Iron Hill in Center City Philadelphia scheduled to open in September 2018

Won't be long, I suppose, before the count of Iron Hill (IH) locations outnumbers the brewery's age in years. The 22-year-old Brewery & Restaurant is due to open #15 in September (exact date still TBA) with #16 hot on its heels at the center of everything in Hershey, Pa. (If you don't know everything going on in this part of Pennsylvania (and I mean beyond the brewing activity), you should really catch up during a few days in Hershey sometime soon.

But this is about Center City Philadelphia and its ambitious remaking of East Market Street. Iron Hill is putting its second city location (the other being in the northwestern neighborhood of Chestnut Hill, opened in 2012) on Market Street between 11th and 12th Streets facing the historic Reading Terminal Headhouse (where today's SEPTA Jefferson train station operates below ground; take note train-going beer seekers).

The full city block from Market to Chestnut Streets has been redeveloped over the past few years and, when finished, will include residential, hotel, and retail. Cutting between the buildings fronting Market Street and adjacent to Iron Hill's outdoor seating is a smartly placed pedestrian walkway which management says they will have access to for special events. Oh, that sounds ideal, does it not?


Inside, the restaurant and brewery will be one of the company's smaller footprints, given the location and physical constraints amongst the mixed-use development. The restaurant plans to present the same type of "scratch kitchen menu" available at other locations and the brewery (10-bbl) will be cranking out mostly seasonal and specialty beers with the house beers typically being produced and delivered from other larger IH locations. Josh Jastrzembski has command of the kitchen and Ben Schamberg will be taking on the brewing operations and falls under the regional brewing management of respected IH veteran Chris LaPierre. Jastrzembski has worked nearby at the Loews restaurants and Schamber comes from local brewing roots at Philadelphia Brewing and Nodding Head.

At the preview event held last week, familiar founding faces of IH ownership -- Kevin Davies, Mark Edelson, Kevin Finn -- introduced a new face, that of Kim Boerema. He comes to Iron Hill with a long career in the restaurant industry, opening more than 200 restaurants in over 30 years. He will hold the role of CEO, while Kevin Finn is taking the position of Chairman of the Board. Seems that they've positioned themselves, as they've continued to carefully through the years, to reach their goal of 20 locations by the year 2020.

I'll have more to share in early September as they begin to put the final polishing touches and do more previews and soft openings.


By the way, calling this Iron Hill's 15th location got me to thinking that it's been a while since I took an actual tally on brewing establishments within the city proper. When I wrote my book in 2014 and as it was published in 2015, there were between 5-8 breweries. Now, unless I'm missing any below, the city stands (for a few seconds, anyway) at 20 breweries. Iron Hill should be number 21 next month. Triple Bottom is due at some point in Love City's neighborhood and Don Russell recently reported in his e-mail newsletter two new breweries on the horizon for the Roxborough neighborhood -- one unnamed and one to be named Twisted Gingers -- plus one in South Philly for 2019 going by the name Cartesian Brewing. Have I missed any others? Oh, and unless I'm unaware that they've begun brewing, Roy-Pitz and Goose Island only count as taprooms/brewpub extensions of their production facilities located elsewhere outside the city.

• Brewery ARS
• Brewery Techne
• Chestnut Hill
• Crime & Punishment
• Dock Street
• Earth Bread + Brewery
• Evil Genius
• Fermentery Form
• Fishtown Brewpub
• Iron Hill (Chestnut Hill)
• Love City
• Manayunk
• Philadelphia Brewing
• Point Breeze
• Saint Benjamin
• Second District
• 2nd Story
• Urban Village
• Wissahickon
• Yards

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© Bryan J. Kolesar and The Brew Lounge, 2018. All content is owned and uniquely created by Bryan J. Kolesar. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from Kolesar is strictly prohibited. Excerpts, images, and links may be used with advance permission granted and only provided that full and clear credit is given to Bryan J. Kolesar and The Brew Lounge with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. Contact Kolesar at TheBrewLounge@gmail.com

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Locust Lane Craft Brewery is ready to open in Malvern, PA

(from left: Owners of Locust Lane Craft Brewery — Bryan Brockson, Tom Arnold, Jason Cartwright)

The gents behind Locust Lane Craft Brewery - Tom Arnold, Jason Cartwright, and Bryan Brockson - have brought their college friendship full circle by taking their former collegiate address on Locust Lane at Penn State University to their new brewery in Malvern, Pa.

I'll keep this short and allow the updated pictures that I took this week during a quick visit to speak for themselves. These guys are just about as close to schedule as they could have hoped to be and now that the brewery is up, running, and filling kegs (with special consultation from, you guessed it, Scott "The Dude" Morrison), April 1 is the date set for grand opening to the public. Regular hours in the initial weeks and months will be on Thursday through Sunday.

My hopes were high for these guys once I learned of their motto "simply crafted". Lost in the craze of the last five to ten years (or more, who's counting?!) are exactly some of the things they point to when they claim to be bringing "fresh, simple, and classic beer options to the craft brew community." No punny names, just clear style descriptions. No salacious advertising or bombastic marketing, just continuous social media updates and practicing transparency on the website (though, the grand opening is still listed as 3/24). No "imperial" this, "wild" that, etc., just an attention to classic styles (so far).

I say this without having yet tasted a drop of their liquid, so my hopes still remain high. Out in the wild, it looks to me like there might be a very leading, bleeding edge of the (craft) beer drinking world that is interested in well-made English Bitters, German Kolschs, Czech Pilsners, Irish Dry Stouts, and the like. If you study the number of entries in some of these and other similar categories at the GABF and WBC judging competitions, there are more being entered every year, likely indicating an interest at least from brewers in brewing them and, presumably, consumers therefore in drinking them. But, they certainly have not yet projected the sexyness out into the masses, which still seems obsessed with imperial/double/triple versions of any style possible or barrel-aged monster beers or wild/funky bracing sours or anything else palate-busting. Or just simply anything with the three letters I. P. and A. in it. Hey, I love many of these as much as the next adventurous guy or gal that has helped bring the industry along over the years with an appreciation for experimentation and defiance of tradition. But...

I've taken to saying the last few years that what will sustain the craft industry the longest will be the right balance of wild and crazy "innovative" beers and well-made beers that show classic styles well. At Locust Lane, right off the bat, we'll see an ESB (4.4% ABV) with all the right ingredients from Marris Otter malts to Fuggle and East Kent Goldings hops. Gosh, I love the ESB; really looking forward to this one. An Irish Stout (4.5% ABV) that can hopefully be yet another solid local replacement for Guinness to be added to the list along with the likes of Donnybrook (Victory) and O'Reilly's (Sly Fox). Pale Ale (4.8% ABV) with what sounds like a nice blend of Cascade, Simcoe, Chinook, and Citra hops. And an IPA (7.4% ABV), but of course, that brings the same hop profile as the Pale Ale along with a good dosage of Columbus, Tomahawk, and Zeus hops for that nice, solid-IPA sounding beer.

Making an appearance on tap will also be one beer from Wissahickon Brewing Company — likewise opening on April 1, on Schoolhouse Lane in the East Falls neighborhood across from Philadelphia University. In a nice turn of brewing camaraderie, Wissahickon will be serving one Locust Lane beer on opening weekend at their place as well.

Food, you ask? Opening weekend expect to see Nick's Roast Beef and The Flying Dutchman food trucks on site. I'll see you at the bar...or at one of the coveted comfy seats over in the corner.

(Five taps for opening day with more to be filled in time.)

(Beautiful live edge wood slab bar.)

(Inside to the left and....)

(....to the right.)

(Flying their favorite colors above the former Cape May Brewing brewhouse.)

(Shiny conical fermenters a must.)

(Kegs are ready for filling.)

(Come spring at Locust Lane, this door will hopefully be rolled up more often than not.)

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© Bryan J. Kolesar and The Brew Lounge, 2017. All content is owned and uniquely created by Bryan J. Kolesar. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from Kolesar is strictly prohibited. Excerpts, images, and links may be used with advance permission granted and only provided that full and clear credit is given to Bryan J. Kolesar and The Brew Lounge with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. Contact Kolesar at TheBrewLounge@gmail.com

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Iron Hill's lucky #13 coming to Philadelphia

(artist rendering courtesy of Iron Hill)

I'm not usually in the practice of merely copying and pasting press releases, but for the sake of expediency in sharing today's news, it'll have to do. I was at Iron Hill's location in Phoenixville this past Saturday (more on that to follow in tomorrow's post) and the topic came up. Didn't get the impression that "the big announcement would be made really soon" comment actually meant in two days.

Hopefully you all, like I, continue to be pleased to see our hometown small brewpub circa 1996 grow into a thirteen location, perennial award-winning family of brewpubs. Number fourteen won't be much farther behind, but that's all I can say for now, sorry.

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Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant Announces 13th Location at East Market in Center City Philadelphia

This marks Iron Hill’s much-anticipated first downtown brewery, in an area with few other breweries

Philadelphia – February 06, 2017 – Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant today announced that it has leased 8,450 square feet, becoming the newest tenant to join the transformative East Market project located in Center City Philadelphia owned by National Real Estate Development. Founded in 1996 by Kevin Finn, Mark Edelson and Kevin Davies, Iron Hill is the Mid-Atlantic region’s most awarded and fastest growing collection of brewpubs. Scheduled to open in spring 2018, Iron Hill Center City (1150 Market Street) will mark the company’s highly-anticipated debut in a major metropolitan hub, setting the stage for further brand expansion along the East Coast.

The addition of Iron Hill to East Market will bring one of the most enduringly successful craft brewers in the United States just steps from the Pennsylvania Convention Center and Reading Terminal Market. It will also serve as one of only a handful of full-scale breweries within the city limits of Philadelphia.

“We’ve long wanted to join Center City’s exciting and diverse restaurant scene, but we wanted to be part of something from the ground up,” said Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant President and Founder Kevin Finn. “There has been tremendous population growth as places like East Market draw new residents to Center City. We take great pride in embracing the communities we serve, and that is especially true in Philadelphia. We look forward to opening our doors and raising a pint with our new neighbors and friends in spring 2018."

To create the comfortable dining areas, open kitchen and exposed microbrewery that have become the hallmarks of Iron Hill, it has enlisted Street Sense, a design firm with offices in Bethesda, MD and Washington, DC. Street Sense has created a vibrant, sleek design allowing for all-access views of the brewery, which is highly visible behind the bar and enclosed in glass.

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant currently operates 12 locations throughout Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. In 2016 Iron Hill received an investment from A&M Capital, which positioned the company to continue its 20-year expansion from one brewpub to now its 13th location at East Market.

East Market, the pedestrian-oriented, mixed-use development that is comprised of an entire city block (Market to Chestnut Streets; 11th to 12th Streets), combines shopping and dining experiences with contemporary work and living spaces. The Ludlow, East Market’s first residential tower, will feature 322 rental units with innovative floor plans complemented by a host of modern amenities. 1100 Ludlow, East Market’s collaborative, contemporary office space, will serve as home to MOM’s Organic Market, The Design Center and Bohlin Cywinski Jackson

“With the arrival of Iron Hill, East Market continues to create a dynamic urban environment,” said Daniel Killinger, Managing Director of Development – National Development. “Iron Hill will be a great addition to this burgeoning neighborhood, helping to activate the street life of the East Market development. We are excited and proud that East Market has been chosen as the home of Iron Hill’s first urban brewpub.”

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© Bryan J. Kolesar and The Brew Lounge, 2017. All content is owned and uniquely created by Bryan J. Kolesar. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from Kolesar is strictly prohibited. Excerpts, images, and links may be used with advance permission granted and only provided that full and clear credit is given to Bryan J. Kolesar and The Brew Lounge with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. Contact Kolesar at TheBrewLounge@gmail.com

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November 2016: News update, part 2

Gathered up a few interesting things from the last couple weeks to share with you. Have I missed anything?

~ Oh, how convenient this would've been to have Wissahickon Brewing Company so close to my college when I was there. [Link to Phila. Business Journal]

~ So Pittsburgh thinks it can best Philly in hockey and beer? [Link to Phila. Business Journal]

~ The beer guys that brought you U-bahn and Bru now have some sour beer and pizza to sell to you [Link to Philly.com]

~ This should keep our local friend and Two Roads sales guy, Lee Porter, hopping. [Link to Beer Pulse]

~ Apparently, I'm not as plugged in as I thought I was. Last I checked (okay, that's on me), this project was dead. Alas... [Link to Prism Brewing Company's facebook page]

~ Six-packs, growlers, and singles at beer distributors. Wine in grocery stores. Welcome to your new Pennsylvania. [Link to Philadelphia Magazine]

~ And, finally, this happened last night. Bob Barrar from 2SP Brewing Company found his name on the drawn raffle ticket last night at City Tap House, where Philly Beer Week was conducting its annual fundraiser and Belgian trip giveaway. [Link to 2SP's facebook page]

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© Bryan J. Kolesar and The Brew Lounge, 2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Bryan J. Kolesar and The Brew Lounge with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. Contact Kolesar at TheBrewLounge@gmail.com.

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Construction Update 10/15/2016: La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa. is set to open

(Eight to nine drafts to be available on opening day, October 25, with more to come in the days and weeks after.)
Let's get this breaking news out of the way first thing — La Cabra Brewing Company is cleared to open its doors to the public for the first time at 3 p.m. on October 25.

They've come a long way in the last few months and since I last visited a little over a month ago. Now all the powers-that-be have given had their say and the beer lines have been hooked up to the brite/serving tanks. All that's left are some remaining construction touches and final staff prepping.

I stopped by yesterday morning to find brewer and operating partner Dan Popernack and chef John Hearn busy at work but willing to take time to show me a bit of what's changed, give me an update on the remaining week's work, and slide a few tastes of beer and food my way.

They plan to open La Cabra's doors on Tuesday, October 25 as if it was just another day of business. This way, they hope to be able to gently break in the staff, work out any kinks, and give customers the smoothest introduction in the early days and weeks to one of the area's most anticipated new brewpub ventures.

While the second floor and mezzanine room will eventually be available for private party rentals, the entire facility (total capacity around 240) will be open and available for all customers to explore in the first weeks. There's a full bar on both the first and second floors and Popernack expects to have eight or nine of his taps flowing with a variety of his beers on opening day.

(Flights of great taste at La Cabra.)
My initial samplings confirm that there will be a diverse representation of quality beers for customers to look forward to both at the bar by themselves as well as paired together on the dining room tables. The Coquette (3.5% ABV) is a wonderful display of berries in a barrel-aged fruit beer. Should work well as a light refreshing interlude (i.e. not overwhelming with fruit) or in pairings as a breakfast or dessert beer.

Belma (5.7% ABV) is a Belgian Pale Ale that takes advantage of a new experimental hop from the Pacific NW. It helps bring out a light fruit character, strawberry for one, in a very drinkable Belgian Pale. Juno (4.8% ABV) is an American Blonde Ale with Rosemary and Lime that I expect to work very well with some entries on Hearn's Latin American-themed kitchen menu.

Two IPAs should please the hop heads. One is the Tabula Rasa, deemed a Session IPA, which will be different from batch to batch and always feature a single hop. The one I tasted (4.4% ABV) showcased the always enjoyable Mosaic. The second is Leo (6.3% ABV) that Popernack is still working to find the balance in malt and hops that he is most happy with. I think he's nearly there and this will be turn out to be a great go-to IPA.

(Sneak peek, and taste, of the excellent Crispy Pork Belly to be on the menu at La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)
Finally, the Cassiopeia (4.8% ABV) is an "Amber Kölsch" that Popernack is looking forward to making his own style and one that I'm looking forward to sampling more of. It definitely bucks the traditional Kölsch style guidelines but yet when I drank it along with the Crispy Pork Belly that Hearn brought out of the kitchen for me, I found myself not giving that a second thought. The roasted nature of the Cassiopeia worked nicely with the pork belly (great ratio of meat-to-fat -- very important to me) as I would imagine so too would the Roggenbier that Popernack says will be coming up in the near future.

Lots of intriguing promise awaits in Berwyn. Just a little over a week until we get to see the full production. By the way, in case you didn't pick up on it in my last update, if you're coming out from Philly by train, get off at the Berwyn station and simply cross over Lancaster Avenue that parallels the train tracks and you're there.

(First floor interior of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(First floor bar of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(First floor interior of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(First floor interior of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(Cemetery gates over the second floor bar at La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(Second floor interior of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(Second floor interior of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(Memento from the now-shuttered Fritz Lumber, since 1863, across the street.)

(Back door entrance of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(Back staircase and brewhouse entrance of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

(Fear not, there will be available parking in Berwyn.)

(Soon there will be a much larger sign announcing the new La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)

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Construction Update: La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa. - 9/9/2016

(Looking south across Lancaster Avenue at the future home of La Cabra Brewing Company in Berywn, Pa.)
La Cabra Brewing Company is shaping up to be one of the Philadelphia area's most anticipated new brewpub ventures of 2016. With nearly all the licensing and inspection hurdles out of the way, it's construction progress and finishing touches that will pave the critical path to an anticipated opening date in late October/early November.

(In the brewhouse at the future home of La Cabra Brewing Company — Chuck Golder, GM, and Dan Popernack, Brewer and Operating Partner)
Dan Popernack (Operating Partner and, currently sole, brewer), Chuck Golder (General Manager), and John Hearn (Chef) are the three faces that will be most commonly seen at the two-story brewpub across from the Berwyn train station. They project to eventually have 30-40 staff covering the combined front- and back-of-the-house operations.

The kitchen staff will be turning out a menu that is being described as Latin-American, a cuisine that Popernack, with his South American travels and time lived in Spain, believes has plenty of untapped pairing potential with the beer world. Additionally, in his former life, he was a high school Spanish teacher. Golder has worked his entire career in food and beverage, most recently at Merion Country Club. With this team, Popernack reports feeling "blessed because both the left and right hands of the business are strong" and they "wouldn't be where we are today otherwise" and he "wouldn't be as confident as I am looking forward to opening" if it wasn't for the dependable experience across the board at La Cabra.

(Customers will have a second floor glimpse into the brewhouse at La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)
Popernack grew his brewing prowess from his Malvern home garage while he sought the perfect location for his business vision. After nearly two years of searching, he and the executive partnership group (comprised of six individuals in total that he says shares his same passion for the brewpub's vision) purchased the location at 642 Lancaster Avenue, former home of a futon business and a spot that they were assured "could never house a brewery".

In fact, it will house two floors with multiple rooms and seating areas for customers, a full brewhouse, a basement with upwards of 100 new American oak barrels, and two bars running 12 CO2 draft lines, 1 local cider tap, 1 nitrogen tap, 2 handpumps, and a PA bottled wine list. Coming out of the brewhouse, Popernack expects to do it all up and down the spectrum of beer styles from big beers to easy-drinking approachable beers. His passion has shown through in barrel-aged and sour beers and admittedly will ultimately settle into a menu that is most well-received by the customers.

(Barrels will play an important role in the beer menu at La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)
Berwyn has been making a slow transformation from a town often seen as a drive-through from Wayne to Paoli along Lancaster Avenue (route 30). There's a recently new pedestrian bridge over the railroad tracks and continued development taking place (e.g. longtime Fritz's Lumber has been sold and will be cleared for future development) that La Cabra looks to be part of in making Berwyn a more walkable town of destination bars, restaurants, and shops. Maybe not ultimately like nearby Wayne, but much more than it was ten years ago. Between on-street parking, train station parking, and nearly 40 additional parking spaces being made available behind La Cabra, it's good to see that this important aspect is also being addressed.

I look forward to what thus far sounds like a very promising brewing establishment addition to the area. Considering that between Tired Hands and Iron Hill in Ardmore and Victory in Downingtown, the only other brewing entity along the "Main Line" is McKenzie Brew House, La Cabra should certainly have little trouble tapping into a thirsty beer crowd. And, in Berwyn, there's certainly space for them amongst an already diverse set of established restaurants and bars such as Fellini's (byo Italian), Tiramisu (unique Jewish-Roman), Berwyn Tavern (a down-to-earth bar), Casey's (similar to BT), 30 Main (live music), Nectar (upscale), and others.

Popernack sees this as an advantage and vows to "bend over backwards to grow in Berwyn and work with the community". He mentioned in describing the La Cabra vision how "gran vecino" is the brewpub's motto which literally translates to "great neighbor".

(You'll get plenty of reminders of what La Cabra translates to at La Cabra Brewing Company in Berwyn, Pa.)
Also, with regard to the name La Cabra which translates to goat in Spanish - that "goats are intelligent, persistent, and fun. And who can look at a goat and not say 'I'd like to hang out with a goat'?!" Which ties into another important concept to Popernack and the team - fun. "If beer becomes unfun," he says, "we're losing our critical advantage over other beverages."

Furthermore, he and the ownership group see value beyond the beer and beyond the profits - that is, giving employees a "positive environment in which to work" and "supporting charitable groups in everyday operations", something that he hopes to grow quickly into a standard program at La Cabra.

Lots of potential goodness brewing at La Cabra in Berwyn. Being nearly in my backyard has me excited for this to finally come to fruition and you can bet I'll be reporting back frequently as it grows.

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