I began my exploits on Sunday night, a few hours after arriving in the city. As I reported at the Blork Blog, I was not at my best that evening. The long day of travel had taken a toll. On the other hand, a finely-crafted beer was exactly what I needed to lift my spirits, so I set out to investigate the current darling of the Seattle pub scene, the Elysian Brew pub.

The Elysian is located on Pike Street, in Capitol Hill. It has an enormous main room with a very high ceiling and large windows, giving it the feeling of a large and echoey place. It was fairly busy for a Sunday night, with plenty of hipsters around, as well as a few regular folks like me. Service was prompt, and they kept refreshing my glass of water -- a rare thing in a pub, but very appreciated.

I thought a bitter might perk me up, so I chose The Wise Extra Special Bitter (on tap). Perk me up it did. So hoppy it made me pucker, this very tasty beer with a hint of sour fruit is not for the faint of heart. If you're not big on bitters, stay away. I'm big on bitters, so I dived in.

It was a bit much, however, so I decided to mellow out on the second round. I ordered an Immortal IPA (also on tap -- all of the pub's signature brews are available that way). Again, I was hit with a five-alarm brew. Not unpleasant, by any means, but packed with eye-opening flavor, strong on the hoppy end, but not unbalanced.

Bhagwan's IPA. Nice color. Nice flavor!

On Tuesday evening Binky and I went to the University District. After exploring "the Ave" (the main shopping/eating street in the area) we found a pub called the Big Time Brewing and Ale House, so we went in for a pint or two before dinner.

Big Time has a large outer room with windows and a skylight, and a smaller room at the back where smoking is permitted. It has the look and feel of an old-time watering hole, with lots of old dark wood around, a brass-railed bar shoved off in one corner, and plenty of heavy chairs and tables of the kind that scrape the floor with a skonk! when you stand up too quickly.

It seemed like a friendly and inviting place. The crowd was mixed -- a few students, a few suits, a few pudgy bar-flies. I began with a Bhagwan's IPA.

The Bhagwan's was a pleasant surprise. Mellower than the Elysian's IPA, this one felt a bit more like a good old sipping ale. It was a bit less gassy than I expected, but it had a bit of lace, a gorgeous orangey-apricotty color, and a nice balanced taste.

Coal Creek porter. Why can't I ever photograph a full glass?

A few months ago, on this blog, I revealed that I was a porter virgin. I've since become something of a porter slut. As such, I decided to go with a Coal Creek porter for the second round. That was a very good call, as the Coal Creek was indeed a very lovely porter. Very dark in color, but not black like a stout. It was, in fact, a very, very, deep ruby red, with a nicely rounded roasted malt aroma and flavor. Very nice indeed. If I were granted the opportunity to teleport myself back to Seattle for one round of beer right now my choice would be the Big Time pub for a Coal Creek porter.

On Wednesday afternoon I found myself with a break, so I walked a few hundred metres up the hill from the Convention Center and stopped into the Six Arms pub on Pike Street. This was a bit of a trip through time for me, because I recalled being in the Six Arms pub back in 1996, not long after they first opened. I was there with Binky and a few other technical writers, and had an eventful evening involving a variety of beers, an escapade with a clerk from the downtown Nordstrom's, and a confrontation with my nemesis. Those stories are best left for another day.

This time it was just me. I ordered a porter, which their Web site tells me must have been a Black Rabbit porter, but that name doesn't sound right. Maybe the site is not up-to-date -- or perhaps (more likely) my mind was otherwise occupied and I didn't pay enough attention to the name. Regardless, the porter was nice and toasty with a hint of chocolate. It went down easy and finished very nicely although in a pinch I'd have to give the Big Time's Coal Creek porter the edge -- but just barely.

Alas, I did not have time to stay for a second one, but I should note that someone at the next table was eating a sandwich and fries. The fries were perhaps the most delicious-looking fries I have ever laid eyes upon. They were long and crispy, fresh-cut, without even a hint of greasiness. They were golden and rigid without any droop. My biggest regret of the entire trip to Seattle is that I did not get an order of those marvelous-looking fries (I had eaten lunch not long before). The memory of those fries-not-eaten haunts me.

That was it for my tour of the brew pubs. The next and final night of our sojourn, Binky and I passed the hours on foot, exploring, and spending entirely too much money at a swishy fish restaurant in Belltown. As we walked back to the hotel from the restaurant, however, we happened upon a small pub that we recognized from our first trip to Seattle -- the Virginia Inn Tavern.

The Virginia Inn is not a brew pub, although they do have a number of locally-made craft brews on tap. It's a small and friendly place with a remarkable poster in the men's room (autographed by Dennis Hopper). It was very quiet inside when we passed by, and we stopped in for old time's sake. I had a dram of single malt and chased it with yet another porter, although I don't recall what kind it was. I do recall that it was tasty.

The Virginia Inn Tavern. Low-key on a Wednesday night -- but nice.