They also had some beautiful wood work that I don’t see currently available on their website.

Bowls, soap savers, bottle openers, burnishing rods, BBQ grilling hooks, and even birdhouses are available online but you will have to contact them directly about the grinders. If you’re local, they also have items for sale at Black Dog Salvage in Roanoke.

Grattan Creek’s Display at the Pop up Sale

The snow started in earnest on the way out to Mountain Valley Brewing to the Beer Pairing with Daintea. To be honest, I had no idea what Daintea sold. I know that they are new and have a shop on Rives Road, just before the bridge, on the Walgreens side of the road. They’ve been open awhile now but I just haven’t made it by. All I knew that they sold was bubble tea and I don’t even know what that is.

It turns out that, while Daintea does sell bubble tea, they also make fresh pastries and savory treats. They worked with Herb and Peggy to pair up four of their selections with four brews from Mountain Valley and they did a superb job. Peggy said that they discovered that “bold goes with bold”.

I particularly liked the garlic bun paired with the porter but the strawberry tres leche with Kookie Rooster (hints of coconut) was incredible as well.

Going clockwise: Garlic Bun, Pork Lumpia, Strawberry Tres Leche, Chicken Empanada

The event was only scheduled from 1 to 2 but the pairings were so good and the company so excellent that the one hour stretched into several. I haven’t had such a nice time in a long, long while.

This was very close to a perfect day. Even with the far-less-than-perfect weather.

I hope it is a harbinger of the spring and summer that’s on its way.

Henry County’s Newest Brewery

Scuffle Hill Brewing has been open now for a couple of months. They are the second craft brewery to make Henry County their home and the first in Collinsville. They are located in the Colony Place Shopping Center at 2620 Virginia Avenue.

If you haven’t been yet, they have generous hours*:

Wednesday & Thursday 5 to 9

Friday 4:30 to 10:30

Saturday 2 to10:30

Sunday 2 to 7

*These are their hours as of Halloween 2021, so double check their hours if you are reading this later in the future.

They have a good line-up of beers and I overheard some fantastic flavors they are planning on in the future. If you are a fan of domestic beers, it looks like the first three on their list have you covered.

If you want to try a few of their beers without committing to just one, order a flight. Since this was my first time, that’s what I did. I ordered a flight that included the Campfires and Canteens smoked rauchbier, the Country Inn dark mild, the Dick &Willie oatmeal stout, and the pineapple seltzer. I also lucked out and got a gift certificate to Papa’s Pizzeria (a cute little pizzeria up in Bassett on the banks of the Smith River). Scuffle Hill was awarding the certificates randomly for Halloween.

I liked the oatmeal stout but I have to say that my favorite has to be one of the first two. Campfires and Canteens has a smoky flavor but is a gentle and smooth beer that is not too unique to be enjoyable. The County Inn mild ale almost has a coffee taste to it but does not actually contain coffee. It’s hard to say which one I’ll order the next time I’m in, except that it will be one of these two.

One of the owners and the man at the bar dressed as a caveman talked with me about how he’s been struggling to get the new brewery listed on Google Maps. He had no trouble getting the business added to Apple Maps but Google keeps insisting that they can’t verify that the business exists. He is continuing to try but, if you are a Google Maps user, you might be able to help him out by asking Google to add the business. (When you pull up Google Maps, hit the 3 horizontal bars on the upper left and select “Add a Missing Place”). If enough of us do it, at some point Google is going to have to admit that this business exists.

Scuffle Hill has made some mentions in the Martinsville art world too. They hired local artist Ashley King to paint some beautiful murals on the walls. She did a phenomenal job.

They were busy installing television mounts on Halloween evening and plan to have sports streaming by Wednesday.

If you need any more incentive to go and take a look at Scuffle Hill, there’s one more thing that might just push you over the edge: they have a very healthy Pint It Forward board. The entries on this board represent pints that have been paid for in advance for someone coming in later that is either named or described on the board. You can only get one per visit so, based on the board when I took a picture of it, three firefighters can go in and have a pint a piece, prepaid. One firefighter cannot go in and have three pints.

Take a look and see if there is a description that fits you and you may have the reason you need to go.

Hmmm… I know a lineman who likes breweries. I’ll have to give him a ring.

Sunday Afternoon at Hamlet Vineyard

This is one of the best kept secrets I’ve ever seen. And it’s a secret from the locals, it seems. I’ve been there twice now. Both times it was sold out. The first time it was Labor Day weekend so I figured, holiday weekend. This past Sunday (August 7th)? Lobster rolls, apparently.

Hamlet Vineyard is up in Bassett, just a stone’s throw from Stanleytown Health & Rehabilitation Center, where my mom went to recover from a stroke. I was there every day and I never realized that there was a vineyard just down the road. Literally, within sight.

There is just a small sign on the left side of road and a long gravel drive leading off into the trees.

I arrived only about a quarter of an hour after the 1 o’clock opening and the parking lot was already quite full. There is ample parking. It is all on mown grass.

I’m told that this rush always happens when lobster rolls are available and that was what I was here for. Salty’s Lobster & Co had brought them down from Roanoke.

I think that the fireside seating and the picnic tables up by the vineyards are new since the last time I came. That time, I just gave up in the parking lot when people were coming back to their cars saying that there was no more seating.

The place filled up quickly. I didn’t dilly dally that much looking around but I missed my opportunity at the last table. I think other people are aware of the limited seating and do not waste any time getting seated.

Shaded picnic tables on the vineyard may be the best seats in the house

I wasn’t about to miss my opportunity here a second time so I ended up taking up a chair in the fire pit area. The chair was comfortable and the umbrella provided good shade. This seemed like more of a waiting area than a dining area but any port in a storm, right?

The waitress came and took my order and I sat and watched other late arrivals. Most decided not to stay. Two ladies from Greensboro and the lovely labradoodle, Willow, decided to brave the limited shade and joined me.

We chatted and had a wonderful conversation about all types of things. One was a physical therapist and one was a teacher. One was a single mom and the other, a fur mom. They had driven quite a ways for a day of wine and lobster rolls. Unfortunately, Hamlet had run out of lobster rolls. And it was really hot. Their day wasn’t shaping up too well.

We managed to keep Willow in the shade and two of the three humans. We were on the brink of rearranging their fire pit furniture to get all three of us in the shade when tables started clearing on the covered patio.

That made a huge difference. We all moved together and finished our wine and conversation in the shade. The covered patio, we noticed, has heaters in the ceiling for cold weather. They said that they enjoyed their day enough to come back. I hope so.

Tips for going to Hamlet Vineyard:

Get to the location early. There is a gate across the drive so get in line if you can. If you can’t, there is a drug store across the street where you can lay in wait for a good opportunity to get in earlier.

Try the sangria. It really is out of this world. They have a peach sangria and a pomegranate sangria. I had the pomegranate sangria and I LOVED it.

Budget to get a truffle a piece. They are $2.50 each but they are so worth it. They are made by local chocolatier Cocoa Trails Chocolates and I think they may be their best flavor.

Be persistent. This really is worth the wait.

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