December 20 through December 23

#44 - JD's Smokehouse Bar and Grill
A typical sports bar located in Canton. We stopped in and had a couple of beers before the Monday night football game. The barmaid actually advised me against trying a beer, which is very unusual. Monday - on the square in Canton.

#45 - Coburn's Tavern
Another Canton bar with a nice mural painted on the side. It was pretty empty and when we left during the game no one else was left. Lots of fantasy football talk and that was about it. We decided to visit the Pie shop next and wound up hanging out there, but I think it was BYO so it doesn't count. Monday - on the square in Canton.

#46 - James Joyce Irish Pub and Restaurant
A nice Irish place in Harbor East. The run club has stopped here a couple of times on Wednesdays. We had a quick drink with a couple of the guys. I had hurt my ankle at The Black Cat on the 11th. We did ring in the new year once in 07 or 08. Wednesday - Harbor East

#47 - Harbor East Grill
By the terms originally set forth, any place with beer on tap counts towards the 100. This is a lunch place in Harbor East much like Taco Fiesta. Had one beer and moved on to the next stop. Wednesday - Harbor East (Aliceanna Street)


#48 - Kona Grill
This place had some sort of generic Hawaiian theme, I suppose. They had some nice fish tanks, but it felt a bit like a hotel bar, which isn't surprising considering its location right next to the inner harbor. We did snag a 'reverse happy hour' where appetizers were half off after 10pm. Wednesday - Pratt Street downtown

#49 Frederick Douglass-Issac Myers Maritime Park
The annual office holiday party. Perhaps the best thing about my current job is the awesome holiday party. Just down the street from the office, they setup a few bars and serve endless amounts of oysters. I skipped the usual after stops because I was awaiting a foster that was arriving that night to be watched. Located on Thames Street on the water - Thursday.

December 10 and 11

Back on the horse.


#35 - The Laughing Pint
A neighborhood bar in Highlandtown with some slight pretensions. It has a nice outdoor seating area, which was not usable in the sub-freezing temperatures. I did not get the fresh-squeezed greyhound (I previously joked that sounded inhumane). But Jon and I did have a discussion about what to add to a traditional greyhound to make it a 'Zuni.' Out best answer was black sambucca. But it's hard to image what effect that would have on the taste. Friday - December 10.


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#36 - Bentz Street Sports Bar
The former Bentz Street Raw Bar, this was the first stop for the '12 Bars of Christmas' bar crawl sponsored by Key103, where my friend Brian works. It was a nice coincidence that his bar crawl was during the tour. Bentz street is the Penn State bar, I think my dad has watched a game or two here. It also had a banner calling it Frederick's Cleveland Browns bar, go figure. We were a little late and each stop was only an hour, but the picture above indicates we wasted no time. Saturday - 11.


#37 - Wag's
I didn't even realize Wag's was licensed. Of course, I don't think i've been there in 20 years since I was ten. I seem to remember going with my mom when she worked at the library main branch. We packed the place with buzzed patrons with goofy Santa hats. Jon made a beer sculpture:

Saturday - 11.

Only one hour and we were on to the next stop.
#38 - Cafe NOLA
A newer establishment in Frederick (well, newer since it wasn't there when I last lived in the area). Combination restaurant/coffee bar, but they did have Chimay. We were spreading the gospel of Chimay to some newbies, which always feels good. Who know how many $10+ bottles of beer they will be buying, though.


(no mention of Key 103--and no Coors or Miller was consumed on this tour)
#39 - Cacique
My text message to James sums this one up: this place kicks La Paz in its ass. We headed over early to make sure we had enough time to eat (we needed it at this point). Has some nice cevice and calamari. Managed to escape without doing a shot. A sign on the wall turned into a facebook post that folks seemed to enjoy 'with enough Margaritas you can do anything.' Saturday - 11 still.


#40 - Olde Towne Tavern
Home of Anderers for decades. The home of most of my friend's 21st birthdays (and my replacement 21st, since I was down under for the real thing). It's kinda of a dive now that I think about it. Maybe 4 in the afternoon is not when Old Town is at its best. Sorry, Xande, I don't think Boobriella works there. Saturday - 11.


#41 - Guido's
A newer edition to the bars along Market (read: opened in 2000 or so). Guido's became what Olde Towne used to be to our crew. I spent a Wednesday night before Thanksgiving or three there. I had a PBR and a shot of rail tequila (Nicole was curious about the bottle called 'Old Mexico'). At bar #6 for the day I was supposed to meet up with my friend Meredith and have dinner, then head to the Government Issue reunion show at the Black Cat, but I managed to combine the next stop on the bar crawl with dinner and we went to:


#42 - Magoo's
The bars are getting newer and the names are getting funnier. I'm not sure when Magoo's arrived on West Second Street. It might be very recently cause it doesn't show on google maps. We met up with Jon's brother Chris, who I hadn't seen in close to five years. We hung for a bit and then took off for DC.


#43 - Black Cat
The other music club in DC. I have been to many shows here, and even some at the old location down the block on 14th Street. Government Issue, a band that was around almost longer than i've been alive, played a reunion and benefit show. I have several drinks included the back bar and upstairs where the main stage sits. Ran into some friends from the scene and managed to hurt my ankle pretty severely, which has resulted in a lack of progress since last Saturday. Saturday - 11, which is 8 total bars in one day. Caught me right up.

Currently the progress stands at 43 bars in 48 days.

December 3 and 4

I've been sick so the progress is pretty slow right now. Possibly a Frederick bar crawl this Saturday, so I might be playing catch up. I am back filling a lot of photos, so make sure to check older posts for the full experience.


Interior shot of shelves of Grand Marnier coming soon.
#33 - One-Eyed Mike's
A cool, funky place less than a block from where I work. Self-proclaimed as the greatest Grand Marnier bar in the world it is just filled with bottles on every wall. One has the opportunity to buy a bottle and drink from it whenever you want (first bottle is something like $150). Our friend Tom had a bottle and we had some of his, as well as some from random folks that knew him. Good food as well. Friday December 3.




#34 - Phil's House
Before I started I made the requirements for inclusion on the list. One was either beer on tap or spirits. The exception was if anyone had a built-in bar in their house I would count it. So we played poker at my friend Phil's near Thurmont and sure enough he had one. So it counts. Yes, he's a big Jets fan with memorabilia everywhere. Saturday December 4.

Tuesday November 30 through Thursday 2

Back to Baltimore, hon


#28 - Field House
The foster was adopted Tuesday night, so I though i'd head out to celebrate. Since I was away for Thanksgiving I called Jon and he met me in Canton. Field House in the Can Company shopping center in the former Ray Lewis #52 Full Moon Barbecue place. Had a Dogfish and some wings and then headed over to the next spot. Boston Street - Tuesday.


#29 - Mahaffey's Pub
Just across Lakewood from the Safeway Mahaffey's is one of the true great beer bars in Baltimore. We found it one weekend when I was thirsty for a Chimay and it stocks the 5 authentic Belgian Trappist beers available in this country. They rotate their 15 taps, so there is always something new to try. They also do the 100 beers club, but we decided not to start that during this tour. Located on Dillon Street - Tuesday.


#30 - Looney's
A pretty typical Canton bro bar--part sports bar, part meat market, with an 'Irish' theme. We stopped in for a requisite Natty Boh and that was it. Jon managed to scam a Capitals cup for free, which made his night. Located on the square in Canton - Tuesday.


#31 - Bartender's
One of the regular stops on Wednesday night post run club. Sponsored a team in the Ausball league (coed social Australian Rules Football) for several years, and the post-match destination for some Coopers. Great food and some interesting beers (one of the first locations to have the Newcastle 'Summer Brew.' Had a North Coast Stout (which was excellent) and found out that it meant north coast of California, not the Cleveland area. I guess I was thinking about greyhound adoption. Location on Boston Street - Wednesday.


#32 - The Ottobar
One of the main music clubs in Baltimore, the Ottobar has been a regular destination for me for almost a decade. It moved from it's original location in the alley downtown near the Sidebar to a spot north of North Ave. H2O and wisdom in chains played and I had the requisite Boh. Random note, my band has played the Ottobar twice--once opening for Paul Bearer (of Sheer Terror) and his band Joe Coffee. Located on Howard Street - Thursday.

Friday November 26 and Saturday November 27

Should I change the name of the blog? I took a trip to the frozen tundra of Minnesota for Thanksgiving and took the opportunity to hit up a few local spots, with help from my friend Aimee. Photos credits to her, from her droid phone:

#23 Anchor Fish and Chips

A Gastropub with excellent fish and chips and a few beers on tap. We had to wait a bit in the cold doorway because the place was new and fairly popular. If I understood the waitress right, they serve wine in beakers from chemistry class. Pretty cool. Friday November 26.




#24 Tony Jaros' River Garden (home of the 'Greenie')

Tony Jaros
This was a cool dive bar (real dive, not a hipster one). The Greenie was a combination of liquors and a green kool-aid fluid combined with a powdery substance what looked like a hot chocolate packet. A real mix of crowd, some older and some younger, newer neighborhood residents. We didn't stay for a second Greenie, although we though about it. Friday November 26.






#25 Psycho Suzi's

I didn't plan it this way, but number 25 was one of the best stops so far. Suzi's is one of the places features on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. A cool Tiki Bar that just moved into a larger location. I asked the waitress to 'surprise me' with the drink and she brought back a coconut and a pineapple. I think mine has some sort of grain alcohol. There was a funky band features a guy playing vibes, and another with a large variety of jungle noises. Didn't get to order anything beer-battered with PBR this trip. Friday November 26.



Sazerac
#26 Donnie Dirk's Zombie Den

A themed bar with a hipster feel, we hit Donnie Dirk's last. Had a couple of drinks with absinthe while watching Day of the Dead (the original). The neighborhood has several gentleman's clubs and a place called the 'good' sports bar. Friday November 26.


#27 The Blue Door

Also featured on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, we went to the Blue Door for the Juicy Lucy. I had one with pepperjack cheese, naturally. I did managed to get cheese all over my hand clearly indicating me as a rookie. I had to take it easy because I leaving that night to return home. Saturday November 27.