Quick review today of a  location and a few beers at Otto’s in State College.  This was part of a trip to the Bryce Jordan center to see GodSpeed! You Black Emperor and Nine inch Nails. We had discussed a trip to Selinsgrove Brewing company, but realizing it was a substantial distance from our aim, we settled for Otto’s.

Arriving at approximately 4:00pm my expectation was that it would be an optimal time to experience this brewpub. However, to my surprise, the establishment was bustling.  We were graced with a table towards the back of the building next to a sweltering pizza oven. While the building itself was attractive and seating laid out appropriately to provide a decent distance from other patrons, the volume of restaurant-goers generated a boisterous din that was slightly unpleasant. Each table, not able to speak at comfortable volume, had to compensate via elevated decibel levels.  This, in turn, has a compounding effect as everyone then needs to yell to each other to communicate. This is not unique to this location as I have experienced it in places such as Troegs, ABC, and occasionally Pizza Boy. It seems this is an unavoidable result of heavy business, it just strikes me as annoying.

We had several appetizers. I enjoyed a cinnamon sweet potato fry basket, which was excellent.  The fondue with bread left was a cup of spray cheese heated in a microwave and some bread slices that seemed far from home-baked.

To the beer…..

Jolly Roger Imperial Stout – Creamy rich and decadent imperial stout. Choclately and silky smooth mouth feel. Smells terrific.  I was really lamenting the lack of a barrel-aged option. I was told by our server that this is barrel aged on occasion but that it is rather rare. 8/10

Double D IPA – I always look forward to trying a new double ipa, it’s one of my favorite styles. However some are a little too heavy in the body and more malt centric than I would prefer.  This seems to be indicative of a more east-coast style. This wasn’t the worst example of over-malted taste but it did detract from the beer.  The smell was a nice crisp hoppy pleasantness with a hint of wild flowers and citrus. The body was somewhat hoppy and bitter with a little honey sweetness. 6/10

Greenaway’s Green Hop II – This tasted like a boozier lager with very little hoppiness and an odd yeasty funk to it. I can’t recommend this at all. 2.5/10

Greenaway’s Green Hop III – More of the same as the #2 above. Yet this was the flavors I didn’t care for amplified. atrocious. 1/10

Tequila Barrel Aged Double D – The first impression was booze. Lot’s of booze. Smelled like tequila mixed with hops. Tasted like tequila mixed with hops. And regretfully, that’s about all. 5/10

Apricot Wheat – This was a pleasing offering. Nice little sweet wheat body meets sweet apricot nectar in a perfectly balanced beer.  This was definitely worth a flagship status even if it did seem slightly out of season given the chill in the air. I Really enjoyed this one. 7/10

In summation, I would recommend Otto’s as a decent stop off place in the State College area.  If planning a brew trip however, I would only recommend this as a waypoint not a destination.