This past Friday I went to the newly-opened brewery and restaurant Vivant (www.breweryvivant.com). Just thought I'd post a few thoughts here, and welcome any other discussion about the place.
The brewery is basically an attempt to bring a bit of Belgium/Alsace to America. All the beers are belgian styles or Belgian-inspired styles, and the menu is based on French/Belgian countryside food. The experience begins upon driving up to the place; it's located in a former funeral home, and so the building has a sort of old-world reverence about it to start with. They took this running and added stately chapel doors, huge arched wooden rafters, pillars, a stained glass window, sturdy wooden furniture - the place is meant to give the impression of a small cathedral. The concept is very nice. The application is somewhat uneven; closer inspection reveals incongruous modern touches and far too much whitewashed cinderblock for the place to feel truly authentic. I have little doubt this was mostly due to a lack of funding in this start-up company, and anticipate future renovations. They play American music fairly audibly; this in my opinion is the only thing that was really off. I don't need monks chanting or anything, but that was a bit jarring. Overall, though, the atmosphere is very pleasant, somewhat traditional.
The food menu is very impressive to read; no freezer-to-frier pub grub here. Very good adaptation of authentic Wallonian cuisine to American tastes. You can get fries, but they come with aioli rather than the American ketchup. You can get them fried with truffle oil, with garlic and parsley, or fried in duck fat. And the menu is all like that. As a boon to brewing geeks, you can even get hop crackers and spent grain baguette with beer wort chutney. Awesome. I got a roast hen with endive and potatoes roasted in duck fat, and was quite impressed. This is actually pretty high-end cuisine, and it's not terribly expensive. More expensive than Buffalo Wild Wings? Certainly. But it's very reasonable for the quality of the food.
But let me move on to the most important part of this place - the beer. Is the beer any good? Obviously this is sort of a make-or-break proposition here. What I have to say about it is...it is good.
Let me expound. I had samples of nearly every beer they have at the moment (they also have some hard ciders from Vandermill's and some wines if you need to persuade non-beer drinkers to go there). And not one of them was bad. I started with a pint of the Bruin. It was very dark, clear, full of roasted aromas with a bit of malt. Taste was pleasantly dry. A touch of spicy flavor in the finish. It wasn't really a bruin - no sourness, etc - but it was nice. Sort of an Irish stout made with Saison yeast.
Tasted other people's ales; the Abbey Amber. Nice, but it tasted a bit young. Had a bit of a funk to it yet, not much fruitiness. Maybe it was pushed to quickly into the tap to make opening. Decent, and I think it may easily be better in future batches; there's potential there.
Contemplation ale - pleasant, fruity, nice esters and sweet, simple malt. Touch of honey, which makes sense as it includes it. Alright, but a bit cloying.
So far, I'm not exactly disappointed, but I was looking for a bit more. I found it in the two most unlike beers on the menu - the Farmhand and the Kludde. The farmhand is a very pleasant session beer; the menu implies it's a Saison, but that doesn't really get to it. It's medium gold, brilliantly clear with a small white head. Aromas are of sweet pils malt, a whiff of haylike hops, and just a hint of spice in the finish. Medium mouthfeel, sweet but not too sweet, a very nice quaffable beer. Not incredibly complex, but a lot of fun.
The Kludde, however, is a beer to drink in contemplation. At 9.5% abv, it demands careful drinking. Pours deep amber - black until you hold it to the light. It is deceptive, just a hint of red fire at the edges revealing its jewel-like clarity. Small tan head. The aromas are deep and rich - as you drink, sweetness hits first but doesn't bowl you over, but then you are hit with a myriad of dark fruit aromas - raisins, mostly, with a bit of prunes and a strong impression of figs. The finish is surprisingly light; the brewer actually took the Belgian way of attenuating strong ales well to heart. This beer is digestible, as too many American strong ales are not. The aftertaste lingers full of spices - star anise stars (ha!), but it leaves impressions of many other herbs. The aftertaste kind of reminds me of Chartruese - an herbal liquor made by the Carthusians. This is a very good beer. World-class? Maybe not yet. But I'd keep an eye on this one.
So what can I say, looking back? I've spilled too many words already. Overall, my impressions have been quite positive. There are various kinks to be ironed out in the beer line, and the aesthetic of the place needs work in some respects. But I certainly will be back.
The brewery is basically an attempt to bring a bit of Belgium/Alsace to America. All the beers are belgian styles or Belgian-inspired styles, and the menu is based on French/Belgian countryside food. The experience begins upon driving up to the place; it's located in a former funeral home, and so the building has a sort of old-world reverence about it to start with. They took this running and added stately chapel doors, huge arched wooden rafters, pillars, a stained glass window, sturdy wooden furniture - the place is meant to give the impression of a small cathedral. The concept is very nice. The application is somewhat uneven; closer inspection reveals incongruous modern touches and far too much whitewashed cinderblock for the place to feel truly authentic. I have little doubt this was mostly due to a lack of funding in this start-up company, and anticipate future renovations. They play American music fairly audibly; this in my opinion is the only thing that was really off. I don't need monks chanting or anything, but that was a bit jarring. Overall, though, the atmosphere is very pleasant, somewhat traditional.
The food menu is very impressive to read; no freezer-to-frier pub grub here. Very good adaptation of authentic Wallonian cuisine to American tastes. You can get fries, but they come with aioli rather than the American ketchup. You can get them fried with truffle oil, with garlic and parsley, or fried in duck fat. And the menu is all like that. As a boon to brewing geeks, you can even get hop crackers and spent grain baguette with beer wort chutney. Awesome. I got a roast hen with endive and potatoes roasted in duck fat, and was quite impressed. This is actually pretty high-end cuisine, and it's not terribly expensive. More expensive than Buffalo Wild Wings? Certainly. But it's very reasonable for the quality of the food.
But let me move on to the most important part of this place - the beer. Is the beer any good? Obviously this is sort of a make-or-break proposition here. What I have to say about it is...it is good.
Let me expound. I had samples of nearly every beer they have at the moment (they also have some hard ciders from Vandermill's and some wines if you need to persuade non-beer drinkers to go there). And not one of them was bad. I started with a pint of the Bruin. It was very dark, clear, full of roasted aromas with a bit of malt. Taste was pleasantly dry. A touch of spicy flavor in the finish. It wasn't really a bruin - no sourness, etc - but it was nice. Sort of an Irish stout made with Saison yeast.
Tasted other people's ales; the Abbey Amber. Nice, but it tasted a bit young. Had a bit of a funk to it yet, not much fruitiness. Maybe it was pushed to quickly into the tap to make opening. Decent, and I think it may easily be better in future batches; there's potential there.
Contemplation ale - pleasant, fruity, nice esters and sweet, simple malt. Touch of honey, which makes sense as it includes it. Alright, but a bit cloying.
So far, I'm not exactly disappointed, but I was looking for a bit more. I found it in the two most unlike beers on the menu - the Farmhand and the Kludde. The farmhand is a very pleasant session beer; the menu implies it's a Saison, but that doesn't really get to it. It's medium gold, brilliantly clear with a small white head. Aromas are of sweet pils malt, a whiff of haylike hops, and just a hint of spice in the finish. Medium mouthfeel, sweet but not too sweet, a very nice quaffable beer. Not incredibly complex, but a lot of fun.
The Kludde, however, is a beer to drink in contemplation. At 9.5% abv, it demands careful drinking. Pours deep amber - black until you hold it to the light. It is deceptive, just a hint of red fire at the edges revealing its jewel-like clarity. Small tan head. The aromas are deep and rich - as you drink, sweetness hits first but doesn't bowl you over, but then you are hit with a myriad of dark fruit aromas - raisins, mostly, with a bit of prunes and a strong impression of figs. The finish is surprisingly light; the brewer actually took the Belgian way of attenuating strong ales well to heart. This beer is digestible, as too many American strong ales are not. The aftertaste lingers full of spices - star anise stars (ha!), but it leaves impressions of many other herbs. The aftertaste kind of reminds me of Chartruese - an herbal liquor made by the Carthusians. This is a very good beer. World-class? Maybe not yet. But I'd keep an eye on this one.
So what can I say, looking back? I've spilled too many words already. Overall, my impressions have been quite positive. There are various kinks to be ironed out in the beer line, and the aesthetic of the place needs work in some respects. But I certainly will be back.
