Sitting just east of the Trinity river on the north side of Ft Worth is MartinHouse Brewing Company. Don’t let the generic warehouse building deceive you, MartinHouse is a very large brewery with an extra parking lot around the corner. They are also kid and dog friendly, as are most breweries in the area. MartinHouse has been a staple of the DFW craft beer scene for over 10 years, and it’s not hard to see why. They are probably most well known for their small batch, crazy flavor, one off brews. From a cherry, lime, blueberry sour to a whiskey barrel aged chocolate and banana stout and everything in between can be found here. But don’t forget their most well known crazy brew, the Best Maid Sour Pickle beer and the many different variations it has produced. This is not the place to get a bunch of different IPA’s or your regular lagers. Don’t get me wrong, they have several traditional brews that stay year round, but what fun is that?
As you walk in to the large, rectangular tap room, you’ll feel like you’re at your favorite bar from college. It’s unrefined, and has a little bit of a hole in the wall type of feel but in the best way. A long bar is immediately to your left, with their huge and diverse menu above, necessary because often times the taproom is very busy. Further down you’ll find their to-go refrigerators which are always well stocked, more so than most breweries. The bathrooms sit in between, and have a little bit of a grungy feel, but not unclean. My wife didn’t complain so they can’t be that bad. As you continue your journey to the back, you’ll exit to find a huge, covered outdoor patio at least twice the size of the taproom. There are a good number of picnic tables, plenty of room for the large number of beer lovers that frequent the brewery. There is also a permanent food truck, but unfortunately it was closed on this particular day. They did have another food truck there so it seems management always gives you a food option. The last space is their event room. It’s one of the biggest events spaces I’ve seen at a brewery. A good amount of seating with a large open space, a sound system, and a mobile bar that can pour your favorite drafts during your event. The space also has its own private bathrooms which is a big plus. The event room has the same old college bar type of feel as the taproom. Overall we really enjoy the aesthetic of the brewery. My only complaint is the brewing tanks are not visible. I love the ambiance created by having the brewing equipment visible, giving the feeling that you’re drinking the beer that was in that tank just days or weeks ago.
Besides crazy brews, the other thing MartinHouse is know for is events. It’s a good thing they have the large patio that they do because it seems like they hold a public event almost every week. You’ll have to check out their social media to keep up.
On this day my wife and I tried 9 of the beers they had on tap. The first one I’ll highlight is the Serac, a whiskey barrel aged white chocolate golden stout. It’s a 13.5% ABV, which is quite strong, a usual characteristic for MartinHouse stouts. Golden stouts are a personal favorite of mine, which is why we made the trip out on this day. I was a little disappointed. The barrel aging overpowers most of the flavor of the brew. You can taste a little bit of the sweetness of the chocolate and a little bit of the golden stout flavor, which usually comes off with a lighter mouth feel than regular stouts. But the whiskey flavoring from aging in a barrel for 7 and a half months overtakes your taste buds almost immediately. I wish I could request they make another batch and not age it, but sadly breweries don’t take requests generally.
Since we didn’t enjoy that stout, I feel obligated to highlight another. The Shell Shock is a double pastry imperial stout with notes of pecans, fudge, caramel, and vanilla. It’s a 10% ABV so not as heavy as the Serac, but still stiff. You definitely get the fudge and caramel flavors, the vanilla and pecans are less prominent but still there. You are almost overwhelmed with different flavors hitting your taste buds. It might benefit from one less flavor to make it less complex. Also, it does have a little bit of a heavy mouth feel. But overall we enjoyed Shell Shock.
Next up is Black Balloon, a blonde with black cherries and blackberries. At 6% ABV it’s a little bit more potent than your average blonde but you don’t taste it. You can taste the fruit but it’s a little bit of a weak flavor and the black cherries and blackberries kind of blend together. I think if they had chosen a different type beer that has more malty or hoppy characteristics, the fruity notes would pop more. It’s definitely a summer beer, and I would classify it as a lake beer. Good overall but could be better.
Our overall favorite beer of the day was a golden ale called Coquito. It’s brewed with notes of coconut, cinnamon, vanilla, and lactose. It’s very very smooth beer. You can pick up on every flavor, but it does not overwhelm like some of the previous brews. Be careful with this one because it does not taste as strong as it’s actual ABV of 12%. We were pleasantly surprised with this brew. It’s not common to find ales with as many notes added during the brewing process.
Overall, MartinHouse Brewing company has always been one of our favorite breweries. It is consistently rated a top brewery in the DFW area by anyone who likes to sample craft beer. The staff is always helpful and well informed about their beer. And that’s not always easy because they put out at least 1 new brew every week. Because of the aesthetic of the brewing equipment not being there, and leaving slightly disappointed with some of the beers, MartinHouse is getting 8 🍺. Be sure to check them out the next time you’re in Ft Worth looking for a craft brew. And don’t forget to drink local!
