Philly Beer Week 2013, Day 2 Sights and Sounds: Saturday, June 1

It took some time for me to re-engage with Philly Beer Week on Day 2. When I finally did I was at Varga for their block party which was teeming with great smells from the grill, sounds from the DJ table, weather-appropriate beers (ABV-speaking), and people all around. I got a fine tip from Foobooz to hit up the Cheu Noodle Bar on my way in on 10th Street, so a spicy pork Banh Mi did just the trick.

After a few cans of beer (plus a tasty Yards Calypso IPA from the handpump), from there it was over to Strangelove's for some cask-conditioned Courage Stout served from the bar top, courtesy of a fine tip from Dogfish Head's Wendy Domurat.

Then, the last stop was accompanied by the Sly Fox crew at Johnny Brenda's. More firkins of beer were the order of the day and night there accompanied by British punk rock spinning from the DJ table.

Before heading out of the city, Patrick (and Tracy) from Sly Fox insisted upon a pizza stop at Joe Beddia's Pizzeria Beddia, just steps away from Johnny Brenda's. What a great call indeed. BYO Sly Fox added to the experience of course. Is it some of the best pizza you can have? Quite possibly, yes. No pictures, here. Just good eats, drinks, and people.

Not a ton of pictures (and no videos from this day), so I've selected a few and included them here below. Trust your weekend is going well. Let me know what you've found interesting along the way.


(the beats and the people at Varga's block party)

(Lot of great summer drinking beers at Varga's block party.)

(Hydrating properly was the order of the hot weekend, for sure.)

(Flip cupping for the win)

(A schedule full of PBW events at Strangelove's.)

(excellent Courage Stout at Strangelove's for the Wells and Young's event.)

(Johnny Brenda's: Still a top 5 bar experience in Philadelphia.)

(A Firkin Riot at Johnny Brenda's.)

(British Punk Rock on the turntables at Johnny Brenda's.)

(Fresh, local, firkins, food, music, good times at Johnny Brenda's.)

(JB's Coffee beans to go please. Kept company by a Johnny's Berliner Weisse, made at Dock Street.)

(Joe Beddia at work in his pizza kitchen.)
(Big key to my next morning's health and well-being.)

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Writing this ship, Part III (all over the place, part 2)

Still have many more submissions to get through here to catch us all up-to-date with where in the world The Brew Lounge has been for the last nine months or so. Here comes part three and if you'd like some background on how we got here, check out the "intro", Part I, and/or Part II.

January
  - Not much to report from January other than a two-part piece I did over at After Hours naming my most memorable beers of 2012. I often blanch at naming "the best" of anything, particularly when it relates to matter of taste, something that is nearly impossible to quantify. So, I put together my most memorable beers of 2012 and it was pretty well-received. If you had missed it back then, check it now — link to Part 1 and link to Part 2.

February
  - January went by in mid-winter's bleary blur, but February first brought San Francisco Beer Week, of which I took part in some portion of 8 of 10 days. I spoke plenty of here in these pages and you can find part 1 of those days documented here and part 2 over here.

  - Back on the East Coast, I was back in time to take advantage of an invitation to the Star Chefs awards and tasting gala. My writeup over at After Hours garnered some nice attention.

March
  - On one hand, I've said plenty over the years about the high quality of the annual Brewer's Plate event in Philly, marrying local food and beer like no other event. Yet, I didn't share anything about 2012 until just before the 2013 installment was due to take flight. Then, this year's was underway and you can link here to see what I had to say about it.

  - March also brought a return to Yards for their other top notch annual event, the Cask Ale Invitational. That reminds me that I should put up a little something about this stellar showcase of the region's best (plus, a few from here and there and overseas) in cask-conditioned beer. I've stuck a couple of pictures here just to prove I was there.


  - Of other events neglected to be written about here in these pages was the excellent dinner that I was invited to at JG Domestic. The dinner featured Avery Brewing Company from Colorado and was the first beer dinner I'd been to in the Garces Restaurant Group family since a beer dinner at Chifa, which coincidentally was when current JG Domestic GM, Mark Grika, was running the dinners over there across town. This dinner did not disappoint and I owe a few words and pictures here on this topic as well.

  - March was a busy month as you're probably beginning to sense, but for me personally, the Half Marathon in Washington, DC was pretty important. I set myself a new personal best by 7 1/2 minutes which is pretty significant, particularly given my advancing age! Oddly enough, no beer was included in this trip, partly because I knew what was to come still later in March. Unless you consider beer-related to be that our hotel was across from the historic Brewmaster's Castle.


  - Yes, still later in March was a return to the nation's capital for the Craft Brewers Conference. I haven't yet said all that much about it, unless you count (which is debatable, to be sure) Tweets and Facebook updates that I made along the way. I should still add a few blurbs from the industry-only conference, its seminars, and related events around town. It was finally my first appearance, after all these years, at the annual CBC. Overwhelming might be an apt way to begin describing the coming together of a reported 6,000 or so related industry folks.


  - Yet one more trip taken in March was to Texas where there was not much time for tracking down the exploding great beer scene, but that did not stop me from finding some of the best around the Dallas region. Meddlesome Moth has been for the past few years one of my highest recommendations for travelers to Dallas. Ginger Man in Dallas has been my favorite of the "chain's" multiple locations and, once again, did not disappoint. Central Market continues to supply the retail market with some of the best options for beer to-go and for this trip provided me with a bunch of Jester King beers (from Austin) to bring home with me. And, lastly, since it was St. Patrick's Day, the night wouldn't have been complete without a stop along McKinney Avenue at Idle Rich Pub where The Kildares was bringing down the house (or, I should say, the parking lot) with their Irish/Celtic rock befitting the holiday. The Blackfriar Pub across the street provided the two in the one-two punch of St. Patty's Day frivolity. Back at the conference I was attending in Grapevine, the resort was not necessarily overflowing with craft beer options, but there were a few from Rahr & Sons (Fort Worth) and a solid Revolver Bock that caught my eye and kept me satisfied with local Texas options.


  - Not to be overshadowed, though, was a day trip taken with Beer Yard's Matt Guyer to York County to explore some of the relatively newer stuff going on from the city of York down to the State's border. We hit up South County Brewing Company, Gunpowder Falls Brewing Company, Liquid Hero Brewing Company, Mudhook Brewing Company, and Holy Hound Taproom. Central Pennsylvania has never had it so good. More to come, also, on this topic. Hopefully.

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Real Ale on the loose

I just put up an article about cask-conditioned beer over at the other place I write.

It was mostly inspired by 3 weekends in a row of cask-related festivals in and around Philly — plus, a little by my love for the wonderful flavors and aromas that typically jump out of cask-conditioned beers.

Check out the article. And, for more pictures, see the following links:

~ Yards Philadelphia Real Ale Invitational: March 20, 2011 [link to pictures]
~ Allentown Brew Works Cask Beer Festival: March 26, 2011 [link to pictures]
~ General Sutter Inn's 3rd Lititz Cask Beer Festival: April 1-3, 2011 [link to pictures]

London's Calling on Philadelphia

Earlier this year, I enjoyed a glass of Wells Bombardier from the handpump at Memphis Taproom with brunch; I was a very happy fellow. Last year, (almost) a boatload of Fuller's made its way across to the Memphis/Local 44/Resurrection family. Now, the opportunity comes knocking again...and then some. In a recent email update from Leigh:

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We'll kick it off Monday (12/20) when our firkins of Wells Bombardier arrive from Bedford, England. Soon to follow will be amazing beers from Bank's and Marston's (including the Pedigree Bitter and Oyster Stout), the Wynchwood Hobgoblin and our second installment of firkins from Fuller's, including the London Pride, London Porter, and the ESB!

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Rolling out the barrel at Yards Real Ale Invitational 2010

Don't cringe, this isn't sarcasm but, really, the Real Ale Invitational at Yards yesterday was one of the nicest festivals I've been to in a while. I could use my handy, dandy thesaurus and try to come up with loud superlatives to describe what a great time (oh, there's one..."great"!) it was. But, nice seems to fit quite, well, nicely. Now, all you brewdudes around the Yards house, don't go scrambling for your PR damage control; this is really a great compliment.

It was a nice weather day. Beers from breweries all across the city and suburbs were sitting nicely in their firkins around various nooks of the brewery and were pouring anywhere from 4% to 11% ABV and every notch in between. All told, there were around 25 beers available for the masses that showed up. And what a nice gathering of masses it was. The overall tone of the festival was civil and polite, but sure not stuffy. Family-oriented (lost count of the number of children), but yet still a beer festival at the heart of it.

And, with the spacious brewery floorspace and the doors to outside propped open, not to mention the closed-off street to provide even more space, festival-goers could breathe quite nicely and make it from the front of the brewery to the back with no problem. Approximately 250 passed through the doors over the 4+ hours, including the VIP session, and it felt like Yards could have hosted double that amount, though the fire marshal might have had something to say about that.

In addition to the 25 cask-conditioned beers, there was cheese from Sue Miller and her Birchrun Hills Farm, chocolates from Betty's, and a spread of more than just finger-picking food from Diverse Catering. The Jazz Horses kept every one's toes tapping throughout the afternoon

There were some big and crazy flavor beers, but the amped-up, over-the-top beer geekerie kept their usual fever pitched volume to an enjoyable level. In no particular order, here are some of the beers most talked about and that I tasted as well included:

~ RCH's Pitchfork Bitter from England, at 4.3%ABV with soft fruit flavors, was a real nice way to start the day...and to go back for a bit of a palate reset.
~ Wintercoat Mols Øl from Denmark had sprucey and slightly earthy notes (apparently strained through Juniper branches say the notes) to it and got even better when some Birchrun Hills cheese came along for the ride...particularly the blue cheese
~ Kalamazoo Stout from Bell's in Michigan screams out to be served from the cask, and deservedly so...as does the Joe Coffee Porter from Philadelphia Brewing, Stewart's Highlander Stout, Iron Hill's Pig Iron Porter, and the George Washington Porter from Yards. Did I mention how much more "Expressive" many beers become when served sans forced carbonation and colder temperatures? The malt bills on these five are perfect examples.
~ On the other side, the hops become much more "Expressive" in beers like Flying Fish's Exit 16. This was my first run-in with this recently released beer that is being called a Double IPA. If you're concerned about hop levels, I'm not sure if this, by taste alone, would qualify as a DIPA. That Casey and company deftly packed a lot of hops into this beer without walloping us over the palate with them. Will be anxious to try this on CO2 somewhere down the line...like maybe Varga next Monday. 4C from Nodding Head was another clear-cut winner in the 'hops on cask' category.
~ If time had permitted, I would have loved to try some Hopsolutely from the Lehigh Valley's Beer Works. I've recently had it from the bottle, and I'll just leave you with how this is a bottle that absolutely should not sit around for too long before enjoying.
~ Quaker City Stout from Manayunk would've been yet one more that I wished I'd seeked (seeken?) out. I'm hearing that Vince (sorry, Vince/Doug, they must sound the same! Doug is the one that moved to Manayunk, Vince is still, in fact, at North Wales) is doing nice things and raising the brewery's profile since moving down from Iron Hill/North Wales and I would've liked to gain some first-hand experience.
~ Oh, and a gratuitous shout-out to Elysian and its Prometheus IPA. Maybe because I've had this very decent northwestern IPA before, I passed on it. During the train ride home, I'd begun to regret it.

Let's see, how to wrap up? A nice day to have some nice beer and food around nice people listening to nice music. Yards---nicely done. I've never felt more comfortable using a simple word like nice as many times as I have here in the last 800 or so words. When I come away from a beer event like this with such a good feeling, I can't say it any more simply.

Just a mere handful of suggestions for this Weekend

In a weekend of so much to do here in the Philadelphia region, if under the threat of something really, really super-terrible-bad(!), here's what I'd recommend that you check out...if you asked. No favoritism at play here, just a recognition of some of the most interesting that the region has to offer.

Thursday===Rob Tod and his Allagash beer is loosed on the city and the suburbs --- great reason to start your weekend early as Rob makes no less than 4 stops from city to the 'burbs.

Friday===City=Firkins at Varga (Flying Fish) Rural=Cask Ale Festival in Lititz, near Lancaster --- This brings together Alex Hall (NYC) and Paul Pendyck (General Sutter Inn, et al) for the first of its kind in charming Lititz

Saturday===Craft Beer Express around Philly --- choose the bus and do it all day. or meet up with the revelers along the way at a place of your choosing. How can you go wrong? Just stay out of the way of that "other green bus." In the suburbs, try the Imperial IPA Fest at The Drafting Room

Sunday===Brewers Plate --- one of the regions premier beer and food events. I've written about it several times in the past (in 2006, in 2007, in 2008, in 2009) and it really doesn't get much better than this. As of yesterday, less than 100 total tickets remain. This will almost certainly sell out prior to the event.

Monday===Wanna make a long weekend for yourself? Check this out Brooklyn Beer Dinner at Barclay Prime

Time to get a little Viral

Coffee drank, bagel eaten, dogs walked, concert watched, wife dropped off at train station (more later), kitchen cleaned, bed fixed, estate been readied for the storm. A very productive morning thus far. Now time to get a little viral. Funny thing is I knew that JibJab had this feature, just couldn't figure out how I might want to use it. And that, my friends, is the difference between simpletons like me and creative types like Jennie Hatton. I'm giving credit to Jennie because Suzanne did, so to see what I'm talking about, follow the linky-links through the Beer Lass where I give credit to having found it. Confused? Don't be...just click the link and enjoy. This is Philly's version of I Am a Craft Brewer! oh, the train thing? yeah, I could be sipping from some casks at the Khyber later today. Patty's already downtown, so why shouldn't I join her? Walking in an urban wonderland, cask beer, Christmas Village...sounds like a perfect plan? We shall see and report back later...

PBW 2009: Real Ale Invitational at Yards Brewing

The list is almost finalized for this year's Real Ale Invitational at Yards (co-hosted by Triumph). My only question is, why isn't this sold out yet? (though, I've been told the VIP session is) 4 hours of Cask Goodness for $40. Last year there were close to 30 casks, so I'm hoping to see a few more added year in the next couple of weeks as brewers scramble to finalize their contributions. Allentown/Bethlehem Brew Works- Bourbon Barleywine Brooklyn Brewery- TBD Dock Street Brewing Company- Rye IPA Dogfish Head Brewery- TBD Flying Fish Brewing Company- Hopfish Fullers- ESB Fullers- London Pride Iron Hill Brewery and Restaurant- Red Ale Manayunk Brewing Company- California Dreamin' IPA Nodding Head Brewery and Restaurant- 3C (Double IPA) Philadelphia Brewing Co.- R.I.S. Sierra Nevada Brewing- Chico IPA Sly Fox Brewing Company- Phoenix Pale Southampton Brewing Company- Scotch Ale Stewart's Brewing Company- London/Brown/ESB Stoudt's Brewing Company- Smooth Hoperator Triumph Brewing Company of Philadelphia- Irish Dry Stout Tröegs Brewing Company- Barleywine Victory Brewing Company- Hop Devil Yards Brewing Company- Brawler

The Best of the Philly Region on Cask at Iron Hill

As everyone talks about sour beer/funky beer being "the next big thing" or "the next frontier" for beer trends, I'd counter and say that cask beer really hasn't seen its heyday yet...at least here in the U.S. The East Coast has been doing casks every way 'til next Sunday for quite a few years now. The West Coast has caught on recently and places in between are discovering the real, the natural flavors of beer delivered through a cask system. Frankly, I'd like to see "newer" beer lovers discover the wonders of cask-conditioned beer before the off-the-wall flavors of native Belgian or Belgian-influenced funkhouse beers. Many of the mega beer festival (e.g. Philly, NY, SF Beer Weeks) feature cask events. Iron Hill in Newark, Delaware continues its annual real ale celebration in November. Details are forthcoming on their website; in the meantime, here's a sneak preview.

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Event: 7th Annual Brewer’s Reserve Cask Event, featuring Black and Tan Beers (Dark Beers and Pale Ales). Date: Saturday, November 15th Time: Noon until 10 PM Place: Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant, Newark, DE What: Our annual Real Ale celebration showcases casks from the Philadelphia regions’ breweries, all in one place. This year’s Black and Tan theme will feature a dark beer or pale ale offerings from local brewers. Drink them straight or blend them and black and tans, it's up to you. All of the local breweries have been invited to participate. There will be at least 15 casks available throughout the day. Breweries include 7 Iron Hill locations, and up to 14 local breweries. Current participants include; Stewart’s, Nodding Head, Yards, Earth Bread + Brewery, Victory, General Lafayette, Sly Fox. Come out and enjoy an afternoon of pints or tasters of these great local beers.

July's casks at The General Sutter announced

Not like Paul and the crew at General Sutter Inn in Lititz, PA need any promotion from me; these last Friday's have become wildly popular. But, you should go and see for yourself. This month, like others, you won't be disappointed. Check out this month's offerings for next Friday, July 25th.

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Another Three Great Cask Ales. For your pleasure and education. This month we are pleased to be offering three superb cask ales 1. Victory Hop Devil AWARDS Details Magazine - One of Ten Best Summer Beers (June/July 2006) Champion American Beer: Great British Beer Festival 2002 Domestic Beer of The Year: Malt Advocate Magazine 1999 Menacingly delicious, with the powerful, aromatic punch of whole flower American hops backed up by rich, German malts. HopDevil Ale offers a roller coaster ride of flavor, coasting to a smooth finish that satisfies fully. German 2 row malt American whole flower hops Alcohol by volume: 6.7% 2. Victory Uncle Teddy's Bitter Full and creamy on the tongue, this classic British ale is golden in colour and mild in character, it's a session beer that satisfies. Only available on handpump at the Victory brewery. Now you can have it without driving to Downingtown. German 2 row malt Styrian and Kent Goldings hops. Alcohol by volume: 4.3% 3. Oliver's Mad Monk Mild Classic Black Country mild originally brewed for the coal miners and steel workers in the Midlands of England. Tempting aromas of malt and gentle hop resin, chocolate and coffee notes developing. Once very popular in the UK, nowadays can be difficult to find. One of my favourite beers. Halcyon pale ale, crystal and chocolate malts plus a little malted wheat. Fuggles and East Kent Goldings hops. Alcohol by volume: 4.0% Join us on Friday July 25 from 4:30 pm.

The Tradition Continues at General Sutter Inn

While we're counting down the hours to Philly Beer Week's real ale festival, I'll pass along some notes here from Paul Pendyck, the host of monthly Cask Ale Night in Lititz, PA. If you haven't made it to the General Sutter Inn yet for one of the last Fridays of the month tastings, you owe it to yourself and the tradition of real English ale.

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1st Anniversary of Cask Night!

That's right, one year of cask nights. I am sure you will agree we have had some great beers. Last month was a great success, we moved into the ballroom and I am sure you will agree the extra space was a necessity.

Also, repeating the beers gave some of you the opportunity to realise the beauty of real ale. A friend of mine, Ray Daniels, who used to organise the Real Ale Festival in Chicago and was a true pioneer of real ale in the US, wrote an interesting paper entitled "The Perfect Pint". The pretense is that because real ale is constantly changing there will be times that you manage to catch cask ale at its peak condition and have that perfect pint. It is a fleeting moment. In January, for me, Ridgeway was a perfect pint. This month after spending another 3-4 weeks in the cask it had lost its edge. It was still superb but not quite as good. That isn't to say that less time in the cask is always better, it depends on the strength of the beer and how it is kept. In fact, for someone else maybe the extra month improved the Ridgeway.

Anyway, less rambling.

This month to celebrate our anniversary we are doing three things:
1. Meet the brewer. Steve Jones, Oliver's Brewer will be here featuring Anniversary Best Bitter, OG 1043, 4.3% ABV. This is an exact replica of the first beer Steve brewed 14 years ago and is the first time it has been brewed in the US. Using Maris Otter pale ale malt, roasted barley, crystal malt and malted wheat. Hops include East Kent Goldings and Fuggles for bittering and East Kent Goldings for the finish. It is a smooth, well balanced Amber bitter, nice body with a lingering Kent Goldings finish.

Steve will also be bringing "Red Flag Ale", OG 1046, 4.4% ABV. Malts used - Halcyon pale ale malt, crystal, dark crystal, chocolate malt, torrefied wheat and amber malt. Bittering hops - Challenger and 1st Gold. Finishing - Bramling Cross and 1st Gold. The malt really asserts itself in this brew with the hops providing balance. Deep red/brown in colour with the crystal and chocolate malt providing hints of toffee and licorice, finishing with a slight sweetness.

2. The first 48 people will get a commemorative pint glass marking the occasion.

3. I will be going to England on a research trip.

Have a great time. Sorry to miss it but the Liverpool-Everton game is too big a draw.

Paul Pendyck

Cask-conditioned beers, often referred to as "real ale", are brewed from only traditional ingredients and allowed to mature naturally. This allows the rich flavours of malt and hops to be fully experienced. For more information on cask ale visit Cask Ale Info.

Join me for good cheer and good company. Be a part of an exciting new tradition in downtown Lititz.

Cask Ale Friday takes place on the last Friday of every month at the General Sutter Inn in downtown Lititz.

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PBW 2008 - Real Ale Festival, casks finalized

Now that I've cleared my drool (pretty picture, eh?) and purchased my ticket, you should review the list and do the same. The fine folks at Yards have forwarded the most finalized list that I've seen so far for the Real Ale Festival on Sunday at Triumph. Sorry, Drie Fonteinen will just have to wait. Now the only question is: brunch at The Drafting Room or brunch at Fork? Hm, decisions...

Allentown/Bethlehem Brew Works	Pawn Shop Porter
Bells Brewing Company	Two Hearted Ale
Bells Brewing Company	Java Stout
Gritty Mcduff's	Best Brown Ale
Climax Brewing Company	ESB
Clipper City Brewing Company	Saison
Dock Street Brewing Company	Gold Stock Ale
Flying Fish Brewing Company	Bourbon Espresso Porter
General Lafayette Pub and Brewery	Red Velvet
Iron Hill Brewing Company	Chocolate Stout
Iron Hill Brewing Company	Irish Red
Lancaster Brewing Company	Red Rooster
Legacy Brewing Company	Noreaster
Manayunk Brewing Company	Kölsch
Nodding Head	Wee Heavy
Nodding Head	IPA
One Guy Brewing Company	Molly's Best Brown Ale
Rock Bottom (King of Prussia)	Prussia's Pride IPA
Sly Fox Brewing Company	Seamus Red Ale
Southampton Brewing Company	Irish Red Ale
Stewarts Brewing Company	McBride's Strong Ale
Stoudt's Brewing Company	Scarlet Lady ESB
Triumph-New Hope	Bitter
Triumph-Philly	Scotch Ale
Triumph-Princeton	Gothic Ale
Tröegs Brewing Company	Hopback
Victory Brewing Company	Hop Wallop
Voodoo Brewery	Big Black Voodoo Daddy
Yards Brewing Company	ESA

General Sutter Inn for cask-conditioned beer in February

Do not go to the General Sutter Inn on February 29th. They'll be serving cloudy, room temperature, undercarbonated beer. I believe they call it cask-conditioned. Apparently, last month's cask-conditioned event (always scheduled for the last Friday of the month) drew so many people that they'll be moving this once-intimate affair over to the ballroom, spacing out the casks, and having at least one more pourer. Last month, the Ridgeway Oxfordshire Blue and Tröegs Nugget Nectar were both empty in barely more than 90 minutes, leaving a couple of dozen people still waiting in line. Fortunately for them, host Paul Pendyck had some normal beer that he could share with those folks. I'll bet they were relieved. So, you be the judge. Paul was so pleased with the turnout and reception of the beers in January, that he's doing an encore performance in February. If you like to hang out with a bunch of like-minded fun, beer-loving folks drinking cloudy, warm, undercarbonated beer, then head on over to the General Sutter on 2/29. It's the night before the Philly Craft Beer Festival...but, they're not serving any cask beers to my knowledge. p.s. I don't do smarmy too often, but a certain someone suggested I should try. What do you think?