Springtime in February: Day 2

We awoke in our hotel room on Sunday, February 26 to the sound of intense wind echoing across Cherry Hill. I checked my weather app and the current temperature was 29 degrees, a far cry from the mid-70s temperatures we enjoyed the previous day. I didn't even bring my hoodie into the hotel room because it was so warm on Saturday. Nevertheless, it was time to continue our little weekend jaunt and head back across the river into more familiar territory - Philadelphia.

My vantage point from the bar at Bar Hygge.

First up was a brand new place called Bar Hygge (pronounced huu-guh). This place, along with its brewing counterpart, Brewery Techné, first hit my radar a few months ago when I was reading an article about the influx of new tiny breweries in the Philadelphia region. Bar Hygge was one of the places I was most excited about, just from the types of beer they were brewing and some photos I saw. They also open at 10:30 a.m. on Sundays and serve a special brunch menu. At this time, I'd like to encourage other establishments to follow suit and open earlier on weekends. It's never too early for a beer! (If you're interested in the name, you can read about its origins HERE.

Located at 1720 Fairmount Avenue in the Spring Garden section of Philly (in close proximity to both the Art Museum and Franklin Institute), Bar Hygge is co-owned by Tom Baker, who you might know from Earth Bread + Brewery (EB+B) in the Mt. Airy section of NW Philly. Tom's also the brewer at Bar Hygge/Brewery Techné. FUN FACT: Brewslut jokingly refers to EB+B as "Earth Bread and Daycare" because both times we visited, there was an inordinate amount of children romping around. I actually didn't have the connection until I was doing a bit of post-visit research.

Slightly to the right of my barstool.

Inside, Bar Hygge is clean, sophisticated, and offers a variety of seating including tables, a comfortable bar, and small lounge area. It reminded me of a place we visited in Charleston, SC a few years earlier on our annual "Drinksgiving" excursion called Closed for Business. Perhaps Bar Hygge wasn't as eclectic, but the space and atmosphere definitely felt in sync. We'd perused the brunch menu in advance to ensure they had a few "Ffejetarian" options (we don't eat red meat or pork, and Brewslut is allergic to shellfish) and they did. The food sounded promising and the beer list appealed to us. While they don't have a ton of taps, they offer a well-curated list of rotating house beers ranging from an IPA to a Baltic Porter (the latter snagged a gold medal at the 2014 GABF for EB+B).

Onto the beer. With eight offerings, we decided to get half pours of four of the most interesting sounding beers on the menu. I started with House of Bitterness, an IPA brewed with Amarillo and Citra hops. Brewslut opted for a more morning-appropriate beer in Imperial Java, a coffee-infused double stout served via nitrogen. Both beers definitely delivered. I was pretty floored, to tell the truth. The IPA boasted everything I love about the style - a zesty, pungent aroma, soft texture, balanced bitterness, and tons of flavor. This was gold in a glass! The Imperial Java hit well about the mark as well, touting a smooth, creamy mouthfeel, huge coffee aromatics, dense nitro head, and balanced malt character with plenty of roast, chocolate, coffee and vanilla notes. "Sweet," I thought. "Two for two!" It was a great way to kick off the day.

For my next selection, I decided to go off the beaten path and try the aforementioned GABF-winning Baltic Porter, named Perkuno's Hammer. From its Untappd description: "Perkuno's Hammer was brewed to the original Heavyweight Brewing recipe, a gold medal winner at GABF. It contains 50lbs of Roman beans in a grist of Munich and pale chocolate malts and is fermented with a prestigious German lager yeast." Not many Baltic Porters have left a lasting impression on me over the years (Danzig from Devil's Backbone comes to mind immediately as one that has), but this one was definitely memorable and worthy of its gold medal status. Intense flavors of dark stone fruit, bold coffee, roasted malt, cocoa, molasses and caramel all washed across my palate. Brewslut was equally as bowled over as me with her second selection, a blood orange sour saison named Low Hanging Fruit. The name of this beer prompted me to strike up a conversation with the bartender about Tenacious D (they have a song on their last album by the same name), and turns out he was a fan and actually was at the concert at Festival Pier we saw a few years ago. Brewslut deemed it "the shit" and listed it as a standout beer of the trip. Four for four. In my best Austin Powers impersonation, "Yeaaaah, baby!"

Brunch was equally impressive. Upon reviewing the brunch menu ahead of time, I knew Brewslut would opt for the tuna melt (which I must admit sounded delicious). However, I went with a fritatta made with roasted poblano peppers, avocado crema, and fried onion straws, plus a side of Hygge home fries. One word: BANGIN'! This place has got it's shit together, man! Atmosphere? Check. Service? Fantastic. Beer? Outstanding! Brunch? Delish! Hell, even the coffee was great, and it came served in a custom logo mug. And the icing on the cake was there were no little rugrats crawling around or making a ruckus. Yeah, I think we'll be back.

I'm in the mug club.

Our next stop, Crime & Punishment, was in contention for brunch this morning. I was eyeing up a house-made pretzel bagel with beet-cured salmon, farmers cheese, and pickled veggies, but ultimately we decided on Bar Hygge since they opened half an hour earlier. However, we decided that we were both still hungry, so we decided to share the aforementioned bagel and salmon plate. It was very well done and gave us a bit of additional fuel to continue onward. This place had a definite Philly vibe, with its exposed, weathered brick walls, high ceiling, and an eclectic gathering of customers congregated at the bar and adjacent mix-and-match tables.

Find yourself a (secret) city to live in.

Beer-wise, the tap list looked extremely interesting, with a few off-the-wall selections such as a sour ale brewed with beets and a "Sugar Cookie" IPA. OK, we were game. Brewslut jumped right in and ordered the sour, which carried the intriguing name Disturbing the Beets. Kettle-soured and fermented with Brettanomyces and 50 pounds of juiced beets, this lovely pinkish ale combined the earthy sweetness of beets with a tart yeast character. I opted to begin with a shorty of Secret Cities, a Citra and Mosaic-hopped Pale Ale with notes of grapefruit and fresh-cut grass. This is also unique in that it's the first beer where the guys at C&P experimented with hop additions. For this particular beer, they added all of the pre-fermentation hops during the whirlpool process. This provides a lower temperature of flavor extraction, producing a "tea bag" or steeping effect. Overall, this was a solid effort. It was hazy, pale and lacked a frothy head, but the aroma was fresh and the flavor was balanced and not overly bitter. It was definitely a "soft" pale ale, if that makes sense.

For our next selections, I was intrigued by Magic Lantern, the "sugar cookie" IPA I mentioned earlier, so I chose that. Brewed with oats and dry-hopped with Lemon Drop and Citra, this was definitely an IPA, albeit a strange one. Strange in a good way, though, because they conditioned the beer on 50lbs. of homemade vegan sugar cookies and Madagascar vanilla beans. This conditioning lent a sweet, supple finish, which played nicely with the citrus and lemongrass notes of the hops. The vanilla was definitely apparent and softened it just a bit. I love when breweries experiment with unusual, non-traditional ingredients, and this little experiment seemed to gel quite nicely. The other beer we chose immediately grabbed me just by reading its stream-of-consciousness description:

It’s the juicy fruit gum thing. A menagerie. Dad’s peach tree. The amount of Citra hops in this beer, it’s a huge amount. THE MOST. Like drinking from Pooh Bear’s sweet funny reserve; honeysuckle. The gentle juice. Just be careful, it’s offensively easy to finish and repeat.

Love it! This beer was called Repeat Offender, a single-hopped DIPA brewed with (as the description reveals) Citra hops. You can't really go wrong with Citra. Since "citrus" is pretty much my favorite IPA flavor profile, naturally I enjoyed this one quite a bit.

My vantage point from the bar at C&P.

For our last beer, we opted to share a Russian Imperial Stout called Gulag Uprising. We seldom skip over a RIS when traveling (despite the style's high ABV content), although that's more of Brewslut's doing than mine. This dark beast was aged for two months on cacao nibs and vanilla beans, then finished with local One Village coffee. I let her have the lion's share because I had ulterior motives, as you will learn in a few seconds. The bartender was nice enough to also give us a complimentary sample-size pour of the Behemoth, a straight-up Oatmeal Stout, for comparison. The Behemoth definitely wasn't as intense, but it was pretty full-bodied with plenty of chocolate flavor and hints of coffee, dark fruit, and raw earth.

When we parked the car outside C&P, I noticed a little record store right across the street. I could feel Brewslut's eyes roll as I mentioned stopping in for a "quick look" after our beers. She loves digging through crates of vinyl about as much as I enjoy shows like Cake Wars, Bridezilla, or Chopped. As she was finishing up our pour of Gulag Uprising, I decided to take a quick stroll over to check out the store, coincidentally called Brewerytown Beats. I'm glad I did... not just because I found original copies of Metallica's Ride the Lightning and Anthrax's State of Euphoria, but also because I'd discovered that I was missing not one, but TWO of my three credit cards. It was a distressing "WTF?!" moment. My wallet is pretty old and the card slots are stretched and blown out like a 60-year-old prostitute's woman parts, so I thought perhaps they slid out at some point when I paid a tab. Hitting so many breweries in a single day results in the wallet going in and out of my back pocket quite frequently. In uncharacteristic fashion, I actually remained calm and thought about it for a second. When we travel, we typically bring along cash, which serves as a "soft" budget (meaning we each try to spend less or equal to that amount, thus avoiding the use of credit cards). However, many bars and breweries ask for credit cards in order to open a tab in your name. I suppose this stems from one too many drunk patrons forgetting to pay their bar tab over the years. Although we use our cards as a "marker," I always tag on the following phrase when opening a tab: "...but we'll probably pay cash." After mulling it over for about a minute, I realized that I'd used two different cards and two different breweries. My instincts were correct, and I was relieved to learn that both Forgotten Boardwalk and Tonewood were keeping my cards safely behind the bar.

Of course, this threw a wrench into our Philly plans, as we had to traverse back into NJ and pay the dreaded toll to drive across the bridge. (You don't have to pay to get into NJ, but you have to pay to get back into PA... makes sense, right?) Fortunately, we were only about 20 minutes away from Forgotten Boardwalk. We decided to stop in at Tonewood for a one-and-done, and I revisited the Terminal DIPA, while Brewslut opted for a full pour of Chief since I'd enjoyed it so much the previous evening.

Ashland... tastes like the 
Pioneer Tunnel Coal Mine.

After our little detour back into NJ, we changed gears and called an audible. I'd planned on making our last stop at the newish Stable 12 in Phoenixville, but we decided to hit a brand new place in Philly on Passyunk Avenue (home of the infamous P.O.P.E.) called Brewery ARS. This place is the latest "garage brewery" in the city, and that's a fitting description of the place. Terry (Hawbaker, Pizza Boy's head brewer) also mentioned that he was really interested in visiting this place, and he'd heard good things and was familiar with the brewers' work (twin brothers, apparently). Inside the tiny tasting room, tables were crammed closely together, while a tiny standing bar occupied the right side of the wall as you entered. Toward the back of the room was a counter where patrons can order beer. There was also a serving hole in the right wall, where a local BBQ vendor was serving a variety of items. We opted for a snack in the form of guacamole and chips (can't go wrong with that combo)!

Beer-wise, we shared a sampler of all five beers available during our visit. Here's the run-down:

• Wayne's Pale Ale - American-style Pale Ale with lots of citrus character.
• Antique'n - saison brewed with copious amounts of Simcoe hops.
• Ashland - robust porter with coffee and chocolate notes. 
• Living Saints - ale dry-hopped with El Dorado and infused with local Ethiopian Guji Sidamo coffee from Green Street Coffee.
• Old Stoop City Rye - rye saison with a blend of German hops.

All in all, solid beers across the board. Nothing jaw-dropping, mind you, but I appreciate both the craft and the experimental nature of the beers. One thing I must point out is the simplicity and charm of their beer label artwork. Each whimsical drawing looks like it'd been torn from a child's coloring book. The handwritten fonts and brewery logo add to the appeal as well. 

To cap off the weekend, no stop to the greater Philadelphia area is complete without a visit to Tired Hands. I was in the mood for their bread and butter (so simple yet so delicious), so we opted for the Brew Cafe rather than the newer Fermentaria. It wasn't packed when we arrived, so we were able to procure bar seats on the first floor. There's always plenty of interesting-sounding beers on tap, including hazy, hoppy creations and more sophisticated saisons, two styles I feel are Jean's forte. I settled on a half pour of Space Canoe, a new rye IPA hopped with Simcoe and a new variety with which I was unfamiliar - Huell Melon, a fruity aroma hop that lends hints of honeydew and strawberry. Brewslut selected Unimpressive View, a saison brewed with pink peppercorns and lemon zest. I like the flavor note of "lemon verbena" and "Claey's watermelon hard candy drops" for this one (on Tired Hands' web site), which I thought fit the bill perfectly. Space Canoe was solid but not a favorite in the grand scheme of Tired Hands' hoppy beers, although the rye spiciness complemented the bread and fennel pollen accoutrement nicely. up next, we enjoyed half pours of On Tap, an IPA brewed with oats and Citra and Amarillo hops, then dry-hopped with Galaxy and more Citra. Yum! Thick Ambient was up next, and I'm glad Brewslut chose this one, because I really wanted to try it based on the description. The beer, a dark saison brewed with rye, midnight wheat and Tired Hands' house yeast culture, as well as 100lbs. of local sweet and tart cherries. This may have been my favorite of the four beers we sampled. 

After our beer and bread break at Tired Hands, it was time to head home. All in all, it was a productive beer trip, with 8 new breweries visited over just two days. We also got to return to two new favorites - Spellbound and Forgotten Boardwalk - and check in at Tired Hands. Thanks for following us on our journey to "beervana." Until next time...

Labor Day Weekend Excursions

I love long weekends. They serve as an excuse to travel... not that we need one. Brewslut and I enjoyed a few beer adventures over Labor Day weekend, so I thought I'd interject a short intermission between Portland posts. Readers of the Pour Travelers (all 5 of you) know about the Chalet, our little getaway along Penn's Creek. It's in close proximity to Selin's Grove Brewing Co. (aka "The Pub" for us locals), an added bonus when we visit. Almost no trip to the Chalet is complete without a stop at The Pub on Friday evening, which is a mere 20 miles or so away from our destination. With Saison de Peche going on tap recently, it wasn't even open to debate. Of course, we NEVER argue about going to The Pub. EVER!

First Peche.

I was itchin' to get my peach on (or should I say peche?) because after an impromptu trip to The Pub the previous Sunday, I had come to the decision that Saison de Peche is my favorite beer ever. This year's batch, in particular, was off the charts good. I can't say enough about this beer. Anyone who knows me knows of my devotion to The Pub and my respect for Steve and Heather, the proprietors and brewers (although Steve primarily does the brewing these days). The only brewery I can think of that is on-par with The Pub when it comes to fruit beers is New Glarus. I had a feeling that the peche was going to be special this year after my brief infatuation with the Phoenix Kriek this season. At any rate, if you enjoy peaches this time of year, then this beer is probably right up your alley. Despite its confusing name, Saison de Peche (meaning literally "season of the peach") is NOT a Belgian farmhouse style. It's a thirst-quenching, lip-smacking, sweet and slightly tart treat that comes smack dab between the end of summer and beginning of autumn, and heralds the return of my very favorite time of year at The Pub. After the Kriek kicks, I know the Peche will be available soon, followed by their amazing Pumpkin Ale and Hop Nouveau, the latter a pale ale brewed with hops grown on premises as well as donated by friends and fans.

Fourth Peche.

 After starting with a Peche, I decided to get an IPA to go with my dinner (a Thai soup made with shrimp, spices, and special coconut milk acquired from Baltimore, according to Steve) and vegetable lasagna. As much as I love the IPA, I took one sip and knew I should have just gotten another Peche. Yeah, that's how good it is! Don't worry though, because I made up for it by having three more. For dessert, I split a Roasted Oat Stout mixed with cold brew coffee on nitro. Oh yeah... this is another new offering at The Pub. Steve got on the cold brew train early, I'm happy to report. We'd encountered a few places around the country (Cleveland, Raleigh/Durham, and San Diego) that offered cold brew coffee dispensed via nitro. I think the first place we had it was at Modern Times in San Diego, and we fell in love. If you're a coffee lover, try some the next time you visit The Pub, or blend it with your favorite dark or malt-forward beer. Aside from the aforementioned stout, we tried it with the Scottish Ale, Cream Ale, and Dubbel. The stout is our favorite. And of course The Pub is always great for a late-night chat with the locals, so we ended up closing the place down despite actually getting there about half an hour earlier than we usually do.

After sleeping in on Saturday morning, we had plans to head north to Williamsport. But first, we decided to hit a pair of new places to us in nearby Lewisburg. First up was West Branch Brewing Company. Situated in the renowned Bull Run Tap House on Market Street (the main drag), this place is a favorite among Bucknell students and craft beer fans alike. With 47 taps (mostly local and regional craft) and a solid bottle selection, Bull Run is also the de facto tap room for West Branch. During our particular visit, I was happy to see five house brews on tap. Coincidentally, their sampler flight consisted of five 5oz. pours. How convenient for us!

Sampler flight and growlers at West Branch (courtesy of Google Images)

We decided to share a flight to test the waters. Here's the run down: Blonde, Saison, Rye-IT, Hopcore Pale Ale, and Black Magic Porter. Not bad overall. While the Blonde and Saison were middle-of-the-road offerings, I quite enjoyed the finish of the Rye-IT and the Hopcore was pleasant as well. The Porter wasn't bad either, although what it lacked in body it made up for in roasty flavor. Overall, this place shows some promise. The Bull Run is a huge place with plenty of seating, a huge wrap-around bar, pool tables, games, and enough beer on tap to keep things interesting. We'll be back the next time we're spending some time at the Chalet.

Beer and cider offerings at Civil War Cider

Right across the street, we noticed the tasting room Civil War Cider. We were familiar with this local cidery because The Pub had been carrying their ciders on tap regularly for about a year. While we'd yet to sample any of their libations, we figured we might as well stop in and check it out. Inside, the tasting room was quite small with a colonial flair: dimly lit with lots of exposed brick, old weathered wood, and some cool antiques including a working cash register from the early 1900s. There was a decent amount of people inside for a random afternoon, but we found two open stools at the small bar. Aside from having three house ciders on tap, they also boasted a few craft beer taps (I was pleased to notice Troegs JavaHead Stout was one of them) and a selection of local bottles from Troegs, Stoudt's, Appalachian, and some others.

Civil War's tap tower looked like an old tree stump

We got small samplers of each of the three ciders. The first was Brew Cannon, a dry cider that was simple yet pleasant with a crisp apple bite. The second offering, Maple Sap Tap, featured local maple syrup from the PA Grand Canyon and Union County apples. I found this to be quite sweet with a hint of molasses and maple flavor. The third, Iron Horse, was a coffee-infused cider with a slightly tawny appearance. As a coffee lover, this sounded interesting and it didn't disappoint. Although it was 9.5% ABV, we decided to split a jar of this one. (They served their ciders in squatty mason jars, which I thought was cool.)

After hitting these two new places, it was time to venture onward to Billtown. Home of the Little League World Series, Williamsport, PA is also home to one of my favorite brewpubs in PA, and one of the first places I came to love the IPA style. Bullfrog Brewery first came onto my radar when my band, herbie, used to play there back around 2004. I had just started getting into craft beer, and playing at breweries and brewpubs really allowed me to dive into trying different styles, as I typically drank for free. Once I met Deuane, we then became friends with Terry Hawbaker, who was brewing at Bullfrog at the time. We liked Bullfrog so much that Brewslut joined the pub club, which gave us lifetime access to cool events like Halloween and Christmas parties. Although we were sad to see Terry eventually move on (even though he landed much closer to home at Pizza Boy), his successor, Nate, hasn't missed a beat and has been churning out unique concoctions including smoked wheat-based fruit beers, crazy sours, and ciders. He's also kept Edgar IPA alive and well, one of my all-time favorite IPAs!

The carved wood tap handles at Bullfrog have long been some of my favorites!

One of the perks of the pub club membership is the ability to enjoy a complimentary pour of any beer "new to you." We spotted a coffee stout on the chalkboard (one of our favorite styles) that Brewslut hadn't tried before. I had recently heard about a tasty Smoked Berry Wheat Farmhouse Ale from a friend, so I was delighted to see it on tap during our visit. Yes please! This puppy was brewed with 100% German beechwood-smoked malt and oak smoked wheat, then fermented with a house ale yeast blend and finished with raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, and aronia berries. Google to the rescue! Aronia berries, also known as "choke berries," are cultivated as ornamental plants but are also edible despite being quite astringent, causing the mouth to pucker. I enjoy Bullfrog's smoked offerings quite a bit, and I found this one to be subtly complex with a hint of smoked cedar-like wood, plenty of sweet and tart berry flavor, and traces of wheat bread dough.

Pleeps was digging the Smoked Berry Wheat!

I had a few sips of the Coffee Stout and it was quite tasty. This latest version features locally roasted coffee from Alabaster Coffee Roaster in Williamsport. With a slightly roasty flavor and chocolately coffee note, this stout boasted a smooth, creamy texture and clean finish. Next time we're in town, we'll make it a point to swing in for an iced coffee. Up next, we split a full pour of the new Lemon Party IPL (India Pale Lager), brewed with organic lemons. Wow! This hoppy lager was packed with zesty lemon tartness and citrusy hops. Overall, the balance of tartness and hop bitterness was quite amazing, as neither ever became too overpowering. The aroma was fantastic... no whiff of fake lemon Pledge, just pure zesty goodness amid citrus and tropical fruit. I finished up our visit with a half pour of Edgar IPA, a must-have every time we visit. The bartender mentioned they recently added Galaxy hops to the mix, and while the flavor was pretty close to what I recall, there was a distinct hint of passionfruit, which is a hallmark of the Galaxy hop variety. This is a world-class IPA!

After Bullfrog, we always head down the road to Newberry (although technically part of Williamsport) to Riepstine's Pub. Owner and brewer Bart Rieppel has been part of the local craft beer scene for many years, getting his start at Abbey Wright Brewing in nearby Duboistown. It was there that I first had his Alpha Deuce IPA, and I knew he was legit. After a few years at Abbey Wright, he moved on to River House Brewing in Milton, bringing along with him not only Alpha Deuce but also his exceptional Vanilla Latte Stout, which is still one of the best stouts brewed in PA I've ever had. After a short stint there, Bart realized that he needed to be his own boss. The rest is history.

Riepstine's Pub exterior shot (courtesy of Google Images)

Bart has been churning out some fantastic beers over the last two years. In addition to the aforementioned beers, some standouts have been Reindeer Fuel (a Mad Elf-esque Belgian strong ale brewed with tons of fresh raspberries), Blackberry Brandy Barrel-Aged Tripel, and Tropical Barbie, a blond ale brewed with four varieties of fruit. We were happy to see the return of the latter during this particular trip, and Brewslut enjoyed this one quite a bit. This time around, it was heavier on the strawberry versus last time when pineapple was the dominant fruit. Speaking of strawberry, it also happened to be Firkin Saturday, and Bart was pouring a "Chocolate Dipped Strawberry" version of his Midsummer Night's Cream Ale. Aside from being somewhat thin, the flavor was pure cocoa nib and strawberry bliss. After finishing the firkin pint, I moved on to the new-to-me Sun Kissed, a tasty Pale Ale brewed with an assortment of citrusy hops and orange juice. I dig! And since Vanilla Latte Stout was also on tap, we HAD to get a pour of that. I sneaked a few sips from Brewslut when she wasn't looking... and so did Pleeps! Before we left, we picked up a very limited bomber of a Rum Barrel Aged Tripel. If it's anywhere near as good as the Blackberry Brandy Tripel, it was worth the shekels. Plus our friend Carolyn is on the label (she's one of the original mug club members)!

By now, it was time to start heading back to the Chalet. On the way home, we swung by Rusty Rail in Mifflinburg, which is just a few miles from home base. Since they've been cranking out Sidetrack Series beers (similar to Tröegs Scratch Beer Series), they always have one or two different beers on tap when we visit. This time, they had Sidetrack #5 - Grapefruit IPA and #6 - Chocolate Hazelnut Porter. We ordered one of each and sat outside by the awesome fireplace. Both beers were a marked improvement from our last visit. I'm all about revisiting a brewery several times to track their improvement and see how they are growing (or devolving) as a brewery. We were glad to enjoy both of these beers outside on the patio under a lovely starry night. 

I'm gonna lay you down by the FIRE!

After our quick stop at Rusty Rail, it was time to retire to the Chalet for the evening. The next day, we were off to State College. When we visit the area, we typically venture to either Williamsport or State College, but seldom both. Fortunately, it was a long holiday weekend, so we were able to fit in both! We've been going to Elk Creek Cafe & Aleworks since they first opened in 2007 (I can't believe it's been almost a decade)! This place is a true gem. Aside from solid beers across the board, they also have a beer engine (and they usually offer some fantastic British style bitters), tasty local farm to table fare, and extremely reasonable prices. We always make it a point to stop in on our way to State College. Unfortunately it was a Sunday, and IngleBean, the coffee shop just down the street, was closed. No second coffee for us today. At any rate, we headed into Elk Creek and bellied up to the bar.

Our view from our seats at the bar at Elk Creek.

Shortly after we sat down, we bumped into our friend Huck, who we know from "The Pub." He joined us and we conversed over a glass of the brand new (aptly named) Elk Creek IPA. This was another solid offering, and I was happy to see another IPA on tap. This was was more of an American style with slight herbal, floral and citrus notes. Huck mentioned it was Krick Fest weekend in the area, and we were tempted to postpone our drive to State College to check it out, but I had Zeno's on the mind. We stuck around Elk Creek to share a glass of our favorite year-round offering, Poe Paddy Porter.

Soon, we were off to Happy Valley. First stop, Happy Valley Brewing Company. I must admit these guys have been knocking stuff out of the park lately. We've been there a handful of times since they opened and have routinely been impressed, save for a clunker of a beer here or there. The brewery is situated in an old converted barn, which makes sense as their tap handles are topped with weathervanes and most of their beer labels feature farm animals. As with most breweries, they have around six year-round beers available and a handful of seasonals and limited beers. This time around, I went with a pint of Summer Camp, an Imperial Citrus Wheat as they call it. Basically, it was a citrus-forward IPA brewed with wheat. I had this once before, but damn was this beer tasty! Brewslut opted for the Scream, a pumpkin ale. After consulting our Untappd beer history, we realized we also had this during a previous visit. We decided this would be a one-and-done visit so we could get downtown to Zeno's.

Tap handles at Happy Valley.

Aside from being the coolest beer bar in State College (one of the best in PA), they also have the most memorable bathroom I've yet to encounter. Never mind all the great graffiti (er, poetry!) on the walls, but it also has such a distinct smell that slaps you in the face as soon as you enter. I liken it to taking a whiff of an uber-hopped DIPA reeking of Amarillo hops (you know, the cat piss one), except for, you know, the hop aroma. I always find some new, entertaining reading material adorning the walls in the bathroom at Zeno's. Lucky for me, each visit is met with multiple trips to the bathroom, most likely caused by drinking too much while we're there!

Bathroom Literature 101 at Zeno's.

I always have a good time here and usually end up talking to some rando or one of the staff. This time, I hit the jackpot because not only did we enjoy some good chatter with the bartender, lo and behold I ran into a raisin cake in the bathroom. When I came out, I mentioned to Brewslut that I'd just rocked a piss next to a guy who "looked exactly like Joe Manganiello." Her face lit up with a mixture of both intrigue and disbelief. When he walked out, she said I was full of shit. Regardless, this guy was a trip. I won't go into details because you just had to be there. I will say that he was quite inebriated and tried to order a "half Jameson and half Rumplemintz." Dear God!

Funny story aside, we were pleased to see Goose Island 2015 Bourbon County Stout on tap. At only $8 for a 10oz. pour, we thought this was reasonable. I ordered one. Brewslut made the mistake of getting a Stone Americano Stout instead. Not to say it's a bad beer, but Bourbon County Stout it ain't. She had no qualms sharing some of mine, though. Hey, that's what marriage is all about, right? (Inside joke alert: Especially if you're a frequent visitor of TJ's: A Private Club.) Speaking of sharing, we decided to split a pint of the tasty Zeno's Rye, a beer brewed especially for them by Otto's.

Pleeps can't stop Joe'kin around!

I suppose this is a good segue, because our next stop was, in fact, Otto's. We almost skipped it this time around after our lengthy stay at Zeno's. However, Otto's has been releasing special cork & cage series beers over the last several months. At around $10 a pop for a 750mL bottle, these are great to share at the brewery (they are only available for on-premises consumption). They usually have a few different beers in stock, and they all sound really interesting on paper. We've had a few now, and they've mostly been hit or miss. Some have been fantastic; others, not so much. Still, we appreciate the experimentation and the fact that these are very reasonably priced. This time, we opted for a beer called Joe'kin. This sucker is brewed with real roasted pumpkins, caramelized brown sugar, Madagascar vanilla, pumpkin pie spices, lactose, and three types of coffee. You'd think that this would be a dark, menacing beer but it's a wheat-based ale that pours amber-orange and was highly effervescent. Overall, not a bad release and it was interesting to mix pumpkin with coffee. If this would have had a porter or stout base and less spice, it would have been a homerun! There was also another cork & cage beer available called Neo (based on Neopolitan ice cream flavors chocolate, vanilla and strawberry that sounded awesome) but it would have to wait for another time.

So it was back to the Chalet for a few late-night beers and some couch time, followed by a good night's sleep. Since Selin's Grove was closed on Monday (m'wah!), we skated down Rt. 11/15 South to Al's of Hampden for some Labor Day libations. I don't visit as often as I'd like, but each time I do, there are a few new beers on tap that sound tasty. I went with Stay Handsome, a new IPA brewed with peaches and hibiscus. This one was particularly delicious and left a ton of lacing all around the glass (see pic below).

In addition to about 25 house beer at any one time, Al's is known for his unparalleled tap selection in the area, boasting 101 different beers on draught, nitro, and cask. They've also become what might as well be called Tired Hands' West Shore location, because Al has been featuring anywhere from 4 to 8 Tired Hands beers on tap at any given time. Since I make it to Tired Hands even less than Al's, I always make it a point to try a new beer if I hadn't already had it. On this day, I sampled Hoi Oligoi, a cloudy IPA brewed with spelt and rye and hopped with Cascade, Hallertau Blanc and Columbus. I followed this up with Confrontation of the Unconscious, a barrel-aged saison. One of Jean's fortes is brewing complex farmhouse-style ales, and this one was no exception. This one featured a blend of a fresh, citrusy Saison base with a 1-year aged red wine barrel fermented "red" Saison. Delicious! 

Pleeps' Confrontation of the Unconscious

With an extra day of drinking, it was time for a much-needed rest. Stay tuned for more scenes from Portlandia. We're about halfway through our adventure. Thanks for reading. Until next time...

An Evening at Tired Hands Brewing Co.

A few days after returning from our epic San Diego vacation, Brewslut and I were off to Philadelphia (yes... again!) for yet another romp around the city.  However, this time, we were in town for a pair of concerts: Iron Maiden with special guest Alice Cooper on Friday night just across the river in Camden, and Tenacious D on Saturday night at Festival Pier.  But you know us... ANY trip is a beer trip, really.  During our visit, we were able to hit favorites like Barcade, Memphis Taproom and Kraftwork, plus a few new spots like Yards and the brand new Tired Hands Brewing Co.

Since the last blog went on for, well, forever, I'm going to focus my energy on our visit to Tired Hands.

Situated in the suburban town of Ardmore, PA, Tired Hands takes pride in producing fresh, unique craft beer in very small batches; so small, in fact, that they only produce about 12 kegs per batch.  Additionally, their small but well-thought menu includes a variety of locally-produced meats, cheeses, pickled items and seasonal produce.  They even bake their own delicious bread on premises, which you can order as a stand-alone item with butter or as the base of a variety of panini sandwiches.

The owner and brewmaster, Jean Broillet first got his start in the business at Weyerbacher, then moved onto brew at Iron Hill's West Chester location.  I first became aware of Tired Hands while visiting Hawthorne's for a Hill Farmstead event during Philly Beer Week 2011.  I struck up a conversation with Jean and talked about beer for a good fifteen minutes or so.  So I was indeed surprised that he remembered not only my face, but also my name when we visited Tired Hands over a year later!  I found this to be rather impressive, largely due to the fact that I typically forget someone's name five to eight seconds after meeting him.  It usually takes a good three or four meetings with someone for me to remember his or her name.  At any rate, I was excited to finally visit Tired Hands because I had heard from various friends in my beer circle that Jean really knew his stuff, and he was also friends with Shaun Hill of Hill Farmstead, a brewery I admire and respect greatly.

The main floor plan at Tired Hands is quite narrow, yet rustic and simple.  Think earthy colors paired with lots of distressed wood, stone and exposed brick.  No TVs, loud music or tacky decor.  This place is quaint and classic.  Brewslut and I parked at the bar, and we were immediately struck by the charm of this place.  I made the comment that this was the kind of place I would frequent a few times a week if I lived in town.

As for the beer menu, well, everything sounded amazing!  I honestly couldn't decide on even two or three pints, so I opted for 4oz. pours of a variety of beers.  The first, Blood Root, was a hoppy red Saison that was quite tasty.  My two other selections, Hop Hands and Leaflet, were both low-alcohol, sessionable Pale Ales, the former being Tired Hands' flagship beer.  Leaflet was described as a "delicate pale ale," which I assumed had something to do with the very low ABV of only 3.5%.  This is a beer that you could enjoy all afternoon.  Brewslut chose the Delicado, a citrusy collaboration IPA with Hill Farmstead.  I shared this with her, of course, and we liked it so much that we ended up getting a growler to take home.  She also tried Farm Hands, a 4-grain Saison that was solid.  While we were there, one of the other beers we tried kicked, and Jean said he would be putting on a beer called Killgore (named after a character from a Kurt Vonnegut novel).  He described it a cross between an India Black Ale (or black IPA) and a Stout.  Sounded good to me!  We tried it, and it was quite good... hoppy, roasty and bold!

The food was equally impressive.  We each got a smoked cheese panini with gazpacho and honey kraut.  The panini sandwiches were made with the aforementioned in-house baked bread.  We liked the place so much that we didn't really want to leave, but after all it was Sunday evening, and we had to work the next day.  Plus, we were pretty tired from the double-header concert (both were outside in the wonderful extreme summer heat of PA).  Before we left, however, we also tried Lazy Feet, a barrel-fermented Biere de Garde.  Jean definitely has a penchant for brewing French-style farmhouse ales and barrel-aged beers, and this beer was a wonderful combination of two of his passions.  However, his beers artfully blend the traditional European styles with the envelope-pushing American hop-forward styles we beer geeks can't seem to get enough of.  Overall, this place definitely left a lasting impression on us, and we can't wait to return to see what else Jean is brewing up!

Philly Beer Week(end)

Now that Philly Beer Week has been moved to the first week of June, I guess I know what Brewslut and I are doing for our anniversary from now until we croak!  We arrived into town Friday night around 9pm in time to hit up The Devil's Den for the Bella Vista Bash.  This was one of my "must-attend" events for opening weekend, as the tap list was pretty ridiculous.  I enjoyed the Hill Farmstead Citra DIPA as well as Cigar City's India Porter, while Brewslut opted for Marron Acidifie, a collaborative beer from The Bruery and Cigar City.  We met up with some friends from The Brass Rail crew and decided to swing by Hawthorne's for some grub and more beer, which was a mere two blocks away.  We got there a few minutes after the kitchen closed, but they were gracious enough to serve us!  I went with another Hill Farmstead selection, a barrel-aged Saison called Art.  We both enjoyed the fish tacos in preparation for a trip to San Diego later this summer!  After Hawthorne's, we headed back to Matt and Morgan's, our hosts and innkeepers for the weekend.

The next morning, we treated Matt and Morgan to breakfast at Cafe Lift, as a thank you for their hospitality.  We definitely need to stop in next time we visit, if only for their amazing coffee!  The food was fantastic to boot.  Anyway, Saturday June 4th marked Brewslut's and my twelfth wedding anniversary, so what better way to celebrate than by attending a Beer Festival?  We had purchased tickets for the International Great Beer Expo at the Navy Yard a few months prior to PBW with the anticipation of an awesome event.  While it was organized well and there was plenty of space for all of the attendees, I felt that the selection was rather lacking.  Also, the majority of the selections were poured from bottles in lieu or draughts, which irked me a bit.  If I want to drink from bottles, I will stay at home with friends and crack open a few.  Also, some of the bottle selections, such as Mikkeller Stateside IPA and Dieu du Ciel Corne du Diable did not taste particularly fresh.  Still, I was pleased to see Ithaca and Brooklyn pouring Dark Humor and Cuvee Noire, respectively.  But honestly, I can do without Shock Top and the like.  I don't know... call me jaded, I suppose.  While the roster of brewers ran the gamut of German, Belgian and other Euro breweries as well as U.S. craft brewers, I felt the local scene was particularly lacking.  I understand that this was an "International" beer fest, but no Troegs, Victory, Sly Fox... even Dogfish Head?!  NY seemed to be well represented, though, with Blue Point, Brooklyn and Ithaca all represented.  Blue Point was also the only brewery I noticed that brought a firkin, albeit a rather generic copper ale.  Still, it was something different.  Even all of the food vendors ran out of soft pretzels about an hour-and-a-half into the event.  While we did get to run into several friends at the event, I doubt we will be returning for a second year.  I would have preferred hitting a few of the smaller special events that were going on during the three-and-a-half-hour festival. 

Nuts, me and Suda at the International Great Beer Expo.

 We left the festival about thirty minutes early and jumped back on the shuttle bus, then made our way back to Hawthorne's for a meet-the-brewer event and tap takeover with Hill Farmstead's Shaun Hill.  I had recognized Shaun the night before at the Devil's Den and had wanted to approach him, but I was a bit timid at first.  Later, when I decided to introduce myself, he was busy talking to someone else and I didn't want to come across as rude. 



Hawthorne's patio

We got to Hawthorne's about an hour early, because I anticipated a pretty large crowd for this event.  Prior to Shaun's arrival, we met Hill Farmstead's local rep Mike, and had a nice conversation with him about Shaun's beers and brewing philosophy. After a while, Shaun showed up and discussed his beers with many of the attendees.  I shared a few brief words with him and expressed my appreciation for his beers, especially the hoppy ones I'd had previously (Ephriam, Abner, Cira DIPA).  I also had a lengthy conversation with Jean Broillet, brewer and owner of Tired Hands, a brand new brewery in Ardmore, PA.  I had just sampled his collaboration beer with Shaun, a Biere de Mars, and it was pretty damn delicious.  Jean had been brewing at Iron Hill's West Chester site (my favorite aside from Lancaster), so I was quick to tell him that I had enjoyed our previous visit to The Gathering of the Gourds pumpkin beer event.  I look forward to sampling some Tired Hands beers in the very near future.  If the Biere de Mars is any indication of things to come, then we are in store for some tasty offerings from Tired Hands.

Pleeps ready to enjoy some Hill Farmstead goodness!

When we visit Philadelphia, we can rarely leave the city without a visit to Nodding Head Brewery and Restaurant, especially when Ich Bin Ein Berliner Weisse is on tap.  Nodding Head marks the first time Brewslut tasted a Berliner Weisse style beer, and she immediately fell in love (kind of how she felt when she first saw me back in high school) and it has since become her favorite beer style.  I had checked out their web site prior to our trip, so I knew the Berliner Weisse was on tap.  We stopped in for a "one and done" visit, and it was a tasty as ever!

Brewslut enjoying a Berliner Weisse with Pleeps looking on jealously.

In the meantime, a few friends from Shamokin contacted me about attending a RateBeer.com tasting at a Best Western hotel near the Art Museum.  So, we decided to jump in a cab and head over to the tasting, which was held in what appeared to be the breakfast area adjacent to the lobby.  About 50 Rate Beer peeps were in attendance, and I later learned that one of my good beer compatriots, Kramer, was responsible for setting up the event.  Honestly, I can't even recall what I had at the tasting... I just know I only sampled a few beers, because by that time, I'd had just about enough.  But it was good to catch up with Shinsk, Chu, Kramer and fellow BA Craig (aka corby112). 

After a very good (and lengthy) night's sleep, Matt prepared a tasty vegetarian breakfast for us, complete with scrambled eggs, veggie sausages, toast and coffee.  After breakfast, we said our goodbyes and headed downtown for the first of a few stops before we returned home to Annville.  Our first stop was at Eulogy for the 2nd Annual Coffee Beer Brunch, which boasted an amazing line-up of coffee stouts including Dieu du Ciel Peche Mortel, Central Waters Coffeehouse Stout, Mikkeller Beer Geek Bacon and Terrapin Wake & Bake.  It was indeed hard to limit to one or two, so Brewslut and I shared three selections: Evil Twin Liquid Dookie, Die Striuse Black Damnation IV - Coffee Club, and of course Peche Mortel.  As much as I love Peche, though, I have to give props to the Black Damnation, which was my favorite of the three.  I really wanted to do a flight of all the beers, but unfortunately Eulogy was not offering flights.  M'wah. 

Afterwards, we decided to swing by the brand new Farmers' Cabinet to meet up with some friends, especially since we had yet to get there for a visit.  Brewmaster Terry Hawbaker was there, and I was informed that brewing still is not underway.  But he did promise that his roster was going to be "sour heavy," which got Brewslut particularly excited!  We'd also like to extend special thanks to our fellow Team D(r)INK member Dan for the pours of Cantillon Fou'Foune and Evil Twin Yang DIPA!

Our goal after The Farmers' Cabinet was to get to Monk's early for the Lost Abbey event, but unfortunately I could not find a parking spot and I refused to pay $23 for parking.  I really wanted to go, but Brewslut said she didn't care, so we decided to head over to Dock Street for lunch.  Unfortunately for us, Dock Street is closed on Sundays.  Double M'wah!  However, we remembered that Local 44 was in the neighborhood, so we decided to swing by for lunch and a beer.  Local 44 is owned by the same folks who also run the most excellent Memphis Taproom, as well as Resurrection Ale House, both also in Philly.  We both had a nice cask pull of Midnight Sun Porter, which I was surprised to see.  I had a tasty turkey sandwich with sprouts, tomato, avocado and red pepper mayo and some awesome fresh cut fries, while Brewslut opted for the mac and cheese with a side salad.  After Local 44, I must admit we were both pooped and in dire need of some couch time.  So, we hit the high road to Annville, which brings us to the conclusion of our third Philly Beer Week excursion.  We definitely look forward to our 13th anniversary next year!