It’s a classic story. Boy tries beer. Boy likes beer. Boy later discovers that three vaunted breweries fall within about 1800 feet of each other in the Broad Ripple district of Indianapolis. Boy makes a day of it.
Thr3e Wise Men Brewing Co. was a great way to start the adventure. Owned by Scotty Wise as a complement to Scotty’s Brewhouse, this brewery supplies the chain’s dozen or so locations all around the state. I won’t lie, this place had a bit of a manufactured feel to it, but don’t let that stop you. The beer and food were solid even if the abundance of flatscreens told me I was visiting a chain.
Wood paneling everywhere and enough taps to keep it interesting, plus a cask and nitro line. I was happy to see them offer half-pints in addition to 3-sample flights.
The highlight of the day was definitely the Hubbard & Craven’s coffee porter, which features ingredients from a local coffee shop chain. But an honorable mention also goes to their Golden Zoe IPA. It’s a Centennial IPA that’s more or less straight up the middle, but I really appreciated that. So many craft beers try a little too hard to stand out with crazy hop combinations or novel adjuncts. Those can work out great, and I love me a good apricot IPA, sure, but I also love a beer that gets the fundamentals down pat. Golden Zoe does that.
After splitting a chicken and balsamic pizza with my partners in crime, we set off for the next destination. But I’m looking for an excuse to come back here.
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