Roeg's Pick for 2013: Best Brewpub

Obviously a brewpub is both different and the same as a brewery.  A brewpub has to have its own vibe, preferably offer a great selection and variety of beer, and have great food.  The food can be pub grub or even fancier, but it’s got to be a great accompaniment to whatever is on tap.  It’s also helpful if the place offers something special once in a while to get folks to visit.

Gold: Pizza Port Solano Beach, CA – We flew in from the East Coast on February 16^th, checked into the hotel, and went out to get something to eat.  Pizza Port at Solana Beach (http://www.pizzaport.com/) has been a local favorite for years, and spun off Port brewing and Lost Abbey for the beer world.  The place was packed, but the kids found seating outside and got some of the best Hawaiian style pizza (the Lahaina) that we’ve had for a long time.  The beer was great too, offering about a dozen choices of their own brews that you could sample in 4oz pours. For vibe, food, beer selection, and family friendly, this was the best for 2013.

Silver: Portsmouth Brewery, Portsmouth, NH – I made 4 separate visits to the Portsmouth brewery (http://portsmouthbrewery.com), my steady eddy brewpub in 2013, and each trip was worth the visit.  I’ve been going to the brewery since 1992, eating nachos there regularly and sampling a ton of beer.  They always have something special on cask (e.g., oaked blonde ale with cranberries), they mix up the beer selection (e.g., Belgian Golden Sour), and even offer rare bottles (e.g., Firestone Walker Parabola) for drinking on the premises.  The best part is that they will still be a family favorite year after year.

Bronze: Tired Hands, Ardmore, PA – My cousin Brian was excited to take me to a new place close to the farm, so on October 12^th we visited the Tired Hands brewpub (http://www.tiredhands.com/).  Besides beer, the pub specializes in hearty artisan bread, as well as specialty snacks (pickle samplers, candied bacon, and kimchi).  Their beer was top notch, and included a sour wheat saison with lime and passion fruit called The Thing, and a spiced saison called Euphoric Sunshine Drip.  I’d recommend the Lancaster bologna sandwich and anything that they serve on cask.  Watch out for their bottle releases, since these special rewards are hard to come by.  I can’t wait to share the experience with Jenn.

Honorable Mention: Evolution, Salisbury, MD – We travel back from OBX every summer, and this year we chose to stop at Evolution brewing (http://evolutioncraftbrewing.com/) for a pit stop.  They offered slates with cheese and/or meats, a huge selection of their own regular, seasonal, and high end beers, and a tasting room next store.  I loved the Menagerie 8, a Belgian Strong Dark Ale, weighing at 9.5% wildflower honey and candy sugar while aging in red wine barrels.  I even got several big bottles to go, including their Winter Migration (Bourbon Barrel dark ale).  Jenn and I agreed that we now had our own pit stop for our journey each year. - 6327/15112

"This is grain, which any fool can eat, but for which the Lord intended a more divine means of consumption.  Let us give praise to our maker and glory to his bounty by learning about beer." – Friar Tuck, “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves”