Wednesday 29th of April 2015 10:48:41 AM

link
Ordered eight beer sample. This second visit was much improved over the first 18 months ago. Beer showed respect for the styles in most cases. The American IPA was an excellent example but "sessionable" at 7.2 ABV shows a willingness to overuse the term. The American pale ale was outstanding as well with lovely west coast hop character. The American brown was an aromatic brew that balanced the roasted malt character with American hop aromas and bitterness. The Czech American Pilsner was not quite a Pilsner Urquell given the use of corn as an adjunct. The Irish red ale was an excellent example of the style. None of the samples were significantly off the mark.

Sunday 13th of January 2013 08:28:31 AM

link
I stopped here on my way through Albany as it's fairly close to the highway. I saw the sign for the brewery from the highway, and when I turned onto Broadway assumed that the small bar there was what i was looking for. When I got inside, I realized that the brewery was behind this bar, not on the main road - there's a road (Spencer St) that gets you around back where the parking for CH Evans is.

Once I found it, the atmosphere was nice. It's an old building that used to be the Pump Station in Albany, with high ceilings and lots of open space.

The beers were less exciting. They had an odd sour taste, and weird aftertaste. Not that I thought they were undrinkable, but they were just off and not totally pleasant. Seems like a local water quality issue.

Sunday 12th of August 2012 01:17:25 PM

link
We arrived on a Monday and they just happened to be closed for a company outing (not mentioned on website), but ended up stopping in on our way back through. Parking around was less than ideal, as the parking garage nearby closes at night. I tried the sampler and was pleasantly surprised with the beer. One of my favorites was the Saison, great flavor with nice hop notes. We both got burgers which were good. The place was packed on a Saturday night and service was less than ideal. We had time to figure out what we wanted for food before placing out drink order (was 10-15 minutes). I would like to go back on a weekday or at least earlier on a Saturday and get some full glasses (only had sampler). They had 9 beers on the menu but 1 was out. They also have a Pear cider (not brewed there) which sounded interesting (not available in sampler). As you would expect it was also very loud in there. There IPA was good but not very hoppy compared to most, more pine than hops.

Monday 17th of May 2010 11:09:21 AM

link
Ending in Albany for that day, I checked into my hotel and was able to shuttle over to the Pump House. Very nice old building right in downtown Albany. I met up with a friend (one who frequents the place) and ordered some brews. We sat at the bar and service was good by multiple bar tenders.

The stand out for me was the weizenbock and sampled more than one of those and really enjoyed that, a smooth 8% beer! Also had the Munich Dunkel, they did have a variety of german style beers on tap. I was hoping to eat there but it did not happen but the menu had a variety of american style pub items on it.
Others beers on tap, kick ass brown, a dry stout, a hefe, a pale ale and a blonde. No guest taps that I was aware of.

The place is huge inside and surely can handle a crowd, the bar is right when you enter and the regular seating is off to the left, there also was another area behind the bar for more seating I'd presume.

I would love to head back to sample the food and some of the rotating seasonal I was told they brew.

Cheers

Friday 6th of February 2009 08:37:04 AM

link

This person needs 3 or more reviews on the site for their scores to start counting.

CH Evans is one of the best-looking venues I've experienced in the Capital District - the full name, "CH Evans Brewing Company at the Albany Pump Station", is a reference to the building's former use as a pump station for the city of Albany. It's a typical 1800s brick building with enormous windows, exposed beams, and a very high ceiling. The dining room and bar area are separated by the stairs leading to the mezzanine, allowing two very different atmosphere's - the dining room manages to be cozy in spite of being in such an imposing space.
The beer selection is limited to what they brew themselves, but it's by no means a deficiency - their brown ale's kick-ass descriptor is accurate and the Hefeweizen is excellent. The food is excellent with moderate prices.