Marzoni's Brick Oven & Brewing Co. - Altoona, PA

RoaringBrewer · 05-21-2008, 09:05 PM

Well - technically Duncansville, PA, but its about 2.75 miles from the hotel I'll be staying at next week on business.

I've never been there before. What say those who have been there? Yay? Nay? Good beer? Good food? At least it's a little different from other central PA micros in that it's a 'pizzeria'. Looks interesting and definitely will be trying it, but just curious to see what others think of the place...

http://www.marzonis.com/beerselections.html

brewt00l · 05-22-2008, 02:02 PM

Never heard of it before now...'course it is out in altoona and I've never been (and don't really plan to be).

zoebisch01 · 05-22-2008, 04:39 PM

Hmm interesting. Altoona is not all that far from me. Let us know how it is.

RoaringBrewer · 05-22-2008, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zoebisch01

Hmm interesting. Altoona is not all that far from me. Let us know how it is.

Will do! I'll report back after next Tuesday or Wednesday evening...

brewt00l · 05-22-2008, 10:47 PM

Hijack in progress: Speaking of middle PA, either of you guys ever sample Otto's brews? A buddy brought back some Double D IPA and it was pretty tasty stuff.

http://ratebeer.com/brewers/ottos-pub-&-brewery/3060/

**pjj2ba** · 05-23-2008, 02:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewt00l

Hijack in progress: Speaking of middle PA, either of you guys ever sample Otto's brews? A buddy brought back some Double D IPA and it was pretty tasty stuff.

http://ratebeer.com/brewers/ottos-pub-&-brewery/3060/

Otto's is OK. I'd put them middle of the road. I've been to brewpubs with better beers, and I've been to brewpubs with worse beer. The Double D is good, they have some decent stouts (the brewer's mom's favorite style). My favorite is their Red Mo ale. I find their pale beers a little lackluster. My wife likes their apricot wheat. They tap a firkin every Friday. I think the best I ever had there was their seasonal Oktoberfest. Parking can be problematic. After business hours you can park at the bank across the busy street, do not park at the tire store.

RoaringBrewer · 05-27-2008, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewt00l

Hijack in progress: Speaking of middle PA, either of you guys ever sample Otto's brews? A buddy brought back some Double D IPA and it was pretty tasty stuff.

http://ratebeer.com/brewers/ottos-pub-&-brewery/3060/

I worked in State College, PA for about 18 months cumulative (6 mo. for 3 years) in recent years and spent a lot of time (1-2 visits per week) @ Otto's. It's one of my favorite brewpubs in PA. Maybe b/c it got me through those long stints out of town with my sanity, maybe b/c the food is pretty solid, or maybe b/c the beers are pretty darn good too. Not all of their beers are on the top of my list, but they make some decent beers. As already mentioned, the Double D IPA was my favorite, brewed with palisades, nugget, and amarillo if I recall. Sumatra Stout pretty solid. Red Mo ale pretty darn good too. They had an Amarillo Pale on for limited offering a few times that was great for an American APA (if you like Amarillo). Their limited offering Tripel is pretty good too. I could also quaff their lagers (spring creek and vienna) if spending a longer evening there.

Pretty solid place overall, in my book. Sit on the patio in summer right under the hop garden!

The parking not so much so, but that's the only big drawback I can see.

They started bottling some stuff a little while back, but not sure it gets distributed yet or just buy on premises. I think you could buy the Double D in bombers... (and others as well)

brewt00l · 05-27-2008, 05:06 PM

Did you get into Marzoni's yet?

RoaringBrewer · 05-27-2008, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewt00l

Did you get into Marzoni's yet?

Didn't work yesterday so I just got to Altoona this morning... I will probably be working until 8-9PM tonight, so looks like tomorrow or the next evening is more like it, even though I'll be working late those evenings too. I will find time to get there, they are open until 11PM and I don't anticipate working quite that late... although maybe I should and I might get out of Saturday work. We'll have to see...

zoebisch01 · 05-27-2008, 08:44 PM

Otto's is pretty good, the problem they had (and they are getting much better at) is their demand shot up so high, the consistency of the product fell dramatically. That and the wait staff/bartenders seem to have a high turnover (possibly mostly college students that move on?) which for a friend of mine was the reason he doesn't go there often anymore. He likes a familiar face at the bar. They have put out some really good Ales, the WeizenBock and Elderberry Stout come to mind, and then some others that I really didn't care for. The menu seems to be better than most places I have been to of the type.