The Answer Brewpub: The Visit!

Let me begin by stating that I love Mekong. They have great food (in my opinion) and an even greater offering of craft and Belgian beers. As far as I'm concerned, they can do no wrong...now thats out of the way, The Answer Brewpub is a perfect addition to the strip mall that houses Mekong. If you haven't been you may be thinking, "You say they are both good, but don't they both serve beer? Don't they both serve food? Isn't having two restaurants next door to each other potentially bad for business?" To answer those questions I would say "Yes, yes, I seriously doubt it. Also, don't ask so many questions all at once, give me a chance to respond to one and then ask another one. Don't you understand how a conversation works? Dick."

Yes, both Mekong and The Answer Brewpub serve beer but this isn't like you are going from one bar to another where you may find a different configuration of the same domestic beers. Instead both places offer beer but from vastly different points of view. Mekong is where you would go if you are looking for a wide variety of Belgian beers with a healthy mix of local craft beers and the occasional tap-takeover from some amazing brewery. The Answer Brewpub serves up an array of hard-to-find/ obtain craft beers as well as some great collaborative beers with some local favorites. To see some of those collaborative beers refer back to this post!

 Happy people drinking.

Other side of The Answer Brewpub.

Yes, both offer food as well, but once again the food selections are totally different. Mekong= Vietnamese food. Wait, no- delicious Vietnamese food. The Answer Brewpub serves up, if you can imagine this, Vietnamese pub food- so you have your fries to enjoy while you drink or you can venture out and get some shrimp crackers or if you are feeling hungry grab a Banh Mi! They offer some different ones, but I had the house special (chicken, fish, and beef) and it was fantastic. Sorry that I don't have pictures to offer, I was busy eating. While both Vietnamese based in cuisine the offerings couldn't be farther from each other.

Third question- I doubt it. Like I stated before, I don't think that Mekong will lose business by having The Answer Brewpub next door. The Answer Brewpub is exactly that, a brewpub; people go there looking to enjoy a few pints, maybe grab a light snack, and then leave...or stay for a while and enjoy a lot of beer, more food, and then have someone drive them home...either way, a good time. There is a stage set up inside of the main area, so I assume there will be bands and/or DJs in the future. In the background they played some dancy remixes of jazz, radio-friendly hip hop, and other genres that lend themselves to bass-heavy background music...somehow it all fit. The space is large- I would imagine the same size as Mekong, but without all of the walls and tables that separate Mekong's various dining areas. All in all, a great space with lots of room for people and their beers!

Apparently "dancy" isn't a word.

Onto the beers- there are a lot of them. 36 to be exact, PLUS a firkin! This gives you a great mix of local collaborations as well as some other great beers from around the country. I was overwhelmed by the choices, in a good way of course.

I started with the Belgian Dubbel Pilot from Hardywood Park Craft Brewery and The Answer Brewpub, a 7.5% Dubbel (hence the name, dummy). It was dark, beautiful, and delicious with a little of sweetness that really rounded it all off. I drank most of it before I realized I should take a picture...so, sorry?

Belgian Dubbel Pilot

I decided to follow up with another collaboration- Street Cred from Triple Crossing Brewing Company and The Answer Brewpub. Street Cred is something they offered up during the Beer Expo, and I'm glad they have it around still! Labelled as an Imperial/ Double IPA at 8% that was smooth, silky almost, and not at all as bitter as I would have expected it to be. Absolutely delicious and worth having more of! A new favorite of mine!

Street Cred DIPA

My third, and final, beer (no drunk driving here!) was Brainless on Peaches from Epic Brewing Company out of Salt Lake City, Utah. Coming in at 11% this Belgian style ale/ fruit beer masks the high abv with a complex peach and oak barrel flavor. Goes down smooth and definitely makes me smile; this beer is one I've had before and upon seeing it on the menu I knew it was what I would end my night with. If you haven't had this, you are truly missing out.

Brainless on Peaches makes me so happy.

I also sampled a couple of beers that Clay grabbed- Cappucino Stout from Lagunitas Brewing Company- an American Imperial double stout (9.2% abv) that was amazing. Great coffee flavor, nice stout flavor, and another solid brew from Lagunitas. Also got to try On the Wings of Armageddon from DC Brau Brewing Company. This 9.2% Imperial/ DIPA was also amazing (so much so that it got a 96 from BeerAdvocate- check the link!). Great IPA flavors without that weird cat pee/ overly hopped flavor that I've found in some other IPAs. Maybe I just don't like IPAs that much? Either way, this one was really good and I would happily drink it again! Did I get pictures of either? No...once again, I will apologize. 

Hopefully this lengthy post answers your questions. If it doesn't...then too bad, because I've already published it so just ask in the comments. One last photo of the bar (made from old factory floors from NC and surrounded by cedar (I think) to give it a great live-edge appearance. Really nice stuff! 

Enjoy and go to The Answer Brewpub!!!