Oaken Barrel

Basics

50 North Airport Parkway
Greenwood
317-.887-2287

3/4 mile west of I-65 exit 99 on Main St.

Web site
email

Opened 1994
7bbl system that has been expanded over the years.
Founding Brewer: Brook Belli.
Head Brewer: Mark Havens
Assistant: Andrew Castner

Casual dress. Dining area has a full bar. The attached "Brewhouse" bar separates out the game watchers.

Pizza, Sandwiches, and dinner entrees.

Seats 150 plus a biergarten.
Reservations suggested for evening meals.
Private room available.
Must be 21 to enter Brewhouse Pub.

Awards

Great American Beer Festival
2005 - Silver - Alabaster White Ale
1997 - Silver - Meridian Street Lager (Muenchner Helles style)

Indiana State Fair
2007 - Silver - Epiphany Belgian Tripel
2006 - Champion Brewer
2006 - Best of Show - Uberweizen
2006 - Gold - Dubliner Irish Stout
2006 - Silver - Gnaw Bone Pale Ale
2005 - Champion Brewer
2005 - Gold - Indiana Amber Ale
2005 - Gold - Maibock
2005 - Gold - Alabaster Witbier
2005 - Silver - Gnaw Bone Pale Ale
2005 - Silver - Indiana Amber
2005 - Silver - Oaken Barrel Saison
2005 - Silver - Oaken Barrel Tripel
2004 - Gold - Gnaw Bone Pale Ale
2004 - Gold - Oaken Barrel Tripel
2004 - Silver - Irish Gold
2004 - Silver - Oaken Barrel Alt Bier
2004 - Silver - Snakepit Porter
2004 - Silver - Alabaster White Ale
2003 - Gold - Gnaw Bone Pale Ale
2003 - Silver - Old Gnarly Barley Wine
2003 - Silver - Snake Pit Porter
2003 - Silver - King Rudi Hefeweizen
2002 - Gold - Oaken Barrel Prime (California Common beer)
2002 - Silver - Gnaw Bone Pale Ale
2002 - Silver - Indiana Amber
2001 - Best of Show - Meridian Street Lager (Muenchner Helles style)
2001 - Silver - Indiana Amber
2000 - Best of Show - Gnaw Bone Pale Ale

Indianapolis Monthly
2005 - Critics Choice - Best Brewpub in Indy

 

Suitability factors:
Sitting at the bar	Mostly quiet at the main bar. Brewhouse is open evenings.
On a date	A great stop before the One Liners Comedy Club (in the same strip mall).
Out with the guys	Catch a game at the Brewhouse..
Business dinner	Suitably fancy. Convenient private room for larger dinners.

Representative Beer Menu

			ABV
Indiana Amber	English amber with adequate hops for balance without overpowering. Some caramel sweetness. Found in area restaurants.		5.5%
Snake Pit Porter	Chewy, roasty porter with chocolate, crystal, and black malts. Cordovan leather color. Smooth and balanced.		6.0%
Gnaw Bone Pale Ale	Hop head quality American pale ale. Cascades enough to melt the enamel on your teeth.		5.5%
Razz-Wheat	One of the first of the now-ubiquitous brewpub raspberry wheat beers. Theirs is still one of the best and most successful. It has a clean flavor that is still sweet but not strong of berry. Found in area restaurants.		5.0%
Meridian Street Premium Lager	German-style lager aimed at Budmillercoors converts. No sharp edges.		4.5%
Leroy Brown	"Dark Honey Ale". Smooth. Made with clover honey and some bit of sweet comes through.		6.0%
King Rudi (seasonal)	Summer seasonal. Unfiltered (hefe) German wheat (weiss) beer. Spicy with banana and tart vanilla notes. Not as strong on the tongue as many brewpub hefes.		5.9%

$3.25 per pint.
$9.95 per pitcher

Sampler tray of 5 is $4

Growlers (1/2 gallon): $12. Refills are $8.

They have a handpump for cask-conditioned ale but seldom use it.

Amber, Porter, Pale, Razz, and Meridian Street are found in bottles in most good liquor stores in Indiana. store finder

Victory Field Amber is available at the Indian's games. Go to the main concession area behind home plate.

Seasonals are moving more to the edges of beer's range. For example, these seasonals were available in the fall of 2003.

• IPA - really on the edge of a SN Celebration at 6.6% with three northwest hops.
• The Winter White is a Belgian Wit (very popular this year all over Indiana). 5.9% with some holiday spices in addition to the coriander and orange peel. Ken wants you to come down and identify the spices for yourself. "It's a little stronger than a typical wit - the warming result of another secret holiday twist."
• A Tripel at deceptive 9.4% abv thanks to high attenuation. Lot's of fruity esters and malt character, warming - but with little alcohol flavor.
• Harvest Pilsner - lightly hoppy and pleasant.
• Every October they brew a batch of Apple Buzz. Crisp, tart, tangy, cidery, cloudy, beerish concoction that is just this side of illegal in Indiana. It's part malt, part honey, and part apple cider, all mashed together and fermented up in one big vat. Lots of mouthfeel with a cidery start and almost no aftertaste.
  Oh, that "almost illegal" part? Breweries in Indiana can't make cider or mead, they have to use a malted barley base.

Representative Food Menu