The Justice

Media Credit: Julian Agin-Liebes Watch City Brewing Company offers an assortment of beers that are brewed at its Moody Street location.

For our inaugural beer column, we decided to keep it local. The good news about Watch City Brewing Company, located on the corner of Moody and Pine streets, is that you can drive there from campus in about five minutes and then walk home. On the other hand, the beer isn't that good. Well, it's not bad either. Well, we're not sure.

We walk in around 9 p.m. on a Monday night. There are about four people seated around the bar, swirling drinks and looking at their feet. Between the patrons and the darker-than-necessary ambience, we feel a little depressed, even anxious.

We remedy the situation by ordering two samplers. At $7.95 for four 6-ounce glasses, this is really a good deal. Aaron Mateychuk, head brewer at Watch City, keeps a rotating selection of a variety of styles, seasonal or flagship, for all tastes and preferences. All of Watch City's beers are brewed on-site (you can see some of the brewing vessels at the entrance) and offered on tap and for takeout in half-gallon growlers. Watch City is a brewpub, but don't expect the usual range of deep-fried appetizers-the food here is actually exceptional as far as pub fare is concerned (try the lamburger!).

Biking Bob's Bohemian Pilsner starts off our tasting. Traditionally a light lager with a floral aroma (or nose, since the way to judge this most important quality is to shove your face directly into the glass), this style has been bastardized by American macrobrews: It's the watery stuff you steal out of fridges in the Mods when you're thirsty but not sure if you're at the right party or not.

At 6.2-percent alcohol by volume, Bob runs pretty strong for a Pilsner. We would have expected, given the use of American Amarillo hops, that the hop aroma would be far more powerful. Upon gleefully sticking our noses in the beer we find it quite underwhelming. It tastes like putting your foot down where you expect the stairs to be and falling on your face instead. The brewer's attempts to compensate for the Pilsner's minimalist style have resulted in an overly sweet brew unbecoming of its style. We grow bored quickly.

Continued...

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