Vintage 50 Restaurant And Brew Lounge

Vintage 50 Restaurant And Brew LoungeVintage 50 Restaurant And Brew Lounge
Vintage 50 Restaurant And Brew LoungeVintage 50 Restaurant And Brew Lounge
Brewery, Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

50 Catoctin Circle NE #100
Leesburg, Virginia, 20176
United States

// CLOSED //
BEER STATS
Average:
3.6
Beers:
29
Ratings:
0
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.93
Reviews:
17
Ratings:
23
pDev:
16.79%
View: Beers | Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by sympleesmshn:
Photo of sympleesmshn
Reviewed by sympleesmshn from Virginia

3.9/5  rDev -0.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3
This is a great little brew pub. They make some good beer. The food was really disappointing to me. Maybe it was a little too high class for my normal tastes, but I just didn't like it. They do have killer waffle fries. It is a great place to spend an evening enjoying beer and hanging out with friends. They also have a cask beer, which seems to be hard to find in Northern Virginia. They only serve their own beers and had about six on tap when I was there. They make really cool growlers and fills are only nine dollars. Refilling my growler had to be the best experience; the bartender was friendly and was able to try again the beers to pick which one I wanted to get.
Dec 31, 2010
More User Ratings:
Photo of VirginiaBeerMan
Rated by VirginiaBeerMan from Virginia

3/5  rDev -23.7%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | food: 3
Vintage 50 is no longer in business and has been rebranded "The Beer Joint" at the same location.
Dec 17, 2014
Photo of kdeich
Reviewed by kdeich from Iowa

1/5  rDev -74.6%
Don't bother unless you enjoy being disrespected, ignored, and made to feel like you're wasting THEIR time. Been trying to give this place a second chance since May of this year, May! My bad for trying I guess. There are plenty of other places you can go where the brewers appreciate your business.
Sep 21, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by gkaupin from Virginia

May 21, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by wrightst from Maryland

Apr 26, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by Thrashsquatch from Virginia

Nov 13, 2013
 
Rated: 4.5 by cnwillis31 from Vermont

Nov 10, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by avisong from Virginia

Oct 31, 2013
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Reviewed by EricP from Virginia

4.36/5  rDev +10.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4 | food: 5
Had dinner/drinks here this past weekend. We sat in the bar waiting for our table and had a pint. The bar area is pretty small and they have a good bar crowd.

Beer - I tried their brown ale, the pale ale and the IPA. All were good.

Food - Really good, some of it was gastro-pubish sort of fare. The taco nachoes were awesome.

Service - Bar service was great, very quick despite being very crowded. Table service was also good.

Overall, a place worth going to.
Apr 09, 2013
Photo of jco3rd
Reviewed by jco3rd from California

4.5/5  rDev +14.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
At the suggestion of my host, we visited this place for dinner. I was pleasantly impressed with this brewpub. They have a really wide range of price points for food; they have a regular menu and also a "bar menu," which has cheaper items like burgers etc.

The server was remarkably attentive, and extremely polite. It had been a long day for our group, and I'm sure we were not the easiest people to serve, but he did a fantastic job making sure we were fed and our glasses were full.

I was pleasantly impressed with the quality of their beer as well, which is the only beer served here. I tried a sampler, as well as a couple pints. Everything was good. I was especially impressed with their IPA.

If I have the opportunity I would definitely visit this establishment again.
Apr 13, 2012
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Reviewed by buyBinboaVodka from New Jersey

4.38/5  rDev +11.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
Instead of wine...

I was down around this area to run in the inaugural Virginia Wine Country Half Marathon. Of course I checked BA for the best places to go. Since I had just one night I picked Vintage 50.

I do not have a bad thing to say about this place. After 6 days of no alcohol, this was a gift. I went there by myself (because everybody else was tired) around 9pm. As soon as I got there the place was just clearing out from the other runners that had stopped by for dinner. As I walked in you can see 2 large brew vats on the right and the bar is on the left, split into a Y as somebody else mentioned. I grabbed a seat at the bar and immediatly Matt, the bartender introduced himself to me and asked what I would like.

The service there was top notch from Matt and the food was not dissapointing and very well priced. I had the Tuna Sashimi Lollipops and the Duck Fat Fries. I had the sampler of beers which included the Saison V-50, Hell Boy Lager, Revolution Porter, and the Wee Heavy Ale. Matt also poured me a very generous sample of the 50 Cat IPA on cask. All of the beers were very good and on point. I could go into to detail about each one, but I will save that for the beer reviews.

Overall, this place is excellent and when I run the halh next year, you will find me here again.
Jun 06, 2011
Photo of CuriousMonk
Reviewed by CuriousMonk from District of Columbia

3.98/5  rDev +1.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
I came here for an alumni event which included food pairings, an opportunity to meet with the brewmaster (Dean), and go on a mini tour of the brewery. This restaurant and brew is situated near main street in Leesburg off a shopping outlet strip located inside a corporate-like building. Though the logo was really nice and old-world classic surrounded by bricks. Classy stuff. Once you walk into the brewpub there are two medium size VATs in front of you and to the left is the bar / lounging area and to the right are the fermenting tanks and the dining area (overall Y-shaped design). Really nice inside - dark wood and marble along with brass copper rails and photos up on the wall. There were 7 beers on tap (with one being on cask). I was impressed with the food/beer pairing - in fact, I believe I was more impressed with the food over the beers. The beers were a bit flat and watery. Of all the beers available, I liked the saison, imperial stout, and the golden ale the best. The staff were awesome - very attentive, cool, laid back, and eager to help out with everything. I definitely would come back to try out the other styles when they're being offered as well as try their main entrées.
Feb 27, 2011
Photo of krisandajt
Reviewed by krisandajt from Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +14.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4
After a week's worth of edumacation down in Virginia, my co-worker and I finally have a little bit of downtime. So, to celebrate we decided to get a few drinks.

Only 15 minutes from our hotel in Sterling, we did a quick search of BA and found this place. We stop in, right around 4:30 or so, find a spot at the bar and order ourselves a brew. I order up their IPA, and am pleasantly surprised to see before me an actual size, big-boy pint filled to the brim with tasty brew. They are certainly not shy about portions here. Anyway, the beer is very good, though if I had to gripe about it I'd say it could use more hops...but then again every beer could use more hops :-).

The service is great, they bartender and the waiters and host are quick to chat about their beer, and have a very friendly and casual attitude. They seemed to know what they were talking about, and even though we weren't regulars they had no problem recommending brew and chatting us up.

Unfortunately, we didn't get a chance to try the food...we had our focus on some wood-fired pizza from another spot just down the road. We did see a few folks order some food, they just so happened to all order up their hot wings which did look really good. The prices were very reasonable, the brews I decided to sample both had some great happy hour prices. I would definitely recommend stopping in...I sure do wish I found out about this place a few days sooner.
Nov 19, 2010
Photo of pythonmets
Reviewed by pythonmets from West Virginia

4/5  rDev +1.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Not a bad place to stop for a pint or two after work. I usually hit this place up late so it's pretty empty when I get there and of course the service is very attentive. Nice beers on tap and they always have something on cask as well. I'm partial to their oatmeal stout but the pale ale is decent too. Don't eat there too often but when I have it hasn't been disappointing. I would like to see them get a little bit more experimental with the brews here, but I think their focus is on the restaurant side of the business. Too bad, because I think this place has the potential to be a great brewpub.
Aug 02, 2010
Photo of Pencible
Reviewed by Pencible from Virginia

3.93/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
Atmosphere - The brew lounge was good but not great. Maybe a bit fancier than a typical bar, but nothing too high end. The restaurant area looked very nice, with live musicians and linen table clothes and everything. My wife and I only stayed in the brew lounge area, though.

Quality - The beer was good, but didn't do anything to excite me. I could have been just as happy with a SN Pale Ale, in place of the Vintage 50 IPA.

Service - In the brew lounge, our server was good not great. I'm guessing the service is better in the actual restaurant area?

Selection - They only offered a handful of beers that are brewed on location there. I love the concept of a microbrew, but their beers were fairly boring styles, and not of the highest quality either. Similar to the Great American restaurants.

Food - In the brew lounge, the food was good not great. My wife enjoyed her burger, but I wasn't a big fan of my pizza. Excellent spinach and artichoke dip appetizer.
Feb 22, 2010
Photo of MrIncognito
Reviewed by MrIncognito from Virginia

4.08/5  rDev +3.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
This place is pretty cool to try some microbrews. I really appreciate their interpretations of some interesting styles. I had the beer sampler and tried their hefeweizen, scotch ale, Belgian strong pale ale, and saison. All were excellent renditions of the style (although the scotch ale left something to be desired). Great options to choose from, they also had a porter, ESB, IPA, and Kolsch on tap. Would like to go back and try them.

Our food was excellent. This was the first time in a looong time if not ever that I ordered a burger "medium" and it actually came perfectly medium. You gotta love that. They've got some really cool appetizers that are fun to split. Some great flavor profiles in their tuna sashimi lollipops. My wife got a veggie panini that was incredibly tasty.

I am thoroughly impressed. Much better my second time around than my first about 18 months ago. Is now up there as one of my favorites. We got to sit outside and it was one of the most beautiful evenings in recent memory and they've got comfy deck-syle cushioned chairs to sit it.
Sep 01, 2009
Photo of gwclark
Reviewed by gwclark from Virginia

4.13/5  rDev +5.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
Re - review (8/2008)

Since I reviewed Vintage 50 a year and a half ago, their food has improved greatly and the beer selection is a bit better. The beer remains very good. The service is sometimes still a little spotty, but better.

A very good place - one of my favorites.

Otherwise what I said below applies:...

First review, 1/2007

A reincarnation of Thoroughbreds under new management, I have visited at least 3 times - twice at the bar and once at dinner with my family. The atmosphere is upscale and clubby with lots of polished wood.

The beer was above average to very good - I had a Bohemian Pilsner that had a clean hoppy flavor, and a taste of a new ESB that was average. The previous visit, I had their Molotav Hoptail, a double IPA that was not quite excellent. Very hoppy, but almost closer to a barley wine than a double IPA to me.

The service has been spotty, I came in at the 4PM opening time this past visit, and had two bartenders going through the selections with me, but the previous visit it was busy and they were shorstaffed, and it took at least 10 minutes of sitting at the bar for me to even get an order placed.

The selection is pretty good - they usually seem to have a dark beer - porter or stout, something Belgian in style, a couple of "approachable" beers (a kolsch and a pale ale last time), and a a couple of rotating seasonals (ESB, and the Bohemian Pilsner last visit). They had their pale ale on cask as well, but I did not try it. The bartender indicated that the beers will cycle fairly regularly - they are now phasing out several that had been standards at Thoroughbreds and replacing them with new styles.

At dinner, the food was an attempt at a more upscale menu than most brewpub type restaurants, but they have not quite found the mark yet. A bit more expensive as well, and I would rather see plainer food executed well at lower prices, but it might appeal to some.

Overall, the beer value was quite reasonable - $4 pints and $8 growler fills. Pretty good by Northern VA standards, where many places have $6 pints of Sierra Nevada. The food value was pretty low in my opinion, but some may differ.

It makes a nice change from the more industrial and utilitarian setting of the Old Dominion brewpub, and I hope they can make it.
Oct 20, 2008
Photo of dedrinker
Reviewed by dedrinker from Kansas

3.88/5  rDev -1.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3.5
A fairly sterile modern bar look to the place - could be a chain for all I knew, but this is the deep exurbs of Washington D.C. so I suppose it's gotta look this way. The bartender was friendly, attentive, knowledgable and helpful. Too bad his shift was over before we were done and his replacement, though very nice, left us hanging way too long. The beer was very well crafted and presented. They do solid English styles, with their Belgian/ German style attempts being hit or miss. I particularly enjoyed their Saison, Porter, and cask ESB. Prices were reasonable. Crowd was typical homogenous young white people you find at deep suburban strip-mall bars; a couple of yahoos, but they were fairly well-behaved, and hey - you're not in the city anymore - this is Leesburg after all. I'd go back each time they changed the cask selection, and that's about it.
Aug 24, 2008
Photo of beeryes
Reviewed by beeryes from Virginia

4.35/5  rDev +10.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
The Washington area is fortunate to have a lot of talented brewers, but Bill Madden of Vintage 50 in Leesburg is one of the best. Bill became a legend among DC-area beer fans a few years ago, when he brewed for the Cap City Brewpub's Arlington branch. He did a fine job on their standard lineup, but he also whipped up small batches of "experimental" beers, which were generally fantastic. They were never on the beer menu, but if you seemed like somebody who'd appreciate them, Bill would pour you some.

Now, with the benefit of more experience and more authority to brew what he likes, he's holding forth at Vintage 50. Stop in. Just about every beer is terrific.

The restaurant and brewpub are on the ground floor of a modern office building, on a ring road called Catoctin Circle that crosses Business Route 7 as it passes through Leesburg. The bar area is decorated in burnished dark woods, but large windows keep it bright and airy. Outdoor tables with comfy chairs offer a nice option in good weather. The staff is friendly, polished, and fairly knowledgeable about the beers. The patrons tend to be fun and chatty, too.

The food is quite good. It's also well-matched with the beers. Appetizers include, at $10, ahi tuna skewers, chili pepper shrimp, cured meats and bread, four cheeses, and mussels. Other delicious choices include pierogis at $7, marinated wings at $8, fish and chips at $9, and lamb sausage rolls at $12. You may not need an entrée after most of these, but if you do, they're also good and range from $17-26.

The great thing about Madden's brewing is that he nails beer styles perfectly and then expands on them. Take his red ale. It has the unmistakable red ale look and aroma. With the first sip, you'll get the classic red ale flavor profile. But then it builds and builds -- hearty, rich and deep. You think, "Whoa, this is a whale of a red!" And you realize that, by conntrast, a lot of reds taste like spiked water with red food coloring.

Madden pulls off much the same with the Vintage 50 kölsch. It's damned hard to hit the original German style on this beer, but this one does it. It's a tad less crisp on the ending than most German kölsches, but it has a great backbone, it's interesting, and it works.

The porter is suitably robust but also picks up some agreeable elements of the Baltic porter style, like creaminess and a long rich finish.

The "Devil's Due" is a beautiful example of a "Belgian golden" style. It's brewed with chouffe yeast and pilsener malt. Quite bold, though a little sweet.

The hefeweizen is the closest thing Madden brews to a session beer. It's light in the sense of being easy to sip, but it has delicacy and subtlety if you tune into it.

The Molotov Hoptail is everything a hophead could want, and then some.

These and other examples of Madden's talent are available at the unbelievable price of $2 a pint during Happy Hour.

Vintage 50 is just 5 minutes away from Leesburg's two other fine beer bars, Tuscarora Mill and Fire Works. The latter has an especially good selection of craft beers.

Unfortunately, public transportation from the DC area to Leesburg is not really an option. (The last bus back from to the Metro subway system leaves Leesburg about 5pm.) So, especially if you're considering a crawl, recruit a designated driver if you can, or take it slowly and be careful driving.
Aug 10, 2008
Photo of mpyle
Reviewed by mpyle from Maryland

4.05/5  rDev +3.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3
An interesting atmosphere, as a fairly swanky restaurant/bar attached to an office building. Went on a Sunday afternoon, just hit the bar, and found it fairly empty.

Quality of the beer was quite excellent - the cask-conditioned Point of Rocks APA was probably my favorite.

Service was prompt and friendly.

I don't remember exactly, but believe there were approximately 6-8 beers on tap covering a range of styles. A sampler showed range from a nice Kolsch to a big IPA (Molotov Hoptail).

We were primarily there to drink some beer, but I was disappointed in some cheap munchy food that I ordered. Beware of the sourdough pretzel - it seemed to have been fried or at least heavily oiled.

Great prices during the Sunday-Thursday "Social Hours"...might have been $2.50/pint on those afternoon/evenings.
Nov 11, 2007
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Reviewed by BeerSox from Virginia

4.3/5  rDev +9.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Located in historic Leesburg, basically the biggest city in NW NoVA before you start heading into Maryland or West Virginia. The location isn't obvious, but as soon as you turn off route 7 you can see the sign for it.

The restaurant is divided into a restaurant and a lounge with a bar and some TVs. The restaurant is a little nicer with better food, and the bar is a little more laid back. You can pull up a stool at the bar and watch some TV.

There is usually something that can cater to pretty much anyone. There is a burger for the casual dinner, paninis (a little fancier), up to shrimp salads. In the dining room they have very nice meals, including a swordfish dish with a quail egg. There is also a full bar in addition to the beer, so anyone can have a drink if they aren't into the beers they brew.

Now, on to the beers. They usually have six or seven beers on tap, including one on cask, which is usually hard to find. Their selection ranges from lighter beers up to the heavy stouts. They also have rotating seasonals, including Pumpkin Ale. They are all reasonably priced too. A 16oz pint of the cask serving (Oatmeal Stout) was about three dollars. They forgot to bill the second round, but they left it off the tab when I mentioned it. The great part is, the glasses aren't chilled. The beer is served at the proper temperature.

This is a great brewpub to seek out. It's in a small city, but it's a beautiful city. This is becoming my favorite place to go in NoVA. I highly recommend this establishment.
Oct 27, 2007
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Reviewed by Atlas1 from Texas

3.65/5  rDev -7.1%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5
I really don't know how to begin to describe Vintage 50 at all. It's a new brewery/restaurant in a historic town. But it's in a nondescript quasi-stripmall off a major road not terribly near the historic downtown. It's a strangely-located place, but it seems to fit right in. I have no idea how well it does with the locals, but it produces quality suds and should be a local favorite if it's not.

Tucked away rather nonchalantly on Catoctin Circle, V-50 is a nice looking joint located in an otherwise sterile office building. There's a small patio area out front, near the parking lot, ample seating inside, and a good-looking bar area. As you walk in, just past the hostess stand, you see the small make-shift brewery in all it's glory. Brewer Bill Madden hasn't much to work with here, but what he does have he makes good use of.

They have some fine beers here, from what little I've had. The Point of Rocks Pale Ale is hoppy and delicious, the Irish Stout was dry as a bone, and I sampled a red ale that was also nice. Quality beers for an unassuming, relatively unknown place.

The staff is genial, and each time I've been there they have been genuinely curteous. But their overall beer knowledge may leave a bit to be desired. If you want to talk beer with anyone on staff, your best bet is to talk with the brewmaster himself, Bill Madden. He's typically there during the weekdays around lunch time and is a fairly amiable fellow. If he has the time, chances are he'll sit down and chat about beers with you for a while. And he knows a lot about beer, which is cool.

The food is okay, although I've only tried items off the lunch menu before. Had a pulled pork sandwich once that was a bit dry, but typically the food is good, standard pub fare. Nothing special on the lunch menu, but like I said, I haven't tried the dinner grub yet.

Visit Vintage 50 during the day if you can, and try their beers. The beers are why you should go. The restaurant is nice, but nothing special. The staff is nice, but nothing special. But the beers are very good and worth a visit. If you find yourself near Leesburg, you should try to visit.
Jul 29, 2007
Photo of brentk56
Reviewed by brentk56 from North Carolina

3.75/5  rDev -4.6%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
Vintage 50 is the type of restaurant I would avoid if it was not also functioning as a brewery.

Make no mistake, I am a big proponent of upscale restaurants serving quality beers to match their focus on wine but this place just didn't cut it for me.

I felt that the beer was a prop rather than a foundation, if that makes any sense and I didn't get the sense that the waitstaff was particularly knowledgeable about beer.

Basically, this is a typical suburban strip center American restaurant - a step or two up from the Applebee's and Chili's of the world. OK, maybe three steps up. Clean and polished, with a decent and somewhat engaging menu that will not offend a soul.

The servers where well trained and efficient but there was no passion in the place. I enjoyed my food but couldn't wait to leave.

Maybe I'd go back, but I would have to hear that there was an outstanding beer to try before I would make the trek again.
Mar 29, 2007
Vintage 50 Restaurant And Brew Lounge in Leesburg, VA
Place rating: 3.6 out of 5 with 23 ratings