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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A Weekend in the Life of Philly Beer, Part 2

23 pictures in a single post may be a record around here. Perhaps I should have put them up over in Picasa where I normally throw up large batches of pictures. But, I figured with the heat, I didn't want to over-exert you guys more than you needed to be. No need to be breaking a sweat around here, right?! (another hot one in Philly) In Part 1 of this mini-series, I mentioned how my own personal weekend began with a killer Friday night of beer, cheese, and good neighbors that took us well into the late night/early morning. No way I'd be up at 7am making coffee and watching Le Tour, now is there? After way too many years of being "programmed" to wake with the roosters (particularly during my teen years of working summers on my uncle's dairy farm and getting up before the roosters...but, that is an entirely different story for yet another day), it just comes naturally. But, awoke I did...watched another thrilling Stage did I....drank down a couple of good cups of coffee before getting ready to head out the door for brunch at Memphis Taproom and shopping at their Handmade Market. Actually, the shopping was more for Patty, but I enjoy browsing...at least for a little bit. And, then I get hungry, thirsty, and cranky. Perfect entry point for Memphis Taproom, don't you think? Memphis Taproom - With summertime Shore traffic, getting in and out of the City on a Saturday can sometime be more difficult and frustrating than during a weekday rush hour. This was the case as we attempted to head in to the Port Fishington home (Port Richmond, Fishtown, and Kensington as they like to say) of Memphis Taproom. I've lost track, but it may have been the first time this calendar yeat that we've stopped in there. With the Handmade Market being held in the neighboring lot and along the sidewalks, it was a great excuse to make the trip for some Saturday morning Brunch. (Memphis Taproom and their annual Handmade Market overtakes the side property and spills on to the nearby sidewalks) If I took a wild guess and said there were 30 vendors of artwork, jewelry, clothing, and whatnot I probably wouldn't be too far off. This seems to be a nicely coordinated event that's gone over well in the neighborhood and it could probably make sense to do this as often as quarterly. (dog days, and puppy days too for that matter, of summer at Memphis Taproom in Philly's "port fishington") Something else 'nice' about this visit was the opportunity to see both husband and wife of the Brendan and Leigh ownership team at the same place and at the same time. Er, strike that. They were at the same address, but never sat down actually together to prove that they were, in fact, at the same place at the same time!...ah, the life of a mini-empire ownership team with a third wheel in the baby carrier--no rest! (Memphis Taproom supports The Session Beer Project) This turned out to be the perfect first stop of our day. Kibitzing with Leigh, scarfing down breakfast (oops, "Breffis" I should say, right?) kielbasa, eggs, scrapple, potatoes, and "bruncheros", and chased by a very nice cask-conditioned Wells Bombadier Bitter (a perfectly acceptable first beer of the day after a long night of beer the night prior), a Sly Fox Collaboration Brotherly Suds, and a Rodenbach Grand Cru. Yeah, this was going to be a good day. Oh yeah, and a surprise appearance by Mike Fava (brewer, Nodding Head) extended our stay a bit too. Always nice to see these guys away from their place of employment. Devil's Den - Since the drive took almost twice as long as it should have to get to Memphis Taproom and we sauntered around the Handmade Market and chatted a little too leisurely, something was going to have to give in our original plans for bopping around the City on this particular Saturday. It was going to be Devil's Den. Since there was nothing particularly "special" going on at Devil's Den, I felt comfortable giving them the bump. They do, however, have an ongoing contest during the Tour de France, but from the way I understood, it is simply a signup for a giveaway and a few select specials available at all times. Hopefully, can get back there before next Sunday....maybe Brunch with the last day of Le Tour. The Institute - So, at the risk of trying to squeeze too much in, we dropped Devil's Den and headed to The Institute where Charlie and Heather were throwing a provocatively titled event, "Bite Me." I thought it might be a good opportunity to finally dip my palate into The Bruery's Coton. Taking the weather, the driving, and the rest of my day into account, I thought better of this 14.5% ABV beer...And, remembered that the Hulmeville Inn would be serving same the following day. Instead, it was one Founders Red's Rye for the lady, and one Jolly Pumpkin Calabaza Blanca for me. (Waiting for The Institute to open, we noticed something across the street that we hadn't before) This was a short visit, but a worthy one since it'd been a while since I've last stopped in to The Institute. Was nice to see another ownership duo both onsite that we could casually chat with during our visit. We made the ride back out the Schuylkill Expressway, where the Shore traffic headed home from its week at the Shore was now picking up. Still not as bad as all of the new Shore traffic heading down in the morning. (just another solid 'A' taplist at The Institute's "Bite Me" event) Teresa's Next Door - Here was the cornerstone event of Saturday...one that had missed a lot of people's radars. But, logic says that this was not necessarily a bad thing. Of course, TND advertises their events...but, some of them more so than others. This one, called "PBW Recap" was listed, of course, on The Beer Yard's and The Brew Lounge's calendar of events. But, it had missed BeerAdvocate's and Rate Beer's. What that meant was a comfortable crowd in TND's long, narrow space and a lot of beer that was still on their draft list as of yesterday....including all 4 from the Russian River Consecration Vertical. (how many Consecration Verticals do you think have been spotted outside of Santa Rosa) Yes, the Consecration Vertical. If you didn't know, now you do. I haven't done any scientific research, but I wondered out loud how many times this type of event has happened outside of Northern California, even outside of Santa Rosa. What's a Consecration Vertical, you may ask? Take 4 draft versions from 4 batches of Consecration and serve them on tap at the same time for folks to sample and attempt to discern differences between them to see how well, or not, they age. This rare event had one each from April '09, September '09, February '10, and June '10 batches. How do you ignore Russian River's Supplication?....Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp Exporter?....Pennichuck's Pozharnik?....Cantillon's Cuvee St. Gilloise (the renamed Cuvee des Champions)?....Charlie & Ken's Imperial Bock?....Allagash's Black out of the firkin?....Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout?....well, it's easy when you're staring at all of the beers on the board at once. Unless you have a driver and an endless thirst for palate-busting beers. Like I said, good thing that many of these are still available as of today. Go check 'em out for yourself. The day finished itself out with neighborhood picnicking and then Late night swimming with Lord Chesterfield. Well, I should say drinking cans of Lord Chesterfield ale and swimming. There, that sounded better! Hulmeville Inn - Sunday brought around what grew by the minutes/hours into one heck of a beer event that on the surface to many may not have sounded like much. "Philly Beer Geek Day" is what they called it and it celebrated their own Steve Hawk and his victory as 2010's Philly Beer Geek. (The Hulmeville Inn's tribute tap list for Philly Beer Geek 2010, Steve Hawk) If you made the effort to head out to Hulmeville Inn on Sunday as Patty and I did, you know that this turned into something pretty special. Something that I was saying looked more worthy of a Philly Beer Week event than did many "events" that were on the PBW schedule this year. More people, more special beers, more cameras documenting the event, more beer dignitaries, more of the beer geekerie. And, free food! Burgers and hot dogs off the grill, salads and beans, and a tribute cake emblazoned with Steve's image. Everything you'd want in a mid-July beer geek picnic. This was only my second visit to the Hulmeville Inn, but I can see that something pretty special has happened here over the past couple of years as they have taken on a much more decidedly craft beer destination status. Beer events occur here with regularity, brewers show up for them, they have access to very special beer, and they treat their customers well. So well, in fact, that it's very obvious how tight-knit of a customer base they really do have. As with other bars that are so integrally wrapped into the fabric of its community, there's a sense of loyalty amongst customers and between them and the staff. After all, Steve Hawk is but one resident beer geek at the Hulmeville Inn. They sponsored him, he won, and they threw him a celebratory party like none other. Oh and one more thing: when they learned of Lew Bryson's father's passing, they took the proceeds from that day's sales of the Sierra Nevada Exporter beer that he helped design during Beer Camp plus additional contributions from a "passing of the hat" and donated it ($800-ish is what I recall hearing) to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network foundation. Not convinced that they're part of "the scene" yet? According to their online "keg counter", in 2009 they kicked 300 kegs. YTD 2010? They are at 315. Something's happening here, and the something seems pretty damned good. Even with the tobacco smoke that's still allowed to float free in the bar's air, if I lived anywhere in lower Bucks County, this very well could be "my local." See more Hulmeville-related pictures farther below. Wegmans - The opening of Wegmans in the western suburbs of Philadelphia is no longer cause for great curiosity or wonder as it was, say, five years ago or so when the Downingtown location opened. I stop in at that one on average of 2-3 times a week for lunch, groceries, beer, etc. But, as many of you have heard me say before, the selfish allure for me is that I can walk 0.5815 miles from my front door to the new Wegmans of Malvern's front door. This, as you can imagine, will be quite convenient. With the attached pub and one of the largest grocery store beer selections around, you can imagine my average Wegmans visits per week will likely go up. (and now introducing...a Wegmans within walking distance of my house!) In this case, we only stopped for 15 minutes or so on the way home from the Hulmeville Inn to see how things were going. It was crowded, but not annoyingly so. I picked out a 6-pack of Philadelphia Brewing's Fleur de Lehigh ($8.99), Rogue's Chatoe First Growth Dirtoir ($5.49), and Brooklyn's Local 1 ($8.99). Oh yeah, and a gallon of milk and some half-and-half. We said our goodbyes and promised to return soon :) And, thus ended a perfect example of a weekend full of beer events that is not only typical around these Philly parts, but when summed up over the 52 weeks of the year continue to make Philadelphia one of the best beer drinking city regions of the world. It was quite a sneaky one...one that I would have never anticipated to have included so many great people, great bars, and so many great beers of the Philadelphia region, but sometimes those that are least planned turn out to be some of the best. More pictures from the Philly Beer Geek Celebration at the Hulmeville Inn (Chaz, no last name required) (Steve Lyford and Christine Gummper, kindred peripatetic beer geeks) (Bryan Kolesar, The Brew Lounge (where you're at now!) and Carolyn Smagalski, Bella Online with a new bottle of Dogfish Heads Squall IPA...bottle conditioned, and dry-hopped 90 Minute IPA) (Steve Hawk's Philly Beer Geek title came partially thanks to Carolyn Smagalski, organizer and emcee, and yours truly Bryan Kolesar, a judge...but, really, he earned it and needed no one's help) (Steve Hawk, Philly Beer Geek, and another judge, Lew Bryson) (Steve Lyford has the camera turned on him for a change) (Lew Bryson, Mike Sodano, and Christine Gumpper...Mayor Mike apparently is saying "no pictures of the bathing beauty artwork hanging on the wall behind me!") (Cathy and Lew Bryson, enjoying a break from a very busy and emotional last couple of months) (Steve gets a little thirsty from time to time) (Steve Hawk thanks everyone for their support) (And, with pleasantries out of the way, Steve Hawk is off to work the crowd with the fundraising Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Exporter strapped to his back) (Mike Sodano welcomes the crowd and reminds them of the fundraiser) (Mike Sodano passing around the hat for Pancreatic Cancer Fundraising) (Carolyn Smagalski, Bella Online, and Steve Hawk, Philly Beer Geek 2010)

Where to watch the Tour de France and drink great beer? (other than my house)

I love the Tour de France. I believe it is one of the world's best annual sporting events. I won't get in to all the reasons why. Jeff Appletans, bicycling extraordinaire and craft beer lover, agrees. He noticed the weekly calendar that I put out a couple of days ago and the Tour de France-related entries on the calendar and wondered if there really weren't any more to add. Well, he has done a bit of suds and cycling sleuthing for us and gotten back to me with a short list of some pretty good beer bars in Philly and where they stand on the topic of showing the Tour. While it doesn't seem like anyone is opening early and showing it live in the morning hours, the way that they might for World Cup games, here are a few places in Philly where you can catch a pale ale with the pedal pulsing action replayed later in the day during normal bar hours. Absolutely... The Belgian Café St. Stephen's Green If the Phillies or World Cup Soccer isn't on, then you can likely catch the race at... Memphis Taproom Local 44 Resurrection Ale House Devil's Den Thanks, Jeff. How about any of you? Where are you watching the race? Do you know of any bars dedicated to tuning their TVs to the Tour de France? p.s. this reminds me of another question....anyone heading to West Chester and the Iron Hill Twilight Criterium tomorrow night?

The Story of the Year (to date) in Philadelphia

I take back what I said yesterday when I said that there was not much worthy chatter out there. Turns out most of us must have been enjoying the beautiful weather around the Philadelphia area. Since then, every one has settled back into their desk chairs (at home, or I'm presuming at work!!) and...

...our local ABC affiliate got in on the story during tonight's 6 o'clock newscast; though, I'm not so sure about the "cool and secured cellar" comment.

...Don Russell/Joe Sixpack has done some more of the investigative work that he's good at.

...Lew Bryson's blog about the inner- and never-workings of the PLCB and the associated posting on this topic has mushroomed to over 20 comments while...

...Jack Curtin's site seems to be the place to be heard. As of this afternoon, he's logged over 50 responses to his initial posting...including weigh-ins from Nancy Barton, Mark Haynie, Chris LaPierre, Leigh Maida, Steve Mashington, and Jeff Miller.

...and my posting from yesterday has accumulated a handful of quality comments.

...According to the Facebook event status for tonight's Exit 16 release party at McGillin's, it has been cancelled due to an abundance of caution.

The conversation is really rolling now; let's not let go of this. Unlike the evening news, I suspect that we'll be tracking this one for quite some time.

Shut up about your Pliny the Younger*

Well, Sunday morning is not as easy as I thought it might be here today. I'd caught wind of a still-unfolding story involving the city's Memphis Taproom, Local 44, and Resurrection Ale House beer bars at the beginning of this weekend. I thought "wow" at the time and wondered how big this might get.

I won't go as far as to say I saw this coming, but I saw something like this coming. Things have been relatively quiet, peaceful, and amicable for sometime now. It was only a matter of time as more consumers, retailers, wholesalers, and suppliers are vying for what they see as a piece of the lucrative pie that is non-industrial/macro beer.

Add to this gnawing feeling the growing awe and angst that I've felt around all of these ridiculously hyped beers...HopSlam, Pliny the Younger are just two beers that we could start the conversation with. Lest I sound like a hypocrite, if you read here closely enough you likely know that I have a case of Monk's Blood, of Nugget Nectar, a six-pack of HopSlam, and bottles of Consecration in my personal inventory. I like drinking the interesting stuff as much as anyone, but I will refuse to throw elbows for it...now, more than ever.

With all of this in mind, I'd been tossing around, for the past few weeks, the formulation of an article themed around the idea that the percentage of good guys (and ladies of course) in the work of "craft" beer has been dwindling. Not rapidly, mind you. And dwindling more at a glacial pace, and not the kind of global warming glacial pace, but I think you see what I mean. Don't get me wrong, there are still way, way more good guys at all levels of the business, but with more hands reaching for more money, something's bound to give.

From my first-hand (and sometimes first-and-a-half hand) experience and anecdotal evidence, Consumers want more beer...and the more rare, the more "exotic", the more we want it, right? From the other end, experienced talented Brewers/Suppliers and up-and-coming Brewers/Suppliers are battling to make beers that are the most interesting and demanded by the Consumers. And, they are making products that Consumers have never even dreamed they might want or like. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing.

But, in the frenzy to raise revenues and get their products out to and seen by an ever-widening and growing market of beer drinkers, Suppliers use Distributors to get their product to the Consumers. Wrapped around all of this is The Law. The Law written by legislators, overseen by an agency, and policed by a badge and gun. Most of whom I would challenge in their understanding, particularly, of the wide world of beer as we know it in regions like Philadelphia.

So how did this debacle at Memphis Taproom/Local 44/Resurrection Ale House get to this point? Only a few know 100% for certain. Some of the conjecture floating around attempts to center the discussion solely on Pliny the Younger and the inability for some to get it on their tap handles while the MT-44-RAH family of bars apparently have three. Fair? Unfair? I suppose that comes down to whether you like Brendan, Leigh, and what they are doing and have accomplished...or not.

And while I have a hard time getting my head around someone "ratting out" these folks for a keg or two of PtY, it may well have been the tipping point. Seriously? Would you risk your reputation on a $300 keg (or whatever PtY is costing bars nowadays)? Is the future of your bar really dependent upon getting a keg of PtY for a couple of hours? Is the hassle really worth it? I'm hearing more from folks on the retail end of things that the hassle of such things is getting less and less worth it....more on that to come.

What I'm increasingly more convinced of comes down to more of a conversation about envy. Jealousy of what these two have accomplished in a remarkable amount of time. (in case it's important to you, I should point out that I do not have a personal relationship with either Brendan or Leigh...simply a friendly professional one as a result of what I do here at The Brew Lounge.)

If you're the type of bar owner, though, that would do such a thing (and, yes, I'm going out on a limb without solid proof, that this was the anonymous tipster workings of a competing bar owner) then you fall into the category that I described earlier as a growing, albeit minority, people who do not have the best interests of the industry at heart. Are you not getting the beer geek cred/hype that you think you deserve? Then, I'd venture to suggest that you're not doing your job year-round to earn this. Getting a keg of PtY does not earn you a year-round reputation as a destination beer geek bar. And, do you really want the beer geeks? You know they can't sustain you year-round, right? You want a solid, diverse crowd. Once again, to risk completely alienating the beer geek crowd that you think you may want over a keg of PtY seems utterly foolish. That's why I'll continue to bring this back to a more personal and jealous angle of how/why this story is continuing to unfold.

Oh, The Law, in this case? Ha, I barely touched on their involvement in this. But, our friend Lew Bryson has done an admirable job of covering this area for quite some time now and has a well-construed synopsis of what has transpired this past week. Go and read it; it beats the heck of what I'm writing here.

The only two cents I would add on this topic, since I'm not sure it has been said letter for letter, is that before the PLCB and The Law go attempting to clean other's houses, they better make damn well sure that their's is first in order. That may be some interpretation of a parable, I'm not sure.

My point there is that I have never put 100% faith in what so many will adamantly point to as the website source for licensed brand registration in Pennsylvania. Is it what retailers and distributors should be able to point to with faith that the list is accurate?...sure! Even though there's a date at the top of the webpage, I've never put confidence that the fingers that type the entries on the list are getting it right on every line of roughly 3000 beers. Cynical? Perhaps. Reality in today's culture of less-than-concerned-with-100%-accuracy where all kids get a prize? Maybe.

From a Retailer's point-of-view, doing their homework, I believe, comes down to taking the PLCB's word (on their website) for what is registered and what is not. But, more importantly, working with the Distributor whose role it is to honor contracts as the prudent middleman between suppliers and retailers? At some point, retailers have to, I believe, fall back on what should be the distributor expertise in brand management for their market. Naive? Perhaps.

And, from the Supplier's perspective, it may sound like a lot to ask, particularly for smaller operations, but I firmly believe that breweries have to take responsibility for where their product winds up. I don't necessarily mean each retail account and the gray and black markets. Rather, I mean on a state-to-state, distributor-by-distributor, market-by-market basis. I believe that, once again as the market and brand "expert", the Distributors need to fill their role responsibly, but the brewery/Supplier needs to understand the State, its laws, etc. related to where their beer is sold. Thoroughly...inside and out. Sorry, it's just too important to neglect.

Finally, I urge you to become better versed in the distribution of alcohol. Don't take what I spill out here as anything close to gospel. I don't have the right answers and I surely have a lot to learn of my own. Though, I've yet to come across anyone who has all of the right answers and can speak definitively on these laws and the enforcement of them. There is way too much rumor-mongering and here-say taking place without much substantiation. This story is a complex one and one that deserves to be dealt with in fact and not supposition and half-truths.

Breathe....I said to myself that I would keep this to just a few paragraphs, but I had a difficult time sleeping last night and a lot becomes more clear during sleepless nights.

Agree? Disagree? I'm sure there are (and I have already been engaged in deep, lengthy, interesting, and thought-provoking discussions at Dock Street and TJs yesterday) many flavors of varied opinions on multiple sides of this complex story.

I don't know where this is all going, as I am surely no expert on the intricacies of beer distribution laws and politics. But, one can only wonder what this may portend for Philly Beer Week.

Oh, and maybe now's a good time to remind all to DRINK LOCAL...it's a bit less complicated.

* The title of this posting is loosely inspired by the well-formed title of a well-written blog: Shut Up About Barclay Perkins and can be construed in a few different ways as to what I really mean by it. And you could stand to be correct in each way.

Publicans of the Year coming soon to Resurrection Ale House

Okay, so I walk into Local 44 yesterday to watch Stage 1 of this year's Tour de France (you do know, right, that these are seriously some of the world's most fit athletes, right? and that it's a team sport, right? and there are spectacular crashes, right? so why don't more people care?....eh, never mind...) Okay, so as I was saying, Brendan and Ashley opened the shop yesterday morning. After the most pleasant 27 minute ride down the Schuylkill Expressway (er, yeah, how many times are those words strung together in a sentence?!), I found myself as the first person at the bar. I also found myself congratulating Brendan on his (and Leigh's) announcement of a third edition to their growing Philly beer family. Resurrection Ale House is what it will be called...Yello'bar in Grays Ferry is the now-shuttered business in the location where it will be come the fall of '09. Corner of Grays Ferry Ave. and Catherine Street to be exact. An underserved area if I ever saw one. It's been mentioned everywhere else, (yup, and here too) so I suppose I'm a little late to the game. But, I found myself saying to Brendan that even if they did nothing else this year, I'd put them up for Publicans of the Year. Did I find out anything else new? Well, maybe, but things I can't tell. Brendan did mention that there will be 12 taps and 50 bottles, which does seem to substantiate comments you've read across those other links from above about how this third place of theirs will have more of a food-centric approach. Then, I get home to do my rounds on the BeerNet and I find Kindly Mr. Curtin has already bestowed upon them the very same distinction. Ah, there are those big bucks at work again. Ah well, I suppose that we really can't pile too many accolades upon Brendan and Leigh. After all, they in fact are very, very good at what they do. Where other places fail at doing trendy things or half-baked things, these two and their staffs do some very good things in a very consistently well manner. Congrats and continued success to Brendan and Leigh, the staffs at Memphis Taproom, Local 44, and soon-to-be Resurrection Ale House. And, if you haven't yet been to the former two, uh...get going...now. You've missed out on some of the best local pub culture that Philly has to offer. Oh, and by the way, the big draw yesterday seemed to be not only the Tour, but the keg of Racer X that put up on tap as well (the XP from Bear Republic on cask was also quite lovely). If you hanker for that sort of thing, fret not, another keg of Racer X will go on tap July 26th, the last day of the Tour de France when it heads down the Champs-Élysées in Paris, France. But, don't wait until then to check out one of the world's finest sporting events.

Vintage Beer + Breweriana Swap Meet at Memphis Taproom: 3/15/2009

The creative events. These will be one of Philly Beer Week's strengths in its sophomore go round. When it comes to creativity, Brendan and Leigh at Memphis Taproom (and, of course, Local 44 as well) lead the charge. Anyone can do a Meet & Greet...and they're fine as a chance to drink some beer and chat with a brewer that you admire. There are close to 50 of them during this year's PBW. There are some physical activities (shameless plug), a Partly Sunny in Philadelphia promotion, a dog (PAWS) event, and a cheesesteak contest. But, this event at the Memphis Taproom gets to a different part of the industry that I'm guessing counts many more members than most would believe. Collectors. Every industry has them, and the brewing industry is no different. Brewing equipment, books, labels, advertisements, caps, and bottles are some of the more commonly collected items. Memphis Taproom is looking for as many dealers/sellers to come out and show/sell/trade their wares (some may even contain "a liquid" as a bonus). And, hey, you don't have to be an actual, registered dealer...just someone with some beer stuff that you want to trade or sell. Here is the text from the Event's calendar listing... This is an open call for any vintage beer or breweriana collectors interested in setting up shop for the afternoon. The event will be held on Sunday March 15 from 12pm-3pm. This is a chance for seasoned collectors to buy/sell/swap treasures and an opportunity for the rest of us to try to get a hold of rare or never seen beer and beer-related stuff. There is no fee to join in, but space is somewhat limited, contact leigh@memphistaproom.com to reserve your place. (Act fast!)

Looking 2009 squarely in the face and saying Bring It On

A new joint (sponsored by the fine folks at Memphis Taproom means that this should be a very good thing) opening on New Year's Day at 5pm could have us jumping off the train home from NYC and heading into West Philly. Local 44 is the name and the intersection of 44th and Spruce is the location. Another new place focused on all things craft, but much farther west looks to be opening on December 29th. Limerick, PA is the place, Craft Ale House is the name and portends great things as well. And, finally, Teresa's Next Door may finally start pulling in some business now that they have a website. All the anguish from those who think an establishment can't thrive today without a website take note. And, I'll stop publishing tap lists for them, since they now appear to be doing it regularly. Who said Decembers are slow?

Who says beer is expensive?

Beer & Rising Prices? Not at these two local joints in and around Philly. First up is Capone's on Germantown Pike near Norristown, PA. This Thursday the 11th, the bar is pouring free bottled beer.....for three hours. Think of this as a brewery sampling night, but at a bar where they normally sell beer. Well, they'll still be selling full glasses of draft beer, but you catch my drift I believe. Sounds crazy, doesn't it? Well, wait until you hear the lineup. Sly Fox Christmas, Dupont Avec les Bons Voeux, Scaldis Noel, Chimay (Cinq Cents, Première, and Grand Réserve), Kasteel (Tripel and Rouge), Gulden Draak, Piraat, Corsendonk Brown, Ommegang Abbey, Allagash Dubbel, Van Steenberg Flanders, Lindemans (Framboise, Kriek, Pêche, Pomme, and Cuvée René). Then, to keep the crazy theme going, head over to Memphis Taproom on Christmas Eve's Eve. That's right, December 23rd, the night before Christmas Eve. From 4pm 'til closing, the bartenders will be pouring every beer remaining on the draft list for $3 per glass. This is to kick the kegs and make room for all of the phenomenal beers coming on line for their Boxing Day Celebration on the Day after Christmas, December 26th. If you want to see what's on tap currently at Memphis, head over here. So how about the tap list for Boxing Day? Some of the best seasonally-appropriate beers around will begin pouring at 8 (EIGHT!) in the morning, that's 0800 folks. Shake off those sugar plums and check it out. Brouwerij Het Anker Gouden Carolus Noel, Brasserie DuPont Avec Les Bon Voeux, Corsendonk Christmas Ale, Tröegs Mad Elf Ale, Sly Fox Christmas Ale, St. Bernardus Christmas Ale, Harviestoun’s Old Engine Oil, Young’s Double Chocolate Stout, La Rullés Noël Du Coeur, N'Ice Chouffe, Great Divide Hibernation Ale, Maredsous 6, Taras Boulba, Mahr's Christmas Bock, Weissenohe Monk’s Christmas Ale, Brasserie Ellezelloise Hercule Stout, Victory Old Horizontal ’06...and a firkin of Harvey’s Christmas Ale. And, who knows, if there's some empty room already on 12/23, you might even see one or more of these go on line early. Never can tell... Indeed, 'Tis the Season for gift giving. Cheers!

Memphis Taproom by way of Pittsburgh

For those of you in the same boat as me, not able to make it to Memphis tonight to appreciate the 'Burgher meister offerings, check out this fairly recent video of Brendan, Jesse, and the crew at Memphis Taproom.

I'll instead need to bask in the afterglow of my fun weekend in da 'Burgh with Penn Brewing, Primanti Bros., and East End. I'll have more to show 'n' tell soon about East End Brewing. If you don't know of them yet, make a note. These are the new guys to the Pittsburgh brewing scene (compared to, say, Penn) and making quite a splash of it over the past few years. Great stuff.

Come to think of it, how did tonight become such an eventful night in Philly? Well, I can't make Pistolas either; have fun where ever you may roam tonight. I'm going for a run.

Another Black Bavarian coming soon

Euro Cup 2008 is coming to a close this coming Sunday, 6/29. That can only mean one thing at Memphis Taproom...another bar-top firkin of Black Bavarian from Sprecher. If you didn't know, this is a very good thing. Hm, could there be a stop there on my way home from Pittsburgh?

This was supposed to be a Quiet Weekend

Stick with me here, this is gonna be another long one packing in a lot of weekend goodness. Otherwise, you'd be hearing tales from this weekend 'til the dawn of the next decade. We'll get through this here together.

All you've heard about, if you're following the local beer calendar here in Philly, was how crazy this weekend was going to be. Forget about the Belmont Stakes and the Bike Race. Though both great excuses to drink great beer, there were plenty of other things from City to Suburbs and from free to expensive to take in for great beer events.

I suppose the (beer) weekend for me actually began on Thursday night...or Tuesday or Wednesday in New York, take your pick. But, I've already told you about the NYC excursion, so let's say for sake of argument that the weekend started on Thursday. In Phoenixville, to be exact.










Of the many characters I ran into this weekend, one of the most ambitious beer bloggers of late has been beer aficionado, (Dr) Joel of GrainBill.BlogSpot.com. Along with other plans which he will reveal to us sometime in the near future, he is embarking upon the Bridge Street Tastings series. His concept is to pair local retailers with "related" beers (based on each business type, or model) and doing a tasting for the customers of the retailer. This first installment was an attempt at bringing organic beers into Earthmart, an ethically-responsible and eco-friendly store in Phoenixville. Perfect match, well done beers. Well done sir.

I've had a couple Wolaver's and Peak Organic here and there in the past but, to be quite honest, never had given a whole lot of thought to them. On this night, the Brown Ale from each brewery stood out on my palate as the best of the night. Each brewery was presenting 3 beers (Brown, Amber, & Pale from Peak Organic and IPA, Brown, and Pale Ale from Wolavers) while Tom Larochelle (regional sales guy for Peak Organic) and Joel were there to discuss the merits of each.

Speaking of ambitious and hard working, Don Russell and Nick Johnson ain't schlepping through the suds either. Don's still out on book tour and on Friday night brought some books to sign and his flexible wife Theresa (easy savages! I'm referring to her recently opened yoga practice) to the Beer Yard in Wayne, PA.










Nick Johnson from Tröegs was there pouring Troegenator from their new bomber sized bottles along with a handful of other Tröegs staples. Cases were flying off Matt's shelves left and right (did I catch the number as being, 31?) with souvenir glassware included. Nick also provided homemade potato salad and hamburgers from Tröegs-spent-grain-fed cattle from a local Harrisburg farm. Brother Ryan was manning the grill and serving up the perfect accompaniment for the Troeganator and a particular barleywine Scratch beer (#4?). Well done, also, good sirs.

Then, it was on to Iron Hill in West Chester to check out their Ring of Fire porter. Out of all of the local beer calendars, mine included, this event seemed to miss the radar. Good thing I got a text message from a certain lass to suggest meeting up. Below this paragraph was where the first published lass and lance picture (to my knowledge) was due to be found. That is, until my camera decided to go the way of her last camera. Maybe the publicity wasn't meant to be. I did get a curious look when I asked if the picture was permitted for Brew Lounge use. Anywho, it seems as if my camera is happy to still take some decent flash-less outdoor pictures, but the flash-assisted exposures are no longer reliable.

Back to the topic at hand. Accompanying the release of this fiery porter was the way-excellent local Johnny Cash cover band, David Stone & The Johnny Cash Experience. If we had planned our evening more carefully, we may have arrived later and stayed later. But, this was a weekend with a lot of non-beer stuff to do (I know, hard to believe, given the content of this log) and we were intent on sticking to our vow to "keep it under control."


The Ring of Fire porter comes in at 5.4% ABV and is extremely drinkable, even with the mild heat that you feel in the finish of the beer. But, up front and throughout the drink, the chocolate roastiness and slight bitterness are pronounced. I'll save more tasting notes for when I officially review a bottle that I brought home with me, courtesy of brewing/blending master Chris LaPierre.

We stopped out front and purchased a few more bottles for gifts and grabbed a growler of Rye IPA. I'm finishing the last glass of said beer as I type this Sunday evening. IPA for sure, galena hops make it an interesting drink. But, rye? Not getting that so much under the hop onslaught. Pleasurable, nonetheless. Fitting that we left to Folsom Prison Blues as we moved a little farther down the line.

After a morning run, yard work, and household chores on Saturday we headed out for a graduation party in the Trevose area. From where we live, how else would you get there other than through Port Fishington? After all, when you get an e-mail saying that one of the State's best new beers received in 2008 (Black Bavarian from Sprecher in Wisconsin) was being cracked open and poured from the bartop at Memphis Taproom....well, you don't think twice. You zip down the Schuylkill Expressway and up Aramingo Avenue to a parking spot reserved for you directly out front of said joint.


Disappointed, we were not. Spanky (eh-hem, Brendan), Leigh, and Jessica graciously served up a Black Bavarian (even better from the cask than forced CO2), an Amber also from Sprecher, and a Maredsous 8 along with our Chicken Fried Chicken (I've always giggled at that name for some reason) and things could not have been more perfect. The air conditioning and fine tap list could have kept us there all afternoon into the evening but a graduation party with a Nittany Lion ice luge was beckoning.


Graduation party was enough to kill off our day. As much as we would have loved to swing by Grey Lodge (Fleur de Lehigh debut from PBC) or TJs (smoke-free Beer Advocate event), the day was without a doubt, OVER.

A lot of good housework accomplished on Sunday led us to reward ourselves with another quick trip (or "zipping on over," I believe is how I described it to Mr. Guyer) to Philly...this time to Grey Lodge after an e-mail from Scoats confirmed that the Fleur de Lehigh from Philadephia Brewing was still pouring from the night before. A nice crowd, apparently, but not enough to kill the keg (this was another last minute e-mail, so perhaps not surprising). Lucky us! A tomato pie along with this Belgian ale (with a lot of herbal goodness reportedly added...cardamom, ginger, lemongrass, rose hips, even rhubarb) worked better than expected.


As much as I wanted to go for a second one, it seemed like it was enough after one. I certainly got the cardamom and ginger, and it was probably the rhubarb that gave off some of the tartness. But the Rowhouse Red was on too and I couldn't pass up the chance to put back another of these goodies. The FBL isn't being bottled, so catch it while you can. We left some for you at Grey Lodge and it will be appearing at Memphis Taproom on Monday the 9th.

One more stop, believe it or not, was in store for us. On the way home from Grey Lodge, we made a stop at the Main Line Jazz Festival in Wayne....coincidentally (?!) the home of Teresa's Next Door....who just so happened to be celebrating their first year anniversary, with a mighty fine tap list as usual. All said, of course, with tongue firmly in cheek.












We arrived after the festival was over; that was sort of the point. Figured the crowds would have dissipated some by that point. A bowl of dirty mussels (blue cheese, bacon, and onions) and a bread board (prosciutto, sausage, cheese, and bread) along with a North Coast Pranqster, Allagash White, and Cantillon Saint Lamnivus helped bring the weekend to a perfect close. Then that Guyer guy came in to the picture, working the crowd and unwinding after a long weekend of his own.

Now, I need to get myself to Texas, where there'll be quite a few less beer options. To be sure, it's gonna be a busy week of work, so that's not such a bad thing after all. For now, I'm gonna revel in what was a great, great weekend of beer in Philadelphia and its rich region. It almost felt like a mini-Philly Beer Week!

Did you make it to the end of all of this? Really? Didja read every word? Well, if you did, I'll quiz you next time we see each other and maybe buy you a beer if I'm impressed.

Memphis Comes To Philly

The past week at the newly-minted Memphis Taproom in "Port Fishington" has seen quite the throughput of beer fans, writers, industry folk, and assorted other comers-by. I was in Dallas while opening night on Tuesday April 22nd was going down. According to Spanky, approximately 500 of the curious type to be exact. I can guarantee without being there that the scene at Memphis Taproom was 10x better than the beer scene in the entirety of the State that is Texas. More on that, though not much more as you could expect, later this week.

So, with that disappointment I arrived back into the Philly airport right around rush hour on Thursday evening. What's a beer guy such as myself to do when arriving into Philly at rush hour? Sit in traffic attempting to make it out to the western suburbs? Or, drive a few miles north (against traffic) into the fringes of north Philly? A quick stop off at Yards to check out their progress (pictures in a separate post) and then just a few minutes further north to Memphis Taproom (jump here for the map).


In a single word (you bet I can!): WOW! Brendan (aka Spanky) and crew at Memphis Taproom are continuing to reinforce one of Philly's strongest arguments for best beer city (where have we heard that before?) That is, some of the best beer bars and brew pubs can be found in the most unlikely of neighborhoods. See Dock Street, South Philly Tap Room, Grey Lodge, Johnny Brenda's, and so on.


I'll have more to say after Patty and I stop by there in the next couple of weeks for a full dinner experience. For the time being, I'll leave with you some easy advice. First, apply the same safe practice that you would anywhere, especially in the city. Leave nothing obvious sitting visible in your car to anyone passing by. It's not a dangerous neighborhood, but you want to be safe and practice common sense.

Inside, you'll be treated to reasonably priced food and beer. 10 beer taps and a coming-soon cask beer engine. And if the Black Bavarian is still on tap, go for it...it's really that good! A real down-to-earth excellent neighborhood beer bar without pretension. A flat screen TV behind the bar (muted) if you're into the local sports scene.


I can't wait to return. TheRealBeerFly has already returned. Game on, folks! 35 miles away, Ron's in Exton is up next. Different scene, same great beer! As always, more to come...