Went down to San Jose for another Sharks game last week, and as always, paid a pregame visit to the TIED HOUSE to see what they were pourin’. As I’ve written before, I don’t think these guys have written the book on great beer or anything – or even have a single chapter in the book – but they continually seem to hit the mark for solid, moderately impressive microbrews crafted with care and at least some attention to flavor. December 25th didn’t mark the end of their seasonal holiday ale, nope, right there on the chalkboard outside it said “Come in and drink some of our MULL TIED holiday ale”. So I did. Like the two beers of theirs I reviewed a couple of months ago, it was surprisingly good; I mean, Tied House is one of those places like BJ’S or GORDON BIERSCH or ROCK BOTTOM that’s all about the party, the chicken wings, and the big-screen TV, with the beer seeming to be – if not an afterthought, then just another link in the chain. But this particular beer was a very, veeerrry smooth and with a real bite of cinnamon and cloves, tastes that offset a somewhat watery complexion and made Mull Tied stand up with some reasonable and earned pride. I give it a 7/10, right in the middle of the pack in a year that had some outstanding holiday beers.
Thursday, January 04, 2007
THE POST-CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY BEER THAT GOT AWAY
Went down to San Jose for another Sharks game last week, and as always, paid a pregame visit to the TIED HOUSE to see what they were pourin’. As I’ve written before, I don’t think these guys have written the book on great beer or anything – or even have a single chapter in the book – but they continually seem to hit the mark for solid, moderately impressive microbrews crafted with care and at least some attention to flavor. December 25th didn’t mark the end of their seasonal holiday ale, nope, right there on the chalkboard outside it said “Come in and drink some of our MULL TIED holiday ale”. So I did. Like the two beers of theirs I reviewed a couple of months ago, it was surprisingly good; I mean, Tied House is one of those places like BJ’S or GORDON BIERSCH or ROCK BOTTOM that’s all about the party, the chicken wings, and the big-screen TV, with the beer seeming to be – if not an afterthought, then just another link in the chain. But this particular beer was a very, veeerrry smooth and with a real bite of cinnamon and cloves, tastes that offset a somewhat watery complexion and made Mull Tied stand up with some reasonable and earned pride. I give it a 7/10, right in the middle of the pack in a year that had some outstanding holiday beers.
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1 comment:
I can definitely understand the comment about Gordon Biersch, but I'm surprised you threw BJ's in there too. They brew my favorite Pale Ale of all time, and I have thought their Porter, Owens IPA, and Juniper Rye were also very good. I have never cared for the Nutty Brewnette or Hefe though.
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