GRANBY, CONNECTICUT
In a freestanding gray colonial edifice in the rural northern Connecticut town of Granby lies a reliable upscale sportsbar with a fine rotating house beer selection and respectable pub fare. Opened in 2005, CAMBRIDGE HOUSE was originally journeyed by my wife and I in January 2012 during a two-hour afternoon lunch stint.
Entering the sylvan two-storied restaurant-brewery through the back deck rear entrance, a silver-clad painted stallion welcomes patrons to the mid-sized mahogany-furnished first floor space. A rectangular bar (fronting glass-encased brew kettles) serves left side and rear tables as well as the outer perimeter dining area of the attractive public house. Several TV’s surrounding the bar offer full-time sports coverage. I munched on the Cobb salad with bleu cheese and my wife, Karen, chose the Tomato Florentine pizza. It’s worth noting that over 50 different house beers have been served since Cambridge House originated. And there were six available on my visit.
On the light side, Copper Hill Kolsch retained a crisply clean light-spiced yellow fruiting, straw maize dryness and carbolic Seltzer fizz. Though recommended to lite beer fanatics, all others should skip this and proceed directly to the better options.
A generous dried fruiting eased into the next four offerings. Glass-sugared fig spicing and earthen gourd gripped trusty ESB. Apple-spiced sugared fig overlaid the sour nuttiness sidling Pigskin Brown. Stewed prune, dried cherry and sugar plum embossed Farmer’s Daughter, a fruit-wined Biere De Garde worth a second look. Fig-soured green raisin and hop-roasted chocolate spicing enveloped Ominous Forecast, a veritable schwarzbier.
Another interesting libation was Stonehenge, an English strong ale gathering peat moss, cola nut, red grape, sweet potato and smoked malt illusions.