As I write this, the sun is up and shining and it's the last day of Beer Week. As usually happens, I met this day with a sense of relief. No, I don't have to go out every day during Beer Week, and I obviously didn't. But I still went out much more than usual, and I'm looking forward to my usual routing kicking back in.
Having said that, here is my wrap up of Days 8 and 9.
Day 8
Day 8 was an exciting one for me - John was coming home. I knew I'd have some time to kill before I had to meet him at the airport, so had decided to head to South Philly, where it would be easy for me to jump on 95 to pick him up. I wound up at P.O.P.E. with some friends, and while they weren't doing anything specifically for Beer Week at that time, they had the Allagash Yakuza on tap. Yakuza is the Tripel dry hopped with Sorachi Ace and Cascade hops. It's a big beer at 9%, but extremely well balanced and tasty. I think it's pretty rare - there's only 2 reviews for it on Beer Advocate and 3 on Rate Beer! I also had the Elysian Loser Pale Ale, one of my favorite pale ales. So flavorful!
After getting John from the airport, we headed to Misconduct Tavern. I love their burgers and we were both hungry for some dinner. I had the Harpoon Catamount Maple Wheat, a wheat beer brewed with Vermont maple syrup, which was quite good. After dinner we headed to Monk's, because even with all their great beer events I hadn't been there during the week. Again, nothing really going on per se, but they did have some great Russian River brews on tap, including one of my all-time faves, the Blind Pig, which is what I eagerly ordered.
Decided to take a little bit of a walk on to the other side of Broad Street, and found ourselves at Varga, where they were having Weyerbacher night. I had the Weyerbacher Victor, an India Red Ale, and their latest in the Brewer's Select Series. Really drinkable and delicious, and only 5.8%. I also had the Last Chance IPA, which I'd had earlier in the week.
We found ourselves at Tria after leaving Varga. Grabbed more food and I actually switched to a glass of wine at that point. Having only water probably would have been smarter, but I enjoyed the wine nonetheless.
Home was next on our agenda, and much needed at that point.
Day 9
I could tell Beer Week was getting to me, as I slept until 10:30, which I never do. Had a bit of leisurely morning - John was acclimating back to east coast time, and he slept until noon. He probably would have slept later if I hadn't woken up, but my stomach was telling me that some serious food was in order. We headed over the Memphis Taproom where they were having a home brew event. After having brunch (and a Brussels Calling from Brasserie de la Senne) we headed out to the beer garden where the beers of several home brewers were being showcased. Really fun event. We got to try some different beers, and met people that I'd been following on Twitter that I hadn't met in person before. I had a lovely lavendar saison brewed by Bombshell Brewing, a Candadian Bacon IPA (two of my favorite things in one drink!), a Wit or Witout (Belgian Wit) from St. Benjamin Brewing, an English Pale Ale by Mellody Brewing, Fishtown Smally (a Trappist-style table beer), Summer Blonde, and Love Bite (English Ruby Mild).
Headed over the Royal Tavern, because we were both hungry again. They had a Troegs Tap Takeover, and I had the Sunshine Pils, one of my favorite summer beers.
From there we headed out to celebrate a friend's birthday. So once again, Beer Week fun ended but the party continued on.
Not sure what's on the agenda today. May head out for one last hurrah, or may start the detox process. I guess we'll see soon enough!
Showing posts with label Philly Beer Week. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Philly Beer Week. Show all posts
June 10, 2012
June 8, 2012
Philly Beer Week, Day 6
I had another great day celebrating craft beer in Philly on Wednesday.
The day started off at The Water Works Interpretive Center, with an event put together by Great Lakes. Let me say that I've been to the Water Works restaurant and have been past this building hundreds of times and I had no idea that there was anything other than the restaurant. But there is, and it's so interesting! You learn about the history of The Water Works, and many interesting facts about water and the ties between water and the development of Philadelphia. For instance, the Philadelphia water department was the first to supply an entire city with clean drinking water. And how about the fact that Fairmount Park, one of the largest urban parks, was established to protect the drinking water? But back to the event... there was a brief, but in-depth, presentation from Rich Wagner, author of ... , on the history of brewing in Philadelphia. It was a really educational couple of hours made even better by the addition of Great Lakes beers! I got to have one of my favorites - the Commodore Perry IPA - and got to try the Rally Drum Red Ale, typically only available at the pub.
Next I stopped by the Four Seasons With Love Beer Garden. On tap that day were a couple of new local brewers including Round Guys and Evil Genius. I had the Evil Genius Big Eye PA, which I really enjoyed. I also had an amazing shrimp taco. Definitely wish I'd made it out to see more brewers at this garden. Didn't spend too long here, because I was excited to get over to St. Stephen's Green for their Bell's event.
For those that don't know, SSG (as I refer to it) is the place I have to thank for my love of craft beer. I was lucky enough to live across the street from this great bar for 4 years. Thanks to the wonderful people that work there, I was able to constantly try new beers. If I didn't like something I'd ordered (which happened fairly frequently as I was getting used to all the new beer flavors), they were always willing to give me something else to try. Just love!
My last beer of the night was a Bell's Black Note, and what a way to end the night. This big, 11.5% brew is a combination of the Expedition Stout and Double Cream Stout aged in newly retired oak bourbon barrels for months. I'll admit it was a bit potent for me. I don't love bourbon, and the flavor came through a bit too strong for me, especially given some of the beers I'd been enjoying earlier in the evening. Having said that, I'm really glad I got to try it.
Day 7 was a day off for me. But here we are at Day 8 and I'm looking forward to some good times tonight.
The day started off at The Water Works Interpretive Center, with an event put together by Great Lakes. Let me say that I've been to the Water Works restaurant and have been past this building hundreds of times and I had no idea that there was anything other than the restaurant. But there is, and it's so interesting! You learn about the history of The Water Works, and many interesting facts about water and the ties between water and the development of Philadelphia. For instance, the Philadelphia water department was the first to supply an entire city with clean drinking water. And how about the fact that Fairmount Park, one of the largest urban parks, was established to protect the drinking water? But back to the event... there was a brief, but in-depth, presentation from Rich Wagner, author of ... , on the history of brewing in Philadelphia. It was a really educational couple of hours made even better by the addition of Great Lakes beers! I got to have one of my favorites - the Commodore Perry IPA - and got to try the Rally Drum Red Ale, typically only available at the pub.
Next I stopped by the Four Seasons With Love Beer Garden. On tap that day were a couple of new local brewers including Round Guys and Evil Genius. I had the Evil Genius Big Eye PA, which I really enjoyed. I also had an amazing shrimp taco. Definitely wish I'd made it out to see more brewers at this garden. Didn't spend too long here, because I was excited to get over to St. Stephen's Green for their Bell's event.
For those that don't know, SSG (as I refer to it) is the place I have to thank for my love of craft beer. I was lucky enough to live across the street from this great bar for 4 years. Thanks to the wonderful people that work there, I was able to constantly try new beers. If I didn't like something I'd ordered (which happened fairly frequently as I was getting used to all the new beer flavors), they were always willing to give me something else to try. Just love!
My last beer of the night was a Bell's Black Note, and what a way to end the night. This big, 11.5% brew is a combination of the Expedition Stout and Double Cream Stout aged in newly retired oak bourbon barrels for months. I'll admit it was a bit potent for me. I don't love bourbon, and the flavor came through a bit too strong for me, especially given some of the beers I'd been enjoying earlier in the evening. Having said that, I'm really glad I got to try it.
Day 7 was a day off for me. But here we are at Day 8 and I'm looking forward to some good times tonight.
June 6, 2012
Philly Beer Week, Day 5
As I mentioned in my last post, I stayed in on Monday so don't have a recap of Day 4. However, Day 5 proved to be a good one.
I met up with my friend Heather at The Belgian Cafe, where they were having a Southern Tier Tap Takeover. Southern Tier makes one of my favorite seasonal beers, the Pumking. You can read my review of it here. Belgian Cafe was offering oak-aged Pumking. As delicious as it was, Heather and I both agreed that we both prefer the original. We also had the Inquity, an Imperial Black Ale, which I really loved. I've never had it before and am looking forward to having it again soon.
From there we went to London Grill. Earlier in the day they'd had a Dunk the Rep event, but unfortunately that was over by the time we go there. I had a Weyerbacher Last Chance IPA. A couple of things about this beer. It was just released last week, and it's replacing one of my favorites - the Hops Infusion - so it's a good thing I liked it as much as I did! Also, Weyerbacher will be donating a portion of all proceeds from the sale of this IPA to small, regional animal rescue operations.
On to Time Midtown. They were having an Ommegang night, but neither of us actually wound up with an Ommegang beer. Instead I had a Saranac White IPA, which I really enjoyed. It was a light, refreshing IPA that was a nice balance in flavor between wheat and hop.
Was going to call it a night after that, but on my way home I saw that there was an Allagash night at Uno's Maple Shade, so I stopped in for a try. I had a flight, which consisted of the Victor, Saison, Tripel, and Dubbel. Always good beers from Allagash, and last night didn't disappoint.
It was a very nice, if low key (which is respectable for a Tuesday) night. More events on my agenda later today, so will see where the night takes me.
I met up with my friend Heather at The Belgian Cafe, where they were having a Southern Tier Tap Takeover. Southern Tier makes one of my favorite seasonal beers, the Pumking. You can read my review of it here. Belgian Cafe was offering oak-aged Pumking. As delicious as it was, Heather and I both agreed that we both prefer the original. We also had the Inquity, an Imperial Black Ale, which I really loved. I've never had it before and am looking forward to having it again soon.
From there we went to London Grill. Earlier in the day they'd had a Dunk the Rep event, but unfortunately that was over by the time we go there. I had a Weyerbacher Last Chance IPA. A couple of things about this beer. It was just released last week, and it's replacing one of my favorites - the Hops Infusion - so it's a good thing I liked it as much as I did! Also, Weyerbacher will be donating a portion of all proceeds from the sale of this IPA to small, regional animal rescue operations.
On to Time Midtown. They were having an Ommegang night, but neither of us actually wound up with an Ommegang beer. Instead I had a Saranac White IPA, which I really enjoyed. It was a light, refreshing IPA that was a nice balance in flavor between wheat and hop.
Was going to call it a night after that, but on my way home I saw that there was an Allagash night at Uno's Maple Shade, so I stopped in for a try. I had a flight, which consisted of the Victor, Saison, Tripel, and Dubbel. Always good beers from Allagash, and last night didn't disappoint.
It was a very nice, if low key (which is respectable for a Tuesday) night. More events on my agenda later today, so will see where the night takes me.
May 18, 2012
Philly Beer Week is coming!
14 days. That’s all you have left to get ready for the biggest, best week of the entire year – Philly Beer Week. I’m not kidding when I say it’s the biggest week of the year, since the event actually runs for 10 days.
The official press conference took place Wednesday night in the beautiful gardens at The Four Seasons hotel, home again this year to the With Love Beer Garden. The beer garden will be open 5 – 9pm Monday, June 4 – Friday, June 8 with the following featured each night:
Monday, June 4 - Victory
Tuesday, June 5 - Philadelphia Brewing
Wednesday, June 6 - Prism, Evil Genius and Round Guys
Thursday, June 7 - Sly Fox
Friday, June 8 - Dock Street
Beer Week kicks off on Friday, June 1 with the day-long Hammer of Glory relay. Join the fun as the HOG makes its way through the streets of Philadelphia (via several bars) on its way to Opening Tap. This year there’s a free shuttle bus from Sugar House Casino, so there are no excuses for not being able to keep up.
Opening Ceremony, held on Independence Mall, is free and starts at 7 pm with Mayor Nutter tapping the first official, collaborative keg of the week, Brotherly Suds 3. Things really get under way with the Opening Festival at the Independence Visitor Center. Tickets are available for the VIP session ($75) from 6:30- 7:30pm, and the general session ($40) that starts at 7:30pm. VIP passes get you a special selection of beers paired with complimentary beer-friendly food, a souvenir drinking glass, and a gift bag. Either way, you’ll be treated to samples, including seasonals and one-offs, from the region’s best brewers.
Throughout the week there will be hundreds of events, including chances to meet the brewers, tap takeovers, festivals, classes, tours, food pairings, and more. And it’s not just Philly that gets shown the love; events are being held in the ‘burbs and New Jersey. You can find all the information at the Philly Beer Week website, and even more exciting, the PBW app, which lets you search by events, and set favorites and reminders.
Whether it’s your first time attending or your fifth, you’re sure to find plenty of opportunities to try great brews, meet great people, and make memories that you probably won’t remember because of said great brews.
The official press conference took place Wednesday night in the beautiful gardens at The Four Seasons hotel, home again this year to the With Love Beer Garden. The beer garden will be open 5 – 9pm Monday, June 4 – Friday, June 8 with the following featured each night:
Monday, June 4 - Victory
Tuesday, June 5 - Philadelphia Brewing
Wednesday, June 6 - Prism, Evil Genius and Round Guys
Thursday, June 7 - Sly Fox
Friday, June 8 - Dock Street
Beer Week kicks off on Friday, June 1 with the day-long Hammer of Glory relay. Join the fun as the HOG makes its way through the streets of Philadelphia (via several bars) on its way to Opening Tap. This year there’s a free shuttle bus from Sugar House Casino, so there are no excuses for not being able to keep up.
Opening Ceremony, held on Independence Mall, is free and starts at 7 pm with Mayor Nutter tapping the first official, collaborative keg of the week, Brotherly Suds 3. Things really get under way with the Opening Festival at the Independence Visitor Center. Tickets are available for the VIP session ($75) from 6:30- 7:30pm, and the general session ($40) that starts at 7:30pm. VIP passes get you a special selection of beers paired with complimentary beer-friendly food, a souvenir drinking glass, and a gift bag. Either way, you’ll be treated to samples, including seasonals and one-offs, from the region’s best brewers.
Throughout the week there will be hundreds of events, including chances to meet the brewers, tap takeovers, festivals, classes, tours, food pairings, and more. And it’s not just Philly that gets shown the love; events are being held in the ‘burbs and New Jersey. You can find all the information at the Philly Beer Week website, and even more exciting, the PBW app, which lets you search by events, and set favorites and reminders.
Whether it’s your first time attending or your fifth, you’re sure to find plenty of opportunities to try great brews, meet great people, and make memories that you probably won’t remember because of said great brews.
June 12, 2010
Philly Beer Week 2010 - Days 5 - 8
Beer Week is drawing to a close, although there are still 2 good days left. What a week it's been! Yesterday was one of the best for me, but I'll get there in a minute.
After staying in Monday night, I was ready to go again on Tuesday. I started with a great event at Smokin' Bettys - Broads & Brews. It featured women owners and brewers from Stoudt's, Dock Street, Flying Fish, and Philadelphia Brewing Company. It was really interesting to meet all these great women, drink their beer (of course), and be able to talk to them about their start in the business.
From there I went to Zavino's Wine Bar (where they also serve beer). Although not part of PBW, I did drink some Dogfish Head. Ended the night at Varga Bar. I know I said before I'd write down all the beers that I had so I could correctly identify them, but I didn't do that at Varga and I honestly can't remember what I drank. I can, however, remember what I sang - a very mumbled version of "Wonderwall" and a very good version of "The Scientist". Suffice it to say it was a very fun night.
Wednesday was pretty devoid of any PBW festivities. I went to a BYO for dinner and had a Sierra Nevada Torpedo. After dinner went to McGillin's, which was the ending point for a bar crawl with local brewers that had been going on. I hadn't gone on the bar crawl, but was glad enough to be there when we were able to get pitchers of the Flying Fish Exit 6 (easily one of the favorite beers I got to try earlier in the week). Was there for the Flyers game, which while a great game, ultimately ended in a Flyers loss and the end of their Stanley Cup run. Still, made for a good evening.
I took Thursday off. Needed time to recharge my batteries. It was well worth it when I was able to go for a run Friday morning and get an early start.
As I mentioned earlier, Friday was a great day and I got to try some really different beers. I went to Monk's for their Belgian brewers lunch. I tried the St. Bernardus Abt 12, Abbaye Val-Dieu Grand Cru, and Brasserie des Rocs Grand Cru. All very different than what I typically drink and all very good. It was really interesting to meet the brewers, too. I love everyone from Belgium that I've met and it makes me more anxious to get there ASAP.
From Monk's, I went to Jose Pistolas for their Weyerbacher lunch (having not eaten at Monk's, it was time for some food). I had the Weyerbacher Verboten (loved!) and the Saison.
After I had my fill of chips and tacos, I headed over to Hawthorne's for a Brewdog meet-the-brewer event. What an event it turned out to be! I got to try two of the most extreme beers out there - the Tactical Nautical Penguin, which comes in at a whopping 32% ABV and the Sink the Bismarck, which comes in at... wait for it... 41% ABV!! I think this may be the strongest beer in the world. I only had a taste of each, but believe me, that's all I needed. I got to also try the Tokyo, which seemed fairly tame at just 18.2%, and the Punk IPA, whose 6% ABV hardly seems worth mentioning. Incredible beers from an incredible brewer.
The day didn't end there. Up next was Supper. Not a PBW event, but great happy hour specials got my attention. 1/2 priced apps (selected ones) and a 1/2 priced featured beer, which yesterday was the SlyFox Pikeland Pils. After a couple of those, headed over to Good Dog, where there was a kick-the-firkin (I think it was a firkin) competition being held. It was a SlyFox bitter vs. a Southampton beer (I don't remember which it was since I didn't have one, but I think that was a bitter as well). I believe my friend got the last SlyFox pour, handing them the win.
Whew! What a Friday! Actually, I wound up going to Continental after for some food, and then my night was officially over.
On tap today? Devil's Den at noon for the Franziskaner/Spaten lunch. Then off to watch the USA in the World Cup. Not sure what - if anything - will come after that, but it's a beautiful day here in Philly and I can only imagine fun times ahead.
After staying in Monday night, I was ready to go again on Tuesday. I started with a great event at Smokin' Bettys - Broads & Brews. It featured women owners and brewers from Stoudt's, Dock Street, Flying Fish, and Philadelphia Brewing Company. It was really interesting to meet all these great women, drink their beer (of course), and be able to talk to them about their start in the business.
From there I went to Zavino's Wine Bar (where they also serve beer). Although not part of PBW, I did drink some Dogfish Head. Ended the night at Varga Bar. I know I said before I'd write down all the beers that I had so I could correctly identify them, but I didn't do that at Varga and I honestly can't remember what I drank. I can, however, remember what I sang - a very mumbled version of "Wonderwall" and a very good version of "The Scientist". Suffice it to say it was a very fun night.
Wednesday was pretty devoid of any PBW festivities. I went to a BYO for dinner and had a Sierra Nevada Torpedo. After dinner went to McGillin's, which was the ending point for a bar crawl with local brewers that had been going on. I hadn't gone on the bar crawl, but was glad enough to be there when we were able to get pitchers of the Flying Fish Exit 6 (easily one of the favorite beers I got to try earlier in the week). Was there for the Flyers game, which while a great game, ultimately ended in a Flyers loss and the end of their Stanley Cup run. Still, made for a good evening.
I took Thursday off. Needed time to recharge my batteries. It was well worth it when I was able to go for a run Friday morning and get an early start.
As I mentioned earlier, Friday was a great day and I got to try some really different beers. I went to Monk's for their Belgian brewers lunch. I tried the St. Bernardus Abt 12, Abbaye Val-Dieu Grand Cru, and Brasserie des Rocs Grand Cru. All very different than what I typically drink and all very good. It was really interesting to meet the brewers, too. I love everyone from Belgium that I've met and it makes me more anxious to get there ASAP.
From Monk's, I went to Jose Pistolas for their Weyerbacher lunch (having not eaten at Monk's, it was time for some food). I had the Weyerbacher Verboten (loved!) and the Saison.
After I had my fill of chips and tacos, I headed over to Hawthorne's for a Brewdog meet-the-brewer event. What an event it turned out to be! I got to try two of the most extreme beers out there - the Tactical Nautical Penguin, which comes in at a whopping 32% ABV and the Sink the Bismarck, which comes in at... wait for it... 41% ABV!! I think this may be the strongest beer in the world. I only had a taste of each, but believe me, that's all I needed. I got to also try the Tokyo, which seemed fairly tame at just 18.2%, and the Punk IPA, whose 6% ABV hardly seems worth mentioning. Incredible beers from an incredible brewer.
The day didn't end there. Up next was Supper. Not a PBW event, but great happy hour specials got my attention. 1/2 priced apps (selected ones) and a 1/2 priced featured beer, which yesterday was the SlyFox Pikeland Pils. After a couple of those, headed over to Good Dog, where there was a kick-the-firkin (I think it was a firkin) competition being held. It was a SlyFox bitter vs. a Southampton beer (I don't remember which it was since I didn't have one, but I think that was a bitter as well). I believe my friend got the last SlyFox pour, handing them the win.
Whew! What a Friday! Actually, I wound up going to Continental after for some food, and then my night was officially over.
On tap today? Devil's Den at noon for the Franziskaner/Spaten lunch. Then off to watch the USA in the World Cup. Not sure what - if anything - will come after that, but it's a beautiful day here in Philly and I can only imagine fun times ahead.
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