Las Vegas: A Brew Review

Happy official first day of Summer!  Last week I had the pleasure of visiting Las Vegas, NV.  I thought I knew exactly what to expect from Sin City - bright lights, wild nights, loud crowds.  Although I found them all without strife, Las Vegas certainly surprised me.  For one thing, calling it just "dry heat" does not help deter my discomfort with the 108 degree weather.  On a lighter note, the Strip is an architectural wonder.  The Eiffel Tower  and hot air balloon of Paris, the Space Needle of the Stratosphere and the ceiling of the Bellagio all struck me as dazzling.  Another major surprise to me - the lack of good beer.  It absolutely shocked me that as I walked the streets, weaving through the sea of characters (in costume and not), that everyone carried two cans of Coors Light, or a pounder of Fosters or a bottle of Corona.  I figured that surely everyone was as price conscious as I am so they must be saving money on beer to see the shows or eat at nice restaurants.  Maybe I could let it slide if that was the case.  In a word...nah.  Las Vegas just does not have the craft beer following as I expected from a town that has a little bit of everything and seems to be on the cutting edge to attract all demographics.  I luckily found a small branch of the Sin City Brewing Co. in the Miracle Mile (a mall-like environment found in Planet Hollywood).  This branch was small - more like a twig.  With about five or six seats in the whole place, there were four beers on tap - a Weisse, a Blonde, an Amber and a Stout.  I sampled the Weisse, named Weisse is Nice.  And it was just that - nice, nothing that threw me out of my chair but, y'know, nice.  Who knows?  Maybe I wasn't looking hard enough for the right beer.

Now I am not one for bringing back a ton of souvenirs or knickknacks (frankly, I am working on breaking my pack rat tendencies), but I do love to pick up one thing - a growler.  Thankfully, this small mall bar had some to offer so that I could continue growing my collection.  I will say that I like the playfulness of their label.  All in all, Las Vegas is a city like none other and I am happy to check it off the list.

Slainte and viva Las Vegas!