Thursday, October 30, 2014

Wide range of Georgia craft beer is now on the menu at Johnny Harris

It wasn’t history that finally lured me into Johnny Harris Restaurant, though the Victory Drive landmark has plenty of that; nor was it the delicious barbecue dishes and sauces, though they have delighted generations of customers over the past nine decades. No, all it took to get me there, after living in Savannah for more than 30 years, was an invitation earlier this month from my friend Tim Rutherford to sample the restaurant’s craft beers. The Maple Room Tavern, located at the rear of the restaurant, has 16 taps devoted to Georgia craft beers. The locations of the breweries cover the state like the dew. From up in the mountains, there’s Burnt Hickory and Grumpy Old Men: from metro Atlanta, there’s Sweetwater, Monday Night and Red Hare: and, from Savannah and the Coastal Empire, there’s Service, Eagle Creek, Moon River and Coastal Empire. Other breweries on the October menu include Jekyll, Three Taverns, Creature Comforts, Wrecking Bar and Orpheus. Over two separate visits, and enabled by 5-ounce sample pours (which can be ordered as a flight), I enjoyed eight of the beers on the menu. Of those, my favorites were Eagle Creek’s River Street Praline Brown (a sweet, malty treat), Three Taverns’ Quasimodo (smooth, delicious and dangerous with an ABV of 10 percent) and Orpheus’ Lyric Ale (a stylish, hop-centric saison). In addition to its rock-star regular beer menu, the Maple Room is also hosting special events. Red Brick Brewing of Atlanta will host a special dinner there, featuring a keg of its 2013 Buffalo Trace Bourbon Barrel Aged Russian Imperial Stout, on Nov. 6. For more information, on this and other events and activities, check out The Maple Room Tavern at Johnny Harris Restaurant Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/themapleroomtavern.