How do you visit the same brewery that’s 141 miles away 3 times in one week? Simple; drive to Illinois, hitch a ride to Founder’s Black Party in Michigan, and stop at Three Floyds on the way out and on the way back. Then go for Dark Lord Day…but that’s a whole other story.
Let me back up. Sweem and I went to Michigan for Founder’s Black Party and, on a whim, decided to swing by Three Floyds in Munster, Indiana. It was and early Saturday morning so we knew our chances of it being open were slim, but based on the iPhone’s directions, (why I didn’t just look up the hours, I don’t know) it was a few short miles right off the expressway. Sure enough, it was closed. It worked out ok though because I got to take a few pictures of the place in a desolate state for comparison to our visit on the way back when it was open, then again in a week for Dark Lord Day when, the entire industrial park it’s located, was overrun. Not a bad location for a brewery but certainly not the best location for a brewpub.
Fast forward again. On our way back to Illinois Sunday we stopped by for a break…and some beer. Seeing the small parking lot packed with cars was a shock after it being totally deserted the day before. We walked in the front door and luckily got a tiny table in the corner to the left. It was a nice feeling with the bar and taps so close to us. Just above our heads Hot Fuzz played soundless from a projector onto the wall. Music played in the background and matched both Three Floyds aura and theme well.
The industrial-looking room had multi-colored walls and beer signs everywhere. The majority of the beeraphernalia was from other breweries though. A good gesture to show they appreciate all kinds of beer, not just their own. Tap handles also adorned the walls like a stripe following the wall as far as the eye could see. Behind the bar above the taps was a large painting of all the Three Floyds bottle-art characters.
The same thing used on their Fantabulous Resplendence label I believe.
Shortly after seating ourselves a server was by to take orders. We hadn’t even got around to deciding yet but I asked quickly which beers they only served on tap. He shot of the list and said which ones were listed but they were out of. Once he came back we ordered a glass of Barrel-Aged Popskull ($9) and Drunk Monk ($6) from the extensive list of tap beers including a guest line up. Our beers were served relatively cold; a little colder than I’d like my craft beer to be served at. Otherwise they were awesome! We, unfortunately, didn’t have any food. I can say though, that when we walked in, some guy’s pizza looked really good. Our server was a fairly cool guy with a laid-back attitude but still cared about the service and our beer arrived in a timely fashion. The prices seemed a bit high for our order ($6 and $9 for two beers?) otherwise they were fair across the board (didn’t look at the food though)…until I saw the Stone 2004 and 2003 Vertical Epic 22 oz bottles for $100 and $200 respectively. Holy shit. Well, I guess if they hang on to it that long, good for them. I, on the other hand, tried the 2003 vintage for FREE from one generous Kyle on Dark Lord Day.
All in all, Three Floyds’ brewpub was a cool place to visit for a beer on the way past but nothing is telling me I’ll be back there outside of a stop-off to or from Michigan or another Dark Lord Day, but that’s a whole other article.
-Andy
A / 4.28 (scores out of 5)
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 – $$$ – a bit pricey
