Six beer events and one concert in barely two weeks is sure a lot for an aging guy. An aging beer guy like me, though, knows no quit but getting caught up around here continues to be quite a challenge. There's still a lot of beer-y goodness out there, despite many cries of growing mediocrity. My job is to point you in the direction of quality new stuff happening as well as those that continue to do it well through the years.
(Panel discussion with, from left - Nancy Rigberg; Gene Muller; William Reed; Brian O'Reilly; Lew Bryson; and Scoats)
Grey Lodge Pub in Philadelphia falls into the latter grouping. Last Saturday, August 13, owner Mike "Scoats" Scotese and his team celebrated the legendary bar's 20th anniversary. The party began in the afternoon with a panel of folks that were part of the beer scene twenty years ago. In the video below, from left to right, you'll see Nancy Rigberg (Home Sweet Home Brew store), Gene Muller (founder of Flying Fish), William Reed (co-owner of Standard Tap and Johnny Brenda's restaurants, as well as President of Philly Beer Week), Brian O'Reilly (Brewmaster of Sly Fox Brewing Company), and Lew Bryson (renowned beer and whiskey writer). The panel discussion lasted for approximately 45 minutes and covered both the serious and the silly. The ten minutes I included below capture Scoats' introduction of each panelist.
(New tile work at Grey Lodge Pub featuring annual special events)
(New tile work at Grey Lodge Pub featuring annual special events)
For the oft-decorated bar ("Best bar" this, "Best bar" that) that has built a reputation of having some of the most uniquely themed events through the years (many coinciding with the calendar - 1/20 Day; Groundhog Day; 4/20 Day; Xmas in July; Beer/Deer Season; etc.), this 20th anniversary celebration was rather tame by comparison. A fun, but thoughtful, look back over the last 20 years by the panel. A gathering of familiar faces telling stories of firkinteenths and groundhog days past. A special (but special-as-always) draft beer list. Live music. And an extended kitchen out front on Frankford Avenue. No Hawaiian shirts, feats of strength bar games, or other hilarity that typically ensues. But, maybe just maybe that's another part of the secret to the success of the Grey Lodge - no need for a huge, over-the-top, attention-grabbing celebration event. They've already got the regional (and neighborhood) beer loving public's attention at the quintessential neighborhood Philly bar. Congratulations again to the whole Grey Lodge team and thanks for all the beers.
p.s. This could be the most useless post script to share with you. Though, if you should ever by chance again see the kitchen serving up a special deer sausage sandwich with mushrooms and onions (and presuming you're not giving the vegan lifestyle a try), do not turn it down. It was one of the menu items being cooked up by the chef on the front sidewalk and I took one along for the ride down the Boulevard. One of the most excellent things I've had to eat; a touch of irony that this came the day prior to the S.E.E.D. Vegan Food and Beer Festival that I shared with you yesterday.
(Brewing buds, Jon Defibaugh-Evil Genius and Ben Potts-Tired Hands)
(Slideshow memories. Casey Hughes, formerly of Flying Fish, now with Coppertail in Tampa, Fla.)
(Yours truly with Gene Muller, Flying Fish founder)
(Live music into the evening)
(Crowd swelling into the dinnertime hour at Grey Lodge's 20th Anniversary Party)
(No matter the attribution controversy, still a very nice sentiment)
Trademarks, or lack of active ones, aside, I'm pretty sure that there's one and only one Friday the Firkinteenth — and it's in Philadelphia at the Grey Lodge Pub. Has been for over 13 years (coincidence).
J. Ryan's in Syracuse? Not so much. They opened just a little over a year ago.
I'd link to their site, but they don't have a website or Facebook page. Saw the event listed on BeerAdvocate.
Not that their competitive markets overlap (200 miles apart?), but the name is so unique I'd find it very difficult to believe they magically came up with this creative name for their upcoming event on 5/13 all by themselves.
Update: After a brief conversation with Scoats, I now see that a local (much more overlapping, fwiw) bar in Drexel Hill has named another similar event. 2312 Garrett. Scratch that, not similar, looks pretty much the same. Cask beer, Friday the 13th, need more evidence?
Poorly played, folks. Whether Friday the Firkinteenth is trademarked or not, how about we instead see some of your own creativity?
With a beautiful day of weather and a handful of tasty firkins sitting on top of the Grey Lodge's downstairs bar, I decided to take a few hours off from work and cover this somewhat typical-but-not-yet-quite typical event for all of you dear readers!
I've only ever headed to Friday the Firkinteenth once for the early-morning mayhem; that was enough for me. Being there early and "battling" for a seat is part of Friday the Firkinteenth personal lore for many, but it makes for a long day if you'd like to be around for the kicking of the first kegs and particularly if you'd like to try a glass of each by the time they have all poured in the early evening.
But, for those who don't care about staying all day or being the first in line in the morning, your best bet for optimizing your firkin fun time is to arrive early afternoon when most or all of the original firkins are still pouring. You'll be able to sample from those at a casual pace as they begin to kick one at a time. Over the next few hours, you'll see another handful of firkins thrown up on the bar. You can grab your late lunch/early dinner and sample your way through at least half of all the offerings by the time you leave late afternoon.
(Scoats taps the Manayunk firkin that replaced "my" Sixpoint Righteous)
This time around (only one F13 in 2010), proprietor Mike "Scoats" Scotese arranged for roughly 30 firkins to be tapped throughout the day---7 at any given time. According to Scoats, the first to kick was Dock Street's Summer Session Ale, approximately 3.5 hours into the day.
Along my typically annoying drive along the Schuylkill Expressway and the Roosevelt Boulevard (even in the early/mid-afternoon....but, yes, it was a summer Friday, so there y'go), all I was saying was "please let there be some Sixpoint Righteous Rye left when I get there."
Well, there was...sort of. Within about 90 seconds of walking through the front door, I ceremoniously kicked the Sixpoint keg with a serving of approximately the last 2 ounces of the tasty Righteous Rye.
I moved along to grab a Sly Fox Standard Porter and Prism Bitto Honey IPA and went upstairs to order some lunch. Cuban Sandwich, perfect. Took a small glass of Brooklyn Buzz and Prism Tea Party for samples as well. Scoats joined me for a few minutes at my table in between his firkin tappings duty. Shared with him some news about The Brew Lounge that I haven't shared with any of you as of yet. How's that for a teaser?!
(Friday the Firkinteenth "tailgating", Northeast Philly style? Sure, why not)
Patty joined me a couple of hours later. Anyone coming to the Grey Lodge from Center City probably knows--but, in case you don't--that the trip is a pretty easy one on the Market-Frankford El to the end of the line at the Frankford Transportation Center. From there it's either a $1 transfer to the '66' bus or a 3/4 mile walk out Frankford Avenue.
On a day like yesterday, a walk would have been totally appropriate. Otherwise, the bus will drop you off less than a block away from the front door.
(We dined under the picture of the beloved, late Gary Bredbenner)
We sampled a few more beers, had a chicken cheesesteak, fries, and wings (glad I'm not marathon training!), socialized. When we figured evening rush hour traffic had died down, we headed back home. Just more of the typical good ol' fashioned fun on the firkinteenth.
There's only one F13 scheduled (I don't think "they" are planning to change the calendar before then!) for 2011, so if you missed this one keep in mind that there will only be one next year to get your F13 firkin on in Northeast Philly.
(Jill Mowery said she hardly ever sees a picture of herself that she likes, until this one. Posted, with her approval :) Btw, if you can lend a hand to help her move to Northern Liberties on September 1st, let me know and I'll pass the word)
I started off thinking that I would receive snippets of thoughts that could be woven into a year-end wrapup and future looking post. It would prove, therefore (hopefully!), to be more interesting then just hearing/reading my thoughts. Was it also a way to off-load some of the work involved in a year-end retrospective? Well, I NEVER!!
After soliciting the serious, the irreverent, the brief, the lengthy---what I received was mostly at least moderate in length and serious in nature. So, then what am I supposed to do with that?! It turned out that I made a lot more work for myself if I was going to now pick apart what was sent to me, choosing only bits and pieces to suit some sort of an article. And, I gotta tell ya, time is running a bit short on supply around here. (Hawaii posting, anyone???? anyone?)
So finally I decided the best approach was to go back to my original statement to these individuals...that this would be the year-end wrapup in their words. This would ensure that nothing got lost in translation and that the full context was delivered. I am, though, cleaning up any obvious typos and grammatical errors...that's just the kind of guy I am...not just a cut and paste kind of guy!!
And, I'd make it into linkedy-link fest...because, really, these folks are some of the best at what they do, so why shouldn't I help to bring attention to just that.
Let's get on with it. Yesterday, you saw my personal review of 2009. Here comes (chosen in random order) Maureen Ogle, Carolyn Smagalski, Mike Scotese (Scoats), Jim Wiggins, and Nick Johnson. Please be sure to click the links and visit their sites. It shows that you came from The Brew Lounge and that you care about their work :)
Maureen Ogle (Historian & Author)
"My year-end update/roundup/prediction is something like: godhelpmebuti'mgonnafinishthisnewbookin2010ifitkillsmewhichitmay.
So I'm totally out of the loop re. beer. Wish I weren't but there you goThe Beer Fox-Carolyn Smagalski (Bella Online Contributor, Beer Connoisseur Journalist, to name just a couple)
"2009 was a roller coaster of beer and whisky events, power-packed with enough fuel to keep the after-burners as hot as a hose-sass and my nose glowing as red as Rudolph's...or is that Rude Elf's?
The Whisky Festival of Northern Netherlands celebrated the launch of International Whisky Day on the anniversary of Michael Jackson's birthday, 27 March, 2009 - to honor the Whisky Chaser himself and "...the many unsung heroes of the past and present, who have been crafting the King o' Drinks for centuries..." At the same festival, two important books were released: "Whisky & Jazz" written by Hans Offringa and dedicated to Michael Jackson, and "Beer Hunter, Whisky Chaser," with contributions by 13 international beer and whisky writers, for the benefit of the Parkinson Society of the UK.
Philly Beer Week reaffirmed its reverence for beer in the Philadelphia area with the enormous success of 679 events and a promise for continued expansion.
Jeannine Marois made headlines with the Mondial de la Biere in both Montreal, Quebec and Strasbourg, France.
The Sam Adams Longshot in Boston and the Pro-Am Competition in Denver proved that homebrewers and professional brewers walk hand-in-hand in creative artistry.
Under the big top - the Colorado Convention Center - The Great American Beer Festival, with an additional 92,000 square feet, continues to set records with sell-out crowds who spilled over into the Beer & Food Pavilion, Farm to Table, the Brewers Studio Pavilion, and the largest commercial beer competition in the world.
Tap that off with "The Naked Pint" by Christina Perozzi and Hallie Beaune and a re-capping of Don Russell's Christmas Beer and life doesn't get much sweeter than that.
Unless you're 2010.
2010 will bring continuous great beer with more intense flavor through environmental initiatives - our own terroir, the signature of the American Craft Brewer. In the meantime, this is the year of the World Beer Cup and yours truly, the Beer Fox, will continue to do her best to "taste and assess" as many beers as possible. Even if my nose does keep glowing red..."Mike "Scoats" Scotese (Publican & Lodgemaster-The Grey Lodge Pub, Philadelphia, PA)
"2009 brought craft beer in to the mainstream. It's hard to go anywhere in Philly and not find at least a half decent beer. A good beer focus now seems mandatory for any new establishment. Strangely 99.4% of all of new establishments in 2009 set up shop in South Philly.
2010 will bring more good things in small packages as session beers increase in popularity."Jim Wiggins (Origlio Beverage Sales, Craft & Specialty Brand Segment)
"2010 will bring still greater number of interesting offerings as even big craft brewers continue to expand their limited production offerings (i.e. Sierra Nevada Life and Limb, Harpoon 100 Barrel Series and Ommegang Adoration). We will see more Breweries open up the SEPA market as these craft brewer's home markets get saturated and this region's rep continues to resonate thought out the beer world. New Belgium?"Nick Johnson (Tröegs Brewing Company, Sales-Eastern PA, NJ, DE)
"2010---- Year of Local Craft Beer Movement and Steve Mashington.......... a hope that local craft beer takes back over the Philly taps which have been taken over by one-off-over-hyped-brews from out-of-state breweries.... get back to your roots everyone!!!
On a totally unrelated note, 2010 will also bring the year that Steve Mashington graces the cover of GQ magazine sporting his once nicely well fitted red suit... and by the way not the GQ you are thinking of aimed at men who shave their chest (Casey Hughes) and wear tight pants (Mike Fava), we are talking Ginger Quarterly, the one and only print mag dedicated to Ginger folk!!! viva la red!
See you all out at the bars!
Cheers! Johnsonator, Tröegs Brewing Ambassador"
Stop back tomorrow to read sage tidbits from (chosen once again in random order) Lew Bryson, Brian Yaeger, and Jennie Hatton.
Some times I know exactly where to begin, other times not so much so. Fortunately, this past Saturday began in South Philly at Devil's Den, innocently enough with a couple of nice and tidy 5 ounce sampler flights of sour beer. A little tart here, a little sour there, some fruit over there, and some funk back over here. If I had to begin this story on Frankford Avenue, my task here would have been just a bit more difficult...read on, you might come to see what I mean by that.
At Devil's Den, we ran into a healthy dosing of similarly-minded folks, including Dan from Left Hand, Megan from Duvel, Erin of Devil's Den (convenient, eh?), and Casey from across the river on the Jersey Side at Flying Fish. You know Casey's gonna be a big part of the story later on, right? Just wait for it.
Believe it or not, yes, this was finally our first visit to Devil's Den. No, not a Philly Beer Week event (of the many they hosted) or any other of the regularly scheduled events that they host throughout the year have found me in a barseat at this tastefully appointed South Philly restaurant and watering hole, formerly Felicia's.
I think I'll save a "formal" review for another time. This visit was about the sour beer festival ("Pucker Up!") that they were having (and continues all week with new beers being introduced every day) and hanging out with some good beer volk. We did nosh on some pulled pork and burger, both well done with some nice fries on the side. Megan's platter of quail, greens, and mashed potatoes was also a smartly crafted dish.
But, then...oh yes, then...we wandered across into Northeast Philly. While Mike Scotese (Scoats), Phil ("intern") had been celebrating 13 years with 13 events in 13 hours, it became quite clear quite early in our visit that a fair number of others had joined in on the Grey Lodge party bus right from the get-go back in the hours when lunch is typically served. Uh, let's just say it was quite the scene of revelers doing their reveling and perhaps I'll leave it at that.
It's a bit difficult to put in to words the scale and the efforts of the various events that went off like clockwork (believe it or not) at the top of each hour...well, except for Mr. Johnson from Tröegs who got a bit pre-empted by the band until 10:20.
Let's see if I can recap what we saw: Mr. Kehoe from Yards (at the tailend of his hour just before he sped away safely from the debauchery he left behind); Ms. Woods from Sly Fox (easter egg prize giveaways and chicken wings that I'm still trying to track down); Mr. Johnson of Tröegs fame (ah, what can we say about Nick that his reputation which always precedes him hasn't already said? good times, mate); and finally last but certainly not least Mr. Hughes from Flying Fish (the pictures below will tell you everything you need to know).
For the sake of getting this all out there for you to see what you may have missed, I'm going to forego any other flowery descriptions to set up the pictures. I'm sure you're all relieved. You're only here for the pictures anyway, right? Just so you know, there were many, many pictures to wade through to depict for you here the good times that went down this weekend in Northeast Philly at Grey Lodge. Alone, the 4 hours that I was there for was one big photo op after another. The blood, the tears, but certainly the sweat people...just so you know...it's all for you ;-)
Alright, let's get some captions on these and move along...oh, er, and maybe I should say one last time a big congratulations to Scoats for continuing to do what he does so well for, getting to be, so long. Cheers!
(Scoats and Suzy get the 9 o'clock hour kicked off...has Scoats seen enough yet?)
(Any guesses who rode to the Anniversary Party? You might want to zoom in on the water bottle for your first hint)
(The band, Blue Bizness, played on for quite a few hours...hey they're not far in Berwyn from my home)
(A surreptitious picture of this guy, Steve, who always seems to looking at the camera or shooting from behind it. If you've ever seen him in action, you know how difficult surreptitious can be with him)
Here I thought I had some exclusive material sent along to me from Mr. Scoats of Grey Lodge Pub in Philadelphia. Then, the ever-intrepid Mr. Curtin hit 'post' and I realized I was just another name in the 'to' field.
Ah, but wait. Then the originally-inconspicuous benefits of having an intern become clear to me when Scoats' sidekick/intern, Phil, dropped a couple of extra pictures in my inbox to share with you all.
I'm not sure that I can really put adequate words around what Scoats and his crew are doing on Frankford Avenue. It's quite the (typical) show of good times, good music, and good food and beverage that they've got planned for August 15th....raised to the power of 13.
Thirteen years deserves a little something special, so instead of me spilling it on my pages here, go over to Grey Lodge's website and check it out for yourself. 13 events in 13 hours is what they're saying...pie oh my. 11pm sounds like the capper to a crazy day. yes, pie oh my.
June 2008 Firkinteenth Details
updated as of 11 June 2008
* tapping begins at noon.
* Number of firkins is still TBA.
* 7 firkins will be pouring at any time (except when we get down to less than 7), tapping a new one as one kicks. The order of the casks will be random, but hey there should be no stinkers in the line-up.
* Due to the huge amont of cask ale we will have, we will be doing limited growler fills, most likely after 9pm and during that lag period (usually between 3pm and 4pm) where the first seven are hanging on a little too long and people start to get antsy.
* If we get too full, there will be a line outside, so please dress lightly and be patient. We will do our best to let as many people in as safely and quickly as we can.
Current Cask List (likely to change, it always does):
* Appalachian Hoppy Trails IPA
* Arcadia Hopmouth IPA
* Bells Two Hearted IPA
* Clipper City TBA
* Dock Street Satellite Stout
* Dock Street Rye IPA
* Flying Dog Snake Dog IPA
* Flying Fish Hopfish, dry hopped with Simcoe, Amarillo, and Chinook.
* General Lafayette Wayside Summer Ale
* Iron Hill (North Wales) Ironbound APA. "We'll dry hop it with something cool....."
* Iron Hill (West Chester) Scottish Ale. 3.6% abv
* Ithaca Flower Power IPA (pin)
* Ithaca Oaked Nut Brown (pin)
* Lancaster Amish Four Grain
* Legacy Dear Abbey Dubbel
* Nodding Head IPA
* Philadelphia Special Blend
* Porterhouse Weizen Bock or Hoppy Lager
* River Horse Special Ale, easy drinking British style amber ale, 4.5% abv
* Sly Fox Standard Ale
* Stoudt's Black Eye PA
* Troegs Sh#tless Hopback. Nick says he is going to dry-hop the sh#t out of it.
* Victory Hop Wallop
* Weyerbacher Hops Infusion
* Weyerbacher Old Heathen
