BUCKHANNON – You Shall Not Pass …

… by Stone Tower Brews without enjoying the “There and Back Again Week,” Monday, April 12 through Sunday, April 18.

During the week, Stone Tower Brews has prepared a feast of Lord of the Rings and Hobbit-themed food and drink items.

“We did a wizard week in the fall, and we had a lot of fun with it,” Stone Tower Brews manager Courtney Page said. “I think most everybody at Stone Tower is a huge nerd, so when it came up in conversation, we knew everyone would enjoy doing a themed week for a ‘Lord of the Rings.’ We started writing down our ideas, and we immediately had a whole sheet of ideas for food, desserts and drinks, so we knew it would be great.”

For those not in the know – or those not quite as nerdy as STB’s baristas and cooks – “Lord of the Rings” is an epic high fantasy adventure book series originally published in three volumes in the mid-1950s by the English writer J.R.R. Tolkien. In the early 2000s, the series was developed into three fantasy adventure films, “The Fellowship of the Ring,” “The Two Towers” and “The Return of the King.” The series features a cast of sometimes reluctant heroes who must save their world from evil and features a slew of creatures – including elves, hobbits, lords and men.

Some of STB’s drinks inspired by Tolkien’s world are already available, such as the Orc’s Blood Soda with black cherry soda and a strawberry-vanilla cold foam and a piece of Lothlórien and Galadriel’s Mirror Soda, which contains vanilla cream soda, blue curacao and a banana cold foam (nonalcoholic). More drinks to come include Gandalf’s Grog Tea, an iced British tea with orange, cinnamon and cream and travelers can sample a Rivendell staple by enjoying the Miruvor Lemonade, an eleven lemonade with lavender and elderflower.

Page said Stone Tower’s crew has missed staging special events since tap takeovers and live music nights haven’t been feasible for the past year due to the pandemic.

“We enjoy putting on different events, especially since we haven’t had events like tap takeovers because COVID, so this is a nice way for us to get back into doing events, but in a safer way so we can do more of a takeout scene instead of doing a takeover or something like that,” Page said.

During the first day of the themed week, customers can enjoy a Second Breakfast Burrito, a loaded burrito with sausage gravy, and on Tuesday adventurers don’t have to venture to Khazad-dûm to try the Balrog tacos, which will be deep-fried spicy buffalo cauliflower tacos. On Wednesday, Stone Tower will offer the Hobbit Hash, a steak and potato dish; on Friday, the Sméagol poke bowl; and the weekend waffles will be stuffed strawberry French toast.

In partnership with Dough Re Mi, Stone Tower Brews will also feature a plethora of themed sweet treats like Bilbo’s Tea Cake Bars, Beorn’s Honey Cake Bars, Prancing Pony Blackberry Tarts, Bilbo’s 111th Birthday Cake Cheesecake, Elevenses Ginger Lemon Cookies, and customers can prepare for any journey with Lembas scones and cookies.

Travelers getting in late will also still be able to enjoy the festivities because Stone Tower Brews will be reverting back to their pre-COVID hours, so every day they close at 7 p.m., STB will be closing at 9 p.m., meaning the coffee shop and eatery will be open until 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday starting Monday, April 12.

“Dinner is so crazy because everybody’s trying to get in right before closing time and then everybody gets overwhelmed, we’re so ready to go back to normal,” Page said.

Stay tuned to STB’s Facebook and Instagram pages for more details about “Lord of the Rings” week.