A beer experience I'm not having

I had planned after this weekend to tell you all about the fun and beer I'd had at one of my favorite places, the Flying Saucer Draught Emporium in Memphis. Jacksonville State (my wife and I are alumni and fans of the Gamecocks) is playing at the Univ. of Memphis tomorrow, and we'd planned to go, combining the trip with a good deal of time in downtown. We decided last night to cancel the trip, though ... been on the road too many Saturdays of late, and we could use a quiet weekend at home.

But I've still gotta tell you about the Flying Saucer. We found it in 2004 when we took a trip to Memphis. Having wandered up and down Beale Street and done about everything there was to do there, we were looking for somewhere different to have lunch. We'd passed the Saucer on the way to and from our hotel, and decided to give it a shot. When I walked through the door and saw the dozens of taps on the wall behind the bar, I knew it would be hard to get me out of there. What I didn't expect was how much my Mrs., who doesn't dig beer, would like the place.

The beer selection was the best I'd seen anywhere up to that point, and the service was excellent. We wound up going back for dinner the next night, and watched a game of the NLCS between St. Louis and Houston. We also went back after a lousy dinner elsewhere later that week, and watched some more baseball. The food was excellent, especially the bratwurst plate I had for dinner, and the meat and cheese snack tray we ate at the bar our second night there. The Mrs. even found a beer she liked (a first), sampling a glass of Abita Purple Haze.

I'm normally a fan of local flavor over chain joints, but while the Saucer is a chain it's not exactly a corporate giant. I won't be drinking there this weekend, but I'm looking forward to my next visit to Memphis, whenever that may be.