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| From left: Onion rings, Hop Strike Black IPA, dipping sauces, sunglasses, Raspberry Chipotle wings |
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| iPhone picture of the bar |
You can't tell much from the picture, but they have a great selection of beers, listed here. I always like to try the seasonals, so I went with the Hop Strike Black IPA. I don't think I've ever been so sure about a beer after the first sip. Immediately into the "best beers I've ever had" category. Hoppy like you would expect an IPA to be, but also dark and malty. I think their website says it best:
Hop Strike! Black Rye IPA - 7% ABV
Hop Strike! is a dry hopped Black Rye-IPA built from the ground up at Tommyknocker Brewery. This Beer is characterized by an intermingling of spicy citrus hops and chocolate malt creating an interesting complexity and great first impression on the nose. Hop Strike’s substantial 78 IBU's are balanced by the Chocolate Rye resulting in a nice depth of malt character and deep color.
As additional evidence of this beer's awesomeness, a couple sat down next to me at the bar and the woman couldn't decide what to order, so I suggested the Hop Strike. She took one sip and gave it my favorite rating: "Really f**king good" - or, as I like to say, "RFG." I couldn't agree more....
Hadn't heard/read much about their food, but they seem to have a decent menu. I wasn't starving so decided to go with the "Monster BBQ Wings" (6 for $8.99, but they were the biggest wings I've ever seen) and onion rings. As many of you know, I have a huge sweet tooth, so I went with the raspberry chipotle sauce, described in the menu as: Fresh Raspberries and the heat of mesquite smoked chipotle peppers.
Wings: Like I said, they were huge. Six was plenty. Cooked well, with good breading - meat fell off the bone. Really liked the sauce. Spicier than I expected, but in a good way. And I really believe the part about the fresh raspberries. Overall, really well done. Two other pluses - they were served with both ranch and blue cheese (without asking) and also came with celery AND carrots. Always bonus points from me on that one since I despise celery. Hey, it's the little things. - Grade: B+
Onion Rings: First, I'm not a huge onion rings fan, but something sounded good about them at the time. As you can see in the picture, you get a pretty good serving - and, as with the wings, they were pretty large. Of course, I created the requisite pool of ketchup for dipping and dug in. Eh. Taste was good/average but the rings definitely lacked structural integrity. If you ever watch Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives, you know that one of Guy's onion rings tests is that you should be able to bite the ring in half without the onion sliding out of the breading. I can't say that was the case for these. In addition, the breading kind of just crumbled in my hands as soon as I folded them in half or took a bite. - Grade: C
Beer: Can't say much more. If you fly into Denver and find yourself on I-70, definitely worth a stop (especially if Hop Strike is on tap). And note that some of their regular brews are available in other states (including PA!) - Grade: A+
Overall....good place. I'm sure I'll be back for the beer, and would like to give some of the other food a try as well (some of the buffalo burgers sounded great). Seems like a solid après-ski stop and I have a feeling I'll be spending a lot of time on I-70 this winter...
And if you're wondering what a Tommyknocker is (other than the Stephen King depiction) click here. Lastly, some interesting info here on the mining town of Idaho Springs.
Hope everybody's having a great weekend - and a Happy Halloween. If you have any comments/suggestions/etc., please let me know.
Tommyknocker Brewery & Pub
1401 Miner St.
Idaho Springs, CO 80452
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