Tattered Flag Brewery - Harrisburg, PA

Date of dining experience: March 5, 2019

Place: Tattered Flag Brewery & Still Works

Location: 1 S. Union St. in Middletown, PA

Appetizer 1: Squeaky Cheese ($9) - Breaded Wisconsin cheddar cheese curds served with Tattered Flag vodka sauce. These were very good and the vodka sauce was even better!

Appetizer 2: Brewers Nacho Basket ($10) - Tri-color corn tortillas topped with beer cheese, beer-braised pork, tomato, green onion, and sour cream. This is always a delicious dish, but don't let it sit too long as the chips can get quite soggy.

Taco Tuesday: Chicken Taco ($2) - Honestly, one of the best tacos I have ever eaten! It was so simple, yet so good. The shredded chicken was fresh, tender, and very flavorful. Top it with just a little bit of lettuce and cheese, served with a few chips and some salsa and sour cream, and you have a great taco! Audry had the fish taco and said it was very good as well, even though it was a bit spicy.

Entree: Alligator Gumbo - This dish was on the featured menu, so you better hurry in if you want to try it! While not quite as spicy as I would have liked for a gumbo to be, it was still very tasty and really hit the spot for a New Orleans Fat Tuesday type of meal.

Draft Beer Samples (not in any specific order) - My top three favorites in order are #5, #8, and #1:

1. Tattered Flag Because I Was Inverted (Mango) - IPA - Milkshake - 6.6% ABV
   This beer was conditioned with 300 pounds of mangoes and loads of Tahitian vanilla beans.
2. Tattered Flag Teutonic Knight Hefeweizen - Hefeweizen - 5.4% ABV
   Unfiltered and hazy with heavy notes of banana balance well with the Hallertau and Tettnang hops.
3. Tattered Flag Silent Professional - Charlie - IPA - New England - 8.2% ABV
   A complex IPA hopped aggressively with simcoe and ekuanot.
4. Tattered Flag Fatum Blackberry Lactose Sour - Sour - Fruited - 6.1% ABV
   This lactose sour ale has 300 pounds of blackberries added to it.
5. Tattered Flag Alive Day (2019) - IPA - American - 6.5% ABV
   Hopped with Idaho 7 and Denali, this NEIPA has a hint of vanilla from the Tahitian vanilla beans it was conditioned upon.
6. Tattered Flag Blue Raider Kolsch - Kolsch - 5.2% ABV
   This golden color German ale is designed to be easy drinking. This Kolsch has a touch of Huell Melon hops for a crisp, clean finish.
7. Tattered Flag TMI PA - IPA - American - 6.5% ABV
   IPA, generously hopped with Falconers Flight hops. Juicy, dank, hoppy, awesome. 
8. MIX: Half #5 and half #1 - Very delicious!
   I'm really glad they allowed me to mix two beers. The vanilla bean IPA mixed very well with the fruity mango IPA milkshake. 

Live Music: Bourbon Street Band - Being Fat Tuesday, the brewery had a live New Orleans style band and plenty of Mardi Gras decorations. The music was very good, but this is also my favorite style of music, so there may be a little bias there. To top it off, the singer did a really good Louis Armstrong impression at times. I would definitely listen to this band again!

Reason for Going: Audry and I decided to go here over our spring break to participate in the Paint Night, where you are lead through the process of painting a piece of art. We used the company Yaymaker and our painting was called "Tranquility and Balance On A Rainy Day." It was such a fun experience that we will definitely be doing it again, so I highly recommend trying out one for yourself! We decided to go early to have dinner at the same place beforehand and are very glad we did!

This was an amazing dining experience with everything you would hope for with a night out. It had live music, a fun atmosphere, excellent service, great food, plenty of draft beer options, a very enjoyable experience in the Paint Night, etc. I highly recommend both this location and participating in a Paint Night, especially if you have never done one and would like to try something new. Whether you try one or both, let me know what you think. Enjoy!