Middle Ages Brewing, Syracuse NY

2 April 2024

I decided it was time to try somewhere new on this trip through Syracuse so I tried out Middle Ages Brewing. They’re located in an old building in a mildly sketchy neighborhood, but the space itself was decent enough and they seemed to have a number of regulars even on a Tuesday afternoon.

I started off with a flight of their four Traditional Ales, which are left-to-right …

Tipperary Red – Irish Red Ale, 5.2% – While it was difficult to pick a favorite from this flight, this was pretty darned close to the top of the list. I don’t often like Red Ales, but sometimes one will really hit the spot and this one certainly did. Unlike some, it wasn’t too over-balanced on the malt side and I found it just very enjoyable.

Boxing Day Bitter – Extra Special Bitter (ESB), 6.5% – I always enjoy a good ESB. This one was my least favorite of the four though and I’m not entirely sure why; it just didn’t match my expectations for this style today.

The Duke of Winship – Scotch Porter, 6.6% – Now here was a beer I can really get behind! It wasn’t at all heavy and didn’t taste as “dark” as it was; it was just really enjoyable, arguably the equal of the Tipperary Red for my tastes.

Black Heart Stout – Oatmeal Stout, 6.6% – There’s really nothing to argue with here — an Oatmeal Stout (one of my favorite dark beers) and a delightful name — and it was very possibly my favorite of the four by a whisker. In spite of being an Oatmeal Stout, it wasn’t heavy even while being so smooth as that variety should be.

This beauty had also caught my eye; it’s their Syracuse Pale Ale, a British Pale Ale at 5%. Surprisingly, I wasn’t enamored of it even though it was enjoyable to drink. I think I was expecting more of a traditional bitter or pub ale; this had more of an edge to it than I’d wanted at this point.

Will I come back here again? Probably not — I really like Bullfinch Brewing and there’s also Meier’s Creek Brewing that I drove past that looked quite inviting (although not open as early as I would have preferred for this visit). Still, Middle Ages does have a good number of taps with both British and American styles; here’s their tap list from my visit today: