I say Burger King, you say Bellefonte

We had such a fun time during our last visit to Penn's Creek Campground that we made plans to head up again over the weekend of August 14. This time, we invited our friends Darin and Jeni to join us on Saturday for a day-long sweep of Bellefonte in Centre County. 

Now, you may be asking yourself, "What's with the name of this blog post? Why Burger King?" Well, this story goes back a ways; back to my high school years between 1989 and 1992. During band and jazz band bus trips, me and a few of my friends created something called "chanting," whereby we'd take off our purple sweaters (aka our uniforms), wrap them around our heads, clap our hands in unison to a specific rhythm, and basically freestyle stupid phrases in a call-and-response manner until we either got sick of doing it or yelled at by an adult. This tradition carried on - so I'm told - until at least 1995. Apparently, the freshmen class from my senior year carried the torch after I'd graduated. The "Burger King/Bellefonte" chant was the original, and we'd always start off a chanting session with "I say Burger King, you say Bellefonte." The impetus of said chant likely occurred when we were on our way to Burger King after a jazz band competition, and we were all talking about this rad bass player in Bellefonte High School's ensemble. We had a keyboard bass, which is pretty lame, and it was always inaudible. A group of us even called ourselves "The Bellefonte Bandits" and wreaked havoc on every school we visited. At any rate, that's the story. So every time I think of Bellefonte, I think of my time in high school band.  

OK, now that that's out of the way, let's talk beer!

I had only discovered Axemann Brewery about a week before we'd made plans to head up to the campground again. The original plan was to head up to State College and do the usual route as well as check back in with Robin Hood Brewing, since Roger from Shy Bear told us good things were coming via its new brewer who happened to be his friend. But more on Robin Hood in a bit.  

Outside Axemann's tasting room.

Axemann Brewery began under the name of Blue Stripe Brewing as a homebrew operation situated in a milk house, a small building on a dairy farm where milk is collected, cooled, and stored. After perfecting a few different styles and gaining a reputation at local and regional beer festivals, Blue Stripe entered the big leagues, adopting the name Axemann. So it was out of the milk house and into the former Cerro Metal Factory in Titan Energy Park just on the outskirts of Bellefonte. Having just opened its doors in July of this year, the site boasts a 20,000-sq. ft. production brewery and taproom including a walk-up "snack bar" and rotating local food trucks. So what about the name Axemann? Well, the Titan Energy Park is located on - you guessed it - Axemann Road. 

I must admit that I didn't really delve into the history of the brewery prior to our visit. I was kind of sold by the goat on the cans for Hazy Daisy, its NE-style IPA. I wasn't aware of its location in the industrial park, and it was looking like a potential GPS blunder. But we stayed the course and eventually came to an Axemann sign beckoning us into the tasting room. Upon entering, we were greeted by the tasting room manager (who recognized my Tröegs mask and even knew one of my co-workers) and were given the full spiel on the brewery, its beers and ordering process. We set up shop at a high-top table in the middle of the sprawling tasting room. Typically, we'd sit at the bar, but with the 'Rona still meddling about, it wasn't an option. I was adequately impressed with the space and the greeting we'd received. But would the beer stand up on its own? 

Inside Axemann's spacious tasting room.

Since Axemann was new to us, Brewslut and I each opted for a sampler flight including five of the available eight beers. Here's the run-down:

• Auger - medium-bodied lager with a semi-sweet flavor that finishes with a slight roast. Germanic-style hops and malts come together for a smooth, drinkable beer.
• Pilatus - A traditional German-style Pilsner brewed with German malts and Tettnanger hops. Soft but complex with a slightly nutty, toasty finish. 
• Mean Duck - Amber-colored pale ale with a nice dose of piney hops balanced by caramel and buscuity malt notes.
• Hazy Daisy - Juicy, hazy IPA with notes of citrus, ripe tropical fruit, and stone fruit.
• Black Razz - Tart wheat ale brewed with blackberries and raspberries. Served on CO2 as well as nitro.

Pleeps is the Axemann... yeah he's the Axemann!

The heaviest beer was Hazy Daisy, weighing in at only 6.4% ABV. The others were in the 4.5% to 5% range. I was pleasantly surprised by all of the beers in my flight, especially the lagers. Both were light , well-balanced and easy-drinking, but with the signature flavors you'd expect to find in each style. Mean Duck had a mild piney hop presence backed malt notes of caramel and busciut. Hazy Daisy, its signature beer and the one I was really excited about - not because it's a hazy IPA but because the label features a goat named Daisy - was a well-executed NE-style IPA with hints of mango, orange and grapefruit as well as hints of raw bread dough and rolled oats. The Black Razz was decent in its own right, but ultimately a miss for me compared to the other four beers. 

The Blonde Bistro serve up pizzas, pastas and more.

All of us were enjoying our visit quite a bit, so I opted for a full pour of Titan Stout. Jeni gave me a sip of her pour, and it passed the test. I was pleased to discover a slight smokey malt character with this one. Dark and roasty with hints of coffee and chocolate, this medium-bodied stout displays a thick, creamy head thanks to dispensing via nitrogen. I was glad I ordered a full pour of this one.  

Pleeps was diggin' the Titan Stout.

All in all, this was a fantastic first impression. The beers were well-executed, enjoyable and diverse, the tasting room exceeded my expectations, and the service was very good. Each of us even received a free cheese slider so we didn't have to purchase food if we weren't really hungry. We did order a large portion of fresh-cut fries to share, which came with this really tasty and spicy-sweet aioli for dipping. Everyone really dug the sauce, which was unique in both flavor and texture. It's nice to know that we'll have a few more options when visiting Happy Valley. I look forward to returning to Axemann soon! 

Pleeps sporting his new cammo mask.

While I was researching the few breweries in Bellefonte, I came across Big Spring Spirits. With only three breweries in town, it seemed like a logical choice to add it to the itinerary. Turns out it was a sound decision. I thought I'd heard of this distillery but just couldn't pull it out from the nether regions of my memory. However, Brewslut came to the rescue and reminded me that Big Spring produces the same Cream Bourbon (named Tallyrand) that our friends Aunt Carol and Uncle Rick shared with us once when we spent the night at Club Mease. Then it clicked. "Yeah, this place is gonna be awesome," I thought. Turns out I was right!

Big Spring incorporated in 2011 shortly after former PA Governor Corbett gave micro distilleries the green light to produce up to 100,000 gallons of spirits sell directly to the public. The new distillery set up shop at the Pennsylvania Match Factory, which operated from 1900 to 1947 producing - you guessed it - wooden matches. The charming 31,000-square foot brick building provies the perfect atmosphere for Big Spring. But not only does the location offer aesthetics; turns out settling on Bellefonte as its home was a blessing, as Big Spring was awarded the "best tasting water in the state" by the Pennsylvania Rural Water Association; a good resource to have when producing spirits, as you can imagine. During the final phase of spirits production prior to bottling, the extremely potent distillate is “proofed down” with 60% water. To quote the folks at Big Spring, "That’s a lot of water and if your water’s no good, your product’s no good." Truth!

Enjoying my peach tea Collins.

All of us ended up absolutely loving this place; everything from the ambiance to the quality of the drinks to the staff was all top notch. We hung out here for a decent amount of time, which is a testament to caliber of Big Spring. We also had our first serving of premium mixed nuts here (more on premium nuts later in the program, kids). We ended up taking home a bottle of the aforementioned Tallyrand to enjoy at home. All in all, it was a fantastic visit for sure, but it was off to our next stop of the day.

Last time we visited Shy Bear, we chatted with head brewer Roger for a while, and he informed us that one of his friends had taken over at Robin Hood Brewing. He gave me a sample of a beer that was still undergoing fermentation - a delicious sour peach IPA - and immediately I thought, "I need this beer!" Even in its early stages, it was awesome. So when we made plans to hop around Bellefonte for the day, I included Robin Hood on our itinerary. We visited Robin Hood only once in the past; an illfated encounter many years ago at its remote location at Home D Pizzeria in Stage College. Long story short, the bartender dissed Otto's openly and the beers were all-around lackluster to just plain bad. So I was happy to hear that they recently employed a legitimate brewer, especially one that came with a glowing recommendation from someone we respected. So needless to say, not only was I anxious to see how Robin Hood had improved since that initial visit, but I also couldn't wait to try the aforementioned beer, Peacheys & Cream. 

"I protest... I am NOT a merry man!" - Worf

When we were seated, I perused the beer menu and was ecstatic to see the beer listed. Yes! When our server took our order, she informed me that the beer had kicked earlier that day. Suddenly, I experienced flashbacks of "Dain sucks at life" (that's an inside joke a few readers will appreciate). I was a sad panda for a few minutes, because I was reeeeeeeeealy excited to drink this beer. Oh well... such is life. 

So - much to the gratification of Pleeps - I went with my silver medal choice, Strawberry Banana Cream Machine. This milkshake IPA boasts lots of oats, lactose, and heavy dry-hooping with Citra and Mosaic. The beer is then conditioned on 100 pounds of strawberry and banana puree and Madagascar vanilla beans. This beer was leaps and bounds better than anything we experienced on that first visit. Banana is a difficult fruit to brew with, because the fermentation process is more involved and time-consuming. This is why you rarely see beers made with real banana. Banana flavor in beer is typically derived from the yeast, which produces fruity esters similar to a banana flavor (as in German-style hefeweizens). Oftentimes, beers utilizing "actual" banana taste artificial due to using extracts rather than real fruit. Whatever the case was with this beer, it was freakin' delicious! So it would appear that the new brewer knows what he's doing. Overall, everyone in our group enjoyed their beers, so we were in  uninanimous agreement. 

Pleeps posing with Jeni's spread at Robin Hood.

We also decided to eat here since the food was cheap and they had a full menu. Enter more carbalicious startch to my gut - this time in the form of grilled cheese and tomato soup. This hit the spot and was only like $7 to boot... plus the soup was actually chunky and flavorful, not like boring-ass Campbell's sugar-laden tomato "soup."

In researching the area, I stumbled across a brewery that was completely off my radar. By the looks of things, I wasn't holding my breath for an amazing experience, but you know the drill: swing by, have a beer, and if it sucks... move along. I went against my better judgement and added Old Farmhouse Eatery & Brewery to our itinerary since it was located just a hop, skip and jump away from the other breweries we'd planned on visiting. With a name like "Old Farmhouse," I was expecting a quaint, old dwelling on a few acres of picturesque farmland. Upon pulling into the parking lot, the brewery appeared to be... well, somebody's house. It definitely didn't strike me as a "farmhouse" in any way. Regardless, we suited up (aka put on our masks) and headed inside. The majority of the customers were enjoying food and drinks in the patio area. Since there were lots of children littered about, we asked to sit inside. We plunked down at a long table for six in the main bar area, which also included a pool table and (very loud) jukebox. I decided to play some tunes since I had a surplus of TouchTunes credits due to everything being closed as a result of the 'Rona. Unfortunately, it turns out my credits had expired, which is utter bullshit because I paid for them. So TouchTunes can eat a huge, overflowing bowl of dicks. Needless to say, I shan't be using its services anymore (unless I find myself in another quarrel with two bitches bumping my songs for over an hour). 

But I digress. Upon perusing the menu, we decided to order some pretzel logs to share for our "meal." This was turning into a carb-heavy day. I probably ate a week's worth of carbs just in this one day. Oh well... a man's gotta eat. Now onto the beer...

Darin and I decided to try our luck with a Pineapple IPA, which was a pleasant surprise. Brewslut, unfortunately, had a complete 180-degree experience than we. I noticed a beer called Creme Brulee on the menu. Was it a porter? A brown ale? Something else? At any rate, she decided to give it a shot. She wasn't having it. First off, it looked like a glass of brown, murky water produced by a backed-up toilet. It was probably one of the least attractive beers I'd ever seen in my life. Brewslut reluctantly took a whiff, and she described the aroma that wafted its way across her olfactory as "earthworms after it rains." To be frank, she was spot-on. Thankfully, it actually tasted pretty good. She couldn't get past the smell, unfortunately, and choked down half of it until I offered to switch beers. I actually wish we would have snapped a picture of it just to share with you all. 

Overall, this place just didn't strike me as a "brewery," which is perhaps why they include "eatery" in the name. Jeni ordered some coffee, which took like 30 minutes to brew, so she asked for a to-go cup because none of us wanted to stick around for a second beer. Finally, the brought it out in a take-out soup container. Despite all of this, I didn't "hate" this place. Darin and I enjoyed our Pineapple IPAs quite a bit. We agreed that it didn't have a fake flavor or too minimal a pineapple presence. You can actually taste ripe, juicy pineapple, although I'm not sure if it was a result of a hop combo or simply adding pineapple juice to the beer. Either way, it was enjoyable. With that said, I think I need to go back and start a "part II" of The Anomalous Olfactory Anecdotes of Brewslut, which is still one of my personal favorite Pour Travelers blog posts of all time.

We decided to swing by nearby State College for a quick stop at Otto's. When we arrived, there appeared to be a lengthy wait list to get in. Even when things were "normal" back in the day, Otto's always seemed to be packed. Whether school was in session or not, this place has a huge fan base. Across the parking lot, however, things looked pretty quiet at Barrel 21, a distillery owned by Otto's. Come to think of it, Brewslut and I had never gone in despite many visits to Happy Valley over the years. I'd already had my requisite cocktail of the day; when it gets down to the nitty gritty, I enjoy a refreshing cocktail like anyone, but at the core I'm a beer guy through and through. I mean, I am writting a beer blog, so I suppose that's assumed. 

Pleeps is down with the Green Weenie!

With that said, I was excited to see a selection of Otto's beers on tap, including one I hadn't had before. The name of the beer intrigued me: Green Weenie. I inquired about it, and our server gave me the low-down: it's an unfiltered, hop forward IPA with generous additions of Citra and Nugget hops. In layman's terms, it's a freakin' delicious IPA, perhaps the best hoppy beer I've ever had from Otto's. Straddling the line between east and west coast, this one was slightly hazy with a big citrusy aroma but with a fair amount of bitterness on the palate. This was a one-and-done stop for us all, although we did share a big ol' bowl of premium spiced nuts. Nothing but the best for us when we travel! Next time, I'm going to try and dig into the spirits... but it will have to wait for another visit. 

Pleeps is a premium nut!

Postscript: On Sunday, we enjoyed a new beer at Selin's Grove called Napoleon, a light, crisp session IPA that drank like American Pale Ale lite. Then we got in a few rounds of Minki Ball at Club Mease before heading home and running my weekly virtual music trivia later that evening. 

Well, that's all for now. Thanks for reading about our latest adventure. Join us again somewhere down the road as we continue to traverse craft beer's ever-expanding playing field. Until next time...