Mulcahey's Brewing said:
Slammin the 'Cuse are we??? Just kidding!!
That's too bad about Middle Ages, they usually are pretty good. Sorry, I probably should have warned the samples were small...
I tried to warn you about Suds. Their beer is gross!
Blue Tusk and Clark's are always good. The cool thing about Clark's is, they only buy like a keg or two of any one beer and when its gone its gone. So they constantly turn over the brews. Nice quiet atmosphere as well. Improper is the other big tap place, not in Armory Square with Suds, Clark's and Blue Tusk. Not as much traffic through there but they have an excellent tap selection.
Empire is improving. The first week it re-opened I didn't care for it. But they are making some headway.
Saranac is good. I admit, I like their Pomegranet Wheat too and I don't like fruity beers. You like the Utcla (Utica Club)? Growing up that was considered bottled p!ss. Other people recently have told tell me its good, maybe I should give it a second chance?? I've never heard of Backstreets!
Didn't know Sackets didn't open until later?!? Did you like their beer (1812 and 1000 Islands Pale) that you tried at the Tusk?
I also forgot, Ithaca Beer Company is South of Syracuse by 1/2 hr...Oooops
I am jealous that you have Appalachian Brewing near you...Water Gap man...Water Gap
Overall Syracuse isn't too bad for drinking...But then again I'm partial, I grew up here. Well I'm glad that you overall had a good time, even if some of the beer didn't shine through...
On Middle Ages: Yeah, I'm just not sure what it was with their brews. They all had a similar... gross... aftertaste/twang to them. I couldn't really place it. It was somewhere (honestly) between cidery and cat-pi$$. Which is ironic considering there were multiple cats in that tasting room crawling on the bar, etc. Can you say hair in the beer?! Wtf?! Haha... I'm hoping they somewhat redeem themself with the DragonSlayer and X Double IPA.
On Suds: You were right, sir.
On Blue Tusk and Clarks: Both great places. Wish we hit Blue Tusk earlier so it wasn't like a party atmosphere, but still a cool place, good selection. I figured out that Clark's only ordered a keg of each and rotated when I asked for a few that were kicked without replacement. There was a Flower Power IPA there I wanted so bad... no luck.
On Empire: Again, I think the Atmosphere killed it for me. It was PACKED wall to wall, not enjoyable. We luckily found a table, ordered a 1/2 pint of all 8 beers between SWMBO and I, and sampled them. Nothing jumped out at me though... Disappointed there was no IPA. Guess the hop shortage got to them already. Haha.
On Saranac: The gift shop, pub, and waiting area was beautiful and enjoyable. The tour guide was great. Most of the beer was pretty darn good... Can't really beat it.
On Utica Club: I saw this in the gift shop and thought, "oh my god, $14.99 for a case", it's got to be piss-water. But I gave it a shot in the 1888 pub and it wasn't all that bad! It definitely wasn't a top notch pils like Victory Prima Pils or Troeg's Sunshine Pils. It lacked any real hop bite and wasn't as dry or crisp as I would have suspected. It was still pretty crisp/dry compared to their normal ales, but it actually reminded me more like a... how do I describe this... a Pils/Kolsch hybrid of some sort. Overall I thought it was decent though for that cheap. I definitely would stick to the Saranac Imperial IPA, Imperial Stout, Pumpkin Ale, etc. but I would drink this much the same I would drink a PBR. Haha. Better than normal Bud, Miller, or Coors IMO.
On Sackets: Those were seasonal hours. Must not get much business in the cold months - understandable. I tried the 1812 Ale. Good, but not great... Glad I didn't drive 1 hour for it.
On Ithaca: We thought about hitting this on the way up, but passed to get there earlier. I've had some of their stuff before (is it Caskazilla that was so awesome?!) and its pretty high-quality. Would like to get there sometime or try more of their offerings.
All in all, a good time...
On Appalachian: If you like the Water Gap Wheat, you should try the Hoppy Trails IPA, Susquehanna Stout, and some of their seasonal offerings... They make some pretty darn good beers IMO. If you are ever in the area, let me know and I'll give you a tour of all the micros. Like I said, we have App., Lancaster, Stoudts, Union Barrel Works, SelinsGrove Brewery, and Market Cross Pub all within an hour drive... and we are getting a Iron Hill shortly.