The Sounds Inside My Mind

Maybe it’s all this nice weather, or maybe that I’ll soon have my very own private back yard to drink in, or maybe just that I feel more in shape thanks to the exercise program Nissa and I are on, but I’ve really been craving some fancy beers lately.  Not just six packs to consume in an evening, but good beers to enjoy over a period of time and really savor.  I got to try a new beer last night (Brooklyn Summer Ale, for those keeping score), and this past Friday I indulged myself with a sampler of fine beers at the Great Lost Bear.  I don’t get over to the Bear nearly as much as I should.  And now with all the competition coming and me moving farther away, it will be even harder to get to 540 Forrest Ave.  There are four beers bars listed at Portland Food Map that are worth paying attention to; here is my take on each.

Novare Res: I don’t know much about this place, other than it looks fancy.  Chances of exotic beers (read: non-North East breweries and International beers you can’t get at Hannaford): 50%

O’Brien’s Bar & Grill: I think there’s even less information available about this palce than Novare Res.  It’s labeled as a pub and has an Irish name, so I’m guessing there will be foreign beers here, but nothing too surprising.  Chance of exotic beers: 30%

Pannepot Cafe: a brewpub for a foreign brewery whose beers I have never tried means the chances for new beers is very high.  Unfortunately, the chances of this brewpub actually opening aren’t as good.  The word here is that the plans have been put on hold indefinitely, but a more recent rumor places the Cafe outside of Portland and into the space currently occupied by Eggspectaions.  I certainly hope the rumor proves to be true.  I’d love for a great brewpub to open up in my soon-to-be town of residence.  Chance of exotic beers: 100% Chance it will open: 50%

Prost! International Tap House: This seems too good to be true…a beer centric bar in the Old Port with 100 taps?  A mug club with prizes based on how many different beers you’ve tried?  It seems like a dream!  GLB is already overwhelming, and this place proposes to have nearly twice as many beers on tap.  I don’t know how I’ll cope.  Of course, this assumes that the taps will be used for good and feature a wide range of craft beers and not every Miller and Anheuser-Busch product known to man.  Forgetting this unlikely possibility, there is only one thing that causes me to feel apprehension towards this bar—it’s location.  I haven’t lived in Portland for too long (approaching 4 years now), but all that time, the Wharf, Temple and Fore streets area has been utterly repulsive to me.  Not just the establishments but also the kind of people you have to deal with when walking through that area (it’s always through the area for me, never to that area).  Is it possible for a place to open there that I will not only want to go to, but actually enjoy?  Will the place be classy enough to weed out the kind of patrons that make going out in the Old Port so unenjoyable?  I really hope so; and I’ll make at least one visit to find out.  Chance of exotic beers: 90%

Things are looking good for us Portland beer lovers.  As I said earlier, I hope the old favorites like GLB don’t get lost in all this competition.  Of course, GLB has been a textbook definition of a great beer bar for close to 30 years now; I doubt they’re worried about these new kids on the peninsula.