Day 62 / March 3, 2011
McSorley’s Old Ale House / New York, NY
Crossed 2 places off the list!
| A | NG | P | G | VG | O |
What list? Well, 2 lists, actually. All About Beer and their sister publication Beer Traveler have published two lists for the ultimate beer geek / world traveler. (Several places are repeated on both lists.)
125 Places to Have a Beer Before You Die (published in 2008)
150 Perfect Places to Have a Beer (published in 2010)
Now these lists are not about what you’re drinking, rather they address where you’re drinking it. Some places have historic significance, some have a tremendous beer selection, others just may be a cool or unique place. These are the editor’s opinions, yours and mine may vary, and believe me, there is a ton of discussion on the internet about “glaring omissions” from the list. I don’t intend to visit everyplace on these lists, but I will definitely seek these places out if I am near them on travel.
So, for the record, here’s what I’ve crossed off the list (so far):
From 125 Places to Have a Beer Before You Die….
4. Great British Beer Festival, Earls Court, London, England
9. Monk’s Café, Philadelphia, PA, USA
12. The Brickskeller, Washington, DC, USA
15. Cat’s Eye Pub, Inner Harbor, Baltimore, MD, USA
18. Horizon’s Café, CN Tower, Ontario, Canada
29. Toronado, San Francisco, CA, USA
33. The Wynkoop Brewery, Denver, CO, USA
35. Great Lakes Brewing, Cleveland, OH, USA
39. The Flying Saucer, Charlotte, NC, USA
39. The Flying Saucer, Houston, TX, USA
45. Selin’s Grove Brewing, Selinsgrove, PA, USA
48. The Blue Tusk, Syracuse, NY, USA
49. Woolwich Arms, Guelph, ON, USA
71. Brewer’s Art, Baltimore, MD, USA
97. Clark’s Ale House, Syracuse, NY, USA
102. McSorley’s Ale House, New York, NY, USA
104. Rose & Crown Pub, Epcot Center, Orlando, FL, USA
105. The Church Brew Works, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
113. beerbistro, Toronto, Canada
114. The Dubliner, Washington, DC, USA
116. Anchor Bar, Buffalo, NY, USA
121. Old Ebbitt Grill, Washington, DC, USA
From 150 Perfect Places to Have a Beer…..
4. Monk’s Café, Philadelphia, PA
5. Great British Beer Festival, Earls Court, London, England
10. Toronado, San Francisco, CA
28. The Brickskeller, Washington, DC
30. The Flying Saucer, NC, SC, TN, MO, AR and TX
36. The Blue Tusk, Syracuse, NY
38. The Wynkoop Brewery, Denver, CO
57. Great Lakes Brewing, Cleveland, OH
61. Volo, Toronto, ON
63. Selin’s Grove Brewing, Selinsgrove, PA
64. Clark’s Ale House, Syracuse, NY
72. Blind Tiger Ale House, New York, NY
73. Brewer’s Art, Baltimore, MD
102. beerbistro, Toronto, Canada
104. McSorley’s Ale House, New York, NY
126. American Flatbread Burlington Hearth, Burlington, VT
130. The Church Brew Works, Pittsburgh, PA
142. Cole’s, Buffalo, NY
144. The Dubliner, Washington, DC
145. Matt Brewery Tasting Room, Utica, NY
148. Old Ebbitt Grill, Washington, DC
Thursday night I crossed two places of the list – The Blind Tiger Ale House and McSorley’s Old Ale House in New York City. The Blind Tiger is a small corner bar in West Greenwich Village. At about 7pm on a Thursday night, the place was packed and getting more crowded by the minute. I was barely able to squeeze my way to the bar to order an Ommengang Witte Ale [G], let alone snap any pictures. The Ommengang Witte is a traditional Belgian-style white wheat beer, brewed by Brewery Ommengang in Cooperstown, NY. It was a crisp, tasty beer, with hints of orange and coriander.
Then I hopped into a cab and crossed lower Manhattan to find McSorley’s Old Ale House, where you’re drinking surrounded by history. McSorley’s claims to be the oldest Irish tavern in New York City, dating back to 1854, and it looks it. The floor is covered with sawdust, the bar and tables are worn to a smooth finish by years of elbows propping up drinkers, and the place is covered with old photographs and memorabilia. And not the type of stuff that they slap up on the walls when they open a new Ruby Tuesday’s. We’re talking turn of the (20th) century photos of The McSorley’s swim club – a group of surley men in striped one-piece swimsuits.
Make sure you check out their history on their website and on Wikipedia, and be sure to stop by if you are in New York.
At McSorley’s, you have 2 choices of beer – light or dark. And when you order, they bring you 2 medium size mugs for $5. It’s not uncommon to see the staff carrying 8 or more mugs in each hand at any given time.
At least a third of the mug is foam when its delivered to you. The beer was a dark brown, almost black color, and was just slightly warm, similar to how you’d get a beer in England. The beer had a slightly smoky taste, with a little taste of coffee, too. I think the authentic atmosphere bumped it up a grade.
McSorley’s now also contract brewed and available in bottles. I haven’t tried it, but I’m sure it doesn’t measure up to the McSorley’s experience.
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