Category: Reviews

April 19, 2018

City Barrel

While out on a midweek, beer fun day with my dad at Casual Animal Brewing Company, we ran into James Stutsman, Grant Waner, and Joe Giammanco of City Barrel Brewing Company. City Barrel is an upcoming brewery that will be open at 1728 Holmes, in the Crossroads, later this year. If they were there checking out the competition or just planning for their brewery, I don’t know, but they were kind enough to give me three of their beers to try. (It’s a friendly beer community here in Kansas City, so I’m sure they were just enjoying some Kansas City beers.)

The first is an unnamed sour that was bottled and unlabeled. It is, as the style indicates, sour on the front. Vanilla and peach take over on the back end making it like a peaches and cream style sour. Personally, I’m a sour fan and a fan of the unusual so I really enjoyed this one. (I did not get a poured picture of this one.)

 

The second is an IPA called Trouble. When you think IPA you usually think hoppy, but this one (and the NE IPA listed next) is a mellow, juicy IPA. An orange zest flavor is prominent and there’s a smooth, creamy mouthfeel.

 

The third is a New England IPA called Rad AF. More bubbly than Trouble, but still the same orange zest flavor. It’s hazy and that combined with the orange and bubbliness, is reminiscent of a mimosa. Who doesn’t love brunch?

 

I didn’t have specifics of each beer, just their style, so I’m not able to provide exact IBUs and ABVs. The brewery isn’t open yet and doesn’t have a system running, so I assume these were brewed at home and are just samples of what they will be brewing.

The first two were shared with mostly non-beer nerd friends and family at a game night and they were all impressed, so it seems like this may be a good gateway brewery for non-beer nerds. I look forward to what else they’ll have to offer, especially sours and other creative beers.

Thank you to my friends and family on game night for letting me take pictures, trying new beers, and letting me annoy you with my beer talk! Thank you to City Barrel for the beers; I can’t wait to try some more!

Follow City Barrel on social media for updates:

 

 

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September 22, 2015

High Plains BrewHoff 2015 Recap

One of the many great events from this past Saturday was the High Plains BrewHoff in Brew Lab‘s Old Downtown Overland Park parking lot.  I had planned on attending more events during the day, but I had a small injury in the morning and could only get to the BrewHoff.  Below you’ll find a quick recap and some pictures from the event.

It was a good time overall with a lot of great, unique beers.  It had the same bad/good things as last year.  Bad:  kids, event space too small/too many people.  Good:  the beers, free snacks, water stations, good bands, it was free.  See my review for last year here.

They did try to expedite the entry by having a VIP line and letting people in 30 minutes early  Although a line didn’t start to form until about 12:45pm, by 2pm there was still quite a line.  They did also try to discourage children (and Broncos apparel) by posting on their Facebook, but there were still quite a few kids (and one Broncos hat).

I love the spirit Fuzzy Helmetsof the homebrewers.  There’s so much creativity and passion that goes into each beer and it’s
refreshing to be at the type of event where the server knows what they’re talking about.  Many tents had entertaining setups, from a Craftsmen toolbox keezer to a group of Fuzzy Helmets.

There weren’t as many homebrewers that were in the process of going legit as last year.  Crane, Red Crow, Torn Label, and Double Shift all had a tent last year and are either already open or within a month of opening.  BVH Brewery (Twitter, Facebook, Untappd) will be spending 2016 promoting their beers at several events while working on getting a permanent location.  Mount Anderson Brewery (Untappd) is in talks with Missouri Hy-Vees to start selling 22oz bottles of their beer.  They’ll be brewing and bottling just outside of Peculiar, MO.

Speaking of Mount Anderson, their beers and brewery did really well as far as voting went at the event.  They took first for Best Beer with their Vanilla Milkshake Porter (well deserved).  Click here to see all the winners on High Plains BrewHoff’s Facebook.

High Plains BrewHoff will hold their third BrewHoff next year on Saturday, September 17.

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April 23, 2015

The Lone Elm Taproom

Yesterday, I stopped by The Lone Elm Taproom in the new Whole Foods store in Olathe.  It was their Grand Opening and you could tell from the crowd.  The store itself was extremely busy, but the taproom was slightly less busy.  It’s a great concept – a taproom inside a grocery store with local beers and wines.  The taproom’s opening on Earth Day is no coincidence.  It’s an Earth-friendly store that used recycled materials such as reclaimed gym floor from Dekalb High School in DeKalb, Missouri, wood paneling from reclaimed beetle-kill ash trees from around Kansas City, and spring bar stools made from an oil rig in Kansas to create the environment.

There were several people on staff and they were quick to serve and clean up.  You could also order food featuring local ingredients.  It’s always a good idea to eat before you go grocery shopping!

I didn’t stay for KC Bier Company‘s tapping of a Bavarian barrel, but I’m sure it was a good time.  If KC Bier knows anything (other than bier) it’s how to have a good time!

The taproom will have beer events every Saturday starting May 2nd with a Beer & Cheese pairing.  May 9th Torn Label will have a tap takeover and May 23rd will be Meet the Maker with KC Bier.

Overall, it’s a great little spot if you live nearby.  I appreciate the work that went into it to make it as green and local as possible.  It’s even a great spot for out-of-towners to try most of Kansas City’s offerings for beer all in one place.

Here are some pictures of the taproom.

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February 21, 2015

Screenland Opens in the Crossroads

When you enter the unassuming building at 1701 McGee Suite 200 and take a right, you will enter the perfect setup for lovers of beer, food, movies, and games.  If you are unfamiliar with the venue, a friendly host will guide you through and either seat you at one of the couple of dozen tables or let you venture on your own.

I arrived right at 4pm and headed straight for the bar to see what 48 beers they had on tap.  The selection was great, ranging from Perennial Abraxas to new, local brewery Torn Label’s Alpha.  Their cocktails were imaginative and used spirits from the local Dark Horse Distillery.  The food menu was expansive for a theatre, but if you’re not sure what you are in the mood for, you will be limited.  While there’s a great variety for apps, the only choice for entrées are burritos, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.  Most of the burritos have a default of French fries in the burrito, but can be substituted for rice at no additional charge.  Also, the meat can be substituted for tofu and vice versa for no additional charge.  They use many local products for both the apps and the burritos including Shatto cheese curds and Slap’s BBQ.  There may be a theme here – local.

The service was fine to start and got a bit worse as they got busier, but nothing too intolerable.  A few employees seemed nervous, which is understandable with it being the first day.  Trent the bartender was very friendly, seemed comfortable in what he was doing, and had just the right amount of social awareness.  When I sat down at a table, Erick took over my tab and before ordering another beer, I asked about the New Belgium Firkin that was supposed to be tapped at 6pm.  Erick had no idea what I was talking about and went to find out more.  The keg never made it on the truck so no firkin.  No big deal, plenty of other great beers to try.  However, when you work somewhere you should know about intended specials, whether they happen or not.

So, I ordered a beer and a KC Burrito.  The food came out before my beer and on three separate occasions, Erick told me he’d bring more napkins, but I never got more napkins.  I would suggest putting napkin dispensers at the tables especially when most of the food being served is food that you eat without utensils.  The next beer I ordered was Horny Goat’s Black Vanilla IPA which ended up not being on tap anymore.  Adam, the co-owner, was very helpful in finding me a new beer to enjoy, Stone Reason Be Damned, a Belgian Style Abbey.  Erick served me a Perennial Abraxas.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I love Perennial Abraxas, I had just already had some and wanted a lighter beer at that point.  I think the wait staff should notice the difference between a stout and an Abbey.  Once I pointed it out, Erick took it away and served me the correct beer, but still no napkins.

Keeping in mind that the Screenland is a theatre, I knew the bill would be a bit pricey.  It really wasn’t too bad considering the quality of beer and food.  $10.50 was the most spent on one item and that was for a 10.5 oz pour of the Abraxas.  And then I noticed Erick charged me for the Horny Goat that I ordered, but didn’t receive because it was out.  After telling Erick about the incorrect charge, he was done with me and sent Adam to my table for the rest of the night.  Adam was understanding and apologetic.  He bought me another drink, took off another drink (neither was necessary, but appreciated), and the original Horny Goat was corrected.  I was upset Erick didn’t come back over at any point just for a quick, “Sorry about all that.  We’re still working out the kinks.”

Arcade games were free all night and will be free until March 1.  I really enjoyed my time at Screenland Crossroads and would highly recommend it.  They’ll get the kinks worked out.

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