I stopped in at the Zilker Brewing Company in Austin, Texas and enjoyed the ESB and the Coffee Milk Stout. The ESB was a solid representation of this style. The Coffee Milk Stout was simply delicious. I enjoyed it so much I had a second sample. I’d come back here just for the stout. Well worth the stop!
There are two reasons I write this blog. The first is that I love craft beer. The second is that I love meeting the people who make craft beer. This is a story about both reasons. When I recently traveled to Savannah, Georgia for business I contacted a few breweries that offered hours only on days I would not be in town. I heard from one brewery that they would not be able to accommodate a visit from me. However when I reached out to Coastal Empire Beer Company, the co-founder, Kevin Haborak, told me that I was welcome to drop by. So, I did. Today, on the way back to the airport.
Kevin arranged for his brother Chris to meet me, show me around, and allow me to taste practically everything on tap. These guys make awesome beer. Let me try to step you through a few of these. The Savannah Brown is a delicious brown ale, caramelly, sweet, malty, solid and very drinkable. The sort of brown ale you’d drink several of, especially say in the fall when there’s a slight chill in the air. The barrel aged version of this is like putting it on steroids. Wow! The flavor from the barrels makes it all that much richer. This puts it in the category of a sipping beer that I would enjoy after dinner instead of dessert, in a snifter. Perfect. Going a completely different direction is the Tybee Island Blonde Ale. This is a great option for hot summer days. Cans of this are perfect for the beach. One of these after cutting the lawn would be perfect. I also tried a pineapple, coconut and sea salt gose which is basically a secret weapon. Wow! This beer is off the hook! Its sweet and salty and tart all at the same time. My tastebuds were all over the place. Let me wrap with Dawn Patrol. Think Imperial Stout. Think Chocolatey goodness. Think Mole. Think Peppery Spices. Wrap all four of those together. KaBam! This is crazy good.
If you line in Savannah or are visiting Savannah you must stop in here. There’s at least one beer for every person’s tastebuds. You will love this beer. I need to figure out how to get distribution north to Maryland. The rest of the country needs these beers. Chris and Kevin, thank you for taking the time to meet with me. Thanks for the snifter. I will eagerly anticipate drinking Dawn Patrol from it in the comfort of my own home some day. And, I’m hoping to bring my wife to Savannah at some point and will definitely stop in to see you when I do. Keep up the great work!
I stopped in at Ethereal Brewing in Lexington, Kentucky and enjoyed the Lambda Oatmeal Stout. I enjoyed sitting back and relaxing and sipping this delicious beer. I also tasted the Dark and Raspy which was a barrel aged stout with raspberries. This had all the richness of the oatmeal stout with a sweet and sour raspberry taste as well. Great beers and a great place to enjoy them.
I stopped in at Daredevil Brewing Company in Indianapolis, Indiana on my way from the airport to downtown. The Lift Off IPA is one of the best, maybe the best IPA I’ve ever tasted. Very drinkable. Enough hops to be hoppy but not too hoppy. Delicious. I also enjoyed a taste of the JWP American Stout. Rich. Creamy. Smooth. The taproom is a great spot to hang out. I look forward to stopping in again.
I stopped in at Intuition Ale Works in Jacksonville, Florida and enjoyed Tall, Dark + Cherry. I was hoping for more cherry flavor, but it did deliver as a chocolate stout with hint of cherry. Of course, you wouldn’t want the cherry to be overpowering any way.
I’ll also mention that several years ago while on business in Jacksonville I had the opportunity to stop by and was given a private tour by the owner which was totally cool.
I stopped in at Green Room Brewing in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. Each beer in the flight I enjoyed was delicious. I enjoyed Double Dry Hopped Pablo Beach which sounds like a hop-bomb but is actually a very nicely balanced pale ale with hop character; also Tsunami which is a very nice saison with peppercorn accents; and Barista Volcanista a stout with many complex flavors going on; and my clear favorite was Key Lime Berliner, a sour Weiss beer which tasted like a slice of key lime pie – delicious. The Key Lime Berliner alone is worth stopping for.
I stopped in at the Milwaukee Ale House in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for dinner and a beer. I had the pretzels and Hawaiian pizza. The pretzels and beer cheese were delicious. They came out hot! The Milwaukee Ale House take on Hawaiian pizza includes pepperoni and jalapeno peppers – a delicious twist from the norm. I also enjoyed the Polish Moon milk stout. Most folks probably wouldn’t have paired that but when I saw the label I had to try it and it was rich and delicious.
I stopped in at Mill House Brewing Company in Poughkeepsie, New York for dinner and a beer. I actually tried a flight of five beer samples. The Buffalo Fried Brussels Sprouts appetizer were outstanding! Great flavor!. I enjoyed the Hubar IPA and Pine Tar best with these because the spiciness of both food and drink was perfect. For dinner I enjoyed the Grilled Swordfish which was deliciously paired with tabouleh and I preferred the cream ale and Kilt Spinner best with dinner. The beer I enjoyed most was the Pine Tar with spiciness and hints of pine. I hope to enjoy this beer again!
I made a second stop at Mill House Brewing Company and had another outstanding experience. This time I ate at the bar with colleagues. We had the great pleasure of chatting with owner Chris Crocco for quite a while this evening. He’s a great guy. So we shared a number of items this evening: fried pickle chips, fried chickpeas, smoked garlic sausage with pierogies and fig and pig pizza. EVERYTHING WAS DELICIOUS. Just FYI the sausages are all made in house and they have a number of them. I might try to get some to take home with me. The fig and pig pizza was exactly what it sounds like and it was sweet and awesome. I knew I wanted Pine Tar and it delivered – see above. I also tried Kold One Kolsch which was light and refreshing. And I ended the evening with Sexual Chocolate Stout and yes it is everything you can imagine but keeping this blog rated PG we’ll leave it at that.
I couldn’t resist trying the Peanut Butter Stout at Lucky Envelope Brewing in Seattle, Washington. And, you guessed it, it was a nice smooth stout with hints of peanut butter. All I needed was a jelly sandwich to go with it. I also tried the Helles Lager which was crisp and refreshing on this warm summer day. Great beers.
I stopped in at The Pike Brewing Company in Seattle, Washington and tasted three beers. The Kilt Lifter Scotch Ale was tasty(malty and sweet). It was he best of the three to start out with. The Space Needle Golden IPA was a really tasty IPA. Not too bitter. It has a real clean taste. The best way to describe it is that it tastes golden. Very nice. And the Pike Extra Stout was caramelly but also had a bite to it. For my tastes I liked the IPA best, then the Scotch Ale and finally the Stout. But all three were delicious.
I Stop For Hops 