Drink It In, Nashville! Stop 4: Boscos - The Restaurant for Beer Lovers

nashvillefeed.com

Boscos has long been an anchor to Nashville’s urban hip Hillsboro Village neighborhood. It has become an expected stop for any thirsty beer snob visiting or residing within the Nashville city limits.

The area also hosts other bars/restaurants, varied shops, and a great independent theatre.

These few blocks promote walking amongst the various establishments to the point that it is one of few locales where one can consistently expect pedestrian traffic. Nashville natives, and residents of the surrounding suburbs/exurbs, may be intimidated by the perceived lack of parking in the area. But anyone who has spent time in western or northern cities, those not quite so infected with the suburban sprawl virus, finds parking hardly challenging in the Village. If anything, it promotes a welcome oasis of foot and bicycle traffic within an otherwise motorized commuter city.

While in Hillsboro Village, one might be fooled into thinking that Nashville is an honest city drawn from a similar blueprint as Seattle, New Orleans, or D.C.

Boscos is an immoveable part of the feel of this neighborhood. It is removed enough from downtown to avoid a serious tourist infestation and promote an honest representation of Nashville. On the night that we visited, Georgia fans swarmed over Blackstone following the game, while the local Vanderbilt supporters found their way to Boscos.
Inside the front door is a forward bar that is friendly to regulars, strengthening its ties to the Village. This area frequently becomes overrun by Vandy folk, but most locals know what times hold the best chance to secure a barstool.

This small bar space is for the beer lovers. Much of the rest of the building’s square footage is dedicated to diners. Unfortunately, due to the size of our group, we were pushed back to that dining space.

On the upside, our wait was almost nothing. This may have been due to the fact that a few within our party had connections with the manager on duty. Or maybe this manager had been pre-warned of the power wielded by a Nashville Feed reporter.

It was probably due to the connections, since most everyone knows that a Nashville Feed reporter has little to no power.

Unfortunately, our party had lost a few expected voices on our panel to the comforts of their homes. Gone were the odd observations of Mark Lemley and invented adjectives of Tasha French. We had also lost the unpredictable words of Kristin Bresowar. Gone with her was her husband, J.J. He had been our leading beer connoisseur (and chastiser of Bud drinkers as “monkeys and construction slaves”).

In the panel’s favor, we had gained a few new voices with some beer knowledge. To make our last stop still more interesting, everyone was now registering themselves as feeling pleasantly buzzed or a bit crazy with judgment nicely impaired.

This impairment may or may not have worked in Boscos favor.

It’s difficult to get people to focus when they are under the influence. In my own muddled state, I had some difficulty reminding the panel members to fill out their ballots, comment on their ballots, and give the fuckin’ ballots to me!

Most were quite interested in drinking beer at this point, however. They just didn’t want to be bothered with registering their thoughts about said beer.

Our loopy panel declined to order a sampler tray, as they had at previous stops. Instead, they gravitated towards the seasonal ales on tap. Most had already established some familiarity with Boscos’ consistent offerings. They wanted to sample something new and adventurous.

This experimentation met with some tasty results, but, as with any risk, it also met with some disappointment.
A few members of our panel completely opted out of drinking. This small minority preferred the dessert menu to the beer menu. Peer pressure and half assed efforts at shunning didn’t get them to drink with the cool kids. But there were no ballots cast for the ice cream. I would not allow the integrity of our survey to be tainted by the delectable sweets of any venue.

As with Nashville’s other brewpubs, Boscos felt compelled to offer an Oktoberfest of their own making. This was sampled widely within our group, and it was well received. It was, by a solid 26 points, the preferred Oktoberfest of the night.

Mike’s Rye Not, however, was not well liked. It actually evoked distaste amongst the samplers. This seasonal landed a noticeable F on an otherwise impressive report card. It landed itself in the midst of Big River scores.

Bosco's Beer Rating

Fortunately, the other brews compensated nicely for their deformed bastard brother.

The Isle of Skye Scottish, the only non-seasonal offering on our chart, brought in the highest score of the night.

Again, this may have been owed to our combined blood alcohol level. But I would have to say, having sampled this beer before and since, that the Scottish is a damn fine brew. On the verge of magical, in fact.

Also representing Boscos well is the appropriately named Hop God. If our own Lauren Orr, aliased Hop Goddess, could enter into some sinful relationship of a holy nature with the Hop God, she likely would.

IPA enthusiasts throughout Davidson County, should allow themselves an opportunity to sample a Boscos Hop God. It may make one question his or her current religion.

A healthy stout in the spirit of California (read: Sierra Nevada) dark ales also pulls in points for Boscos.
While this list is admittedly limited and may not be an accurate representation of all Boscos beers, it does attest to a commitment to crafting fine beers. Fans of well-done ales should feel comfortable sampling anything on the Boscos beer menu, with the possible exception of that Rye Not crap.

Check back on Thursday for the final word on where the best drinking in Nashville is to be had.

From the panel:

American Style Stout
“This is a decent stout. Strong espresso background. I’m generally not a fan of stouts, but this one is tasty…would I reorder? Prob[ably] not.” –Jamie Ray
Mike’s Rye Not
“I’ll tell you rye not, because it has a bit of a soapy aftertaste. It’s not bad, but it’s not something I would pay money for.” –Lauren Orr, a.k.a. Hop Goddess
“Maybe it’s just me, but…yuck. Tastes like licorice and I hate licorice. There is nothing good about Good ‘n’ Plenty.” –Jamie Ray
Hop God
“Good and hoppy, like a bunny hopping through a carrot field or a kangaroo about to get laid in the outback. The word jump’s got nothing on the Hop God. If you have no taste buds, you might be able to taste this.” –Lauren Orr, a.k.a. Hop Goddess
Oktoberfest
“Great beer with a taste of maple-syrup finish. Best breakfast I’ve had all day.” –Chip Greene
“This (to me) is much better than Blackstone’s. Very nice finish. Aunt J. would be proud.” –Jamie Ray (Author’s note: I do not know who the hell Aunt J. is or why she would be proud).