Beer Belly Files #8

Pub Crawling in Savannah

My wife and I went on a vacation in Savannah, Georgia and had an absolutely wonderful time. We instantly fell in love with the historic district and would still be there right now if we could. There is so much history and beauty there as well as fantastic restaurants and pubs. First off, the hitoric district is made up of businesses and homes stretching from the waterfront. The city is laid out around 24 town squares, each with it's own personality. They squares were used for anything from public gatherings (President Washington gave an address at one) to public hangings, not to mention just hanging around.

We enjoy this type of vacation because my wife is an architecture and decor nut and I love historical places. There are many tours through the city by trolly, horse drawn carriage or by just walking. I suggest all three. We started with a trolly tour. It gives a great overview of the city and the history. The carriage tour is a casual and romantic way to see it all and was one of our favorites. Walking tours give you a chance to stop and see details that the others may miss. We walked everywhere. We only drove around 2 out of the five days. There are some forts and lighthouses near the city as well as some very large, ornate and old cemetaries that date back to the American Revolution.

At night the city stays alive with all the great restaurants and pubs. Pub crawl tours are polular as well. These people surely know how to drink and have a good time. Here are some of the places we went:

Issacs on Drayton

Isaacs is in a very old and haunted building, like just about every place in the historic district. The whole town seems haunted. The ghosts, however, only add to the fun and party atmosphere. We stumbled into Isaacs as part of a pub crawl tour and was delightfully surprised. You may find the bar empty because all the action is on the roof. What I was most inpressed with is that teh y actually had my favorite trappist ale on tap, St Bernardus Abt 12. I have only ever seen in in bottle form and a very small number of specialty liquor stores (uh...that number would be 2). When I saw it on tap I was ecstatic. My fellow crawlers heard what I was ordering and asked me about it. I convinced many to try it and they were delightfully surprised. I was then hailed as the beer king and put in charge of recommedations.

Molly Macpherson's

I can't tell you enough how much I loved Molly's. Great brews, great atmosphere, and men in kilts. They also had another trappist ale that I have reviewed, Chimay. It wasn't on tap but great seeing it on the menu. Their claim to fame however, would have to be their Scotch whiskey. They have the largest selection of single malts in the southeast, 70 in total. We had a grand time here and our Scottish accents got better with every sip.

Six Pence Pub

This was probably our favorite establishment. You may recognize it from the movie "Something To Talk About" with Julia Roberts and Dennis Quaid. It was our favorite most likely because it was right around the corner from our hotel, but for whatever reason we came here more than the rest. After we left Macpherson's, our pub crawl tour was over but, me being the Beer King, convinced the pack to follow me to Six Pence. The tour guide said "no. it's to far..." Well, that was her loss because the rest came and we had a great time. By then the people in Six Pence and I were on a first name basis and they appreciated me bringing in a group of 15 people on a slow Sunday night. We drank and laughed and debated religion and politics and drank and laughed and drank some more. My new found friends would buy me rounds as a tribute to the Beer King and I would accept them humbley but eagerly. Six Pence also had a great selection of beers to choose from including another ale that I have reviewed, Hobgoblin. That was indeed a treat and recommending it to my followers only enhanced my beer fame further. Yes, we were drunk, but in Savannah, that is not a crime. In fact, by city ordinance, you are allowed to walk around with open containers as long as they are styrofoam or plastic cups. They call it the "to-go cup" and every restaurant adn pub will sell you a drink to go. There are many other pubs there and I can't go into detail about them all. Churchhill's is another great British style pub that you shouldn't miss. Also Kevin Barry's on the waterfront was cool, but realy packed. I was disappointed in the Moon River Brewery. It was my only disappointment on the trip. They were out of most beers that they home brew and the manager/bartender had a huge attitude. I may have just been there on the wrong night but it was enough to not send me back. Most all of teh establishmentswere loads of fun and had great food. many had live music as well. We heard mainly rock, blues and jazz but there some thay had a more contemporary club like atmosphere. I cant wait to get back to Savannah and spend more time there.

-Jim