NYC Beer Trippin' to the Yankees (PT1): Rattle-N-Hum

So what does a die hard football fan from Pittsburgh who places the importance of baseball dead last on the list of the four major sports do when asked to go to a Yankees game? I go, of course. Sure my love of baseball died around the same time Barry Bonds took a jet out of Pittsburgh back in 92 but even I can't deny the excitement of the New York Yankees and their new ballpark. Now if this were a sports blog I'd go on nostalgically about my childhood love of the game, the great ballpark memorabilia or the Yankees walk-off victory but here it's about the beer.

The good beer in this Yankees journey started with a short walk form Penn Station down 33rd to Rattle-N-Hum. There is an Irish flag over the door but a closer look at the beer signs tell you this isn't your average Irish American pub. While taking a seat at the long bar, one quick look at the hand written draft board and immediately you know this place takes its craft beer serious. There are 40 beers on tap and another 4 on cask at a separate cask bar at the back of the room. The place has the classic warm, been-there-forever pub feel. Surprising since it opened only a little over a year ago. The dimly lit room is trimmed in dark wood and has enough craft beer swag on the ceiling and walls to put the fear of God into a Coors Light drinker. Visiting for the first time I kicked myself for not taking time to make it up during their huge cask event for the recent NYC Craft Beer Week. In honor of real ale I decided on a Clipper City Brewing Hang 10 Weizen Dopplebock accompanied by a side of IPA brined fries (double fried perfection).

I am a big fan of Weizenbock and Hang 10 (bottle) is one of my top three American versions of the style. Penn Brewing Weizen Bock and Victory Moonglow Weizen Bock top my list. This was my first experience with H10 on cask and it didn't disappoint.

The pour was deep amber with a thin head that quickly faded. Banana bread came to mind with the first sniff; a good bit of sweet malt, spice and yeast. The fruit effect really comes out in this beer; raisins, apples, banana and a malt sweetness followed by a slight sourness towards the end. This was a very good sipper. The alcohol is well hidden. The fact that it's 10% abv still amazes me. If I didn't have an entire night of activity in front of me I would of loved to explore the rest of the cask list.