The Church Brew Works

A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to go to Pittsburgh to attend the Iowa-Pitt game in Heinz Field. My wife is from Pittsburgh, and her dad is a die hard Pitt fan, and I'm a life long fanatical Iowa Hawks fan. My dad and I jumped at the chance to be able to see an Iowa game in Pittsburgh so we flew out to go to the game. My dad is also a beer aficionado and homebrewer, so we were excited about the opportunity to visit a place my wife had told me about for years, The Church Brew Works. Sadly Iowa lost the game by one point, but it was a gorgeous day in an amazing stadium, and the next day we had a great visit to this unique brewpub.
As you can see, this brewpub is in fact built in an old church. Ironically, I know a guy who went to this church as a kid! Facing tough times, they sold the church and it became The Church Brew Works. Unfortunately it was too dark inside to get good pictures, but the brew kettles and fermentation tanks are actually on top of the altar. There are high ceilings as one could imagine, and the original stained glass along the sides. The pews have been replaced by tables, it's pretty logical once you're in there...of course an old church would make a great brew pub! Extremely spacious and naturally lit, it provides a great atmosphere.
My dad and I split the sampler, and the beer was good, not great, but good. The ambiance is so unique that it makes it worth the trip alone. The sampler included their Celestial Gold, a fairly nondescript lager, a good British Pale Ale (Pipe Organ Pale Ale), one of my favorites was their Pious Monk Dunkel, a very good Octoberfest, a very good American Pale Ale (Referendum Ale) and the most interesting...a Coconut Stout. Which was good and interesting at first, but then the coconut became overwhelming the more you drank it. Think drinking a Mounds bar. I've always wondered if coconut would be good in a stout... and now I know the answer is not really.
This makes two great and unique experiences in the Pittsburgh area for beer, my visit to the East End Speakeasy... I mean brewery, and now The Church Brew Works. If you visit Pittsburgh, these two are must. A visit to East End for amazing beer and then head over to the Church Brew Works for a truly unique drinking experience.
Salud!
The Bearded Brewer