Philly Beer Week 2013

I am grateful to have a wife who loves craft beer. Given my terrible memory about things outside the realm of music (ie: setlists for concerts I have seen, or album track lists for bands I love), I am also fortunate enough that Philly Beer Week (PBW) coincides with my wedding anniversary, which serves as a welcome reminder each year! PBW has exploded over the last few years, getting so popular that a mobile app is now required for one to navigate the labyrinthine maze of events throughout the city. I had since entered the age of technology when Tröegs was kind enough to provide me with an iPhone upon hiring me, so I was able to download the app and peruse the hundreds of events happening just over the first weekend of PBW! Below is a recount of our weekend.

We arrived in Philadelphia on Friday night at around 8:30 p.m. and decided to head straight to Devil's Den for the much-anticipated and extremely popular annual Bella Vista Bash. When we arrived, the crowd seemed considerably less intimidating than the previous year's, but it was still a healthy amount of people. Bella Vista and Devil's Den always bring out the crème de la crème for this event, and this year was no different. We perused the lengthy tap list, and as usual, some of the really sought-after beers had already kicked, such as Cigar City Peach Humidor IPA. Regardless, there was plenty to be had, so I started with a Central Waters Peruvian Morning and Brewslut opted for Internezzo from, a green apple and wasabi sour ale Carton Brewing Company. My selection proved to be the winner, as Brewslut said her beer neither tasted like green apple nor wasabi. We ran into some friends from Philly, and they were gracious enough to share some of the Cigar City and Hill Farmstead/Dieu du Ciel collaboration beer called Friendship and Reunion (F&R). Thanks Bill and Gumper! I liked the F&R enough to order my own glass (surprisingly it had not yet kicked) and it was quite tasty. Brewslut enjoyed her Voodoo Grand Master, a sour version of Gran Met aged in Buffalo Trace barrels with Brett, which turned out to be her favorite of the three she had at Devil's Den. After Bill and Gumper departed, we ran into Dr. Justin and company as we were enjoying our final beers (me, an AleSmith IPA on cask and Brewslut, Bada Bing Cherry Porter by Coronado Brewing Company). After some Ffej of July discussion, we headed back to the Spade residence (our innkeepers for the weekend) to catch up over some rare beers.

After enjoying a Victory Prima Pils from Spade's kegerator, we broke into a few bottles. Up first was a Deschutes/Hair of the Dog collaborative beer from the "Conflux Series" called Collage. An American Strong Ale weighing in at over 11% ABV, this complex beer is a blend of Deschutes' The Dissident and The Stoic with HotD's Fred and Adam, then barrel aged in a variety of wooden vessels (Rye Whiskey, Cognac, Sherry, Pinot Noir, Bourbon, new American Oak, and new Oregon Oak... JESUS!). The result is, according to the makers of the beer, "an artistic collage of cask-aging alchemy." True dat!

Up next were two classic Russian River sour ales that were collecting dust in our beer cellar since our 10th Anniversary Trip to California back in 2010. Since Spade had recently discovered Russian River and a new found appreciation for sour beers, we decided that the time was finally right to crack open these vintages. Up first was Beatification Batch 003, followed by Temptation Batch 004. Everyone was in agreement that the Beatification was superior, although both were enjoyable. As only a casual fan of sour and wild ales, I found this one to be particularly amazing! I also enjoyed a tiny snifter of The Macallan (Mr. Peart's preferred libation) between beers.

Batch #003 is the shit! Holy sour notes, Batman!

We decided to hit nearby restaurant North 3rd for brunch with Spade and a work friend of his. I was excited, because Spade told me they were having a Founders Brewing Company brunch. Unfortunately, when we arrived, he had mistaken Founders for Southern Tier. Nevertheless, we had one of our favorite beers of the weekend during our fantastic brunch - Southern Tier "215" Saison, which was brewed especially for PBW 2013. A reference to the city's most recognized area code, "215" is an unfiltered, cloudy, citrus-forward Saison with a pleasant peppery finish. We followed this up with Southern Tier's Eurotrash Pilz, which we shared. While it was enjoyable, it had nothing on the Saison. Ultimately, everyone at the table ordered a "215" and it was unanimously voted a winner.

It's a Firkin Riot at Johnny Brenda's!

After a not-so-quick detour to the grand re-opening of Philadelphia Record Exchange (yes, I spent too much money on records AGAIN!), we swung by Johnny Brenda's for their annual "It's a Firkin Riot" event. The brand spankin' new Tröegs Scratch #97 had been recently tapped, so I opted for that. This is a session-strength IPA brewed with peppercorns, three varieties of rye malt, and lots of American hops. We brewed this in collaboration with Devils Backbone and The Church Brew Works to commemorate our collective GABF success in 2012. The goal was to be able to drink several of these in one setting, which definitely comes in handy when one is attending a week-long (or in our case, a weekend-long) beer event. Brewslut decided to pass on a firkin pint since Dock Street Johnny Berliner Weisse was on tap and she is a sucker for this particular style, which is a refreshing, low ABV German wheat beer with tart notes.

Up next was a visit to one of my favorites - Barcade! I can't stress enough how awesome this place is. After a pair of games of Ms. Pac-Man and Spy Hunter played while sipping on the über-delicious New Holland Barrel-Aged Night Tripper, I enjoyed a fantastic turkey waffle panini sandwich served with a side of maple syrup. Even better was the fact that this "lunch special" also included a bag of chips and any beer under $6! The sandwich alone was $8 on the menu, so it was like getting a beer for $2. I chose a pint of Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Harvest Ale, which complemented the sandwich nicely. While I spent a dollar in quarters on the games, Brewslut quietly checked in her beers on Untappd: Yards BBA Thomas Jefferson's Tavern Ale and Victory Liberty Bell Ringer, the latter of which was brewed especially for this year's PBW festivities.

Barrel-Aged Night Tripper. This is my "I like it" face!

After Barcade, it was off to another Fishtown favorite - Kraftwork. Unfortunately, this was a quick one-and-done stop, so I made it count. Upon perusing the draft menu, I was excited to see the amazing Firestone Walker Black IPA, Wookey Jack, on the list! I first had this beer during last year's trip to San Diego, and it is easily one of the best Black IPAs on the market. Brewslut enjoyed another fine offering from CA, Port Brewing's Summer Pale Ale.

Chillin' with Chewie.
I'm doing my best impression of a Wookiee (use your imagination)!

We ended the evening at Spade's neighborhood watering hole, Prohibition Taproom, where we had dinner with the Spades and our friend, Shinsk (one of the Bunker Hill gang from Shamokin). This place is an overlooked gem in the Philly beer scene. On this particular evening, they were hosting a superhero/villain comic book-esque event. They even had a costume contest and handed out X-Men and Game of Thrones (or was it Walking Dead... not sure, don't watch that shit) comics to all customers. The tap list was pretty damn amazing, too! Good thing we were closing out the night here, because there was a lot of high octane stuff on the draft menu. I started with one of my perennial favorites, Dorado from Ballast Point. They were serving it on nitro, which I'd never had before. Unfortunately, it lost a lot of its crisp, juicy citrus goodness in lieu of a softer, rounder mouthfeel from the nitro pour. It was still enjoyable, however. Up next on the agenda was Dark Horse Bourbon Barrel-aged Plead the Fifth, which may have been my beer of the weekend. I seem to recall having the standard version of this excellent Imperial Stout, but this BBA version was exceptional! I probably could have drank this for the rest of the evening, but I don't think my liver would have appreciated that very much. I finished up with Hill Farmstead's flagship Pale Ale, Edward, which proved a tasty counterpart to my delicious fried chicken dinner. In addition to the Dorado and Plead the Fifth, Brewslut also enjoyed an AleSmith IPA. All in all, it was a fun night, and I got to geek out about beer and metal with some industry peeps.

For the after-party, we all retired to Spade's house for a Prima Pils nightcap while listening to the new 5.1 surround sound version of Rush's 2112 album. We had assumed control, indeed!

Enjoying a nice break... an Imperial Biscotti Break, that is!

The following day, we made our way over to Old City for the 6th Annual Coffee Beer Brunch at Eulogy Belgian Tavern. We attend this event every year, and they always have a great line-up of coffee beers on tap. This year, I went with the one-two punch of Mikkeller's Beer Hop Breakfast and Evil Twin's Imperial Biscotti Break. The former is strangely similar to Victory Storm King, only more expensive. The latter I'd actually never had before, even though we purchased a bottle during our trip to Charleston, SC. Brewslut started with Elysian's Split Shot Espresso Milk Stout, then followed it up with a generous goblet of Ballast Point's incredible Victory at Sea, after which she assisted me with my tulip of Imperial Biscotti Break. For brunch, we both ordered the mushroom and goat cheese omelet with caramelized onions and a side of potatoes. Yum!

Behold the Hammer of Glory!

At around 2 p.m., we headed over to Kite & Key for the Throwdown in Franklintown, which pitted Yards, Victory, Allagash and Dogfish Head against each other in a variety of Olympic-style events including keg races and tug-of-war. Tröegs' very own Nick Johnson served as the referee for the afternoon. We ordered some nachos and some beers. I started with the Brotherly Suds 4 collaboration, listed as a citrusy Saison/Farmhouse-style ale. It sounded delicious, but I wasn't too thrilled with this year's version. However, I followed up this disappointing beer with the fantastic Liberty Bell Ringer from Victory, which Brewslut enjoyed earlier at Barcade. Brewslut was in the mood for something light and tart, so she went with a Dogfish Head Festina Peche, but then followed it up with a heavy hitter - Allagash James Bean, an 11% ABV barrel-aged Tripel brewed with coffee beans. We both agreed it was both tasty and cleverly named as well.

Brewslut man-handles the HOG!

After Kite & Key, we headed back to Casa Spade for a quick nap before we made our way over to Standard Tap for the Gold Standard tap takeover event featuring Tröegs, Devils Backtone, and The Church Brew Works. This event was put together to celebrate the success of the three breweries at GABF last October (a total of six gold, three silver, and six bronze medals were captured collectively by the three breweries). Tröegs also hosted brewers Matt Moninger (Church) and Jason Oliver (DB) to brew a commemorative Scratch Beer, a session-strength Black Rye IPA, especially for PBW. (NOTE: I discussed this beer earlier during our visit to Johnny Brenda's Firkin Riot event.) We met up with Dan, Kristen, Nate, and Charles at Standard Tap. It wasn't too crowded, so we were able to snag two tables in the upstairs area. After enjoying the rare Tröegs Scratch #94 - Apricot IPA (it kicked in about a day at the brewery), I decided to end on a simple note with two Devil's Backbone offerings. The first was its gold-medal winning Vienna Lager, which was an excellent representation of the style. I hadn't had a Vienna in quite some time, and I must say that this hit the spot, especially after drinking so many hoppy IPAs and huge barrel-aged beers for the majority of the weekend. The second was its Schwartz Beer, a German-style Schwarzbier, or dark lager. This beer was also very well done. Brewslut continued to nurse her Church Brew Works Coconut Stout, as she had to drive us back to Annville. We wrapped up the evening with a nice conversation with Matt Hasson, one of Tröegs' sales reps for the Philly market, and Jason from Devils Backbone.

Thankfully, we were able to avoid some of the events that turned into shit-shows and settled on some more low-key events. PBW might be starting to get too big, but it is still an enjoyable event and a good excuse to bum around the city for a weekend. We'll be back next year to celebrate our 15th anniversary!

A weekend even Zappa would be proud of!

The weekend of March 23 proved to be the perfect time to get away for a trip to one of the best beer cities in the nation - Philadelphia.  Lucky for us, Philly is only but a short hour-and-a-half drive from Annville (pending any unforeseen nightmarish traffic patterns on the Schuylkill Expressway - definitely not a rare occurrence, especially on a Friday evening).  Equally lucky for us, we made it into the city unscathed by perils of urban traffic.  This bodes well for us and the upcoming weekend activities.  A good omen, indeed!

The reason for our visit was two-fold.  First, one of my best and oldest friends, Matt, is finally taking the plunge and getting married later this month, and this was the weekend of his bachelor party.  Secondly, since I had no gigs, Brewslut tagged along, and we made it a long weekend filled with beer, including visits to some of our most loved beer destinations as well as some new favorites that I'm sure we will visit again sooner than later.  To quote one of my favorite musicians of all time, Frank Zappa: "I'm only interested in two things, and that's Titties and Beer."

You know what I mean?

We arrived at Matt's apartment at 8:30pm, and Brewslut dropped me off for an evening of debauchery, and she headed back to the hotel to enjoy some TV and a bottle of Kasteel Rogue.  I was surprised to find that my good buddy Chu, who was in charge of the beer for the evening, used his better judgement and selected a keg of Yards Philadelphia Pale Ale.  Additionally, I had a growler of the brand spankin' new Troegs Scratch 60 in tow, a Spring Fest Lager that was pretty tasty.  Actually, I found myself drinking more of the Yards, although I almost single-handedly polished off the growler solo.  Hey, its a session beer!  All drinking aside, it would be ungentlemanly of me to go into more detail as to what went on at the aforementioned bachelor party.  Let's just say that a good time was had by all, especially the groom-to-be!

The Last Soupie

 After an impromptu lunch at a great local Thai restaurant, day two of the bachelor party extravaganza continued.  Wait a minute!  When did this become a multi-day event?  When I got married back in 1999, I had one lone evening of drunken shenanigans.  At any rate, we needed to fill up before our hour-long workout with Matt's personal trainer, Sgt. Nate, a retired Army drill sergeant.  This was actually a pleasant deviation from the typical weekend beer jaunt, as both Brewslut and I are avid gym-goers and also work with our own personal trainer.  Needless to say, we got our asses kicked over the next hour.  All I can say is this: If I ever do another burpee again, it will be too soon for me!

The guys (and Brewslut) with Sgt. Nate

After a quick shower back at the hotel, we were ready to begin the "beer" portion of the trip (although I probably drank enough beer for an entire weekend on Friday night alone)!  Our first stop was the much-anticipated Barcade, which recently opened in the Fishtown section of the city.  Anyone who knows me knows that I have a deep and profound love of classic 80's video games.  When I first heard of this amazing concept (craft beer and video games), I thought, "Man, if they just played Rush songs all the time, I'd never leave!"  I definitely could have spent many hours here, as they had a veritable cornucopia of games from my childhood that I loved and pumped full of quarters in my younger days: Spy Hunter, Paperboy, Gauntlet II, Track & Field, Frogger, Golden Axe and many more.  Best of all, the games are still only a quarter!  The beer selection was extremely heavy on Victory selections, as they had a tap takeover event the previous night.  So unfortunately they didn't have the selection I was hoping for.  Still, I was able to try a new Victory beer - a chocolate lager on nitro!  I must admit it sounded weird at first, but it was delicious.  I also had a Headwaters Pale Ale, which has recently become one of my favorite go-to session beers.  It's got a nice citrusy hop bite for a straight-up pale ale.  Brewslut was a good sport while she read her kindle and enjoyed her beer while the 10-year-old in me took over for an hour or so.

Our next stop was another Fishtown favorite - Memphis Taproom.  Unfortunately, it was almost elbow to asshole when we entered, but we quickly snagged a corner table in the bar area.  Since we'd eaten there on a previous visit, we knew the food was stellar, so we made plans to get dinner here.  I opted for a vegan Shepherd's Pie (something I miss since becoming red meat-free), while Brewslut chose an apple salad.  Beer-wise, I chose another session beer, this time a cask conditioned bitter from England called Bluebird bitter.  It was fine, but didn't wow me.  Brewslut went for the delicious Lost Abbey Deliverance, a blend of Brandy Barrel Angel's Share and Bourbon Barrel Serpent's Stout.  Hot damn!  This was one amazing beer!

After our visit at Memphis Taproom, we decided to swing by a place we hadn't visited before.  Kraftwork is a modern beer bar also in the Fishtown district that may very well be my favorite beer bar in the city... and that's only after one visit!  We grabbed two seats at the bar, which was actually a slightly lower than usual bar in the shape of a squared off letter "U".  The decor at Kraftwork is modern with an industrial flair.  Exposed brick walls, hardwood floors and metal tools posed as artwork decorated the establishment.  The tap selection was varied and well thought out, with just about every style of American craft beer represented.  The beer menu was laid out well and easy to read, with name, style, ABV, prices, etc. listed.  The service was superb.  Both of the bartenders on duty were extremely friendly and attentive.

For our first beer, we both opted for Russian River Pliny the Elder, a favorite DIPA amongst all hopheads.  Afterwards, we selected a flight of 5-oz. pours that included North Coast Old Rasputin on nitro, Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout, Darkhorse Blackbier and the Three Floyds/Mikkeller collaboration Boogoop.  I can't give this place enough praise.  This will be a must-visit on all future trips to Philly.

A quick stop to The Foodery was up next, and I picked up a mixed six-pack from a well-stocked selection at this fantastic but extremely cramped bottle shop.  I was happy to find a bomber of Great Divide's excellent Espresso Oak Aged Yeti, as well as Maine Beer Company's Peeper Ale (a favorite pale ale of mine) and a few other 12oz. bottles that I haven't tried yet.

Our final stop of the evening was Dock Street, one of our favorite brewpubs in the city, not only for their fine beer, but also for their amazing wood fired pizzas.  Brewslut and I shared a small vegan pie, topped with an assortment of veggies and tofu.  For our beer selections, I went for my old Dock Street standby, Rye IPA and Brewslut chose the Prince Myshkin's Russian Imperial Stout.  The vegan pie really hit the spot, and it was a good way to end a long day of imbibing!

After a good night's sleep, we awoke on Sunday morning and checked out of the hotel.  First on the agenda was to hit up Cafe Lift for breakfast.  We first visited Cafe Lift with Matt and Morgan during a recent visit to Philly, and we liked it so much that we wanted to go back.  With a flair for fresh, unique specials and a varied menu that includes several vegetarian options, Cafe Lift is worth a stop just for the coffee and turkey bacon!  Plus, they've got a hip European vibe and an ample waiting area (the latter of which is nice because they tend to get quite busy on the weekends). 

First up on the drinking activities for the day was to hit up The Farmer's Cabinet in Center City.  With a penchant for rare beers from Europe and pre-Prohibition cocktails, as well as a gourmet menu, The Farmer's Cabinet is also new home of Terry Hawbaker's beers.  While the atmosphere is indeed quite awesome, its Terry's beers that keep me coming back.  This is a must-stop for us when we visit Philly.  On this particular occasion, we enjoyed a line-up of beers inspired by Joy Division songs.  I must admit that I never got into any of the pre-Goth 80's alternative bands (such as Joy Division, The Cure, The Smiths, etc.), so I don't know much about the songs after which there beers were named.  Brewslut and I each sampled 5-oz. pours of all four beers.  First up was Exercise One, a Grisette brewed with peppercorns and Citra hops.  This was pretty damn tasty, but the peppercorns were overshadowed by the citrus character of the hops...no complaints here, though.  Second on the bill was New Dawn Fades, a dark Saison with lemongrass and peppercorns.  This was quite a diverse and complex brew.  Terry is know for brewing some exceptional Saisons, and this one is no exception.  Up next was Heart and Soul, a Farmhouse pale ale brewed with chamomile and citrus peel.  Think orange tea.  The fourth and final beer was No Love Lost, a Farmhouse IPA (yeah... that's what I said) brewed with a Saison yeast.  I must admit that this was a pretty damn delicious beer with an assertive piney, citrusy hop character and plenty of dark roast, not to mention the earthiness of the yeast.  Another complex gem from Terry's brain.  Next time, we'll be sure to hit up the new American craft beer-focused establishment owned by the same folks called The Boiler Maker.  And its just around the corner from The Farmer's Cabinet.

Afterwards, we took a short walk to Nodding Head Brewing Co. for lunch and a beer before our trip back home.  We both opted for the interesting-sounding Tasman, a low ABV pale ale brewed with organic Pacific Gem hops from New Zealand.  I have enjoyed many beers brewed with Nelson Sauvin hops (most notable Alpine's Nelson), a hop variety indigenous to New Zealand, so I was anxious to try this beer.  The hops imparted a berry-like sweetness that was odd at first but eventually grew on me.  Unfortunately, Brewslut didn't respond favorably and therefore took a while for her to deplete the contents of her glass.  Difference of opinions aside, we both enjoyed our lunch selections: her, the Moroccan Mussels and Frites, and me an interesting take on Huevos Rancheros, a brunch special that was not a regular menu item.  We also shared the hummus of the day, which was an olive Tapenade.  The first time we ever had hummus was at Nodding Head, so we always try to squeeze in a portion when we visit.  Our meals were tasty and quite filling, leaving no more room for beer, unfortunately.  Which brings us to the end of another trek to Philadelphia. 

All in all, this was a perfect weekend for me: beer, food, video games, nudity and a little bit of fitness on the side!