Dirty Water

Review of Indian Ladder Farms

This review is for the brewery and cidery that ILF...

This review is for the brewery and cidery that ILF apparently threw together overnight, or that's what it looked and felt like anyway. I was very disappointed in the ambiance and the drinks. I felt like I was in a frat house basement with the cheap party lights hanging above some tables and the mixed bag of music that ranged from 70's punk to a full orchestra. I wasn't impressed by the two drinks I got either. There doesn't seem to be a flagship drink, a solid cider or beer that can carry the brand. It was all very eclectic with drinks such as the orange and chocolate stout and sour ales. I ordered the most normal sounding cider; The Seckel Solution, which turned out to be too tart and too dry, borderline sour. Not green apple sour. Spoiled sour. After that, I tried to recover with the Dr. Paul Matthews IPA, which was worse. It was so dank it tasted like a skunk rolled around in marijuana. I should've known it was going to taste bad when I read it was a collaboration with C.H. Evans Brewing (Albany Pump Station). C.H. Evans beer is undrinkable beer in my opinion. They need to go back to beer school. Anyway, the IPA was very off-putting and I seriously thought I was going to have a stomachache from drinking it. Behind the bar is very unkempt and messy with exposed plumbing, pitchers set up to catch dripping taps, papers and misc. crap just laying around. I know this place is new and they're still tying up loose ends and everything but maybe a couple more months of planning and money put into the place would have served it better. It all looks very thrown together. It needs some direction as to what it is going to be because it is cheap looking. I write this review because I was embarrassed when my friends arrived and saw what I'd been "raving" about. I had been telling them we needed to check out ILF brewery, expecting a rustic atmosphere and tasty craft beer. What we got was bad beer in a dark basement with crappy music. Let me know when your "tasting room" doesn't feel like a frat house basement. Otherwise, I won't be back. Sorry for the harsh review but that was hands down the worst brewery experience I've ever had.