November 2017-April 2018
We’ve visited the Draught House a few times, including for their rather magnificent 22nd birthday party. This was one hell of a beer-nerd event with lots of rare, complex beers from breweries both local and far-flung. We were super-psyched to get our mitts on the likes of Deschutes Not The Stoic Belgian Quad, Founders KBS with Vanilla Bean, New Belgian Transatlantique Kriek and Knee Deep’s Simtra Triple IPA. All in one night. The hell yeah.
The Draught House attracts a very friendly, local crowd, we recognised a few beer folks at the party – we had clearly stumbled on the place to be, and shall be on high alert for this year’s event. On a return visit on a regular night, we were impressed with both their own beers and their selection of guest taps, they serve flights of four, which are individually priced, and have rotating food trucks on site. Going with the English pub theme, they also brew a few cask beers, one of few Texan breweries to do so.
If you’re British or European and are missing a pub or beer hall environment, the Draught House is the place to come. Even its gothic lettered logo evokes the image of a bierkeller. Dark and wood-panelled inside, its one nod to US bar culture is the screens displaying the regular and rotating taps on offer, and trust me, you’ll need this as you fill in your flight form. There is a lot of choice here, with over 80 beers and ciders on tap at a time. The Draught House brew their own beer, but also have a nicely curated selection of local, regional and national beers, all of which are available in individually priced flight pours. It’s worth sampling their in-house selection, which in keeping with the overall theme is quite English and European in style. The cask beers are a real treat for a British tourist, and best of all they do it well. The soft, creamy Moto Rally Blonde on cask was a great little taste of home, a touch of the Deuchars about it but sweeter, and their take on the NEIPA, the Nor’Easter, was pleasingly unusual, big on hops and haze but piney and resinous rather than full-on tropical. We mixed up these and the smooth, easy-drinking Black Diamond lager with other local and out-of-state beers, demolishing two tasty flights without any trouble at all. A Hyde Park beer haven!
Craft Beer Amethyst 