In honor of the 88th annual Chincoteague Pony Swim, scheduled for Wednesday, July 24, I offer the Eastern Shore Brewery Round-Up – a four-post series highlighting breweries on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.

When I went to Pocomoke in late June for my 25-Year Class Reunion, I planned the trip across the Bay so that we would be ready for lunch as we passed through Salisbury, home of Evolution Craft Brewing Company.

This was my second visit to the Evo Public House in 2013, and it is quickly becoming one of my favorite brewpubs. It’s the perfect pit stop on the three-hour drive from Kensington to Pocomoke — awesome food menu, great beer selection, and growlers to-go with a laid back Eastern Shore vibe.

I ordered a four-beer sampler rack to help with my growler decisions:

• Summer Session, a a light, refreshing, unfiltered Summer Ale (4.6%)
• Primal Pale Ale, a smooth, clean, and drinkable Pale Ale (5.0%)
• Lucky 7 Porter, this rich, full-flavored Porter is an excellent interpretation of the style (5.8%)
• Lot #3 IPA, a solid and strong American-style IPA (6.8%)

I also had a snifter of Natural Selection: Genus One (7.6%), a strong and smooth brown ale brewed in collaboration with Frederick, Maryland’s Flying Dog Brewery. Evo describes it as a deep brown stock ale with tremendous depth of malt character that uses black and chocolate rye malts to provide a smooth dark malt character.

After lunch, I walked next door to the Tasting Room on the production side of the brewery. I left with growlers of the superb Lucky 7 Porter and drinkable Summer Session to take back to Kensington. There was no chance they would be cracked open at my 25-Year High School Class Reunion later that night. Only mass-produced light lagers are suitable for such an epic occasion.

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