Hey, I am in Albany, NY for a few days (bar exam), and I was hoping someone here would point me towards a good brewpub or beer bar I could hole up in for a few hours after I’m done with the exam.
Albany Pump Station is very nice and right downtown. Great beer and food when I was there a few years ago. It’s in a historic building that used to (and may still) have the machinery that pumped water from the river to the reservoir on the hill. Beers are brewed by an award winning brewer who used to post on HBD. Here’s the web site:
http://www.evansale.com/
I haven’t been there in a while but Mahar’s used to be awesome when I was in school there 10 years ago. Friends of mind still go there so I would assume its still good. Its one of those bars where if you drink enough different kind you get a mug on the wall. There a beers from all over the world.
GISBREWMASTER
Matt C.
Capital Q Smokehouse is also a great BBQ joint, check it out if you have a minute. 329 Ontario Street.
We had our honeymoon near Albany, went camping. That’s a great part of the state.
Tried going there for lunch. The open sign was up, but they were closed, for no apparent reason. I suspect their BBQ van will be selling pork sandwiches at the exam site, though.
Lame! We only went there for dinner, so I dunno about lunch. Try the truck, hope you like it!
I’ll be making an unexpected side trip to the Albany area this weekend. Any additions/changes to this list?
Well, Albany was fun. 
I went to Pump Station and was very disappointed. We got the sampler of all of the beers and there was a distinct house flavor to all of them - dirty dishwater. The only tolerable ones were the brown and pale ale, both were very hoppy and disguised the flavor. I had a nice glass of Blanton’s though.
The waiter said the brewer is a stickler for cleanliness, but my palate said otherwise. He also said the brewer is in the process of opening a new 30 bbl brewery, which may explain the problem.
Not far from there is a place that opened up 10 months ago, called The Olde English Pub. They had a bunch of standard English beers (Fullers and such) plus some from Wandering Star Brewery in Mass. The mild was excellent, I had my share of that beer. Wish we’d gone there first.
Wow, I was there last year and it wasn’t too bad. Kinda enjoyed the Brown. Hope they get their act together!