Looking for craft beer? We’ve found your spot at Kraken Gastropub

“Clash of the Titans” tells the story of Perseus, a demigod imbued with powerful tools from his father, Zeus, that he later uses to defeat Medusa and the sea monster Cetus, also referred to as “the Kraken.”

Growing up, Aaron Klugh loved that film so much – and the catchphrase “release the Kraken!” – that he knew in one variation or another that he would turn that mythological monster into a moneymaker. And now a grown-up Klugh has done just that.

Preparing for its fourth anniversary in November, The Kraken Gastropub serves up Southern-infused cuisine like duck sliders with truffle fries, pork belly tacos, burgers that make people “very enthusiastic,” and wings smoked in-house that are flash fried and mixed with a house sauce of your choice. All are perfect choices to go with the bar’s drink of choice: a cold one.

“We’re very beer-centric here,” said Trish Vieler, bartender and manager. “We’ve got lots of options for people and have fun with cocktails, but we’re all about the craft beer.”

The majority of their beer selection comes from the tri-state area (Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina), with Columbia breweries represented by Conquest’s Sacred Heart – currently served in a bottle – and, on draft, Touch of Grey, the collaboration between River Rat and Birds Fly South, made with Earl Grey tea.

“It’s an interesting flavor profile because you get a little bit of bitter from the tea coming through, but it also has a lighter flavor profile, almost like a maibock,” said Vieler. “The bitter comes through at the very end, I think. You get some richness going in there, but it’s not a high ABV (alcohol by volume), so you still get a nice effervescent thing going on.”

The Kraken has likely already sold out of Westbrook’s coveted special release Mexican Cake, but it’s worth noting that it was one of the few bars in town lucky enough to get hold of it.

“It’s a big boy in a big bottle … high gravity, but it’s a very limited release, and we were able to get a case of it,” said Vieler. “It tastes like a fabulous chocolate cake. And after, all the sweet goes away and you get the chili come up on your tongue.”

Like the Mexican Cake, most of The Kraken’s beers are “one-and-done,” which means they update their suds list a few times a week.

“That’s why (customers) come here,” said Vieler. “They’re never quite sure what they’re going to get, but they know it’s going to be good and it’s going to be special.”

A great drink to try that isn’t a one-and-done is the selection of mules.

“I make a fabulous mule and we sell a ton of them,” said Vieler. “I don’t know why mine is better than other places, but people tell me that all the time.”

So the next time you’re in the Rosewood area and hankering for a craft beer – and a really good meal – all you have to do is “release the Kraken!” and let this locale sooth the savage beast that lives inside your gut and gullet.