I went to a couple places in Spokane

I can finally start the “Spokane Road Trip Reviews”, so let’s get to it. There’s the beers I had at brewpubs and bars and the stash I brought home with me to review. First: where to go in Spokane.

At the Flying Goat, which is a solid pub/pizza joint, I had a Road Trip Pale from NW Brewing. It’s a bit too subtle for me: nothing in the nose to distinguish it, but it’s a thirst quencher so I’m not unhappy about my purchase. The pale is too focused on the back end of the beer-the hop bitterness and dry quality that comes from it, instead of some of the front end or midrange. Not bad, but not very balanced.

At Perry St Brewing I went with the Kolsch. OK, so this isn’t Old Town Brewing’s Kolsch, which is currently my favorite Kolsch. But the nose is clean, the middle has just enough of a bready note to give it body and the finish is extremely crisp. Like: over carbonated soda pop crisp. That isn’t a drawback; that’s an excessively drinkable beer executing on its promise. I feel comfortable recommending it, even if it isn’t OTB’s beer.

To prove it: I have Perry St.’s single malt IPA and though it’s a short glass, the nose is a prominent tropical fruit, the middle has a sweet note and the finish, while bitter, isn’t overwhelming. It’s just really drinkable.

Finally, I checked out Bellweather’s taproom with their Patrick Horn brown ale. I like it. Smooth and with a strong chocolate note, it has a dry finish. I wasn’t expecting that and while it’s not a bad thing I’m not sure how well it goes with this particular style. So far, it’s at least acceptable.

A word about the space, too, since I haven’t been here before and the locals tell me it’s new. Since the music is varied but muted, withi art on the walls but no televisions, it feels like a good place to have conversations. I really dig this place. It could use some baffling to help mute surrounding conversations, as on a busy day I could easily see having to raise your voice quite a bit to be heard. Aside from that though, it was a comfortable place to have a beer and had a different vibe than a lot of other places I’d been in Spokane.