A few weeks back at Hopfest both Shilling and I, Stoutmeister, were surprised by the appearance of the Sandia Chile Grill. First off, we had never heard of it, and secondly, we had heard nothing about such a place brewing its own beer. Intrigued, and backed by the recommendation of a friend who worked at Marble, we checked it out and were duly impressed by both the Smoked Milk Stout and IPA they had on tap.

After waiting far too long, E-Rock and I headed over there on Thursday, accompanied by the Professor Emeritus and our friend Lea. After all, the Professor pointed out: “I could walk to this place!” Located in the shopping center on the northeast corner of Wyoming and San Antonio, the Sandia Chile Grill is near a McDonald’s, a Walgreen’s, and a Sports and Wellness. Some people even came in, fresh off their workouts, to dine on the food. We will leave the food reviews up to the critics; we came for the beer, darn it, and it was darn good.

Head brewer Mick “Mickey C” Coker was on hand to chat with us. He told us that the brewery portion of the small restaurant opened on July 1. It would have been a month sooner, but since all small brewer’s licenses are from July 1 to June 30, and there is no such thing as a pro-rated payment in the eyes of the State of New Mexico, he waited right until he could just get his 2012-13 permit in place.

They currently have four beers on tap, the aforementioned smoked milk stout and IPA, plus an Irish red and a hefeweizen (which is more of a classic hefe, rather than the honey wheat listed on the menu; Mick said this was due to wanting to respect the more traditional German brewing process with Oktoberfest season upon us). Between the four of us we easily tried all four beers. The Professor and I went with the Irish red first and the stout second (like father, like son, of course). Lea went with the IPA only, while E-Rock started with the stout and then went to the hefe (he likes to be different).

Mick is working on an amber ale and a double pilsner, plus he said he plans to tweak the next batch of IPA to increase the flavor potency, as ABQ-area IPAs usually carry with them a greater hop-bite. I was perfectly fine with the IPA the way it was; it had a maltiness to it that is more characteristic of an English-style IPA. Shilling loved this beer at Hopfest, but ultimately we are just two bloggers, and the masses have spoken each year at the IPA Challenge with a desire for the more hops, the better. Crazy Burquenos …

Anyway, I will let E-Rock review the hefeweizen: “The hefeweizen was so opaque it looked like eggnog. It’s always nice to find a hefe that you can’t see through. As for the taste, this hefe was sweet with hints of banana. I would call this a classic hefe in every sense. I definitely recommend the hefeweizen for the hefe connoisseur.”

As for the Irish red, this was an exceptionally smooth but flavorful beer, with those little caramel hints that you get in a maltier red ale (as opposed to the popular hoppy-style red, like Marble’s). It is very comparable to the Irish red at Il Vicino. If you want to set your palate, rather than sock it with strong flavors right off the bat, then go with the red. I am not sure it would survive the stronger-flavored food at the Grill, but what do I know, I am just an Anglo-Saxon/Slavic hybrid whose ancestors did not know the meaning of “spicy.”

Then there was the smoked milk stout. Now, most stouts lean either toward the smoky, snappier zone, or they go with the creamier, super-smooth variety. This stout is both, and what a delightful hybrid they have created. The first few sips are powerful at the forefront, with the smoky elements, almost a mesquite flavor, snapping away at you. Then it settles down and has a smooth, slightly creamy finish. After adjusting to the initial bite, the beer just smooths out and becomes extremely drinkable (at least for those of us who love our beers as black as night).

E-Rock tried it, too, so I’ll let him add his thoughts: “The smoky taste is very evident in this beer. It is smooth, but I probably wouldn’t call it a milk stout in blind taste test.”

All in all, the Sandia Chile Grill is a hidden gem of a nanobrewery. We look forward to going back to try the amber and the double pilsner when they are available. And we hope the stout never, ever leaves the regular rotation. So the next time you are in the far NE Heights, you do not have to go thirsty for good craft beer!

Cheers!

— Stoutmeister