Taprooms
- Thread starter dmclone
- Start date
It's good. They have a large selection so you can find something you like. It's not Barntown, but nothing is.
When I went to Fat Hill, they'd only been open for a few weeks or a month. It was a cool space, but just plain white walls. The pictures online make it look pretty cool now.
Recently opened Pivo in Calmar is on the bike trail and has a pretty neat new taproom. The vista is pure NE Iowa. https://www.pivoblepta.com/pivo-brewery/beer-list
Seemingly, all the brews take the name, and dedicated to the heritage, of dozens of nearby towns. I have yet to try the food.
We had several pints last time we were there. One was not available back then and was this time. Which was the Saint Lucas Honey Weizen - it was pretty darn good and yes sweetened with local honey. Too many choices to quantify, most were above average some excellent. Between Decorah and Calmar you may find some superb brews.
We were tempted to stay in nearby Spillville Hotel Capone.
Seemingly, all the brews take the name, and dedicated to the heritage, of dozens of nearby towns. I have yet to try the food.
We had several pints last time we were there. One was not available back then and was this time. Which was the Saint Lucas Honey Weizen - it was pretty darn good and yes sweetened with local honey. Too many choices to quantify, most were above average some excellent. Between Decorah and Calmar you may find some superb brews.
We were tempted to stay in nearby Spillville Hotel Capone.
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Pivo is great and largely benefits from TG and Pulpit being so close. The issue Pivo runs into is too many beers without a specialty...it’s overwhelming for a beer snob and a novice. The best beer they have on tap is their revolving Toppling Goliath.
I’ve been to Pivo a couple times and really want to like it but their beer just doesn’t do it for me. I agree that they are brewing too many varieties for a new brewery and think they could do better by picking 6-8 and concentrating on making them great. Having PR and TG so close brings people in but they’re also being compared to them too which can be a little overwhelming I’m sure.
Not a brewery taproom but the Iowa Taproom should be mentioned here because it serves all Iowa made beer and is actually one of the coolest places to enjoy your favorite brew. Tons of reclaimed products used to make their taproom and they have good food too.
Toppling Goliath has iconoclastic skilled master brewers, started with a great plan back over 12 years ago (getting in earlier on in the wild rise of Micro Beers) and lots of luck! They knew what they wanted: but, was it what we wanted and would the concept be realized out of a small college town in Iowa? I think they aimed for the big stage early and once it bloomed it has not stopped. They expect national approval.
PIVO is more than nicely quaint even though it holds an emphatically local focus. Their point is to have a eponymous area-town-brew theme for now. I gather people from those towns are traveling to try the novelty brews and I believe that is one of the owners' plans (to draw locally early). And, if they hit the big stage so much the better. It's a bigger gamble than TG made or at least equal. I enjoyed my visit and will likely go there first. I think from my tab it's a value. Wish PIVO the best of fortunes, but its a tough business.
(Hwy 52 and 150 are pretty well-traversed by people from WI and MN. So, there is some optimist to tap into that traffic for PIVO. However, going south not too far on HWY 150 to West Union, we used hit Stolen Brothers BBQ. It now only caters. What a loss! The owners were great and the Chicago style (?) BBQ was special. Unique businesses have real difficulty succeeding, even with great appeal, in small towns. Just not enough bodie$).
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A touch off topic but if any of you ever get to Charlotte, I'd love to have you check out my craft beer bar. We were the first self-pour beer & wine taproom to open in CTL in Dec. '17 and have three more concepts to open over the next few months.
hoppinclt.com
hoppinclt.com
I went to the Iowa Taproom this week for the first time and enjoyed it.
Was going to suggest hitting up Gezellig in Newton but looks like their opening weekend is next weekend. Tried the Newtonian Haze at Iowa Taproom last night and was pleasantly surprised.
Does clock house have its own taproom? I've oy ever tried their stuff while at black sheep, which it is attached to. Thew seemed cool, liked that they had Mario kart. Place was empty when I was there though, also wasn't the biggest fan of their beer.
Clock House has a separate tap room inside of Black Sheep. While you have to enter Black Sheep, you don't have to be seated there/ordering from them. I liked their beers, however not enough to visit and pretty much get them when I'm at other places offering it.
I didn't like Thew at all. Their beers seemed below par when we were there and we ordered beers not from them after sampling. Their place was mostly empty on the Saturday night we were there months ago.
Generally for CR microbrews, I don't see any scenario where I'd go to either over Lion's Bridge/3rd Base/Iowa Brewing/Quarter Barrel. The first three for their beers and QB for their arcade games.
Decided to check out what Dubuque had to offer. Duck me..... I'm declaring Dimensional brewing the best in the state. Between the tap room and the beer, the best. Their ipa's and stouts are killer and the place is pretty cool.
I might have served you a beer, it's the best part-time gig a guy could have.