I like to think of myself as a brave person. I will investigate that strange noise I hear, get up in people’s grills when they need it and generally try to school people when it becomes necessary to do so.

However, I’ve got nothing on Phil Wilcox, owner and brewer at The Local Pub & Brewery in Jackson.

You see, when Phil was laid off from his job, he didn’t do what I would do, which is to curl up into a tiny ball under my covers and weep. Well, maybe he did that, but he ultimately went for his dream — to own and operate a brew pub. That puts my creeping around the house thinking I’m Omar from "The Wire" to shame.

The best news in all of this is that the brew pub is awesome!

Jeff and I embarked on a 48-hour, 7-brew pub trip a couple of weeks ago. Our first stop was Phil’s place, which is visible from the I-94 in Jackson. The building used to house brew pubs and once was a Schuler’s restaurant.

The space is open and airy, with a nice view of the brewing equipment. The bartenders took care of us, and Phil came out to eat lunch with us. The pub will focus on session beers (beers with an alcohol by volume (ABV) of less than 5 percent). Here is what our sampler looked like:

A sampler from The Local Pub & Brewery

Patti Smith | Contributor

Lightning Kolsch: Nice, crisp lager made with German pils and wheat malts. Smooth finish at 4.46 ABV.

Lucky Penny Alt: Big Munich malts dominated this beer, but it was very well balanced with a smooth, hoppy taste. A fun fact I learned from Phil’s website is that the term “alt” means “old” (Sorry, I took French in high school and college) and derives from the fact that the conservative Rhineland forbade use of the new lager yeast that was going around in the 19th century. Cities like Koln and Dusseldorf had to use the same old yeast strain… get it? Old yeast strain and old = alt. Oy those cwazy Germans!

E.H. Pilsner: This beer is a Classic American Pilsner (CAP), which is a pre-Prohibition beer made with American cluster and Noble Czech hops, giving it a lovely hop presence. The recipe, according to our man Phil, comes from the 1901 American Handy Book of Brewing. This was my favorite beer of the day and, not coincidentally, one of my favorite styles of beer. Prohibition did much damage to our nice little nation, but, personally, I will never forgive it for stamping out so many great beer recipes and breweries (but that’s another post!).

JaXon IPA: this is an Imperial pale ale, which I’ve heard described as an India Pale Ale on ‘roids. Thus, this was definitely the biggest beer of the day (indeed, this is definitely not a session beer!). It is well balanced, with a hint of biscuity malts and lots of Amarillo hops. We were delighted to find that this recipe comes from our pal, and fellow Ann Arbor Brewers Guild member, Bob Barrett.

Cork County Irish Stout: Nice, full bodied stout without being heavy. Definitely drinkable in the heat of summer.

Yellow Dog Bit Her: I had this beer at the Summer Beer Fest this past July. I’m afraid that I didn’t pay as much attention to it as I should have, merely because some friends of mine were trying to get away with calling me a particular nickname that only one person on this earth gets to call me; I didn’t see him back behind the bar. and so I was gently correcting their usage of the phrase. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, and no one went into the Huron River when he didn’t want to. Doubly fortunate was that I got to truly enjoy this beer whilst at the pub with Jeff. True to its name, it is bitter but has a nice malty balance to it (gack! I feel like I keep saying that over and over but what can I say? The man’s beer is well balanced!).

Mulligan Wheat: On the rare occasions that I play golf, I love the word "mulligan." I also like it when I’m living life in general, as I can often use a “do over.” And, ta da! This is a beer that I could do over again and again Ah, the wit! Seriously, this is a good wheat with some notes of citrus and floral hops. It wasn’t too harsh, as I often find wheats to be.

That’s cool, isn’t it? I have a feeling that everyone will take a picture of that on their way into the bar, much like everyone has that picture of the rock arch up in Mackinac.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the food at the pub is terrific. They have unique appetizer selections, such as pecan smoked sausages and white fish pate but also traditional favorites like brie, cheese and sausage plates and pretzels with a variety of dipping sauces.

They serve pasties (stop your dirty minds… you know what I mean), cheddar soup, salads, sandwiches and three kinds of coleslaw (Jeff was delighted with this as he is a huge fan). They also have homemade root beer and lemonade (the latter of which I can’t drink because of an issue with citric acid).

I can’t encourage folks enough to get on out there. One of the many things I don’t abide are Ann Arbor people whose thought process is "No! I can't leave the bubble! No, I can't drive! No, Jackson is too far!" 

No, no it isn’t. And for God’s sake get the heck out of this town once in awhile. If you think Ann Arbor is the do all end all... gack!

No. Get out of town, literally. Meet the bartenders, drink the beer, eat the pasties and maybe even meet Phil the Brave yourself. You’ll never sneak around your house thinking you're brave again.

Patti Smith is a special education teacher who reviews beers for AnnArbor.com.