Judge’s Bench in Ellicott City was host to 8 BBW events. The two nights I made my way there for was Friday the 8th for Heavy Seas Firkin Friday with Loose Cannon dry-hopped with local hops from Still Point Farms (Mt. Airy, MD), poured directly from an oak cask and 6 taps of their seasonal offerings including 2008 Below Decks Barley Wine and the bourbon barrel aged Great’r Pumpkin. On Tuesday Night we stopped in for the ‘Judge your Java’ event. Troegs Javahead Stout was on draft, they also had a year old aged keg of Javahead, and the Javahead Stout in a firkin with Vanilla beans. It was a great way to taste a beer in three different ways side by side.
Victoria’s on Monday was Oktoberfest and Pumpkin Beers. They had a great selection of American as well as imported Oktoberfest and Fest biers. Favorites of our Oktoberfest flight were Harpoon’s Oktoberfest, Victory’s Festbier and Weihenstephaner Festbier. The Pumpkin Beers on tap ranged from subtle, Smuttynose, Saranac and Wolaver’s Organic Pumpkin beers, to strong spice and flavor with Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin, Southern Tier’s Pumking, Schafley’s and The Heavy Seas Great Pumpkin and Great’r Pumpkin. All the beers were good and I had to see how they matched with the Poutine.
Frisco Grille and Cantina had a BCS of their own (Beer Championship Series), that actual made sense not like the College Football one. Each night a brewery put up a 1/6th barrel of beer (1/6 barrel contains 5.16 gallons. There are roughly 53 servings in one 1/6 barrel, based on regular 12-oz. servings) against another brewery and which ever breweries keg kicked first moved on in the bracket. Breweries that were represented were Dogfish Head, Oskar Blues, Southampton, Bear Republic, Harpoon, Troegs, Flying Dog and Heavy Seas. For the winner you need to go by and check the bracket.
T-Bonz and Flying Dog’s Firkins and Fried Chicken was among the better events in Howard County offering Fried chicken and chicken & waffles sandwiches along with firkins of Flying Dog Beer. Kloby’s Smokehouse had 4 events of its own and is making a name for it’s self in the beer community hosting such breweries as Oskar Blues, Evolution and Flying Dog.
With Frisco Grille in construction at its new location and Kloby’s and T-Bonz, both with plans of expanding, Howard County’s beer/pub scene is really good and is only going to better.
Oktoberfest and Tap opening ceremony with Duff 'Ace of Cakes' Goldman coming later this week
