SCRANTON, PENNSYLVANIA

Scranton’s MUTANT BREWING opened its glass doors for biz in July ’23, promising to ‘take a walk on the wild side’ with deviously unconventional one-offs and fruitful sour ales as well as standard pilsner-lagers. A centrally located downtown pub with a brown awning leading to the novel tech-friendly art space, its centuries-old red brick terra cotta tiled bar back adds a charming pre-Prohibition feel to the freaky comic bookstore scheme.

A series of vibrant mutant goblins line the right wall and the black ceiling provides proper art deco atmosphere. Several pinball machines and arcade games are just down from the narrow pub’s elongated thirty-stooled stainless steel topped bar. A few community tables are stationed across the bar. A few mules, a margarita and local wines filled out the bill. Two TV’s surround the Mutant beer menu and Detroit-styled pizzas are recommended.

My wife and I visited the colorfully cartoonish beer arcade on a sunny Friday afternoon, June ’24.

Quaint aluminum-cleared Blockchain Bro Light Lager retained dry lemony white grapefruit spritz and light piney herbage atop musky graining.

Spritzy lime-peeled dryness and sweet agave snips stayed light and lively for Tulum Girl Mexican Lime Lager.

Mild maple molasses sweetness contrasted dry cocoa for Verified Czech Dark Lager, leaving desolate caramel-burnt cola, pecan and hazelnut illusions upon the seared wood backdrop.

Spectral wonder, Weekend Bender Grapefruit IPA, mixed yellow grapefruit-spiced Mosaic hops and lemon-candied pine needling (primarily Cascade hops) with guava-soured Mandarina Bavaria hops, creating a (marshmallowy) ambrosia fruitiness above lightly creamed oated wheat.

Classic hazy IPA flagship, Serum, a briskly light yellow-hazed, foamy white-headed moderation (not as bold or spectral as an typical oatier NEIPA), led its soft pine-needled yellow grapefruit bittering thru grassy hop astringency, picking up distant briny lemon, guava and mango snips.