McNellies

The Tiki Gal and I joined Dale and Carol for dinner last night at McNellie's Public House in Tulsa. We really like McNellie's because they serve good food and they have over 350 draught and bottled beers. McNellie's is exactly what I think a pub should be: warm and cozy with much laughter. It is the perfect antidote to a bad Monday at work and the Tiki Man was in serious need of it last night.

Most Monday nights are Pint Nights. On Pint Night, beers from a selected brewer are served in a glass that you get to keep. Pint Night starts at 5 and lasts until the glasses are gone. We've missed out on glasses by arriving at 5:30 before so Pint Night is extremely popular. Last night, the featured brewer was the Left Hand Brewing Company and, maybe due to the MLK holiday, McNellie's was not as busy as usual. 

We were seated right away and ordered Left Hand's Snowbound Ale. Apparently, Snowbound Ale is really good because McNellie's had run out so we ordered Sawtooth Ale instead. The Tiki Gal and Carol, as I've mentioned before, are not beer drinkers so they ordered wine. (I think the Beer Journal may convert them, however, because they tend to try our beers more and more now. Before long, Dale and I will be lucky to get a few sips after the girls have finished tasting whatever we happen to be drinking.)

During dinner, the conversation turned to a phenomenon that occurs in both of our households. Dale and I discovered that neither of us can fold towels adequately. Not only are our towels not aesthetically pleasing, they do not fit in the cabinets correctly. The Tiki Gal and Carol both confessed to refolding the towels after we've taken great time and effort to fold them incorrectly. From a guys standpoint, I think that if the towel doesn't fall out on the floor when the closet door is opened, it is folded and put away correctly but, like with most things, I must be wrong. Also, Dale and I found out that we don't load the dishwasher correctly either. "I can fit so much more in there my way," was the excuse we were given for the rearrangement of our carefully loaded dishes. On the other hand, the Tiki Gal did say I load the forks and spoons the right way so I have that going for me.

The beers Dale and I tried were:

Left Hand Sawtooth Ale

Color: Amber. (the girls say it is a pretty, copper color)

Skunkiness: 0 skunks.

Taste: Smooth with a distinct hop flavor.

Comments: Sawtooth Ale is not complex. A decent beer but not remarkable.

Ranking: 3 pints.

Spaten Optimator

Color: Dark amber. (the girls can't decide between Coke and Dr. Pepper coloration)

Skunkiness: 0 skunks.

Taste: Sweet, rich and creamy. Very good. Has a molasses smell and taste.

Comments: Dale and I really enjoyed this double bock and so did the girls. Carol, who usually sticks with one small sip, tried this one several times. Dale said it was her first ever two sip beer. Carol did find that you should not chase Optimator with Merlot, however.

Ranking: 4.5 pints. (Carol gives it a 5 on her beer ranking scale of 1 or 5)

After dinner, we decided we liked the Spaten Optimator so much we would try to find it at our favorite liquor store, the Grand Vin Bottle Shop. The Grand Vin has a great selection of beers and wines and the staff is extremely knowledgeable about what they sell. If you are looking for a good, uncommon beer or wine in the Tulsa area, the Grand Vin is the place to go.

We did find the Spaten Optimator so we grabbed a six pack. After some consultation, Dale and I decided the girls may have liked the Optimator a little too much so we got another six pack, just in case. We also bought a few other beers that we wanted to try and bottles of wine for the girls.

As we drove home, I realized my mood had improved greatly over the course of the evening. Good food, good beer (what I got of it, anyway), and good company are just what I needed.