Philly Beeraholic

Brigid's

2011-12-06T06:04:00.000-08:00

Brigid's is in the Fairmount neighborhood, about five blocks southeast of the Norsthat Bar. I split five apps two ways, enjoyed with Great Lakes Big Eye IPA, Well's Banana Bread for desert.
[click to enlarge]

LOCAL 44 GETS

2011-07-21T20:11:00.000-07:00

Check out Meal Ticket about Local 44's upcoming bottle shop.

PBW 2011 Meet The Brewer Guide

2011-05-24T08:06:00.001-07:00

A Best Pick of "Meet the Brewers" for each day of PBW (from Philly proper, sorry burbs!)

Thursday June 2: Central Waters @ Doobies Bar. 7:00 pm - 11:00 pm

from phillybeerweek.org:

Get your feet wet a day early & join us in hosting Central Waters, one of the greenest breweries in the country from Amherst, WI. Meet the Brew Master & his assistant. Keg lineup to include their Coffee Stout, Happy Heron Pale Ale, Bourbon Cherry Stout & the Illumination Double IPA (subject to change).

Friday June 3: Dark Humor Official Premier @ Good Dog. 7:00 pm - 10:00 pm

from PBW:

Official Premier of Ithaca & Iron Hill Media's collaborative beer "Dark Humor" an all brett porter. Brewers will be on hand to discuss. We will also be featuring a Firkin of Ithaca Stash 1-off IPA, & Ithaca's Excelsior 13, Cascazilla & Flower Power on draught.

Saturday June 4: North Coast Brewing 'Monsters of Vinyl Jazz' tap take-over @ The Sidecar. 5pm - 2am

from PBW:

Come meet the owner, Doug Moody from North Coast Brewing, and drink some of the best beer out there. They will be taking over all the taps and there will be a few treats worth making the trip over. Ad Rock digs into the vinyl collection for some classic jazz to pair nicely with the beautifully crafted beers.

Sunday June 5: Voodoo's Tolling of the Bell @ Doobie's. 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm

from PBW:

Meet Matt Allyn & discover the world of Voodoo. Try a CowBell Ice Cream Float. You'll never have anything tastier!! ﾠSeveral drafts available including CowBell, a Triple Stout (Imperial, Milk, Oatmeal) (10% ABV), Grand Met, a Belgian style Biere de Garde (10% ABV), Wynona's Big Brown Ale (7.3%) & a Saison (TBA)! ﾠMatt loves to talk beer with folks, so stop by & try one of his amazing brews!

Monday June 6th: Fal Allen from Anderson Valley @ Cooperage Wine & Whiskey Bar 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm

from PBW:

Brewmaster Fal Allen from Anderson Valley is taking the long trip from Boonville down here to Coop! To celebrate his arrival, we're doing an AVBC tap takeover pouring $4 beers! -Hop Ottin IPA -Summer Solstice Cream Ale -Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout -Imperial IPA -Brother David Belgian Double -Brother David Belgian Triple AND TWO SPECIAL RELEASES! Further, our chef will be putting together a magnificent tasting menu, FOUR COURSES...FOUR BEERS...$40

Tuesday June 7: An Evening with Sierra Nevada @Moriarty's. 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm

from PBW:

Join Brian Grossman from Sierra Nevada Brewing for an evening of award-winning beers and discussion about the history and future of one of the craft industry's pioneering breweries.ﾠ

Wednesday June 8: 16 Dark Horse Tap Takeover @ Hawthornes 5:00 pm - 11:00 pm

from PBW:

This is going to be epic. Join us as we welcome Dark Horse Brewing for a night of 16 different and never before seen drafts from this Michigan kick ass brewery. Beers will be flowing from 3pm until close and join the boys from Dark Horse at 5 pm for some killer conversation and good vibes. This is going to rock.

Thursday June 9: Weyerbacher night @ Devil's Den. 7:00 pm - 12:00 am

from PBW:

The Devil's Den will be tapping a selection of Weyerbacher beers this night.ﾠ Flights of the beers will be available. Weyerbacher beers, drafts & bottles will be on special Draft List - 16th Anniversary, a rare one off found at the brewery (even Weyerbacher won't tell us what it is yet), the NEW Brewer's Select, Double Simcoe, Merry Monk's, Verboten, Hops Infusion (get it while you still can) & Bllanche.

Friday June 10: Allagash Meet Rob Tod Night @ Local 44. 6:00 pm - 12:00 am

from PBW:

Come out tonight for a ridiculous line-up of Allagash beers and a special chance to meet head brewer, Rob Tod and talk shop.

Saturday June 11: Collaboration Beer Brunch @ Standard Tap. 11:00 am - 3:00 pm

from PBW:

We will feature a special Saison collaborative beer, De Proef Broederlijke Liefde brewed in Ghent, Belgium, as well as a Standard Pils brewed by owner William Reed in conjuction with Sly Fox Brewery.ﾠ Also Don Russell (Joe Sixpack) will be here to talk about and taste the beers he brewed with Sierra Nevada. All this combined with our outstanding brunch.

Sunday June 12: Unibroue @ Caribou Cafe 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm

from PBW:

Master Brewmaster Jerry Vietz will be here along with Unibroue's Raftman which is finally available in PA.

JimShan Follows Up on Some Past Blogs

2011-04-21T06:31:00.000-07:00

First, the Troegs vs The Brew Works suit over the “Elf” trademark has been made public, and the Brew Works has released an official statement, which can be read here: http://www.thebrewworks.com/news/rude-elfs-reserve-trademark-press-release/

I did e-mail Troegs on more then one occasion and they have not responded, nor have they released any kind of statement that I have been able to find.

Also with regards to brewer Terry Hawbaker moving to the Philadelphia Grain Exchange. I guess the owners decided to change the name again to the Farmers Cabinet. It is now open and located at 1113 Walnut St. in Philadelphia, although the brewery is not putting out any beers yet, they have 26 taps.

Also from the owners of the Farmers Cabinet comes announcements of big change within their other establishments:

--They are closing the Fork And Barrel in East Falls, and also The Tap and Table in Emmaus Pa. No closing date has been announced that I can find.

--They are hoping to bring the same type of concept that was the Tap and Table to Philadelphia. They have also decided to keep the Bookstore Speakeasy in Bethlehem Pa open.

So I think that brings everything up to date. If you have a chance to get to the Farmers Cabinet, please leave a comment and let me know how it was. Prost!

-Jim Shanholtzer

Death Of A Legend, Birth of a Beer Lover

2011-04-18T15:15:00.000-07:00

I was looking over the internet on Sunday the 10th, I discovered some sad news. I read that legendary brewer Pierre Celis had passed away, in Tienen, Belgium on the 9th, reportedly from cancer.

Celis is regarded as being the brewer who saved the Belgian Wit style of beer, which had become extinct. He started brewing Hoegaarden Witbier in 1965 in his hometown of Hoegaarden, and continued to do so for over 20 years, until he was forced to sell due to a fire, in which he needed more money to rebuild then he received from insurance. The beer is still brewed at that location now by AB-Inbev.

Celis then came to America in 1992, setting up a brewery in Austin, Texas, where he found the water to be comparable to Hoegaardens. He brewed Celis White and other beers until 2001, and was a pioneer in the American craft beer industry.

Celis had had a direct affect on me, and my now pretty accomplished love of craft beer. Back in the mid 90's, I was in Norcross Georgia for a training class from work. Myself, along with some others in the class had walked to the local Applebee's for dinner. I was just starting to explore new beers, and the best I could muster up at Applebee's was a Killians Red.

After dinner we were walking back to the hotel, when myself and one other guy decided to have a couple more beers. We saw a pizza place with beer lights in the window and decided that was our spot. So we wandered in, and asked what they had on draft. The young man who was working had a deep southern drawl. He replied Bud, Bud Light and Hoegaarden. I had never heard of Hoegaarden, as it wasn't well known as it is today, so I asked what it was. He replied, I don't know man, some kind of wheat beer I think. Well, my curiosity got to me, so I ordered one. Im glad I did, after my first sip I said to the guy I was with, “this might be the best beer I have ever had”.

That Hoegaarden truly changed the way I looked at beer. It was the first defining moment in my passion for good beer. So much so that my first trip to Belgium I made it a point to go to the Hoegaarden Brewery. It was a thrill needless to say.

Since then I have had many beers that I love, I have gotten into much stronger beers, IPA's, Barleywines, Stouts and many other variety's, in fact it is hard to find a beer style that I don't enjoy. But I still to this day drink Hoegaarden often, and every time I take that first sip, I remember that trip to Georgia.

So here's to you Pierre Celis, thanks for changing my life with your creation, and thanks for your contributions to the brewing world and giving us Hoegaarden!

-Jim Shanholtzer

ODDyssey Half-Marathon Runners Get Free Beer

2011-04-15T07:43:00.000-07:00

Triumph Brewing (2nd and Chestnut) is having a release party for their ODDyssey Half Marathon Recovery Ale on May 1, 2011 from 11:30-4:00 after the Broad Street Run. All registered runners (over 21) of the ODDyssey half marathon (Sunday, May 22) will get a free pint.

From the press release:
In 2007, researchers at Granada University in Spain, headed by medical professor Manuel Garzon, found that the sugars, salts, and bubbles in beer cause a pint of beer post-workout to be better at rehydrating the human body than water.

Because of their great devotion to science, health and beer, Triumph Brewing Company and the ODDyssey Half Marathon have joined together to develop the first ever official post race beer. Head Brewer Brendan Anderson has labored to create the perfect recipe for post race recovery and celebration. Danielle Alderman, Corporate and Social Events Coordinator for Triumph, reports that the beer “is crisp, refreshing and delicious.”
You might say, this is obviously untrue. Beer dehydrates you.

Actually, beer (or any alcoholic beverage) hydrates you until the alcohol effectively dopes up your kidneys, at which point dehydration begins (you know... when you start peeing clear...). So, individual beers, or a handful of lower alcohol beers WILL hydrate you like Gatorade.

It's science.

Sat 4/9 A Groggy Afternoon @ Nodding Head

2011-04-07T05:03:00.000-07:00

This saturday from 3pm-6pm, the following grogs will be pay-as-you-go at Nodding Head (1516 Sansom).

GROG -- English-style Brown Ale (5.25% ABV) Medium bodied and malty with hints of chocolate.

GROG D’OER -- A stronger (7%ABV) oak aged version their brown ale fermended with yeast from the De Dolle brewerry in Belgium. Chocolate and vanilla notes with a hint of vanilla, molasses, with a slightly tart finish.

MOLE GROG (cask conditioned) -- Spiced in the manner of mole sauce using chillies, chocolate and cumin (gravity pour).

CHERRY GROG (cask conditioned) -- Blend of grog and Grog D'oer. 'Dry hopped' with dried cherries and primed with cherry juice (gravity pour).

MOCHA GROG (cask conditioned)-- Brewed with a full pound of coffee beans, six ounces of cocoa nibs and a single vanilla bean added to the firkin (beer engine).

~~~~~~

Saturday night I will be hosting a comedy variety show at Connie's Ric Rac (1132 S. 9th St) called Parasol Glitch: An Absurdist Filibuster. It will feature standup, music, and sketch comedy from many of my favorite Philadelphia comedians. But I know you're here for the beer, so I'll give you the run-down.

Connie's has most of your local big-shots, Victory, Yards, PBC and Sly Fox in bottles and cans. They also have plenty of recession-era swill classics, including the "Citywide Special" (which, as you know, is a pounder of PBR and a jack for $5).

The show starts promptly at 8:30, so make sure you leave yourself some time to find parking and grab a cheesesteak. It will be a pretty long show with a 20 minute musical interlude in the middle, and wrapping up between 11:30 and midnight.

Changes at The Bullfrog Means Good News for Philadelphia Beer Lovers

2011-03-05T08:23:00.000-08:00

By Jim Shanholtzer:

It has recently announced that brewer Terry Hawbaker is leaving the Bullfrog Brewery in Williamsport, for a new venture in Philadelphia. Terry is moving on to brew for a new place at 1113 Walnut St. in Philadelphia, PA, first known as “The Grainery” but just last week announced as “Philadelphia Grain Exchange,” where he will brew small batch artisan sour, wild fermented, barrel-aged and saison style beers for 4 of the planned 24 taps. This sounds like an interesting venture, and I wish him all the success in the world. For those familiar with the Eastern PA beer scene, the bar is from the same ownership as the Tap and Table, Fork & Barrel, The Bookstore Speakeasy, and the supposedly forthcoming Bahnhof Beer Garden.

Terry started the “Kegs Gone Wild” at the Bullfrog Brewery, which has been a big success, and it looks like he will be carrying this style of brewing over to the new venture.

So this means some big changes at Bullfrog Brewery, which, if you haven't been, is an outstanding, award-winning brewery located in Williamsport Pa, home of the Little League World Series. I highly recommend a visit, The Edgar IPA is worth it alone.

Taking over for Terry will be brewer Nick Micio, who has been at Fegley's Brew Works in Allentown PA for the last 1 ½ years, working on Brew Master Beau Baden's staff. Nick's most recent beer for the Brew Works was the Lefty's India Brown Ale, which is a nice hoppy brown ale.

Prior to that Nick graduated from the American Brewers Guild, and followed that up as an intern under Vinnie Cilurzo at Russian River Brewing in Santa Rosa CA. He followed that up with a 1 ½ year stint at Moat Mountain Brewery in North Conway NH.

I happen to know Nick personally , so I first want to say, I think the Bullfrog is in good hands movingforward. I have spoken with Nick recently and know how enthused he is about taking over the reigns, and having creative freedom to experiment. So a big Congratulations are in order to Nick, I wish him
nothing but the best in his new endeavor!

Could Troegs Brewing be the “Grinch that Stole Christmas (beers)”?

2011-02-15T09:18:00.000-08:00

By Jim Shanholtzer

I recently had heard some rumors that Troegs was planning a lawsuit aimed at breweries using the

courtesy Troegs.com

word “Elf” in the naming of beers, to protect their intellectual property of their beer "Mad Elf".

Before I go any further, I want to state for the record, I like Troegs beer very much, Nugget Nectar, Dead Reckoning and Troegenator are all excellent beers that I drink often.

I have some contacts at Fegley's Brew Works in Allentown PA, who happen to brew Rude Elf's Reserve, a GABF medal winning beer. So, I thought I'd ask around a bit. Well, through some unnamed sources, I found out that this is indeed confirmed to be true.

I do not know the extent of what Troegs is seeking, I have sent an e-mail to Troegs to see if
they could enlighten me. My first question is, are other breweries included in this suit, or is it aimed primarily at their cross-state competition? There are, after all, other breweries using “Elf” in the names of beer. Dark Horse has 4 Elf Winter Reserve, and of course the UK”s Ridgeway Brewing has an entire line of beers that end in “Elf”

Now I have to wonder, how far is Troegs willing to take this?

Do they include all Mall Santa's that use an “Elf” as a helper? Do they go after Keebler who claims their cookies are made by “Elves”, do they go after New Line Cinema who released “The Elf” movie? Or how about straight to the top and go after Santa himself? Now this all may seem preposterous, but if it is, then isn't the idea of suing over the use of a word that has been around longer then you have been in business? It's not like anyone is using the name “Mad Elf” and adding to is such as “Really Mad Elf”, they are using a generic word that has been around for a long time.

You're next, punk.

Also, may I remind Troegs that they have a beer named “Dead Reckoning Porter” and Rogue Brewing has been brewing “Dead Guy Ale” a lot longer. Seems like a similar situation to me, something maybe the Troegs people should think about. Once you open that proverbial can of worms, you never know where they will crawl.

With all this said, it's obvious that I feel this whole lawsuit is just plain silly. I could do something just as silly and call for a boycott of Troegs, but frankly, that's a personal choice.

What I would encourage other craft beer lovers like myself to do, if you are in agreement with me, is to go to the Troegs website, and go to the contact section and send them an e-mail telling them how as a craft beer lover and possible customer, how you feel about this situation. Maybe they will rethink this, but I doubt it. The only thing I can say for sure, unless they drop this, or have a solid reason that somehow sway my opinion, is they have lost one fan and customer of their beer!

If I do hear anything from Troegs, I will be sure to write a follow up to this, as I want to be as fair as possible in this situation.

Allentown Craft Brew Festival Recap

2011-01-21T08:10:00.000-08:00

Belated notes from 12/04/10 -- Jim Shanholtzer

The Allentown Craft Brew Fest is put on by Fegley's Allentown Brew Works, and it's probably the best event they host!

It was held on 3 floors:

The Silk Lounge: In the basement of the building, it held the food--which was all included with the price of admission--as well as some vendors. They had wings, chicken nuggets, french fries, sweet potato fries, corn fritters, onion rings, fried portabello mushrooms, jalapeno poppers, and a chicken fajita station. Everything I tried was really good, and it's nice to have some food included with your ticket, as most festivals do not. My only complaints would be the food was only available from 1:30-3, and with theVIP ticket the fest ran from 12-4 (and they ran out of the wings and nuggets pretty early).

The High Gravity Lounge and the Hamilton Room: On the 2nd and 3rd floors of the building, contained all the beer, as well as some vendors. Here is a list of most if not all of the beers:

Weyerbacher Tiny, Winter Ale, Merry Monks
Stoudt’s Scarlet Lady ESB, Winter Ale
Sam Adams Winter, Cream Stout, Latitude 48, Cherry Wheat
Brooklyn Brown, Lager, Pennant, Blast Pale Ale
Stegmaier IPA, Winter Warmer
Slyfox Phoenix Pale Ale, Pikeland Pils
Roy Pitz Old Jail Ale, Best Blonde Lay Down Stay Down, Daddy Fat Sacks
Lancaster Shoo-Fly Porter, Amish Four Grain Pale Ale
Yards ESA, IPA
Intercourse Paradise Pale, Mount Joy Light Pilsner, Bareville Pilsner, Blue Ball Porter
Harvest Moon DIPA, Pumpkin Stout
Cricket Hill East Coast Lager, Colonel Blides Cask Ale, Hypnotic
Flying Fish ESB, Grand Cru Winter Reserve
Victory Hop Devil
Michelob Shock Top, Wild Blue
Duquesne Pilsner Beer
Unibroue Ephemere (Apple), and Terrible Brouwerij
Duvel Moortgat Duvel
Boulder Beer Cold Hop
Rinkuškiu Alaus Darykla Missing Elf
Kostritzer Oktoberfest
Harpoon Octoberfest
Bullfrog Raspberry Cream Stout, Double Coffee Stout
Appalachian Pennypacker Porter, Hoppy Trails, Wheat Bock
Troegs Troegenator, HopBack, Dead Reckoning
Chris Bowen ESB
Brew Works Pumpkin Ale, Hop Grenade, Rude Elf’s Reserve, Hopsolutely, Bagpiper’s Scotch Ale,
Ar Belgian Rum Raisin cask, Cocoa Porter cask, Steelgaarden Wit, Bushey’s Pale Ale, Knuckleball, Amber Lager, Pawn Shop Porter,
Magic Hat Odd Notion, HIPA, Circus Boy, #9, (and a wheat IPA that I can not recall the name of, but was very good!)

As you can see there was plenty of good beer (Magic Hat even brought more then #9 and Circus Boy!)

The highlights for me were Bullfrog from Williamsport PA, the Raspberry Cream Stout was excellent as are most of their beers. Roy Pitz from Chambersburg PA, who's Lay Down Stay Down and Daddy Fat Sacks were justfantastic, and I really enjoyed the Old Jail Ale and Blonde as well. Harvest Moon out of New Brunswick NJ, with 2 of the best offerings I have ever tasted from them. The double IPA was fantastic, and the Pumkin Stout was as well. And of course the host for this shindig, the Brew Works, where Beau, Nick, Josh and Lewis alway soffer good, quality beer.

I got to talk to the guys from Roy Pitz, Stoudts and Harvest Moon quite a bit and hope to tour these breweries in the near future. The good news I picked up on here is Roy Pitz is in the process of getting a bottling system, so their beers will become more readily available hopefully in the near future. I had a great time, and everyone that I went with, and spoke to about the festival really enjoyed themselves, and of course all the great beer!

Jim-Shan Road Trip: Mad Fox Brewing

2011-01-18T05:09:00.001-08:00

I recently had the occasion to head down to the suburban DC area to spend a few days with some family, including my brother, cousin and his family. My cousin was telling me about the beers at Mad Fox (444 West Broad Street, Falls Church Va, suite 1) and one in particular, an IPA called OrangeWhip--his description made my mouth water. So Friday evening we headed over for dinner and to sample the beers.

My first impression was that this was a nice place, not your typical open vent style industrial lookingbrew pub. More of a comfortable modern looking restaurant, a little upscale yet comfortable and itjust happens to be a brew pub. It is a big place, with plenty of seating and a large bar area. We decided to go with beer samplers; they do 4 in a sample. So of course I ask for the OrangeWhip-and of course, they had just tapped out of it a day earlier! But they did have 2 other IPA's on, so I did a sampler with Snapped IPA, Autumnus IPA, Wee Heavy, and Jack the Ryepper. Then another with 3 different beers, the Big Chimney Porter, the American Pale Ale, and the English Summer Ale.

The Ryepper was a Rye ale, coming in at 5.4% ABV, had a nice rye nose & taste as well as having some centennial hops for a nice dry finish. My brother enjoyed this--he is not a big beer drinker.

Next I had the Wee Heavy. This was a strong scotch ale, coming in at 8.6% ABV. It was very dark,very malty, yet a bit sweet, with a hint of toffee taste. I love a good scotch style ale. Enjoyed it.

The Autumnus IPA came in at 35 IBU and 5.2% ABV, and was dry hooped with Centennial hops. It had a nice citrus nose, and a citrus taste with a little lemon and orange. It was light to medium boddied and had a dry finish.

Last up for this sampler I had the Snap IPA. This came in at 65 IBU's and 5.2 abv. It was a well balanced IPA, with a nose of malt and hops, a medium, cloudy body, and a well balanced, but hoppy taste with a dry finish. I liked this one enough to bring a growler back home to have later.

I started my second sampler with the English Summer Ale, coming in at 5.2 ABV, this was lightlooking, with a mild nose, light body, yet it had very nice flavor, a little sweet with hints of fruit, and a nice crisp finish.

Next I had the American Pale Ale from the cask-and yes I know I drank these completely out of order! The APA was 6.4 Abv. Had a nice hop taste, as they used Millenium and Centennial hops. It was medium bodied with a well balanced malt and hop taste.

The last beer I sampled was the 6.5 ABV Big Chimney Porter. It was dark in color, with a roasty, coffee, chocolaty, type taste. Full bodied, and not a lot of carbonation, very drinkable and a nice beer to be my last to try. We also all had dinner while here. They had nice variety on the menu, with soups, salads, appetizers, a variety of different sandwiches and burgers, as well as some really nice dinners: beef, chicken, ribs and even a tofu dish for the vegetarians.

Also, they had an extensive pizza list. You can get either a New York style, which is large, or a Neapolitan style, which is a large personal pizza. All of us went with pizza, each with our own toppings. Mine was great, and everyone enjoyed theirs too. The service was very good, she answered all of my questions about the beer and suggested I stop in the following day and speak with the brewer, but unfortunately I didn't have time to do that. Also they will fill any growler, which is a huge plus in my book, as so many places will not.

All in all, I really liked this place, and would highly recommend a visit, if in the area. I know I am looking forward to visiting my cousin again, so we can head back over!

Sixpoint "Mad Scientist Series" Makes Philly Debut

2010-12-14T09:27:00.000-08:00

Last night, Sixpoint Craft Ales' Mad Scientist Series made it's Philly Debut. Devil's Den (1148 South 11th St) was pouring the 9.4% ABV Spelt Wine (like a barleywine but replace the barley with spelt.)

I was unable to make it out, but Devil's Den says they still have some on draft, so I look forward to giving that a try later today (if you got to taste some, please leave a comment on it).

The first thing that comes to mind when I hear about this type of thing is Magic Hat's interesting but more miss-than-hit Odd Notion series, which gets crammed down our throats every time we wanna invest in one of their seasonal bundles. [The Notions are interesting and certainly important to try, but not usually in quantities of more than (1). To Magic Hat's credit, however, their beet-sugar Whacko ale was full of win.] Never-the-less, I bet some people looked pretty obnoxious thousands of years ago when people were leaving sugary liquids out in the stable for a month and then sayin, "hey lets try drinking that" so it's still important to get hairbrained with brewing.

By the by, Devil's Den wants everybody to know that they got a new chef, Paul Trowbridge. From the press release: "Chef Trowbridge’s menu will specialize primarily in New American cuisine and includes a number of standout dishes including: crispy duck confit served with yam hash, spinach and parmesan broth; pork jagerschnitzel served with spatzel, red cabbage and mushroom gravy; and spicy Japanese eggplant & tofu served with palm sugar sauce."

So head over there, foodies, and see if your pallate can make some sense out of that! And while you're there, see if spelt is a worthwhile fermentable sugar.

Infinium

2010-12-13T09:39:00.000-08:00

Washington Post's All We Can Eat wrote up a nice piece on new holiday gift-ales available for the season's best tidings. One thing that caught my eye was Jim Koch's collab with Weihenstephan called Infinium. Looks like one of those tasty things that I'm probably never going to get around to trying.

Over at BA, the Bro's gave it a C- (citing, "not what I expected") but the Pro's (which is what I like to call the collective reviews of all the Beer Advocates who spend time reviewing on the site) gave it a B+. Serious Eats interviewed the Boston Brewing maestro about the collaboration and picked his brain about a few other craft-centric items.

Costing about $20 a 750ml bottle, the press-release phrasing for Infinium is “a beverage somewhere between a Champagne, a dessert wine and the Samuel Adams Noble Pils”. I have to be honest, I have no clue what that could possibly taste like. To me, that's like saying, "This new band sounds like a mix between Bell and Sebastian, The Roots, and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra."

Okay, now that I put it that way, I can sorta see getting excited about this.

Anywhoo, it's still one of those items that a government employee doesn't spend money on for himself, so if you have plans to see me during this holiday season, and you are struck with the misguided concept that I warrant a holiday gift, please buy me this.

Cheers.

Local 44 Turns 2 (Jan 1)

2010-12-06T09:39:00.000-08:00

Brunch from 11am till 10pm and a festivity oriented tap list. One of the taps (DFH Olde School Barleywine) will be flowing through Randall the Enamel Animal. This is a device that DFH invented which basically runs the ale through a chamber of hops in order to, essentially, offer ultra-freshly dry-hopped beer. Think of the canister that a gardener connects to the end of a hose to spray insecticide (except, less unappetizing).

Drafts:
Dupont Avec Le Bon Voeux
Elysian Bi-Frost Ale
Allagash Interlude
Well's Bombardier
Hitachino Red Rice Ale
Stone 2010 Vertical Epic
Yards Love Stout
Sly Fox Keller Helles
Oskar Blue's Dale's Pale Ale
Bell's Double Cream Stout
Victory St. Boisterous
De Ranke Pere Noel
Sierra Nevada Celebration
Sierra Nevada Anniversary Fritz, Jack, and Ken's Bock
Sierra Nevada Anniversary Jack and Ken's Ale
Sierra Nevada Anniversary Our Brewers Reserve
Scaldis Noel
Corsendonk Christmas
Dogfish Head Olde School Barleywine (randalized)
Hannsens Kreik

RIP Bruce Nichols

2010-12-01T04:50:00.000-08:00

Philly Beer Week Co-Founder Bruce Nichols passed away yesterday, here's a post directly from Tom Peters.

I lost a good friend today and so did the entire Philadelphia beer community. Bruce Nichols lost his battle with lukemia. Bruce was president of Museum Catering Company and co-founder of Philly Beer Week. Bruce was a voice of reason, always calm and had an inate ability to bring people together.

Bruce, myself and Don Russel organized the first Philly Beer Week with the help of many bars, restaurants, distributors, brewers, etc. Bruce was always a driving force behind the Philly beer movement. He was also adept at keeping us crazy beer people organized and on-point. Philly Beer Week would have never happened without his ideas and positive energy.

Bruce is the person that brought famed beer writer, Michael Jackson, to Philly, way back in 1991. Bruce Nichols hosted Michael at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropoloy for a “The Book & The Cook” event. That single beer event drew more people than any 10 food events combined. Thus began the real emergence of the Philadelphia beer culture. Bruce & Michael combined for seventeen annual beer events, each more challenging than the previous. Bruce really helped push the boundries of beer culture in Philadelphia. We are all thankful and grateful to all that Bruce has done for us.
Bruce will be missed by all who were close to him and the beer community has lost a good friend and champion.

I raise a glass to your life, Bruce. Goodbye, my friend.

There will be a Duvel night at Monk's tonight (264 S. 16th St) from 4-7, here's a blurb from Tom about it:

The fine folks from Duvel USA, are bringing in some specially designed Duvel glasses. They look pretty cool. We will be featuring Duvel bottles, Duvel Green Draft and their new Duvel Triple Hop. Please join us. Who knows? You may just walk home with a new Duvel glass.

I seriously considered postponing this event due to the passing of Bruce Nichols on Tuesday afternoon, but instead we will make this a celebration of Bruce's life. We will have a toast to our good friend, Bruce Nichols, at 7PM. I will break out Jeraboams (3 liter bottles) of Duvel for this toast. I'll open as many as necessary so that everyone can participate in this memoriam. Bruce was a very dear friend. Please join us as we fete a true champion of Philadelphia beer culture...Bruce Nichols.

The Pour Curator & Jeff Alworth Defending Bloggers

2010-11-18T11:33:00.000-08:00

Greg Heller-Labelle aka The Pour Curator takes a brief moment from displaying and analysing beer label/ad art to exerpt Jeff Alworth in response to beer writer Andy Crouch's beef with beer bloggers.

In other news, check out this special pay-as-you-go tasting at Nodding Head (1516 Sansom St.) on Saturday, December 11th, 2010 - 3PM to 6PM...

“Tripel Three Ways”

Featuring:

Tripel
Belgian-style tripel that is light in color, but not in flavor. Featuring yeast derived from fruity esters, and spicy phenolics that give way to a sweet malty finish.

Egress Quatro
A Belgian-style tripel, dry hopped with American hops. With yeast derived from fruity esters, which area intermingled with a mild malt sweetness highlighting a citrus-like hop character.

Phreddie
Based on the Tripel’s recipe, then barrel aged. Extra sourness from brettanomyces, and oak flavor, hints toward a white wine like character.

11/8 Dogfish @ Monk's

2010-11-08T05:56:00.000-08:00

Tom's gonna have the following DFH's rolled out for tonight (Monday, 11/8) at Monk's Cafe:

On Tap at the Front Bar
Namaste
Old School Barleywine
Palo Santo
Pangea
Red & White
Theobroma

On Tap at the Back Bar
Burton Baton
Chateau Jiahu
World Wide Stout 2009
World Wide Stout 2004

In The Bottle
60 Minute IPA
90 Minute IPA
Black & Blue
Fort
Immort Ale
Namaste
Raison d’Etra
Red & White
Saison du Buff
Squall IPA (bottle conditioned)
World Wide Stout

Bourbon, Brews and Bryson Festival

2010-09-26T08:45:00.000-07:00

Recently, thanks to the Pour Curator, I attended the Bourbon, Brews and Bryson festival at the Fegley's Allentown Brew Works. The Festival featured Bourbon tasting, seminars with well known Beer and Spirits Author and Blogger, Mr Lew Bryson, as well as Barrel Aged Brews and food.

The festival was held on the 2nd and 3rd floors of the Brew Works with the 3rd floor being entirely devoted to the Bourbon tasting, and the Seminars with Mr. Bryson. Some of the Bourbons available were Buffalo Trace, The Eagle Rare Single Barrel, Blanton's Single Barrel, Woodford Reserve and Gentlemen Jack, Makers 46, Knob Creek 9 year old, and a few choices each from 4 Roses and Wild Turkey (I'm sure there were a few other Bourbons I'm neglecting, so I apologize for that, this is all my notes reflected). Also available on the 3rd floor was dessert, which was Bourbon Pecan Foster over vanilla ice cream.

The 2nd floor was reserved for Barrel Aged Beer, and food. The food was all excellent, with Ham in honey barbecue sauce, a fantastically delicious beef brisket, fried okra and a few more choices.

While there were not as many choices of beer as I would have liked, sometimes you have to go with quality over quantity. The first beer I tried, was Yards Barrel Aged Thomas Jefferson Tavern Ale, which from the aging, had a really smooth taste, with strong hints of vanilla from the barrel.

Next I tried Stoudt's Scarlet Lady Ale, Bourbon Barrel aged and served in a cask. Normally you can single out the hop and malt tastes on this English style ale, but with the aging process this beer became more well rounded and mellow, picking up very subtle hints of vanilla from the barrel. I really enjoyed this beer, and at the end of the festival convinced the guys from Stoudt's to fill my growler with it!

Weyerbacher brought their Insanity. If your not familiar with Insanity, it is their Blithering Idiot Barleywine coming in at 11.1% abv, which they then age in oak bourbon casks. The aging process of this beer really changes the complexity. What you get is a well balanced 11% abv beer, with hints of Bourbon, vanilla and raisin.
The host of the event, the Brew Works had Beau's Perfect Porter, and Black Dog Stout, which were both Barrel aged versions of Brew Works flagship beers. The aging mellowed both beers and added hints of vanilla and bourbon to what are both already tasty beers.

The big winner of the night for me was the 3rd offering from the Brew Master Beau Baden of the Brew Works. It was an Apple Lambic poured from a keg. I don't know if it was just the change of pace from all the bourbon aging or if this beer was just that good, but everyone I spoke agreed that it was fantastic! It's distinct tartness, and refreshing apple flavor had me coming back for more all evening. It was a little sour, a little bitter, a little sweet, and a whole lot of goodness. I honestly couldn't get enough of this beer, and I hope it shows up on the menu as a special release at the Brew Works!

I must admit, was not going to attend this festival because I usually do not drink bourbon, and didn't expect the small selection of beer and food would justify the cost of admission. But the beers were all excellent, the food was great. And I also got to learn about bourbons and try them in small quantity--and chat with Lew Bryson. The Brew Works did a really nice job with this event, and I am glad I got to attend. Prost!

by Jim Shanholtzer

Jim-Shan on the Road: Suburban Philly Brew Pubs

2010-08-30T12:09:00.000-07:00

I had a little free time on my hand on a beautiful summer afternoon in August, I figured what better way to kill it then to take a drive to hit some not too far away brew pubs.

I started with the one that was closest to where I was, which was Iron Hill Brewing, located at 1460 Bethlehem Pike (rt 309) in North Wales PA. They are in the same shopping center as Trader Joe's.

If you’re unfamiliar with Iron Hill, they are a small chain of brew pubs based out of Delaware, with several locations in the suburban Philly area. They brew excellent beer and win major awards on a yearly basis.

I did not eat; I just went in to try a few beers. On this day they had 11 selections. The regular offering, which were Vienna Red Lager, Pig Iron Porter, Light Lager, Raspberry Wheat and Iron Bound Ale. They offered 6 seasonals, which were Something Hoppy, Belgian Wit, Saison, Hefe, Baltic Porter and Oatmeal Stout. So with all of these offerings, they definitely had something to fit everyone's taste.

I tried the Iron Bound Ale, which is an American Pale Ale style beer. I found it very drinkable, with a nice, mild hop taste, and a light mouth feel; coming in at 30 IBU's with 5.1% ABV. It was a good example of an American Pale Ale, and a past G.A.B.F. Medal winner.

Next I tried Something Hoppy, which was a really nice double IPA, coming in at 90 IBU's and 7.2%ABV. What can I say, it was hoppy. Medium body, enjoyable. Enough hop taste to please a hop head.

Last I tried a small sample of the Baltic Porter. It registered around 9%ABV, and according to the description has a toffee and caramel taste. I personally noticed more of a coffee taste. It was very dark in color, with not too heavy a body. Very drinkable, yet big on flavor. If you are into big porters, this one fit's the bill.

This was all I sampled on this day at Iron Hill. The beers are very good examples of their style, and I would have to recommend a stop if you are in the area.

Next up I hit Crabby Larry's. They are located in the Chalfont Village Shopping Center. The address is 237 West Butler Ave, Chalfont PA, which is also known as RT 202.

I've always loved this place! I have been there 3 times now, and all 3: I have enjoyed the beer, and the place has a lot of character. It's not your typical corporate run brew pub, more of a family run restaurant that happens to brew some really good beer to go along side the fresh seafood they cook. It has a bit of a Pirate theme, which you can detect from the beer names. And if you take time to read the menu, Larry has a list of rules that “must be observed, or you walk the plank”!

On this visit I had a nice conversation with Larry himself. He and his wife do the brewing, his wife does the cooking, and children, aunts and a variety of family member run the establishment at all levels. He has a very small brewing operation, with his tanks being 55 gallon in size. He had no brewing experience, but learned from his first Brew Master, Owen Hutchins, who had previously brewed at the General Lafayette in Philadelphia.

On this day they he had Bombs Away double IPA, Dead Man Walkin' IPA, Calico Jack Amber, Raspberry Wheat, Golden Treasure, and was out of 2 other offerings, which were a Summer Ale, and a Whiskey Vanilla Porter, which he said he would be brewing again.

On this visit, I went with the Dead Man Walkin' IPA, which comes in at 7.4 ABV, and has Mount Hood, Hallertou, and Liberty Hops. I got a fresh batch, and it was tasty, with a little hop bite to it. Larry said that does mellow a bit after a little time. I enjoyed it as it was.

Next I tried the Bombs Away Double IPA, which ABV's at 11%, and is double hopped with Mount Hood and Liberty Hops. It is full bodied, with a lot of hop flavor, yet nicely balanced. I enjoyed this tremendously, as this combination of hops, really gives this beer a great unique taste.

That is all I tried on this day, but in the past 2 visits, I have also tried the Calico Jack Amber and found that to be a very nice amber beer, and the Whiskey Vanilla Porter, which I thought was outstanding, in fact I was a little disappointed it wasn't available these past 2 trips, but then again it really isn't the season for a porter anyway! I love this place, and I recommend, if you are in the vicinity of Crabby Larry's seek it out for a couple of beers, I don't think you will be disappointed.

Last for this day was another small chain, Triumph Brewing in New Hope PA. Besides the New Hope location there is one in old city Philadelphia, and also one in Princeton NJ. The New Hope location has a nice deck, so you can sit outside and drink and dine, which is really nice this time of year. They also have live entertainment on the weekends, and various events during the week.
Triumph had 7 beers available, a Double Witbier, CTZ IPA, American Lite, Amber Ale, German Pils, Dunkel Weizen and Best Bitter on the hand pump.

I went with the Double Witbier to start. It did not disappoint. It was a big bold tasting witbeir, coming in at 7% ABV. Next I tried the CTZ IPA. CTZ stands for Columbus, Tomahawk and Zeus Hops. This was a nice medium bodied, not over the edge with hops, but you could definitely taste them. Clocking 6.6 ABV, it had a nice kick as well. This was all I sampled at Triumph, although I have been here a few times before, and have always had solid offerings.

Iron Hill and Triumph are both always solid, they do a good job with the beers, and the service at both places has always been good to excellent, when I have been there. They are both small chains, but each location has their own brew master, so it is not one guy being stretched too far to be creative. If you are near one of the locations for either of these 2 chains, I would suggest stopping for a couple of beers. I think they offer enough variety and quality to please just about anyone, from the casual beer drinker to the beeraholic like myself!

As for Crabby Larry's, well if you are at Iron Hill in North Wales, take the extra 10-15 minute drive up the road and stop in to see Larry, and have one of these fine Ales. This is small batch, quality brewing. Family owned and operated, and lots of character. I think you will like the beer and the atmosphere as well. If you go during the day, there is a good chance you will have the opportunity to talk to Larry about his brewing operation. Prost!

MONK'S IS OPEN

2010-08-13T23:53:00.001-07:00

Most of you are aware that Monks Cafe recently had a bus crash through the front window. Read all about it.

However, Tom sent out an email today saying that, well, we can still come over for some beer:

Whoo Hoo!

We just had a meeting with Philadelphia License & Inspections and they are allowing us to reopen! Yea! We will only have the back bar and middle dining room available for the next week or so. The front bar and front dining room will remain closed until Monday, August 23rd, although it could be sooner if all the work is completed ahead of schedule. It boils down to allowing the new mortar proper curing time.

Gas service will be restored tomorrow morning and we will spend the afternoon doing our kitchen prep work. We hope to have a full menu available tomorrow night. We will certainly have mussels & frite and burgers when we open our doors.

Monk's Café will be a true Speakeasy. Entry will be through our alley door. We will have our host station set up on the sidewalk. You'll need to use the password "Septa" to gain access. We'll have second host walk you through the alley to the back door.

C'mon down and join us for a beer.

Thank you for all your support these past few days.

Tom

Good times. Head over to Monk's for some pints.

Road Trip: Millionaire and Beer in NYC

2010-07-25T12:46:00.000-07:00

Recently, I was watching Who Wants to be a Millionaire, when it was announced that if you wanted to try out for the show, to go online and register. Since I want to be a millionaire, and I am pretty good at trivia, I decided to give it a go, so my girlfriend and I went online, and registered. Low and behold, we got the same date and time to try out in Manhattan, at the ABC building.

Manhattan's Rattle and Hum is a great beer bar, with an extensive draft list and 3 choices from casks. The first beer I chose was the Schlafly Belgian Pale Ale from the cask. I must say, I was not impressed with this choice. The beer had a vinegary taste to it. When I mentioned it to the bartender; she said it was only on for about 3 days at the time, so it wasn't going bad. That said, I would not recommend this beer.

My next selection was Nectar Ales IPA, which is brewed by Firestone Walker Brewing in Pasa Robles California--known for their IPA’s as well as other award winning beers. This was a great IPA, just what I needed to follow up the Schlafly.

After that I ordered a 4 beer flight: Pretty Things Brewing Jack D’ Or, He’ Brew Jewbelation 13, Harpoon Leviathon Imperial IPA, and Cantillon Vigneronne. I must say, all were excellent. The Jack D’ Or is a saison style, with a nice peppery taste. Jewbelation 13 is a big malty beer coming in at 12% abv. The Leviathon is a big Imperial IPA at 10% ABV, definitely hoppy, but in my opinion, it was balanced well. And last but certainly not least, the Vigneronne, a lambic style, very nice, tart with a grape flavor and hints of apple. I must say, my girlfriend, who does not like beer at all, did not make her patented beer face when she tried it, and said she could drink it! I also sampled Cigar City Jai Alai IPA from Tampa, which was fantastic!

We then decided to head out after the flight, and grab something quick to eat and then get out of the city before it got too late. As we were walking towards the subway, we noticed a Maui Taco, which is a franchise known for their fish taco’s, and originated in Maui. We thought that sounded great, so we went in.

Well the food was really good, but the highlight of the stop was that they had a very hard to find Mexican Micro Brew from Cucapa Brewing in Mexicale Mexico. It is called Obscura and is American style brown ale. At 4.5% ABV, it had a nice malty taste, and was a very good representative of the style. Any Cucapa beer is hard to get in the eastern US so this was a real find for me, as I had read about the brewery, and was hoping to find something by them. I enjoyed the beer, and recommend if you are in the area, stop in, have a fish taco and a Cucapa Obscura.

This was my second trip to Rattle and Hum, and this place doesn’t disappoint. It may not be the best beer bar in Manhattan, but it will satisfy your thirst for a good beer. I would highly recommend if you are in Manhattan and looking for a good beer to head on over. It is located at 14 East 33rd St. Between 5th Ave and Madison Ave. And while I don’t have the address for Maui Taco, it is on a corner right on 33rd St, a block or 2 from Rattle and Hum, and I am sure the bartender could direct you.

by Jim Shanholtzer

Road Trip: Central Jersey Brew Pubs

2010-07-01T18:56:00.000-07:00

While on our previously blogged about road trip to purchase good beer, Greg and I decided we should actually go sample some local beer between all the tough decision making, as well as grab some lunch. Since we were headed to Oak Tree Buy Rite, we were also headed toward two of
New Jerseys fine brew Pubs. We decided to stop at J.J. Bittings on Main Street in Woodbridge first.

This is located right next to railroad tracks, and appears to be an old railroad station. It is
a building with a lot of character. We sat at the bar, and ordered a sampler containing all 6 of the beers they were offering on that day.

We tasted: Victoria’s Golden (a very tasty golden ale); Raspberry Wheat--which was not over-done with the fruit but more on the subtle side (I enjoyed it, although I’m not a big fan of fruit in my beer, unless it is a Lambic Style); Avenel Amber (a really well balanced, well done amber); Hop Garden Pale Ale (which was a nicely done pale ale, the right amount of hops for the style, not trying to make it an IPA); Great Scot Scotch ale (which was which was good and malty, yet light with a hint of smoke); and finally the Knockout Bock (very malty, bold and a little sweet--coming in at 6.5 Abv, it was the strongest beer on the menu.)

I also had a club sandwich which was very good. Our server was attentive, and able to
answer any questions we threw her way. I really enjoyed J.J. Bittings, and if you are ever
in the area I recommend a stop.

Next up on our beer road trip was the Pizzeria Uno, which is right on RT. 1 S. between
Woodbridge Center Mall and Menlo Park Mall.

This was an interesting stop. Our server, I believe her name was Elena, filled us in
on how Pizzeria Uno’s were all going to be franchised with brew pubs as part of the
restaurants. But after building the one in Woodbridge they realized the cost involved
and decided it wouldn’t work. So this is the only one in the chain! They went as far as
designing neon signs and artwork for the beer, all part of the original idea. We wondered
if somewhere there was a warehouse full of this stuff that never used.

While there, of course we sampled some beers: first I had a Pale Bock, a
seasonal (it was very good, with a nice malt and hop balance), IPA (a British style IPA with a mildly hopped taste, and a dry finish); and the Heffeweizen, (tasty, with hints of cloves.)

Overall both places were worth the stop. I think as far as the beer goes, J.J. Bittings
was a little stronger, and the sandwich I had was very good, as was the service.
We did not eat at Pizzeria Uno, but the service was great, and just hearing the story of
how this brew pub came about made this a really worth while stop. If in the area, I would
suggest both places for a stop, and combine them with a trip to Oak Tee Buy Rite, as we
did, and it will make for a very beery day!

-by Jim Shanholtzer

Design, Drink & Be Merry, on Saturday June 26

2010-06-16T12:23:00.000-07:00

Get your tickets to the 3rd Annual Design, Drink & Be Merry Gallery and Tasting Event, and take part in the Craft Beer Art movement. Taking place at Goggle Works in Reading, PA, general admission tickets are just $25 this year, visit Design Drink & Be Merry online to reserve your tickets.

Moderated by good friend, the Pour Curator, this event will include a night of craft beer, beer-related art exhibits, pub games, food, and a live instrumental blues one-man-band. And since this may or may not be the farthest into the sub-culture you can get your dad, I have to recommend it pretty heartily as a father's day present.

Special guests this year will include:
Jason Roberson, Art Director for Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
Matt Polacheck, Art Director for Schmaltz Brewing Co.
Alex Clare, Artist for the Fegley's Brew Works
Nathan Arnone, Artist for Southern Tier Brewing Co.
The Berks County Homebrewers

Get your tickets and I'll see ya there...

2010 Philly Beer Week Best Picks Guide

2010-05-25T06:20:00.001-07:00

I have just spent about 3 days sorting through the mess of yes that is Philly Beer Week 2010, in order to offer you a shortcut to the best events and specials. I tried to arrange your beergenda hour-to-hour so that every minute of your Philly Beer Week is filled with the best possible suds. All of these picks are in Philly proper and generally have value in mind. In case you're feeling more cashy, I have also included a Beer Dinner pick of the day and Beer Festival pick of the day w/a. So please bookmark the eff out of this and send it to your beer drinking buddies. Get your game face on, and I'll see ya out there. Cheers!

~~Friday June 4th~~
Sly Fox Lunch with Brian O'Reilly 11:30 - 3pm
Brian is one of the Philadelphia area's strongest brewers, come to Jose Pistola's on (263 S. 15th street).

(FREE) Chemical Heritage Foundation - Vital Ingredients: Philly Beer Week Edition 5 - 8pm

CHF fellow John Ceccatti will explain how a 19th-century scientific battle uncovered the role of yeast in beer. Dock Street Brewing Company will provide samples, and have a brewer onsite to answer questions about methods and malts. Join them for talks and tastings at 5:15, 6:15, and 7:15 p.m. at 315 Chestnut Street.

Oskar Blues, Brews and da Gubna Too! 7 - 9pm

Close to Philadelphia's open-house style First Friday Art Galleries (most galleries can be found between Front and Third, and Market and Vine Streets--because you can't drink beer the ENTIRE day... shush.) After you tour the art galleries and meet plenty of fellow strangeo's out on the streets, meet the brewer from Oskar Blues at Eulogy (136 Chestnut Street) and try their Gubna Imperial IPA, an alarming-sounding 10% ABV, 100 IBUs.

Welcome to Philly: This is How We Roll! 12 - 2am

All 40 taps @ the Irish pol are $4, located at 45 S. 3rd St. (between Market and Chestnut).

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Devil's Alley 3 Courses 3 Beers $30
Chef Micheal Yeamans will be offering 3 big courses, paired with 3 great beers (1907 Chestnut Street).

Fest of the Day:

Opening Tap 7:30 p.m $40
The kick-off to Philly Beer Week. Representatives from 31 area breweries will showcase their best offerings as well as beers made just for Philly Beer Week. (Independence Visitor Center, 6th and Market Streets)

~~Saturday June 5th~~

Troegs Brewery Afternoon 1 - 4pm
A variety of specialty beers and a firkin of yet-to-be-determined mystery Troegs to be announced @ Grace Tavern (2229 Grays Ferry Ave.).

Flying Fish Exit 6 Belgian Rye Release Party 3 - 6pm

The latest in the Flying Fish Exit series is a collaboration with Nodding Head and Stewart's. Kickoff is at Nodding Head @ 1516 Sansom St.

--OR--

Samuel Adams Hefe-Hour 3 - 5pm @ Three Monkeys Cafe [9645 St. James Street] Sample for Free: Samuel Adams Wheat Beer lineup: Coastal Wheat, Blackberry Wit, Cherry Wheat & Summer Ale - paired with gourmet chocolates & Three Monkeys' classics.

Prism: Philadelphia's Newest Brewery 5 - 7pm

1601 welcomes the latest addition to Philly's craft beer scene, Prism Beer Company. On tap: Bitto Honey IPA & just-released T-Party. (1601 S. 10th St.)

Flying Dog @ Good Dog 7 - 10pm

Raging Bitch and Barrel-aged Gonzo on draft and a firkin of Doggie Style! (224 S 15th St.)

Dark Horse Costume Party 9 - 2am

Join P.O.P.E. @ 1501 E Passyunk Ave for a costume party sponsored by Michigan's Dark Horse Brewing. Discount beers for people wearing costumes, and prizes awarded for best costume.

--OR--

Not feeling very creative? Head to Jose Pistola's for Late Night with Bell's.
Consecrator, 2 Hearted, Hopslam, Barrel-Aged Hell Hath No Fury ( 263 S. 15th street).

Beer Dinner of the Day:
3rd Annual Ladies Beer High Tea 2:30 - 5pm $35
Sponsored by Home Sweet HomeBrew. Like a high tea but with Beer, savories, sandwiches, sweets & 5 beers. The Belgian Cafe (601 N 21st Street)

Fest of the Day

Philadelphia Global Beer Expo: Featuring a host of great beers from around the world, the global beer expo brings the best of non-local beers to Philadelphia. $45 per person; 12 noon to 3 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.; Simeone Automotive Museum, 6825 Norwitch Drive.

~~Sunday June 6~~

Lancaster Brewing Lunch 12pm - 2:30pm
Join Brewmaster, Bill Moore, from Lancaster brewery, at The Devil's Den for a tapping of a pin of Hop Hog IPA. The Den will also be tapping Lancaster's new seasonal Rumspringa and Milk Stout. Draft & flight specials available. (1148 S. 11th Street).

Beer and Food Extravaganza with Victory Brewing Co. 12:30 -4:30pm
Join El Camino Real, Bar Ferdinand and Victory Brewing Co. for a Sunday afternoon extravaganza of great beer, fantastic food and music outside on Liberties Walk (1040 N 2nd Street).

Dock Street Beer Cocktail Competition @ Smokin Betty's 2 - 5pm $25
Philly's best bartenders go head-to-head to find the best Dock Street Beer Cocktail. All you can drink, all you can eat apps (116 South 11th Street).

The Brothers' Bash: The Troegs Philly Beer Week Invasion! 3 - 9pm $5
Biggest Troegs event of PBW 2010. Featuring: 12 Troegs beers on tap; 2 Troegs beers on cask; 3 bands; meet the Troegs brothers. @ Johnny Brenda's (1201 Frankford Ave.).

Most Awesome Weyerbacher from Easton PA 7 - 10pm
From TIME -Restaurant, Whiskey Bar & Tap Room: "Not sure exactly what's going to happen but we are bringing loads of Weyerbacher and we will taste them, it will be awesome!" Sounds about right... (1315 Sansom St.)

Great Lakes Meet the Brewer 10pm - 12am
@ Rembrandt's (741 N. 23rd St.).

Yuengling Porter @ Mc Glinchey's till 2am.
Mcglinchey's Downstairs Bar all day: 20 oz pint of Yuengling Porter for $2.35; hot dogs $0.75 (259 S. 15th St.).

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Pretty Things Beer and Ale Project Beer Dinner 5 - 7pm $50
4 courses paired with St. Botolph's, Jack D'Or, Fluffy White Rabbits, and Baby Tree. Menu by Executive Chef Mike Breslin. Live entertainment included (3025 Walnut St.).

Fest of the Day

Smoke ‘Em if Yous Got ‘Em 1 p.m $50
An indoor/outdoor beer-and-BBQ extravaganza hosted by Yards Brewing Company, with 30+ smoked beers, food from 15 amateur BBQ chefs and additional catered goodies from Tommy Gunn’s and Percy Street Barbecue. The Jazz Horses and the Kevin Hanson Trio will provide musical entertainment. Yards Brewing Company (901 North Delaware Avenue).

~~Monday June 7~~
Monday looks to be the most jacked up day of Philly Beer Week. This I really can't sort out for you, I'm just gonna list all the must-go's and good luck making a stop at each of them!

Sly Fox and the Family Stone Brewery 3pm - 2am
Brotherly Suds One (collaboration firkin), O'Reilly, Royal Weisse, Saison, Levitation, Imperial Russian Stout, Ruination, Sublimely Self Righteous. Also: Saison Du buff (Victory, Dogfish, Stone collaboration). @ The Sidecar Bar & Grille (2201 Christian St.). BTW -- The Sidecar is also going to have a bunch of Terrapin on draught: Wake n' bake (oaked), Substance Abuse, Monk's Revenge, Dark Side, Captain Krunkles, Big Hoppy Monster, Sun Ray Rye Pale.

If you can tear yourself away from the Sidecar still seeing straight...

Rogue Gone Rogue 7 - 9pm
Rogue fell in love with The Irish Pol last year. Come see why. Reps & Rogue beers on hand. Plus: Bikini contest & their famous Boobie Bingo... (45 S. 3rd St.).

Dogfish Head 2009 vs 2010 7 - 11pm
A bracket-style tasting featuring large format 2009 bottles vs their 2010 counterpart @ Misconduct Tavern (1511 Locust St.).

Bell's 31 Flavors - Record Beer Tapping 7 - 10pm
Bell's Brewing comes to City Tap House (3925 Walnut Street) to set a world record for Bell's beers tapped at one time. Favorites, rarities and oddities from the brewpub will be tapped for this event.

Smuttynose 'Stache Bash 8 - 11pm
Got a mustache? Your Smutty brews are $2! We'll have at least 5 Smuttynose draughts on tap including Star Island Single and Imperial Stout. @ South Philadelphia Tap Room
(1509 Mifflin St.).

Sierra Nevada's special 'Philly Beer Week Beer' 10pm - 12am
Be among the first to taste a special beer brewed just for Philly Beer Week. Twelve Philly beer geeks -bar owners, beer distributors & beer writers - went to Sierra Nevada Brewery in Chico, California, to brew this special ale. It's a totally Kick-Ass Baltic Porter. They'll serve that PBW beer along with a keg of Fritz & Ken's 30th Anniversary Stout, a keg of Life and Limb & a keg of Limb and Life (both DFH collabs). Some of the Sierra boys will be here to discuss these beers. @ Monk's Cafe (264 S 16th Street).

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Four Course Dinner With Victory Brewing 6 - 9pm $65
1. WhirlWind - Chilled Seafood Salad, Cherimoya Sorbet, Lemon Crisp 2. Helios - Crispy Frog Legs, Herb Gnocchi, Tripe Bolognaise, Caciotta al Tartufo (truffled Pecorino Cheese) 3. St. Boisterous - Soft Shell Crab Sliders, Harissa Mustard, Preserved Lemon Aioli, Cucumber Slaw 4. V-Twelve Pan Fried Sweetbreads, black bean puree, red onion marmalade, Caramelized Mahon Cheese 5. Porter Pluot Ice Cream, dulce de leche sauce, pink peppercorn tuile @ Amada (217 Chestnut Street).
~~Tuesday June 8~~
Christ Church Burial Ground Brew 'n History 3:30 - 4pm $2
After debating the Declaration of Independence all day, the founding fathers continued the discussion in the taverns and pubs of colonial Philadelphia. Each weekday afternoon of Philly Beer Week there will be a 20-minute tour focusing on Philadelphia beer history and its connection to those buried in historic Christ Church Burial Ground, 5th & Arch streets, including Franklin, Hopkinson, and Rush.

Get all Fish-Eyed with Ballast Point 6 - 8pm
Sculpin, Barrell Aged Sea Monster, Big Eye and other great beers on tap from Ballast Point @ The Bishop's Collar (2349 Fairmount Avenue).

East Coast vs West Coast IPA Smackdown 12pm -12am
An IPA extravaganza at Triumph Brewpub featuring some of the best IPAs from the West Coast and the Best Coast. (117 Chestnut Street)

Victory Brewing in the Pub till 2am
$3.50 pints at O'Neals all day. Serving Braumeister Pils, Sunrise Weissbier and Hop Wallop. Victory reps will be here 8 to 10 p.m. with prizes and giveaways (611 S 3rd).

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Southampton Beer Dinner with Phil Markowski 8pm -12am $45
6 beers, 5 courses at The Belgian Cafe (601 N 21st Street).

~~Wednesday June 9~~
Hop on the Craft Beer Express Pub Crawl from 4 - 11pm. $15 gets you a bracelet to ride the shuttle rotation, which stops every half hour at the following events. Get your ticket by calling one of the bars. They're probably going to be sold out pretty quickly (they may already be... Obviously, if you don't get on the express, you'll still be welcomed at these bars.) The Craft Beer Express stops at:

Kraftwork (541 E. Girard Ave.) - The Moylans invade Fishtown
Johnny Brenda's (1201 Frankford Avenue) - It's a Firkin Riot
Standard Tap (901 North 2nd Street) - Weyerbacher Tap Takeover
The Institute (549 N. 12th Street) - Bartender there's Fruit in my Beer!
Kite & Key (1836 Callowhill Street) - Double Header Yards @ 4 with Tom Kehoe, Founders at 6 with Dave Engbers. Yards and Founders Dominate the Taps all Night.
Bishop's Collar (2349 Fairmount Avenue) - Allagash Takes Over The Taps with founder Robb Tod
The Sidecar (2201 Christian Street) - Sideswiped by Ithaca Brewing.
P.O.P.E. (1501 East Passyunk Avenue) - DJ ROCKTITS with DR. Joel from New Holland Brewing
Devils Den (1148 South 11th Street) - Meet & Greet with Pat Conway from Great Lakes and Patrick Rue from The Bruery
Brauhaus Schmitz (718 South St) - Shelton Brothers Franconian Firkins

Finish up the evening at No Repeat Beer Week @ Memphis Tap Room 12 - 2am (2331 East Cumberland St.), where all week, when it's kicked it's kicked, and they start pouring something new.

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Triumph Beer Dinner 7:30 - 10 pm (117 Chestnut Street) featuring beers from Triumph, Founders, Russian River, and some local favorites. $55.

~~Thursday June 10~~
Southern Tier Beer Lunch. 12 - 3pm.
Join City Tap House (3925 Walnut Street) for a tapping of six special offerings from Southern Tier Brewing Co. Brewer/owner, Phin DeMink will be on hand enjoying his beers with paired food menu items. Featured Beers: Phin and Matt's Ale, Heavy Weizen, Inequity Black IPA, Unearthly Imperial IPA, and the Jahva Stout.

Lagunitas 420 Night @ South Philadelphia Tap Room 4:30 - 8pm (1509 Mifflin St.)
Hopheads only, Lagunitas is bringing 5 of the hoppiest beers they can, which may or may not make for the hoppiest night of PBW. SPTR is offering munchies-style specials. Think fried ice cream and cheese-steak spring-rolls.

Smoked Beer and Briskett @ Percy Street Barbecue 7 - 11pm
Ride the Mechanical Bull! $15 Smoked Beer Growlers. $12 all-u-can-eat chopped brisket sandwiches, win prizes (900 South Street).

Collaboration Thursday - Official Debut of Saison Du Buff - Stone, Victory, Dogfish Head 7 - 12am
Kite and Key (1836 Callowhill St.) Stone, Victory, & Dogfish will dominate the taps for the Debut of "Saison Du Buff". Rare one-offs like Dogfish Head's 75 Minute IPA firkin as well as some other surprises.

The Avery Experience 8 - 2am
Varga is letting Avery Brewing Co. invade their taps and put on all their beers (941 Spruce).

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Nightmares in Wonderland Magic Hat Beer Dinner 7 - 10pm at National Mechanics (22 South 3rd Street). $45. Featuring brew-master Matty O. and the Olde City Sideshow (yes, a real sword-swallowing, flame-eating sideshow act that will really piss off the squares!)

Fest of the Day:
Forum of the Gods @ Johnny Brendas $25 upstairs (1201 Frankford Ave). Beer and pannel discussion with Jim Koch (Boston Beer), Phil Markowski (Southampton Publick House), Tom Kehoe (Yards Brewing), Wendy Yuengling (D.G. Yuengling & Son) and Joe Sixpack (moderator).
~~Friday June 11~~
Ancient Ales Lunch with Sam Calagione and Dr. Patrick McGovern 12:30pm $60, $65 door
Dogfish Head founder Sam Caligione and Penn Museum archaeologist Dr. Patrick McGovern talk about their work together recreating three ancient ales for modern palates. At the Head House (122 Lombard St. ).

Traditional Friday afternoon with Rob Tod of Allagash 2 -4pm
Belgian Cafe (601 N 21st Street ) has been saving several sixtels of great Allagash beers all winter, & some cool big bottles. So start the Beer Day early! Then, stick around Belgian Cafe to meet Meet Jerry Vietz of Unibroue (5 - 7pm). They'll have a rare keg of Terrible, Chambly Noire, and the usual suspects.

Southampton Vs Sly Fox Firkin Off 7 - 9pm
Good Dog's (224 S 15th St.) annual Firkin Off! PHL V. NY! Sly Fox's Chester County Bitter against (reigning champs) Southampton's Burton Ale. Then, stick around Good Dog for Wisconsin based Furthermore Brewing (9:30 - 11:30), meet Aran and Chris while pounding a firkin of Oscura, Fatty Boombalatty, 3 Feet Deep and their one off Thermo Refur.

Old Man Cactus Live at Fergie's 10 - 2am
Check out the bluesy instrumental rock of Old Man Cactus upstairs, and Fergie's gonna have gawd knows what on special. I bet you can just ask him for whatever you're looking to drink at whatever price, he's hospitable like that! (1214 Sansom St.)

Founders @ Kraftwork 12 - 2am
Black Biscuit, Double Trouble, Red's Rye, Curmudgeon, Centennial, Cerise, Porter, Pale Ale, Kentucky Breakfast Stout. (541 E Girard Ave.)

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Founders Beer Dinner @ South Philly Tap Room. 6 - 9:30. $90
Chef Schroeder welcomes Michael Bell and Dave Engbers of Founders Brewing with a lavish, multi-course feast (1509 Mifflin Street).

Fest of the Day:
East vs. West Exotic Beer Tasting. 7 p.m. $60
A sampling event that pits East Coast and West Coast breweries against each other, with limited vintage aged brews and brewers’ favorites featured. Live music and hors d’oeuvres will round out this event. Stoudt’s Brewery 2800 North Reading Road, Adamstown, PA.

~~Saturday June 12~~
Long Trail @ Good Dog 1 -3pm
Enjoy the Vermont brewery's Double IPA and a Firkin of Blackberry Wheat (224 S 15th Street).

Philly Brewing Company vs Harpoon Brewing 2 - 5pm
An outdoor tailgate while the Phils play the Red Sox and P.B.C. Kenzinger faces Harpoon Summer in a kick-the-keg race. Misconduct Tavern (1511 Locust).

Beer of Legend's Clone Brew Wars 2 - 6pm
Award Winning homebrewers square off. Taste clones of Nugget Nectar, St. Bernardus 12, Pliny the Elder and more alongside their commercial example. Costumes welcome @ Varga Bar
(941 Spruce).

Invite Only: Kick the Keg Night 4pm - 2am
Help SPTR finish all their Beer Week draughts. $2-$3 draughts with an invite. Stop by one of their other Beer Week events to get an invite (1509 Mifflin Street).

Yards takes over Fairmount. 12pm - 2am
Start at the The Bishop's Collar (2349 Fairmount Ave), all the bars in Fairmount will be pouring something special from our local guys at Yards Brewing. End up at Bridgid's Bar and Restaurant (726 N 24th St.) for ten different Yards Beers on draft and USA v England in the World Cup. Watch Yards founder Tom Kehoe defend his Pierogie and Kielbasa eating crown.

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Prix Fixe Menu and Beer Pairings $35. 4 -12am.
Stoudt's Brewery Night! Three courses paired with Stoudt's American Pale Ale and Stoudt's Scarlet Lady ESB. @ MidAtlantic Restaurant & Tap Room (3711 Market Street).

Fest of the Day:
20^th Annual Michael Jackson Tutored Tasting 12pm – 3 pm, 4 pm – 7 pm, 8 pm – 11 pm $50
This year’s “Beer as Art”-themed tastings will be led by renowned expert Randy Mosher and will include a one hour tutored tasting followed by open sessions with 50+ beers. @ HeadHouse (122 Lombard Street).

~~Sunday June 13~~
Victory Brewing's "Monkey Julius" Brunch 12 - 5pm
Free party with "Monkey Julius" (Golden Monkey, OJ & Champagne) outside at the Piazza at P.Y.T. all day (1050 N. Hancock St.).

Get Stoned at Triumph 12 - 10pm
Stone Brewing Company will be taking over Triumph with 8 rare Stone Brews. The event will last until the last keg is kicked (117 Chestnut Street).

Russian River Beer Day 11:30 - close
Local 44 is stocked up on hard to find Russian River Beers, including one special newbie! Tapping 11:30am (4333 Spruce Street).

Drink Up and Get Out of Town
40 taps for $4 at the Irish Pol (45 S. 3rd Street).

Beer Dinner of the Day:
Flying Fish Exit Series Beer Dinner with Brewer Casey Huges 6 - 9pm $65
Exit 16 with Grilled Sardines, Wild Rice, Citrus Tempura Crunch; Exit 6 with Braised Short Ribs, San Simon Cheese, White Asparagus Escabeche, and Red Veined Sorrel served on Grilled Sourdough Bread; Exit 4 with Suckling pig with wilted spring greens, truffled white bean puree and a sherry pork jus; Exit 1 with Cape May Salt Oysters two ways; DESSERT will be Mystery Beer Selected by the Brewmaster and made into a Beer Float with a house made seasonal ice cream. @ Amada (217 Chestnut St).

Fest of the Day:
2^nd Annual Zythos America 12pm – 3 pm and 4 pm – 7 pm $65
Belgium’s greatest beer event comes to Philadelphia for the second year, with more than a dozen of that country’s top brewers scheduled to appear. ; Penn Museum 3260 South Street.

Road Trip: Central Jersey Beer Stores

2010-05-18T13:51:00.000-07:00

In the past few weeks, I have found myself in central Jersey often. I know where some of the better beer stores are, so when near I make it a point to go check out the selections. So here is a quick review of 4 Liquor stores, all with great beer selections, in Central Jersey.

First, I was driving through Pennington, so I stopped at Super Saver Liquors, right on the Pennington traffic circle. They have a large selection of singles, everything from the most common beers to some that can be tough to find in the area.

They had a nice selection of Italian Micro’s, Germans and Belgians and of course American Micro’s. I picked up 2 beers here, a Lake Placid Ubu Ale, which I had never had never been able to find before, and a really interesting Fraoch Heather Ale from Scotland. I must admit I have never heard of, nor noticed this beer in any other store.

The next store I visited was Little Brothers Beverage Outlet in Flemington, as I was in town on some personal business.

I will say, they have a really nice selection of Belgians, and American Micro’s, all available in singles. They also have a variety of other imports. Out of the 4 stores I visited, with out counting, I would guess they have the smallest selection, yet it is very worthy of a visit. I picked up a few things here, but the real gem of the bunch was a Brewmaster’s Collaboration signature series between America’s Allagash Brewing and Belgium’s De Proef Brouwerij. This is Belgian ale fermented with multiple strains of Brettanomyces yeast. There were 2 other beers in this series available as well. I did not see these in any other stores, so definitely worth the trip!

The next 2 stores were hit in one day, as I went on a search for beer with my buddy Greg (@ http://www.pourcurator.com/), who like me, wants to try every beer ever brewed!

First stop was Super Saver Liquors on Rt.22 east in Somerville. This place has changed over the years. It used to be a little disorganized, with things thrown in bins and baskets. Now it is very neat and organized, everything was easy to find. They have a great selection, all available in singles, and great prices. I found a nice supply of Stone Cali-Belgique, which has become tough to find, and also picked up a Koshihikari Echigo Beer from Japan. They had an extensive selection of Belgian’s, and imports from just about anywhere you could think of. Plus an excellent selection of American micro’s, including a great selection of brews from Jolly Pumpkin and The Bruery. The selection was great here, as were the prices.

Our 2nd store of the day was Oak Tree Buy Rite on Oak Tree Rd in South Plainfield.

This is a great store, no doubt. They probably have the most beers of the 4 stores I visited, all available in singles.

I have been here on many occasions. This trip was a little different. Usually, the customer service is excellent, with someone always asking you if you need help, or they will ask questions and make suggestions. This trip, no one approached us.

They do have a great selection, I picked up 3 notable beers here, a Boaks Double BW Ale, Hitachino Nest XH, which is matured in Sake Casks, and an Otter Creek Quercus Vitis Humulus, which is an oak aged ale brewed with French grape juice, and fermented with champagne yeast.

This store is considered by many to be the best in New Jersey, as the reviews on Rate Beer will show. They have a great selection, but the prices are higher here than the other 3 stores I visited. Some slightly, others more significantly.

In conclusion, I don’t think you can go wrong at any one of these 4 stores. The selections are plentiful at all of them.

My knock about the customer service at Oak Tree Buy Rite may be a little unfair, as none of the other stores offered any help either, but this one has in the past, so it didn’t live up to it’s standard.

If I had to pick the best store, I would give a slight nod to the Somerville Super Saver, the combination of selection and prices led us to stop there 2 times in the same day, because prices were just higher at Oak Tree Buy Rite on several beers we both wanted to purchase.

I would give Oak Tree Buy Rite the # 2 nod due to their selection, and I think you could call it pretty even between Little Brothers and Pennington Super Saver.

But if you are in Central Jersey and in need of some good beer, any of these places will not disappoint. Enjoy!

by Jim Shanholtzer

Notes from Philly Craft Beer Fest

2010-05-04T17:13:00.000-07:00

I was given the opportunity to pour beer at the Philadelphia Craft Brew Festival. I have a good friend who was employed at Fegley’s Allentown Brew Works, and she needed another able body to help pour. I was really excited about being on the other side of a festival table. Like many of you, I have been to countless festivals, but always as a patron.

We poured two excellent Brew Works beers that evening, Hopsolutely Triple IPA, and Insidious Imperial Stout. The beers went over in a big way, with many people telling me that they were the best being poured that evening.

The thing that really impressed me about the patrons of the event was how many of them had real beer knowledge. Usually when I am at a festival, I feel like I am one of the few beer geeks asking questions about what I am drinking. I don't hesitate to ask about the hops, malts, or about the availability of the beer. But at times it feels like I’m the only one asking those questions. While I was pouring, I would estimate that I was asked questions about the beer by 50% of the patrons. The other 50% were all having a good time, and hey, isn’t that what enjoying a good beer is all about?

I thought the event was run very well. If we needed anything, we had it momentarily. And the organizers checked in regularly. Other than the bathrooms breaking and forcing everyone to use porta-johns out back, the event ran very smoothly, and even they were repaired in about an hour.

All the brewery reps were very friendly, and one even provided temporary relief so I could get out and taste a few beers.

If I had one criticism of not only this event, but other festivals as well, it is that great breweries come to these festivals, but then bring the same beer to every festival. I mean, I can only try Magic Hat Circus Boy and # 9 so many times. If you brew seasonal beers, or have a wide variety, mix it up when you come to these events. Isn’t getting people to try your great beers the reason to come to these things as a brewery?

Overall, as an experience, I would rate this as a highlight in my beer world, and I would recommend the festival as a patron as well.

By Jim Shanholtzer

Nice Weather = Risky Outdoor Sanitization

2010-03-23T06:01:00.000-07:00

When the weather turns nice and I start brewing my summertime beer, I always get tempted--and inevitably give in to this temptation--to use my downstairs neighbors' hose to clean and sanitize my fermenter in the backyard. Generally speaking, not a good idea, given the pollen in the air, and extra dead-gnat-rinses that this requires. Not the most sanitary environment for your sterilization goals.

I find it's easier though than the alternative, which unfortunately is in the shower (talk about less than sanitary!), because my kitchen sink is not big enough to support the enterprise. The hose gives me good cleaning pressure and fast rinses. The last time I did this there was no spoilage, and so I'm hoping for the same thing this time around.

A Small World: After a brief visit with Yards brewing yesteryday, I was walking out to my car and I heard drumming coming from an appartment across Delaware Ave. It was among the funkier rythms I've heard, with generous symbols and a skoach of hip-hop on the late snare hit. I pulled a u-turn and parked out front the appartment to enjoy the next bit of solo disco-house percussion coming from a set of live organic drums. After loitering for some time and getting ready to leave, I yelled up to the drummer during a break in the breakbeats. I told him his drumming sounded great and asked if he was in a band. Turns out, yes, he's the drummer of a livetronica band I'm somewhat familiar with. Lotus. Check out an mp3 of theirs.

Small world!

Nugget Nectar Shrimp Cocktail Sauce

2010-02-08T16:24:00.000-08:00

Saturday afternoon during the blizzard I was pleased to find Cooks Liquor on Haddon Ave. opened for business--and, suprisingly, at least somewhat busy! I was going to browse around for some comfort beer, maybe something heavy like Lancaster Milk Stout to keep me company for the weekend. I got distracted by some Oscar Blues and had Dale's Pale Ale in my hand when my eyes passed over the nuggets. My first sighting of the season.

On Sunday I was combing the kitchen for foodstuffs to bring to the Superbowl party I was attending. Frozen shrimp in the freezer was just about the only thing we had, and I figured I would sacrifice one of my Nectars to experiment on some cocktail sauce.

The basic ingredients of cocktail sauce are ketchup and horseraddish. Unfortunately I only had creamy horseradish sauce on hand. This can be either good or bad. The GOOD: horseradish sauce tends to have a more consistent flavor than straight pickled horseradish, when mixed with ketchup. It's less likely to give you pockets or chunks of overwhelming root. However, the texture and color of ho-ra sauce mixed with ketchup is nowhere near as satisfying as the real thing. To be honest, I'll always prefer the straight ho-ra to the ho-ra sauce in regards to making cocktail sauce, but I use the sauce on more things in day-to-day eating, which is why it's all I had in the fridge.

I whip up common cocktail sauce, and then begin to introduce the Nugget Nectar. My first concern which I realize almost immediately, is... how to keep the sauce thick enough after adding beer. You need the sauce not to be running off the side of each shrimp like water off a waxed car-hood. How to tackle this issue.... Mayo? Not likely... the basic elements of mayo are already in the ho-ra sauce anyway. I decided to tread lightly with the beer and see how little I could get away with adding while maintaining a detectable NN presence.

My second concern, which was oddly late in the roll-call of concerns: Does Nuggect Nectar actually enhance or even vaguely compliment the flavor of cocktail sauce. Or was this going to be a "because I CAN" endeavor. I tasted the first stirrings, with only the minimal volume of NN added (about one and a half teaspoons in a half cup of cocktail sauce). Practically no noticeable difference. At the risk of over-thinning (especially in these proportions) I added two more teaspoons to the half-cup of cocktail sauce, unwilling to risk a larger sample of my precious ho-ra sauce, should this concoction turn out to have no redeeming value. I stirred up the sample to consistency, and tasted it....

Oddly tasty. For some reason, I was surprised that it tasted more or less how I imagined it would: cocktail sauce with a hint of hoppy beer. A success? Let's try it with some shrimp...

...not bad, but I know exactly why this is imperfect. Two reasons... First: color. I know it's superficial, but it's psychologically pleasing to get your cocktail sauce a deep crimson. The already too-pale sauce is now thinned by beer, and now you have cocktail sauce which is paler and thinner than normal. It's a visual Paris Hilton in cocktail sauce form, and no beer drinker or shrimp eater wants that. Secondly and more importantly: The texture. It needs to be chunkier--like I mentioned earlier--in order to cling on to the shrimp, and have the appropriate mouth-feel.

Watch out though, because if you use a purely pickled ho-ra based cocktail sauce, it'll have a chunkier consistency, but it will still be runnier than the creamy-sauce, especially if you don't like to make it too strong. My reccomendation: go half and half. Make your cocktail sauce with half pickled horseradish and half horseradish sauce. This way you will have some of the thickness of the creamy sauce to combat the thinness of the beer, along with the chunky-texture of the pickled root to give you a somewhat less paled-down color and a better cocktail consistency.

Here's your ingredients:
1 part creamy horseradish sauce
1 part horseraddish
2 and a half parts ketchup

Add 4 tablespoons of Nugget Nectar for every half-cup of cocktail sauce you make.
Stir to evenness.

Weyerbacher @ Devil's Den Wed 1/27

2010-01-26T07:43:00.000-08:00

Devil’s Den will be hosting Weyerbacher Wednesday, THIS Wednesday, January 27th from 7-10pm. Weyerbacher beers will be on tap, draft list includes: Winter Ale, Fireside Ale & Hotel Brewer's Reserve. Devil's Den is on 1148 South 11th Street, (215) 339-0855

Philly Beer Club (NEW DATE)

2010-01-14T05:57:00.000-08:00

Attn: Home Brewers! From Philly Beer Club:

What’s been brewing in your carboys? We’d all like to know, and to facilitate this, we’ve set up a brunch with the new beer café, Hawthornes, at 11th and Fitzwater.

If you haven’t been there yet, Chris (of Bella Vista Beer Dist. fame) and his fiancée Heather have opened a cozy tasting room complete with food, huge bottle selection, and a growler station (with an impressive list of options). Come join us on SUNDAY JANUARY 24 at 4pm to share and sample home brews. Space is limited, so please reply if you’re coming. Feel free to stop by to taste a few sips and say hi if you don’t have anything brewed. Oh, and SPREAD THE CHEER! Send this to any other homebrewers you know. Cheers!- Andrew

To RSVP or for questions, email:
andrew[at]phillybeerclub[dot]com

Bells Hopslam

2010-01-05T10:41:00.000-08:00

Coming to Philly on Tues Jan 12th....

Along with a mystery firkin from Bells starting at 4pm at Local 44 on 44th and Spruce...

Happy 2010!

2010-01-02T21:56:00.000-08:00

Christmas Kegs @ Monk's Cafe 12/21/09

2009-12-18T06:58:00.000-08:00

From Monk's:

Another edition of Monk's Mad Monday coming up on December 21st beginning at 11:30AM. Lots of folks have asked to purchase gift certificate, so we decided, after all these years, to cave in and print some. We are offering $25 gift certificates this year. They make great gifts for your beer loving friends. Sorry, but no telephone sales on these, you need to come in to purchase one.

So I started thinking that a good tie-in would be to have a roll out of our holiday kegs. We will be tapping 15 Christmas kegs on Monday at 11:30AM. We’ll also have lots more holiday stuff in bottles. Come early to get the best selection...some of these are in very limited supply.

From Belgium
Alvinne brings us the Three Wise Men:
Alvinne Balthazar (spiced w/ginger, cardamon & coriander)
Alvinne Gaspar (lots of hops)
Alvinne Melichior (with mustard seed)
Corsendonk Christmas Ale
De Koninck Winter Koninck
DeRanke Pere Noel
Dupont Avec Les Bon Veoux
Geants Noel
La Rulles Cuvée Meilleurs Voeux
Scaldis Noel
St Bernardus Christmas Ale
St. Feuillien Cuvee Noel

From the United States
Bell’s Christmas Ale
Lost Abbey Gift of the Magi
Port Brewing Santa’s Little Helper

Extreme Beer Fest Collaboration!

2009-12-09T07:06:00.000-08:00

B.A. founders Todd and Jason are teaming up with DFH's Sam and head brewer Bryan to collaborate on their monster for 2010's Extreme Beer Fest. Here's what you can expect to be going INTO the beer (and it's anyone's guess what will be coming out the other end!):

Plantain Flour
Carob
Pecan-Smoked malt
Briess Extra Special, 2-row C-30, and Pils malts
CTZ (Columbus, Tomahawk, Zues) and Willamette hops
Target IBUs: 35; not a hop forward beer
Target ABV: 7.0%
Unfiltered (and bottle-conditioned)

Name That Beer! There's a contest HERE to submit your name for their beer... Winner gets a whole bunch of swag including meet and greets and Extreme Beer Fest tickets etc.

For more on that, and news and tickets to the EBF, visit http://beeradvocate.com/fests/ebf.

Philly's December Beer Events

2009-12-01T13:00:00.000-08:00

Wednesday December 2:
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant Beer Dinner (Maple Shade)
Tria Fermentation School Beer Class: Hoppy Holidays with Joe Sixpack
Jose Pistola's Get Pissed @ Pistolas

Thursday December 3:
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant Fall Brewmasters Dinner

Friday December 4:
The Grey Lodge Pub Mad Elf/Happy You Night

Saturday December 5:
TJ's Restaurant & Drinkery TJ's 6th Anniversary

Thursday December 10:
The Belgian Cafe Heavy Seas Yule Tide Cask and Winter Storm

Friday December 11:
XFest at Penn Museum
Jose Pistola's Meet and Greet Lunch with Lancaster Brewing

Saturday December 12:
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant Cask and you Shall Receive
The Belgian Cafe St. Martin Abbey Ale Meet & Greet

Friday December 18:
The Grey Lodge Pub An Anchor Christmas Carol
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant Beer and Wine Dinner

Sunday December 27:
World Cafe Live Winterfest '09 Beer Tasting: Stouts, Porters, Winter Seasonals, and Special Holiday Brews

Now On Tap in Philly 11/30/09

2009-11-29T20:08:00.000-08:00

Devil's Den 11th and Elswood
Ithaca Cold Front
Franziskaner Hefeweisse
Smuttynose Old Brown Dog
Great Lakes Burning River
Sixpoint Brownstone
Eel River Salient de Scotia Brune
Tommyknocker Maple Nut Brown Ale
Great Lakes Dortmunder Gold
Cape Ann Fisherman’s Pumpkin Stout
Founder’s Backwoods Bastard
Great Lakes Eliot Ness
Yard’s IPA
Bear Republic Double Aught
Maredsous 6
Spaten Lager
Arcadia Jaw Jacker

South Philly Tap Room 1509 Mifflin St.
Sly Fox Chester County Bitter (on cask)
Lancaster Milk Stout
PBC Biberry
Kenzinger
Doc's Apple Cider
21st Amendment Watermelon Wheat
Great Lakes Eliot Ness
Lefthand Fade to Black
Sly Fox Renard D'Or
Stone Sublimely Self Righteous Ale
Boulder Cold Hop IPA
Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout
Stoudts Pump-King
Founders Wheat Wine

Local 44 44th and Spruce
Sprecher Black Bavarian
Allagash Tripel
Victory Prima Pils
Great Divide Hibernation
Ommegang Witte
Maredsous 6
Franziskaner Dunkle-Weisse
Kwak
Sierra Nevada Celebration
Great Lakes Dortmunder
Bell's Two Hearted Ale
PBC Kenzinger
Monk's Sour Flemish
Aventinus Schneider Weisse
Yards Brawler
Sly Fox O'Reilly's Stout
Port Brewing High Tide
Bear Republic Rebellion
Yards ESA (cask)
Sly Fox Chester County Bitter (cask)

The Irish Pol 45 S. 3rd St.

BLUE MOON BELGIAN WHITE ALE

BROOKLYN BLACK CHOCOLATE STOUT

CIGAR CITY MADURO OATMEAL BROWN ALE

DALES PALE ALE

DARK HORSE CROOKED TREE IPA

DARK HORSE OATMEAL STOUT

DARK HORSE TOO CREAM STOUT

EEL RIVER RAVEN'S EYE IMPERIAL STOUT

GREAT LAKES COMMODORE PERRY IPA

GRITTY MCDUFF'S BLACK FLY STOUT

HARPOON IPA

HOPTICAL ILLUSION

LONG TRAIL IMPERIAL PORTER

LONG TRAIL TRIPLE BAG

OBOVOID EMPIRICAL STOUT

ORIGINAL SIN CIDER

PABST BLUE RIBBON

ROGUE MOGUL MADNESS ALE

SIERRA NEVADA TORPEDO

SOUTHERN TIER OLD MAN WINTER ALE

STEAMWORKS THIRD EYE P.A.

SWEATY BETTY

TROEGENATOR

TWIN LAKES GREENVILLE PALE ALE

VICTORY HOP DEVIL IPA

VICTORY STORM KING

YARDS BRAWLER

YARDS GENERAL WASHINGTON TAVERN PORTER

ALE DIABLO

BEAMISH

BIG EYE

Wedding Home Brew Recap

2009-11-11T10:10:00.000-08:00

Things I Learned Brewing My Own Beer for my recent Halloween Wedding Festival.

~ More is more. I supplemented my 4 cases of Wedding Ale with a keg of Yuengling Lager and a keg of Sam Adams Octoberfest. Still ran out of beer. Know your guests. If they're beer drinkers, OVERESTIMATE. 'Cause even though it's Halloween and plenty of folks are DRESSED like Jesus, nobody's actually able to turn Franzia into Chimay. Too much beer leftover? Best. Problem. Ever.

~ If you're labelling your beer, do it before you cold-condition. It's much easier putting stickers on room-temperature bottles, than moist dewey cold ones. By the way, labelled home brew is fun times. You already put in most of the work, spring the extra stop at kinkos to get a few hundred personalized stickers printed (special thanks to Andrea at Pensauken's CRW Graphics for ours!).

~ Bottling. A notorious stingeball, I prefer using empties rather than purchasing plastic bombers. Best way to clean them: set your dishwasher to sanitize and grab a nap. Between you and me... if you don't have a special sanitize setting, Flying Fish's Andy Newell told me once that any old very hot, thorough dishwasher cycle will be fine (BTW thanks Andy for those three cases of empties from FF!). No dishwasher (like me)? Soak your empties in an oxyclean bath overnight (emphasis on overnight if you want the old labels and stickiness to peel off like butter) and then use the trendy no-rinse iodine solutions.

~ Sanitation. I had a few panic attacks when I spilled airlock water into the fermenter (once for each batch... gooood) and I called fellow Beeraholic Greg Heller-Labelle for a pep-talk. Careful when moving your fermenter after the air-lock is in place. Lift from the bottom if you can, because lifting from the sides of the full container will create suction, syphoning in some unsanitized, room-exposed water. If you have to lift from the side (as I imagine many of us un-excercized beer-drinkers do), take the airlock off and think clean thoughts till transportation is done (depending on how much dust or cat-hair your storage rooms have hanging in suspension, use your discretion). A spray-bottle filled with no-rinse iodine solution is a handy thing to have handy at ALL times (thanks to Paul Lukin for that gem!). It's fun to OCD over your wort and keep things as sterile as a futuristic moon-colony. But when it all comes down to it--at the amateur level, anyway--Greg Hells-Bells said it best whilst calming me down on the phone: "If all the ingredients are there, it's basically gonna taste like beer. Remember, for hundreds of years, beer was fermented in giant open vats. And that was good enough for the Germans--for whom NOTHING is good enough!"

Special thanks to all who helped on the Wedding Ales, Nick and Stev for bottling, George at Home Sweet Homebrew for the recipes... And anyone who lent a hand in our particularly festive style of nuptials. And thanks to Beer. You really made my marriage something special!

Bottling, Brewpub Style

2009-10-24T11:34:00.000-07:00

Last week, I was given the opportunity to help my local brewery, the Allentown and Bethlehem Brew Works, help bottle their GABF medal-winning Christmas Ale, the Rude Elf's Reserve. Since Beau, the brewmaster there, is overworked, and since it seemed like a fun thing to do on a Friday morning, I decided to go and give it a shot.

Now, if you've ever seen a TV special, or taken a tour of a well-funded craft brewery, you've probably got images in your head of gleaming stainless steel and aluminum machines filling, moving, and stamping bottles before slapping labels on them, dozens at a time, while devoted brewery employees stand around, fix things, and watch for the first signs of quality control issues.

Keep that in your mind.

I got the job of "guy who pushes the cart full of filled, corked bottles over to the packaging table and washes it off with a hose." Needless to say, this is an important and difficult job. Nick, who spent most of the time working the automatic corker, puts his bottles on a cart. When the cart is sufficiently full or the packaging table people have bored looks on their face, I have to swap carts and hose the bottles down. Easy enough, right?

If you've never bottled beer, you may not know that it's a wet process. There's water in a lot of places, because you wash the bottles a few times. So these aforementioned carts get pretty wet, leading to something I dubbed "the hydroplane effect." You've got a few dozen bottles on a wet cart, you have to swap the cart out between Nick's corking (more on that timing in a second), so you push it out quickly over to the drain area. The bottles, being familiar with Newtonian physics, experience force to start and then stop the cart's movement, and so slide on the thin layer of water around the cart. Needless to say, breaking a bottle would be bad. So it becomes a little more delicate of a ballet than you might think. Also, we're in a space that's maybe 20 feet wide by 50 feet long, or about the size of your average one-bedroom apartment, with about 12 people in it working large pieces of machinery.

The Brew Works has a bottling line that they bought from Old Lehigh Brewery, which folded about six years ago. It wasn't new when they bought it. As you can see from the image at left (from left, brewmaster Beau Baden, and owner/brothers Jeff and Rich Fegley) it's like a big cone that rotates. The process works like this:

A couple guys grab about a dozen bottles from the palette of empties. They wash them out, then hand them over to the automated bottle-feeding mechanism, named Beau. Beau puts the bottles into the machine, which supposedly fills them to a uniform point by the time the bottles make a full circle, when Beau takes them off and puts them on a table for Nick, who corks them using the automated corker you can see me using in the image at right, and then puts them on the aforementioned cart. When the bottles are washed, they are passed over to the packaging table to be caged (those wire things over the corks on pretty bottles of beer). You probably imagine that those cages are put on by a machine, and you're right; our machines' names were Josh and Justin. They had drills duct taped to hooks, which twist cages tight, one at a time. Yeah.

There's about 144 cases on a palette, so figure we planned on around 1800 bottles in about three hours. 600 bottles an hour means about 10 bottles per minute, so when it runs at peak capacity, we're seeing a bottle every six seconds. Not bad, but if the guy who pushes the cart screws it up and Nick doesn't have a place to put the corked bottles, the whole thing slows down. Likewise, if Nick has to put more corks in the machine, or if Josh and Justin need to grab some coffee, or if the guy who was supposed to clear the trash from broken down palettes (also me) doesn't get to it in time, the works can be gummed up easily.

To the right, you can see the state of the artpackaging apparatus. (from left: Josh, Mike Fegley, Brendan, and Justin) Those things in front are piles of wire cages, and the things Josh and Justin are using are the drills with hooks on them.

So just imagine what happens when the machine, which fills and shuts off according to pressure (not volume), has some foam issues, and so every bottle has to make the rounds twice in the machine before being filled.

Yeah.

The labeling system was every bit as automated; after we finished bottling, a bunch of us went to the basement where we put labels on a palette of bottles (see picture below for a sense of how many that is). Tip: Start in the middle, then smooth your way to the outside. If that sounds like a lot of bottles to hand-label, I can tell you that it's one of those things that you get the hang of after a while, and also one of those things with which beer helps.

This is just a very brief description of one of the many challenges that small craft breweries face when trying to get delicious beer into your gullet. Not everyone has the resources of a Dogfish Head; in fact, only a few places do. And those things matter when it comes to how you can sell your beer. Add in state laws, distribution networks, sales staffs, and quality control issues, and you can see why they say brewing is a labor of love. Also, you can gain a lot of respect for contract breweries like Lion.

So if you get up to the Brew Works (possibly for their beer festival Nov. 7) and grab a bottle of the Rude Elf's or the Hopsolutely Double IPA, you are grabbing a bottle that about a dozen people contributed to in packaging alone. And you're probably going to drink it in an hour or less, all by yourself. Enjoy.

~posted by Greg Heller-Labelle

Allagash Night @ Monks on Monday

2009-10-19T16:49:00.000-07:00

Monday, OCT 26 starting at 11:30am, Monk's Cafe (16th and Spruce) will have the following Allagash beers:

ON DRAFT

Allagash Black - Belgian-style Sout

Allagash Confluence - American Wild Ale (Belgian Yeast & Brettanomyces)

Allagash Interlude - French Oak Barrel aged Saison w/Brett

Allagash Odyssey - Amercian Oak Aged Dark Wheat

Allagash Victoria - Belgian yeast & Chardonnay grapes

Allagash White - the definitive Belgian-Style Wit made in the US

IN BOTTLE

Allagash Black (25oz) belgian-style stout

Allagash Curieux (25oz) bourbon barrel aged

Allagash Fluxus 2009 (25oz) saison w/sweet potato

Allagash Four (25oz) 4 hops/4 malts/4 yeasts

Allagash Grand Cru 2008 (25oz) winter ale w/spices (**They are not making the Grand Cru in 2009 & this is Monk's last case from the 2008 vintage.)

Allagash Hugh Malone (25oz) triple addition of hops

Allagash Triple Reserve (25oz) belgian-style triple

Allagash Victor 2008 (25oz) w/red chancellor grapes

Allagash Victor 2009 (25oz) w/red chancellor grapes

Allagash Victoria (25oz) w/chardonnay grapes Allagash White

On Tap Beer in Philly 10-14-09

2009-10-14T13:54:00.000-07:00

Jose Pistola's (263 S 15th St.)
Allagash Triple
Bell’s Two Hearted IPA
Pennichuck Chief’s Imperial IPA
Southampton IPA
Troegs Sunshine Pils
Yards Brawler
Schneider Aventinus
Lindeman Framboise
Blanches de Bruxelles
Ace Pear Cider

P.O.P.E. (1501 Passyunk Ave)
Gritty McDuff's Black Fly Nitro Stout
Moylan's Hopsickle
Yard's Cape of Good Hope IPA
Founders Breakfast Stout
General LaFayette Marquis De Lafayette
Dick's IPA
Ithaca Outdoor Ale
St. Somewhere Pays Du Soleil
New Holland Ichabod Pumpkin
Doc's Apple Cider
Sinebrychoff Porter
PBC Kenzinger
Cisco Grey Lady
Sly Fox Oktoberfest

Local 44 (4333 Spruce St.)
Lagunitas Lucky 13
SlyFox Octoberfest
Victory Prima Pils
Southampton Tripel
Ommegang Witte
St. Druon
Franziskaner DunkleWeisse
Southampton Pumpkin Ale
Sierra Nevada Anniversary
Great Lakes Dortmunder
Bell's Pale Ale
PBC Kenzinger
Maredsous 8
St. Feuillien Saison
Tröegs Dead Reckoning
Sly Fox O'Reilly's Stout
Arcadia Hop Mouth
Stone Levitation
On Cask: Yards ESA
On Cask: Bear Republic XP Pale Ale

South Philly Tap Room (1509 Mifflin St.)
Lancaster Milk Stout
Founders Cerise
Docs Apple Cider
Lost Abbey Red Barn
Lefthand Oktoberfest
PBC Kenzinger
PBC Joe Porter
Sly Fox Saison Vos
Port Brewing High Tide
Russian River Pliny the Elder
Founders Barrel-Aged Rye Porter
The Livery Maillot Jaune
Lagunitas A Little Sumpin' Extra
On Cask: Victory Hop Devil

McGillin's Alehouse (1310 Drury St.)
McGillin's 1860 IPA
Flying Fish Farmhouse Ale
Yards Brawler
Yards Philly Pale Ale (PPA)
Dogfish Head 60 Min IPA
PBC Walt Wit
Victory Golden Monkey
PBC Fleur de Lehigh
Troeg's Sunshine Pils
Ithaca Apricot Wheat
Riverhorse Summer Blonde Ale
Original Sin Hard Cider
Ommegang Rare Vos
Sixpoint Righteous Rye
Brooklyn Cuvee de Cardoz
Magic Hat Lucky Cat
Appalachian Abbey Roade
Sly Fox Royal Weisse

News From Great American Beer Festival

2009-10-07T10:07:00.000-07:00

“According to the Guinness Book of World Records®, there is no other place on earth where a beer aficionado can find more beers on tap.” – Great American Beer Festival FAQ

The first thing to know about the Great American Beer Festival is that it is not exactly a beer festival. Of course it technically is, but it has about as much in common with your standard metropolitan beer festival as the Philadelphia Auto show has with your neighborhood Ford dealer. The GABF is an industry event, first and foremost, and while there are plenty of people there to get drunk on delicious and new beer, the vast majority of people there have some ulterior motive, from finding new beers to increase their profile on Ratebeer to corralling new breweries to join their art exhibit (like yours truly). The crowd of 49,000 people is almost all “beer people.” One GABF vet I talked to said that he believes the down economy has trimmed even more of the people looking to get drunk, and that made sense to me.

So you’re in a giant room with thousands of people who work, live, or play in the craft beer industry.

There are more beers there – 2,000 – than you could ever hope to try. Seriously. Even if you got tickets to all four sessions, each of which lasts about five hours, you’d have to have one sample 100 beers every hour to try them all, and even if that were anatomically possible, it’s definitely not logistically possible. Certain breweries (e.g. Dogfish Head, New Glarus) have lines that top 20 minutes to get your 1 oz tasting.

So you have to pick and choose, and you have to get comfortable with the idea that you will never try all of the beer.

The event is always in Denver, and it is not inexpensive to send beer out, so the event has a definite West-Coast bias. That’s exciting for those of us from the East Coast, because that means there’s lots of beer we can’t get at home. It also means there are a lot of breweries you’ve never heard of, and will never be able to find again.

So, to recap: You’re in an enormous room, surrounded by all of the beer you’ve never had, and know only that you can’t try all of it.

Still, after three sessions and a lot of talking to various people both at the festival and in the surrounding events, it’s possible to get a good sense of the breweries and what’s generating the most conversation.

Golden Hills Brewery is basically one guy, Graydon Brown, in Avery Heights, WA. He came and poured two light beers that I would never have tried had I not met him. I can say with confidence that his light beers have the best body and finish of any low-abv beers I’ve ever had. It’s not even right to call them light, but one was an amber lager and the other was a pilsner. The thing Brown is doing differently is that he is competing on process. People haven’t changed much about brewing methods in the past 5,000 years or so, but Brown says he has a proprietary patent-pending process that not only changes the character of the beer, but allows it to age in one-third the time. He also says he would never sell it to a macrobrewery unless he was sure it would be employed. The business side of me remains deeply skeptical that the deep pockets of A-B/Inbev, MillerCoors, et al. will let a truly revolutionary process stay in the hands of a small brewer, but I hope I’m wrong. Whatever the process, its result is the most distinctive light beer you will ever have, and is worth seeking out if you can find it.

Cambridge Brewing Co. makes normal beer, but they did not bring any of them to GABF. Instead, they brought five ridiculously interesting brews, all of which were complex, different, and delicious. I would have rated four of the beers five-star, with the other one being four stars. Also, they had great names: Arquebus (“summer barleywine”), Sgt. Pepper’s (a blonde with four types of peppercorns), The Wind Cried Mary (“heather ale”) and Benevolence (a rich dark beer with dates and spices). It was the best booth I hit in the three days of the festival, and it’s in relatively nearby Cambridge, Mass.

Barley Brothers in Lake Havasu, AZ, roped me into trying something called the “Tripppleberrry Wheat,” which does not sound like something that is my speed. With a nose full of fruit followed by a bone-dry taste with a soft triple mouthfeel, it was one of the few beers I recommended everyone try. Interestingly, their White Ale – which was also surprisingly dry and flavorful – was one of the most interesting whites I’d ever had.

The Sandlot, Blue Moon’s brewery at Coors Field, is a beautiful facility where they are making some really good and interesting beer.

Three things that were ubiquitous at GABF:

Sour Ales, which is great for those of us that love a good geuze.

Brettanomyces, or Bretts, the wild yeast that gives everything that Belgian flavor. I love it and all, but even a great song can be overplayed.

Falling Rock Tap House is the unofficial HQ of the festival, with all sorts of taps and fantastic beer and people. The funniest thing is that, for all of Falling Rock’s taps, there are many times when a bystander could think Chris (the owner) only installed one: Every one of the hundreds of beer people there will be drinking Russian River’s Pliny the Elder.

The complete winners list is available online but here are the Local Winners (PA, NJ and DE):

Erie Brewing Co. (Erie, PA) won a Gold for their Railbender Ale (Scottish Style Ale), a strong beer that everyone can love.

Beau Baden, brewmaster at my local Allentown & Bethlehem Brew Works (Allentown and Bethlehem, PA) won two medals: A Silver for BagPiper's Scotch Ale (Scotch Ale) and a Bronze for their Christmas Beer, Rude Elf's Reserve (Herb and Spice or Chocolate Beer). For visual representation, the picture at left is me and my friend Jim with the lovely and enthusiastic volunteers at the Brew Works booth.

McKenzie Brew House (Malvern, PA) won a Gold for their Saison Vautour (French and Belgian Style Saison).

Gordon Grubb at the Nodding Head Brewing Co. on Sansom St. won two medals: a Silver for his George's Fault (Specialty Honey Beer) and a Bronze for his Phruit Phunk (Wood and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer).

Triumph Brewing Co. won two medals, as well, and both were Golds. The New Hope branch won for their Hefeweizen (German-Style Wheat Ale), and the Philadelphia branch won for their Kinder Pils (Session Beer).

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant also won two medals, a Gold for their Schwarzbier and a Silver for their Raspberry Torte (American-Style Sour Ale).

Carol and Ed Stoudt at Stoudts Brewing Co. (Adamstown, PA) won a Bronze for their Stoudts Kölsch.

Troegs Brewing Co. (Harrisburg, PA) was a big winner with three medals. The Troegenator won a Gold (Bock), the Dead Reckoning a Silver (American-Style Stout), and the Sunshine Pils a Bronze (German-Style Pilsener). You may notice that the Troegenator and Dead Reckoning are in categories one might not expect (the Reckoning is marketed as a Porter, for example), which goes to show you how important categories are when entering beer.

Flying Fish Brewing Co. (Cherry Hill, NJ) won two medals, a Gold for their Exit 4 (American-Belgo-Style Ale) and a Bronze for their Hopfish (Classic English Style Pale Ale).

Long Valley Pub and Brewery (Long Valley, NJ) won a Silver for their Lazy Jake Porter (Brown Porter).

And lastly, in hardly a surprise, Dogfish Head’s extreme beers continued to rack up medals. The Chateau Jiahu (Specialty Beer) won a Gold, the Palo Santo Marron (Specialty/Wood Beer) won a Silver, and the Midas Touch (Specialty/Honey Beer) won a Bronze.

Road Trip: Bethlehem Brew Works

2009-09-30T01:42:00.000-07:00

What a stellar brewpub, I was pretty blown away. Jumping right in--You gotta have the Steelworkers Stout. An oatmeal stout that I found to be a cross between an oatmeal and a milk stout. The Pumpkin ale isn't too sweet, not hoppy either. Drinks like a ballanced amber ale with a solid hint of pumpkin. Devil's Hearth is a Belgian Golden ale, nice and spicy with a decent alcohol kick. Brass Monkey IPA is brewed with apricots, but I found the apricots to be burried by the hops, didn't come across too strongly (i.e. if you're an IPA drinker who isn't big into apricots, this is still worth a try). Fegley’s E.S.B. is one of their house fav's, med-light boddied with just a touch of diacetyl, finishes pretty clean. My favorite beer I had was the Bagpiper's scotch ale. This wee-heavy is a smooth malty 8.5%. Maybe the best of it's kind I've ever tried, I give it my highest reccomendation.

And holy shit, the food is outrageously delicious. The meatloaf has this sauce for which I've struggled all night to find the right word to describe. It's a bit like a slightly spicy barbecue sauce. Doesn't sound like much when I put it that way, but let's just say I licked the plate (and that wasn't even my meal, my friends hate it when I make a scene). What I had was the Pierogie Casserole, which IS as ballin' as it sounds. Picture chunky-ass mashed potatoes smothered in a blend of melted cheeses, it was the big hit at the table. The turkey and avocado sandwhich on french-bread was a refreshing change from the common practice of slathering everything in various mayo sauces. Out of habit, I found myself dipping it in my aforementioned cheesy potato stew.

The Steelgaarden downstairs is a classic Bethlehem bar complete with lounge-adelic furniture, hip retro-rock playlists, pooltables, tasty bar snacks, great bartenders, and Keystone Homebrew supply right across the corridor of the tiny indoor mall. The ambience is worth the sometimes upscale pricing compared to other bethlehem hangouts.

Later this week I'll be going to the Dogfish/Slyfox Beer Dinner at the Pourhouse, stay tuned for updates.

Triumph Brew Pub

2009-09-13T18:35:00.000-07:00

Triumph Brew Pub is great beer and outstanding food in one of the most relaxed atmospheres old city has to offer. Culturally, they're no more than 2 blocks from live music or comedy at the Khyber, and practically share parking with no less than (2) Ritz movie theatres. Lets not forget billiards right across the street. But at Triumph Brewing, it's what's on the inside that counts. Creative food and beer that hits every time. A playlist at the perfect background volume to make your head bob while you chat comfortably with your man-date. And last but not least--lighting at a dreamy 72 degree lamp-glow.

I opened up with the Amber Ale. Robust aroma of cascade hops, and a strong initial bite. Not quite malty enough in the mid-pallate, but I'm spoiled in that department by recent fresh bottles of ESA. Good alcohol kick, and by all measure a very solid hoppy amber. My bro-date compared his Helles Lager to a Yuengling, I hinked a sip and concurred, although the color was golden like a macro. I appreciated the extra whisp of hops for a dry finish.

My second was the Munich Dunkel. Super smooth, minor coffee notes comparable to Sam Lager on a fresh day. A heavy mouthfeel left things chewey after the finish. Brendan's reported his Kinder Pills to be hoppy like a Prima.

Food wise it was a lamb-fest all the way. I ordered the lamb sliders off the lunch menu, which was basically (3) White-Castle sized lamb-burgers complete with caramelized onions but with the added bonus of goat cheese and fig mustard. Num-city!

Although I got out-did by Brendan's lamb BLT, which I was privileged to enjoy a few bitesies and, sweet christ was it the real deal. Served between a brioche loafe, with goat cheese, tomato emulsion, plenty of lettuce to spare, and-of course... BACON!!! How I'll ever enjoy a regular lambless BLT, OR any lamb dish sans bacon is gonna be a serious issue that I'll deal with as it comes.

I've been to Triumph once before to pre-game Chip Chantry's One Man Show (w/ Special Guests) at the Khyber, and I enjoyed the IPX. It's a malty double IPA with big bold flavor--I don't believe it's currently on tap but I recommend it next time it comes around. The bartender was willing to give me tastes of a few different things, so don't get intimidated by their tall-ass glasses. This isn't really a pint-sized type of place, so get used to it.

In other news, I stopped by Home Sweet Homebrew on Sansom to figure out what beer we're going to make for our Halloween wedding. George worked out a partial mash recipe for a mild smoked porter, and I enjoyed steeping and sparging during the first full Sunday of NFL action. If that wasn't the good life, then I don't know what is. George amped me up to a more hyperactive yeast, considering the time constraint, and gave me some yeast nutrient to help make sure I get bottling promptly for the Oct 31st release date. Can't recommend Home Sweet Homebrew on Sansom highly enough!

Publican National Committee @ Monk's Cafe

2009-08-26T03:07:00.000-07:00

From Monk's Cafe:

The 1st Publican National Committee (PNC) Beer has arrived! The PNC is a group of like-minded Publicans (otherwise known as bar owners) that are passionate about beer. We travel the world seeking the best beers to share with our guests. Now we are venturing into beers that are created exclusively for our five bars. Vinnie & Natalie from Russian River Brewery agreed to brew the first ever commissioned beer for the PNC.

The members of the PNC are: 1) Chris Black of Denver’s Falling Rock; 2) Don Younger of Portland Oregon’s Horse Brass Pub; 3) Matt Bonney & Vern of Seattle’s Brouwer’s Café; 4) David Keane (aka Big Daddy) of San Fran’s Toronado; and 5) Tom Peters of Philly’s Monk’s Café.

Here are Vinnie’s Notes:

RUSSIAN RIVER PUBLICATION
OG: 1.066 (16.5 Plato)
8% ABV
BU’s: 48
Style: Saison finished with Brettanomyces

Tasting Notes: Golden in color, strong yeast aroma with mild aromas of barnyard and leather from the Brettanomyces. Flavor’s of malt and spice dominate the palate with a dry nutty (malt) character mixed with a funky Brettanomyces finish. The hops are dominate but well placed with-in the brew. Publication started out as a test beer we called Empirical 7 which was a blonde ale fermented with a Saison yeast I wanted to test out for the PNC beer. The Empirical 7 was extremely hoppy and very very dry and the use of Brett for keg conditioning was very heavy handed. The Empirical 7 was meant to be a test batch for the members of the PNC to taste and based on their feedback I would build the recipe for the first ever PNC beer. At about midnight the night before the brew, over a game of Washoe’s and 10 beers into the night we finally got around to talking about the beer. A higher ABV was requested with more characteristics from the yeast and fermentation were also wanted in the PNC beer. With that in mind I set out to tweak the test batch and brew the next day. In the end I did bump up the malt bill so we could reach an ABV of 8%. I also switched out some of the base 2-row malt for some pilsner malt which would add another dimension with the malt characteristic in the beer. We used the same hop bill as the test batch so with a higher ABV and more malt on the palate the hops would be a little less aggressive. In fermentation we fermented about 6 degrees warmer to get more yeast characteristic in the final beer. Once the beer was ready to keg we used a smaller amount of Brett so there would be more flavor from the fermentation coming through. At a young age, this beer drinks very well, but, there are still some rough edges which will round out nicely as the beer ages.

Vinnie Cilurzo
Brewer/Owner
Russian River Brewing Company

PS: We have Vinnie's Pliney The Elder at the Back Bar right now. We also just tapped a keg of Founder's Kentucky Breakfast Stout. This won't last long, so hurry on in. Two draft from Brasserie Cazeau are pouring, too!

Exit Series Creator Casey Hughes of Flying Fish

2009-08-18T16:59:00.000-07:00

Got to chat with Flying Fish director of brewing operations, the man behind Exit Series. Lets see if he spills the beans on what the next Exit in the Series will be...

Philly Beeraholic: Thanks for chatting for a few minutes! The first question on everybody's mind is, what's the Next Exit going to be?
Casey: Sorry, we're not at liberty to say at the moment.

PB: No worries! I'm guessing it's already underway though? What's the availability for each in the series?
Casey: Yea, we're gonna start production in the next few weeks. We're doing about 4 a year, and we're only doing 1000 cases of each one.

PB: People are big into cellaring these days, aging the higher ABV beers like wine. Exit 11 isn't quite that big, I'm guessing you don't want to let it sit around too long...
Casey: Nah, you're gonna wanna drink it fresh. The first thing that will fade is the hops. Exit 4 will age pretty well. Most of the series is going to be higher ABV, although I do have one or two lower alcohol ideas in mind for later on.

PB: How long have you been brewing?
Casey: 14 years. When I was 18 I actually lived at a brewery in Key West. Now I live here in Philly, and commute on the Patco high-speed line over to Flying Fish in Cherry Hill.

PB: What are your favorite local watering holes? Fav local beers?
Casey: Good Dog... Varga... Standard Tap... I really just enjoy whatever's on draft, or bottles depending on where I'm at. Heh, right now I've been drinking a whole lot of Exit 11.

PB: You and me both! Do you have a favorite Flying Fish beer?
Casey: It depends what time of the year it is. I guess you could say that Hopfish is my sit around/ball game ale. But I drink a lot of Farmhouse during the summer, Grand Cru and Espresso Porter during the winter.

PB: Any other big plans for Flying Fish that we should know about?
Casey: Just that we're looking to expand. We have a lot on our plate with the 4 year-round ales plus the seasonals and now the Exit Series, we're just trying to keep up at the moment. But we're definitely growing in terms of volume.

Upon speaking with Casey, I immediately began to regret that I had no self-control when it came to the bottle of Exit 4 I had stashed away for maturation, but perhaps that's just consistent with the problem-areas of my lifestyle. Also thanks to The Beer Lass for the heads up on this link of Casey and Flying Fish owner Gene Muller talking about the Exit Series with ABC.

What's On Tap 8-12-09

2009-08-12T15:27:00.000-07:00

Local 44

"As a big end-of-summer thank you to our awesome guests (that's you!), join us Sunday night, August 23, starting at 5pm for a "Kick the Keg" night: Everything on draft is just $3, while it lasts. Make plans to be here to do your part!"

In case you forget the kind of things they pour, here's what they got this week:
Stone Levitation Ale

Elysian Avatar Jasmine IPA

Lagunitas New Dogtown

Avery IPA

Yards Saison

Dogfish Head Festina Peche

Rodenbach Grand Cru

Ballast Point Black Marlin Porter

Tröegs Sunshine Pils

Brooklyn Cuvee d Cardoz

Great Lakes Dortmunder

Belhaven Wee Heavy

PBC Kenzinger

Maredsous 8

Franziskaner Hefeweizen

Sly Fox O'Reilly's Stout

Allagash Tripel

Green Flash Hop Head Red

Racer 5 IPA (cask)

Victory Uncle Teddy's Bitter (cask)

McGillin's

This is fun--a number of authors whose works feature McGillins (or likenesses there-of) will be coming around for signings. Aug 25- Philly Crime-Noir laureate and Punisher/Cable comic writer Duane Swierczynski. Sept 1- New York Times bestselling author William Lashner (Blood & BoneTuesday). Sept. 8th- Motivational psychologist (Early Poppers: Growing When the Heat Is On). Oh, and on tap:

McGillin's Real Ale (Stoudt's)
Sly Fox O'Reilly's Stout

Sly Fox Royal Weisse
McGillin's Genuine Lager (Stoudt's)
Beamish Genuine (Irish) Stout
Flying Fish Farmhouse Ale
Yards Brawler
Dogfish Head 60 Min IPA
Yards Philly Pale Ale
Philly Brewing Co Walt Wit
Victory Golden Monkey
Philly Brewing Co Fleur de Lehigh
Troeg's Sunshine Pils
Ithaca Apricot Wheat
Riverhorse Summer Blonde Ale
Original Sin Hard Cider
Ommegang Rare Vos
Sixpoint Craft Ale Righteous Rye
Brooklyn Brewery Cuvee de Cardoz
Magic Hat Lucky Cat
Appalachian Brewing Abbey Roade

SPTR

Appearently South Philadelphia Taproom is the place where Michigan beers hang with PA beers for a true middle-American experience:

PBC Newbold (cask)

Lancaster Cream Ale
Stoudts Hefeweizen

Victory Schwarz Pils

KenzingerPhiladelphia
Doc's Apple Cider

Porterhouse Raspberry Reserve
Great Lakes Burning River Pale Ale

Summit Horizon Red Ale
Bell's Cherry Stout
Allagash Triple
Oskar Blues Gordon
Abbaye des Rocs Grand Cru
Founders Maple Mountain Brown

In other news, I'll be chatting on Friday with Flying Fish brewmaster Casey Hughes about Exit 11 and the Exit Series in general, stay close for that. I also have finally put my money where my enormous mouth is and brewed my own beer, which means I have finally earned the right to broadcast opinions on suds. Special thanks to Paul Lukin for chaperoning. The result was a cask-esque pale-ale which, god willing, will still have proper character after bottle-conditioning for 2 weeks. I liked the English ale-house taste, so I decided to short the priming sugar about 25% to see if I can keep carbonation down to moderate and below. I'm still skeptical about the designer no-rinse medical-grade iodine solution I used, which everybody's been raving about. But what can I do, I don't own a sanitising industrial cleansing basin. Yet.

Road Trip: Gordon Biersch in Washington DC

2009-07-26T14:15:00.000-07:00

This big chain of a brew-pub is definitely better for it's food than it is its beer. Not to harsh on their short selection of German style house brews but it was definitely overshadowed by their amazing food-ahol, especially their infamous Garlic Fries. *drool*.... My grilled chicken and avacodo sandwich was spot-on perfect, and Nestor's NY steak sandwich got rave reviews from his side of the table. And the fries-dark brown potato cuts infused with liberal splatterings of diced garlic and some parsely. I don't mind saying I had garlic coming out my pores for a few hours, and I wouldn't have it any other way. They weren't too salty, and hardly required ketchup (but I still used a bit anyway. splendid.)

The beers were, as they say--nothing to write home about... But I'll do it anyway. Remember that I'm biased towards British styles, and this is a strictly German house. Their golden lager wasn't far-off from an MGD. I was a little confused as to why it was their house standard, the kolsh was way better. Their hefeweizen was heavy on the hefe, light on the weizen (which isn't always a bad thing if you're into that). Thier marzen was light bodied (I think I see a trend) and was a bit dry, per style. Their Dunkelweizen had the most interesting flavor, dark with hints of coffee, and--as they boasted--way lighter than the porters and stouts that us anglophiles are used to. This made for complex flavors with still some room in the gullet for garlic fries. Finally, the afforementioned Kolsch... It was still light, but had different dimensions including a faint touch of fruit and a slight hint of hops in the finish.

The 5 beer selection was a tad scant, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't an all around great dining experience. It's not gonna be a serious stop in a night of bar-hopping but lunch there couldn't have been better.

Flying Fish Exit 11

2009-07-14T18:23:00.000-07:00

I'll be trying it tomorrow night @ Cork in Westmont ($3 pints, I believe), but Phoodie gave it a stellar review. If you're unfamiliar with the Flying Fish Exit Series, here's some data for ya:

The Jist: http://www.exitseries.com/
In Depth: http://beeradvocate.com/news/2147897
Phoodie Review: http://www.phoodie.info/2009/07/13/exit-11-your-official-beer-for-summer-2009/

Now on tap around town:

SPTR: Avery IPA, Stone Levitation, Bell's 3rd Coast Old Ale
Local 44: Avery IPA, Sierra Nevada Summerfest, BR Racer 5 IPA (cask), Victory Storm King (cask)
McGillin's: Brewery Ommegang Rare Vos, Sixpoint Craft Ale Righteous Rye, Brooklyn Brewery Cuvee de Cardoz
Irish Pol: Legacy Hoptimus Prime, Ballast Point Big Eye, Avery IPA
Monk's: Sierra Nevada Harvest, Allagash Curieux (their Triple aged in Bourbon Casks), Chouffe Houblon

Erie Brewing's Mad Anthony APA

2009-07-02T21:46:00.000-07:00

I admit that I sometimes drink myself klepto. This was the best bottle I swiped from the leftovers at the Design, Drink, and Be Merry exhibit tasting event last weekend.

A well ballanced malty foreground/hoppy background. The erie brewing website boasts an array of american hops. Interestingly, they got a combination that ends up tasting a tad euro. Medium alcohol and nice dark malts, the hop bitterness reminds you of a european lager, a saaz aftertaste from this particular american hop cocktail.

Heavily carbonated for what seems to be a purebred cask ale. A pretty light mouthfeel for a medium bodied apa. Drinkability is a little slow due to the hop bitterness wringing in at a complicated 40 IBUs in the shade.

I haven't tasted anything else from Erie Brewing. Please support local brewers whenever you get a chance!

Local Updates 6-25

2009-06-25T18:29:00.000-07:00

Currently On Tap at South Philadelphia Tap Room :

PBC Newbold IPA (cask)
PBC Kenzinger
North Coast Old Rasputin
Porterhouse Raspberry Reserve
Founders Double Trouble (!!)
Founders Curmudgeon
Great Divide Belgica
Original Sin Cider
Sly Fox Willamette Pale Ale
DeProef LaGrande Blanche
LeftHand Polestar Pils
Weyerbacher Foxtrot
Troegs Dreamweaver
Great Divide Samuri

and Saturday June 27th at SPTR: WHEAT BEER FEST, 2pm-11pm $3 pints

Currently on tap at McGillin's:

McGillin's Real Ale (Stoudt's)
Sly Fox: O'Reilly's Stout
McGillin's Genuine Lager (Stoudt's)
Beamish: Genuine (Irish) Stout
Flying Fish Farmhouse Ale
Yards Brawler
Yards Philly Pale Ale
Dogfish Head 60 Min IPA
PBCWalt Wit
PBC Fleur de Lehigh
Victory Golden Monkey
Troeg's Sunshine Pils
Ithaca Apricot Wheat
Riverhorse Summer Blonde Ale
Original Sin Hard Cider

Finally, this Saturday June 27th is the big event in Reading PA, the Craft Beer Art Movement Design, Drink, and Be Merry has it's big beer dinner, get tickets now!

River Horse Hop Hazard

2009-06-17T13:00:00.000-07:00

Got to enjoy this from their variety pack. The box is solid through and through; this was the standout offering for me.

Appearance: Cloudy amber with very thin head from purposefully light pour I gave it after reading the unfiltered warning on the label.

Smell: Grassy brown sugar, only modest hop aroma for a dry-hopped.

T: Sweet like their ESB--for a delightful millisecond. Then the hops take over--not like a dictator, but like a quarterback. More Chad Pennington than Michael Vick. Plenty of malts with a touch of honey and grainy citrus. The hops are confident but never actually hazardous.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, with a slightly medicinal aftertaste. Light citrus bitterness lingers on the back of the tongue.

Drinkability: Complex enough to be a slow drainer, bitterness increases as it warms.

River Horse seems to be trying to appeal to The Trend with title of this brew, but those who are actually looking for a hazardous dose of hops would be disappointed. The rest of us should be delighted. A great APA which deviates a bit from the Sierra Nevada playbook by trading the fruit and floral complexity for a more malty, Britishy, sweet/bitter dichotomy. Frankly, you could categorize this as a strong ESB, but their pretty mild ESB is on the far sessionable end of the spectrum so I don't see it as a duplicate effort.

I look forward to when my doctor says I can have beer and food together again, I'd like to pair this with a particularly busy quesadilla.

The Irish Pol

2009-06-12T03:55:00.000-07:00

As far as I'm concerned, every old-city barhopping evening begins and ends with the Irish Pol. Especially the 'begins' part because their happy hour consists of $3 pints of the best cross-section of local offerings, west coast rarities, and industry standards from everywhere in-between. I bellied up at 5:30, started with a Yards ESA to get me in the mood. It was Grateful Dead Tuesday, which served as a fitting soundtrack and came with a bartender knowledgeable on both the beer and the Dead.

The second number I ordered up was Dock Street's Rye PA. I'll admit I get spoiled by how fresh it is at their brewpub, but I'd really be splitting hairs to say that the short cross-town trip from West Philly takes any significant toll. If anything, the local RyePA may only suffer from some overshadowing by the out of town big-wigs on the wall like Bells and Lagunitas. The fiance was with me making me work on reading selections for the wedding. I made sure to drink up.

I don't know if I was just in a local mood, or if the idea of a $3 Victory Storm King simply was something I feel I've been owed for quite a while. I ordered one up in a short fat challace, while the fiance and I finalized our liturgical passages.

I have to say, the ambiance of the room is just about pitch-perfect. The narrowness of the room and questionable bathrooms add a pinch of 'dive-bar' to the beatifully pretentious sight of all those tap handles up on the wall (the centerpiece of which is the disturblingly clutch 'Left Hand' of Left Hand's Sawtooth Ale). Flat panels are strategically placed to be available to the eyes without screaming 'Sports Pub'. And the juke-box offers treats for the snoberatti and radio listener alike.

I've yet to spend a whole evening there due, primarily, to the keystone location in proximity to all my other favorite old-city spots. You're 2 blocks south of the hip, pool table and perogi basement mecca Sugar Mom's. Across the street from the modern meade hall and Tuesday night Karaoke extravaganza at National Mechanics. Right next door to the special-occasions only fondue and wine/beer arrogance of Benelux Tasting Room. A three minute walk and you're at the Belgian draft extravaganza Eulogy, and Triumph Brewery. Finally, the thing that got me coming to old city initially, live music at the Kyber, shares the back of the city block, facing 2nd.

I look forward to actually closing the Irish Pol some day, even though when you're in old city, you're a kid in a candy shop. But it seems they have fun events often enough (including assorted tastings and, I believe, guitar hero nights up on the Wii) that they're trying to hold my attention for full evenings of beer rentals. Since it's a decent 5 block walk from the Patco, I don't see any reason why it's not meant to be.

On Tap at SPTR 6-10-09

2009-06-10T10:25:00.000-07:00

Here's what's pouring at South Philadelphia Tap Room this week...

Sly Fox Placebo (cask)

Sly Fox Slacker Bock

Lancaster Milk Stout

Dogfish Head Festina Peche
Lagunitas Hop Stoopid
Lagunitas Undercover Shutdown

Doc's Pear Cider

Wyerbacher Zotten
Founders Pale Ale

Kenzinger

Walt Wit

Stoudts Pils
Smuttynose IPA
Bear Republic Nor'Cal

Magic Hat Wacko

2009-06-06T15:31:00.000-07:00

It's easy for a big beer to be outstanding. Huge flavor profiles, enormous punch... What's more impressive to me, is for an all around modest beer to be masterfully done. That's what I taste here, despite the somewhat confusing marketing which makes this look like an oddball brew. It isn't. It's a delicious summer ale, not terribly unlike some industry standards we know and love (i.e. Sam Adams Summer Ale).

I guess they're trying to make a huge deal about the beet sugar it uses instead of cane sugar? There isn't any actual beet juice in the beer, but the ads are tricky, claiming it to have beet juice color. I don't even know what beet juice is, or what it tastes like, but I know what beet sugar tastes like... regular sugar. In fact, it IS regular sugar. 55% of all granulated sugar consumed in the world is beet sugar. Cane sugar is actually the fancy stuff, which is probably why you hear its name getting touted from time to time. Beet sugar is nothing fancy or unusual. It's probably unusual in beer because breweries want to spend the extra penny for a more upscale ingredient, and lord knows why, because after the yeast eats it, it becomes something entirely different anyway. The subtle differences in the flavor profile may be due to the beet fermentation, but more likely it's due to the all around well-excecuted brewing by the folks at Magic Hat.

The odd presentation and marketing seem to have anoyed a lot of internet beeranados, but in the end it's all about the beer. And the fresh pint I had on draft was a refreshing, light-bodied yet flavorful, beautiful red beer that I hope MH actually KEEPS in production for a season or two. Magic Hat has a dreadful habit of canning their best products (and by canning, I don't mean continuing production in cans, but rather DISCONTINUING). But I wouldn't mind if they made this a year-round, or replaced Hocus Pocus altogether (not that there's anything wrong with Hocus Pocus, but... meh)

Appearence: Sexy red with nothing on top, probably a super-light pour.

Smell: Mild spices, sweet malt, a hint of bananna and mild berries.

Taste: Citric honey, mild floral and a touch of grassy, fruity straw. Great ballance, erring slightly on the sweet side, very mild bitterness in the finish.

Mouthfeel: Super smooth with a good body. Spot-on perfect carbonation, even around the edges, ultra-refreshing.

Drinkability: All day and all night. The professionally excecuted carbonation level keeps this from ever tasting too sweet to quaf in vollume.

I'm wishing I had grabbed a six pack of this today instead of the Yards Brawler I have waiting for me, cuz typing up my notes put me damned in the mood for it. You should have no trouble finding Wacko, just look in most stores. And forget about it being on odd notion, it's just great beer.

Design, Drink, and Be Merry!

2009-05-31T12:02:00.000-07:00

Founder and Lehigh Valley Beer Society President, Greg Heller-Labelle, tells me about the second annual exhibit and beer tasting.

Philly Beeraholic: What is Design, Drink, and Be Merry?
Greg Heller-Labelle: "Design, Drink and Be Merry: The Craft Brew Art Movement" is the only art exhibition in the country dedicated to art produced by craft breweries. It is held at the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts, which is a nonprofit arts center in Reading, PA. The exhibition lasts for the month of June, and culminates in a beer tasting event at 5 p.m. on June 27th, which raises money for the GoggleWorks' after school arts program.

PB: How did this get started?
GHL: This is the second year that we've been doing the show. It basically came about because I'm a lover of both art and beer. A couple years ago, I was noticing that breweries were putting more and more effort into the art and design work surrounding their products. As the craft beer industry booms, differentiating breweries and individual beers is becoming more important, and it's led to some really fantastic work. I wanted to put together an exhibition recognizing that work and talent.

PB: What breweries participate, and/or who benefits from the event (either financially, or exposure etc)?

GHL: We're still working out the details of who is participating in the event. As of this moment, we have 16 breweries in the show, with the possibility of a 17th. Last year, the breweries that presented beer gained a lot of exposure, I think, to an audience that is by and large relatively new to craft beer. The stereotype for art crowds, fair or not, is of wine drinkers. But I believe that people who appreciate the talents and creativity that go into good art find that the same qualities go into making craft beer. Last year, Jeremy Cowan, founder of Shmaltz, came and told great stories about tracking down thousands of pounds of pomegranates and then stomping them in his Berkeley flat for the first batch of Origin Ale. Those are the type of associations that drive people to buy a specific beer over and over again. So I think there's a lot of benefit for the people who come to learn about beer and the breweries. There's the recognition for the artists (who frankly don't get enough of it), there's some new customers for the breweries who present beer, and all of it benefits the children of Reading. It's a really great time, and it's for a good cause. Also, incidentally, we planned the event so that tickets could be a present for Father's Day, because I for one have real difficulty finding novel gifts for Dad every year.

PBH: Are there any pieces in this year's exhibit that you're especially excited about?
GHL: One particular "piece" of artwork I'm very excited about is the ad campaign for Rotgutzen Beer-Flavored Product (www.rotgutzen.com). It's a whole viral marketing campaign that is just awesomely funny and pits the craft beer industry as the scrappy, noble David to macrobrews' Goliath. Funny, funny stuff, and really to me emblematic of just how creative and cool a lot of the artwork done in this industry is.

PBH: What sort of dialogue has the show sparked in the past?
GHL: There seems to be a yearly debate about high and low art. Some people respond to this show - and to a lot of design generally - with a sort of dismissive comment that it's all just "marketing art" or "commercial art." And I see a few things wrong with that. One is that the talent, energy, and effort that goes into label art is the same caliber and volume of that which goes into, say, an oil on canvas. A major goal of this show is to demonstrate this. And once you take the art off of the bottle or case and frame it on a gallery wall, those characteristics are obvious. Another issue is that it's important to realize is that most artists do not actually get by on pure creative work. For many, art has to remain an avocation rather than a vocation, and only the luckiest ones find work for design studios or can get a job doing actual artwork. Breweries are employing designers and artists, which is a really fantastic thing, and this is one of the ways that art can be an actual job for people. Whether it's on a six-pack or not, the breweries are exposing us to artwork we wouldn't get to see otherwise. So the breweries deserve a great deal of credit for putting resources into artistic talent.

PBH: Anything you'd like to address about craft beer in general at the moment?
GHL: I think a lot of breweries are starting to realize how much of their business is actually business. With the crowded field, we've seen that just making delicious beer often isn't enough. There's a lot of breweries out there, and they're all trying to connect with a market that is growing but still small. So, as a brewery, there's this need to let "beer people" like you and me know about new and interesting and crazy stuff they're trying, but there's also a need to be accessible to some of those potential customers who aren't familiar with the medium and the craft beer industry. You want to be edgy, but not threatening. And a big part of that is the visual identity of the beer and the brewery, which is really what our show is about.

I think Eastern PA, and Pennsylvania in general, is really getting very close to that rarified class of beer cradles like Colorado and the Pacific Northwest. It makes sense with the German heritage of the area, but people forget how new this whole craft beer thing is. I mean, the guy who re-legalized homebrewing was Jimmy Carter. So I think we're still in the process of getting our brewing groove back, and we're remembering as an area that local brewing is a major part of a community, which to those of us at community arts centers is the thing that keeps us going. Lew Bryson - who couldn't make it up to the event last year but I hope can come this year - has done a lot of good work chronicling PA brewing efforts.

I think we're seeing that the character of PA breweries is sort of twofold, where we have an appreciation for lagers and wheat beers on one hand, with the German heritage and Yuengling and the love of beverages that can be consumed easily in quantity at football games, (which breweries like Stoudts do just brilliantly). And on the other hand, we have a real love of big beers. You've got places like Weyerbacher in Easton and Sly Fox in Phoenixville and even the Allentown-Bethlehem Brew Works that can crank out some seriously high-gravity, flavorful stuff. So there's this lovely bipolarity we've got going on that makes for a lot of variety, and a lot of interesting beer. It also helps that we have the immense capacity of breweries like Lion up in Wilkes-Barre, so contract brewing is a relatively easy option for nearby craft breweries to boost their production. Of course, one thing that works against us the is the way Pennsylvania as a state works liquor laws, which is famously antiquated and limiting--and the laws aren't going to change any time soon. But we're fortunate to have enough of a community that appreciates beer and demands selection, so we do get a lot of good beer in stores.

For information on tickets to the event, the participating breweries, and the show itself: www.designdrinkandbemerry.com

Local Updates 5-27

2009-05-27T05:26:00.000-07:00

I was unable to attend Local 44's Locals Only beer weekend, but I just got off the phone with them to see what's left; the following drafts are still available:

Bags Packed Porter (Cask) - Victory
St. Boisterois - Victory
Ten Year Alt - Victory
Heywood - Iron Hill (almost gone)
Broad Street Barley Wine - Appalachian
Milk Stout - Lancaster
Abbey Double- Sly Fox
Smoked Polish Wheat - Yards (almost gone)
Blanche - Weyerbacker
Simcoe Double IPA- Weyerbacher
Euphoria - Legacy (lots left)
Festina Peche -Dogfish Head
Mad Elf -Troegs
Trogenator - Troegs (almost gone)
Sunshine Pills - Troegs
Extra Pale Ale - Flying Fish
Stegmaier Amber Lager ($2 all day)

From Steve @ YARDS:

Just a quick heads up that we bottle and kegged the Saison yesterday. We've reformulated Yards Saison from it's previous incarnations as per the wishes of the entire staff. Yards Saison now reflects more of a Belgian Saison.

ABV 6.5%
It will be available at select bars this weekend and cases should hit the shelves early next week.

Cheers,
Yards Brewing Co.

On tap at McGillins

McGillin's Real Ale (Stoudt's)
Sly Fox: O'Reilly's
McGillin's Genuine Lager (Stoudt's)
Beamish: Genuine (Irish) Stout
Flying Fish: Belgian Abbey Dubbel
Magic Hat: Lucky Kat
Dogfish Head: 60 Min IPA
Yards: Extra Special Ale (ESA)
Penn Brewing Co: Weizen
Victory: Golden Monkey
Stoudt's: Robust Porter
Troeg's: Rugged Trail Nut Brown Ale
Ithaca: Apricot Wheat
Philly Brewing Co: Rowhouse Red

Road Trip: DuClaw Brewing in Baltimore

2009-05-19T14:52:00.000-07:00

DuClaw Brewing Company is smack in the center of Baltimore's 'old city' equivalent, across the harbor from Federal Hill (the water taxi is cute but if time is a factor--or, money, for that matter--it really wouldn't kill ya to just hoof it).

All I had was their sampler platter, which is every beer they have on tap for $10.99. 11 beers in 5ish ounce glasses. Let's break 'em down:

Naked Fish Choco Raspberry Porter: Mellow raspberry up front, moderate choco in the finish. Not super heavy for a Stout, over-all a tad on the sweet side. (Hint, my beer-hating fiance even liked it... that means you know it's deserty).

Hellrazer IPA: Despite the bombastic press release on the place-setting, it has a sharp but ruley hop presence and a medium-med/light body. Shallow finish for super drinkability. This is an IPA you can get quaf-friendly with all night. A+.

Misfit red Amber Ale: Mild hops, subtle fruit esthers and "smooth roasted malt flavor"--just as the place-setting boasts. Even better than the Hellrazer. This is my favorite beer they served.

Kangaroo Love Austrailian Style Lager: Decent. Smooth drinkin, would be a stellar lawnmower beer for summertime refreshment.

Naked Truth Golden Ale: Well rounded body. Even around the edges. Lager-smooth with ale girth. Abseloutely no complaints.

Venom Pale Ale: Despite the harsh title, this is English style unthreatening goodness. Malty with perfect ballance. This nips at Misfit Red's heals as a fav.

And Venom on cask: Flatter, with a bit more bite, probably due to being a tad fresher. I like the total package draft better. Maybe that goes for cask ale in general..?

13 Degrees Hefewiesen: Sweet, heavy banana esthers, low bitterness. Another beer the woman was able to tolerate!

El Guapo Mexican Lager: Good stuff, a bit dark but not heavy. Solid, with no lime required!

Alchemy Oatmeal stout: A solid example, not ultra heavy, would be a good intro into the oatmeal stout world.

At $10.99 great value, especially because I know which beers I'll be sessioning when next I'm in town, which I hope will be soon.

Didn't get to check out the infamous Max's Taproom or the Pratt Street Alehouse like I had itineraried. Looks like a return visit is in order!

Legacy Hoptimus Prime

2009-05-13T19:12:00.000-07:00

One of the cleverest names in beer gets the thumb-screws... Does it squeel....?

This brew, what's considered a double IPA, could be considered just a good strong red ale.

The website says it's dry-hopped for two weeks... I can appreciate that.

The hop flavor is backed up with three types of malts...

Another thing I can appreciate...

How does it taste:

Pretty FUCKING nice...

Let's just start out by saying that this is the smoothest 9% booze you'll find around these parts, which is probably why I'm swearing so early in the the article.

Appearence is run of the mill, smell is understated, grainy, with a chunk of earth throwing in the wood-chipper.

The tastes is obnoxiously smooth... to the point of suspicion. No identifiable hop varieties stick out to my somewhat novice palate, apparently five varieties are used. There are certainly enough malts to come along for the ride, but this is a well-balanced hopfest ready to take you places. Woody, with a touch of grassy biscuits, this beer leaves a distracting array of hops that takes you down to the bottom of a bomber quicker than I can say, "Brick-Top's gonna exploit the situation".

Mouthfeel is more than ample, leaving just enough mystery to tempt you into another swig or twelve asap.

Drinkabily... for 9% abv, it's just about a miracle...

I was almost expecting to dislike this piece, due to the awesome title... But this beer doesn't dissapoint, except for the most bitter west-coast hopheads that need their hat-spinning with every sip. For everybody else, this beast gives a righteous does of hops with a well-rounded beer experience to appreciate.

Southern Tier Phin & Matt's Extraordinary Ale

2009-05-12T16:10:00.000-07:00

Despite the sweet title, I think I've tasted my first Southern Tier beer which doesn't make me want to stop what I'm doing and write a letter home to my parents about it. But I don't plan on getting used to it.

Pours a deep golden with massive fluffy head and random arcs of thick lacing all around the glass.

Smells of citrus hoppiness and grains, so far it doesn't seem far off from a czech style pilsener.

Taste is mild, a solid golden ale, but nowhere bitter enough for a modern American Pale Ale. This might be an older batch because it was the last six-pack at the Wine Legend mega-warehouse in Cherry Hill. Smooth grains, subtle hop balance. Could be a good "gateway beer" for a macro drinker who you don't want to scare off with crazy craft offerings.

Mouthfeel: Real solid, even mouth-coating--lets you hang on to that modest bitterness and malt.

Drinkability: I fear I could tear through these like it's 6th grade birthday cookie cake. Hugely drinkable, I have 5 left, and I feel like I only have 2 left.

This probably won't be a staple in either of my fridges. For a different master brewery, this would be their "Safe" beer, but all of Southern Tier's beers seem to be so masterfully crafted that even their boldest, most flavorful beers manage to be unnofensive in ways that amaze. In the wake of that reputation, this simply "solid" beer can easily get taken for granted.

Chris' Jazz Cafe

2009-05-09T21:41:00.000-07:00

They have a short tap list, 4 drafts, only 2 of them I recognized (Sly Fox Stout and Hennepin); I couldn’t get quite enough information from my server about the other two, but in his defence, the music was nice and loud. Decent short bottle list: Purple Haze, Turbo Dog Brown Ale, Brother Thelonious, Pranqster, Deep Cover Brown, Two Hearted IPA, Golden Monkey, Kenzinger, Walt Wit, and then a short list of standard euro-lagers.

I started with a Sly Fox Stout.
The taste was dry, roasted malts, very creamy. Hop bitterness was mild-to-none. Touch of dark chocolate. The mouthfeel was creamy and rich. Soft, and chewy. Coating is heavier up front. Very drinkable, this is an Irish style dry-stout, which doesn’t overpower in any dimension.

My next draft was a Ommegang Hennepin.
It was pale yellow with no head (probably an extra-light pour). Smelled fruity; apple, bread, fruitcake… sweet, tart. Taste was light graham-cracker, with sweet apples up front, bitter apples in the back. Solid coating, sweet on the teeth. Heavy on the sides. Drinkability was moderate, a tad on the sweet side, with bitterness to balance.

Wandering to the bottle list, I enjoyed a Bell’s Two-Hearted IPA.
It poured a dark gold, a solid head subsided to a half finger, leaving splotchy lace polka dots on the side of the glass. Smelled of American hops, pine, grainy, at touch grassy. Tasted not unlike the SN Torpedo’s I’ve been drinking all week. Aggressive hops up front, clean, dry finish. Medium bodied, good level of co2. Quite drinkable. Hops fade out by the finish, leaving you wanting more.

The food selection I tried was the Beef Rib tips with a toasted roll and creamy horseradish sauce. The beef was tender as all get-out, but the horseradish sauce was quite mild. That’s probably for the best. I’m the only nerd who brings his own horseradish to a restaurant. This was on the late-night menu, 9 dollars for the delectable gnosh, and there were also some pub-grub options: wings, fries trio (shoestring, sweet potato fries, and onion rings), and there were even some fancy cheese options as well. The regular dinner menu (which I did not arrive in time to order from) looked quite tasty, and I look forward to coming back to try a number of items, including Chris’s French Onion Soup.

The atmosphere was ideal, as was the music, certainly. I was concerned walking in at the number of tables that had poor view of the stage, but I was able to be seated at a drool-worthy location which had the perfect proximity to and view of the musicians. The first band was a piano-led quartet with a clutch tenor sax player, upright bass, and a drummer who managed some mind-blowing tricks. The second band was a local philly jazz-rock group called Psychedelphia. Think Phish meets King Crimson. (light on the vocals).

Look forward to checking back to try the french onion, and seeing what kind of draft variety they can get. Also, I look forward to pregaming at Nodding Head, which is about a block or two over, across the street.

Interview with Anat Baron

2009-05-06T12:50:00.000-07:00

Beer Wars creatrix Anat Baron took a few moments to speak with me about her very-much-buzzed about documentary on the modern beer business.

Philly Beeraholic: Thanks for chatting with me today, Anat! Let me ask you, have you always been allergic to alcohol?

Anat: Not till after graduate school… I actually used to win drinking contests, but when I was young, there really was no craft beer to speak of, and frankly I wasn’t much of a beer drinker period.

PB: How does someone who’s allergic to alcohol celebrate the completion of an independently financed and created documentary on the beer industry?

Anat: Well, you don’t need alcohol to let your hair down! I’ll take a vacation at some point, but for now, all I have on my horizon is working on BeerWars, which is an ongoing project.

PB: What was the best part of the artistic experience of creating Beer Wars?

Anat: The fact that I got it finished! This was a 24/7 endeavor for more than four months. Also, the fact that it was all my money on the line--I had no investors--means that I had final cut. And watching it live was an amazing thing… Hearing the reaction of the audience, chuckling, etc… as a film-maker, that was a great experience!

PB: I know you get asked this a hundred times a day… But, Ben Stein hosted the live discussion panel which followed the documentary. Does Ben Stein, to your knowledge, have any particular stake in the beer industry?

Anat: None, whatsoever. Fathom Events--who agreed to distribute the film to the theatres where it was shown--wanted a celebrity host for the live panel. We just ended up going with Ben Stein.

PB: How did the film do?

Anat: There are no numbers yet. We tried to focus on big cities, which is where craft beer drinkers seem to live. New York and Boston, for example, completely sold out.

PB: I noticed the nerd mafioso was online registering their complaints within seconds…

Anat: Yea, well I don’t begrudge any backlash, and I always try to respond in a professional manner. There were just as many positive reviews out there so…

PB: What’s next for BeerWars?

Anat: DVD. Not as many people got to see it as we wanted. Some people drove a long way, and then didn’t get tickets. The DVD will be available only at my website at first, and it should be available as early as next month.

Special thanks to Anat Baron for taking a moment to chew the fat about Beer Wars. Keep an eye out for the DVD at http://beerwarsmovie.com/.

On the Agenda this Week

2009-05-06T10:33:00.000-07:00

Coming soon... I had a chance to chat with Beer Wars creatrix Anat Baron, I'll be posting that shortly.

Also visited Chris' Jazz Cafe' this past weekend, gonna run down the beers they have available there (I didn't know there's so much stuff on Sansom Street!)...

Then, I had the pleasure to enjoy my 4th sweetheart from Southern Tier brewing, Iniquity... A black IPA which could be Arrogant Bastard's smoother cousin... Is ST trying real hard to become my number 1? Uh, YEA!

Finally, I'll be chatting later this week with the Brewmaster at Sly Fox about his knockout hit, Pheonix Pale Ale, the most delicious beer from a CAN(!) that I've ever tasted. Stop by the Grey Lodge this week to enjoy a pint on cask, if that's your thing (thanks to our friends at Philly Area Cask Ale for the tip http://caskalekev.blogspot.com/).

It's gonna be a busy second half of the hump, plus wedding Save-the-Dates due and a number of chores over the weekend (including FINALLY starting my homebrew, which I've been meaning to start for 3 weeks now). Stay tuned, Philly, and don't forget to let your hair down!

Sly Fox Standard Ale and PBC IPA on Cask

2009-05-01T10:47:00.000-07:00

Cheers to Electric Six--the best disco-grunge act touring today--playing a show at Johnny Brenda's. JB's had Sly Fox Standard Ale and PBC Newbold on cask. Here are the notes.

Sly Fox Standard Ale:

Appearance: Great cloudy brown, busy settling; gorgeous drapes on the side of the glass.

Smell: Very mild aroma, buscuity, a touch floral hops.

Taste: A bit soapy, minimal sweetness, some hop flavor. A touch of pine, mild hint of citrus. Nice bitter finish.

Mouthfeel: Soapy, wet. Completely flat, probably the flattest cask-ale I've tried. A bit too light for my tastes. You feel the coating on the teeth more than anywhere else. Taste residue gets less and less the farther back you get in the mouth; the bitter finish subsides quickly.

Drinkability- The uneven mouth-coating and light body makes this a bit iffy.

This is an English style bitter, and I need a stronger body when I'm drinking this style.

Philly Brewing Company IPA:

Didn't get thorough notes on this, it was getting dark and I was in a poorly lit corner of the bar. So I just hurriedly jotted down the main points.

This actually had some carbonation, though still significantly less than a draft-ale. Either that or the prickly hops played games with my head.

Juicy, wet, not as much hop character up front, the bitter finish lingers. This isn't significantly hoppier than the Sly Fox. It's strange, I think I FEEL the hops on the mouth more than taste them.

This is a tad awkward, but for both of these beers, I had something similar scribbled down. After the Sly Fox Standard Ale, I had scribbled; "< Yards ESA". That may not be fair because stylistically, ESA is an ESB (Extra Strong Bitter), as opposed to Standard Ale, which is just a bitter. I've found that I need that extra malt in order to best enjoy an English bitter.

After the Philly Brewing Company IPA, I had scribbled "< Yards IPA".

Yikes!

Cedar Park Neighbors Benefit @ Dock Street

2009-04-28T09:41:00.000-07:00

Mark Your Callendars! May 17th at the Dock Street Brewpub.

The Scholarship Committee of Cedar Park Neighbors (CPN) is celebrating 21 years of scholarships by hosting its annual fundraiser.

The event will be held at Dock Street Brewery and Restaurant, 701 S 50th Street (at Baltimore Ave.) on Sunday, May 17, 2009 from 4 to 7 p.m. Tickets for this event are $30 in advance, $35 at the door. Admission includes music, pizza and beer from 4-6 p.m. There will be a cash bar for one hour, from 6-7 p.m. Pale Reason will be performing live. There will be a silent auction and a 50/50 cash drawing.

For tickets or more information, contact Laurie Friedman at (215) 747-1910 or by e-mail at lauriefrie@gmail.com .

Sam Adams LongShot

2009-04-26T16:28:00.000-07:00

The Sam Adams LongShot sixpack arrived recently, available for purchase here in the Philadelphia area. The gimmick is, it's the three winners of the national LongShot homebrew competition, for the past three years. The styles are Cranberry Wit, Traditional Bock, and Double IPA. Let's taste them out!

Cranberry Wit
Hazy copper with a light foam head, not much lacing.
Smells like wheat and cranberry (we're on the right track, thusfar).
Tastes pretty simplistic, like a wheat beer with a mild hint of cranberry. I like that the cranberry takes a significant back seat, which lets the wheat shine. It's not too tangy, not too tart, I was a bit concerned about these and other potental pratfalls, but this beer is smooth and refreshing.
An ample amount of carbonation keeps this beer refreshing as it warms up. Very thin coating on the mouth, and a thistle-clean finish. This brew is damn-timely for the warm weather.

Traditional Bock
Carmel color lightens around the edges. Thin off-white head settles somewhat quickly.
Smells malty, vanilla and a tiny hint of chocolate.
Tastes like... well, a traditional bock. Thus far, the Longshot Sixpack is delivering exactly what it promises. A slight bit of roasty taste, also a touch creamy somehow, despite the pretty heavy carbonatoin here.
Mouthfeel isn't ideal, the heavy carbonation makes it taste a tad like bock-flavored soda-pop.
That said, the drinkability is certainly there. Don't know if I would buy a six pack of this but it doesn't really hurt the LongShot box either; decent.

Double IPA
Mike McDole's infamous clone recipe of Russian River's opus, Pliny The Elder, is many a beer-geek's reason to buy this sixpack. Frankly, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't--initially--in the same boat. But it's tough to get your hands on a Pliny here on the east coast (Still waiting on Monk's to tap that shiz, it's been "coming soon" on their website for weeks now). I went into tasting this with the vague anticipation of tasting my first Elder, which is a bit of a bastardized thing to be saying but it is what it is. Lets get tasting.

Guilded bronze under a modest head, uneven thin lacing.
Smells like all the classic trademarks of an intense IPA. Citrus, floral, pine... here we go....
Taste is big and bold, threatening hop bite like a DIPA should, but it evens out to a certain exent with a spicy layer of malt. Not a perfect ballance, but certainly multi-dimensional. Mouthfeel is ideal; thorough coating without being sticky or syrupy.
Upwards of 1o0 IBU's, it's far to bitter to be significantly drinkable. When Monk's taps Pliny with a two glass limit, I don't think that will be a significant problem for anyone.

The Longshot Sixpack, which I found at Total Wine in Cherry Hill, is a solid value. 8.99 for close to the variety of a build-your-own. If these were actual Pliny's, you'd be looking at 10 bucks a four-pack (or more). The Bock isn't perfect, the CranWit is refreshing as the day is long, and the Double IPA is--quite frankly--a bit of a cultural milestone (the first nationally distributed DIPA), in addition to being a hard-biting tasty brew. Not sure how long these are gonna last, if anybody has info on the distribution numbers, let me know.

Flying Dog Double Dog

2009-04-20T15:15:00.000-07:00

I was looking forward to trying this for a while, found single bottles at my official visit-my-parents beer stop, Canals on 73.

Appearance: Pours a very dark amber under a very thin head.

Smell: Citrus hops, malts. Minor sweetness, excellent balance.

Taste: Like the label boasts, a nice heavy bitter bite up front,
a touch of different types of citrus, and even a tad of bitter apple and berry. Somewhat bready in the finish. Definitely a full bodied beer.

Mouthfeel: Such a big flavor, and the bitter mouth-coating lingers consistently. Front, back, all over. Not sour-face "simcoe" bitter, but citrusy. A touch soapy. Not unbalanced or unmanageably bitter. Aftertaste lingers on the lips for a little bit. Wonderful!

Drinkability: For 11.5 ABV, holy god this beer works out at the gym thrice a week. I know I harp on the ABV per drinkability pretty often, but it begs to be graffitti'd on bathroom stalls.This is definitely a BIG beer, there's no two ways about it. But it's a variety of big beer that doesn't over-emphasize any one particular area. It's just about perfect.

I may have a new favorite. This is actually reminiscent of DFH90 for how full bodied ad well-adjusted it is all around. I've only been able to find it as a single at Canals; I've seen it around as part of the Canis Major Mixed 4 pack--which is (2) Gonzo Impy Porty, (2) Double Dog, (2) Horn Dog Barleywine and (2) Kerberos Tripel. The last two are just about the two last beers of theirs I've yet to try but Gonzo Imperial Porter and this here Double Dog are just about tops in their field. As long as your local retailer isn't marking it way up, you're probably gonna be in the black, value wise.

For now, I'll buy these Double Dogs by the four pack almost no-matter how much they cost. And Flying Dog has great distribution around here, so it probably won't cost too much.

This is definitely one of their best offerings. Buy it

Earth Bread + Brewery

2009-04-16T22:13:00.000-07:00

Gastropub Review submitted by Paul Lukianovich

Recently on a lazy Saturday night some friends drove us out to Mt. Airy to Earth Bread + Brewery. My first impression walking in was, honestly, how are we going to afford this place. Walking in, it is VERY clean... very earthy (no pun intended); the wait staff was very well dressed, it gave you that upscale feel.

We follow the hostess up a flight of steps to the second floor dining area. Again, very impressed with how this place looks, but still worried about the cost. Then I found what I was looking for, the beer list--it was up on a chalk board. On one half was a short list of their brews, and on the other half a longer list of impressive local "guest beers".

We ordered our first round. I went right for a heavy hitter, their very own barleywine. It was my first barleywine, and let me tell you it was a hit instantly. I love heavy beers, and it had all the big tastes i was looking for. I've had another barleywine since, and wasn't as impressed. I didn't drink the mild ales they were offering, but my friends really seemed to enjoy them.

The menu isn't extravagant. They make some of the best all organic flat bread pizza. You can order from a bunch of specialty pizzas, or you can make you own. I enjoyed a Traditional Flat Bread, which had: house made tomato sauce, fresh mozz, garlic, roasted onion, Olive oil and basil and fresh greens on top (which was only 7 bucks). I ordered a "guest beer", Lancaster Brewing Dopplebock, which i have had before and truly enjoy this time of year. I finished it all off with a house brewed Pilsner. To a small degree, it reminded me of a weak Wit-bier--it was unfiltered (which i like) and when the first drop hits your tongue it explodes with an indescribably smooth flavor.

By the end of the night for 4 of us at the table 9 beers, 1 ginger beer (non-alchoholic for my newly pregnant wife) and 4 flat breads the bill WITH tip was just short of 70 dollars, which i wasn't expecting. So if your looking for great beer, great food, and a nice relaxed atmosphere then i would definitely recommend Earth Bread + Brewery.

Monk's Cafe

2009-04-16T14:47:00.000-07:00

Attention pretentious Philly drinkers. Monk's Cafe's tap-handles have been quite active, and they have the following things coming on draft in the next week or so. Call them @ 215-454-7005 to see what's there on the night you'd like to go.

from RUSSIAN RIVER:

Damnation

Damnation Batch 23

Consecration

Salvation (ON TAP NOW!)

Blind Pig

Pliney the Elder

Pliney the Younger

from BELGIUM:

07 Stille Nacht

Alvinne Gaspar

Dupont Avec Les Bon Veoux

de Regenboog Calva Reserva

de Reggenboog t'jeeses

from the USA:

Allagash Odessey

Dogfish Head Red & White

Flying Fish Imperial Belgian Mild

Flying Fish Espresso Porter

Ommegang Obamagang

Voodoo Pil-Zilla

Note: Some of the Russian Rivers are going to be limited (2) per customer.

Weyerbacher Heresy

2009-04-15T14:31:00.000-07:00

Weyerbacher and I have a bit of a past. I've been known to say some unkind things about their--at times--way overblown crazy beers. With Heresy, they seem to be returning to brewing as something that should be done... carefully. As opposed to at 4am while high as a kite.

Appearance: Pours pitch black with a finger and a half of tan head. Minimal lacing, inconsistent around the glass. After the head dissapeares, light translucence and transparence around the edges.

Smell: Chocolate, licorice and scotch.

Taste: Oaky smooth, sweet brown sugar, and an odd touch of white-chocolate in this pitch black elixir. Complex, sweet, a hint of maple syrup, molasses, light vanilla; it's like an old-timey penny-candy store in a tulip glass. With scotch. The scotch notes are a bit of an afterthought, perhaps influenced largely from the aroma.

Mouthfeel: Slick, surpisingly wet for it's sweetness. It's perfect, because a heavier coating and this would be too much, too sweet for more than one in a sitting.

Drinkability: The sweetness peaks early and smooths out to a semi-dry finish. This is far too smooth for 8% abv, the only place you'll feel it is the price.

This is the best Weyerbacher beer I've ever had, hands down.

Special thanks to Paul Tsikitas for the donation.

Philly Brewing Company RowHouse Red

2009-04-13T13:09:00.000-07:00

Appearance: A light brick red, two fingers of perfect head, leaving a nice dirty
reservoir drain watermark lacing.

Smell: Grassy, plum, even some prune esters here. Followed by hops.

Taste: Hops, then malts, then more hops, some grassy/earthy notes. I'm concerned about a certain plaster/drywall aftertaste--not its best feature... All that aside, this is certainly complex.

Mouthfeel: Doesn't do too much for me, it drinks a bit like a soda; this actually could be a particularly bitter ginger-beer. Phrasing it like that makes me like it a bit more!

Drinkabiliy: It's unevenly balanced; the malts and hops come in alternating waves, rather than working in unison. Great for the sipping, by the time each complex swallow is done, I feel like I'm good for a bit.

I think I remember this being a tad better on draft at Johnny Brenda's last year. It's not perfect, but it's an honest effort--risky to an extent, and pays off... too an extent. I can see getting this on draft again, probably not gonna buy a six anytime soon, but I certainly wouldn't complain if this were one of the tap handles at a nearby happy hour.

East Coast IPA

2009-04-11T12:36:00.000-07:00

Philly is an east-coast town, and being such, we actually take our IPAs seriously. This isn’t meant to incite a gang-war with the west coast. Beer isn’t hip-hop.. Yet.

But that said, you can ask a west-coast IPA drinker what their wildest dreams are, and it would be that Hops themselves could be fermentable so that the brewers wouldn’t have to waste their time with nonsense like malted barley. The end result is beers that are more of a novelty to drink, a tourist trap from a culture gone insane. These days, West-coast IPA’s are a clown car filled with whole-cone Amarillo and Simcoe hops drove through the window of your local wicker outlet. I tsk tsk at nearby Victory, an outstanding brewery who’s biggest selling beer, Hop Devil, is a work of art, and an all around great IPA. Their double IPA, Hop Wallop, is--in my opinion--more of a status symbol cow-towing to the trendy west-coast and showing that we can also worsen the hop-shortage on borderline undrinkably hoppy ‘beers’.

I wonder if the general schism is due to the fact that California breweries are closer to the hop fields, and we’re closer to England? This isn’t to say that here on the right coast we’re tethered to British style. Lets face it, Americans like it More-Of-Everything. But the farther IN you get, going from east to west, the less they want More-Of-Everything, and the more they want Just-More-Hops.

I’m usually the last person to say this, but grow up, please. The whole point of hops is to balance beer with a delicious bitterness which lets you drink several in a sitting. The whole point of the India Pale Ale was to over-hop the beer slightly so that the astringent antiseptic kept the beer unspoiled for long unrefrigerated trips down to India. By the time the beer took the long trip down there, the hops had faded some, and the resulting taste wasn’t all that much more bitter than the standard Pale Ale. But what we've got now with American IPA's and DIPA's is a product that tastes like soapy water and pine-cones in a blender. And it's coming--in some cases--from otherwise serious, passionate breweries who generally make a quality product. I know it's a free market and you can do whatever you want, but I'm much less likely to try your other offerings if your IPAs are a huge joke.

Lets take a look at three delicious East Coast IPAs which are mild and well-balanced to the point where today they'd basically qualify as American Pale Ales, by west-coast standards. Flying Fish’s Hopfish, Thomas Hooker’s Hop Meadow IPA, and the outstanding Southern Tier IPA. These IPA’s aren’t out to waste hops by the truckload. They’re still sharp, aromatic beers that are bitter in all the right ways. But out west, they wouldn’t impress hop-head one. I’m not sure what’s going on out there, maybe there’s something in the water. Zombies?

I’m gonna duck and cover some inevitable backlash from local hopheads who agree with the west-coast philosophy. No offense brothers, many of my fav brews are double IPA’s but throw a few grains in the tank! Is it possible that all this behavior is supposed to be a revolt against the West Coast's brewing big-boys? Stone and Rogue have enjoyed wild success, and it's not because their well rounded ales are selling out to the man. It's because they don't FUCK around. Even Sierra Nevada--though they might be long-run responsible for all this madness--still knows how to keep their shit together (i.e. the incredibly hoppy, incredibly delicious Torpedo IPA).

I know it’s a cliché at this point to say it, but beer is just like justice, budgets, tight-rope walking and Zen Buddhism--it’s all about balance!

Southern Tier Krampus

2009-04-10T04:01:00.000-07:00

Appearance: Pours a heady white-over-bronze trophy, some modest lacing which arches around in delightfully un-predictable shapes... I think I see a war-elephant trumpeting Hannibal's decent from the alps...

Smell: Somewhat subdued, I didn't have any good glassware handy, I used a big wine glass. Smell was suggestive of good things to come, but nothing terribly fancy.

Taste: This is where the fun really starts. It tastes reminiscent to the strong Belgian/Quebecois triples, but more crisp, less in-your-face, not as overpoweringly sweet. Bready, with an awesome bite, just awesome. Huge hops for a lager, almost bizarrely so--worthy of a double-take (but not a spit-take, please!). Nothing too bitter, just about perfect.

Mouth: Mouthfeel is decent, leave's a beer-y aftertaste (my favorite kind!) moderate coating, taste stays in your mouth for the perfect amount of time.

Drinkability: Very drinkable despite it's strength. I think I just drank most of a bomber while writing this, and I'm feeling a bit of panic that I only have one.

This beer is the real deal. This is the best Munich-Style American Lager I've had, hmmm.... ever? It's like Heineken on steroids. Fill it up AGAIN! It's so good! When it hits your lips, it's so good!

Southern Tier is the number 1 brewery on my radar at the moment. I've only tried three of their offerings, but they were home-runs per-style, and in every other sense. These guys know how to do big flawless east-coast IPA's. Their Gemini DIPA is a must-have, and needs to start becoming available in quantity bigger than single bombers before I start defaulting on my student loans.

Dogfish Head 75 Minute India Pale Ale

2009-04-10T03:22:00.000-07:00

Monk's Cafe, was one of three Philadelphia beer bars to feature the one-time only Sam Calagione magic known as the 75 Minute India Pale Ale, on 'Simulcask'. What that means, is that a blend of Dogfish Head's 60 Minute IPA and 90 Minute IPA (two of the best India Pale Ales you can find on the East Coast) was put through secondary fermentation with local maple syrup and Cascade dry-hopped.

This one-time-only cask-conditioned treat was released for consumption at exactly 7:50pm on Thursday, March 26 at the three Philadelphia locations and roughly ten more tri-state area locations. I enjoyed two of these limited edition brews from Delaware's off-centered brewing heroes and it is with a heavy heart that I will never look forward to picking up a six pack of this one-and-doner. It's like seeing your favorite band play a live version of their greatest song tagged with a verse of their second greatest song and then a sweet encompassing jam ensues. Except the beer isn't 8 dollars (no offence, Pearl Jam, but why couldn't you have sued the venues' beer concession stands instead of Ticketmaster!)

Moving on to the meat and potatoes, the beer was delicious! The cascade hop aroma was hefty, and the maple syrup was not overbearing, like I had somewhat feared it might be. That said, some more time in the cask would have added to it's drinkability, because the almost utter lack of carbonation added to the somewhat syrupy nature of this treat.

The 60 minute initial hop-bite was smoothed out in the foreground, and the 90 minute intense hop-finished was augmented down by the maple sweetness. The real significant hoppiness was in the aroma and the mid-palate. After two of these off-centered brews, I was ready to take a break from the wine-hop dreamworld of 75 min and reel back into beerland. Although, at $4.50 a hit, it was definitely a spectacular value.

To finish the night I enjoyed a Tulip of nearby Dock Street Brewery's Belgian-style Triple. I knew it was also going to be sweet, but their triple has good up-front-bite and a dry finish.

I have to say, it's rare that I can step into Monks and actually have enough room around me to rotate my beer belly a full 30 degrees in any direction. I thought this would be no exception, but the bar was only full, instead of inconveniently over-filled. On a fun personal note, I scored a Dogfish Head ale glass. I'm glad I read the fine print on the promo, because remembering to give these away wasn't our admittedly wonderful waitress' primary concern.

Sam Adams Blackberry Wit

2009-04-10T02:42:00.000-07:00

Poured into a tall thin goblet. Appearance is pale and hazy. Actually looks pretty appetizing. Not much head or lacing to speak of.

Smells strong of blackberries, followed by the weizen...

Taste... It delivers what it promises. Blackberries all over the palate. This might sound insane, but for the relative lack of hops, blackberry seems to balance out the efficient malting quite nicely. Either that, or they found a hop blend that fits perfectly with the blackberry flavor profile... I have to say, I'm a fan...

Mouthfeel is nice and evenly flavorful during the sip. Surprisingly adequate after the finish for how light tasting this is.

Drinkability is moderate, I guess if you're not that into blackberry (which I am) this is not going to be that drinkable (which it is).

I was tempted to prejudge this brew as ridiculous effort to waste brewing resources simply to nerd out and appeal to the craft-core geek-mafia... But it seems Boston Brewing has done a pretty good thing here...

Founders RIS

2009-04-10T01:46:00.000-07:00

Smells like burnt, fruity motor oil and chocolate biscuits. Berries on the grill, and not too heavy on the coffee.

Has a particularly appealing finish, so much so that I'm mentioning it first. Dry, alcohol and grains. Foreground is astringent, chocolate-covered berries. The roasted barley tastes like it could clear my sinuses; near-perfect hop ballance. A touch of walnut on the hind-pallate, this Russian Imperial Stout does not FUCK around...

Mouthfeel is a viscous oil, a single sip of this and I'll have the taste in my mouth for half the evening. I can feel it on the top, bottom, and sides of the mouth. The alcohol is present, pleasent bitterness in the back of the mouth holds quite long.

Drinkability... Eh, I think one is enough, and slowly. I'm not even drinking a full one, I'm splitting it with my Paul Tsikitas while we watch Freddie Got Fingered, and half a bottle a tulip is just about all I need.

This was better on draft, as was all the Founders I tasted at the Sidecar during Philly Beer Week, but to be honest, it's a filling experience; worth it, if you can get your hands on this.

Thanks to Mike from Canals on 73 in Marlton hooked us up with this bottle to share after I informed him of the Sierra Nevda Torpedo hop-shortage backorder delay on the east coast. Thanks for the handout, it's a delicous RIS that served as the perfect after-dinner beer.

Aprihop

2009-04-10T00:17:00.000-07:00

Appearance: Reddish amber under a thin bleached-white head which dissipates quickly, with minimal lacing.

Smell: Apricots and vague citrus rind with muted raisin notes and just a hint of malts. No hops to speak of.

Taste: Nice concert between the malts and apricot. Hops definitely take a back seat (pretty far back, at that). Sweet, yet tangy.

Mouthfeel: Outstanding. This is where Aprihop really shines. A full body like I haven't tasted in any kind of pale ale, maybe ever.

Drinkability: Not a chugging beer, it commands attention despite not being the least bit bitter. Pairs well with those Danish butter cookies.

The front of the bottle reads "A Serious India Pale Ale brewed with Apricots". Forgive me for nerding out for a moment... But this claim would make George Hodgeson spin in his pine-box. There are two ways one can claim to be a serious India Pale Ale: the original way, or the modern American way. This admittedly delicious beer is a serious IPA in--NEITHER of those ways. I thought it was going to be the modern/west-coast way, meaning: so hopped out that I hallucinate visions of dead relatives playing dodge-ball with grapefruits and pine-cones. Or, it could have meant a serious IPA in the original sense, meaning--NOT WITH APRICOTS!

Low and behold, though, there are apricots-a-plenty. Nothing but! Which works, and it works really well here. If Magic Hat settled any disputes about fruit in beer, it's that--if there was only one fruit naturally destined to be used in brewing... it's the apricot. And Dogfish Head beats Magic Hat here at their own game, despite the fact that Magic Hat has the sincerity to call their number 9 batch a "Not Quite Pale Ale" even though it's far closer to a serious English Pale Ale than Aprihop is to an India Pale Ale (or anything, for that matter). Honestly, I didn't taste or smell hop-one in this brew, which is totally fine. But it seems like DFH is trying to be a little shady with marketing a tasty fruit beer to the growing hordes of west-coast hop fanatics with whom they've already had a great deal of reputation-building success in the past.

However, beer is an art form, and art should be appreciated for what it is, and not what it's supposed to be. And what it is is an original, mighty delicious apricotty brew.

Three and a Half Stars.