Two Rows in Houston, Done

Turns out Two Rows in Rice Village is closing up shop, and boy the comments are a-flying on Beer, TX blog. As much as I thought Dos Rows' beer was kinda meh, it was a nice change of pace. They always managed too have a little something different on tap, maybe tried to do too much with the food. Not to mention Two Rows was surrounded by places like the Gingerman, Baker Street, and Lil Woodrows for beer, and was surrounded by Mi Luna's, Le Madeliene, Ruggles, and maybe another 20 restaurants for food.

Houston now has NO brewpubs. A city with twice the population of Jamaica has no brewpubs, and Portland has like 12. I think the competition is just too strong out here. If it's one thing Houston has, it's food. There is STELLAR tex-mex at like every other gas station, forget the restaurants themselves. Best of luck to the staff at Two Rows and screw the landlords who may have just tried to push them out. Crazy man.

Best of luck to the staff of Two Rows. Hopefully they can get that equipment and open up something a little more boutique brewpub in a less expensive part of town (read: anywhere but Rice Village). I wouldn't be surprised if one of these areas like Pavilions would put a flier on a brewpub. But we have a better chance of somewhere like old Katy or down in that 12,000 block of Westheimer. Regardless, I guess we'll just have to slam more Saint Arnold's and other local brews until someone can make a brewpub work in this town.

Random Beering

Mikeller Draft Bear (a malt liquor)
Nice amber color with white somewhat lasting head. Nose and flavor suggest a basic amber lager to me, all the way down to the moderate carbonation and whatnot. It works out very well for me. Not as bad as malt liquor's reputation. Not bad. Low 3 stars.

Brideport Imperial IPA
Strong poofy head that is rather lacy. Sharp caramel and plum nose with flowery hops. Beer has a nice malt and citrusy hops, but I got a pinch of copper penny in there somewhere. On the second sip, I think it's safe to say that this beer has not meshed well yet. I'm going to store this one a year and come back for it to see how it goes. Right now it's just too much hops, and too disjointed. Moving on.

Well I'm sitting here watching "Fighting" by myself. The wife and I made an agreement that I would only go out one night a week and she would itznay the laptop after the baby went to sleep. And for the first time we try it I am up by myself once again downing some Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale and watching a B MMA movie. This movie has some good points, including an appearance by Cung Le, but otherwise I've found myself watching Genki Sudo entrances on youtube and trying to fast forward through a DVR of Monster's Ball to see Hall Berri getting freaky with Billy Bob Thorton. Fighting just has too many slow points. "Make me feel good".

Anyway we did make it to Two Rows today and I tried their new ESB. I like a good ESB myself.

Beer Log: Lunchtime today
State: Doing alright, eating BBQ wings and fries

I ate so many 50 cent wings and fries that I haven't had to eat anything else all day. I'll input my formal review later, but I found the ESB to be way too buttery, kinda like a buttered toast beer. Only ordered one. We went Gingerman afterward by without a baby sitter, we had to take the baby. No seats avaialbe anywhere at 2PM, though the baby liked their decorations. Had to skip out and just take it back to the house. Kinda sucks that we drove all that way, but it be like that sometimes.

I'm considering a quick trip to Buffalo on July 4th weekend to see my mother and grandmother, as well as beer it up at Cole's and OD on Southern Tier. Maybe find a car to slip across the border to hit Volo and the Beerbistro in Toronto. Not to mention that I have in mind a quick 24 hour trip to San Antonio to see the Bellator Fighting Championships this Thursday night. Wouldn't hurt to grab a German hotel downtown and hit up Flying Saucer and Free Tail out there while I'm at it. Probably just leave directly from work with my Tapout shirt and sportcoat. You know, big money MMA. That's it , whip his black ass.

Still thinking about a trip up to Portland/Seattle this Fall. I've found I have a love for Seattle/Portland beer, and I'm getting a little affinity for the Seattle Sounders as well, just b/c their fan support is so hype. I'm still rooting for the Dynamo all day everyday, but nothing wrong with a second team you like. Holla.

BeerBrotha Sports Review: Two Rows Holiday Spice

Well, this weekend was decorated with bullsh*t. First my main man and DTSA Affiliate Tiger Woods is sleeping with more white women than Lance Steel. The kicker is he's married to one at the same time. I mean come on. What ever happened to just paying the money to hush these women up. And how about you itznay the whole affair and just have the little random one-nighters. And then he goes and leaves voicemails to his mistress, using his real name, etc.



He didn't even go to his own tourney because his wife put the NORD back in Nordegren and messed up his face. These Swedish/Norweigan folk seem pretty nice with decent beer, but that Viking blood is very strong. And ol' girl is a PURE BLOOD. Kinda like that West African warrior blood with really dark skinned black folk: Chiek Kongo, Terrell Owens, DMX, Ron Killings, Kimbo Slice, you get the point. Moving on.

We made it out to Two Rows to watch local boys Univ of Houston play in East Carolina. Things were up and down all game but the Coogs couldn't put it together in the end with the last drive. Very sad. But at least I got to try the Two Rows Winter Seasonal.

State: Whatever, eating their BBQ Chicken Pizza
Beer Log: Last weekend

Holiday Spice
Dark amber beer with a strong cinammon nutmeg scent. The taste is even stronger cinnamon, all the way up and down the taste. I got some stale bread like thing going on as I searched deep into the first beer I've had in quite some time. High 2 Stars.

Later on I made it to my good friends house with the baby to watch the GA Tech game. To test my supposed allergy to alcohol, I had a nice Left Hand Fade to Black and some Pyramid Howl. I'll have to review them later as we were celebrating Tech getting the big win over the Klan Country's own Clemson Tigers on the way to the ORANGE BOWL BABY!

The Texans were on the road this past weekend against the soon-to-be Los Angeles Jaguars, and I've been so disheartened with their entertaining yet choking performances that I couldn't even watch the game. So instead the wife made the decision that a full 99 hours of DVR and a queue of literally 5 years worth of Netflix is not enough, that she went to damn entrance of the Wal-Mart for the Redbox of Transformers 2. Pretty good movie, a basic CGI and explosion orgy with a healthy amount of racism. Three of my favorite things. All we needed was for Megan Fox to pop out of that top for the brothas out there. The movie ended just in time for us to see the Texans blow it again.

Carolina won in football but UNC lost to Kentucky in Men's Ball. FAMU men's ball is like 0-10, playing a murderers row schedule once again. Damn shame. Maybe I should find something else to do on the weekends. And with the Dynamo losing in the MLS playoffs and US Open Cup, we don't have any winter soccer games to go to. All we have are Tracy McBaby and Rockets. Oh well. Maybe I should just keep working through the weekend or something.

Wife Out of Town Weekend Beering: Part 1

Well, I didn't make it home until about 1AM. Actually pretty good. I even managed to pace myself at Two Rows, the only true brew onsite brewpub in Houston. Yes, we made it back to Two Rows to hang out and catch the Orlando/Cleveland game. Even though I was born in Cleveland, I haven't lived there in 20 years, and my contrarian side is taking over, so I was rooting for the Jamlando Magic. So many people are on Lebron James' nuts, I just have to go against him.

Two Rows in Rice Village seems to have upped the ante with the creativity. I can't remember if this beer was here before, but I first got a glass of their Dunkel Lager.

Beer Log: Thursday 29, 2009
State: Chillin, reading a book waiting for the crew to arrive

Dark Star Lager
Brown and rather murky appearance, great tan smooth head (no homo). Nose is a little roasty and malty. The order in which I taste the elements in this one: chocolate, roast, sourness (lemon), moderate carbonation, and bready finish. A little thin on the body, but then again it is a lager. It just gets more sour the more I drink it. But it is crisp and refreshing with a lacy head to help you mark time. Low 3 Star. I asked the bartender and a couple other folks in the crew that had this beer, and nobody got the sour notes but me. Oh well.


Afterward, I wanted to sample their seasonal or special brews. Whoever is brewing at Two
Rows is really letting it rip with a Jalapeno beer and a Raspberry Lager, both named for "Uncle Red". I wasn't sure if I'd like either one so I got the samplers. The Raspberry beer was very pleasant. A nice soft raspberry flavor in a crisp lager, nothing over the top. No real tartness like the lambics and whatnot. I actually ordered a full glass of it, 3 Stars. The Jalapeno smelled just like jalapeno, and tasted like a jalapeno tea. As much as I like spicy food and whatnot, this one just ain't happening for me. 1 Star. Funny that a couple people in the crew tried it as well and liked it. I'm sorry, but beer mixed with peppers and whatnot have all pretty much sucked, IMO.

I can tell my palette is digi-volving again. After a few waters, I got their IPA and it just was not balanced at all. The hops just dominated the malt and not in a good way. Too bitter on the tongue and aftertaste. After the game most of the crew left and I went downstairs with the only other dude that could hang to join some other friends at Baker St. Pub.

This is a pretty cool English pub that always seems to have white guys playing Snoop Dogg songs on acoustic guitar. This time it was a jazz like ska like rock band (lead guitar, bass (a brotha at that), and a drummer). They did a rock/reggae (also known as ska) version of "Gin and Juice". It was very tight. I ordered a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale on tap and it tasted very similar to the IPA from Two Rows, just too hop forward. Normally I would knock back some SNPA in NO TIME but this just wasn't pleasant. Nothing like a good commercial calibration to know your palette is off or has evolved.

I've been having a strong craving for amber ale (Bud Am Ale, Sam Adams Boston Ale) and dark lagers like Heineken Dark. I guess it's that time of year. Well, I gotta get cleaned up here before hitting the driving range and clean up the house. I still have like... stripper glitter on me from last night. Holla

Beering in Houston: Two Rows

August 30, 2008
More Two Rows in Rice Village. We had to get to Two Rows at some point. I took it a bit lighter this time, as ti's still so hot outside.

Osage Gold Wheat
Clear like Budweiser and gold. A slight skunk on the nose, maybe some esteryness. Medium body and bready are the first things I notice on the first draught. It's smooth with a medium carbonation. There's even a medium level of hops near the back of the tongue. I wish they had it a little bit colder. It's kind of basic to me. After the Hefs I've had in Atlanta, I'm giving this one a 2 star.

Honey Blonde Light Pale Ale
Tinged bar gold color, no smell. It's nice and bready with low hops and a quick finish. Medium carbonation, but I'm having a hard time getting any honey. Slight sweet but low on favor, 2 stars again.

As much as I like Brewpubs, I would like to see a little more out of Two Rows. Their other beers I've had in the past have not had me jogging back for more either. The place was cool, yet the waiter was not all that aware of what was going on on the chalkboard. Food and atmosphere is good stuff. They have a few more I haven't tried, including their darker beers. We'll give it a go when it gets a little chillier outside.

Give me Two on That

Beer Log: February 13, 2007
State: Chillin Hard, eating Ribs

It's me and my coworker and fellow Yellow Jacket out here in the Bar scene of Rice Village, and I'm finally making it to Two Rows. They make much of their own beer in Dallas and I think Houston as well. I think I can count on one hand how many microbreweries and brewpubs are in Houston. Sad, very sad.

But since I live here, this a chance to evaluate a brewpub in a nice and easy way. No need to try 15 beers in two hours. The food was great, which is essential for a good brewpub. Not so much for the beermen like myself, but so that they can keep the bills paid to supply craft beer, HD TV, and cute co-eds. The waiter seemed like he knew what he was talking about, and could even explain a bit about some of the other beers not on the menu. We nailed it, as we got to the restaurant on $1 Beer night. Hellz yeah. Only problem is, they give it to us in a regular size plastic cup. So I'll have to tell the true story of these beers and their others later. Oh it's real. Let's get it started.

Old Town Hefe weizen

And we're off. In this plastic cup, I see a cloudy orangish beer with a white head as is typical of a hefe. It's a bit on the cold side, but I get the taste of bananas and oragne peel. It's kind of like a Hoegaarden. It's smooth with medium carbonation. As it warms up, I'm getting a litte more banana and now some apple. The head is kind of lacy on the ribbed plastic cup. Not a Wow Beer, but pretty nice for starters.

We are being stereotypical tonight, so we're eating bar-b-que ribs, so Old Town may not be the best pairing. Onto an Amber Ale...

Route 66 Amber Ale

Dark Brown color with a light tan head. It has a light malt smell that comes about after I swirl it up a bit. Tastes of biscuits and fruitiness in the first draughts. It's low carbonation and light bodied. It's just too damn cold to get the flavor. Pretty low dryness. As my hand's 98.6 degrees manages to penetrate the Great Wall of China-like barrier wall of my plastic cup, I'm getting some bread flavoring and some light chocolate notes. Going back to the originals, it's not malty or hoppy, just kind of there. It goes alright with the ribs.

Dark Star Lager

Ooh scary. At this time, the waiter filled us in to all the extra beer not on tap. This seasonal is HARD to find on the net, but it seems to be considered a Fall/Halloween type beer. I think I'm smelling butterscotch scent, but there's no head any way. Dark brown color of the beer. Finally a little roasted malt, not hoppy and medium carbonation. It's very drinkable, with a slight sourness. I didn't know it a the time, but it seems lagerish to me. When it warms up, you get a smokey flavor.

Not a bad experience overall, and I look forward to going back to try the rest. I reaaly appreciate places like Two Rows for keeping craft beer alive in the Houston and Dallas, TX. Good show.