…well sort of anyway… read on…
Beer Lovers,
Paul and I are pleased to announce that we have sold our interest in The Happy Gnome to the other investors. You can still find us at The Muddy Pig, the best beer bar in town.
New draft beers this week at The Muddy pig include Bell’s Sparkling Ale and Arcadia Amber, both from Michigan. The Sparkling Ale is an American Tripel with a golden color, sweet fruitiness and 9.0% ABV. The Arcadia Amber is a full-bodied English-style ale brewed with Scottish Maris Otter malt giving the ale a sweet caramel flavor with a hint of toasted malt. Yum.
And with temps struggling to hit zero it’s time to think about the Muddy Pig Golf Snouting. If any of you have contacts at a golf course that would like to host the event this year please let me know. Oak Glen has been good to us but we are hoping to lower the cost of the event in order to generate more money for the charity, Children’s Home Society & Family Services. It’s for the children.
Cheers,
Mark
I’ll call the Muddy Pig a good bar, but not the best beer bar in town. Nice backhanded slap at their former establishment.
Ya thats pretty weak. I would certainly rate the G-nome as the better beer bar, atmosphere was better too. HOpefully the beer selection will stay great at the Gnome under new ownership.
Hmm. Honestly, I like the selection a lot better at the Pig than the Gnome. The high-end American craft beer selection – the purported ‘point’ of the Gnome paired with food – available in Minnesota from bars is really not that spectacular, and I can get Surly and Summit at the Groveland Tap or at the Blue Nile. I’m far more interested in the Continental beer selection at the Pig than a winter filled with flavor-of-the-week Viking beer and yet another Breckenridge tap.
Also, consider that Mark was probably the person behind a lot of the Gnome’s selection in the first place. With him heading back to working on the Pig, I think we’ll see a bit more of the best show up back at Dale.
I always preferred the pig to the gnome. The atmosphere at the gnome was always a little too yuppified for me. I like the dark warmth of the pig over the bright modern look of the gnome.
And for food, c’mon the chicken cordon bleu and the cuban sandwhich at the pig are amazing and reasonably priced. The gnome had good food, and the prices were in line with the neigborhood, but not what I would regularly pay. I just wish they would get some pomme frites on that menu.
I agree, Drew. The Pig has the upper hand in beer selection as compared to the Gnappy Home. Whenever I go into the Pig, I find a delicious new beer on tap that I have either never had before, or that I am excited to see “back” for a return engagement. To use a hockey term, their “cycling” is impressive.
As for the Gnome, you hit the bullseye with your comment about the Viking beer (sub-par stuff, if you ask me) and the other American “craft brews.” I currently have a friend living in Maine, and he can’t stop talking about all of the local breweries out there (Dogfish Head, Shipyard, Sebago, Gritty’s, etc.). Let’s see some increased rotation, instead of the same hum-drum stuff from MI and CO, that are not too difficult to find in other bars around town. I thought the Gnome really had something going when it first opened and they had the Bell’s Wheat Project on the taps. That was some amazing stuff. Unfortunately, their performance has tailed off since then, IMO.
I’ll agree about the food at the Gnome. I don’t (and generally won’t) eat there. I have issues dropping $13 on a venison burger, especially when I can goto the Bulldog and wolf down a Kobe beef burger for $9.
As for the beer, comparing Maine to Minnesota is like comparing apples to kiwis. They’re both fruit, and that’s about where the similarities end. New (and generally tasty) breweries have such a time selling here, examples are Dogfish Head and Brewery Ommegang, that you never see them.
This month that have a personal favorite of mine, Avery Brewery. Someone please find me another bar that has Avery Mephistopheles, Czar or the Collaboration not Litigation. If you do, I’ll go out drinking with you and I’ll buy (yes, that’s a challenge).
I could care less who calls who the better beer bar. Hopefully this new competition will make them both BETTER beer bars. They’re both good bars within reasonable walking distance from each other on a nice spring/summer/fall day. Combined with a brief stop at the outdoor area at Sweeney’s, the Selby/Dale area of St. Paul is one hell of a good pub crawl.
But in my opinion, the G-nome kicks the crap outta the Pig. Come on now Firkin Thursdays? What’s the Pig got on that?
Also, their bunch on that deck is fantastic. But then again, I’m the type of guy who likes to get the day started with a Delirium Tremens.
Look forward to improvements at both facilities…. be sure that this will be win-win for consumers.
“New (and generally tasty) breweries have such a time selling here, examples are Dogfish Head and Brewery Ommegang, that you never see them.”
That’s not the reason DFH is no longer available here in MN. It was related to their distributor and they will be back around the end of 2007.
I talked to the 3 owners of the Happy Gnome a couple weeks back over several beers. They seem to know what their doin’ with the beer so I don’t think your gonna see any problems with that in the future.
I’ve heard about the distributor issue as well (I think the same distributor had Yellowstone Valley). I also heard rumors that DFH did not have the capacity at the time. I hope that’s just a rumor, and DFH will be available without issues this time around.
Now if we an just get Stone and Ommegang around here….
I was told by Sam at DFH personally.
Hah. Ben was the kid bugging the guys at the Muddy Pig. I heard about you. ;D
Well then, if Sam has said it, then I’ll take it as the Holy Writ. Was the late 2007 time frame also from him?
Yes late 2007 was from the email I got.
Ben, who’s going to be distributing DFH since you are “personally” connected?
Hey now . . . play nice, Jeff!