The food prepared and served by Sumac was outstanding from presentation to taste, the service and beverage selection were excellent, and the setting creates an ambiance with the landscaping and the view of the mountains. read more

Really liked it. Very cool and unique setup, given the product they have and where they are located. I am not a beer drinker and had trouble asking for suggestions, but overall really liked the place. read more

Surprisingly empty when we came with our two dogs on a Thursday in September. This is probably one of the most beautiful breweries that I have been to. The sprawling grounds surrounded by beautiful flowers with a mountainous backdrop. The beer was great. We were hungry and were upset that there was no food on that particular day, but we made due. Will definitely be back if in this area again! Definitely worth a stop! read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

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Beer: B/B+ They specialize in sours, so if you're into those, you'll enjoy these. Most of the ones I had were stronger than your average sour, and you can definitely taste the alcohol, but the fruit balances it out. I also has the Hesperus and It's the Life wild ales which were solid. Pricey at $10 for 10oz pour. Venue: D+ Small tasting room with long bar tables (no chairs) and picnic tables outside. No music or any sort of entertainment or games. Dog friendly. Kid tolerant, but your kids will be bored. The best feature is the views. You can see the mountains and rural scenery. There was a food vendor on the premises. Didn't look like your standard bar fare (a little more upscale based on what I saw from the table next to us). Will I be back? Probably not, but worth a stop on the way back from the mountains to the burbs if you're into sours. read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Cerise 2 Year Spontaneous on Cherries sour - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

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A great spot with stunning views of the surrounding mountains, nice picnic tables and space to run, and arguably better beer (focusing on sours) than the view or space. I don't know why it too us so long to come here. We love going out to Sperryville, but for whatever reason had wound up at Copper Fox near the river more often. On a recent trip out we finally took our RPK pizza over and sat at one of the picnic tables. The view of the surrounding mountains is amazing and there's lots of open space fore the kids to run. There's a food truck here too, but they don't seem to mind you brining outside food. The real reason to come though is their wild/sour beer. They have spectacular beer with a focus on spontaneously fermented sours that aren't super-sour, but do have a lot of wild yeast funk. If that's your thing, this place is amazing. They arguably do the best sour beer of any brewery within 90 minutes of DC. The Veil in Richmond is probably the closest one that would compete. I got a spontaneously fermented raspberry ale this time and it was amazing, but I've had more of their stuff elsewhere. We'll definitely be back. The day where you go for a hike, get pizza at RPK, and then get beer at a picnic table here is an amazing one. read more

As everyone noted the Ambiance can't be beat. The staff is so kind and I so desperately want to enjoy their beer.... But I can't... to be honest I'm not a big beer drinker but the crowd I was with were all big beer drinkers and everyone left over half their pints. We still had a nice time taking in the view. I wish they would bring back their golden swan which was my favorite at their previous location . When I was there, they only had bottles and none of them were cool. They have had wine in the past from partnership vineyards but they were out of it as well. I'm hoping to just chalk up this experience to a bad weekend when their supply was running low. read more

We came here about 3 pm on a Saturday. Beautiful setting off the main road. They also have a food truck if you want food (not sure the food is from them but it's a separate area). We didn't come for the food so I have no idea what they served. I heard they had some delicious sour beers and that's mainly why we came. So we got a round of the spiritual plums and a round of the 2 year raspberry sour. The spiritual plums was really delicious, nice tart taste (some might say overly sour but I thought it was just right). It was flavorful with a really nice finish. This was my favorite! The raspberry sour came after the plum and it was a lot less tart, and very mellow in flavor. In fact, in the beginning I felt it was semi tasteless. It seems to be lacking in body, what the plum sour had plenty of. The woman at the counter was really nice and was helpful. The place itself had a beautiful open grass area where you could sit on a bench or even on the grass. A group next to us even played soccer. All in all, this place was really cool. All it was missing was live music read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Wine list - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

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This brewery is in this weird little colony (?) of businesses that is right near the Inn at Little Washington. I say colony because, you drive up onto this street and there are little shops and artists, and an antique store, and a distillery, and a brewery, and like nothing for miles on the highway in either direction. It's just... a bit unique. It's interesting. There are a lot of sour beers here, so if that's your thing, you definitely want to stop by. The lighting in the venue is really cool. They've wrapped around like corded light in these brass trough things. Our bar tender was very nice and friendly albeit a bit reserved. It's a cool place to hang out. You won't forget that you're in an industrial garage, but you'll definitely remember this island of a place and what it has to offer if you go. Also - found out that the symbol is the Owner's family crest thing. I believe it was either Scottish or Irish. I had to ask. read more

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This is one of 2 breweries close to old rag and wow they really made the most of it in the COVID era. The Great: If you love sour beers, this is heaven for you! The beers are awesome (although a bit on the pricier side - almost New York City level prices - which is interesting for the countryside of Virginia). It is also great that they have so many park benches spread far apart with scenic views for you to enjoy your brews with. I mean nothing beats the wide open spaces and bundled up with friends (dress warmly!). I also love how kind and friendly the staff is and really willing to explain things to people mystified by sour beers. Why this didn't get 5 stars: Yes, you can bring your own food, but they don't have much food options on premise. I mean other breweries have partnerships with food trucks or direct line to neighborhood pizza delivery. This place has nothing (oh and my friends and I didn't have cell service to order food). Great for: 1. Sour beer lovers 2. Drinking outside Bad for: 1. The excessively price sensitive 2. Those who need cell service 3. Those afraid of nature. read more

I was a little wary of driving the windy mountain road from Luray to visit Pen Druid. I read that they specialize in sours, which I like, but my husband doesn't care too much for, but we we went anyway. I'm very glad we did! We picked the perfect Saturday. Patchy clouds to break up the sunny skies and beautiful breezes made the outdoor "picnic" area the spot to be. This particular weekend, they had a rubber duck race nearby so we caught a busy day. Divine Swine was set up outside selling plates of bbq and sides. I'm not sure if this brewery has food trucks regularly, but this would be a great place to relax for several hours. Finding the brewery was slightly challenging. We got turned around once, wondering if we were in the right area. There's no cell signal so it wasn't Google Maps fault! If you drive parallel to a creek, pass a few homes, an unpaved road, and a one-way bridge, you're in the right direction. Park and it's another short walk past antique and gift stores, an herbalist and distillery and before you walk into that creek again, there it is! It's a cool space with plenty of seating indoors and out. The bartenders were helpful and knowledgeable about what makes their brews so unique. They offer several sizes for sampling and enjoying. Between us, we tried 3 beers and enjoyed each of them. Even my sour-hating husband really liked his choices - Ganymede and Spiritual Nurse. I didn't take the time to see if they sold growlers, but I'm sorry I didn't. I can't think of anything like them in the VB area and will definitely make a trip again if we travel that way! Despite how busy they were, we were quickly taken care of. Highly recommend! read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Ganymede - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

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The best brewers are parts scientist, artist, and engineer. The Carney brothers have put together those different skills in brewing some unique high quality beers. We tried the: Hermes - Wild Table Beer with raw organic wheat from the Farm at Sunnyside, barrel-fermented and hopped with Mandarina Bavaria hops. CHECK IT NICE - Wild Pale Bitter with raw organic wheat from the Farm at Sunnyside hopped with Equinox. JUPITER - WILD DOUBLE IPA with raw organic wheat from the Farm at Sunnyside and hopped with Huell Mellon. TELEMACHUS - Blended dark sour, with raw organic wheat from the Farm at Sunnyside fermented and aged in oak with our "Critter" culture of wild yeasts and souring bacteria. COLONIAL PANIC - A sorghum molasses porter made in collaboration with Lostlagers featuring Heritage Malt from RIverbend Malt, sorghum molasses from Madison CO, raw organic wheat from the the Farm at Sunnyside and our native wild yeast culture. This one was truly exceptional with lots of complexity and the nice flavor of sorghum without too much sweetness. If you are a porter fan you will love this beer. We purchased two bottles of this for the road. The tasting room looks like it was carved out of an old auto shop. It has a fun punk rock feel to it. Service was great. read more

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Got to work on their customer service skills. Be prepared to pay $10 for 10oz. Their reply from the gentlemen on the back was "If you want a cheap beer - go to the gas station". Wouldn't recommend. read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Outside area. - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

I've been to a lot of breweries. A lot of good breweries, and great breweries. The best are those that know who they are. Those that focus one what they do well, and excel with it. This is what Pen Druid does. We had visited their original location 5 years ago in a warehouse near Copper Fox Distillery. As fans of sours and wild ales, my wife and I loved what we had then. This time Pen Druid is in a new location, not far from the original spot. There is currently NO indoor seating (as of November 2021) but plenty of outdoor seating with beautiful mountain views that rival some of the local wineries. I had a raspberry spontaneous ale. It was excellent. If you are looking for hazies or stouts, you might be disappointed here. If you enjoy a quality sour, or the funk of wild ale styles, Pen Druid knows what they do, and they do it well. There were no flights. No crowlers. No Growler fills. There were some bottles for sale (which we bought). Looks like a stationary food truck there too, but can't speak to that as we didn't check it out. I should crack open that bottle I have . . . . read more

Pen Druid Brewing - A couple spontaneous ales and an amazing view. - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

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Pen Druid has evolved to become one of my very favorite craft breweries in Virginia! I've visited more times than I can count, I always look forward to another visit and to experience the awesomeness that is the craft beer alchemy as presented by the Carney Brothers: Lain, Jennings, and Van. These guys are "mad scientists" when it comes to craft brewing - and I mean that only in the best possible way! Pen Druid is all about using wild yeast to handle the sugar-to-alchohol fermentation process; whereas most other craft breweries are afraid of wild yeast - and all that it entails. If you happen into Pen Druid during a time where it is slow enough for the Carney Brothers to actually have a conversation - ask them about the use of wild yeast in their beers - it's a fascinating conversation! The wild yeast definitely has an interesting and tasty effect on their beers - and there is something psychologically cool and appealing about this as well. Since I wrote my first review back in 2015, I've tasted and drank many more of their brews - and I've enjoyed the vast majority of them! One of the things they've been doing is periodically releasing new Porters in a line called the "Panic" Porters. The first one I had was their "Rural Panic Porter," then later came the "Senseless Panic Porter," and then most recently, the "Colonial Panic Porter." When the Rural Panic Porter was released - they posted a photo of one of them on their Facebook page - holding up a pint of the Rural Panic Porter - with a panicked look on their face. Since then, it's become a fun tradition in our group to recreate that photo - each one of us holding our "panic porter" with a panicked look on our face... Yesterday a bunch of us visited Pen Druid for the 4th Annual "Yeaster" event at Pen Druid. It was the biggest yet and it was a fun day to hang out, drink beer and socialize on the Saturday before Easter Sunday! Great job Van, Lain, and Jennings! We love your beers and your brewery! #PenDruidBrewing #WildYeast #PanicPorters read more

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Pleasant visit to Pen Druid in their new location yesterday. Tried the Hesperus and the Cherry Sour. This place has the best views of any brewery or winery we have ever been to. 270 degree mountain views! They have a very specific vibe they are going for (funky/hippy) and they do that very well. If you are expecting something else (and don't like sour/wild beers) then this place isn't for you. In a region where largely characterless microbreweries are popping everywhere, Pen Druid has oodles of character. They are very much an 'of the land' location, and I will certainly come back, if only to enjoy the spectacular views! read more

Very interesting place. I had not visited them in their old location (where Veditz Brewery is currently residing). The beers are not the typical ones found at other breweries - they're all Ales. The closest thing to an IPA had 9.5% ABV and since I was driving, I passed on that. The Blonde Ale suited me and was similar to an Italian Pilsner (a REAL Italian Pilsner, not Peroni). They also have hard cider and wines (not from Virginia wineries, though). Pretty much something for everyone. A lot of land to stretch out - cornhole and some interesting geological formations jutting out from below. There is a food truck during the weekends that has a very eclectic farm to table menu. Although there is no playground on the premises, the place is a good option for kids because they can really run around. Dogs welcome but not inside the brewery itself. Sperryville now has 3 breweries and all three of them have interesting and unique vibes. read more

Amazing brewery with incredible views and great beer. No flights but very dog friendly. They use wild fermentation so their beers are slightly tart or sour but very refreshing. They also serve wine from a store in DC (all organic). The restaurant on site Sumac is amazing. Could easily compete with local Michelin star restaurants for quality. Worth visiting for sure! read more

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Im not going to pretend I liked the beer ( I didnt ). Taste Note : Like Kambucha but with 6.5% alcohol. Nothing subtle here. Prepare to be punched in the face with sour. It wasnt awful per se, it was just really weird. I drank the whole thing because $10 is $10 ( a pint ) plus the automatic %17 gratuity ( sigh). Before you call me a plebeian, I enjoy Trappist style beer as well as Lambic and Framboise. Sitting by the Thorton River watching the trout jump made up for it. Also, would it kill you to rake the potholes out of the gravel drive and parking lot ? read more

This brewery has a great outside yard area with tables and views. The staff was friendly and the beers were great read more

Pen Druid Brewing - three glasses of beer on a picnic table - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

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Meh, was excited by the promise of some funky sours but this place only had one sour on tap. On top of that, way too overpriced. This place does not do flights either. The lager style that I tried tasted like a cup of glue. These people have cool vision for the brewery but the tasting room disappoints. read more

As with many of my recent beer excursions, this is more like a 3.5 stars. I liked but didn't love Pen Druid. Worth a try? Sure. Would I go back? Probably...especially if they keep serving the Spiritual Nurse. Like many micro-breweries popping up, they experiment quite a bit. One thing especially liked about this place is their focus on Virginia yeasts. Pen Druid's philosophy is to make something that's very 'local', which I see as a mark of distinction. The Spiritual Nurse amber made with these 'farm yeasts' was especially good. The location is nothing fancy, but gets the job done. Occasional good trucks too. But it's definitely worth a stop because hey - you won't know unless you try it! read more

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This place is great! Really loved the beers we got. My girlfriend and I love sours and Pen Druid has some great ones - we got a couple bottles to bring home. Great atmosphere, beautiful spot. Word to the wise: if you're hungry, grab a pizza at Rappahannock right down the road and bring it in. We tried the place at Pen Druid (Sumac) - if you're expecting food truck vibes as we were, this is not that. The portion was absurdly small and expensive (65 bucks for three dishes, each of which was about 3 bites). I think we must have caught them on an off day but it seems like an odd pairing with the brewery. Ended up going down the road for pizza to bring back since we were still hungry - and it was delicious (a third the price of Sumac for two pizzas, which fed all three of us and then some). Definitely gonna go back again after some more hiking this fall! read more

Major disappointment- beer is overpriced and middling at best. Nice view but how about an umbrella or two? Inside is small and no ambiance. Staff was unfriendly. Plenty of better places to go. read more

I have had dozens of ciders in the United States, the Uk, Ireland, and other countries and none tasted like the concoction they gave me at Pen Druid. It was sour with strong off-tastes. Simply undrinkable. I wanted to go ask if perhaps a spoiled batch got through but my spouse would not let me. If this is how it always tastes they need to either end the product or go back to square one and do a total redesign. read more

My partner and I were enjoying the Shenandoah National Park for vacation, and decided to stop here before dinner. We'd missed coming on our prior trip, so I was psyched we could make it this time. I had a flight, which included every beer, except their double IPA. I'm not the biggest IPA fan. My favorite out of the 5 I tried was the aged sour. I've never had an aged sour before, and I quite enjoyed the extra flavor profile the aging brought to the beer. I ended up buying a growler before we left. Pros - servers were nice, cool, open venue, not all the beers were IPAs Cons - GPS took us the wrong way (it's really tucked in there), growler fill was $30, and that's without the glass ($12 extra), other growler refills were cheaper, but $30, wow, and the hours. Can they make Friday or Saturday a 10pm night, please. Would be great to stop after dinner for a night cap and growler fill. One final note, my partner was not a fan of the beer at all. Our innkeepers at the B&B told us that people either like the place or hate it. read more

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Terrible beer and owners are nasty. Mostly sour beer using wild yeast and not a single Pale Ale or IPA.

We tried 2 of their sours, 1 IPA, and the golden. Every beer was DELICIOUS. They all tasted so fresh! Such a wonderful brewery. Great place to sit outside! read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

Nice taproom. Neat atmosphere and very friendly staff! Beers were great! There is both indoor and out door seating and nice size bar to sit at. They bottle 750ml bottle that are to go, and it is noted on there beer menu what is available read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Beer menu with description of beer, size samples and if available to go. - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

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Plenty of space on the property to enjoy some really standout beers. I love the cerise which is a sour cherry beer. The mountains in the distance make this place really special. read more

Eclectic, rough-edged, and delicious. What a gem for true beer lovers in this tiny little country town. We enjoyed four unique brews, each one very different. I love that it's a family affair too! The brothers behind the bar not have been nicer. Definitely worth a stop! read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Cool growlers too! - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

Wow, what a gem this place is! The beer was fantastic and I really enjoyed the cider. The bartender, Sam, was the best and made us feel at home. You can tell the three brothers that own it love their craft and it shows-good vibes all around! View is stunning. I would suggest bringing chairs or a blanket as it seemed to fill up fast. Plenty of parking, apparently the reviewers below couldn't read the clearly marked "No Parking" signs directly in front of the building. I appreciated that they were enforcing masks to be worn on the porch area while ordering. Probably not the place for ya if you're looking for an IPA and don't know how to ride a bike. We'll be back for sure! Only regret was not getting some bottles to bring home-next time though...Thanks again guys! read more

Pen Druid Brewing - CIDER - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

Sam was the sweetest person who made an out of towner like me feel super welcome at this very lovely place!

Golden swan beer was tasty (had 2!) and for $4 each, it was a steal! Friends and I hung out on the patio while the sunset, then went inside and refueled while looking at the picture books and played Trivial Pursuit. read more

Pen Druid Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Sperryville, Virginia

We visited Pen Druid after hiking old rag mountain. The native blonde was one of the most tasty beers i've had! The views were immaculate and served as the perfect place to rest after a long hike!! read more

What an "oasis" as the bartender referred to it! Just finished a long hike and were looking for somewhere to just sit down, have a drink and chill. This was the perfect spot! Pros: Lots of seating inside and outside. Beers are amazing! Also come in 4, 10, 16oz pours. Staff are exceedingly nice and welcoming. They saw us looking around at the barley and such and came over to us to see if we had any questions and gave us an impromptu tour. Wifi & can pay with card which was nice in the middle of nowhere. Interior is great! Very understated - you can see all the barrels in the back. Nice music. Overall the perfect ambiance for a brewery. Not commercialized in the least. Cons: No food - but they let you bring outside food in so who cares. Will be recommending this to anyone and everyone who might be in the area. read more

This is a brewery that only makes sour beers - so make sure you know that going into it. That being said, I love sour beers, and they had some of the best sours I've ever had. We tried almost everything they had on tap and liked everything we got. Tons of space - everything was really spread out, so we felt very comfortable here. read more

Just opened this weekend. Three local guys. Travelled Europe with their band. Now settled back home with their families. Decided to make brewing their new life. See the website for their story. The location is great - surrounded by the antique stores, local produce stands, florist, butcher selling only local meats (lamb, beef, chicken...), artist workshops, Copper Fox distillery, restaurants....you could make an afternoon of it. It's also situated in the perfect spot to stop for a few beers after a hike (coming off the mountain, it's just before you hop on Rt. 211 to head home). I'm also told that they intend to add a smokehouse - beer and smoked meat The brewery itself has a great space, albeit bare. Located in old garage space. The bar, tables and stools - all made by locals with old barn timbers (the man that made the bar was actually sitting at the end of it, enjoying a cold one ). You can see the brewery from the bar. Outside they have a shaded area to relax. I imagine at some point the owners and their band will perform there. Three beers on tap currently. The Saison was my favorite - perfectly crisp for a hot day. Took a growler of it home for $23 - will obviously be cheaper the next time when I come back with the growler. The three owners worked the bar and couldn't have been nicer or more accommodating. You could tell how excited they were about the place....which made me excited for them! I give four stars, leaving me room to add one once they add the smokehouse. In all, great guys, great location, great beer. An awesome addition to the Sperryville "scene" read more

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Such a chill place to spend a few hours enjoying some great beer! We've been here a few times now and on our most recent visit, we brought our new addition, our dog and he loved it as well. The staff here are friendly, inviting and churn out some pretty solid brews, did I mention it is dog friendly? We spent the past weekend here sitting outside, enjoying the warm winter weather with friends, beer and an all around great time. This place is a great venue to just kick back and relax while enjoying really solid beer! read more

The beers at Pen Druid are unique, and it is an enjoyable place to hang out. Whenever I come through town, I'm happy to stop in for a few glasses and a growler fill. Pen Druid makes a lot of different styles and they rotate their taps frequently. There are, however, a few consistent aspects to their brewing. The beers here tend to stay away from the strongly bitter, hoppy profile that has been a recent trend in craft brewing. Instead, Pen Druid is working with wild yeasts and experimenting with aging some of their beers. They typically have a sour on tap, and they produce some light-bodied beers with interesting, funky flavors. I also like that the alcohol content of Pen Druid's product tends toward a moderate level; it's easy to enjoy a few beers without them catching up with you too quickly. One of my favorite aspects of Pen Druid is the experience of hanging out in the tasting room. The brothers who operate the brewery are tremendous hosts who warmly greet visitors at the bar. It's easy to fall into conversation with new acquaintances here or to simply enjoy the company of your own group. While the outdoor picnic tables and sun shade are nice, I prefer indoor seating where I can listen to the classic and psychedelic rock inspired music. Though Pen Druid does not serve food, it is easy enough to grab sandwiches, groceries, or pizza in Sperryville to bring in. Occasionally a food truck will come by on the weekends too. A visit here is always pleasant and chill. read more

Tiny brewery, ambitious beers. Much like neighboring Copper Fox Distillery, Pen Druid isn't trying to be the biggest, but they certainly are zeroing in on a specific niche in the craft beer market with wild fermentation beers, including sours, that are best consumed out of a tulip glass. While I was only one of three patrons at 12:45pm on a hot August Saturday, when I left an hour later the numerous community tables inside were almost all filled. No food, but high ceilings and seating right next to barrels provided a great no-frills atmosphere where you come to enjoy the beer and company. Their six taps included adventurous names: Golden Swan, Odysseau, Neptude, Jupiter, Rural Panic and Saturnalia. With 4oz, 10oz and 16oz options for pours on most of their beers, expect for the more limited edition options like the wood-fired barrel-fermented wild double IPA (10.1%) or the wild blonde sour with wild cultures and aged for 6 months on Hungarian Red Wine puncheon, you can easily try their whole lineup before narrowing in on your second. Watch out though, as they didn't offer anything below 6% ABV! These three brothers really know what they are doing and Pen Druid provides a real representation of terroir. If you are going to Rappahannock County to visit vineyards or have a stay at the Inn at Little Washington, you owe it to yourself to yourself to take a little detour and have a glass in this hidden gem. If you are coming out from DC, I highly recommend stopping at Red Truck Bakery in Marshall where you cut off from I-66. If you like Adroit Theory in Loudoun County or Lickinghole Creek in Goochland County, you'll love Pen Druid! read more