Photo Courtesy of Tom Daly
What will strike you first about Devil’s Backbone Brewery is its architectural beauty. Driving along Route 151 to this Nelson County gem is a scenic experience of farmland and pastures, obstructed by the casual strip mall and lone gas station. You may even wonder why you are driving 15 minutes past Blue Mountain Brewery, which as we all know, has great beer.
Then, hark!, Devil’s Backbone towers three stories above the road with a modern beam, stone and recycled aluminum design. Its made from recycled parts from an old dairy mill, stones from the area and a few other meaningful parts. The full story is inside the menu which I failed to steal. In fact, almost every construction part is a local item, except for the giant moose head which comes from Northern Canada.
When you walk inside, look up. It’s an open three stories. Now, imagine being in a cathedral, only this religion is beer. Looking forward to your beer experience, you can see the exposed brewing equipment and the staff welcoming you as if you were actually an important customer (different than most of our dining experiences in Charlottesville).
You can browse the menu. I haven’t sampled everything on it, but the pizza crust is surprisingly good and the appetizers are your standard fare. I never went to this place for the food, but I can’t say you would go wrong. It can be expensive. Appetizers range from $8 to $10 and entrees go as high as $26. The menu has enough flexibility where you aren’t stuck with spending too much money if you want stuff your face. They have a sandwich menu. Hallelujah!
I went here for the beer, duh. I’ve done the tasting flight and everything is excellent, better overall than both South Street and Blue Mountain. Two beers in particular rise above the rest-Wintergreen Weiss and Eight Point IPA.
Wintergreen Weiss
The story behind this beer is that one of the owners apparently was a huge scotch drinker (or something like that) and ended up in Bavaria, Germany on a vacation. He sampled the a German Weissbier and instantly decided this was now his drink of choice. Returning to America, he found (and I agree) that nothing came close to that German Weissbier taste. American wheat beer is too sweet, tastes like chalk and for the plebes. The owner found something close enough to his memory at a Gordon Biersch brewery. So, what did he do? He hired that dude as the brewmaster for Devil’s Backbone. That shit is MAFIA and awesome. Well, the beer is, hands down, the BEST AMERICAN WEISSBIER I’VE EVER HAD. That means a lot. I am not making this up. It’s still a step or two away from the German pinnacle it’s trying to obtain, but you will love this beer. It’s not overly sweet, is very balanced, creamy and full of that wheat taste you love so much. Try it and let me know what you think.
Eight Point IPA
My palette has been slowly shifting away from any sort of Pale Ale recently. I don’t know if it’s because of the hangovers or the taste being too much of a liquid explosion. I will tell you that the Eight Point IPA is a crisp, refined and entirely drinkable IPA. It still has all that complexity that you expect, but without that harshness. I love it and it’s my favorite beer they have.
What are your favorite beers?
My Devil’s Backbone experiences have been impeccable and I am really happy to share this place with you. I love the atmosphere better than anything in Charlottesville. Sure, the drive is killer (about 35 minutes from downtown), but combine the trip with a leisurely afternoon, a stop at Blue Ridge Pig or some skiing and it is totally worth your time. Now, who wants to be my designed driver for the next visit?
Related posts:
- Devil’s Backbone Brewery Coming to Charlottesville Area
- Devil’s Backbone Brewing Company Open
- Blue Mountain Brewery to Double Capacity
That photo is awesome. I’m glad Tom Daly let us use it instead of sueing us.
I’ve done the tasting flight and everything is excellent, better overall than both South Street and Blue Mountain.
That is a flat out lie. All of their beers are lacking in flavor. I wouldn’t call them watered down but definitely bland. It seemed like they looked at their beer recipe and decided to use half as much barley and half as much hops. It’s definitely worth trying, but if I’m not already at Wintergreen, I wouldn’t waste my time driving the extra 15 minutes. Blue Mountain is much better, and even South Street’s beers have more flavor.
@2 totally disagree.
That’s surprising. You are the first person I talked to who thought the beers were better than average.
maybe they’ve gotten better in recent times?
After my first 3 visits (over a course of 3 days) I decided I was going to give them a month or 2 to move on to their second or third batch of beer. Hopefully they have and it is better. I might give it another try this weekend.
This place is a mountain chalet for the beer gods. Unfortunately at this early date the beers served of merely court jesters. Devil’s Backbone has an edifice complex only solved if they improve the brew. It’s worth the drive only if you going skiing but no so much when you can go to the closer and better Blue Mountain.
OMG, another brewery review without an address. htf are we supposed to find this place?
/jk. i haz the googles.
You could have clicked on the above hyperlink or here http://dbbrewingcompany.com/contact/
They got maps and everything
@9 by “you” i assume you don’t mean me but rather the person i was mocking.
Scanning their website, I didn’t notice anything about bottling and distributing the brew. Does anybody know if there are plans to do so?
they have growlers to take beer away, but I don’t know about bottling.
@10 Sure whatever you say Orchid
I was unaware that there was mocking was going on and thought it might be nice to simply put it out there.
No good deed does go unpunished.
Thor, what a great post. I have to say, for me, this is why I love Cvillain. Not all the mean and biting comments, but reviews of local businesses and helping people to discover things off the beaten path in this area…
Today is my birthday! Happy birthday to me!
Question, did you guys have a special birthday dinner made by your mom or family? Did you get to go out to a favorite restaurant? Mine was fried chicken, gravy, biscuits, green bean casserole, and chocolate pie. As I got older we went to Duner’s for my favorite birthday dinner place!
Yum..
Happy Birthday buttface
Happy Bday mr. thurston
Regardless of how one may feel about their beers, Devil’s Backbone is sure to be filled with DC weekenders after the latest Cville-related feature in the post: http://tinyurl.com/b9ukzw (Note that they do comment that the beers at DB lack a certain oomph…). Still, I’d be happy to try them myself. Beer tasting isn’t ever really *that* big of a chore.
Thank you very much ladies!
@8 I got it Orchid, you made me giggle.
Look closely at the photo. Either that guy has 3 legs or he is very excited about beer tasting. Oh if it’s the latter, does anyone have a phone number for him…..
Is this Thor one of the chick Thors? Because that’s the only way I can take this ridiculous bullshit seriously:
“I’ve done the tasting flight and everything is excellent, better overall than both South Street and Blue Mountain. Two beers in particular rise above the rest-Wintergreen Weiss and Eight Point IPA.”
First of all, their beers don’t TOUCH Blue Mountain. They are among the most disappointing beers I’ve ever had at a brewery/brewpub, and I’ve visited enough to know. I asked the bartender about the watered-down quality of the beer there and he said they were going for a “mass-market” appeal. Which is to say that they are making all their shit taste like Bud Light. I was soooooooo let down.
“BEST AMERICAN WEISSBIER I’VE EVER HAD.”
You’ve clearly never had Long Trail Hefeweizen, or you wouldn’t make such a ridiculous comment. Hell, even Widmer Bros Hefe is better than Wintergreen Weiss.
Eight Point IPA should not even be named an IPA. It isn’t hopped enough. I would be hard pressed to call it a pale ale, if that. I was very disappointed by this brew.
I “echo” #2’s sentiments. DB is an architectural delight, but it is all style with no substance. And the food I ate there was meh at best (enchiladas or some shit). They have the merch, the embossed menus, the music, the service, and even the porcelain tub pisser in the men’s room, but they forgot one thing: THE FUCKING BEER.
Reminds me of the Kluge Estate wine shop thingy. They spared no expense, still the wine is meh.
Thor defend yourself or people might believe you sold out or don’t know squat about beer.
I just don’t want to believe that Thor’s opinion is for sale, so I’m hoping that all that Keystone has altered your tastebuds.
I think the DBB beer is better than Blue Mtn. and/or South St
@21 Does that mean that women don’t appreciate/understand quality beer as much as men? If a girl wrote it, and you didn’t agree, then it wouldn’t matter anyway because you wouldn’t put any stock into a woman’s opinion?
Lame.
@25: Shhh…get back in the kitchen.
@25, it was a joke. You know, using a stereotype (women don’t drink good beer). Clearly, on planet earth, there are a lot of women that know and drink good beer. My wife is one of them. She also thinks DBB’s beer is sub-par and was also disappointed.
@24, I wholeheartedly disagree.
I guess we all have our own tastes, but I can say with certainty that among people who really, really love and study good beer, DBB falls seriously flat.
My point is that among those that know about beer, about beer-styles, and about what certain styles should taste like, DBB misses the mark. That’s not to say that people won’t like DBB’s beer, but it simply cannot be considered top shelf.
It’s much like wine. Lots of people prefer sweeter wines, or rose types. But among wine snobs sweet wines are lame. Most wineries make them because they sell a shit ton more wine that way because most people that tour wineries around here don’t have a developed, discriminating palate.
I think the same is true for DBB. That’s what the bartender told me! When I told him the IPA was nonesuch, he said they were purposefully making beers that would appeal more to the mass market.
I can definitely give them kudos for their business model. With the decor of the place, the location, the attention to detail, etc…they will definitely make money. And good for them. But their beer still sucks.
I wonder if that’s why they are not producing bottles; take the beers out of the pretty setting and have stand on their own … maybe they wouldn’t compare so well to other craft brews.
@28 Sorry…nternet doesn’t convey tone of voice very well. Next time I’ll listen more carefully
I’ll add my “meh” to the quality of DBB’s beer. I’ve talked to a lot of folks about it and everyone has been underwhelmed by their beer. Nice facility though, if only Blue Mountain was as nice inside…
The brew might be boring (I agree), but at least one can count on them being open. Hell, I’ve never figured out when Blue Mountain is open. They seem to be closed early and often. And BM menu is weak at best, too. I’m personally stoked that the ‘bone is open and hope their brew improves or that they start to carry more of BM’s brew as the ‘guest’ beer.
i have to agree that the beer at Devil’s Backbone is lacking when compared to the other local offerings (South St. and Blue Mtn, that is), but the experience is a good one. the menu is far more varied than Blue Mtn’s, the atmosphere is on par with or better than BM or SS, but it’s not the finest area brewery by any stretch. it does, however, offer the swing point of a nice Saturday or Sunday afternoon adventure. start there with a decent lunch and better beer than you’ll get out of a frat party or bar on the Corner (for the most part), stop at the Pig on the way back for some take home, hit up Blue Mountain for another round and some growlers for tomorrow (to wash down the Pig), then dine at South Street and guzzle Absolution until they kick you out.
sounds like the perfect day, really.
Everyone keeps making the comparison between South Street, Blue Mountain, and Devil’s Backbone without actually talking about the beer, other than the ones Thor mentioned at the beginning. What about some of the other beers the breweries make? Does Devil’s Backbone do a really good job on another type of beer, or do they have a seasonal brew that stands out or is at least not trying to have as much “mass appeal”? How about South Street vs. Blue Mountain, and the different types of beer they serve? I’d like to see some more commentary on different types of beer, rather than just flat, subjective ‘x is better than y’ statements. Anybody have favorites?
I miss Blue Ridge Brewing Company…
It was fun but it was not great beer, was it? South Street kicked its aggs.
Does that mean that women don’t appreciate/understand quality beer as much as men?
Not at all.
(it’s not just “beer”)
I think South Street’s JPAle and Blue Mountain’s Full Nelson is a good matchup. Both American pale ales, JPAle is a little more malty and mellow whereas Full Nelson has the kick of a good India pale ale. Both very good, just depends on what your preference is.
Devil’s Backbone is a great place. The brewmaster, Chris I believe, is a great guy and has a cool vision. I look for him to step up the beers and give each a bit more distinction. He’s got some cool plans to work with brewmasters from places like Dogfish Head Brewery to create a “joint” small batch. He’ll be combining with some guys that really enjoy pushing the boundaries of beer making. He’s got a top-notch operation that was imported from Japan I believe. Add to that one of the coolest atmospheres around. I recommend checking out some live music where they have artists perform from the Eagle’s Nest above the bar, its pretty cool. Last time I was there, I had some sort of pizza with a hummus base, it was REALLY good, but their cornbread tasted like sawdust. Great potential there, but definitely still finding their stride.
never understood how people can get so worked up and pissy over THEIR opinion in reviewing restaurants and such. I guess their opions are all that’s important. I like varying beers from all 3 mentioned breweries. Maybe these nut jobs who feel the need to lash out are live-at-home bedwetters….??
@40 pissy, nut jobs , and bedwetting- All are golden words of criticism, well played
“…sounds like the perfect day, really.”
@33, either you’re a genius or you just stayed at a Holiday Inn Express
@40 – I would like to think that anywhere I wet my bed is my home
@34 BMB’s Dark Hollow is a great stout (even better: the Chocolate Cherry Imperial Bourbon Stout, which is unfortunately seasonal, but heaven!).
I also found DBB’s beer to be lacking in flavor – tried the Gold Leaf and the Weiss.
Nice one Paul. My wife and I are going there for lunch tomorrow. I’ll let y’all know what we think…
I thought I would explain the philosophy of the beer at Devils Backbone Brewing Company being it’s brewer. I do not make Extreme Beers and have no interest in such. What I do have an interest in is making beers that are traditional or traditionally inspired. That includes using traditional brewing techniques, traditional ingredients, and traditional true to style strengths. My first seasonal offerings were designed on purpose to be low gravity (low alcohol) true to style beers. I had a 4% Scottish Ale and a 4.5% English-Style Oatmeal Stout. For those of you have traveled to England like I have will know that the majority of the real ales in pubs are below 4.5% alcohol by volume (beers in Britain are taxed on their strength, keeping most of them low alcohol session style beers). This allowed me to have seasonal beers at or around our opening, stronger beers need more time to mature and would not be ready in time. This also allowed me to do something different as British-style session beers are hardly brewed in this country. As the weather is growing colder I have several new stronger seasonal beers being released. I currently have a English-style Winter Warmer on tap at 6.7% abv and a Belgian-style Triple at 8.5% abv that I put on tap today. Next week will see our Imperial Stout (8.5% abv) hit the taps, and in another week a German-style Bock (7% abv) will be released. The four year round beers are meant to be very drinkable and they are a German-style Helles Lager, A Vienna Lager, A Bavarian-style Hefeweizen, and an American-style IPA. The goal is to have those four beers year-round, always have a rotating dark beer, a rotating Belgian-style, and one to two seasonal / specialty offerings. The idea is to have four standards and 3-4 roasting beers that provide a diversity of styles. We serve our beers in appropriate glassware and the house glass has a 16 ounce pour-line so you get a true (American) pint with room for head. In addition to the house brewed beer, we offer two guest taps devoted only to Virginia craft brewed beer. I want to support the local beer industry as a whole.
I meant rotating beers not “roasting” beers btw. You all are roasting my beers on this blog.
I meant rotating beers, not “roasting beers” btw. You are roasting my beers on this blog.
I have to agree with the other posters who say that Blue Mountain has superior beer. If you want to have a decent meal with average beer in a cool setting, I recommend going down to Devil’s Backbone. My wife and I enjoyed it during a lazy Sunday. It was also fun to watch football at their bar. However, if you truly want to enjoy beer itself, there is no reason to go past Blue Mountain. I think Blue Mountain has some of the best micro-brewed beer I’ve had. Their stout is without a doubt my favorite beer brewed locally.
DBB deserves credit for supporting the local fish man.
@47 I have a pet haddock that looks under the weather. Any advice?
I was stationed in Stuttgart in the early 90’s and have had the opportunity to travel around Germany and Europe so i feel i should share my experiences. It is refreshing to see some classic styles being brewed in the area. In the 90’s german pils was the rule, while DBBC does not have a pils on tap I appreciate the Hefeweizen and I find it to be most authentic. I like their helles as well although I think their hefe is the prize jewel. It is nice to see a brewery doing a hefeweizen year round. I am not an expert on English beer but the beers I have had at DBBC have been most enjoyable, ie: I had them with friends and we hung out and had a good time. Imperial Stouts are not my thing (I’ve had them once or twice) but I look forward to their Bock.
This seems like a goodtime for my once every six months comment. I was at the DB earlier this week, and quite enjoyed both beers I had, I really liked the ale of fergus, easily approachable but well balanced. I do like Blue Mountain’s beers but I really havent found a SS beer I cared for, (admittedly I stopped visiting a while ago) or even a starr hill beer that I would pay for. My only complaint is that you cant rock the faux Apres ski while in snow attire outside, and the fact that my house is too far away to walk home. Mr Oliver I pray stick to your vision and a dogfish collabo wouldnt bother me either. Also I wolud love to carry your beer at my place of empoly, I know that you dont bottle right now and the state requires a seperate distributor to do sell bottles/kegs to bars/rests. can you comment on the possibility of your beers in the cville market? you will be seeing me by monday I am sure, so about that ride home…
Jason, I really appreciate your post. I think it explains your brewing philosophy well and it puts where you’re coming from more into perspective. While I am aware of the varying types and styles of European beer, I almost exclusively drink American IPAs, or other extravagantly hopped beers. The two things that negatively struck me about your beer were:
1. That the IPA did not, in my opinion, have enough hops and wasn’t “big enough” to warrant being called an IPA. Especially an American IPA. American IPAs are currently more closely related to traditional British IPAs (the ones actually used to withstand those long voyages at sea, which the style is based on) than modern British IPAs are today. Maybe you were attempting to brew a modern British IPA (not as hoppy, not as “big, lower ABV), but what would prompt me to ask the question: why? You had a lot of beer on tap (lots of space for more drinkable beer), why not make your one IPA a real ass kicker?
2. The bartender (a dude in his 20’s, nice, attentive, this was the night of the first Bobby St. Ours show a month or so ago) told me that you were intentionally trying to brew “mass market” beers. This totally turned me off. Your explanation above does a much better job of explaining where you’re coming from. His explanation alluded to the idea that you were trying to “satiate the masses” and led to my gripes above.
Again, we all have our different preferences (my current favorite beer is Southern Tier’s Gemini, to give you an idea of what I like, but it changes almost daily). I was let down by your beer because I had expectations going in that I was going to be treated to some wonderfully original American brewing that was pushing conventional boundaries. Perhaps that was unfair of me, but I was let down by the beer, plain and simple.
I’ll make my way out this week to try the triple. And even if I sounded harsh, it’s only because I love beer. Thanks for brewing it, and I look forward to trying your new brews. Peace.
Thanks icenine for the constructive criticism.
1) My IPA is definitely a work in progress. It has been 7 years since I have brewed an IPA and I have been dialing it in every time I brew it (adding more hops). My IPA is American in style but it does come in on the low end of one stylistic guidelines (bjcp) and just beneath the GABF style guidelines. I am considering increasing the gravity (strength) so it falls into both guidelines. That said it will always be on the low end (alcohol wise) because I think a good IPA doesn’t necessarily need to be an alcohol bomb. The IPA’s that inspire me are Avery IPA and Russian River Blind Pig. They are on the pale side, crisp and dry and very drinkable. My IPA is 14 plato (unit of sugar content prior to fermentation and indicative of strength) , Avery’s is 14.5 plato, and Blind Pig is 15 plato. Those are just two of my favorites. I also enjoy Stone IPA and Dogfishhead 60 Minute IPA. All of that said I am collaborating with someone (will name later) and we will be brewing an Imperial IPA next week (do I have to eat my previous words about extreme beer?). Btw, I do not know where the Dogfishhead collaboration came from, this blog is the first I’ve heard of it but I’m open to anything. I do want to collaborate with a number of brewers and welcome the opportunity to do some fun stuff. Send them my way.
2) I think the bartender was confused. I do not brew for the masses. I picked certain styles that I like and several of them are very approachable. Germanic-style lagers; the Helles and Vienna are examples of beers that are very approachable and can be enjoyed by your average beer drinker. Some brewpubs will brew a light beer or a light golden ale to appeal to those drinkers, I didn’t want to brew a light so I picked the style of Helles, which is one of my favorites. As a brewer I find the lagers to be a rewarding challenge as any imperfection is noticeable. I know of a lot of brewers who’s favorite beer to brew is a pale lager or kolsch as it is more difficult to make it consistently. This doesn’t mean I do not like strong beer or hoppy beers. For the real masses we carry Bud, Bud Light,and Coors Light. Some brewers scoff at carrying these products but I am proud to offer them as they are all brewed in Virginia (Williamsburg and Elkton) employing people and helping the economy.
Every brewer has there own style. I like tradition and try to maintain stylistic authenticity. I like strong beers and have some coming on-tap but I also appreciate session type beers. I set up the beers so I would have a rotation of 3-4 different seasonal beers to provide a variety. I think we are lucky to be in an area with several great breweries each with it’s own take on things.
To respond to BtB, we plan on having some distribution and will have some draft beer offerings in C-Ville soon. I really do not have a lot of extra capacity so it will be limited. I do want to offer some of my seasonal offerings to the beer friendly joints in town. No bottles, growlers are available here, and we will fill anyone’s growler not just our own.
Thank you for the response. I really appreciate it.
Dogfish and Stone are two of my favorite IPAs (and breweries) as well (love the 90 min as well as the 60, and Arrogant Bastard made me a hophead for life!). I understand where you’re coming from now and I’m excited to get back out to your brewery. Keep brewing!
@46-56 has been simply awesome. thank you for playing blog marketing, i guarantee you’ll get some visits out of this. i’ll be one of them.
@57 I completely agree. (Presuming you’re mostly to entirely serious.) One of my favorite things about this site is that owners/makers will show up occasionally and folks don’t suddenly stop critiquing but are also welcoming and interested. The exchange to this point in the thread definitely took me from “eh, no way I’m driving that far for mediocre beer” to “hmm, might be a nice place to hit if we decide to head out that way some weekend afternoon.” Not earth shattering by any stretch, but definitely the kind of thing that’s awesome to run across on the internets.
Ok, we went to The Devils Backbone for a late lunch Saturday at around 4:00 and man it was packed. Beautiful place. I had a steak sandwich and it was awesome. The beer was decent. I had a triple belgium beer and it was pretty good. Our server was a little overwhelmed with the busy pace of the place, but she was nice. Great experience overall for all seven of us.
A little caveat, I know way more about wine then beer, but I did like the beer I had although it had 8.7 % alcohol which is pretty high if you have three or four of them and then have to ride back to Cville.
I drove by yesterday, after an afternoon snow tubing with 2 car loads of 9 year old boys.
I have never wanted a drink so much in my fucking life.
Floozy, I am sure you love your pet haddock. It’s time to set her free to roam the open oceans.
No way Dr Piscine…. I haven’t had to change my knickers in 6 months on account of that little beauty.
Piscine=pool. Not fish.
@ two car loads of 9 year old boys? I thought you liked them much older than that.
@ 64 You know what they say, three 9 year olds equal one 27 year old! Actually, sorry, no one says that. Let’s move on.
@63 pi·scine (psn, psn)
adj.
Of, relating to, or characteristic of a fish or fishes.
[Medieval Latin piscnus, from Latin piscis, fish.]
Ha-Little Miss Know Fuckall
Piscine=adjective
Fish=noun
So still FAIL
Not to get in the way of a cat fight but an adjective that has been capitalized after a honorific is a proper noun.
See Mr. Big, Mr. Wrong, Mister Natural,and Dr. Evil
Thank you Dieter. You may now use one of those ‘Complimentary Blow Job’ coupons that I gave you, to celebrate just such an auspicious event.
devil’s backbone had a phenomenal oatmeal stout last time i was there, so those complaining about the beer should stop getting the sissy light beers and man up with a darker brew.
weak.
the sampler is no good. something about it being poured into smaller glasses makes it taste REALLY watered down.
But impressions never really changed — everything seemed a little watered down/weak and there were all these gnats in the bar too. I mean, I sympathize with the bug problem in August, but in January?
The staff was nice, though. No complaints there.
I’d stop by if i were in the area, but when coming from C’ville, I don’t see any reason to drive past Blue Mountain.
When did the beer world become so filled with over opinonated geeks. I have been there and I like the beer. They have something for everyone. I took my wife to Blue mountian and her not really being into beer she thought almost all of them were over the top. I like there beer but that is the point that what one likes and does not like does does not determine the quality of a beer. It is all perspective people. If your name is not michael Jackson your opinion does not really count for much.
When they started charges $12 for a six pack at beer run.
beer run now has some first-rate lunatic sluts as regulars, drunk out of their mind and oozing back to woolen mills with any spare guy who looks at them twice. poor place–interesting and good food/beer, but some really godawful woolen-mills losers have colonized it, amongst the fine and better patrons. i had to stop going, sux.
I went there for the 1st time on Sunday and, while the beers were decent and drinkable, they were not distinctive. The 1st one I tried tasted exactly like Budweiser, in my opinion. I, personally, do not usually ever enjoy IPAs, but I enjoyed theirs, though. The Hefeweizen is what I ordered after I finished the tasting, and while it was good, I’ve had much better at South Street. The prices were very decent, however. Food-wise, I got their nachos and got steak on them and they SUCKED–when they arrived, they were cold and the steak looked like dog food, not enjoyable at all. Other people I was with said they did enjoy their food, but I was not impressed; yet, the fried pickels were a nice touch I thought, ha. All in all, I don’t think I’ll become a regular there.
@ 73
Yeah I agree, too many people out there spouting rhetoric. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but all of these internet EXPERTS get a little bunny-cooker-ish. I’m more of a wine guy and never come across such harsh criticisms reading wine reviews (and believe me, i read a lot of wine reviews). I guess with cyber-anonymity comes great courage. I like your comment about MJ…..
@75 I so want to get this guy in a room with orchid after she has been on a local vineyard tour. I swear I would sell tickets, international film rights and also tend to his arterial bleeding.
Well maybe…. on the bleeding that is.
When this restaurant first opened, the beer and the food were very good… however during a visit in March ‘09, the chicken enchila was LOUSY and the beer was only ’so so’. I asked to have the enchilada removed from the tab. The manager seemed offended by my description of what was wrong with the food and started quarreling with me and defending ‘chef’ (who must have been a different one from the one that was there at ’startup’). Meanwhile, the rest of my party asked about having their growlers filled with a premium blend that was on tap and was quoted an average figure somewhere around 10 dollars each — by the manager. When they delivered the full growlers, the manager said, “I was mistaken, the computer returned a much higher price”
Well, the price was nearly twice as much as was quoted so my friends said, “we don’t want it at that very high price…” Instead of making a deal or apologizing for his obvious blunder, the guy stormed off and dumped the contents from 6 + growlers — and we think he dumped it back into the production tank!!!! We can’t prove it though. Doing this could be a health department violation. Anyway, we were all in shock by the way he was acting. I told him that he was the worst manager I have ever seen and asked if I could speak with the owner. He was he WAS the owner!!! (part owner anyway) With such a poor display of customer service, the nasty taste of the enchilada, the so-so beer… I will not return. I told him this and he started argue with me again and even followed me outside! After he stormed back inside, a family of five approached me and wanted to know what the scene was about. I explained and they told me that they ordered 5 chicken enchiladas and they were so dry and tasteless that they could not finish theirs either!!! Avoid this brew-pub.
I have been there close to a dozen times and have never had a bad experience. The last time I went was mid-March right before I moved to DC. As I’ve said many times, I think the beer is lacking flavor and pales in comparison to Blue Mountain, but the food has always been good. I’ve met the owner and he seemed like a nice guy. He really wants the beer to be on par with or better than the other breweries in the area, and he thinks it will continue to improve with every batch. I’m shocked to hear you had this bad of an experience, and hope that you would give them another chance. I understand why you wouldn’t, but your experience is much different than anyone else I have talked to.
It will be awhile before I return. That nasty attitude was a real turn-off. It seems that there is a growing trend to have a bad-attitude with brew-pub operators. I won’t go into detail about it but it does seem to be a reality. Anyway, since you are in D.C., take a run over to Arlington and visit Rock Bottom Brewery. You will experience the very best beer, food, service and atmosphere!