Thursday is Beer Night

Thursdays rule when it comes to beer in Philly. You don't have to try very hard to find a promotion or an event on a Thursday night. Tonight Capone's has put together a great line up of 16 beers and is declaring it simply beer geek night. Anyone who has been to Capone's knows that Matt does a great job of getting hard to find brew. Capone's is one of the reasons I have been able to survive the move from the city to the burbs. Having this place close to home is a blessing. This is an all day event so drop in at anytime. The beer starts pouring at 11:30 and goes until close. Remember to check out the bottle shop before you call it a night.

Sly Fox IPA Project Cluster IPA
Lake Front IPA
Avery Ale To the Chief 102 IBU'S
Southern Tier PumKing
Brooklyn Grand Cru
Stoudts Dunkel Weizen
Magic Hat Odd Notion Sour Ale
Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald Porter
East End Monkey Boy
Church Brew Works Coconut Stout
Otto's Nittany Pale Ale
Weyerbacher Bravo "Limited Realease"
Roy Pitz's Watermelon Lager
BullFrog Busted Lawnmower " Saison w/Brettanomyce
Brasserie Goliath Tripel
Ayinger Brau-Weisse

I almost forgot. I checked out "I'll Have Another Stout", and Suzanne has info on tonight's Sly Fox Night at the Side Car Bar and Grille. Drink Like a Fox showcases some of Sly Fox's small batch beers, rauchbier, abby dubble and schwarzbier and is an 80's themed evening. It all starts at 5pm and goes until 2am.

The Mysterious Beer Weekend Awaits

My favorite new bar I love but can't get to often enough, Memphis Taproom, is having fun this Labor Day weekend with a little beer mystery. Brendan and crew are holding a Mystery Beer Weekend on the 29th, 30th and 31st. Thirty three beers will be tapped in three days. Three beers each of eleven styles will pour. The goal is taste them all and identify via a ballot what you are drinking. The person with the most correct beers named wins an incredible beer prize basket. Some clues will be given and all ballots must be turned in by 4pm on the 31st. This event could truly determine if you are beer wise. The mystery starts at 5pm on Friday.

This mystery event sounds great but unfortunately I wont be able to make it. However I will have a report on what is happening at the other end of the state. Hmmmm...a trip to Pittsburgh? Look out Fat Heads here I come.

Yet Another Island Journey

This last trek took us to an island closer to home. Kelleigh and I drove up to Old Field Long Island for an engagement party on Saturday. My original plan was to visit 1 brewery, 3 beer bars, 3 brew pubs and a meadery. A fairly hefty plan considering this wasn't the main reason for the trip. As it happens the best laid plans can go slightly awry.

Two bar stops I looked forward to were crossed off the list once we realized the traffic situation in NY on the weekend. I wanted to get into Brooklyn and check out Barcade and Spuyten Duyvil but time put the kibosh on that. All the more reason to do a Brooklyn only bar trip sometime in the near future. The third bar stop Croxley Ale House in Farmingdale also fell from the list as time continued to factor in. We worked our way through the masses and made it out on the island early enough to stop at Blue Point Brewing in Patchouge New York.

Blue Point Brewing Company

Blue Point Brewing is a production brewery, so no pub grub here. They offer their beers in a tasting room that would make any Dead Head feel right at home. The place has that laid back trippy, cool feel. Walking in you can grab a look at the brewing floor through a small window on the right. The bar fills most of the space on the left side of the room along with a small seating area, cases and a cooler filled with growlers and sixes. The other half of the room has tables, chairs and a couple couches. If you want to enjoy your beer in the Long Island sunshine a door leads to a small patio in the back. The most eye catching part of the room is the brick and tiled bar with scenes of monks, goblets and other beer oriented artistry. The two girls tending bar offered free 4oz sample pours of most of the 11 beers on draft. A few of the higher alcohol beers were a $1 to $3 to taste. Beers were also available by the pint. I worked my way through the beer list and the surprise standout for me was the Hoptical Illusion. I thought I would of been blown away by the stronger No Apologies DIPA or the Sour Cherry Imperial Stout but the ipa topped them both. This beer could almost be considered a session beer for ipa fans even though it comes in at over 6%. With a name like Hoptical Illusion I was surprised that the hops are more laid back and the malt comes forward. This beer is only slightly bitter with a light, bready, pine taste. Don't look to test your hop tolerance with this one it's an easy drinker. My only disappointment was they had run out of the Old Howling Bastard barleywine. The 750 bottles were for sale but I couldn't part with $17 just to try it for the first time.

Blue Point was the only stop we made on Saturday other than the engagement party which was a great time. CONGRATULATIONS DARA and ARI!!!!! The trip home provided more of an opportunity to get a feel for the variety of beer establishments on Long Island. The tale continues in the next post.

Island Trippin'

What is better than spending a wonderful weekend on a beautiful, exotic island? Probably nothing, even if that island is only a few miles to the north. Kelleigh and I are preparing for a quick trip up 95, to the L.I.E and onward to the northern shores of Long Island. OK, so exotic is stretching it a bit but Long Island is a beautiful destination. A personal commitment is taking us to New York but as always this beer trekker is preparing to sample the local brews along the way. I already have the perfect travel guide for this adventure, Lew Bryson's New York Breweries. I have done my research, created a game plan and the break down is, three breweries, one meadery and three beer bars. It will be interesting to see if we can squeeze all that into an already active weekend.

More to follow.

Is There Beer in Paradise

The final leg of our trip was a week stay in Maui. The funny thing was when we were trying to decide on where to spend our honeymoon I didn't go wild over the Hawaii idea. I am not a beach person. Growing up in Pittsburgh didn't allow for many weekend trips to the shore. To me Hawaii seemed geared more toward the sun worshiper and even though it is considered the ultimate destination by many it simply wasn't on my radar. Thanks to some great information provided by good friends who had been and the persistence of my wonderful wife Kelleigh my hazy view of Hawaii turned crystal clear. This part of our trip was beyond amazing. If you ever have the chance to go don't think twice, get on the plane. If this were a travel blog I would post every picture I took and write about our road adventures. Since this space is dedicated to beer I'll spare you the photo montage and beach stories. You will have to find serious vacation tales from somewhere else. The tranquil, tropical, warm pacific surroundings were wonderful but my concern was, how do I find a decent pint?

Yes there is beer in paradise but, I can't call it a beer paradise. I am sure that most people don't think of Hawaii as a great beer destination and neither do I but, it is possible to hunt down a good beer. My entire experience comes from staying on Maui. The macros are everywhere. Obviously there is no problem getting a BudMillerCoors or an import, Guinness, Becks or Corona. The hotel bars swim in them and the supermarket cold case isles have the standard cardboard cutouts of hot, young babes holding fizzy yellow six packs. You will find larger craft brewers, Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada and Anchor in some places. Just don't expect to find Russian River, Stone, Dogfish Head, Hair of the Dog, Port Brewing or anything too over the top. I never saw a place that came close to being considered a beer bar. The few craft breweries in Hawaii are all that keep Maui from turning into a beer wasteland. In all I had beers from four different breweries and made it to one brew pub. The most popular beers in Hawaii, by far, are from Kona Brewing Company and Mehana Brewing Company. Most of the bars and restaurants carried several of their labels. To my surprise I later found out that the bottled Kona beers weren't even made in Hawaii. They are brewed in Portland Oregon and distributed by A-B/InBev. My guess is it's more cost effective to brew on the mainland and ship them from there. Kona's draft beers are made in Hawaii at two brew pubs. So, if you decide to grab a six realize it's not coming from the islands. Keoki and Maui Brewing Company seemed to have a smaller distribution. During our stay we took the drive north to Lahaina and stopped by the Maui Brewing Company.

The brew pub is located in the corner of a small plaza just north of the touristy streets of Lahaina. The place was under construction so the curb appeal was a work in progress. The inside was also in mild disarray but the the bar was in full working order. The first thing I noticed was that they had a barrel aged beer, the Black Pearl. This was a pleasant surprise. The bartender suggested I try the CoCoNut Porter first since the Black Pearl was the coconut porter aged in rum barrels. The porter's taste is roasted coconut, dark chocolate with hints of coffee. The coconut also dominates the nose. Overall it was very smooth and drinkable. I liked this beer enough to smuggle some home in my checked luggage along with the rest of our Hawaiian goodies. The barrel aged version could of used some more time to mellow. The rum taste was very upfront and the alcohol created a slightly unbalanced beer. Maui Brewing is one of a few craft brewers who can beer instead of bottling. An idea I like more and more. Their three main beers, Coconut Porter, Big Swell IPA and Bikini Blonde Lager all come wrapped in aluminum. Maui Brewing definitely offered the most unique beers we tasted that week. As I enjoyed my beer I kept thinking what it must be like to be a brew master in Hawaii. After all every job sounds even better when you finish the details with, "I do it in Hawaii." If your a brewer, brewing beer in paradise seems like an interesting gig. Hawaii is an incredible experience and although it's not a beer destination finding a great pint is possible if you search the right places. The beauty of the situation is even a so so beer tastes a little bit better since your drinking it in paradise.

Should I Stay or Should I Go

This weekend's festival activity raises the question of whether to stay around town or to take the classic road trip. There are two beer festivals taking place this weekend. Beer Fest at the Ball Park sponsored by Mc Fadden's takes place at Citizens Bank Park in South Philadelphia and the State College Brew Expo happens at the Penn Stater Conference Center in State College PA.

If you decide to stay local the ball park event will feature around 20 breweries and a little competition between the beer guys. Representatives from each brewery will take part in a game of Keg-Ball where the object is to knock over a pyramid of beer kegs. The winning brewery gets bottle placement and is the featured craft beer at Mc Fadden's at Citizens Bank Park.

If you hit the road and head to central PA the Brew Expo offers approximately 30 breweries and distributors and two unique sessions. The afternoon session is a classic beer festival with tastings and a buffet included. Food is something more festivals should put on their ticket. This buffet is no chips and chicken fingers affair. Festival attendees will choose from a variety of food items including, Slow-roasted ginger soy pork loin, smashed red skinned potatoes with roasted garlic, artisan-baked breads and assorted cheeses, desserts and much more. The evening session leans towards the gourmet side. It is a Connoisseurs Session featuring different stations with gourmet food offerings paired with beers. Think a limited crowd of 400, white table clothes, entertainment, limited and specialty beers and a better opportunity to discuss everything beer with the representatives and brewers. A slight upscale twist on the typical beer fest.

So do you hang close to home or jump in the car and roll across the state? I leave that decision to you.

Thursday is Beer Night

I need to make this Thursday beer listing a regular posting. Yet again Thursday night kicks off a weekend of beer around Philly. In the city the Good Dog is tapping a firkin of Dock Street's Rye IPA tonight at 7:30. Stop in and taste real, fresh beer. Across town at Triumph Brewing get your fill of local music and beer. Starting at 5pm $10 gets you 10 acts and one beer. Besides Triumph's house beers look for Flying Fish and Sly Fox. Head to the burbs, specifically Norristown, to Capone's for a night of samples. Yes, a little free beer. Bob from the Brewers Guild will pour Allagash White, Abita Purple Haze, Great Divide Samauri and Rogue Hazelnut Brown. It all happens from 7:30-10pm.

San Fran Take Two

After a morning at Anchor Brewing Kelleigh and I headed to the center of the 60's counter culture movement The Haight-Ashbury district. Like most who consider themselves open minded, but were too young to experience the hippie movement we ventured to the Haight-Ashbury to explore the center of the 60's universe. The world has changed in 40 years and so has this little area of San Fran. The streets are now lined with shops that have commercialized the past and offer every tourist the opportunity to take a piece (peace) of it home. There were the hold overs from the 60's wandering the streets, along with twenty somethings wishing those good ole folk music, free lovin, pot smokin days would come back in full force. What I was searching for was a mind altering beer experience but unfortunately that's where we hit our first snag. Magnolia Gastropub and Brewery was down and out for business. They were in the middle of a big remodel and wouldn't open for another week. However all was not lost. The beauty of the situation was we were were less than a mile from the Toronado, one of the nations best beer bars.

The Toronado has been in business for 21 years and it feels like it. This place was not a cute gastropub or trendy beer spot, plain and simple it's a bar. The walls are covered with beer paraphernalia from over the years, shelves are filled with the appropriate glassware and tap handles line the wall behind the bar. The atmosphere is appropriately old. This is the way you want a classic bar to feel. I could of spent the entire day here trading stores with the locals and enjoying the liquid pleasures but Kelleigh and I still had an afternoon of city exploration ahead of us. With a tight schedule I had to limit myself to two beers. My hop freak side got the best of me so Pliny the Elder was the first pour followed by El Toro's Deuce. The shock was that both were only $4.50 a pint. I wonder if there is a way to transport this place back to Philadelphia? The time at the Toronodo ended all too quick and the honeymoon tour was back on the road.

The remainder of our time in San Francisco was spent doing all the standard tourist activities. We had fantastic meals, took in the night life, shopped and spent way too much cash. I did manage to get in two more beer stops. One evening we made our way to Gordon Biersch and during an afternoon we picked up a few bottles from City Beer Store. City Beer Store's selection was small but, as expected, they did have a nice line up of west coast beers along with a few beers on draft. Essentially it's a small beer bar in a bottle shop. Don't expect to see that combo in PA any time soon. Overall the west coast experience was incredible. Next stop, Hawaii.

Happy 08-08-08

This is a huge day around the world. August 8th, 2008 is the start of the Olympic Games, the start of preseason football for Philadelphia and Pittsburgh (Go Steelers!!) and in the beer world it's time for a new Vertical Epic from Stone Brewing. This year's Vertical Epic 08-08-08, the seventh in the series, is a Belgian style golden ale. The epic series started with 02-02-02 and each beer is designed to cellar until sometime after 12-12-12. After Dec 12th, 2012 the idea is to have a vertical tasting of the entire series. Each beer is unique and will continue to change through the years which will make for an interesting comparison after the release of the final beer in the series. However if you are a late comer to the epic idea or just can't wait Stone won't mind if you pop the cap on a few beers now and enjoy. Check out the STONE EPIC 08-08-08 link for more information.

Allagash, Heavy Seas and Triumph

Thursday is yet again the new Friday with three cool events happening tonight in the city. The South Philadelphia Tap Room has Rob Tod and 13 of his Allagash beers. The running time is 7-10pm. Jose Pistola's has Clipper City/Heavy Seas night. Finally Triumph Brewing in Old City is tapping a firkin of Framboise. Why wait until the weekend? Grab cab fare and make it a bar hopping adventure for good beer tonight.

Missed Trip to Memphis

For the second time I have missed the Pittsburgh Happy Hour at the Memphis Taproom. In fact I am writing this as it is happening. Again a small curve ball messed up my early evening plans. Unfortunately the life twist always hits whenever I want to go to the Taproom. I just hope they continue to roll out this event every first Tuesday of the month. We ex-Pittsburghers all need a good place to congregate, throw back a cold one and chat it up about the hometown. If I dont make the next happy hour my official Pittsburgh citizens card will be revoked.

I was going to post this with my story on the happy hour but I didn't want to wait another month. Kelleigh and I did make it to the restaurant a couple of weekends ago. She and I were in the area having work done on the car so we figured why not stop by for dinner and drinks. I don't like the term gastropub but the Memphis Taproom fits the definition. This corner bar feels like a cool neighborhood hangout that has been here forever. It was a Tuesday night but the place was jumping. Our timing was good because not long after we sat down all the tables in the dinning room were filled. The waitress quickly took our drink orders and I started with the Southern Tier IPA. The beer list isn't the largest but it does have good diversity and frequently rotates. It's heavy on craft beers with a nice nod going to the local brewers. This is also one of the few bars in Philadelphia where you can get Milwaukee Wisconsin's Sprecher beers on draft. Grab a Black Bavarian or Special Amber and you will understand why this brewery has such a great following. If you don't see a favorite on draft remember to check the bottle selection. There are several Belgians, Germans, big bottles from CA brewer Port Brewing/Lost Abbey and other micros on the list. With beer in hand and food in mind we quickly scanned the menu.

Being a Pittsburgh native I am very familiar with Polish grub. I couldn't resist the Port Richmond Platter. The Polish fare consisted of kielbasi, potato pancakes, sauerkraut and pierogies. After waiting longer than expected our meals were served unfortunately on the cool side. The food was only so, so. The potato filled pierogies and kielbasi were flavorful but the sauerkraut was almost nonexistent and the potato pancakes were a bit over cooked. The grilled chicken on Kelleigh's salad was also dry and slightly charred. The dinning room was packed so I'll attribute the lackluster meal to a busy night and a kitchen working it's way through newness. This is a place I hate to say anything bad about. We only had a couple of items off the menu so I can't speak for all the food. The other times I've stopped in it was just for drinks. The atmosphere was always friendly and owner Brendan Hartranft seemed very hands on bouncing from bar, to kitchen, to patrons. I know I'll be back for the beer and to mingle with my fellow Pittsburghers. I am sure hunger pangs will have me searching the menu. My only hope is, that the next time the food is as impressive as the beer.

Beer From the West

There is a little beer rumbling coming from the west. No not from California, but from 2 ½ hours west of Philadelphia, Chambersburg PA. Jesse Rotz and Ryan Richards are the owners/brewers of Roy Pitz Brewing Co in downtown Chambersburg and recently their beers have been flowing into Philly. On Thursday Capone’s Restaurant had a Summer Fest featuring Roy Pitz’s Watermelon Lager and White Horse Hefeweizen. Jesse and Ryan along with the owner and sales team from Stockertown Beverage were all on hand to support the new brews. I had a chance to talk with Jesse and he let me know that they wanted to make great beer that was innovative. The Watermelon Lager, done for the summer months, is a good example of that. It’s a crisp, clean lager with natural watermelon aroma and taste. The beer wasn't candy sweet, instead it had an under tone of watermelon. At Capone’s it was served with a wedge of watermelon on the rim that complimented the taste. Jesse also said that for the Fall they are brewing a Rauchbier. I heard from some one who has sampled it that it's a very approachable smoked beer, not meant to be over the top. Check out The Roy Pitz website to get more information on the brewery and up coming releases.