"Liquor in the Front Poker in the Rear"

Ample libations are part of all angling debauchery

The last stop for our parched throats and road weary souls was the Stockman’s Bar and Cafe in downtown Missoula. For decades the sign outside the Stockman’s read “Liquor in the front, Poker in the rear” While poker has given way to pull taps, you can still get something for whatever “ales” you served with a side of roasted peanuts in the shell. Feel free to leave the empty peanut shells beneath your bar stool, on the floor. In Missoula, the Stockman’s is an institution and beer pong Tuesday’s with $3 dollar pitchers and $2 Jag shots are a University of Montana right of passage. In case you’re wondering about the $2 dollar Jag shots, I’ve been down that road before and it ends passed out in an alley somewhere in Missoula. Montana is home to numerous micro breweries that put out some pretty tasty, trout themed craft beers. With names like, Trout Slayer Ale, Double Haul IPA and Bayern Brewing’s Dancing Trout Ale, Montana has plenty of brews for an angler’s thirst. Dancing Trout is actual the official beer sponsor of Montana Trout Unlimited. A portion of the profits from all merchandising and sales are donated to Montana TU’s efforts to conserve, protect and restore the state’s coldwater fisheries and their watersheds. Buying a case of Dancing Trout is like buying a trout a drink; of cold, clean, pure water. That’s the kind of logic my thirst just can’t argue with so I usually end up with a case or five.

More Later

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