What Do You Do On A Dark Day At Lafayette Brewing Company? You Drink Dark Beer, Of Course.

Welcome to my little view of the world.  Let me be clear, I am not a beer aficionado.  Heck I had to use spell check even to write that.  I have never brewed my own beer.  And I have never grown, harvested or even seen a hop still on the vine.  But I love beer and I love this microbrewery craze that is sweeping the nation.

My job allows me to travel some, mostly across Indiana and the Midwest, even further at times.  And when I travel, I try and find a nice little microbrewery around the area to unwind after a long day.  If there is not a microbrewery, I try for the next best thing, a local brew or a beer that I have not tried that is on tap wherever I choose to sit down for a few.  When I saw the offer from Indiana On Tap to be a contributor with their Writing & Reporting Community, I thought to myself, “I could maybe do that.”

So what can my untrained palate bring to the reader?  My basic plan is to find microbreweries that I have not had the pleasure to visit and try a sample flight of three to five of their best.  Or if I have already been there, my plan will be to try a flight of beers I have yet to taste.  I will simply rank them based upon what I liked best.  It does not mean the last beer was bad.  It just means I liked something better that day.  I will try to give you the basics like the name, type of beer and ABV.  I will also try to give you a little insight into the establishment, the beer staff knowledge and food, if I get a chance to eat.  From time to time I may throw in a beer I found at a restaurant, store or the occasional bar and let you know what I thought.

So buckle up and let’s get down to the basics…

My first stop is the Lafayette Brewing Company in the heart of downtown Lafayette, Indiana.  This microbrewery has lots of space as they have a bar side and restaurant side.  The décor is old hardwood and has a nice vintage feel to it.  The bartender was extremely knowledgeable about each beer and took the time to give me insight on all my choices.  I did not get to eat on this trip but the food that went by looked great.  I will have to build that in on my next visit.

So onto the important stuff, LBC offers a four beer sample flight.  It was kind of a cold, cloudy day so I decided to go dark.  Here is my top four with a bonus pour.

1. The Black Angus a 6.2% ABV, Oatmeal Stout was my favorite.  The description mentioned hints of coffee, but I felt it was a lot more than a hint but not overwhelming.
2. Freedom a 7.9% ABV, Scotch Ale.  This was a very close second.  A very smooth beer that I could drink the entire night.
3. The William Sydney, a 5.3%, Porter is a milder version of the Black Angus.  If you are not into the heavier Stouts but like darker beers this Porter is very good.
4. Emancipator an 8.3% ABV, Weizenbock.  I have to say this was my least favorite of the flight.  It’s not the ABV; it’s just a mix of different tastes and ingredients.  I would ask for a sample pour to make sure it’s your style.
5. Woo Hoo, when I mentioned the stronger coffee taste on the Black Angus, the bartender gave me a bonus pour of the Kalossi Knockout Oatmeal Stout.  I did not get an ABV on this one.  But if you like a strong coffee flavored beer the Knockout is for you.  It was excellent.

Well that’s my first installment of BeerScoutBasics.  So don’t worry about dry versus wet hops or the different kinds of yeast and grains, just keep it to the basics and what tastes good to you.

Follow me on Twitter at @BeerScoutBasics to find out where I will be next.