Hidden Treasures: Ottumwa, Iowa

One might look at the above title and wonder where the hell Ottumwa, Iowa is. It is a valid inquiry, it doesn't readily appear on google maps and a reality show has not been filmed there yet.  For the record it is a small town about two hours south of Des Moines far away from the I 80 corridor.  Right of the main drag through the old downtown area stuck in an old beer distribution warehouse is Appanoose Rapids Brewing Company.   

Before I get too far into this post, I do want to give a little space to the State of Iowa and the Iowa Wine and Beer Promotion board.  They seem to have committed themselves to making information about the state's  breweries and wineries easy to find, and have beer by and large successful.   Brochures and maps are readily available throughout hotels, rest areas and other travel information booths and their website, www.iowawineandbeer.com, is more or less a one stop for all relevant information. 

It took me a few passes to finally fine the building.  The entrance isn't terribly well marked and is kind of stuck in a small corner at the end of the block.  Once I found it, I was impressed.  The interior is really cool, it has an old saloon feel to it.  Near the front door there are two old Aheuser Busch mosaic signs that have apparently been around since the 1800s when the building was a distribution center for the company.
"Nobody knew they were there," the bartender told me, "They were hidden behind a stack of wood when the owners first bought the place.  It was a neat little surprise."

The beer selection here is pretty basic.  At any given time they have three beers on tap, but on the day of my visit they only had two due to some equipment problems.

Appanoose Brown Ale

Appanoose Brown Ale: No detectable aroma.  Flavor is primarily malt with a raisin or dark fruit flavor.  It's very sweet with only the slightest hint of hops in the back of the palate. It's fairly light in body with a fizzy mouthfeel.

Appanoose Stout: The color of this beer looks more like a really dark brown than a pure black.  It has a strange, but very nice aroma that made me think of olives.  The flavor is very sweet and defiantly unique, I picked up notes of raisin, caramel and vanilla.  Nice creamy mouthfeel.