Black Hog Brewing Company, Oxford
What’s better than a brewery on a rainy Saturday? It wasn’t easy to find a table at Black Hog because plenty of people were on the same page. I went with a crew of friends a day after Black Hog earned gold at the World Beer Cup for their Granola Brown Ale.
Saturday is food truck day at Black Hog, and Chief Brody’s Banh Mi was stationed in the parking lot, serving up killer sandwiches, soba noodles, and Vietnamese meatballs (Brody’s brines their pork in Black Hog’s Ginga’ Ninja). Inside, lots of really good beers were on tap—the S.W.A.G. Summer Wheat Ale with Grapefruit Peel & Sage, Vush Pig Project Kumquat Slingshot: Tart Blonde Ale with Kumquats, and the aforementioned Ginga’ Ninja Red IPA with Fresh Ginger, to name just a few.
Black Hog also has a brewery-only line, the Disco Pig Series, available in 500ml bottles behind the bar and often on tap. Pouring last weekend was the sixth in the Disco Pig series, Cyser Söze, a delicious beer-cider hybrid with a bit of funk to it, crafted in collaboration with Wallingford’s New England Cider Company.
Black Hog’s other draws include customized chunky Jenga, a free Pac-Man/Galaga video game machine, and a warm and inviting family vibe (meaning watch out for children underfoot!). Wine is available for non-beerheads. Upcoming events a beer dinner at Anthony Jack’s in Southington on Thursday, May 19; visit the brewery for beers, growler fills, and can pick-up Wednesday through Friday in the afternoon and evening.
