Mahaffey's

1)Stone 090909 Vertical Epic (L) and Clipper City 'Great Pumpkin' on cask (R). Great Pumpkin wasn't bad but I definitely am not a pumpkin beer fan. Its not too over-the-top, which makes it suitable.

2 & 3)Flier for Mahaffey's Baltimore Beer Week bus trip to Flying Dog, sounds interesting

4)Another picture of the Great Pumpkin

5)Gordon Biersch tap handle, new to Maryland bars! Pretty elaborate but it doesn't show well in the pic, delivered by a rep while I was there.

6)Stroh's can. You don't see that too often.

7)Was a little bored by the taps, went with a Unibroue Trois Pistoles.

8)Orval, in appropriate glassware! One of the best beers in the world.

9)Yup

Blue Hill Tavern

1)One row of taps at Blue Hill Tavern (first floor)

2)Flowing water display behind liquor wall (first floor)

3)Picture of my Magic Hat seasonal beer, apparently beet juice was added

4)Taplist (blurry, apologies), about 12 beers, mostly common stuff but the Magic Hat was tasty.

Basics

Blue Hill Tavern is a relatively new establishment in Canton in the Brewer's Hill neighborhood. They have complimentary valet parking. Its really classy looking, very open air (at least while the weather is nice) high ceilings, two floors, and some nice city views in the upstairs dining area.

There is an upstairs bar and a first floor bar stocked with the 12 or so tap beers and a few bottled offerings. Its a beautiful place, worth a stop for a beer or two.

Mahaffey's Latest

Bomber tonight is Arcadia Sky High Rye, 6% rye American Pale for $8 "try this with 30 cent chili teryaki wings!"

Also, on Thursdays starting this week they are opening the kitchen at 3 PM and will be featuring a pound of mussels, 1/2 pound shrimp, calamari and three crabcake sliders for just $5/each. They have a great kitchen so be sure to take advantage of that.

Jack's Bistro Beer Dinner

The hits keep coming.

One of the specials at Jack's Bistro in Canton is a Thursday beer dinner. For $20 you get a two-course meal and a matching beer.

Food As a Lure to Good Beer In Fells Point and Canton

Stumbled across this article at (Baltimore) Metromix.com about "dinner specials to keep you and your wallet full" in Canton and Fells Point. And look, they mention a ton of beer places.

Notable:

The Waterfront Hotel, a place I haven't tried but rumored to have some decent taps (between Max's and Slainte), has 12 entrees for $12 on Tuesday nights.

Slainte, a favorite of mine although the beer is moderately good with mostly English/Irish options, has an $8 pot pie night on Wednesdays with all kinds of varieties from shrimp creole, beef, Guinness, etc. Pot pie is a great winter food so no complaints here.

Mahaffey's, which has great beer options, does a "Thursday Gastronomique" with all kinds of interesting upscale food options for $13.95 or less. Its a small kitchen but I've spoken with one of the chefs before, they're quite capable with a surprisingly good menu.

On Friday, Todd Conner's offers a $5 big burger complete wit homemade herb potato chips and the burger on a mini focaccia roll. I really gotta try this place at some point and they seem to have about five taps including a Dogfish Head the last time I poked my head in.

Similarly, I'm really interested in trying Jack's Bistro at the far end of Canton. They offer $12 entress on Sunday if you dine at the bar. They offer a meat entree, a seafood entree, and a vegetarian entree. Plus, two happy hours and an impressive beer list on tap and in bottles, at $2 off from 5-7 PM and 11 PM- 1 AM.

Finally, be sure to enjoy planning any such trips to these places with Baltimore Beer Guy's custom Downtown Baltimore Beer Map, located on the menu at right as well as other useful beer maps.