Friday 7th of December 2012 02:01:17 PM
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On a recent trip to St. Louis we stopped at Schlafly Bottle Works, the other location for this fantastic local brewery. Located in a large warehouse building with a large but very wet outdoor beer garden, this is the larger of the two brewpubs. Inside is a bit more modern and industrial than the other site, but still welcoming. Black and white pictures of the brewery and brewing equipment line the walls in the dining area, interspersed with fantastic colorful chalkboard art and label paintings. I tried the tasty and drinkable Belgian Singel, and the New Zealand hopped Tasmanian IPA. Love the Schlafly beers! My food was an enormous pastrami sandwich that made me not want to eat for a day! Over our trip we found the Schlafly beers pretty much everywhere we went and it was always a great go-to brand. Try the beers if you get a chance. I bought myself a present there: a heavy stainless steel tap handle with 6 interchangeable beer displays.
Selection: 4.5 |
Atmosphere: 4.5 |
Service: 4.25 |
Food: 4.25
Friday 7th of October 2011 07:45:56 AM
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Cool place in an "interesting" neighborhood. Large facility, nice looking upscale industrial. Nice menu. Service seems prompt, but not real engaging, but neither is the cliental.
Kolsch- crisp clear yellow golden hue. Refreshing with a slight malt & hope aftertaste
Unfiltered Wheat/ heffe- it's a wheat ....
Pale ale- dark yellow to amber, strong malt taste with mid range hop notes with slight bit on finish. Not strongly flavored. Okay, but not a standout.
APA- amber, nice hop aroma Great cascade taste and hoppy bite. Score!
Oatmeal Stout- black with a tan creamy head. Smooth with roasted flavors and a bitter finish. Very nice, well balanced.
Black Current & Cherry Cider - yes I will drink anything not to have another wheat... Just saying. Cranberry red to ruby hue. Sour aroma? Like a lambic maybe? Sort of reminds me of a moonshine smell just not as strong (yes i have had my share...). Slight fruit notes in the aroma, but not strong. WOW! Like a champagne. Nice wine like taste, very slight, not overpowering fruit note. I can't believe I am saying very drinkable. But like a light in the night I could see one he'll of a hangover Fromm a session of drinking this.
Selection: 4.75 |
Atmosphere: 4.25 |
Service: 3.75 |
Food: 4.0
Tuesday 28th of December 2010 01:59:46 PM
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This person needs 3 or more reviews on the site for their scores to start counting.
When we want a somewhat-pricey, interesting meal with fresh, phenomenal beer, this is where we go.
We go often. A 45 minute trip one way, and always worth it.
Locally sourced foodstuffs. Open kitchen. Great servers who know their beer and food. Laid back atmosphere but NOT too casual, I feel ok in shorts, jeans or a fancy dress. Clean.
The menu is seasonal so some things change. I cannot say enough about their salads, soups, and the breakfast items. I find some of their entrees too big and too much, so I take food home. The warm goat cheese with lavosh is what we always order, along with other things like the farmer's platter. The sticky toffee pudding is big enough for 2.
The beers. Even when there is nothing I adore, there is something nice and drinkable-the Hefeweizen on draft is stellar. They don't have much in the "normal" category, and some of it is too strong for me. But what they do have is always spot on for what I think it should be.
Summary: local food, interesting take on menu items, really good beers with some weirdness. Family friendly, somewhat noisy. They have tours, a garden, a seasonal farmer's market, outdoor seating, they sponsor local events like art shows. Schlafly is a member of the community.
Selection: 4.25 |
Atmosphere: 4.25 |
Service: 4.75 |
Food: 4.25
Monday 22nd of March 2010 01:16:58 PM
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This person needs 3 or more reviews on the site for their scores to start counting.
First off, I'm not sure why BahHumBrew bothered to review the place when it sounds like he or she didn't even stay to check it out (no mention of beer in that review). Yeah, it's going to be crazy if you go on the day of a big event, but you don't get a huge turnout like that for serving swill, ya know! If you're concerned, call ahead or check their event calendar. Just be sure to check the Bottleworks and not Tap Room (their downtown location).
Full disclosure: I love this place. The selection is great, both in number and variety. They have somewhere around 15 different beers on tap at any one time, plus 2 barrel aged and 4 bottle conditioned offerings in 750s. Beer is available to go in bottles, growlers (around $8 a refill), and kegs. The bar staff are knowledgeable and extremely friendly, willing to help you find the right beer, even if it takes pouring a handful tasters on a busy night. I have a lot of favorites on tap: among them Coffee Stout, #15 (a spiced amber ale), and Christmas Ale.
Food is good and ranges from $7-8 sandwiches to $11-14 entrees. Most of their ingredients (maybe all?) are locally sourced, some are even grown in the garden out back. And for those with dietary restrictions, there are plenty of meat-free and glutton-free offerings. The deserts (especially sticky toffee pudding) are superb, but I'm always too full for them!
Tours run hourly on the weekends and can be a lot of fun, I'd definitely recommend it. They don't do tour reservations, so come half-hour early, get your name on the list, and then prepare for the tour by hanging out at the bar. You can even bring a pint with you on the tour. The tour itself lasts about half an hour, then you hang out in the tasting room and get a few samples for the next half hour. It's a good way to spend some time.
Parking: rarely a problem, except on the peakest of peak times. I've never had to find off-site parking.
Selection: 4.5 |
Atmosphere: 5 |
Service: 5 |
Food: 4.0
Thursday 17th of April 2008 11:09:53 AM
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Celebrating the Repeal of Prohibition when I dropped by (sign says “Closed for violation of National Prohibition Actâ€). As the previous reviewer said, there is a nice bar and tasting area inside with windows onto the bottling and tank areas. Due to the celebration, there were additional tasting areas set up outside and some significant lines for the rest rooms. The cost for the party was too steep for our short visit timeline and the outside temperature too low so we moved on.
Selection: 4 |
Atmosphere: 4.5 |
Service: 4 |
Food: N/A
Saturday 5th of April 2008 12:44:13 PM
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Schlafly's second location. They tend to have a smaller selection than the Taproom, and the food is arguably more esoteric (e.g. they serve bison burgers rather than traditional hamburgers). The atmosphere is more relaxed as it is more spacious than the Taproom. I have always had phenomenal service there. Tours of the brewing/bottling facility are available on a daily basis, even to the point that they'll give you a tour if you are the only one there. In the summer they host a farmer's market in their parking lot on a weekly basis.
Selection: 4 |
Atmosphere: 4.25 |
Service: 5 |
Food: 3.75