St. Patty's Day is coming late to Blarney Stone
St. Patrick's Day may be March 17 for the rest of the world, but at Blarney Stone, it's still months away.
According to this digital Countdown to St. Patrick's Day sign (and my fuzzy math), the Irish holiday will happen some six-months from now. Och, ay, lassie, 'tis a shame indeed.
From left to right, the numbers stand for days, hours, minutes and seconds. Doh!
The bartender said when he turned the sign on the other day, it mysteriously moved St. Patrick's Day to sometime in September. He wasn't complaining, though, because that means he won't have to deal with the sloppy drunks for quite some time.
Some friends and I stopped by Blarney Stone for a beer Monday night. It was the first time I'd been in the Fells Point Irish joint for years ...
I quaffed a Flying Dog Raging Bitch IPA (mmm), which was like setting off a small hops bomb in my mouth. If Clipper City Loose Cannon is hops to the third power, as it advertises, Raging Bitch is hops to the fifth.
When I asked for my bill, I was a bit surprised -- my one (1) beer cost $6. Talk about a wallet-drainer.
Erik Maza is a features reporter at the Baltimore Sun. He writes for several sections of the Sun paper and contributes weekly columns on music and nightlife. He also writes and edits the Midnight Sun blog. He often covers entertainment, business, and the business of entertainment. Occasionally, he writes about Four Loko, The Block, the liquor board, and those who practice "
Comments
meh, Raging Bitch is 8.3% alcohol - easily worth $6.
Posted by: dave | March 3, 2010 10:55 AM
That depends. During B&O American Brasserie's happy hour, you can get Loose Cannon drafts for $3. That's well worth it.
Posted by: Sam Sessa | March 3, 2010 10:56 AM
I'm pretty certain Raging Bitch is a limited release too, which may account for the price. Still a bit steep for what's essentially a local beer.
Posted by: Dave the wave | March 3, 2010 11:22 AM
Raging Bitch is not a limited release, at least locally (we're spoiled, the rest of the country would kill for it right now and we basically have an endless supply as long as we keep drinking it like we have, Flying Dog has committed to us locally in a big way).
$3 for it is a ridiculous steal. In HoCo you're basically paying about $6/pint for it at the Victoria/Frisco type places. So the $3 rate is easily the exception and not the norm on tap.
Posted by: Baltimore Beer Guy | March 3, 2010 1:22 PM
Baltimore Beer Guy -- remember, that $3 special is for Loose Cannon -- not Raging Bitch.
Posted by: Sam Sessa | March 3, 2010 2:30 PM
My bad Balt Beer Guy - when I was chatting with a Flying Dog rep at a tasting during Balt Beer Week he said it was their anniversary brew and would be a limited release. Outdated info since that was back in October...I do hope they keep it because it's delicious!!
Posted by: Dave the wave | March 3, 2010 3:27 PM
Sam:
Didn't you indicate that your Loose Cannon was at Happy Hour? What's the price during normal hours? Probably $6.00.
Elliott's Pour House tonight 6-9pm $3.00 Raging Bitch.
Posted by: Matt | March 4, 2010 11:45 AM
Yes, Matt, but B&O is a pretty swanky place, and swanky places are allowed to charge more for food & drinks.
Blarney Stone, however, is not a swanky place. It is a long, narrow, Fells Point Bar, hence, my surprise at the $6 tab.
Posted by: Sam Sessa | March 5, 2010 2:22 PM
OH...swanky place, probably $9.00 during normal hours.
Posted by: Matt | March 6, 2010 6:52 PM