Beer on the Road: Albany

Beer Reconnoitering

When I travel to a new town I try to do some research ahead so I have at least a few places I want to visit. One of the best sources is BeerAdvocate website, searching "Places" by city. I typically have a few goals, one is to bring back some bottles of beers that don't ship to my area. BA says that the best places in Albany to solve this issue was Oliver's Beverage Center.

Oliver's Beverage Center

By the time I arrived at Oliver's I had only 15 minutes before closing, so I needed to be efficient. I was not disappointed, they had all the good stuff on display as I walked in, but I was looking deeper. Having been reading about aging beers I focused on some barleywines and imperial stouts by recognized great breweries such as Sierra Nevada. I also was able to pick up a few from local breweries I didn't know but styles I've enjoyed. Plus, the bottles just looked good with the cork-and-cage. Stay tuned for a future writing on the success of my choices.

The Merry Monk

The Merry Monk, Albany NY

An establishment with the name of all-things-Belgian-beer it has to be good. Plus, the BA for The Merry Monk told me it was a place to have my first meal and beer. The pub food was beyond the classic choices. I ordered the hand-made salmon burger with roasted brussels sprouts and was not disappointed. 

The beer was excellent, many local belgian-styles like Ommegang. Oh I'll have a Ghent Bhent from Chatham Brewing from Chatham NY. A flight is always a favorite method to maximize tasting opportunities. Ommegang Rare Vos and Abbey Ale, Burly Monk by another local Common Roots Brewing in Glenn Falls NY and finally the night cap was a Vicaris Winter Ale by Brouwerji Dielewyns in Belgium. Simply beautiful. And to boot, my hotel was within a fine-minute walk.

Olde English Pub

Olde English Pub, Albany NY

Of course the best way to find great beer in an unfamiliar town is from a trusted fellow beer geek living in the area. 

So at our hosts recommendation we went to the Olde English pub, which is nicely tucked away into an old house that's been converted to an English style pub. Dark and warm, a friendly old pub with a painting of Churchill over the mantle watching your every move kind of charming. They had wonderful array of English beers, many that I've not had before, and some old favorites such as the Samuel Smith collection. I had a new beer that I knew of but not tried, Morland's Old Speckled Hen. The beer of the evening was Fuller's London Porter. Deep, roasty, full of malt-forward flavors. I'm too use to the American hoppy versions of the style, but the English varieties are a welcome diversion that I want to try more of.

The Albany Pump Station & Evans Brewing

Albany Pump Station & Evans Brewing Co, Albany NY

Then we walker around the corner to Evans Brewing and Albany Pumping Station. This was a huge old warehouse brick building that was once the old pump house that would pump water from the Hudson River to the top of the hill where it could be distributed for use in the city of Albany. It now serves as the location for Evans Brewing and have done an incredible job turning into a beautiful eatery and brewpub. The group settled on the Kick-ass Brown which according to the banners draped on the walls had won a Gold metal at the Great American Beer Festival.

The Ruck in Troy

The Ruck, Troy NY

The thing about being a beer geek is that we have a way of finding each other. It's perhaps a bird-of-a-feather kinda thing. But its a beautiful thing with much merit. Life lesson: if you have not declared your beer geek status, go now, shout it out loud where ever you are. So I'd mentioned to a colleague with family in Vermont that I was hoping to find some Hill Farmstead beer, but understand that they don't leave the state. The night before he had dinner with his sister living in Albany and she knew of this place — well you can guess the rest. The Ruck in Troy NY, was just ten minutes up the road was serving Hill's plus they had vertical tastings of both 2013 and 2015 Goose Island Bourbon County Stout and Sierra Nevada Bigfoot barleywine 2014 and 2015. Yes!

It was all I'd hoped for. If I lived in Troy we would be best friends. They were pouring the Hill's Double Galaxy DIPA plus the Conduct of Life pale ale. I had to experience both Hill's and the BCS vertical, but the Bigfoot samples were a bridge too far. Hey, I have a liver to think about. I wish I had more time to spend here and take in more of their incredible beer selections. It was obvious they take beer seriously. But alas, I had to meet friends for dinner and I was already late. If I'm ever back in their neighborhood, I will be sure that there is more time for The Ruck.

The Pearl St Pub

Pearl St Pub, Albany NY

Dinner was a capricious decision and as we walked down Pearl St the Pearl St Pub caught our fancy. Well the salmon BLT was thick but the beer choices was thin. The Davidson Brothers brown ale was a good beer, but to be fair, it didn't have a chance just having the Bourbon County Stouts. 

So I left Albany with many great beer memories but still so many beery places that must be left until next time.

Turkey Leg Beer

I love reading lists of beers for the seasons. For example, here is an excellent article, Thanksgiving Craft Beer Shopping List by Andy Skelton on CraftBeer.com, to assist you with beer selections for your Thanksgiving Day. But you know the problem with all of these articles is when you go to try to purchase Beers from these lists you discover that many of these are not shipped to your location.

So, if you live around Kent Island Maryland you’re some excellent Thanksgiving beers that you are likely to find.

Pairing With Turkey. I agree, witbeer is an excellent choice to pair with turkey. Probably the only ones you'll find off this shopping list is Namaste by Dogfish Head and Winter White Ale by Bell’s Brewing (a relatively new brewery to Maryland).  To add to that list, look for Clementine White Ale  by Clown Shoes and Blanch de Chambly by Unibroue (pronounced yoo-na-bru).  An even better choice may be the Unibroue Sommelier Selection. This is a 6-pack of some of their best beers.

Under farmhouse ales and saison,  you’re likely to find the Brooklyn brewing Sorachi Ace and perhaps the Saison Rue by The Bruery, both excellent and favorite brewing establishments.  I like to add another of my favorite beers to the list, the Tank 7 by Boulevard Brewing.  One more, while not a Saison,  Belgian beer go well with just about any meal. Boulevard Brewing’s Long Strange Tripel would be an excellent choice. Okay, one more in this category is Unibroue La Fin du Monde. For the money, I don't think you’ll find a better beer. While it translates as “the end of the world”, your world won't end if you bring (or serve) this beer to Thanksgiving dinner.

Under IPAs, you’ll likely find Hop Stupid by Lagunitas but I have some other choices for you. Look for Mo by Maine Brewing rather than the Lunch. By all means Lunch is a great beer but you're not likely to find it while Mo is more commonly found. Also, Bell’s Brewing Two Hearted Ale, while not an IPA, a very well balanced pale ale and constantly showing up in best beer lists.

On to porters. Breckenridge Vanilla Porter is a very drinkable dark beer but is on the lighter side, meaning not so thick, for the style. It has a hint of vanilla and is not overpowering. To bump it up some other dark beers to look for is Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout. This could be a meal by itself. Okay, it has been once or twice, I'll admit. But it is always a favorite and I often have this with a meal when found on the menu. The oatmeal adds a very nice smoothness to any beer. 

Some other beer selections to go with turkey are the marzen or Oktoberfest beers if you can still find them. A Vienna lager falls into that category as well with a good choice is the Great American Beer Festival Gold winner Devil Backbone’s Vienna Lager. A malt-forward beer that pairs very well with the light meat of a turkey.

On to dessert. You really didn't think we could miss this category. For sweetness, if that is what you are after try Southern Tier’s Choklat. Another dark beer of choice is Ballast Point Victory at Sea. This porter is much heavier than the Breckridge selection mentioned earlier and with hints of coffee and vanilla, make it a great beer for sipping after the big meal. Lindeman’s lambic fruit beers are great for their sweet notes and effervescence. Try the kriek (cherry). To go with the pumpkin pie try a pumpkin beer. This time of year it may be hard to find any left on the shelve since they first begin to appear in July. Always my recommendation, if you want a pumpkin beer for Thanksgiving, show some discipline, buy some and put them away. You should still be able to find Dogfish Head’s Punkin Ale, one of those I look forward to every year.

Two sipping beers for you to consider. Allagash Brewing Curieux is a strong bourbon barrel-aged ale, usually found in 750 ml bottles. At 11% ABV, share this one with a loved one (of age of course). Also, White Oak by The Bruery is another favorite that would go well at the end of the evening. They call this a blend of wheat-wine aged in Bourbon barrels and their Belgian-style Golden Strong Ale.

Well, that’s a lot of beer, so you shouldn’t go without some excellent drinks to impress your guests or hosts. Cheers!