I’m late blogging about my favorite part of our Oktoberfest weekend, but better late than never… right?

On a gorgeous Sunday afternoon back in October 2006, my best friends and I went to Frederick Maryland to enjoy the day at a brew pub called Brewer’s Alley. The town was quaint and hopping with both locals and tourists; and like I said, it was an absolute beautiful day.

We walked in and grabbed a couple of bar tables in the bar room where we all had a good view of the TV because the Giants were playing the Redskins that day. (We were Giants fans in Redskin territory because we are all originally from the NY/NJ area.) Our waitress, Candice, was on top of everything, knowledgeable, and friendly. (Of course, I’m sure that is because we are an irresistible bunch of charming guys, too.)

We all decided to order our own beer sampler platter and an appetizer. This prompted a long conversation about how one might rate a beer because we were each trying to give our opinion about each beer that we all drank and finished in the same order. That conversation led to Al posting the unofficial Hop-Talk beer rating system.

Unfortunately, of all the beers we tasted there (which was everyone they offered) none were outstanding; or a five, in our system. Some were 4’s, many were 3’s, and one of them I even gave a 1. So, it was a disappointing mix in the end; but maybe I just had too high hopes.

Even though I’m writing this a couple months later, there are some very specific things that stuck in my head because we all were pretty much in consensus. The brown ale was not good. It wasn’t sweet at all and it was very thin. I detected a strong astringent taste in it as well. To top it off, it wasn’t brown at all… it was more toasted sesame oil color.

The best beers were the stout, and the Wedding Alt. The Wedding Alt was probably my favorite. We described the taste as having almost a “tea” like flavor. The IPA was also very good.

Despite what I’ve said so far about the beer, this was one of the best times I’ve ever had in my life. We basically whittled away the entire afternoon sipping beers, watching football and socializing. We all had strong opinions about the beer rating system, but it was a fun argument.

The variety of beers that we sampled gave us a good idea of what to order once we decided on an entrée. We each paired our favorite beer with something to go with it. And while not your typical pub menu, it was a step up in class. The food was very good overall.

That Sunday was one of the most relaxing days I’ve ever had and I will never forget it. It doesn’t get much better than that.

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