Art History Brewing

So, that first place today was chill. But the second place near the river there was a total shitshow of pre-St. Patrick’s Day parade madness. Oh, you all took tables for your families, got a single beer and a pretzel, and there were kids step dancing. Go away! We did a one and done and came here. Had to loop it through the scary back side murder way as we got close, but yeah. Located in the back corner of a strip mall (it literally ‘L’s the inner corner), as some of the best ones are...

Angled Formica topped bar, dark green panel base, and phat piping foot bar. Seating for 14 on leathery wood chairs. Tap towers with 6 & 8 logo handles sunken, + an upright Lukr duo on the bar, and a… holy shit, is that a live fucking handpump sitting solo back there behind that bar? Where? Right there (me, pointing).

Barback wall holds a display area with snacks, Underberg, & merch below a pair of flatscreens; 1 of which is Untapped draft board (beer, style, ABV, IBU, and pricing in in 5oz & 8oz for all, and additionally either 10oz & 12oz or 12oz & 16oz, depending on the beer). A happy hour & events board to the right, and then a wall of horizontal serving tankards double stacked, alongside an inlayed can cooler.

Polished concrete floors, black industrial ceilings with drop glass bowl lamps tracing the bar, and mounted box lights & fluorescent bulb holders over the floor. Far wall of brick with logo beer placards, a painted city scape mural scene to the rear, and a wall of windows forward with large “Foam follows function” lettering above, and hanging plants along the windows. Flats on opposite walls for the looking at.

All the breweryings to the far corner behind a bar counter ledge fronting. 18 tables about the room, mostly low squares but a pair of hightops along the windows. Oh, there is an outdoor space on the corner with a dozen tables umbrella’d up & plant lined penned below strung egg lighting.

14 beers up, more Lager than hoppys, you don’t see that too often (Gravitace, Czech Pilsner, 5.1%; Bauhaus, German Pilsner, 5.2%; Krausen, American Lager, 4.6%; Good Morning Munich, Helles Lager, 5.2%; Good Evening Vienna, Vienna Lager, 4.7%; St. George’s Day, Munich Dunkel, 5.5%; BA Very Wry Expression, Baltic Porter, 9.5%; Lincoln Highway, APA, 5.8%; Verlaine, Belgian Pale Ale, 5.8%; Art History Major, NE IPA, 6.6%; Avenue of the Giants, WC IPA, 7.3%; Always Berry & Brite, Fruited Sour, 5.4%; Olde Gospatric, English Strong Ale, 6.2%; Erebus, Imperial Stout, 10.5%), + a cask option (Dance Card American Brown Ale, 5.6%), and 8 can pours (NA, Cider, & Hard Seltzer).

Got into a few as well, we’re here and all (Okay, Avenue of the Giants, WC IPA was all diacetyl and as such, needed to either be accidentally knocked over or traded in for something else, I opted for the latter, and the kid was super accommodating; Dancecard American Brown Ale is serious, toast, chocolate, coffee, it jams; Gravitace Czech Pils, bready, lightly hoppy, bitter, very good; St. George’s Day Munich Dunkel, dark bread, a sweety, good hoppiness, this beer is great; and now going in on a shorty of the Verlaine, Belgian Pale Ale, light bitterness, lightly spicy, good maltface, this beer is fire). Dancecard American Brown Ale, St. George’s Day Munich Dunkel, & Verlaine Belgian Pale Ale for the wins.

Talking with the Iowa couple Dave & Cheryl at the bar. They like to get around some and go see breweries. Weird, I thought I was the only one. They’ve been to Belgium and seen De La Senne & Westvleteren. Jealous. Not jealous. Shut up. Refreshing to meet cool Iowa beer people. Chill house, good tunes, and some excellent beer had.

Sidepulls, casks engines, tanks and coolers galore! This place is essentially an old world beer lover's brewery converted just enough to be welcoming to comers of all sizes. The bar is walk up, reaching at an angle over to a corner where stools begin all the way towards the tanks. There are loads of low tops to the left of the bar, and a good amount of patio seating amongst the planters and flowers as well. I worked at an Ace Hardware's garden center through highschool so I felt right at home.

Beers are poured properly and with intention, delivered when ready and executed deftly. Focus on their lagers and you'll be a happy camper. The vibe is chill and on this day there was some kind of Beatles radio takeover on top of the fact that were a few different British families who popped in from god knows where so it felt more like we were across the pond than anywhere else.

The to-go list is vast, and well worth nabbing anything that wasn't on draft. I was especially pleasantly surprised at the deliciousness of the Brat Haus collab.

 

 

 

Finished up at Stockholm's. I took the walk of a few blocks up State Street to the little strip mall elbow joint that comprises Art History Brewing. (This isn't a knock, just a description of the area, anchored by an Ace Hardware.) Past the brick patio outside, the interior has the feel of a laid-back pre-school with updated adult-oriented décor (if that makes any sense): one side has seating, a couple screens, a selection of games (wish I wasn't alone, now...), and a laminate bar; the other is the brewing space. It's all white walls (with some lovely artwork, mostly label art, it looks) and white fluorescent lighting. As I am wont, I hit the bar and started in on some flights. The beers are all rather solid to good, a step up from my first stop of the day, and there's a slight Old World bent to things: styles lean German and English, they've got the lager faucet, and there's a cask engine in there as well. Noice. The staff are all very friendly and know their products well. There are some minor snacks on offer, but they allow carry-in. (Also, though dogs aren't allowed inside, they can hang out on the patio, and they've got dog dishes they can fill with water for their pleasure. Human water is self-serve from a machine.) Overall, this is a damn solid joint, and I hope they can continue to grow and prosper: I wanna see more of their stuff on offer at more places. Let's go.