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Amber and I had dinner and a few beers at Ebenezer’s in Lovell last night. As promised, here are my thoughts on the pub, the drive out there, and, most importantly, the beer. First, starting with the drive (about 50 miles from our apartment in Portland), we were struck by the beauty of the lakes region. We’ve not really explored the Sebago Lake area much at all, but the lake itself, especially near the causeway in Bridgton, and the mountain views as we got closer to New Hampshire were breathtaking. 50 miles is a long way to drive for a beer, but this drive is worth it in and of itself.

The pub itself is actually on a golf course in Lovell. As you drive up Rte. 5, there is a tiny little sign telling you to take a left, and then you go down a tiny road skirting the course to find what looks like a big wooden barn with a Belgian flag hanging from it. That’s the pub. This is western Maine, so it’s not nearly as trendy and touristy as the sea coast. Take a look for yourself:

With the Belgian Festival going on, it took us maybe 20 minutes to get a table, out on the porch. That gave me plenty of time to select and drink my first beer of the night, a Val Dieu Triple. After we were seated, we ordered a salad to split, another beer for me, and two steaks. Unfortunately, while the beer was great, the service was not, at first. Our server was very busy with probably double their usual crowd, so we waited quite a while for our salad. Fortunately, some reinforcements arrived, and we got a second server who was much more attentive and lots of fun to chat with. The meal itself with average, with the steaks being a little tough and having a bit more grizzle than we’d hoped. The Belgian frites were pretty good, and the homemade mayonaise to dip them in was fabulous, but the meal as a whole was unremarkable.

You do not, however, go to Ebenezer’s for the food. You go for the beer. And let me tell you, when Jan said that it was worth the trip, he was being modest. Any beer lover in New England simply must make a pilgrimage to this pub. It’s tiny (see below), it’s got a nice towny vibe, and the beer…oh my God, the beer. I’ll have to check back again when the Belgian Fest is not going on, but the beers Chris put together for this week are fabulous. I love Eric Michaud’s Novare Res, but the beer selection Chris managed to put up for the whole week, on tap, blows it away.

I managed to try seven different beers (well, six beers, with a mini-vertical of the last). With just one exception, they were excellent. The outlier was pretty good too, but given the competition it had, it just didn’t hold up. So, without further ado, here is the list and my thoughts on each.

Don’t Miss These

• Val Dieu Triple - A very sweet, floral trippel with a nice spicy finish. Perhaps a hint of anise in there, this one was a great start to the night.
• De Dolle Mad Bitch - Another trippel with a wonderful, dry finish. This one was a little tart, with a pleasant hopping to balance the sugars.
• Het Kappitel Abt - The night’s only quad (it’s hard when all of the beers you’re drinking are 9% or better), this one was a lovely mix of flavors. Good sweetness, and a yeast that I couldn’t figure out.
• Marriage Parfait - The last keg on earth of this one, according to Chris. This one tasted a bit like a Flemish sour ale. Not sure which Lambics were used to make this blend, but the flavor was quite interesting. I loved the very tart finish.
• Stille Nacht 2006 and 2007 - Ashley brought out a mini-vertical of this Winter beer. The 2007 was nice, with a flavor that reminds me of a barleywine. The 2006, however, was a totally different beast. The grains in here were very assertive and the hopping had subsided a bit. A wonderful opportunity to compare two vintages, these two should not be missed if you can get up to Lovell this weekend.

Worth Trying

• De Glazen Triple - This one is a good beer, but the finish was off for me. The only thing I could come up with was that it reminded me a bit of the smell of cigarrette butts. It’s not offensive or anything, but it just didn’t fit. I’d certainly get this one again if given the chance, but it was not as good as the beers listed above.

So, there you have it. The Ebenezer’s experience is one that all beer geeks should seek out. I’d love to go hang out at the bar on a quiet weeknight and chat with Chris about beer. I’m going to try to talk Amber into vacationing out in Bridgton or the like next summer so we’re within easy biking distance. This was worth every one of the 100 miles we drove to get there and back. And my De Struise tulip glass will look great in my beerware collection.