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| Wednesday, June 14, 2000
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal Something's Brewing An increase in specialty ales and lagers gives beer lovers reason to cheer By Joan Whitely
Review-Journal For Las Vegas beer lovers, the microbrew menu just keeps expanding. In the last six months, two more breweries have joined the pack.
Both additions are neighborhood places, Tenaya Creek Restaurant & Brewery, 3101 N. Tenaya Way, which debuted in November, and Chicago Brewing Co., 2201 S. Fort Apache Road, which opened earlier this year.
They join eight existing brew pubs, for a total of 10.
The reason for the growth is an "increasing number of people moving here ... are microbrew aficionados," according to Lee Lardner, general manager and partner at Tenaya Creek.
The microbrew trend hit here relatively late, she notes, since the first establishments started up two decades ago, in such states as Colorado and Washington.
The breweries here generally have three to five set beers on the menu along with a variety of food offerings. Most offer at least one or two rotating special brews, too.
"We have eight (beers) on at any one time," notes Dave Otto, brewmaster at Holy Cow Casino, Cafe & Brewery, 2423 Las Vegas Blvd. South.
Some breweries specialize in ales, others focus on lagers -- though many in town offer both.
The two types of beer have different production methods. Bottom line, aficionados say, an ale is often more full-bodied while a lager goes down smoother. Most U.S. domestic beers are lagers.
Connoisseurs in Las Vegas hope the range of breweries will entice more folks who know only mass-production beer to wet their whistle on a special issue.
But opinions are mixed as to what the future will bring for microbrews in Las Vegas.
"More locals places," predicts Mike Plinski, a mechanical engineer who is president of the Southern Nevada Ale Fermenters Union, or SNAFU, a club for home-brewers. He points out that parts of the valley have no such pubs yet.
But Bob Barnes, who teaches elementary school and writes for Celebrator Beer News, takes the opposite position: More casino-based microbreweries are likely.
"I think the neighborhood brew pubs will reach a limit. But casinos? The sky's the limit. They always have people walking through, looking for what's new."
The granddaddy of Las Vegas breweries is Holy Cow, which launched its brewery in 1992. It sells some of its brew to Coors, which distributes the beer back to bars in the Big Dog's Hospitality Group, which includes Holy Cow. The circuitous arrangement is to comply with what Barnes calls a "wacky Nevada law" that forbids a beer maker from distributing its own beer.
Holy Cow brewmaster Otto predicts his operation can thrive only as redevelopment at the northern end of the Strip continues.
The Monte Carlo Pub & Brewery, 3770 Las Vegas Blvd. South, is along the southern end of the Strip, with Ellis Island Brewery & Casino nearby at 4178 Koval Lane.
The Monte Carlo distinguishes itself by ranking No. 3 nationally among microbreweries in 1999, by volume produced. At approximately 108,000 gallons, it was surpassed only by one brew pub in Colorado and The Brew Brothers at the Eldorado hotel in Reno.
Ellis Island's claim to fame is its low price. A 20-ounce glass of Ellis brew goes for $2.25, compared to $3 or more at most competitors.
Downtown Las Vegas' sole microbrewery is the Triple 7 Brew Pub at Main Street Station, 200 N. Main St. Like several of its local competitors, the Triple 7 has won medals in national brewing competitions. It is known for several distinct-tasting brews that have fruit additives, such as its black cherry stout.
Serving the Hughes Center, a business district in the eastern valley, is Gordon Biersch Brewing Co., 3987 Paradise Road, which is part of a large chain. Regular stores also sell its products.
Henderson has two spots: Barley's Casino & Brewing Co., 4500 E. Sunset Road, and Sunset Brewing Co. inside Sunset Station, 1301 W. Sunset Road. Both offer patio dining. The spots share one brewmaster, Michael Ferguson. They also share production facilities, to some extent.
Barnes, the Celebrator Beer News correspondent, notes that all beers start out at the Barley's site, then some are transported to Sunset Brewing Co. before fermentation. "Sunset only has fermentation tanks," for the final step in production, Barnes explains. "I don't think the casual observer would have a clue."
Tenaya Creek also offers patio dining. Passers-by can watch brewery activity through a glassed wall. Like Gordon Biersch, it serves only house beers, no mass-produced labels.
Chicago Brewing Co. is staking a claim on a menu that includes Chicago-style food and decor, as well as beer.
Rounding out the Southern Nevada microbrew field is the Boiler Room Brew Pub inside the Colorado Belle, 2100 S. Casino Drive in Laughlin.
Microbreweries as a whole account for only about 3 percent to 4 percent of U.S. beer consumption.
"We can't make a dent in the big boys," Ferguson says.
But spokesmen for all the microbreweries contacted believe that once American drinkers test the specialty beers, they will develop a taste for them.
Ferguson hopes the microbrew phenomenon heralds a return to the old days, when small-issue regional beers dotted the map.
"Before Prohibition, there were 5,000 breweries. After Prohibition, there were maybe a hundred. People now have the ability to do that again."
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As brewmaster, Tim Etter is responsible for brewing the beers at Tenaya Creek Restaurant & Brewery.
Photo by Christine H. Wetzel.
Diners check out the fare at Chicago Brewing Co.
Ken White/Review-Journal
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