*This is the one-hundred and thirty-seventh post in an on-going chronicle dubbed the Great Wisconsin Brewery Tour. Follow the journey here.*
Rail House Restaurant & Brew Pub
2029 Old Peshtigo Rd
Marinette, WI 54143
(715) 732-4646
Visit date: 11/18/2017
Quick Hits:
1) How many different beers?
15 of their own on tap.
2) How long operational?
Started in 1995, in current building since 1997.
3) Why? (here, this, etc)
Current owners were in the restaurant business and bought it from founders.
4) Distribution?
None currently, future plans to expand.
5) What sets you apart?
“Amount and quality of beer.”
6) How did you get your name?
Train tracks run behind the building.
Rail House Restaurant & Brew Pub in Marinette, WI. All photos by Joe Powell for The Squeaky Curd.
About a five-minute drive from the Upper Michigan border and situated upon the railroad tracks that carry lumber from this part of the state to the rest of the world, the Rail House Restaurant & Brew Pub has been quietly carrying on the Wisconsin tradition of brewing beer for over two decades.
Looming just beyond the reaches of downtown Marinette, Rail House’s separate dining area and pub/bar space seem large enough to fit most of the town’s 10,000 folks.
Indeed, even though we arrived at opening hour on a Saturday morning, the locals promptly swarmed and filled the place along with us. A few cold beers made the welcome warm.
Blonde Ale
Citrus, lemon-forward. Juicy, and leaves a malty mouthfeel behind.
Honeyweisse Golden Honey Ale
Features a more rustic, hearty honey taste than expected. Light-drinking.
Caramel Cream Amber Larger
Oh yeah; a smile-inducing caramel taste. Crowd-pleaser.
Irish Red
Toasted malt, a lingering rusty nuttiness.
Dubbel Belgian Ale
A nice balance of unique spices. Sweet toffee, warming breadiness.
Scottish Ale
An eye-opener. The present smokiness surprised me, but the mellowed hops at the end smoothed it all out.
Silver Cream Lager
Very creamy, very smooth, very enticing. I kept going back to this one.
Nutty Brown Ale
Quite nutty: almonds, pistachios, peanuts. An interesting beer, to be sure.
Taking full advantage of the “restaurant” portion of Rail House’s name, the fresh, melty-goodness of a piping hot homemade pizza was the perfect complement to our beer flight.
Though their brewing setup is small and their location just about as north as one could go and still be in the Badger State, Rail House Restaurant & Brew Pub seems quite content with catering their large beer selection and family-styled food to the tastes of Marinette locals and the odd beer travelers. Two decades of success proves it’s a lasting formula.
