In December of 2008 the Brick Store Pub was named the #2 Best Beer Bar on the Planet Earth, by Beer Advocate Magazine. It is pretty easy to see why this Beer Bar is a favorite of many. From the casual and conversation centered atmosphere (no TV’s or blaring music) to the incredible selection of unique and interesting beers to a competent staff which is well educated about the beers – Brick Store Pub truly stands out in the crowd. Add all of that to a solid menu of tasty food and you have a winner.
In this first episode from Brick Store (we seperated out our tour of their cellar – it is worthy of its own episode) we talk with co-owner Dave Blanchard about the restaurant and pub and how they played an integral part in converting Georgia into a haven for beer lovers and take a look around the pub and restaurant.
Be sure to keep an eye on our site (or subscribe, or follow us on Twitter) for part 2 of this episode where we head downstairs with Lee Dickson (beer manager) on an exclusive tour of their beer cellar.
If you are in the Atlanta area be sure to check out The Brick Store Pub. It’s just an easy train ride to Decatur, the train leaves you just about a block away from the Pub.
Brick Store Pub
125 E. Court Square
Decatur, Georgia 30030
phone: (404) 687-0990 WebsiteMap
The Northampton Brewery in Northampton, Massachusetts opened its doors in 1987, making them one of if not the first microbrewery in New England. Now over 20 years later they are celebrating their Grand Re-Opening. After 20 years of wear and tear it was time to give the Northampton Brewery a face lift. In the video owner, Janet Egelston, explains that they choose to use environmentally friendly materials to complete the renovations.
Not only did the Northampton Brewery get a little work done they also recently went and got themselves a new Head Brewer, Donald Pacher. He has been the Head Brewer at Northampton Brewery for just a little over 1 year. He has brought new life to the beers there. We had the privilege to sample the two beers brewed just for the Grand Re-Opening … Beyond Mean Green and Hopzilla. In the video, beer writer George Lenker (a.k.a The Beer Nut) gives us his take on the Hopzilla.
This was one happening party! We enjoyed good food, creative beer, and live music by The Primate Fiasco a local Dixieland Band. We look forward to stopping back and tasting some more of Donald’s creations. If we don’t catch you at the Northampton Brewery we hope to see you next time right here on HerefortheBeer.
We attended the Dogfish Head 75 Minute Simul-Cask aka Johnny Cask at The Sierra Grille in Northampton, MA. At precisely 7:50pm the beer began pouring. The 75 Minute IPA is a mixture of the ever so popular Dogfish Head 60 and 90 Minute IPAs with a special whole leaf cascade dry-hopping session. After hopping, the beer was transferred into firkin’s where fresh yeast and Maple Syrup were added. What a fun event this turned out to be. We love the creative ways that Sam and the Dogfish Head team bring beer lovers together.
We were invited to this event by the owner of The Sierra Grille, O’Brian Tomalin. Though we went for the beer, we left with a great first impression of The Sierra Grille. The food was excellent, served in a tapas style. The menu offered a wide variety of reasonably priced small plate options , including $3 desserts. Don’t worry if you have a big appetite the menu also offers about 8 full entrees. The beer selection was top notch including, among others, HE’BREW Jewbalation Twelve and Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA.
We would like to thank The Sierra Grille for hosting this event and look forward to stopping in again. We would also like to say hello to all of the awesome beer lovers who attended, we enjoyed meeting you all. If we do not see you at The Sierra Grille, we will see you next time on Here for the Beer!
Welcome to our new website and video blog. You could always start by catching up on who we are and why we are doing this, but there is no need to read if you don’t want to – its all basically covered in the beginning of this video.
Our first video trip is to Ebenezers Pub in Lovell Maine. This bar was recently rated the “#1 beer bar on the planet” by Beer Advocate. So naturally, we decided to take the road trip up from our Vermont Inn to check it out!
The first thing you need to know is that there is not a lot of lodging in the area, so book a room in advance (especially in the off season). We stayed at the Oxford House Inn in Fryeburg, ME. The second thing you need to know is that you should throw away your GPS and Google Map directions. Not only were they both inaccurate, but our GPS swore we were in Maine when we were still in New Hampshire. (Useful directions can be found at the end of this post).
Once you have found Ebenezers it’s all uphill from there. We have been to many beer bars and to be frank from the outside, this one did not strike us as very impressive. Even an initial glance around the inside leaves you wondering – after all, its a small pub with about 36 taps and 4 bottle coolers. There were about 5 seats at the bar and 2 high top tables. The dining room only had about 5 tables. We were there in December so their large deck was closed, but when its open it probably adds another 10 tables. Pretty much the run of the mill beer bar. Of course, then we sat down and the party began.
A totally friendly server named Hannah brought over some menus. She made us feel very comfortable and welcome. We ordered up some food and then studied the beer menu. That is when it hit us HARD that this is not your average beer bar. The beer menu is beyond impressive with several beers we had never even heard of. To top that off, they were all in stock. Even better than that Hannah was really knowledgeable about beer (she chalks it up to lots of practice) and was able to point us to some great choices from the taps. Of course, we started with a Black Albert (their signature beer, brewed by De Struise Brewers specially for Ebenezers). After we finished eating the owner Chris stopped by our table to say hello. He was upbeat, fun and gracious. Chris introduced us to several great beers at the bar (Amy tried the Mikkeller Stateside IPA and I had a bottle of this years Pannepot). Chris then offered us a tour of his cellar, which we jumped on without hesitation. (Be sure to check out our video of our trip to the Beer Cellar at Ebenezers to see all of the great beer we sampled.)
By the time we left Ebenezers it was clear to see that what had been the biggest challenge of this pub, was also their greatest advantage. The fact that they are a small pub in “middle of no where” Maine is what helps make this place so phenomenal. The personal service, great in stock selection and friendly atmosphere all added to an amazing selection of beers and an incredible host truly do make this the best beer bar we have ever been to.
Being innkeepers of a small Bed and Breakfast in New England we have come to discover that it is the personal connections with our guests and the personal touches to our B&B that make the biggest impact on their return business. We found the same to be true at Ebenezers. We will definitely be back.
If you are headed to Ebenezers, they are located at 44 Allen Road in Lovell Maine. To get there, take route 302 until it branches off onto Route 5. Take Route 5 up to the golf course and pay attention to the small tourist signs on the side of the road. There are signs for Ebenezers on both sides (both directions, don’t ask why we know that…) that will send you onto the very small and unpaved Allen Road. Ebenezers is just up this road on the left, in the dark wooden house. Enter through the covered deck area. Tell them Tim and Amy sent you! (and beer advocate of course!).
During our trip to Ebenezers Pub in Lovell, ME we found the perfect place to stay. The Oxford House Inn came complete with nicely appointed rooms, a full service restaurant and a small pub in the basement.
We felt comfortable and connected as soon as we walked in the door. Owners Natalie and John, who are also young innkeepers, made us feel welcome. Natalie showed us to our room, which I must say was way nicer in person then it looked on their website. The only negative was the small bathroom, but we often find this to be the case when old homes are being converted into inns. Personally we would rather have a small bathroom than to see the integrity of the architecture destroyed.
We never did get to eat in their restaurant, however while talking to several people at Ebenezers they all agreed that the restaurant and pub at the Oxford House are top notch. We did take in a drink in their pub after returning from Ebenezers and were quite impressed. The atmosphere was comfortable contemporary, which truly reflected Natalie and John’s personal taste and style. Throughout the pub we noticed some great artwork, which according to Natalie are by local artist and the display changes every couple of months.
As you may have figured out by now we choose just about everything we do based on beer. John had two tap handles in the pub, both local breweries and a decent bottle selection. This made for the perfect night cap.
If you are headed up to the North Conway area (or to Lovell Maine for a trip to Ebenezers!) be sure to give Natalie and John a call at the Oxford House. And be sure to tell them that Tim and Amy sent you!
This is our own Inn in Brattleboro Vermont. Of course we think its the best in Vermont. We are located at the north end of downtown Brattleboro. The Inn is about 3 blocks from downtown and all that it has to offer.
Brattleboro is a lively town that takes great pride in celebrating the arts. There are many galleries and artist spaces and a monthly gallery walk on the first Friday of each month.
our inn has 6 luxury rooms and of course, a small pub where you can enjoy about 25 beers from all over Vermont and occasionally some Belgians and imports as well.
Brattleboro is also home to McNeils, one of the “must visit” brewing establishments on the east coast. Flat Street is another great beer bar should you find yourself in Brattleboro. Of course, if you do find yourself headed to Southern Vermont, be sure to book your stay at Forty Putney Road and mention that you are here for the beer!
