This past weekend Angie and I took a day trip to Lexington, Kentucky to attend a Foo Fighters concert, and although the concert was eventually postponed, we were still able to check out some local breweries during our time there.
Kentucky is well known for its reputation as the bourbon capital of the world, but the Bluegrass State is producing some pretty quality beer as well.
West Sixth
Our first stop was West Sixth Brewing, located in the heart of the city. The brewery is pretty well known in and around Kentucky and their stuff is also pretty easy to find in Cincinnati as well. I’ve always been a fan of their beer, from the Pay It Forward Cocoa Porter to their top-notch IPA and Amber Ale.
Their taproom is nice and big, with plenty of room and a fish restaurant next door with an entrance inside the taproom. They’ve also got a nice big side room with community style tables, as well as a barrel room. Their influence of local is pretty apparent in everything they do, including on the glasses.
Since we had tried most of the West Sixth core offerings before, Angie and I both decided to try out some of their taproom exclusives on this visit. And we weren’t disappointed. I was a big fan of the Magic Beans Coffee Stout, as well as the Bluedoor Smokeout Brown Ale. Angie tried one of their experimental beers with coriander and orange and it was delicious as well.
Blue Stallion
After West Sixth, our next stop was Blue Stallion Brewing Co, a newer brewery that focuses on German lagers and British ales. Since there was a UK football game on, the place was packed with fans clad in blue. But luckily for us, it was a nice day and the whole place was open and there was seating outside. Blue Stallion has a very high bar and plenty of seating, as well as food available from Dad’s Favorites Deli.
Since we hadn’t tried anything from the brewery before, we decided on a flight with a few different options. One thing I liked about their flight is that it had five offerings of 5 oz pours, up from the typical offering of four 3 oz pours at most places.
Our flight consisted of:
-Dunkel Lager
-Ya Damn Skippy Peanut Butter Porter
-Oktoberfest
-Mango Saison
-Passionfruit Saison
All were solid but what really stood out to me were the saisons. I’m not typically a fan of farmhouse style beers, but these were both fruit forward and tasty.
Mirror Twin
Our last stop was at Mirror Twin, a new brewery just over a year old. At this point we were starving so we ordered a pizza and avocado skins to go along with our flight. Mirror Twin has plenty of picnic tables inside and out, as well as a decent sized space.
The owner of Mirror Twin is actually a twin himself, with an identical twin brother who is left handed while he is right handed. To pay homage to this, they brew similar beers with just one ingredient changed and serve them side by side. I’ll be honest that I didn’t realize this or I would have loved to try out this unique offering.
Again, we hadn’t been to the brewery before, so Angie and I got a flight with some of their more popular offerings. Our flight was:
-D’s Nutty Brown Ale
-White Girl Wasted Blonde Ale
-Cowabunga Dude! Milk Stout
-Wade Boggs Style Marzen
The beer was OK but the milk stout was really the only one that stood out. They had a nice variation of styles as well as some guest taps as well.
Check out more Brewery Adventures by clicking here.