Picture Dump: The Perfect Pour

1) The entrance, nearly hidden in the corner of a Columbia shopping center. Fortunately, they're acquiring the space next door for expansion according to rumor.

2, 3, 4) The expansive, massive back beer wall. Psst, Belgians mostly in the right corner.

5) Their excellent Italian micro brew collection in one of the mostly import aisles. Pricey, but I can't wait to dive into a few of these at some point.

Rocky Run In Columbia Closes

I totally missed this, which shows you just how often I went to Rocky Run -- never. I had actually put it on a list of fall "to-do's" to at least try their seemingly bland selection of homebrews once and at least vouch that I'd tried them.

Alas, it is not meant to be.

Small irony, it was on Dobbin Road a very short drive from Frisco Grille and Dog Pub, two favorite hangouts of mine.

Review: Dog Pub (Columbia)

In case you missed the headline, Dog Pub is located in Suburban Columbia, just a few doors down from the great Frisco Grille. It's a little hard to locate the first time, but is right in a beer corridor with Victoria Gastro Pub just up the way on Snowden River Parkway (near the 100) and The Perfect Pour in a shopping center just off 175.

The original Dog Pub is in Federal Hill in downtown Baltimore. I haven't been there, but I did overhear a customer in the Columbia location tonight say "this is much bigger than downtown" as she entered.

The layout is pretty unique. There's not much to see from the outside except the wooden double doors that give no hint at what's inside (which is maybe why I've been so hesitant to come here in the first place?). Once inside it's not like anything I'd expect. There's a sharp turn and then you make a choice: left or right. To the left is a dining area, tables and high-backed booths. To the right is a lonely fireplace and the bar area.

I went to the bar area.

The bar itself is looooooooooooooooooong, running the length of the establishment. There's a huge gap between the bar and the outside wall of the place that is rimmed with a few small bar tables and some kind of shuffleboard game. Just outside is a patio area that welcomes dogs, so bring your pooch if that's your thing. The layout looked more than a little odd and took some getting used to.

As far as food, the menu is straightforward with just a few small appetizers and salads giving way to an extensive list of 10" personal sized thin crust pizzas. They won't exactly be world famous, but I enjoyed the variety of pizza options and what I ate.

More importantly, let's talk beer. They make their own beers, which are listed in sort of a diagonal panel panel above the bar. It's unusual and fun and negates the need to pull out a menu to see what's available. They had one seasonal (an Oktoberfest beer that I had a small sample of ... eh) and then the usual offerings on tap in dog themed names:

IPA (Hoppy Dog), the fruit beers (Peach Dog, Blueberry Dog, Raspberry Dog), an Amber (Amber Dog), a red (Irish Red), a brown (Brown Dog), a stout (Black Dog) a blond (Blond Dog) and an English style beer (Thirsty Ale).

You can also mix various beers in what they call "Mixed Breeds". I passed, but there's several suggested offerings such as a "Reservoir Dog" made of Black Dog and Hoppy Dog. You get the picture.

I tried the Hoppy Dog and the Blond Dog. The Blond was meh, but the Hoppy Dog was surprisingly good. It was refreshing and had a crisp hop bite in the West Coast style.

What's unique here is that they serve the beer in small 8 oz mugs, two at a time. I don't get it, but that's their thing and I'm not one to rock the boat.

They also sell their beers in take-home 750ml bottles with those weird Grolsch-style swing caps. I was half-tempted to grab one of the IPA's -- maybe next time. And that's the thing, there will be a next time. This isn't a great "beer" place and outside of the seasonal their selection won't vary, but there's at least one good beer and several traditional styles to go with a unique bar setup and "hangout" type vibe. Pizza and *good* beer is a classic pairing, one not exercised enough in Baltimore, at least where I've been so far.

If you're 100% agro about perfect beers this isn't your place (I usually am that way), but if you can settle for something different and relaxed that doesn't take itself too seriously with decent food and a few decent beers, this might be something to check out. At worst it's a quick walk to Frisco Grille if Dog Pub doesn't satisfy.

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Two Different Howard County Beer Stops

On Wednesday evening I went to one of my favorite places, Frisco Grille in Columbia. At some point there will be a proper review of the place here at Baltimore Beer Guy but in brief they're the most craft beer friendly taphouse in Howard County. It's someplace I now regularly frequent.

Anyway, once there I had the Oskar Blues Dale's Pale Ale on tap (famously sold in cans around the country) which is one of my favorite "common" craft beers. I also had the Victory Festbier. Almost everywhere right now there seems to be an abundance of "fest", pumpkin, and Oktoberfest beers. Rightly so, but I've never gotten that into them.

The Victory surprised me a bit, it has some malty sweetness and wasn't off-putting while tasting, well, seasonal. For people who dig that kind of beer, this is your time of year!

Anyway, from there I made a short drive up Snowden River Parkway to Victoria Gastro Pub. They too, never a proper review from Baltimore Beer Guy. I haven't frequented them as much lately, but it was a good visit. I actually arrived at the peak of SIN (Service Industry Night) so the dining area was closed down and the bar was jammed with various people. They had a discount on tap beer, and I had a truly delicious Saison DuPont.

I've been on a huge saison kick lately, and while DuPont is a saison I have mixed feelings about, this thing was particularly fresh and refreshing that evening. Normally I think Victoria would serve that in a 10 oz chalice, but the 20 oz nonic glass really worked out well with this most recent pour.

On Friday I again went out, first to stock up at The Perfect Pour (my favorite bottle shop right now and a tremendous place for beer nuts) and then for some beers in downtown Ellicott City.

The first stop was at Ellicott Mills Brewing. I hadn't been there in a while, but decided to have some German brews which are seasonal without being cutesy like some of the true seasonals I've found lately. I tried the Firecracker Dunkel (I believe?) which was delicious and just about out, and then some kind of bock. Both were solid. Right now it seems Ellicott Mills is doing a ton of unique brews. I enjoy their standards -- the Marzen is particularly good and sessionable -- but it's nice to see variations on their Alpenhof theme so now is a good time to get in there.

From there I walked just up the street to The Judge's Bench. I had mixed feelings about this place the first time I went in, but I'm liking it a lot more now. They have a really good bottle selection and 17 taps along with a clean bar surface. Sticking with my saison kick, I went with an Ommegang Hennepin which was fresh and yummy if not quite as tasty as I've had it on tap before. The owner here is really nice and I timed it right, arriving before it got crowded and the beer drinking crowd focused on standard brews instead of their great tap offerings.

I need to make those kinds of trips more often. I'm more than happy to camp out at Victoria or Frisco's in particular, but the other stops went so well I'm itching to return.

ALSO: See my custom made "Howard County Beer Map", one of the new features here at Baltimore Beer Guy. I'll be updating the various beer maps (linked on the menu at right) as I turn this site into more of a beer resource for the area, feel free to suggest additional maps, locations on maps, revisions, etc.

For The Resurrection Fans

Not sure how many of you out there are fans of "Resurrection" made by Brewer's Art, but I'm absolutely in love with this beer.

Most of us don't live in the city so a trek to Brewer's Art, although desirable, is not a frequent thing. Luckily I've found at least two places in Columbia that regularly feature it: Frisco Grille (which is a GREAT beer place that I'll discuss later on) and the Greene Turtle.

Feel free to argue with me, but I think it's the best regular beer in Maryland (made by Maryland brewers). Its refreshing with some sort of subdued Belgian candy sweetness as well as some tartness/sourness and complexity that makes it incredibly drinkable and enjoyable no matter the weather.

Oh, bytheway, Brewers Art's "Ozzy" is now available in bottles at The Perfect Pour. I doubt they'll stay on the shelves long so be sure to trek over there and grab one or two.

(Image via Baltimore Sun/Google Image Search)

Can't Get Enough Victoria

It's pricey, but Victoria Gastro Pub in Columbia (on Snowden River Parkway) is easily my favorite haunt. Victoria is part authentic upscale pub, part newfangled pub grub restaurant. I'll have more to say on their menu and the overall look and feel of the place later, but for now: beer.

The beer and food menu changes fairly regularly, but I swiped a paper copy of their menu this weekend so this should be up to date. In total they usually carry about 18 draft beers and another 40 or so bottled beers. Some of the draft and bottled selections (Miller Lite, Coors Light, Bud, Sol) take up space where a better beer could go, but at the same time not every customer wants craft beer. I've made my peace with that.

What they do offer is a real selection. I went with the family for a casual lunch on Saturday and we traded tastes of the Brewer's Alley Kolsch (eh), Ommegang Witte (bottled) Lagunitas Hairy Eyeball (just arrived on tap), Clipper City Baltomarzhon (drink locally!), Stone Arrogant Bastard (representing my old home San Diego) and Fisherman's Brew (Cape Ann Brewing Co./Mass).

Good times.

We paired those with servings of their fantastic poutine and also their rosemary duck fat fries.

What's interesting about Victoria is that many of their draft pours come in either 10 or 20 oz servings. This takes some getting used to, but they also supply sturdy goblets and nonics to sip from.

In time we'll discuss Victoria further, including their fun happy hour beer list and late night experience.

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