It is a tap room, plain and simple, so don't expect a sandwich or something fancier. However, you will get pretzels served in dog bowls, an homage to the brewery's best-selling beer called "Laughing Lab."

I just wish the shuffleboard table was easier to get on, and I wish it were open later. However, it's a great place to have a few pints and get a growler fill.

Bristol had about 10 beers on tap at the time of our visit (7/2/05). This place was really an extended tasting room off the brewery that almost had a bar feel to it. There was quite a bit of traffic from folks looking to pick-up beer (lots of cyclists - which is very odd to us Minnesotans), which told us that this place was certainly a local favorite. The staff were very friendly and helpful and we found the dog-dishes filled with pretzels to be amusing. But on to the beer...

I didn't quite rate any of the beers with 5 out of 5, but that is pretty rare anyway. That being said, I found a couple of 4.5/5 (yeah, what a pussy I am - I can't commit to anything). My two favorites were Beehive (4.5/5 - my wife described it, "tastes like 'a good day at the brewery' smell" - I'm not sure what that means, but I seconded the thought) and Laughing Lab (4.5/5 - had a great mix of hoppy and grainy aromas).

Other favorites (4/5) included Small Beer (2nd boil of a barley wine, tasted much hoppier than the 34 IBU's indicated), New World IPA (big IPA but not too overpowering), and Edge City IPA (yeah, these folks like their hops).

The Mass Transit (3/5) was smooth but lacked in flavor. Red Rocket (3.5/5) had a pleasant hoppy flavor but, again, was a little light on the flavor. Old 23 (unrated for some reason) was a 57 IBU (I think - my notes are smuged) barley wine which, to me, wasn't quite as sharp and overpowering as many barley wines are. Old World IPA (2/5) was a bit too overpowering on the hop side. For some reason, I have no notes on the Nitro IPA.

Lab is the signature brew and a classic, but be sure to try any of the small batch specialties, Edge City, or Skull and Bones series (especially the merlot stout and the Old World IPA). Old No. 23 (barley wine) is worthy of a sample as well as the Saison (similar to, but better than (IMO) New Belgiums Trippel(which is a bit to floral for my taste)).

Their Beehive honey wheat is one of the few "honey" wheats that actually tastes like a hefe. Normally when a brewery does something like this it's their excuse to offer a tasteless lighter beer (ala blonde).

Laughing Lab is excellent, Red Rocket has got wonderful hops countered with a slightly grainy malt mouthfeel - also excellent.