Sunday 6th of December 2009 04:05:52 PM

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Great food, a lot of really good beers, amazing atmosphere indoors and out! We sat outside by the creek, but the indoor bar/dining area looked great too. One of my favorite breweries on a recent Montana brew tour! Highly recommended. Lots of good lakeside camping nearby too. There's also some screaming deals on pints... $2.50 all day on Thursday! Enjoyed every beer I tried, and I tried a LOT of them!

Thursday 18th of June 2009 01:10:33 AM

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This is my second visit (6/20/2010) so I skipped the beer sampler. I tried the Lakeside ESP an English style pale ale. I can smell some slight crystal malt and fuggles type hops. Color is copper and head is light from a good full pour. Moderate hop flavor up front but this beer is well balanced. Almost a hint of diacetyl but it's from the malt. This beer is true to style and is very well done. Since it was Fathers Day the first pint was free. Then I had the Hat Trick Hop IPA. Moderate hop aroma and the color is a deep copper. Mmm good hop flavor followed by some crystal malt. Not the hoppiezt IPA I've ever had but to me this place is brewpub nirvana. They made a mistake on the appetizers so they brought us some pizza bites and goat cheese flat breads with pesto sauce, sun dried tomoto and carmelized onions, quite yummy. Then we had some "railroad ties" appetizer with chicken green chilies with cheese in eggrolls with jalapeño honey dipping sauce. I want some sauce to take home. My green chili pork burrito was just as good as last time. To finish the lunch I ordered their seasonal Vanilla Bourbon stout. It had a nice roasted aroma with slight vanilla and bourbon notes. The flavor was the same. Everyone in our party of 10 was happy! This time they had pint glasses!

Original review: I went to this Brewery in a small Western Montana town on Flathead Lake and found a real gem! This one goes into my all time top Ten! The only negative I can think of is that they were out of Logo Pint glasses and coasters when I visited.
The building was newly built just for the brewery and is upscale with brick and wood and Wrought Iron. It has high ceilings and even an upstairs bar area and small banquet room. It also has a nice outside patio with seating right next to a running stream. The restaurant is spacious and not crowded. I got a sampler (like always) and the tray is in the form of a Pine Tree with a wrought iron handle made by the same craftsman who did the work in the Brewery.
The first beer was called Bear Bottom Blonde ale and it is a Kolsch with a mildly sweet honey malt aroma and a crisp dry finish and a good example of the style. The next beer was called Dock Days Hefeweizen and was a traditional unfiltered with banana and clove flavors. Next on the tasting was Wakeboard Wit in the traditional Belgian style with light coriander and orange peel. Then I tasted the Lakeside ESP, that's Extra Special Pale. This is an English style Pale Ale with medium light body and moderate hop flavor, another good beer! Hat Trick Hop IPA was next and I really likes this beer, so much so that I bought a growler to take with me. It is not a hop bomb but does have enough IBU's to be an IPA and I really like whatever hops they used, seemed to me to be low coholumne and not harsh at all. They also had a seasonal Rye beer that was well balanced and smooth and really good with a lingering light tan head. They also had a good Amber although I did not get the name of it it was good as well. The last beer was a Stout called Switchback Stout that seemed to be of the sweet variety. It had a slight sweet aroma and taste with a light coffee note. Seemed somewhat light for style but well balanced and another good beer. Brewer Craig Koontz came from Four Peaks Brewing in Phoenix and knows his stuff.
The food was awesome as well. I had a Verde Pork Burrito that could not be any better anywhere else! My kids loved their food as well, enchiladas, burgers and my wife had a flatbread portabella sandwich that was terrific! The fries were good and even if you are not a beer drinker this place is a great stop for good food.
The Brewery also has all kinds of special nights like open Mike night. Check out their website and if anywhere near in Montana or Idaho DO NOT MISS THIS BREWERY! If you visit and they have pint glasses for sale get one and send it to me! I gotta have it for my Top Ten shelf at home!