Younger, Elder & More @ Capone's

Capone's

Saturday February 27th, 11:00am

Nuff Said!

Im Feelin' Younger

I haven't been one of the lucky ones who has had the chance to taste the latest batch of liquid gold sent from Russian River. Just like Pliny the Elder, the rare Pliny the Younger has taken Philadelphia by storm and hop fanatics, BAers and craft beer lusters have gone to tracking down and consuming the Imperial Ale as soon as it pours. Pliny the Younger, Pliny the Elder, Consecration and other Russian River favorites are so sought after that most places putting them on draft make sure to spread the word, turning their tappings into events. Events, of late, that I've unfortunately missed

During the final Sunday of Philly Beer Week a brunch at Local 44 was a Russian River love fest. Pliny the Elder and Younger, Blind Pig IPA, Consecration, Damnation, and Salvation were all scheduled to pour. I was in Pittsburgh. Somehow I also managed let Younger sneak by at Memphis Taproom. It happened again last Saturday when TJ's got it's R.R. groove on along with some KBS from Founders. I spent the afternoon working. However at least I was able to catch some details about the day here. I am sure there are a couple more places I am forgetting but it's obvious I've dropped the ball more than once. Now with the weekend fast approaching I have my eyes set on Capone's for a bit of Younger on a Sunday morning. I won't miss it this time. I do have to admit that I am probably more interested in the Consecration (very appropriate for a Sunday) than the Younger. My sour urge is still dominating my hop side and I can't seem to get off the barrel aged beer high. Truly I'm just glad to have another chance at both.

So is it worth all the searching, running around and hop hype. Sure, Younger is a great beer. Is it the end all, be all of hops, water, malt and yeast? Probably not, there are just too many great beers of various styles for me to say one is the best (that also goes for Westy 12). Is Vinnie Cilurzo a brewing rock star? Yeah, who in the Brett Pack isn't? Will I get out of bed early Sunday, jump in the car, drive to Capone's and wait for Matt to open the doors? You know it. Don't laugh I know some of you will be right there with me in the parking lot, frothing at the mouth and staring at your watch until it's go time. Just embrace the hype and enjoy it along with the beer.

Capone's

Next Draft Beer promo: Will be Sunday March 29th. Open at 10am. Beers will be Pliny the Elder, Pliny the Younger, Consecration & more !

Devil's Den

1 Year Late Grand Opening. April 1st, 7:00pm. Pliny the Younger plus beers from Dogfish, Founders, Boulder and others.

Teresa's Next Door

Russian River Brunch. 6 R.R. on draft Blind Pig, Pliny Younger and Elder, Consecration, Damnation and Salvation. 11am April 5th.

Union Jacks on the Manatawny

Easter Hopfest April 11th, 1:00pm Younger and Elder plus about 13 other hop heavy beers.

Drafting Room

Hop Fest 5, April 25th, 12pm, Exton. Russian River is on the list. Younger, Elder or other ???

A Russian River Runs Through It

The Russian River continues to flow through Philly. This week there have been several Pliny and Blind Pig sightings.

Sidecar Bar & Grill: A very sweet voice on the phone let me know that as of 9/26 @ 4:27PM Pliny was still on but getting very low.

Memphis Taproom: They tapped Pliny on Wednesday and as of 9/26 @ 4:32PM it was still flowing along with Blind Pig.

TJ's Restaurant & Drinkery: Blind Pig will arrive on Saturday in time for the Oktoberfest celebration. Bryan at The Brew Lounge tossed that bit of info out earlier in the week.

Russian River Rules

If Pliny the Elder continues to appear on any more draft lists it will soon be like reporting who is carrying Yuengling Lager. OK that's a bit dramatic but anyone around Philadelphia who is seeking this Russian River favorite has had many chances to get a taste. The Russian River event at Monk's on Monday was great. The beer started pouring early in the day so by the time I arrived at 4:30 it wasn't long before some of the line up started to kick. It's not a mystery why; every beer order around me was for Russian River. The Pliny invasion moved back to the burbs to Teresa's Next Door and they also have Damnation on tap.

Also:

The Memphis Taproom has been pouring R.R's Blind Pig and are reporting they will have Pliny. Keep an eye on their draft list.

More Pliny, Oh Yeah!!!

Keeping up with this beer is almost a job. I nailed some, I missed some, I got tips and I got lucky but either way I have tried to let everyone know where this Russian River favorite is headed next. Searching the web as I always do on a Sunday night I stumbled across one of my favorite sites, the Beer Yard, and they are reporting that on Monday not only is Pliny on tap but also four other Russian River brews will flow at Monk's Cafe starting at 11:30 am. If you are lucky enough to be in the city think about hitting Monks for some mussels, pommes frites and a few glasses of Russian River's finest. If you can't make it in for a mid day round jump in before the Eagles and Cowboys clash on Monday Night Football. Either way Russian River Night at Monk's Cafe is a must. Don't miss it.

Early Arrival

I was caught napping. SURPRISE, Pliny the Elder went on earlier than expected at the Grey Lodge. It was tapped on Saturday and with a Sunday full of football it should be interesting to see how long it will last. If the Ballast Point Big Eye IPA that kicked in three days is any gauge then you might want to get in your car and drive to the Northeast right now, if it's not already too late.

The Reign Continues

Looks like the reign of Pliny the Elder will continue. The Grey Lodge Pub hopes to tap Pliny around Monday. Thanks Scoats for that great info. No growlers please, this one is by the glass. That should give more people the opportunity to taste the elusive brew. Remember to check The Grey Lodge website or their blog to see exactly when the Pliny starts flowing. Time to adjust the schedule to fit in a quick trip to the Northeast.

Gone Baby Gone

Just as fast as it appears it is gone. Russian River's Pliny the Elder is down and out at both Capone's and TJ's. It really is amazing how fast you have to move to get this beer. Pliny lasted just a few days at TJ's and even more amazing it was gone in less than a day from Capone's. Can we expect to see another tapping anytime soon? Which of the area's best beer establishments will drag out the next Pliny keg? Maybe the rule of Pliny the Elder is over for Philadelphia. We will all wait and see.

Pliny Surrounded by Darkness

Two days ago I sat at TJ's Restaurant & Drinkery sipping a Pliny the Elder thinking, what an incredibly enjoyable rare beer find this is in Philly. My thoughts were reinforced as several people filtered in to enjoy this northern California treat. The bartender mentioned that he had received a few calls about growler fills (yes they are doing growlers) and didn't expect to see the beer make it through the weekend. Since I don't live at TJ's, my wife might not agree, because I do have other life activities besides drinking beer (really?) and I am trying not to do growlers, I am cutting back to loose weight, I thought that drink might be my last taste of the nectar of the hop gods. Oh how wrong I was. My local bar for great beer, Capone's, has given me a second chance at liquid pleasure. Today at 11:30 they will open up the taps on Pliny and several other highly rated beers. The line up isn't just a hop lovers dream come true. If you desire a dark, roasty, robust beer you will easily find satisfaction. There are three fantastic stouts and a top notch porter, East End Black Strap Stout, Church Brew Works Coconut Stout, Founders Breakfast Stout (no not the Kentucky breakfast) and Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald Porter. You have your choice of coconuts, molasses-brown sugar and oat-chocolate-coffee. How do you take your stout? The rest of Capone's list is equally impressive.

Bullfrog Bee Sting
Otto's Red Al
Rogue John Locker Stock "Brewer"
Weyerbacher Bravo
Dogfish Head Punkin

Stoudts Dunkel Weizen
Sly Fox IPA Project Cluster

Lakefront IPA
La Chouffe
Victory Fest Bier
Left Hand Twin Sister Double IPA

This isn't an official Thursday night event but with a draft list like that Capone's might be tonight's must stop destination for beer night. I know I'll stop in and I may need to fill a growler or two. So much for those diet plans.

Pliny and Blind Pig in Bottles

YES!!! It is official Pliny the Elder and Blind Pig are both in bottles and being shipped to Southern California distributors. This info was posted on the Russian River Brewing Company website. Portland Oregon will reserve a small shipment of Blind Pig by the end of July and in August Seattle and Denver should see cases headed their way. No real news on any getting to the east coast and I wouldn't hold your breath. It's great knowing that two more fantastic beers from Russian River are being bottled and we can hope that the powers that be will some how find a way to get them into the Philadelphia market.

Journey to the Left Coast

After two wonderful weeks we have returned from our honeymoon. The trip took us to Napa, Sonoma, San Francisco and Maui. Everything from the food, to the wine, to the island activities was top notch. I will skip the details of most of the food and wine we consumed and go straight for the beer. I made a point to stop at as many beer locations as possible with out driving Kelleigh over the edge. I have to hand it to my wife (that still sounds funny to say) she was more than a trooper when it came to exploring breweries. A lesser person would not put up with my beer geek ways. That's one of the reasons I married her.

Our first day was in Santa Rosa, CA and we started the beer exploration on a very high note. Russian River Brewing Company was the first beer stop. I wont say that everything after this was downhill but the bar was set high. It's very hard to beat sitting at a bar drinking fresh Pliny the Elder and Salvation with lunch. The room was wide open with a half wall that split the dinning room and bar area. High ceilings and huge windows across the front of the building add to the airy feel. A few chairs and table were also set up outside in front for those who want to enjoy the California sunshine. The bartender was very attentive but then again it was only 11:15am and Kelleigh and I and a few locals were the only ones in the place. He made sure to give us some good info on the beer and even tossed in a few samplers along with our orders. I drank Pliny the Elder, Salvation, Damnation and shared a sampler of Belgian style beers. I can't say anything bad about the place, all the beer was amazing. If I lived in Santa Rosa my butt would be planted on a bar stool at Russian River on a regular basis. Unfortunately this is not home and we couldn't spend the whole day here. So once we finished lunch I grabbed a bottle each of the barrel aged Supplication, Beatification and Temptation and continued our tour.

The second stop in town was Third Street Ale House which was only three blocks from Russian River. Walking in the first impression I got was this place feels like a beach/shore bar. That's not necessarily a bad thing just not what I was anticipating. We were there just after 12:30PM so the lunch crowd was flowing in but my guess is the place is packed with twenty somethings on Friday and Saturday nights. Kelleigh was set to start the wine tasting part of our trip so I had only one beer here, the Marzenfest. If I was smart I would have taken tasting notes. All I can remember is the Marzenfest was deep amber in color, fairly malty and had a well balanced roasted taste. Although the one beer I had was good I couldn't help but think that this brewpub and it's beers are always in the shadow of Russian River Brewing Co. Hopefully both will continue to comfortably coexist.

Next stop Healdsburg CA