Itineraries – Beer Through Frederick
by Kevin M. Smith
Sure, when people think Frederick, they think history – the Civil War battlefields, the southern gateway to Gettysburg, access to the Nation's capital. When people think of East Coast craft beer destinations they tend to think about places like Boston, home to Samuel Adams and Harpoon, or Portland, home to Allagash, or Asheville – a city of 75,000 that 10 craft breweries and brewpubs call home.
Seldom does one think of Frederick when the idea of a craft beer destination is discussed. But it should be.
With a population in the neighborhood of 65,000, Frederick is Maryland's second largest city. It also has the second largest concentration of brewers for any municipality along the Blue Ridge (second only to Asheville). In and within 20 minutes of downtown there are two brew pubs, the Flying Dog Brewery, the Distillery Lane Ciderworks, Orchid Cellars meadery, and the Milkhouse Brewery in the works. That doesn't even account for the hops farmers or the barley farmer, making Frederick a place where some of the local brews are as local as you can get, with the ingredients grown just minutes from the breweries.
While the county provides places like the Ciderworks for nice outings during the day, the real action for the beer geek vacationing in Frederick starts with what I call the Frederick Beer Trail...
The Flying Dog Brewery
4607 Wedgewood Blvd.
(301) 694-7899
Maryland's largest brewery is just minutes out of downtown. If you're visiting at the tail end of the week, call ahead to see if there are openings for the brewery tours and tastings. The tours give you some great insight into the brewing process and the company's history. Also, there's usually a test batch of something, or a pre-release available in the tasting room.
Barley and Hops
5473 Urbana Pike
(301) 668-5555
The next point north as you head into the city from Flying Dog is home to brewmaster Larry Pomerantz who is quickly earning the reputation as Frederick's mad-scientist brewer via his tweaks to and hybrids of traditional styles, like his rye-IPA. If you're around for a Tuesday, check to see if the bar is doing one of their Tuesday Tappenings, a Tuesday afternoon tapping (and occasionally food pairing) of one of Larry's new beers – sometimes a small run specialty beer. Be forewarned, Tappenings do not happen every week, so call ahead, or just stop in for a pint. You might just get lucky.
The Roast House Pub
5700 Urbana Pike
Just up the road and a cross the street from Barley and Hops, the Roast House is truly a craft beer bar. You won't find any of the big boys like Budweiser on any one the the Roast House's 20 rotating taps of hard to find craft beers and imports.
Isabella's
44 North Market St.
One who has never been to Isabella's might wonder what a tapas bar is doing on a list of beer destinations, however, we are talking about a tapas bar that serves the beers made right up the street at Brewer's Alley.
Firestone's
105 North Market St.
This upscale bar in the heart of downtown Frederick with the old-world feel offers a decent selection of craft beers. If you're looking for a place where you can get a good beer, and even have an opportunity to take one home (they have a gourmet market right next door with bottled beer available there), this is certainly a destination worth your time.
Acacia
129 North Market St.
The menu seems to change every couple of years – once an Asian fusion bistro, now California American – but the beer remains the same...from across the street at Brewer's Alley. Owned by the same restaurant group that owns Isabella's and Brewer's Alley, Acacia offers a nice, relaxed and modern setting for visitors to get some locally brewed beer.
Brewer's Alley
124 North Market St.
Want the beer from the source? Brewmaster Tom Flores and his staff offer up some wonderful traditionally styled beers. With leanings towards European stylings, the IPA might not thrill the fan of the hop-bombs that many Americans are making, but fans of the British IPA will love what's being done at Brewer's Alley. Like Barley and Hops, Brewer's Alley will also have the occasional Tuesday afternoon release of a newly brewed seasonal. Keep an eye out for the seasonally brewed Scotch Ale, and Tom's Wedding Alt – a favorite of other brewers around the state.
VOLT
228 North Market St.
Sure, it's not known as a beer bar, and they have no taps, but they do have a very good selection of bottled beers available, and it always helps a restaurant's reputation as a beer destination when the celebrity chef works with Flying Dog to create a beer to specially pair with his food. And if you're following the trail from south to north, it's not a bad place to finish your beer tour – pairing the Bryan Voltaggio/Flying Dog collaboration Backyard Ale with some dinner at VOLT will give your tour a certain symmetry.
Bushwaller's
209 North Market St.
Yeah, you're getting a higher end meal at VOLT, but for my money, this is where the tour finishes – in North Market Street's Irish Pub. With 18 taps carrying an assortment of micros, macros, and imports, Bushwaller's offers a little something for everyone, including beer from Baltimore brewer Heavy Seas, giving visitors an opportunity to sample even more of some of the fine beers being brewed in Maryland.
This is by no means a complete list. There are a number of other places to get a decent beer – Patrick's, Cafe Nola, Bentz Street Sports Bar, Magoo's, Danielle's – but I feel the above list comprises the best places for good beer in and around the city of Frederick. Enjoy your stay.
Cheers.
