Still broadcasting from Milwaukee, where day 2 of WordCamp Milwaukee 2013 brought not only a bonanza of geektacular mind candy, but also an afternoon bacon bar and an entire evening of free beer. Before waxing poetic about free beer, it’s worth noting the obvious genius of a bacon bar; it should be a mandatory feature of all gatherings longer than 2 hours, including weddings, funerals, business meetings, and court hearings.

At any rate, following 10 hours of WordPress edification, we were turned us loose at Milwaukee Brewing Company, conveniently located 3 blocks down the street. Though food ran out just as my colleagues and I walked in the door, fine ales flowed freely for the duration of the evening. In either a brilliant or reckless move by conference organizers, we were each handed a pint glass to be refilled without limit.

As mentioned in a previous digression, Milwaukee Brewing Company has been around for a fair bit (since 1997), but only recently adopted its “MKE” brand identity and current lineup of beers. As noted above, beer was dispensed without limit, so I was fortunate enough to “sample” most of them. The only problem is, well…I sampled most of them. Here’s what I remember of it:

Hop Happy (Year-round, 7.7% ABV, 51 IBUs): Tasty IPA with plenty of hops (Columbus, Cascade, Fuggle), and a bit of malty sweetness. Bonus: it was served with a light dusting of freshly-ground hops, courtesy of a repurposed pepper grinder. No kidding. More at: http://mkebrewing.com/beer/hophappy/

Booyah (Year-round, 6.5% ABV, 20 IBUs): Farmhouse ale formerly known simply as Milwaukee Brewing Co. Farmhouse Ale. An exemplary specimen; one of my favorites for hot summer days. More at: http://mkebrewing.com/beer/booyah/

Outboard (Summer seasonal, 6.5% ABV, 13 IBUs): Cream ale; highly reminiscent of Lake Louie Coon Rock. That’s about all I remember. More at: http://mkebrewing.com/beer/outboard/

Black Iron (Summer seasonal, 7.5% ABV, 48 IBUs): India Black Ale. I bet it was delicious. More at: http://mkebrewing.com/beer/blackiron/

Milwaukee Brewing Company

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Broadcasting on location from Milwaukee this weekend, where I’m spending three solid days hanging out with other IT nerdburglars at a WordPress developers conference. In addition to indulging my geekiest tendencies, it’s a perfect opportunity to investigate the downtown brewery scene.

Four hours perched on folding chairs inside a converted warehouse during Friday’s afternoon session demanded a fermented remedy, so my compatriots and I headed straight for the nearest brewpub, Water St. Brewery.

Allegedly Milwaukee’s first brewpub, Water St. has been around for about 25 years, and has spawned 3 locations during its existence – downtown, Delafield, and Grafton. We visited the downtown outpost, which occupies an expansive, century-old building nestled among the many popular eating and drinking establishments along historic Water Street.

From the interior ambiance to the newsprint menu, Water St. Brewery bore an uncanny resemblance to Madison’s downtown Great Dane. Its beer was also similarly mediocre. The selection of 9 house-made taps spanned the usual brewpub styles – light, lager, weiss, amber, pale, marzen….seasonals included Belgian wit, black lager, and raspberry weiss.

Between my dining companions and I, we tried the amber, marzen, Belgian wit, and black lager. My selection, the black lager, was billed as a Schwarzbier, but more closely resembled a stout. Its thick texture and malty sweetness were not entirely offensive, but it didn’t offer the fizzy, refreshing experience of a quality Schwarzbier. Overall, I’d characterize it as “meh.” Reports by my dining companions on the others beers were similar, resulting in a score of 4 meh’s overall.

Water Street Brewery

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