+ All Categories
Home > Documents > Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

Date post: 31-Mar-2016
Category:
Upload: philly-beer-scene
View: 219 times
Download: 3 times
Share this document with a friend
Description:
The Smoking Room, Extreme Eco-Homebrewing, Macro Vs. Micro Brewing, GBPS, The Tasting Room with Lew Bryson, Weird Hot Beer, Sam Adams + More!
Popular Tags:
52
OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2009 1 + Extreme Eco-Homebrewing CRAFTING BEER WITH THE POWER OF THE SUN Dock Street vs. Anheuser-Busch InBev LEARNING FROM MICRO AND MACRO BREWMASTERS Would You Like a Smoke? The last beer bars where you’ll find an ashtray ISSUE 3 | OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2009 | WWW.BEERSCENEMAG.COM GBPS | Drinking with Lew Bryson | Weird Hot Beer | Sam Adams
Transcript
Page 1: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 1

+extremeeco-Homebrewingcrafting beer with the power of the sun

Dock Street vs. Anheuser-busch Inbevlearning from micro and macro brewmasters

Would You Like a Smoke? The last beer bars where you’ll find an ashtray

issue 3 | october/november 2009 | www.beerscenemag.com

GbPS | Drinking with Lew bryson | Weird Hot beer | Sam Adams

Page 2: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 20092

Page 3: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 3

DAVINCI’S PUBCOLLEGEVILLE

www.davincispub.com

DRAFTING ROOM TAP & GRILLE

SPRINGHOUSEwww.draftingroom.com

FIRESIDE BAR AND GRILLEAMBLER

www.firesidebarandgrille.com

NIPPERSJEFFERSONVILLE

www.nippersbarandpizza.com

NORTHSIDE BAR & GRILLEZIEGLERVILLE610-287-7272

OH BRYON’S ROAST BEEFHUNTINGDON VALLEY

215-938-6626

OTTO’S BEER GARDENHORSHAM

www.ottosbrauhauspa.com

SUMNEY WESTLANSDALE

www.thesumney.com

THE BRICK HOUSEPOTTSTOWN

www.pottstownbrickhouse.com

UNION JACKSGLENSIDE

215-886-6014

MAGGIO’S SOUTHAMPTON

www.maggiosrestaurant.com

MCCOOLE’S @ RED LION INN

QUAKERTOWNwww.mccoolesredlioninn.com

NEWPORTVILLE INNNEWPORTVILLE

www.newportvilleinn.net

SELLERSVILLE THEATERSELLERSVILLEwww.st94.com

THE BUCK HOTELFEASTERVILLE

www.thebuckhotel.com

THE CHURCHVILLE INNCHURCHVILLE

www.thechurchvilleinn.com

THE TEMPERANCE HOUSENEWTOWN

www.temperancehouse.com

TONY’S PLACE BAR & GRILLEIVYLAND

www.tonysplaceivyland.com

VEREINIGUNG ERZGEBIRGEWARMINSTER

www.veclub.org

WASHINGTON HOUSESELLERSVILLE

www.washingtonhouse.net

DelawareCOCCO’S PIZZERIA & PUB

ASTONwww.coccospizzeriapub.com

FIREWATERSGLEN MILLS

www.firewatersbar.com

JD MCGILLICUDDYSDREXEL HILL

www.mcgillicuddys.net

RADNOR HOTELWAYNE

www.radnorhotel.com

MontgomeryBETHAYRES TAVERNHUNTINGDON VALLEY

www.bethayrestavern.com

BROTHER PAUL’SEAGLEVILLE

www.brotherpauls.com

CHAP’S TAPROOM JEFFERSONVILLE

www.chapstap.com

CRAVING’SLANSDALE

www.cravingscafe.com

Bucks CountyBOBBY SIMONE’S

DOYLESTOWNwww.ilovebobbys.com

BUBBAS POT BELLY STOVEQUAKERTOWN

www.bubbaspotbellystove.com

CLUB HOUSE BAR & GRILLNEWTOWN

215-860-5566

CONTINENTAL TAVERN INC.YARDLEY

www.contav.com

EAGLES NEST TAVERNLEVITTOWN

215-945-9685

EARL’S PRIMELAHASKA

www.earlsprime.com

GERMAN HUNGARIAN CLUBLANGHORNE

www.ughclub.us

GREEN PARROTNEWTOWN

[email protected]

HULMEVILLE INNHULMEVILLE

www.hulmevilleinn.com

WARSTEINER • THE OFFICIAL BEER OF GERMAN AMERICAN DAY • OCTOBER 6, 2009

Go to: germanamericanday.org for more information

VISIT THESE RESTAURANTS FOR GREAT WARSTEINER OKTOBERFEST BEER SPECIALS.

Page 4: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 20094

Contents October/November 2009

SPecIALS

the variety packBy John Galster, Brandi KereKes, neil harner, lynn hoffman & Kevin romer

fun with beerIf you can’t find a glass, just use your boot.By neil harner

woman on the sceneFrom hopscotch to hops.

By suzanne Woods

cooking with beerWhite bean chicken chili.By streeter f. mcclure

tapping into technologyGBPS: Global Beer Positioning System By zeKe diaz

beer travelUpstate New YorkBy mat falco

not beerRooted in HistoryBy alicia eichelman

bar & restaurant reviewsUnique beer destinations for a pint and a meal in and out of the city. By mat falco and scott Willey

38

26

solar brewingCreating the greenest beer on the planet.By david martorana

macro vs. microTwo unique experiences at two very

different breweries.By mat falco & John Galster

8

12

13

14

SectIonS

15

16

17

36

the godfather of extremeAn intimate lunch with Jim Koch.By mat falco

26baby it’s cold outsideFor the smoker who enjoys a good craft

beer at the bar...inside.By scott Willey

20

18

31

the tasting room12 Beers reviewed by our panel with special guest: Lew Bryson.

directoryLocal listings of places to drink a great beer, take home a great beer, or make your own (great) beer.

beer eventsLocal happenings throughout the Philly beer scene. By neil harner

38

42

48

Page 5: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 5

111 E. Butler Ave., Ambler, PA 19002

Phone: 215.283.4887www.shanachiepub.com

Lunch & Dinner - 7 Days

Sunday Breakfast

Happy HourMonday - Friday 5-7pm

15 Draught Beers

Irish Music Session Every Tuesday 8pm

Live Irish Music Friday & Sunday

Page 6: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 20096

every issue in your mailbox.

www.beerscenemag.com!

Only $20 for a 1 Year Subscription.

Subscribers also benefit by getting special

offers on local events!

Get Philly Beer Scene

Subscribe today @

Philly Beer Scene is Designed & Printed in the USA. Philly Beer Scene is an Inverse Paradox Publication. Copyright © 2009 Inverse Paradox, LLC. Philly Beer Scene is published bi-monthly by Inverse Paradox, LLC. 4432 Bristol Road, Suite 1B, Oakford, PA 19053 | 215-478-6586

For subscription inquires please visit us on the web at www.beerscenemag.com/subscribe.html

founDerS

Scott Willey, Neil Harner, Mat Falco & John Galster

Art DIrector

Melissa Levenduski

executIve eDItor

Shannon McLaughlin

ASSocIAte Art DIrector

Brandi Kerekes

contrIbutInG eDItorS

Zeke Diaz, Lynn Hoffman, David Martorana, Streeter F. McClure,

Kevin Romer & Suzanne Woods

contrIbutInG ArtISt

Andrew Loder

eDItorIAL ASSIStAnt &

SubScrIPtIonS mAnAGer

Alicia Eichelman

event coorDInAtor

Rachel Bech

PHotoGrAPHY

Celeste Giuliano, Jonathan Clark & Peter Schuster

fASHIon DIrectorS

Raina Clarke & Kirsten Sylvester

Web DeSIGner

Amanda Mitchell

Account executIveS

Marta Leja & Kevin Puls

we have 24 beers on tap!Wednesday's

Buck County Sings with WOGL

Thursday's Jerry Blavat

Friday and Saturday Live Bands

Sunday Night's with LeCompt

Bavarian Barbarian Beer Dinner October 21st

1200 Buck Rd

Feastervl Trevos, PA 19053

215-396-2002

Page 7: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 7

Letter from the Founder

Wow, what an issue we have here! I really hope that reading our magazine is as exciting as it is writing it. Half a year in and still plugging, we are really thrilled by the support that we have been getting on every issue and we owe it all to you, our readers in Philadelphia and beyond. It hasn’t been the easiest issue but maybe that makes it all the more satisfying to see the end result.

Even with the events we’ve been at, people have been saying they haven’t seen us around and out on the town as much as expected. Well, we’re happy to say that we’re bringing in a few extra helping hands. Look for our good friends Kevin Romer and Marta Leja, in addition to yours truly and the rest of the Philly Beer Scene folks. It has been a hectic time for all of us as this is essentially a hobbyist publication. I’ve just bought a house, Neil is dealing with one of the busiest times for his business and his son is due sometime while this issue is in the bars, Mat has helped open the brand new Raw Dawgs Saloon in South Philly where he is now managing, and on top of this we pushed our deadlines up in order to get our magazines out a little earlier for you this month. With all this going on, we are going to need all the help we can get from you too. Your duty is to enjoy the magazine. Tell your friends and send us feedback - questions submitted to John Knows Best are a great way to interact with us and have the chance to win a free gift card.

We’ve got some really fun stuff in this issue - Mat and I each visited a brewery to see what goes on at some big and small productions and brewing will have never looked so green when you check out our feature on a local homebrewer who uses the power of the sun to craft his beer. Also of note, we had Melissa, our Art Director, stand in for Scott when he couldn’t make it to our Tasting Room with Lew Bryson. I think this time went well for us and really gives the feeling that we’ve been going for this whole time. We aren’t grading these beers, there are plenty of places that do that already, we’re just letting you know how we feel about the beers and maybe giving a little idea why. We are here to have a good time, not to catalog.

As exciting as this issue is, it is really just the beginning. That we are able to do this all under tighter deadlines and increased pressure from other fronts shows that we will be able to do even more in the future. We are still working up to new heights and the one thing that really allows us to do that is every reader who supports us, asks for the magazine at a local bar, and shares us with a buddy. Thank you for everything, Philadelphia, and keep up the good work.

Cheers,John GalsterFounder, Philly Beer Scene Magazine

Open 7 daysDaily Lunch & Dinner Specials

1211 South Bethlehem Pike • Ambler, PA 19002

P: 215-643-6540 F: 215-645-6594

Happy Hour Specials 15 Large Flat Screen TV’s16 beers on tapDaily Drink Specials25 Cent Menu on WednesdaysReal Wood-fired Brick-oven Specialties$2.00 Bud Light Pints All Day Monday-Friday$16.00 Bud Light Draft Towers All Day EverydayNFL Direct Ticket

Named“Best Place to Buy Beer”

(Philadelphia Magazine) Joe Sixpacks“Best Places for Six Packs”

Named One of 79“Remarkable Retailers”

(in the world)

Page 8: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 20098

The Variety Pack

John knows best ...or does he? Is something stumping you about beer? Email your questions to [email protected].

Dear John, which regions of the world can hops grow in? Also, what is the difference between the various types? - Rachel B., Philadelphia, PA

Good news for anyone who would like to grow some themselves: hops, as part of the hardy Cannabaceae family of plants, can grow almost anywhere. Of course, the species of hops we use in beer (Humulus lupulus) are mostly grown in Europe and North America. Major growth areas are located in Germany, the UK and Northwestern United States.

The various types of hops are all specific cultivars - specialized plants altered by humans to have specific uniform characteristics. All the varieties have unique flavors and aromas as well as differing levels of alpha acids which impart bitterness to the brew.

Dear John, I’ve noticed that you seem to wear the same shirt every time I’ve seen you. What gives - do you only own one shirt? - Shannon M., Manayunk, PA

Thanks for pointing that out, actually. The shirt I can often be seen wearing is the promotional shirt from our first Brews for Boobies pub crawl last year. I love wearing the shirt because it is both stylish and helps raise awareness for our annual charity event. By the time you read this, we will have just completed our second Brews for Boobies event on the 3rd of October so you can look forward to me wearing the new one every-where I go (and yes, I do wash it every time I wear it).

Dear John, why do some people refer to some beers as “hoppy?” Aren’t all beers brewed with hops? - Adam T., Philadelphia, PA

As I pointed out in the last issue, beer does not technically have to be brewed with hops but most beers are. Besides the hops, much of a beer’s flavor comes from its malts. Different beers use different amounts and types of hops for flavor and aroma. The beers that most people refer to as “hoppy” typically have their balance between malt and hops flavors tipped more towards the hops side, possibly as a re-sult of using a large portion or stronger variety of hops.

So Easy— A Bachelor Can Do ItAn easy-to-follow cookbook to start your culinary beer adventures. By neil harner

www.thesinglemansguide.com The Single Man’S guide

to Cooking WiTh Beer

by Streeter F. McClure

Th

e Sing

le M

an

’S gu

ide to C

oo

kin

g W

iTh

Beer

by Streeter F. McClure

When I first picked up this book, I couldn’t help to first chuckle at the name Streeter F. McClure as it sounds like a fictional name from a bro-mance flick. And then reading his short introduction, I laughed out loud when he expressed that his inspiration was not only his love of beer but also wanting to impress the ladies. This is my kind of guy! After flicking through a few pages, I could tell I was going to enjoy experimenting in the kitchen with these recipes as they seemed extremely easy to follow, not to mention delicious.

I figured the best way to review this book was to just dive in and cook a complete meal with all recipes and that’s exactly what I did not too long ago. Friends of ours came over to feast on a delicious meal preparing and pairing these recipes with Philadelphia favorites.

We started with the Bacon Wrapped Beer Sausages which is literally as easy as wrapping some mini sausages in bacon, doing a quick boil in a pale ale and baking for about 15 minutes. The beer I featured with this appetizer was Sly Fox’s Phoenix Pale Ale. Everyone was pleasantly surprised by how much the characteristics of the ale came through the sausage and melted together with the buttery crisp bacon. Next came the White Bean

Chicken Chili which I made with Philadelphia Brewing Co.’s Walt Whit. By the end of the meal, this was the favorite of many so we decided to feature it in “Cooking With Beer” this month (page 14). For the main course, I prepared the Beer Steak and Chi-michurri Sauce. Putting together the sauce and marinade that comprises this recipe takes about 10 minutes to prepare and the results are awesome. The recipe calls for an IPA so I decided to use Victory’s HopDevil since our previous month’s issue featured a recipe for a Victory Hop Wallop Steak that was phenomenal.

The only thing that was missing was dessert, both from our meal and this cookbook. Although the book has tons of great, simple to prepare recipes that any man or woman could put together, I felt like the absence of some delicious desserts, perhaps taking advantage of rich dark beers like stouts and porters, left the book slightly incomplete.

Regardless, the meal was great and everyone was ending the night loosening their belts a notch. What I appreciated the most, being the host of this dinner, was not feeling completely exhausted (or broke) by the end of it.

This book is suited for anyone who is new to the kitchen or just looking to start cooking with beer. And finally, it is worth mentioning since October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a portion of all the proceeds from the sale of this book are being donated to breast cancer research. You can find this book for purchase online at www.thesinglemansguide.com.

Streeter F. McClure“The Single Man’s Guide to Cooking with Beer”Denver, CO: SMG Publishing, 200977pp. • $22.95 • 978-0-61232-256-5

www.thesinglemansguide.com The Single Man’S guide

to Cooking WiTh Beer

by Streeter F. McClure

Th

e Sing

le M

an

’S gu

ide to C

oo

kin

g W

iTh

Beer

by Streeter F. McClure

Page 9: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 9

The Variety Pack

Page 10: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200910

Yards Thomas Jefferson Tavern Ale –slightly sweet with a grapey character, it has a counter-vailing spiciness that trots right alongside some of the more extreme Thanksgiving dishes.

Tröegs The Flying Mouflan- you may have to search for this one but it’s worth the trouble because Mouflan plays with the same flavors as these sides, but does it so much more effectively. Notice the lovely caramel in the mouth, now notice how much better it tastes than whatever is in that casserole dish.

TurkeyI’m assuming that you’ve brined your turkey and

slid herbs under the skin. For the sake of your guests’ health, I’m also praying that you’ve cooked the ‘stuffing’ in another bowl and made a proper gravy from the drippings and some poultry stock. You have made poultry stock, haven’t you?*Victory Brewing Golden Monkey- supplies the flavor that the bird may lack. It will also keep your mouth reliably moist even if the turkey is making it dry. Be sure to serve it at just above refrigerator temperature-maybe 40-45˚F- to ensure that the spiciness dominates the palate.

Yards ESA- the trick here is the beautiful balance of hops and malt character with just enough alcohol to be authoritative. This beer complements the roasted character of a well-cooked bird.

Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA- Creamy texture and nutty aromas recall savory turkey stuffings. A perfect match for roasted anything.

Pumpkin Pie and its FriendsThe traditional Thanksgiving desserts are full-

bodied and savory. Pumpkin and mince pie are thick and spicy and their sweetness should be in check. So unlike other dessert courses, you don’t have to go overboard on the sweetness of the beer to keep things in balance. Ports, Sherries and Madeira’s are all in order if you’re serving wine, but if it’s time for beer, think about: Dogfish Head World Wide Stout- Microbrewers sometimes get weird about stout. They emphasize one of the roasted flavors chocolate or coffee or caramel. Some folks even pump up inappropriate hoppy character. This under celebrated stout is right on the money: all roasty harmony with toast and raisin character thrown in.

*Allagash Tripel- I know it’s not local, but this is truly one of the world’s most complex and finely-wrought beers. Fresh and dried-fruit notes, yeasty, vanilla, spice flavors all lead to a hoppy-acidic finish. A masterpiece.

Thanksgiving BeerLet’s all give thanks for beer. By lynn hoffman

The Variety Pack

Maybe you’re one of those happy people who starts thinking about Thanksgiving with the question ‘what beer should we have?’ Your instincts have probably already told you how hard it is to ‘match’ wine with the foods for Thanksgiving and how much easier it is to find the right beers. All of the holiday dishes are strongly flavored (except for the turkey which may not be flavored at all). Many stuffings have deliberately weird seasonings that make wine taste a little off, but can enhance the flavor of the right beer. Some of the traditional dishes are even sweet: there’s no wine on earth that could go with sweet potato and marshmallow casserole, but you might be able to think of a few beers.

Let’s assume that you can’t really juggle the menu and that the food on your table constitutes a family tradition. Traditions are sacred. There’s no way you can replace Aunt Annie’s olive cranberry sauce or ditch the garlic, bacon and broccoli mashed potatoes and replace it with something edible. Some of the traditional dishes may be in quiet good taste, but chances are that a lot of them are pretty loud.

I’ve written elsewhere about how easy it is to match beer with food (for a quick refresher, consult The Short Course in Beer). All you need to know here is that any of these bottles, while optimum for certain courses, can stay on the table throughout the meal if you can keep them at the right serving temperature. A proper Thanksgiving feast is a ritual celebration of generosity: it has everyone’s favorite beer on the table. Speaking of ritual, this is a harvest feast so let’s honor the local harvest as much as we can and focus on our local brewers.

There are two tactics that make any sense when all the food is shouting at you and when the flavors

of the meal don’t play nicely together. One is to choose several different beers with some pretty big voices of their own. The other is to forget about ‘matching’ and serve some focused ales whose inherent hoppy bitterness or spicy intensity estab-lishes a whole different line of taste in the meal. Each time a diner returns to the beer it’s like a refrain.

The second strategy gives you a simplified shopping list, instead of buying for each course, just pick up the starred selections below.

The Cocktail HourMany families sit down early to Thanksgiving

dinner, so the before dinner drinks should be light in flavor. This is a good time for witbiers to have their last fling or to let sour ale take the place of Champagne. Either of the beers below could easily be served throughout the meal.*Monks Café Sour Ale- The bright carbonation provides a lively structure on which to hang a nicely balanced combination of sweet and moderately sour flavors. A classic appetite-provoker, this is an honorary local, brewed in Belgium but blended by and bottled for Monks.

PBC’s Walt Wit- light-bodied, orange-flower and bready aroma. Easy on the palate and thirst-quenching.

Sweet Side DishesThanksgiving is one of the few times when

American families are likely to serve overtly sweet dishes at dinner. Sweet potatoes with marshmallow or molasses or even the dreaded canned pineapple come to mind. What you need is acidity, some bright and bracing antidote to keep these lollipops from killing the appetite. You can bring back the ales from the cocktail hour or try:

Page 11: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 11

craft beer halloween

The Variety Pack

Tired of wondering which Halloween party you will attend each year? I can relate. One party always has the best beer and mediocre entertainment and the other always has the exact opposite. It’s a tough choice, especially when you want the perfect combination of the two. I mean, come on, you don’t want to miss out on a killer Halloween party, do you? Well, I guarantee that you won’t have to this year.

Jose Pistola’s, which is located in Center City, will be playing host to a Haunted Halloween Rock Concert on Saturday, October 31st. The festivities begin at 10pm with a $5 suggested donation at the door. Throughout the night there will be Yards and Sly Fox beer specials as well as $4 pints of Rogue Dead Guy Ale. There will also be a prize awarded to the person with the best costume. Headlining the concert will be Welcome To My Face, which is co-owner Casey Parker’s 80’s glam rock tribute band. Casey is the lead singer of the band under his alter ego, Casey Wayne. As if all of this isn’t enough, Casey and the crew have taken it a step further. There will be a major surprise that will take place and it could happen at any moment between 10pm and 2am. It is such a surprise, that even the employees of Jose Pistola’s are being left as clueless as the public. Make sure to stay on your toes that night, because anything could happen.

Also taking place on Saturday, October 31st are two more local parties. Triumph Brewing Company is throwing a party at both their Old City and New Hope locations.

Old City will have a themed Masquerade

Trick or Treat: The area’s best Halloween parties. By Kevin romer

party beginning at 10pm. The theme this year is based off of the new HBO hit, True Blood. If you arrive at 8pm, you have the option to pay $20, which covers your admission and entitles you to open bar pitchers from 8-10pm. This sounds like a home run to me with all you can drink pitchers of solid, local craft beer! Arrive any time before 10pm and admission is $5 at the door. Then from 10pm on, the admission is $10. There will be two separate dance parties on each floor with DJ Omega spinning and drink specials provided all night long. Prizes will also be awarded for best costumes throughout the night.

If you’re not a city person, then this party’s for you. The New Hope location is having an 80’s themed Halloween party. Admission is free and the always rocking 80’s cover band Ridgemont High will be the entertainment for the night. The stage is newly constructed and adds a groovy touch to this location. It is equipped with a killer laser show and is said to be the best in the ‘burbs. There will also be a grand prize of $250 for the best costume of the night. Not to mention, they will have their seasonal Pumpkin Ale on tap all night for all you pumpkin heads out there. Free admission and great beer- you can’t beat that, right?

Well there you have it. You now have not one, but three kick ass parties taking place on All Hallows’ Eve. Now it is up to you to choose which one you will be attending. So hurry and find the costume that’s going to bring home the bacon! Remember to be prepared for anything and as always, be responsible and drive safe.

HAPPY HOUR MONDAY – FRIDAY

4PM - 6PM$1 Select Pints & $2 Select Bottles

BETHAYRES TAVERN

32 Taps Simply Beerresistable!Featuring many local & regional craf t brews

2231 Huntingdon Pike, Huntingdon Valley

SMOKING PERMITTED!

215-947-9729www.bethayrestavern.com

BUY ONE SANDWICH, GET SECOND OF EQUAL OR LESSERVALUE FREE. MUST PRESENT THIS AD. OFFER EXPIRES 11/30/09

Homemade RibsOverstuffed Sandwiches

Jumbo WingsPizza

Everything Web.

Everything Print.

Everything Beer.

BrewStudio is an Inverse Paradox Project.

Philadelphia based web & graphic design for Restaurants, Brew Pubs, Breweries,

and Craft Beverage producers.

www.brewstudio.net • (215) 478-6586

Page 12: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200912

Fun With Beer

Das BootIf you can’t find a glass, just use your boot. By neil harner

the passing of the boot

American Oktoberfests continue into the early October weeks and you may find at these festivals or local German bars and restaurants a beer glass that looks oddly like a boot. Or you may already be familiar with this from seeing Broken Lizard’s 2006 film, “Beerfest” where “Das Boot” was a humorous plot point.

What most people don’t know is that the boot which may have seemed like a work of fiction is an actual traditional German drinking vessel known as a “Bierstiefel,” not “Das Boot” (which means “The Boat” and is the coining of the above mentioned film).

Although there are several different variations of the origins of the drinking boot, it comes from the German military of the early 20th century. One variation of the story states that a Prussian general committed to his troops that he would drink from his boot if they had won the coming battle. When his army defeated the enemies, he had a glass boot made so that he could fulfill his commitment without “having taste his own feet.” The other popular variation is that during World War I, German soldiers had nothing to drink from. Therefore they passed around a boot before heading into a battle and each soldier would flick the boot before and after drinking from it for good luck.

Regardless the origins, today the boot is used not only as a symbol of camaraderie, it is the object of an awesome and entertaining drinking game.

finding your own boot!

Right now you may come across authentic German beer boots for sale at various retail beer outlets or German bars & restaurants throughout the area. The cheapest and easiest option if you are looking for a fun beer glass as opposed to the collectable branded boot like the one photographed here is to go to your local Spencer’s Gifts where the boot is readily in stock.

When playing drinking games, always have a designated driver, nice friends who will let you sleep on

their floor, or some local cab companies programmed into your cell phone.

remember this

For this game you need a 2 liter boot filled with your favorite German beer. When we played, we used Warsteiner’s Oktoberfest. This game is intended to be played with a group of friends sitting around a table. For the game to be interesting, you can play with as few as 3 or with as many as you can fit at the table; although, I recommend not topping 8 players.

Rule 1: The boot is passed around the table clockwise and each person at the table takes a sip of the beer with the shoe pointing away from them. If the boot is pointing any other direction, you drink again.

Rule 2: Once the boot is picked up, it cannot be put back on the table until it is empty. If a person violates this, they must buy the next round or boot.

Rule 3: Each person must flick the beer prior to and after taking a sip. If this is not done, they must drink again.

Rule 4: If when drinking from the boot, you splash the beer onto yourself, you drink again.

Rule 5: If you finish the boot, the person who passes it to you buys the next round or boot.

Keep the boot moving around the table as fast as you can and after a few rounds, you’ll find it gets more and more entertaining as the beer begins to hit you and you forget the rules.

Page 13: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 13

Woman on the Scene

From Hopscotch to Hops Women leading the Philadelphia bar scene. By suzanne Woods

Heather walks quickly across the bar room with a Coke refill. She drops it off, picks up a plate with the remnants of arguably the city’s best burger. One who doesn’t know better might think she’s a food runner. Another Heather leaves the bar for an hour to make sure the kids have flip flops for the summer. She’ll put a load of laundry in and come back to make her own pulled pork. Chef quit the day before. Leigh’s 6 months pregnant and she’s working on her Fishtown bar’s garden unbeknownst that in an hour she’ll be fixing her ice machine. A server has called out; Kelly throws on a dirndl and starts serving up spaetzle. Erin runs back and forth between two bars. Bar manager has quit. Said bar manager is also the chef. She already wore a lot of hats. Her hat collection just got larger.

These are just 5 of the many dynamic women in the Philly beer scene. They may or may not know each other…but they share a lot of qualities. They’re resilient, they’re focused, they’re fun, they love beer and they run damn good bars. It’s not at all aleatoric. And it’s no spell of secrets. It’s hard work and long hours. It’s grandmoms turned babysitters and years void of vacation.

I doubt that during their hopscotch days that they had dreams of locking up shop at 3:30 am.

One wanted to be a cop, one thought about veterinary school, one has a secret alter ego artist side.

Another is a graphic designer which comes in handy if you’ve ever seen the Memphis Taproom’s website. One could see herself working in Hollywood after all the characters she’s poured a pint for.

They’re all married-to their beaus and their bars. But try to find balance where they can. “Having a partner who is your spouse makes a lot of things really easy. We pick up slack for each other in the different areas that we each excel in,” says Leigh Maida of Memphis Taproom, Local 44, and Resurrection Ale House.

Don’t call Maida “hon” and she’s as nice as they come. “I like the wonky hours and the fast pace, and the efficiency with which everything has to be done really appeals to my inner OCD. I like the flexibility and the minute-by-minute changes to what I’m doing throughout the day. I get to be a bartender, event promoter, electrician, dishwasher, tickler of babies, ice machine repair woman, and a hapless victim of the Restaurant Depot all within the space of a few hours.”

Heather Gleason- she’s tough, tender, and very in tune with what works and what does not.

High ABV beers don’t have a spot at the Swift Half nor the Good Dog. Her chef boasts a burger that had inspired Inky Critic Craig Laban to burst into song. Her staff is one of the city’s best. Wine is not ignored. Gleason enjoys a glass of Pinot Noir as much as a pint of Lagunitas IPA. She would be remiss to not realize her crowd wants to throwback PBR as much as Yards Pale Ale. Beer does make up 50% of her beverage mix. That seemed to be the case with all the bars interviewed.

Erin Wallace was tending bar at Cherry St. Tavern when she fell

in love with beer and partner/husband Scott Wallace. They took a trip to Austria. And there she really got it. To this day- she seeks out German styles as often as possible. That was definitely evident when Devils Den opened in April of 2008 with Schneider Aventinus on the tower.

They challenge their palates. “I could barely finish Flemish Sour Ale four years ago now the funkier the better,” shares Wallace. She hosted “Pucker Up,” her first sour ale fest this year. Just as women throughout history have enjoyed being hostesses- these ladies never miss an opportunity to get new people in the door. They keep their mailing list updated on events constantly. “Our staffers are really good at engaging people and talking to them about the beer. I think people respond to our enthusiasm and don’t feel like they have to hide any inner-beer-geekery they might be sitting on,” says Maida. She hosts a myriad of events from Mom’s happy hours to Mystery Beer Weekend. She’ll be attending her first happy hour as a mom herself this November.

Most of them seem to be second bar junkies. “I think Doug’s already looking ahead for #2. But I’m the more conservative one- so I told him that once we get a year under our belts and are successful, then we can maybe start talking about it,” says Kelly Hager who just opened the quickly popular Brauhaus Schmitz this July. Three out of the five ladies own at least two bars.

I think Heather deRussy has her hands full with one. She took a gamble that most mothers of five wouldn’t. She opened a bar and she opened the bar in an area of the city that had people shaking their heads nervous for their success. She’s proving the naysayers wrong. DeRussy shares, “A year ago there was a lot of skepticism. Now we have 40 new townhomes under construction with 40 more going up by next year and instead of ‘that’s a sketchy area’ more and more people are saying ‘I really need to check that place out.’”

It’s almost passé to make a big deal of women enjoying beer-especially in Philadelphia. But it’s still kind of cool to walk to the back bar of Monks and have Bernadette the bartender explain the differences between La Chouffe Houblon and Urthel Hop-it! And she’ll probably mention that the Hop-It is brewed by a woman. And that is even cooler.

Also worthy of note… Peggy Zwerver behind Earth Bread Brewery, Leslie Spellmann of Bridgewaters, the best reason to go to 30th Station without any intention of travelling. Diana Coble, bar manager at The Cantina, Maria Spangler of Johnny Brenda’s. The list goes on…

Page 14: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200914

Cooking With Beer

Serves: 4 to 6

Soup

1 Tablespoon olive oil1lb boneless, skinless chicken breast1 small onion, diced2 (15 oz) cans northern beans2 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth2 (4.5 oz) cans chopped green chilies1 (10.5 oz) can cream of chicken soup3 Tablespoons hot sauce1 bottle wheat beer

Spices

½ Tablespoon cumin1 Tablespoon chili powderSalt to taste¼ teaspoon white pepper½ Tablespoon garlic powder

White Bean Chicken Chiliintroduction By neil harner

recipe By streeter f. mcclure

Following up on the great cookbook reviewed on page 8, “The Single Man’s Guide to Cooking with Beer,” we thought it would be all too appropriate to feature the recipe that we believed was the best (and after making several). The following recipe for the White Bean Chicken Chili is fantastic and extremely easy to prepare. It was so good that we have since enjoyed it twice, trying different beers in the recipe. We recommend making this with either Philadel-phia Brewing Co.’s Walt Whit or Treog’s Dreamweaver Wheat.

Toppings

Flour tortillasSour creamMonterrey jack cheeseLime

Cooking Instructions

• Sautee chicken in 1T. of olive oil until golden brown on both sides• Mix soup ingredients together• Season with salt, white pepper and garlic powder• Add chili powder and cumin to taste• Let sit overnight in refrigerator so flavors meld• Heat chili over medium heat• Cut tortillas into strips. Line bowl with strips Ladle in chili. Top with sour cream and Monterey Jack cheese.• Garnish with lime juice

Republished with permission by Streeter F. McClure, author of The Single Man’s Guide to Cooking with Beer (see review on page 8).

ADVERTISEHERE

TODAY!

Call 215-478-6586 to get more information

or download our media kit at www.beerscenemag.com.

Page 15: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 15

I dropped my GPS unit last week. It fell about as quick as my spirits did the first time I asked a girl out on a date… she said “No.” I don’t remember her name but it doesn’t make a difference. I don’t plan on asking her out again.

It’s not the first time I’ve dropped it. It’s a sturdy piece of electronic equipment since the only real damage has been limited to a few cracks and chips on the plastic case. But, I now have a working piece of something or other. The display is readable. It is not, however, a pleasant or easy thing to read in heavy traffic or bright sunlight.

I tell you that story to tell you this story. I bought the GPS about 4 years ago and it quickly became another electronic device that I depend on. Not only does it keep me from getting lost but it gets me to my destination without having to pull over and cuss the oc-casional map. When I dropped the GPS, I wasn’t concerned about the unit as much as I was concerned about the DATA. Said data was not, say it with me kids ‘cause you know the words, “backed-up.”

So, what’s the big freaking deal with the data? I like to travel and I like beer. Put the two together and you have the perfect reason to get a GPS. I’ve entered in every bar, beer store, brewery, restaurant I’ve visited in the last four years. Yes, I could get most of it back, given time and the inclination to manually enter each address. But I don’t want to do that.

The solution to this problem is to have a custom Point Of Interest (POI) file. In GPS terminology, a POI refers to restaurants, gas stations, bars, museums…basically everything in the database but the actual roads. It’s easy to create and load a custom POI file into your GPS unit. In fact, to help you along with your exploration of great beer destinations, Philly Beer Scene has created its own POI file of all the bars, restaurants, brew pubs, homebrew shops, and breweries in the directory found in the back of the magazine. You can buy yourself a copy of the Philly Beer Scene POI file for only $5 at www.beerscenemag.com.

Next issue I’ll give you a primer on creating a custom POI file, great GPS usage tips, and share my not so secret places to score good beer.

Tapping into Technology

GBPS: Global Beer Positioning System (part 1)Finding you the nearest beer on the road. By zeKe diaz

Friday Night during Quizzo, $3 Hoegaarden Pints.

Page 16: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200916

drive down one of the many dirt roads necessary to reach your destination. That destination is a big white barn that owner Chuck Williamson converted from an old dairy farm into his new brewery. Found in a much more central location, Cooperstown Brewing Company is a simple, classic style brewery that focuses more on the session style beers. They also are only available in New York and a little of Massachusetts, so a trip Upstate is almost necessary if you want to give their baseball themed brews a try.

Aside from the lush scenery and great local breweries, Cooperstown is also home to the Baseball Hall of Fame, as well as a number of other historical museums. Located on the main road to Cooperstown is also a local winery, Beer Pond Wines. Being that unfortunately we can’t just drink beer for all our meals, the area is also home to some quality places to eat. Brooks House of BBQ is known worldwide for its BBQ chicken. It’s been featured multiple times on Food Network and is a favorite amongst the locals and tourists. The line will probably be out the door, but it goes quick and is well worth the wait. Undercover Eggplant, a true local favorite, is probably the best spot for lunch in the state, let alone the Cooperstown area. Serving up a variety of hearty sandwiches on homemade bread, I never make a trip Upstate without stopping by for a muffaletta. As far as lodging goes, thanks to the Hall of Fame and the many baseball camps, the area is loaded with hotels now. But for a true feel of Upstate living, there are lots of locals who rent out little cottages that make the stay all the more genuine.

Good beer, good country living, and good food: you really can’t go wrong with a weekend stay in the hills of Upstate New York. Come October and November, pack up your fishing poles and a few heavy sweatshirts and take the short four-hour trip to Cooperstown. It’s the perfect time to go, the tourist rush is over and the leaves are turning. Start the day with a muffaletta and end it with a bottle of Ommegang’s Three Philosophers under the stars, it’s a trip you’ll definitely take again.

Beer Travel

Upstate New YorkA great place for an autumn retreat from the city. And you’ll find awesome beer too. By mat falco

Despite being the most incredible beer city in the country, every once in a while a brief change in scenery can be nice. Walking the streets of Philadelphia in the fall is always great, but you can’t really beat a beautiful fall weekend in Upstate New York. It may not be able to compete on a beer level, but the Cooperstown area of Upstate New York definitely has plenty to offer and a gorgeous country atmosphere to go with it. Just imagine sitting outside on the edge of a lake, an abundance of trees alive with a vast array of autumn colors, birds chirping, no sounds of traffic or overpopulation, and the best part— a cooler filled with cans of Butternuts Pork Slap Pale Ale. That is what a beer weekend in Upstate New York is like.

Having spent a majority of my childhood growing up in the Cooperstown area, I know a good bit on the happenings there and can attest to the beauty of the nature of the area. This is a beer travel article though, so enough about the landscape and onto the best part of the area: the breweries. Within twenty minutes of downtown Cooperstown there are three unique and completely different breweries. This area is hometown to the legendary Brewery Ommegang, one of the original craft canners in Butternuts Brewery, and a local favorite, Cooperstown Brewing Company. Not bad for an area where the cow to human population ratio favors the cows. You really can’t find three brewers that are so different either. So no matter what kind of fellow beer lover accompanies you on your trip, there is bound to be a beer to keep them happy.

Known for brewing some of the best Belgian styled ales in the country, Ommegang has definitely reached legendary status in the American craft beer scene. They are also located in the middle of nowhere, on a back road hidden in a big field which leaves little distractions to the brewing process. However, they are not the most hidden of the breweries. In order to reach Butternuts Brewery, you are going to have to endure a true trip through the country. You will definitely realize that you are no longer in Philadelphia as you

Page 17: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 17

Rooted in History It is a given that we all love craft beer, but what about those rare occasions when you want something else, something different? If that is the case, than the City of Brotherly Love has come through for you yet again! By alicia eichelman

Not Beer

Created, or as I should say, re-created (read on) from the minds of the Philly based Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction and Steven Grasse, ROOT takes a page from the history books and brings it to a shot glass or mixed drink near you. Intrigued? You should be, because ROOT is unlike anything you’ve ever tasted. It extends beyond the normal liqueur and cannot be defined as a vodka, schnapps, whiskey or bourbon. It is seemingly in a league of its own.

So where did this indefinable ROOT come from? Well according to Art in the Age, the history goes like this; ROOT was originally called Root Tea back in the 1700s.The Native Americans first began making it from wild roots, herbs, wintergreen and birch bark. They passed this on to colonial settlers and from generation to generation the mix would grow stronger and stronger with more and more ingredients added along the way. Pennsylvania was the most productive place for Root Tea because here the ingredients were extremely plentiful.

Once the Temperance Movement, also known as the day the alcohol died, set in, a Philadelphia based pharmacist named Charles Hires saved the future of ROOT and also created the one of the only delicious non-alcoholic beverages known today as root beer. Root beer was created to not only comply with the Temperance Movement but to allow Pennsylvania steelworkers and coal miners a tasty alternative drink. At this point, Root Tea had appeared to be gone forever.

Cut to today where the mastermind known as Steven Grasse who is the CEO of the Philadelphia ad company Quaker City Mercantile and creator of Hendrick’s Gin and Sailor Jerry’s Spiced Rum brand, decided to pay homage to Pennsylvania’s history. After experimenting with different ingredients and bases and finally settling on a sugarcane one, he hooked up with the team at Arts in the Age. Today, there is ROOT.

ROOT is truly hard to compare to any other drink. Art in the Age strongly stresses that it is not a root beer flavored vodka or sweet liquor, and it certainly does not fit under either of those descriptions. Though it smells almost exactly like root beer, it contains a taste all its own. In its spicy, earthy and completely organic flavor you can taste the history of ROOT. The notes of cloves and vanilla provide a hint of sweetness, while the 80 proof that it possesses is your only reminder that it is an alcoholic drink.

ROOT is a versatile drink that is great as a shot, a cocktail, or even in food. The first batch of ROOT was released throughout bars and Wine and Spirits Shoppes in Pennsylvania in limited quality and for approximately $35 a bottle. So, it is highly recommend that if you find this exotic liquor, you try it! For more information about ROOT including cocktail and cooking recipes or where to purchase it around Philadelphia, visit Art in the Age’s website at www.artintheage.com.

Page 18: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200918

The GodfaTher of ExtrEmE

by mat falco | photography by Jonathan clark

The Brewmaster

Page 19: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 19

W“What do you want fuckface?” Twenty plus years ago, this was Jim Koch’s initial welcoming to New York City. Surprisingly, his greeting in Philadelphia he recalls as being much friendlier. Today his greetings have changed drastically. Instead of being welcomed with profanity, he is welcomed with a red carpet. On a very fortunate Tuesday afternoon in September during New York Beer Week, I got an opportunity to experience this first hand.

Walking into this particular lunch with Jim was almost like walking into a meeting with the godfather. We were greeted outside and escorted to this little secluded corner table where Jim was seated all alone awaiting our arrival. It was actually a little nerve shattering. It even took a good ten minutes before I realized how to carry on with our discussion. Once the discussion got going though and we started on lunch, I began to realize how down to earth and cool Jim was. He made us feel more than comfortable and even started telling such shocking stories as his New York greeting. I’m going to be honest, I never expected to hear a funny story involving the line “what do you want fuckface?” to come out of Jim’s mouth, but

The GodfaTher of ExtrEmE

then again after this lunch, everything I expected was thrown away and a whole new perspective of Sam Adams Brewery came out of it. I always thought Sam Adams, aside from Utopias, was a very traditional brewery missing a certain excitement that seems to be conveyed by other craft brewers. Whether Jim is flying hops fresh from Germany so that he can brew them within 24 hours of being picked to brew the Hallertau 24, or brewing an imperial rauchbier for his brewpub because he has never seen one brewed before, I began to realize that Jim is an extreme brewer who takes complete advantage of having the funds and time to try new crazy things. Jim was brewing a Sah’tea years before Dogfish released theirs, but things like this aren’t well known because in this area Sam Adams is the mass marketed commercial beer we see in every bar and on commercials during all our favorite shows. Sam Adams is actually the originator of extreme beers with the release of Triple Bock back in 1994, a beer that is still available at the brewery because he keeps aging it and seeing how far and extreme he can make this beer (after 15 years, this beer has become really phenomenal). Today his

version of extreme beer, Utopias, is probably the most extreme beer on the market. This year’s batch came in at an enormous 28% alcohol, a level unheard of anywhere else, but is still more drinkable and more complex then most extremes on the market.

Yes, a majority of Jim’s beers aren’t extreme and are very commonplace in style, but after discussing them with him, I believe they are all worth another taste. Never before have I enjoyed a Boston Lager so much. Hearing about the love and passion that goes into a beer really redefines ones appreciation for that beer.

If there is one thing I learned coming out of this lunch it is that Sam Adams is a brewery for Philadelphia. In an area where extreme beer is preferred, I think Sam Adams deserves another look. Philadelphia might not even have become the beer city it became if it weren’t for Jim being the godfather of extreme. Don’t forget before Nodding Head was Nodding Head, it was home to the original Sam Adams Brewpub. Jim’s history in Philly is strong and deserves to grow and become even stronger with a new optimistic view on what a Sam Adams beer is all about.

Page 20: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200920

Solar BrewingBy DaviD Martorana

A Homebrewer’s Corner Feature

A Unibroue bottle which exploded within 10 minutes as a result of the extreme heat from focusing and reflecting the Sun’s rays using a Fresnel lens and a concave mirror.

Page 21: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 21

“oh, you’re gonna neeD SunglaSSeS.”

“Do you have SunglaSSeS?”

“uMM... SoMewhere...”

adorn the rooms throughout, and it boasts the world’s largest radiator - a black behemoth with over 50 fins. The building’s concrete floor, however, is less than period. A flood several years ago put Joe out of business for over four years, mere months after he and his brewing wares moved in. Joe proudly shows us pictures of the radiant heat flooring he put in to the building over that time, doing almost all of the work himself. As Joe shows us around the building, super-high efficiency and high technology are all around us. “Come on up to the roof” he says. One of us is afraid of heights (I won’t mention who) but we oblige the request and follow Joe upwards.

What we find is somewhat unexpected. Despite the high tech inside the building, this is decidedly low-tech. The roof is black tar, and is covered in a simple, snaking run of high-pressure black tubing. This is Joe’s version of solar heating, minus the solar panels. “Anything that’s black absorbs,” he instructs. The black hose on top of the jet black roof absorbs heat from the Sun, heating the water to well over 120 degrees. Joe feeds this water into his radiant heating system, which works just fine during the winter, he assures us. There is an ulterior motive, of course. Turns out, this system provides a nicely heated 6.5 gallons of water over the 400 feet of 5/8 inch hose - which is about exactly what you’ll need for a full-boil five-gallon brew.

As you may have gathered, Joseph Bair is in every right a bit of a mad scientist. His long grey hair is wispy on top and easily wind-blown. His t-shirt speaks to his previous career in the Princeton University Molecular Biology department. He glows while explaining his mix of low and high technology and how they combine for extreme ef-ficiency. He is driven by what many of us are too lazy to do. A little ingenuity and inventiveness and a lot of black hose has reduced Joe’s heating bill to a mere fraction of the four-thousand dollars a month it was before the flood - and he does it without expensive solar panels. On top of it all, the system provides enough heat to help jump-start home brewing.

Joe’s basic philosophy surrounds the Sun. The Sun’s light creates heat, and black anything absorbs that heat. Proper shading and air

The scent of fall is in the air - at least for those of us that will it to be - and the bright blue sky overhead is dotted with large puffy white clouds. Mat Falco and I speed up Interstate 95 with the windows open. There is nary a hint of rain or inclement weather. It is, by just about anyone’s account, a beautiful morning.

I look over at Mat, a co-founder of Philly Beer Scene Magazine, and my travel and brewing companion for the day. “You have any idea what solar brewing is?” I ask. He shrugs. “Seems like we got a nice day though.” Indeed.

“Bad weather for solar brewing.”I have to squint as I look up at the sky. Billowy white clouds float

in an ocean of deep blue. There is a problem, however. The clouds are covering the Sun. In order to successfully achieve the rank of solar brewer, you have to have a perfectly clear sky. This is not that sky. It’s only 10 A.M., and already Joe Bair shows concern.

“I saw, like... it said it was supposed to be nice,” I offer timidly. Joe looks up. “Yeah,” he says, obviously unconvinced. It doesn’t look like the clouds intend on breaking up any time soon. “I’ll show you some things on the internet while we wait.”

Just minutes earlier, Mat and I arrived at Princeton Homebrew. This is Joe’s shop, and above it, is Joe’s home. Princeton Homebrew used to be a storefront in Princeton, NJ. “For some reason, when you’re in Princeton, they think they’ve got you - you won’t leave. Watching your rent go from $800 to $2500 a month in less than 10 years, though... I kept saying I’d move, and I found this place, and I did.” Now Princeton Homebrew calls a five-thousand square foot building in Trenton, NJ its home. It’s a beautiful old building - original crown molding runs the expanse of the ceiling, hand-crafted wood doors

Page 22: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200922

Solar Pilsner Ale(2) 3# Briess Pilsen Light DME1# Solar Toasted Munton’s Crystal 60L2 oz Solar Toasted Hey Pilgrim Hops (11%) Bitter1 oz Solar Toasted Hey Pilgrim Hops (11%) Knock-Off1 oz Solar Toasted Hey Pilgrim Hops (11%) Hop Back1 White Labs East Coast Ale

OG: 1.050 @ 80F

FG: 1.006 @ 66F

ABV: 5.78%

flow blocks the heat, and can remove the need for things like air conditioning. Taking that philosophy, he’s built his home and business into a very “green” solar test lab.

As luck would have it, during our tour of Joe’s home-brewed solar heating solution, the clouds have dissipated. The brilliant blue sky has not a single imperfection, and we’re ready to solar-brew. We head off of the roof and back to the tiny parking lot in front of Princeton Homebrew. It’s time to examine the monster magnifying glasses that met us as we arrived earlier.

When we first arrived, there was not a single parking spot in the tiny parking lot in front of Princeton Homebrew. The parking lot was not filled with cars, mind you - rather, two do-it-yourself hand- built rolling vertical stands, each well in excess of six feet, had been rolled out on to the asphalt. Each stand holds a rotating frame with a large Fresnel lens, which will turn the light of the Sun into a powerful source of heat.

Fresnel lenses work by using tiny concentric rings of perfectly measured angular cuts on one side to take all light that passes through it and redirect it. There are two types of Fresnel lenses - a spot lens, in which all light that passes through is focused on to a single spot, and a linear lens, which creates a focused line of light. Fresnel lenses are expensive - for the size we’re using, they can run over $2000. However, Fresnel lenses were the front screen of every rear-projection big-screen TV for years. Joe simply found some old TVs sitting on the side of the road for disposal, and removed the front screen. “People have no idea what they had in those things,” says Joe.

Fresnel lenses aren’t new. Originally developed in the 1800s, they were most commonly used in lighthouses. The giant, thousand-pound glass lenses that surround the light source in light houses are Fresnel lenses - and their invention was groundbreaking. The light concen-trating power of these simplistic lenses changed lighthouses forever. Before they were installed, the light from a lighthouse had a typical visible distance of 1/8 of a mile. After installation, lighthouses were able to throw visible light up to 8 miles.

“the linear lenS, which we’re aBout to uSe to toaSt the grain, haS a teMperature at itS focal point of over 800 DegreeS fahrenheit.”

Brew thiS Beer

Page 23: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 23

Originally, they had to be hand-made, with small (or large) pieces of hand-milled glass all blown together. Electronic precision milling eventually led the way to the common plastic flat lens, which is what we’re using today.

To give a quick idea of how powerful the light-concentrating feature of these lenses are, Joe has a “test stick.” A piece of 2x2 inch lumber, the test stick is pock-marked with burn marks. Each lens focuses light to a point in front of the lens called the “focal point.” Joe holds the stick in front of the lens and finds out where it is focusing light. He slowly draws it away from the lens, and the light on the stick grows more and more powerful and blinding. Eventually, he reaches a point a few feet from the lens where pure white light instantly ignites the stick into flames. “That’s the focal point right there.” He tests it a few more times by passing the stick through the focal point. Each time, it ignites into flames within a single second.

Ah. This is why we are going to need sunglasses.Joe looks over at me with a grin.”They’re hot.” I look back at him,

trying to blink away the spots in my field of vision left by the intense white light. “Obviously,” I think to myself. But how hot surprised us even more. The linear lens, which we’re about to use to toast the grain, has a temperature at its focal point of over 800 degrees Fahrenheit. “That’s nothing” Joe tells me. The spot lens, which we’ll focus on the brew kettle to boil the water, can reach temperatures in excess of 2000 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s so hot that when they accidentally passed the focused light over a concrete cinder block, it instantly melted the concrete and left a permanent raised scar in the cinder block. The light hit the cinder block for a total of all of two seconds.

Of course, in order to get those kinds of temperatures, there’s some math involved. The lenses must be aligned with the sun on two axises, and what we’re focusing the light on must be at the lens’s focal point. The power of the concentrated light reduces exponentially as you move away from the focal point. Luckily, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) research department has a website that shows on Google maps the exact angles of the sun at a particular point on the map.

“the SeconD of our hoMe-MaDe contraptionS iS your BaSic, convenience Store glaSS-front refrigerator... it iS tilteD BackwarDS at a 45 Degree angle on to a hanD truck, anD two MirrorS

are Strategically placeD on angleS inSiDe of the unit.”

Called the NOAA Solar Calculator, it makes it easy to figure out how to position the lenses for maximum heat generation. Joe zooms the map down to directly over the parking lot. We have our measurements.

During this time, Joe’s assistant brewer for the day, Jim Hammond, has been setting up the lenses and the home-made contraptions that will safely hold our grain and brew kettle under the intense heat of the focused Sun. Jim, a retired tech for the State of New Jersey, is, as far as Mat and I could tell, the happiest man alive. A grey and white mixture of hair complements the closely clipped white beard on his face. He wears two things of note - the first is an orange shirt from the Red Rock Brewing Company in Salt Lake City, Utah. (When Jim and his wife travel, they make it a point to visit local breweries.) The other markedly noticeable thing Jim wears the entire time we’re there? A seemingly permanent smile.

The first “contraption” if you will, is a modified wheel chair. The seat has been replaced with a solid slab, and on the slab is a metal bowl with a secondary strainer inside the bowl. This is filled with barley, and the wheelchair is rolled under the focal point of the linear lens until the light hits the grain. Smoke instantly starts to rise from the grain and a wonderful toasted smell fills the air. Occasionally, Jim or Joe stirs the grain to make sure it all gets evenly toasted.

The second of our home-made contraptions is your basic, convenience store glass-front refrigerator. The broken condenser means Joe got it cheap. It is tilted backwards at a 45 degree angle on to a hand truck, and two mirrors are strategically placed on angles inside of the unit. Inside of this a black brew kettle (black - see the correlation?) is

Page 24: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200924

placed with a thermometer in the top, and filled with approximately six gallons of water. The metal itself is black - if the kettle were painted black, the paint would instantly burn off.

Once the kettle is inside of the cabinet, the hand truck is rolled under the spot lens. As it passes under the light, a small puff of smoke rises into the air - the light has instantly scarred the rubber seal around the glass door. The cabinet shows the markings of their last solar brew - there are several burn marks in the rubber door surround. We’ll add several more during the course of the day.

Now we wait (and while we do, we open their last solar brew - a pilsner with a decidedly unique flavor of bread and intense citrus). The water in the kettle needs to boil - so we’re waiting for it to reach 212 degrees Fahrenheit. As we wait, the grain cooks and is done. We pass it through a grinder to get it nice and fine. Joe puts the ground grain in to a cheese-cloth like material, and drops the grain in to the kettle to steep. Then, to our surprise, Joe grabs the hops we’ll be using, and puts them in the cooking kettle on the wheel chair. Toasted hops? “It’s experimental, totally” he says. “No one has done this before. We’ll see how it tastes. But wait until you smell them.” As the hops pass under the lens, they instantly begin to smoke - we’ve now come to expect this reaction. However, this is a totally different smell. It’s pungent, piney, and sweet all at the same time. It’s a unique smell I won’t soon forget. But it becomes obvious where the intense citrus flavor in the pilsner came from - Joe cooked the hops last time too. These flavors are indeed unique to beer.

Interestingly, we reach just in to the afternoon, and we begin having serious problems with the brew kettle. It’s simply not reaching temperature. The Sun is almost directly overhead, which means the Fresnel lens needs to be almost completely horizontal. This focuses the light well below the brew kettle, and so we attempt to move the large cabinet into a horizontal position as well. Unfortunately, things are not going well. First, the refrigerator cabinet is too big and these

prototype lens stands have not been built to allow the lenses to slide up and down to change the lens focal point. The light that is hitting the kettle isn’t at the optimal focal length, so we’re losing a lot of heat. Secondly, the kettle is laying flat on its side, which means the light that is reaching the kettle is hitting air, not water. The water is no longer heating up. To add insult to injury, the kettle is leaking.

This is the oddest and seemingly most illogical part of this process. Despite the Sun now being it’s most intense, brightest, and hottest, we can’t harness its power. Solar brewing, Joe explains, is actually easier and better in the winter. Mat and I look at each other in disbelief. It goes against all seemingly logical thinking. But because the Sun is always lower on the horizon in the winter, the angles of the Sun are much more optimal. Despite chilly air, the Fresnel lenses can still harness the light from the Sun just fine, and you never reach a point where the Fresnel lens needs to be in a close-to-horizontal position. As I roll it around in my head, it begins to make sense, but who would have figured that out? Well, aside from Joe, of course.

We break for lunch and allow an hour and change to pass. Around 3 pm, the Sun finally retreats back down the sky a little, and Jim has a little stroke of genius. He places the brew kettle under the linear lens instead of the spot lens. While close to 2000 degrees of heat on a singular point in time-space seems optimal, the linear lens delivers a nice constant 800+ degrees of temperature across several inches of space on the kettle. Instantly the temperature begins to rise. Within 15 minutes, we’ve heated the water an additional 100 degrees and reach our boiling point. Hops enter the tank, and we allow the kettle to boil for an hour, while constantly adjusting the lens and cabinet to follow the Sun as it races across the sky.

Success!An hour later, the hard part is over - and so too is all the fun with

extreme solar. We remove the tank from the cabinet, and using a fantastic homemade cooler, we cool the wort as we move it into its

Page 25: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 25

fermentation tank. The brew kettle is placed high up on Joe’s truck, and a syphon is attached to the kettle. This enters a coiled copper pipe which has been gently coaxed inside of a garden hose. The wort passes down through the copper pipe as cold water from the garden hose passes over top of the copper pipe in the opposite direction. The wort is quickly cooled to well below 90 degrees during its journey from the brew kettle to the fermentation tank. This is extremely important - 90 degrees is the temperature at which yeast cooks, which would mean dead yeast, and no fermentation.

After all of the wort is syphoned into the fermentation tank, Joe adds yeast and caps the tank with a one-way release valve. Jim and Joe move the tank in to the basement, where it will sit and ferment for just over a week.

Joe and Jim set to cleaning all of the equipment, and Mat and I begin to pack up our stuff. Half of the fun of the day was trying to figure out the optimal settings for the lenses and kettle - once we got that down, the Sun did all the work. We thank Joe and Jim profusely for the experience. It is one of the most unique beer experiences I’ve ever had. During the drive home, Mat and I marvel at what we had just experienced.

It’s amazing what human ingenuity can create. Many home brewers use Propane under their brew kettle to achieve a boil - unfortunately, Propane fuel is one of the worst emitters of greenhouse gasses. What Joe has created uses no fossil fuels at all. The amazing power of the Sun, coupled with a common garden hose and literally 20 seconds of electricity to grind the grain - which, to be honest, could have been done by hand as well - is all the energy we needed. Consider this to be the greenest beer on the face of the planet. When we get home, I tell this same story to many of the people I know. It’s quite simply a marvel of the human mind, and Joe is quite simply a marvel of a brewer.

“conSiDer thiS to Be the

greeneSt Beer on the face of the planet.”

watch thiS Beer Being MaDeVisit www.TwoGuysOnBeer.com to watch the feature video of this beer being made at Princeton Homebrew.

taSte thiS BeerGo to the South Philadelphia Tap Room on Wednesday, October 28th at 7pm to try samples of this great beer for free.

Page 26: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200926

With the passing of the smoking ban for Pennsylvania on September 11th, 2008,

smokers by the masses have been forced to head outside to grab a drag. This seems

to be a sensitive subject on both sides of the fence. Non-smokers are thrilled that they

can leave the bar without smelling like smoke, and smokers just have to leave the bar-

to smoke. There are also tons of people out there that only smoke when they drink. With

the chilly temperatures quickly approaching, this article is for you- the smoker and the

casual smoker that also enjoy a good craft beer... at the bar... inside.

By Scott Willey

Photographed By Celeste Giuliano

Baby, It’s Cold Outside...

Page 27: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 27

Page 28: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200928

So the dreaded smoking ban

finally hit Philadelphia and the surrounding counties last year leaving many smokers out in the cold when they wanted to catch a cigarette. They would go outside, only to come back in and find their seats taken. The cigarette companies, and even McGillin’s Olde Ale House had two-sided coasters and place markers made to inform people that there was someone sitting there, but were herded outside to catch a smoke. Many businesses and even the city of Philadelphia were not prepared. Cigarette butts littered the streets and sidewalks outside of bars, and in the suburbs, beautiful landscaping was hard to find under a fresh blanket of filters. This forced the owners of the establishments to buy standing ash trays, and abandon the forty ashtrays they already had. Regardless, the ban is here, but it doesn’t mean you can’t find a good beer bar to smoke in.

“If less than 20% of a bar’s sales are in food, they have the option to keep their bar a smoking establishment and, if the establishment chooses to remain smoking, no one under the age of 21 is permitted.”

You may wonder why some bars are still able to allow smoking. It’s all based on food sales. If less than 20% of a bar’s sales are in food, they have the option to keep their bar a smoking establish-ment and, if the establishment chooses to remain smoking, no one under the age of 21 is permitted. That is quite alright with me. I’m not a fan of sitting at a bar with a table of loud kids sitting behind me and many bars that are able to do this decided to stay smoking. Most of the bars that stayed smoking were corner dive bars, where Jagermeister was the appetizer, and seven Macro Light bottles were served up as the entrée with an occasional side of 10-cent wings. This left the smoking beer lover in a bit of a panic. While everyone knows that smoking is bad for you, drinking can be too. The major difference is that we choose to put alcohol in our bodies, where second hand smoke is unavoidable. If you like good beer though, and are a non-smoking risk taker, here are a few of the last great beer bars that you can still smoke in.

South Street is littered with bars. It is also now littered with cigarette butts and bar goers smoking outside. If you want to save the environment by not littering, head over to Tattooed Moms. The clientele here is as eclectic as the decor. Downstairs is more of a lounge style bar, but the upstairs is where all the fun and the smoking is. The walls are covered in graffiti, in homage to the bygone punk rock era that was a South Philly vibe for years. If you believe punk’s not dead, the last remaining breaths can be found up there. The upstairs of Tattooed Mom’s has a couple of pool tables, couches, bumper cars, and a jukebox that will keep the

hardcore punk fan happy. They have a decent craft beer selection, but don’t be afraid to invite your non craft beer loving friends here. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, they offer $1 PBR tall boys, and if you wanna grab something to eat, they may have the best pierogies in the city. They also serve tater tots. Who doesn’t love those?

If South Street isn’t your scene, you can head to the Italian Mar-ket and hit up 12 Steps Down, a mockery of the 12 Steps program seen in the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous. 12 Steps Down is the smoke filled dive bar you have been looking for that serves up craft beer. This place feels like a friend of a friend’s basement. It’s a dive bar with a pool table, a dart board, and not a whole lot to look at. While there are only four beers on draft, they have a great bottle selection with the local craft beers such as Troegs, Philadelphia Brewing Co., Yards, Lancaster, Stoudt’s and Victory having a heavy influence on their selection. The food is a nice twist on convention-al favorites. A smoking bar that serves smokey ketchup with their fresh cut French fries...sorry non smokers, looks like you just can’t get away from the smokiness.

If you’re headed out or live in the suburbs, there are some great craft beer bars you can still smoke in like the Hulmeville Inn, Bethayres Tavern, and Stephanie’s Restaurant and Lounge. The Hulmeville Inn has been a staple for craft beer for quite some time. This historic bar, serving its guests for over 200 years, features great

Page 29: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 29

beers on draft and a rotating hand pump. The bottle list is healthy, and the food here is great; local favorites being the green bean fries and the bratwurst burger. You can play a game of pool, or catch the game without having to miss the big play because of a smoke break. It’s definitely worth the trip for the beer selection. If you want to find out more about the Hulmeville Inn, you can still find our review from the first issue on BeerSceneMag.com.

Bethayres Tavern in Huntingdon Valley offers up 32 taps- proudly self proclaiming themselves on their website as “Simply Beerresistable.” They also offer free WiFi, which is great for a smoker. You don’t have to pack up your laptop, or worry about it sitting on the bar while you catch a smoke. Bethayres Tavern is a Victorian style home that was built around 1890 and they have been serving their guests under this name since 1937. Simple in decor with a rectangular bar centered right in the middle, it’s a great place to get some work done, enjoy a craft beer, and a cigarette.

Stephanie’s Restaurant and Lounge in Doylestown is a craft beer lover’s dream. Offering up 38 taps and boasting a selection of over 50, you are sure to find some great craft beers. I didn’t get the chance to eat here, but from what I have heard the food is fantastic and the portions are generous enough to share. They also have a great take-out selection. The only catch to Stephanie’s and smoking is that you can only smoke downstairs in their smoking lounge Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. I still find it admirable of them to have a designated area inside to smoke in with the cold winter months ahead. Speaking with the bartender, this room is rarely used in the summer, but fills up in the winter time.

With the smoking ban in effect, the decision for these bar and tavern owners to stay smoking had to be a difficult choice. It’s quite possible they gained, or lost patrons depending on which side of the fence they sat on. Considering these bars offer a great beer selection, I would like to think that non-smokers will still

Name: Courtney Horvay

Hometown: N.E. Philadelphia, PA

Age: 22

Alma Mater: Holy Family University

Profession: Cocktail Waitress

Favorite Craft Brewer and Why? Philadelphia Brewing Co. I am not a huge beer drinker but I like all of their beers because they aren’t overwhelming and they support the community.

Favorite Beer Style? I like wheat beers a lot. Hoegaarden, Blue Moon, Walt Whit are all beers I normally order.

Favorite Craft Beer and Why? Does a dirty hoe count? I like framboise lambic a lot but it’s too fruity if I don’t mix it.

Favorite Philly Bar? I am a sports girl so I like Chickie and Pete’s on Robinson.

LOCaL Craft Beer gIrL

“If you are a smoker and love craft beer, these are the places you want to be at with winter quickly approaching.”

patronize these establishments for the hard work and effort they put in to offer a wide selection of brews. If you are a smoker and love craft beer, these are the places you want to be at with winter quickly approaching. With that being said, visit these bars, enjoy your favorite craft beers, and smoke ‘em if you got ‘em.

Page 30: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200930

microvs.

Two unique experiences aT Two

very differenT breweries.

Page 31: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 31

macromicrovs.

Two unique experiences aT Two

very differenT breweries.

by MaT falco & John GalsTer

illusTraTion by andrew loder

How many times have you argued with a friend who drinks

Budweiser about whose beer is superior? Well we’re not out to

answer that question, but we are going to attempt to help you

out and explain the difference of what goes into brewing a

macro beer such as Budweiser and a craft beer such as Dock Street.

Page 32: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200932

Macro-brewinG – John

auGusT 27, 2009

I made pretty good time on my trip up to Newark, and that was an especially good thing because I didn’t want to be late today. All I could imagine was the straight-faced scientist type that would probably be waiting for me, tapping his toe and checking his watch when I arrived at the Anheuser-Busch. I rolled up on time though and all my worrying seemed to be a waste as my guide for the day couldn’t have been more pleasant. Paul Mancuso’s business card bears not only the title of Assistant Brewmaster but also - and more importantly to me that day - Brewing Ambassador. To start off the day, Paul and I drove (you should start thinking now about how massive this place really is) over to his office to pick up some gear. It was no surprise that a large company like Anheuser-Busch InBev would be concerned with safety so to that effect I was equipped with safety goggles, ear plugs, and a bump cap. Now we were ready. We made our way down the hall to the brewhouse. OK, maybe I wasn’t ready. As soon as we were through the brewhouse doors I was overwhelmed by the strong malty aroma of the wort coming from the largest brew-kettles I have ever seen in my life. Prior to this, the largest operation I had seen was New Belgium Brewing Company’s Fort Collins, Colorado setup when we went out there for the Great American Beer Festival last year. This was much bigger. This was actually a lot like looking at a huge iceberg and realizing that what you are seeing is just the itty-bitty top part. No, really, there were platforms built around these things - the part that I thought was so big was just the top part.

From here we proceeded along the process to the biggest fermenter I have ever seen. I’m going to have to stop saying that, let’s just assume for the

Some people may not realize how drastically different the art and science between the different breweries is, so in order to explain it, John and Mat set out to experience things first hand. Mat spent the day brewing beer at Dock Street brewery, while John traveled out to Jersey to get a personal, behind the scenes tour of a Budweiser factory. The following is what each experienced, so grab a bottle of 90 Minute, have your buddy grab his Rolling Rock, sit back and read together in attempt to solve this long-lived argument!

readers’ sake that everything I saw there was “the biggest I have ever seen.” This fermenter held several batches from the brewhouse blended together. The vast amount of piping in this one room would probably be enough to give a plumber nightmares for the rest of his life, were everything not so clearly well maintained. Passing from room to room, we saw filters, tanks, and beechwood chip loading areas. It is interesting to note that the beechwood chips don’t provide any flavor to the beer - they’re actually treated so that they don’t impart flavor. They are there for the yeast, keeping it in suspension longer. One hallway filled with maturation tanks was so long that the door at the far end seemed like just a dot to me. Fortunately we didn’t have to walk that way.

Paul was eager to point out that the story about the brewmasters tasting the brew everyday is true as we checked out the facility’s tasting room. Now, you may have noticed that in this entire story so far, the only two people mentioned are Paul and I. I hadn’t seen any brewers walking the floors, loading malts and hops, pressing all the doo-dads and knobs on these bright, shiny machines. I asked Paul what the deal was with that and here lies the biggest difference with the stuff that I was used to seeing. Nearly the entire process at the Anheuser-Busch brewery - and specifically the brewing aspect - was automated. That would explain why such a huge place with about 100 brewers employed seemed so empty. After a quick drink (some Budweiser and Bud Light that had just come off the lines), we went to see the working brewers. At the A-B breweries, there is a sort of reverence for the recipe - these guys may not dress up in lab coats but they certainly have the brewing of beer down to a science. Brewers monitor not only every step of the process, but even the machines themselves, through centralized control rooms lined with computers and readouts. From these control rooms, brewers can diagnose any problems that arise and even adjust them. These brains of the brewery

Above: The Anheuser-Busch InBev Newark Brewery

Right: John’s brewery tour guide, Assistant Brewmaster, Paul Mancuso.

Page 33: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 33

enable fewer brewers to effectively be in more places at once, which is im-portant when it would take a few minutes to get from one part of the building to another. Brewers start their day reviewing the data from previous brews to check trends. They also taste all of the ingredients that go into the beer: water, grain, hops, everything, to ensure that the product remains consistent. Additionally, the computers help maintain the mechanical consistency that is a vital part of Anheuser-Busch’s success. The brewers were able to show me every step of the process in every machine on screen in real-time and everything looked to be going smoothly. Paul even showed me where brewers who were not monitoring the beer production were actually running simulations and coming up with new ways to improve the system (without changing the recipe of course). These are the guys that come up with ideas like becoming CO

2 self sufficient, returning reusable waste products like spent grain, and even using automatic lights to save energy and lower temperatures to reduce refrigeration costs. All these improvements not only help cut costs, they also make the brewery a little bit more environmentally friendly with each new solution. The sophistication with which this brewery runs is actually even more impressive than the size.

At the last stop on our tour we visited the packaging lines. In a surprising turn, I did see quite a few people working here. As much as the machines and robots help out here, there are still jobs that require a human touch. It was tough to imagine the sheer amount of beer that was put through in just the amount of time I was watching the bottling and canning, let alone in one hour, one day, or one year. As I left that day, I had a new sort of appreciation for the company and for the things I had seen. I learned a lot about efficiency and the requirements of producing beer on such a large scale. Oh, and did I mention it was big?

Micro-brewinG – MaT

auGusT 1-31, 2009

Apparently waking up at the crack of dawn is becoming a part of the life of a beer magazine founder. Last issue we got up early to drink in a parking lot with the Rolling Barrel guys and this time I woke up even earlier to spend the day with Dock Street Brewery’s head brewer, Ben Potts (and of course drink some beers). I have to say that if I ever have to wake up at such an ungodly hour, then I’m glad it’s for something beer related. I always seem to get this extra sense of energy when the alarm goes off at 5:30 am, and I know I’m waking up for the sole purpose of pursuing my love for good beer. So, with that being said, on to the beer and what it’s like to be a brew master at a microbrewery.

5:30 in the morning and it’s time to get ready and started for the trip across the city to West Philadelphia. They waste no time getting their day started at Dock Street Brewery, as the brewing begins at 6:30 am every day. Of course the first question I asked upon arrival is, “why would some who obviously loves to enjoy a few good beers most nights want to start their day so early?” The answer: it is pretty hot in the brewery, so getting a lot of the heavy lifting out of the way early on before the heat is too intense makes it easier. It also helps to avoid traffic during the commute into work. But anyway, on to brewing some Bohemian Pilsner.

The first step of the day is the hardest: hauling the 50+ pound bags of malts up the steps to the kettle. As I walked in the brewery few minutes before 6:00, Ben was already hard at work getting ready for the “mashing in” process. This first stage consists of hauling the heavy bags of malts and grains then loading them into the mash ton while it is being mixed in with hot water. There is a lot of precision involved as you have to constantly adjust the temperature

Left: Brewmaster Ben Potts adding hops to the kettle.

Above: The inside of a fermentation tank while brewing.

Page 34: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200934

of the water being fed into the mash so that it remains within 2 degrees of the desired temperature or else the body of the beer will be off. To do this, a thermometer was dropped into the tank every few minutes to measure. At the same time, the mash had to be stirred and mixed together. Being that this is a small craft brewery there was no fancy mixing machine for doing this, instead, Ben uses an oar (yes the thing used to row boats) for all the mixing and does it by hand. The sweat dripping down Ben’s face definitely helped explain as to why he starts brewing so early, because I could not imagine doing this mid day in the middle of the summer (there is no AC in the brewery). So, the mashing in process took about an hour and then the wort had to be slowly cycled in and out of the tank for the following hour to make sure it stayed well blended. This time was spent prepping for

the rest of the days work. This included: sanitizing multiple fermentation and bright tanks, sanitizing transfer hoses, transferring previously brewed beers from the fermentation tanks to the bright tanks, weighing out the hops, and on some days cleaning out the kegs for filling. All of this except the keg washing, is done by hand.

When 9:30 rolls around it becomes time to transfer the wort over to the kettle for boiling. This is a two hour process as the wort has to be transferred slowly and heated up the whole time so it stays at the desired temp. A half hour into the transfer, Ben finally gets some real assistance (I’m not going to lie, aside from connecting a few hoses and handing Ben a few items, I was mostly lingering around, observing, and sampling beers) as his only assistant, Justin shows up to help with the clean up. As soon as the wort transfer is complete and the hops are added it had to be boiled for another hour and a half or so. During this process, hops were added a second time and the wort had to be skimmed for protein buildups. After the boil was complete, and Ben had finished sanitizing the fermentation tank and added the yeast, it was once again time for another transfer. This time along the way from the kettle to the fermentation tank, the wort had to be run through a chiller to lower the temperature to ready it for maturation in the fermentation tank.

At this point, the brewing process for the day has come to an end. There was a few wort samples taken to test for gravity, plato values and to taste, but until the fermentation stage is done, there is not much left to do with the beer. The rest of the time is spent shoveling out the spent grain from the mash ton to donate to the local farms and wrapping up the rest of the cleaning. After sampling a few last beers, the day was over and it was off to finish my nap from last night. Leaving, I really began to realize how hands on and labor intensive this dream job is. However, it is still definitely a dream job of mine; just my brewery would open sometime significantly after 6:30 in the morning.

Justin, the lone assistant at Dock Street, draining and sanitizing the transfer hoses.

brewing factsAnheuser-Busch InBev NewarkBrewers: 100

Employees: 600

Hours: 24/7

Barrels per Year: 7,500,000 (9-10 million capacity)

Brews per Day: 80 630 cold wort barrels (brewhouse 1) and 9 1,100 cold wort barrels (brewhouse 2)

Fermenters: 27 4,500 barrel fermenters

When brewers aren’t brewing: Brewmasters are all over the brewery, taking samples, and inspecting machinery along with maintenance staff.

Support: Admin, engineering, environmental safety, maintenance staff are all working there as well.

Eco-Friendliness: Huge focus on refining the process to conserve utilities. Recycles anything that can be. Bio-energy recovery system. Methane gas goes back into the boilers. Diatomaceous Earth is de-watered to be used for concrete production.

Appearance: You can tell by the steam stacks what is going on. You can’t miss the brewery from the highway.

Dock StreetBrewers: 1 and 1 assistant

Employees: just the brewers

Hours: 4-5 days per week at 8 hour days

Barrels per Year: 1,000 (1,200 capacity)

Brews per Day: 1 10 cold wort barrel

Fermenters: 5 10 barrel fermenters

When brewers aren’t brewing: Brewmasters are cleaning, sanitizing tanks, milling own grain, running hoses for transfers.

Support: Still just Ben and his assistant, they do everything

Eco-Friendliness: Does what it can to refine process to conserve utilities and reduce waster but money is a huge issue. Donates spent grain to local farms.

Appearance: Driving up the city street you would probably guess its an old firehouse converted into some kind of restaurant.

Page 35: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 35

Pints4Prostates_Ad09_ BeerScene ALERT: All copy within orange box “If you’re smart...” prints upside down. THIS IS THE TOP

Knowing your PSA (prostate-specific antigen) score can save your life. Each year more than 200,000 men in the U.S. find out they have prostate cancer. Early detection through an annual PSA blood test and prostate health screening can catch prostate cancer when treatment is nearly 100% successful.

Be a man. Call your doctor and schedule an appointment today. Then tell your friends. The more men we reach, the more lives will be saved. And we can all say ‘Cheers!’ to that.

Pints for Prostates. Reaching men through the universal language of beer.For more information visit: www.ustoo.org/pints

Join our Facebook group and look for Pints for Prostates at a beer festival near you.

If you’re smart enough to read

this, you’re smart enough to

get tested.

Prostate Cancer. No Joke. Get Tested.

© 2

009

Pin

ts f

or

Pro

stat

es. D

esig

n p

rovi

ded

as

a p

ublic

ser

vice

by

Eri

c M

ow

er a

nd A

sso

ciat

es.

55277_PFP_Ad09_BeerScene_051809.indd 1 5/18/09 4:06 PM

Page 36: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200936

Bar

& Re

stau

rant

Rev

iew

The InstituteGreat Beer, Wii, and Delicious Puerto Rican Food By Mat Falco

“Neil, you’re up!” “Hold up, I’m eating my baccalitos that pair perfectly with this Rogue Chocolate Stout.” “Fine, I’m bowling for you. Don’t be surprised if you get a gutter ball.” “It’s ok, I already won scoring an order of these baccalitos!” This is what you get during a regular conversation on a normal night at the Institute Bar in Philadelphia, when you mix good beer, good Puerto Rican inspired food, and private Nintendo Wii gaming booths. I agree Wii and beer don’t seem to be the safest combination, but you can’t argue that a game of Wii Sports Bowling doesn’t get a little more intense an exciting after a few drinks. Just make sure you wear the wristband so you don’t send remotes through the TV’s.

Having just recently celebrated their one-year anniversary, the Institute Bar on the corner of 12th and Green is the brainchild of husband and wife owners Heather and Charlie deRussy. Charlie is the man behind the design of the bar and the Puerto Rican roots of the food, while Heather is the brainchild behind the very well crafted beer selection and the actual preparing of most the food menu. The In-

stitute went through a drastic overhaul when the deRussy’s took it over. It use to a typical old-fashioned, old man dive bar. Today, you can tell that Charlie has a passion and history of design. The downstairs has a nice blend of modern décor mixed with vintage woodwork to give it a comfortable, laid back feel. The bar is short, but there is table service throughout. Upstairs has a much more old fashioned feel. This area is flooded with private booths, each of which is equipped with your own personal Wii gaming system. Instead of having a great beer selection, the upstairs bar is a whiskey bar with a vast variety of scotch’s and whiskeys from through the world. There is also a DJ booth in the back to liven up the party on weekends.

Aside from going under a drastic visual overhaul, the beer list went through an even more drastic change. Heather is very proud of the beers she pours, and in all respects should be. The draft selections consist of 12 lines which at the time I’m writing this have two barrel aged St. Somewhere beers, Bruery Orchard White (an absolutely awesome take on a Belgian White), and selections from Dark Horse, Founders, Duck Rabbit and others. This is just an average days selection too. I don’t think there is a time you can walk into this bar and not be at least slightly shocked by the selection. Yes, they still have Yuengling and Stella on tap, but with all the other stuff on tap, all they do is make it easier to bring your non-beer loving friends along with you. If the taps don’t work for you, they also have a selection of about 30 bottles that is guaranteed to include at least a few Belgians you’ve never heard of and even a few domestic micros you’re unfamiliar with. Being that they have such a vast selection of stronger beers, a kitchen serving up a great selection of Puerto Rican style dishes was recently put in. All the food is really great and includes everything from empanadas and mofongo stuffed chicken to their take on the classic Philly cheesesteak served up using hanger steak and topped with goat cheese, poblano peppers, and onions. There is also a selection of vegetarian and vegan options to keep the local hipsters happy.

Between the artfully done décor, passionately chosen beer selection, and the unique, cultural choice of bar food, the Institute is shaping up to be a great addition to Philadelphia’s already astounding selection of beer bars. The Puerto Rican food and the willingness to put on quality beers that people haven’t yet heard of, really helps them stand out though. If you’re in the mood for something different from the common traditions of cheesesteaks and local favorites, then stop by the Institute and challenge your friends to a game of Wii Sports. They’ll have your local favorites, but chances are you’ll even find a few new favorites to add to your list.

The Institute Bar is located at 549 N. 12th Street, Philadelphia. 215-765-8515.

Page 37: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 37

pretty interesting. Part of the stipulation to get them to play was that I had to pick them up at the airport. It was a little awkward at first but we settled in.” Dave is a hands on general manager, from picking up the entertainment, to help writing the new menu. From the calamari to the Brewhouse Burger, the food here is great. Paired with their staple Amber Ale or Bengal Gold IPA, you can’t go wrong.

Taking care of the brewing end is Brendan Anderson. Brendan got his roots in brewing at Hyde Park Brewery in New York, learning from head brewer John Eccles. He then moved with John to Skytop Brewery and Res-taurant, a sister project to Hyde Park. Eight years later, he is now at Triumph. Brendan has done an excellent job in brewing the staple styles that so many people enjoy at Triumph, and doesn’t shy away from experimentation. The first Friday of every month Triumph unveils a beer that has been oak aged, either their own or trading beer with other local breweries. They set the oak barrel up right on the bar, hammer in the tap, and it’s ready to go. Brendan is currently working on a beer called Orange Blossom that is brewed with orange juice.

All in all, you can’t go wrong with Triumph of New Hope. From live music to Texas Hold ‘Em tournaments, Triumph made all the right changes to enjoy great craft beers, great food and entertainment. This autumn, take a day trip and enjoy the scenery on your way to Triumph. I suggest getting their beer flight; the perfect complement to a gorgeous fall day. The oranges, golds, and browns of the beer perfectly match the colors of autumn. Check out Triumph’s current menu and beers at triumphbrew.com. Triumph is located at 400 Union Square Drive in New Hope, PA. 215-862-8300.

Bar

& Re

stau

rant

Rev

iew

New Scene in New HopeIf you haven’t been there recently, Triumph of New Hope has made some changes for the better.

By Scott Willey

There is nothing better than the change of seasons in Bucks County. Just warm enough in the afternoon, and just cool enough at night to throw on your favorite hoodie, maybe even shorts, and take a ride with the windows down, enjoying the brisk fall air while jamming to your favorite songs of the summer before the sleepy winter months approach. Sublime and Jack Johnson just don’t sound right in the middle of December. On a sunny autumn afternoon, I did just this. I threw on some shorts, my favorite old school Phillies hoodie, popped in Dave Matthews Band’s newest CD, and I took the winding ride down River Road to take in the leafy fireworks that autumn in Bucks brings every year. My final destination was Triumph of New Hope. New Hope is a scenic walking district, and if you live in the city, I suggest taking the trip. You have Triumph of New Hope, and right across the Lambertville bridge there’s River Horse Brewing Co., which offers tours on the weekends.

If you haven’t visited Triumph recently, they have made several changes for the better. They have relaxed their image a bit, adding a pool table and darts, the popular TV trivia game NTN Buzz Time Trivia, a successful Texas Hold ‘Em Tournament on Monday and Thursday nights, and have recently built a stage to feature some of the best music the area has to offer. Triumph’s stage has recently been the stomping grounds for the Wood Brothers, Splintered Sunlight, Cornbread, and Juggling Suns. Dave Tyler, the general manager and aficionado of independent artists, is constantly searching for the best acts to play at Triumph; always with a reasonable cover. When he found out the Wood Brothers would be playing World Cafe Live, he quickly got a hold of their management to see if they could do a set at Triumph while they were in the area. He worked out the details, and told me, “It was

Page 38: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200938

how philly beer scene reviews beer

Every issue the four founders of Philly Beer Scene, Scott, Neil, Mat and John get together with a notable guest for a small, private, tasting session called the “The Tasting Room.” Approximately a dozen beers are chosen that are new, seasonal or just interesting.

Rather than presenting an overly-detailed single perspective review, “The Tasting Room” serves to be a brief written account of key points made between the tasters. Each taster designates a rating from zero to five stars, justifying it in their own way. The scores are then averaged and always rounded to the nearest half star for a final rating.

star gazing

Stay Away From This Beer

A Drinkable Beer But Not Worth Seeking Out

An Average Beer

A Pretty Decent Beer Worth Drinking Anytime

If You See This Beer, Order It

You Better Go Out And Find This Beer Now

At the last minute, Scott, due to unforeseen circumstances, couldn’t make the tasting. Quickly rushing to fill his very large shoes this issue was Melissa, Philly Beer Scene’s Art Director and beer lover in training.

This month’s Tasting Room took place at Raw Dawgs Saloon, a new up and coming beer bar on Second and Morris Streets in South Philly. Raw Dawgs Saloon is an awesome Irish Sports bar featuring 10 flat screens TVs, over 50 craft beers with more on the way, and great daily specials. Also, it is worth mentioning that Raw Dawgs Saloon is managed by Philly Beer Scene’s own Mat Falco.

The Tasting Room

our notable guestOur guest was none other than nationally renowned, award winning beer writer, Lew Bryson. Lew is a Philadelphia local who maintains his own beer and whiskey blog, “Seen Through a Glass” (lewbryson.blogspot.com). More notably, he is the author of great series of state-by-state brewery guidebooks which can be found on his website, www.lewbryson.com.

Page 39: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 39

Furthermore Oscura

This coffee beer is brewed with a brown Mexican Lager

and includes flaked maize for extra creaminess.

Extra warm fermentation allows the yeast to produce

interesting flavors. Hop bitterness is then increased

to offset the sweet flavor of un-brewed coffee.

ABV: 5.3%

Dogfish Head Punkin’ Ale

Punkin’ Ale is a full-bodied, spiced brown ale brewed

with baked pumpkins, cinnamon, nutmeg and brown

sugar. Dogfish Head Punkin’ Ale is named after the

annual Punkin’ Chunkin Festival held near Lewes,

Delaware the weekend after Halloween. ABV: 7%

Ithaca White Gold

A Belgo-American Ale brewed with domestic barley

and French wheat malts, the finest Saaz and Santiam

hops, and an authentic Trappist Ale Yeast. This brew

is fermented with Belgian, English and wild yeasts

creating a unique dry finish and zesty mouth-feel.

ABV: 8%

Victory Helios Ale

Unique, hazy orange-hued ale, brewed with German

malts and European hops to feed the dynamic yeast

that was imported from Belgium with impressions

ranging from lemon peel to black pepper, though

these spices are not added. ABV: 7.5%

Stone Vertical Epic 09-09-09

A layered beer brewed with the goal to be reminiscent

of artisanal chocolates accentuated with orange. Bold

and smooth chocolate malt flavors combine with

Belgian yeast, tropical fruit and banana flavors with

subtle spiciness and hints of tangerine peel added

for the citrus nose. ABV: 8.5%

McGillins 1860 IPA

McGillin’s is celebrating its 150th Anniversary with the

launch of its unfiltered Stout’s brewed IPA. Made from

a secret recipe with multiple hop varieties including

centennial and Amarillo, and oak aged with crisp hop

flavor and aroma with a slight maltiness and medium

body. McGillin’s 1860 IPA is available, on tap, exclusively

at McGillin’s. ABV: 5.5%

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Distinct brett character, plenty going on in the beer. Bold, not what I expected.

I don’t really like the finish—it messed up an otherwise good pils.

Strong, bitter flavor, smells sweet, but the flavor just isn’t for me.

It took me a little while to warm up to this but once I got into it, I found it extremely pleasant.

Not great, not terrible. It takes a few sips to get on your palette and then smooths out greatly.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Smokey, graham aroma. Some medicinal flavors. Better on third taste. Catch a little bit of bitter chocolate.

Tastes like smoked fish to me.

I definitely notice the chocolate and vanilla flavors. It’s a little bitter but balances well.

Huge smokiness upfront as well as spiciness with a nice citrusy orange peel.

The color has a beautiful red hue. There is great smoki-ness to it with a malty nuttiness.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Fresh, citrus, grassy – Did I say “Fresh?” Very ap-proachable, a bit sweet with a bitter finish.

One of the easiest, most approachable IPAs I’ve had. Great for session drinking.

Too bitter and then there’s a little sourness at the end.

Not overwhelming, not outstanding.

A very floral IPA. What’s nice is that it isn’t overwhelming. If you’re not a hophead you can enjoy this.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Strongly coffee-scented and flavored. Like cold coffee, sweet finish. Too much coffee for me.

Not your traditional coffee beer. Nice, thick body for an ale. Iced coffee flavor with a coffee grind finish.

Smells like coffee. Could easily replace a mimosa for Sunday Brunch. Mmm… Beer Pancakes.

Normally I hate coffee beers but this is awesome. A fine replacement to my breakfast scotch.

This has a beautiful coffee taste with an incredible aroma. This is hugely different from a coffee stout.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Not a lot of aroma, plenty of sweet beer, spice, but just not doing it.

No nose. Not as overwhelming with the spice as some other pumpkin beers. Great pumpkin flavor.

This has a great smell of pumpkins and a flavor to match. What I like is that it still tastes like beer.

So good… Smooth tasting with strong pumpkin and spice notes.

A great real pumpkin taste with a malty richness. It’s better than having pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Sticky, honey smell. Tastes like candy: pineapple, but-terscotch. Starts big then peters out.

Lacks the dimension I expected after Ten being one of our favorites the last issue.

Another with sweet aromas. An easy beer to drink with lots of fruit and zest.

Strong, sweet, and thick.

Not as impressive as the but very well crafted. Great alcohol for a wheat beer and very sweet.

4

3

1

4

3

4

2

3

5

4

4

4

2

3

4

3

3

3

5

3

2

3

4

4

4

3

4

4

5

4

Page 40: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200940

Weyerbacher XIV

This unfiltered brew is made with over 50% wheat to

give it a distinctly spicy character. Enjoy it now, or if

you have the patience, give it some time in your

cellar. When you are ready, expect to find notes of

tart wheat and honey with crisp bitterness and

carbonation. Recipe by Head Brewer Chris Wilson

and Brewer Jeff Musselman. ABV: 11.8%

Troegs JavaHead Stout

JavaHead Stout was first released as Scratch 15 and

contains a blend of locally roasted espresso and Kenyan

coffee beans by St. Thomas Roasters in Linglestown, PA.

This recipe is based off of Troegs’ original 2005 oatmeal

stout. This coffee flavored brew results in a lush oatmeal

mouth-feel balanced with cocoa, roast and subtle coffee

flavors. ABV: 7.5%

Estrella Damm Inedit

Aromatized with coriander, orange peel and

liquorice. ABV: 4.8%

Long Trail Imperial Porter

The Imperial Porter was developed by one of the

brewer’s at Long Trail. This homebrew secret contains

a thin creamy head, which balances out the dark

roasted malts of chocolate, caramel and barley and

a variety of hops to produce a clean, delicious finish.

ABV: 8.4%

Lancaster Oktoberfest

This smooth brew ushers in autumn with an invitingly

tawny color complemented by an assertive maltiness.

A noble crispness from German and Czech hops

completes this very traditional lager-style beer.

ABV: 6.5%

Warsteiner Oktoberfest

This brew full-bodied, Marzen style brew combines

a nice balance of German hops and rich maltiness

for a smooth and festive experience. ABV: 5.9%

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Phenol, orange, cinnamon, syrup thick. Still a good orangey edge on it, that keeps it drinkable.

I’m not a barley wine fan but this is sweet and smooth with banana characteristics. The wheat is a nice spin.

A fuller body with quite a good deal of sweetness. Almost syrupy in texture and perhaps too sweet.

Smooth and overall very sweet. It’s very thick and syrupy.

Very nice, smooth, and sweet. For practically 12% this is how I would drink my wheat beers.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Malt and a little milk chocolate in a very tight, light nose. Coffee in a fairly dry stout. Clean but a bit understated.

I don’t dislike this at all but I was expecting more flavor. It has such an extreme name.

It smells like the inside of a citrus peel. I would rather cook with this while tailgating.

It’s solid but nothing is inspiring about it although I do like that it was made with local coffees.

Beautiful carbonation and not a heavy stout at all. It’s enjoyable and the coffee isn’t overwhelming.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Orange, oaty, spice in the nose. Clean. Nice tart finish.

Surprisingly good. It would make a nice session beer that could pair nicely with most food.

Tastes like flowers and has a great aroma. Not your usual beer to me. It’s very unique.

Smells like honey and spice. It’s light and fruity. I could drink a lot of this.

Extremely floral and citrusy with a great aroma. The flavor dissolves quickly and has a clean finish.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Bitter chocolate and fruit. It’s strong but drinkable.

A great contribution to a great series of beers. Extremely easy to drink for a porter.

Vanilla aroma. It’s sweet and not so bitter for a porter. It’s very enjoyable.

Once again shows that Long Trail can make some great beers. I wish there were hints of coffee though.

Surprisingly mellow and sweet from what I was expecting to be a big beer. I actually enjoy this greatly.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Wow. Solid malt with a touch of ash, sweet and a bit chewy.

An Oktoberfest I could drink many of. It’s really smooth which I appreciate.

Easy to drink, a good beer for a Halloween party!

Nice sweetness, more than I’d expect.

Malty, smooth and easy to drink. A very easy and enjoyable beer to kick back with during the autumn.

Lew

Mat

Mel

John

Neil

Thin, sweet. Quite clean, but just not enough.

Light, sweets but somewhat one dimensional.

Sweet. Light. Flavor falls off at the end.

Lighter than the Lancaster with a strong honey aftertaste.

Nice golden color and very sweet. Not a lot of depth but has a very nice hint of honey.

4

4

2

5

3

3

3

2

3

3

4

4

4

4

4

2

2

3

3

3

4

4

3

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

Page 41: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 41

The Final PicksAfter some long discussion and debate over the twelve craft beers that

were sampled, our panel and Lew Bryson are ready to reveal each of their

favorite picks for October and November.

Lew Bryson’s Final Pick: Long Trail Imperial Porter: A very drinkable porter with an impressive ABV. Great notes of chocolate and fruits.

Mat’s Final Pick: Furthermore Oscu-ra: It’s a very atypical coffee beer which makes is stand out above many others I’ve tried.

Melissa’s Final Pick: Estrella Damm Inedit: A very interesting beer. It’s definitely not like any beer I’ve ever drank and it tasted distinctively like flowers which was unique.

John’s Final Pick: Stone Vertical Epic 09-09-09: Stone doesn’t usually disappoint me. The smoke and spice is great and that last touch of citrus is an interesting contrast.

Neil’s Final Pick: Lancaster Oktober-fest: I always enjoy Oktoberfest style beers during the autumn season. This one is exceptional!

weird beer #3Hot Beer: La Dragonne

It’s not uncommon on a cool day that many drink a

mulled (heated) wine. In fact, many people do this as

a household remedy to the cold, due to the various

antioxidants found in wine. But not many people have

heard of doing such with a beer. It’s hard to imagine

bringing a beer up to heated temperatures when just

coming out of summer; we still look forward to the

ice cold beverage after a long day of work. But for

those cooler days, there’s La Dragonne.

La Dragonne is a Swiss beer made specifically

to be heated and drank in a mug rather than typical

beer glassware. Heating the beer is quite easy as it

only requires placing the bottle in a hot water bath on

the stove until it reaches 120 (F) degrees.

Pouring the beer into the mug, you immediately

notice the beautiful brown color but a lack of

carbonation. The aroma has notes of honey, nutmeg,

cinnamon, clove, cardamom and of course a touch

of alcohol. When tasting La Dragonne, you’re blasted

with a ton of unique flavors ranging from sweet to bitter

and including the spices clearly present in the aroma.

Drinking La Dragonne is obviously weird as

everything you know about a normal beer seems

to be the opposite; warm versus cold, carbonation

versus no carbonation. Just as many know that

drinking a beer too cold numbs the palette, drinking

this heated beer opens up the palette to an entirely

new range of flavors that can’t be found by opening

the fridge.

La Dragonne is definitely worth seeking out. Bottles

have been found throughout the region including

Capone’s in Norristown and The Six Pack Store on the

Boulevard in North East Philadelphia.

3

Page 42: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200942

Directory

PhiladelphiaBars & Restaurants12 Steps Down 831 Christian St. www.12stepsdown.com

700700 N. 2nd Street www.the700.org

1601 Café1601 S. 10th Streetwww.1601cafe.com

The Abbaye637 N. 3rd Street

Aspen747 N. 25th Streettheaspenrestaurant.com

Atlantis: The Lost Bar2442 Frankford Ave.

Bar Ferdinand1030 N. 2nd Street www.barferdinand.com

The Belgian Café2047 Green Streetwww.thebelgiancafe.com

Beneluxx Tasting Room33 S. 3rd Streetwww.beneluxx.com

The Bishop’s Collar2349 Fairmont Ave.

The Black Sheep247 S. 17th Streetheblacksheeppub.com

The Blockley38th & Ludlow Streets www.theblockley.com

Brauhaus Schmitz718 South St.brauhausschmitz.com

Brew1900 S. 15th Street

Bridgid’s726 N. 24th Streetwww.bridgids.com

Bridget Foy’s200 South Streetwww.bridgetfoys.com

Brownie’s Irish Pub46 S. 2nd Streetbrowniesirishpub.com

The Budapest Café11th and Fitzwater Streets

Cantina Dos Segundos931 N 2nd Streetcantinadossegundos.com

Cavanaugh’s Rittenhouse1823 Sansom Streetwww.cavsrittenhouse.com

Cherry Street Tavern129 N. 22nd Street

Chris’s Jazz Café1421 Samson Street www.chrisjazzcafe.com

City Tavern138 S. 2nd Streetwww.citytavern.com

Dawson Street Pub100 Dawson Streetwww.dawsonstreetpub.com

Devil’s Alley1907 Chestnut Streetwww.devilsalleybarand-grill.com

Devil’s Den1148 S. 11th Street www.devilsdenphilly.com

The Dive947 E. Passyunk Ave www.myspace.com/thedivebar

Doobies2201 Lombard Street

The Draught Horse1431 Cecil B. Moore Ave. www.draughthorse.com

Druid’s Keep149 Brown Street

Eulogy Belgian Tavern136 Chestnut Streeteulogybar.server101.com

Fergie’s Pub1214 Sansom Streetwww.fergies.com

Flat Rock Saloon4301 Main Street

For Pete’s Sake900 S. Front Streetforpetessakepub.com

Good Dog224 S. 15th Streetwww.gooddogbar.com

Grace Tavern2229 Grays Ferrywww.gracetavern.com

The Grey Lodge Pub6235 Frankford Ave.www.greylodge.com

The Institute549 N. 12th Streetwww.institutebar.com

The Irish Pol45 S. 3rd Streetwww.theirishpol.com

Jack’s Firehouse2130 Fairmount Avewww.jacksfirehouse.com

Johnny Brenda’s1201 Frankford Ave.www.johnnybrendas.com

Jose Pistolas263 S. 15th Streetwww.josepistolas.com

The Khyber56 S. Second Streetwww.thekhyber.com

Kite And Key1836 Callowhill Streetwww.thekiteandkey.com

Ladder 151528 Sansom Streetwww.ladder15philly.com

Las Vegas Lounge704 Chestnut Streetwww.lasvegaslounge.com

Local 444333 Spruce Streetwww.local44beerbar.com

London Grill2301 Fairmount Ave.www.londongrill.com

Mad Mex3401 Walnut Streetwww.madmex.com

Manny Brown’s512 South Streetwww.manny-browns.com

Mary Oaks3801 Chestnut St.www.maryoaks.com

McGillin’s Old Ale House1310 Drury Lanewww.mcgillins.com

McGlinchey’s259 S 15th Street

McMenamin’s Tavern7170 Germantown Ave.

Memphis Taproom2331 E. Cumberland St.memphistaproom.com

Misconduct Tavern1511 Locust Street misconduct-tavern.com

Monk’s Café264 S. 16th Streetwww.monkscafe.com

Moriarty’s Pub1116 Walnut Streetwww.moriartyspub.com

National Mechanics22 S. 3rd Streetnationalmechanics.com

New Wave Café784 S 3rd Streetwww.newwavecafe.com

North Bowl909 N 2nd Streetwww.northbowlphilly.com

North Star Bar2639 Poplar Streetwww.northstarrocks.com

North Third801 N. 3rd Streetwww.norththird.com

O’Neals Pub611 S. 3rd Streetwww.onealspub.com

Old Eagle Tavern177 Markle Streetwww.oldeagletavern.com

Ortlieb’s Jazzhaus847 N. 3rd Streetortliebsjazzhaus.com

Plough and The Stars123 Chestnut Streetwww.ploughstars.com

Prohibition Taproom501 N. 13th Streettheprohibitiontaproom.com

Pub On Passyunk East (POPE)1501 E. Passyunk Ave.

Race Street Café208 Race Streetwww.racestreetcafe.net

Raw Dawgs 1700 S. 2nd St. rawdawgssaloon.com

Rembrandt’s 741 N. 23rd Streetwww.rembrandts.com

Resurrection Ale House2425 Grays Ferry Ave.resurrectionalehouse.com

Royal Tavern937 East Passyunk Ave. www.royaltavern.com

Sassafras Café48 S. 2nd Streetwww.sassafrasbar.com

Silk City435 Spring Garden Street www.silkcityphilly.com

Sansom Street Oyster House1516 Sansom Street oysterhousephilly.com

Smokin’ Bettys 116 S. 11th Street

Society Hill Hotel301 Chestnut Street

South Philadelphia Tap Room1509 Mifflin Street southphiladelphiatap-room.com

Southwark701 S. 4th Street southwarkrestaurant.com

Standard Tap901 N. 2nd Street www.standardtap.com

St. Stephen’s Green1701 Green Street saintstephensgreen.com

Sugar Mom’s Church Street Lounge225 Church Streetmyspace.com/sugarmoms

Swift Half1001 N. 2nd Streetswifthalfpub.com

Tangier1801 Lombard Sttangier.thekalon.com

Tattooed Mom530 South Streetwww.myspace.com/tat-tooed_mom

Ten Stone2063 South Streetwww.tenstone.com

Three Monkeys9645 James Streetwww.3monkeyscafe.com

TIME1315 Sansom Streetwww.timerestaurant.net

Tria123 S. 18th Street1137 Spruce Streetwww.triacafe.com

The Ugly American1100 S. Front Streetuglyamericanphilly.com

Union Jack’s4801 Umbria Street

Valanni1229 Spruce Street www.valanni.com

Varga Bar941 Spruce Streetwww.vargabar.com

World Cafe Live3025 Walnut Streetwww.worldcafelive.com

Page 43: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 43

Directory

To qualify as a member of Select Singles Dating Service, please fill out our online screening questionnaire at:

www.selectsinglesdating.com or call 484-250-4568

or email [email protected]

select singlesDATING SERVICE

Washington Crossing InnFriday, October 23rd 7pm-11pm

Routes 532 & 32Washington Crossing, Pa 18977

DJ, Dancing, Light Hors D’ Oeurves, Cash Bar and Cash Prizes for First, Second and Third Place

Best Costume!Entry Fee is $20.00 if you register online at:

www.selectsinglesdating.com using PayPal or $25 at the door.

SINGLES HALLOWEEN COSTUME PARTY!

Introducing Men and Women ages 25-70 in Bucks, Montgomery and Philadelphia, PA

SINGLE BEER LOVERS EVENT!Blue Ox Bistro

Sunday October 25th 5pm to 9pm7980 Oxford Ave

Philadelphia, PA 19111DJ, Dancing, Light Hors D’ Oeurves, Cash Bar

and Beer Samples!Entry Fee is $20.00 if you register online at:

www.selectsinglesdating.com using PayPal or $25 at the door.

SINGLES HALLOWEEN COSTUME PARTY!The Lofts at Valley ForgeFriday, October 30th 7pm-11pm

1876 Minutemen LaneWest Norriton, PA 19403

Entry Fee is $20.00 if you register online at:www.selectsinglesdating.com using PayPal or $25 at the door.

Zot122 Lombard Streetwww.zotrestaurant.com

BrewpubsDock Street Brewing Company701 S. 50th Streetwww.dockstreetbeer.com

Earth Bread + Brewery7136 Germantown Ave.earthbreadbrewery.com

Manayunk Brewery and Restaurant4120 Main Streetmanayunkbrewery.com

Nodding Head Brewery and Restaurant1516 Sansom Streetwww.noddinghead.com

Triumph Brewing Company117-121 Chestnut Streettriumphbrewing.com

BreweriesDock Street Brewing Company701 S. 50th Streetwww.dockstreetbeer.com

Philadelphia Brewing Co.2439 Amber Streetphiladelphiabrewing.com

Yards Brewing Co.901 N. Delaware Avenuewww.yardsbrewing.com

Retail BeerThe Beer Outlet77 Franklin Mills Blvd.

Bella Vista Specialty Beer Distributors738 S. 11th Street

Bell’s Beverage2809 S. Front Street

Craft Beer Outlet 9910 Frankford Ave.

Doc’s World Of Beer701 E. Cathedral Road

The Foodery837 N. 2nd Street324 S. 10th Street www.fooderybeer.com

The Six Pack Store7015 Roosevelt Boulevardwww.thesixpackstore.com

Home Brew SuppliesBarry’s Homebrew Outlet101 Snyder Ave.barryshomebrew.com

Home Sweet Homebrew2008 Sansom St.homesweethomebrew.com

SuburbsBars & RestaurantsBlue Dog Pub850 South Valley Forge RdLansdale, PA 19446www.bluedog.cc

Blue Dog Tavern4275 Country Line RoadChalfont, PA 18914www.bluedog.cc

Broad Axe Tavern901 W. Butler PikeAmbler, PA 19002broadaxetavern.com

Brady’s4700 Street RoadTrevose, PA 19053www.cpbuckscounty.com

The Buck Hotel1200 Buck RoadFeasterville, PA 19053www.thebuckhotel.com

Candlewyck LoungeRoutes 413 & 202Buckingham, PA 18912

Capone’s Restaurant 224 W. Germantown PikeNorristown, PA 19401caponesdraftlist.blogspot.com

Craft Ale House708 W. Ridge PikeLimerick, PA 19468www.craftalehouse.com

The Drafting Room635 N. Pottstown PikeExton, PA 19341www.draftingroom.com

900 N. Bethlehem PikeSpring House, PA 19477www.draftingroom.com

Epicurean Restaurant and Bar902 Village At ElandPhoenixville, PA 19460epicureanrestaurant.com

Fingers Wings And Other Things107 W. Ridge PikeConshohocken, PA 19428www.fwot.com

Firewaters1110 Baltimore PikeConcord, PA 19342www.firewatersbar.com

Flanigan’s Boathouse113 Fayette StreetConshohocken, PA 19428www.flanboathouse.com

16 Great Valley ParkwayMalvern, PA 19355www.flanboathouse.com

118 N. Wayne Ave.Wayne, PA 19087www.flanboathouse.com

Flying Pig Saloon121 E. King StreetMalvern, PA 19149

Freight House194 W. Ashland Ave.Doylestown, PA 18901www.thefreighthouse.net

Frontier Saloon336 Kedron Ave.Folsom, PA 19033www.frontiersaloon.com

Green Parrot Restaurant Pub & Patio240 N Sycamore St,Newtown, PA 18940greenparrotirishpub.com

Gullifty’s 1149 Lancaster Ave. Rosemont, PA 19010 www.gulliftys.com

Half Moon Restaurant & Saloon108 W. State StreetKennett Square, PA 19348halfmoonrestaurant.com

Holy Smoke473 Leverington Ave.Roxborough, PA 19128holysmokephilly.com

Page 44: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200944

Directory

Great Pubfare! Great Prices!

Serving Lunch, Dinner, & Late Night

www.manny-browns.com

Manny Brown's Neshaminy3900 Rockhill Drive

Neshaminy Mall #665Bensalem, PA 19020

(215) 357-9242

Manny Brown's South Street512 South Street

Philadelphia, PA 19147(215) 627-7427

Manny Brown's Newtown25 Doublewoods RoadLanghorne, PA 19047

(215) 860-9288

24 TapsOver 75 Bottles

Great Outdoor Patio!

20 TapsOver 50 Bottles

20 TapsOver 50 Bottles

Honey42 Shewell Ave.Doylestown, PA 18901honeyrestaurant.com

Hulmeville Inn4 Trenton RoadHulmeville, PA 19047www.hulmevilleinn.com

Iron Abbey Gastro Pub680 N. Easton RoadHorsham, PA 19044www.ironabbey.com

Isaac Newton’s18 S. State StreetNewtown, PA 18940www.isaacnewtons.com

Lucky Dog Saloon And Grille417 Germantown PikeLafayette Hill, PA 19106theluckydogsaloon.com

Maggio’s Restaurant400 2nd Street PikeSouthampton, PA 18966maggiosrestaurant.com

Manny Brown’s3900 Rockhill Dr.Bensalem, PA 19020www.manny-browns.com

25 Doublewoods RoadLanghorne, PA 19047www.manny-browns.com

McCloskey Restaurant & Bar17 Cricket AveArdmore, PA 19003

Mesquito Grill128 W. State StreetDoylestown, PA 18901

Newportville Inn4120 Lower RoadNewportville, PA 19056www.newportvilleinn.net

Otto’s Brauhaus233 Easton RoadHorsham, Pa 19044ottosbrauhauspa.com

Patagonia59 Almshouse RoadRichboro, PA 18974

Pickering Creek Inn37 Bridge StreetPhoenixville, PA 19460pickeringcreekinn.com

Puck14 E. Court StreetDoylestown, PA 18901www.pucklive.com

Quotations37 E. State StreetMedia, PA 19063

Ron’s Original Bar & Grille74 E. Uwchlan Ave.Exton, PA 19341www.ronsoriginal.com

Sly Fox Brewing Company312 N. Lewis RoadRoyersford, PA 19468www.slyfoxbeer.com

Spinnerstown Hotel2195 Spinnertown RoadSpinnerstown, PA 18968spinnerstownhotel.com

Teresa’s Next Door126 N. Wayne Ave.Wayne, PA 19087www.teresas-cafe.com

TJ’s Everday35 Paoli PlazaPaoli, PA 19301www.tjseveryday.com

Tony’s Place Bar & Grill1297 Greeley AveIvyland, PA 18974tonysplaceivyland.com

Union Jack’s2750 Limekiln PikeGlenside, PA 19038

BrewpubsGeneral Lafayette Inn & Brewery646 Germantown PikeLayayette Hill, PA 19444generallafayetteinn.com

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant30 E. Slate StreetMedia, PA 19063www.ironhillbrewery.com

130-138 Bridge StreetPhoenixville, PA 19460www.ironhillbrewery.com

3 W. Gay StreetWest Chester, PA 19380www.ironhillbrewery.com

1460 Bethlehem PikeNorth Wales, PA 19454www.ironhillbrewery.com

McKenzie Brew HouseRt. 202Chadds Ford, PA 19342mckenziebrewhouse.com

240 Lancaster Ave.Malvern, PA 19355mckenziebrewhouse.com

Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery1001 King of Prussia PlazaKing of Prussia, PA 19406www.rockbottom.com

Sly Fox Brewing Company519 Kimberton RoadPhoenixville, PA 19460www.slyfoxbeer.com

BreweriesRoyersford Brewing Company 519 Main StreetRoyersford, PA 19468www.royersfordbrew.com

Sly Fox Brewing Company519 Kimberton RoadRoyersford, PA 19468www.slyfoxbeer.com

Victory Brewing Company420 Acorn LaneDowningtown, PA 19335www.victorybeer.com

Retail BeerB&B Beverage3670 Sawmill RoadDoylestown, PA 18902bandbbeverages.com

Beer Yard, Inc.218 E. Lancaster Ave.Wayne, PA 19087www.beeryard.com

Bensalem Beer & Soda1919 Street RoadBensalem, PA 19020www.bensalembeer.com

Bound Beverage2544 Bristol PikeBensalem, PA 19020

Page 45: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 45

Ad Name: Bass - GuitarItem #: PSS20089299

Job/Order #:609292-209308

Trim: 8.375x10.875Bleed: 8.625x11.125Live: 7.875x10.375

Closing Date: 9.21.9QC: SMPub: Philly Beer Scene

Profi

le:

SWO

P

Page 46: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200946

Directory

Craft Beer NightEvery Wednesday

from 7-9pmTry select craft beers at

a discounted price.

November 10th

Taste of Fall Season7:00pm

5 Course Gourmet Dinner + Beer Tasting

Reservations Required$55.95 per person + tax and gratuity

visit our website for further details

www.tonysplaceivyland.com

4-6pm Monday-Friday1/2 OFF

drinks & appetizers

1297 Greeley Avenue . Ivyland, PA 18974

20 draft beers available

100 bottled beers

Featuring the best in Bucks County for

fall & winter beers

Always check out our website for upcoming events and specials

Capone’s Restaurant (takeout)224 W. Germantown PikeNorristown, PA 19401caponesdraftlist.blogspot.com

Domestic & Imported Beverages485 Baltimore PikeGlen Mills, PA 19342

Edgemont Beer & Cigars5042-B West Chester PikeNewtown Square, PA 19073edgemontbeerandcigars.com

Epps Beverages79 W. Ridge PikeLimerick, PA 19468

Exton Beverage Center310 E. Lincoln HighwayExton, PA 19341www.extonbeverage.com

Frosty Caps1745-47 Old York RoadAbington, PA 19001

Hatboro Beverage201 Jacksonville RoadHatboro, PA 19040www.hatbev.com

Stephanie’s Take-Out29 S. Main StreetDoylestown, PA 18901www.stephaniesrl.com

Richboro Beer & Soda1041 2nd Street Pike Richboro, PA 18954 www.geocities.com/rich-borobeer

Township Line Beer & Cigars5315 Township Line RoadDrexel Hill, PA 19026

Trenton Road Take Out1024 Trenton RoadFallsington, PA 19054trentonroadtakeout.com

Trevose Beer & Soda550 Andrews RdLanghorne, PA 19053

Home Brew SuppliesBrew Your Own Beer & Winemaking Too!2026 Darby RoadHavertown, PA 19083

Keystone Homebrew Supply779 Bethlehem PikeMontgomeryville, PA 18936keystonehomebrew.com

Wine, Barley & Hops Homebrew Supply248 Bustleton PikeFeasterville, PA 19053winebarleyandhops.com

The Wine & Beer Barrel101 Ridge RoadChadds Ford, PA 19317

New Jersey / DelawareBars & Restaurants

Buckley’s Tavern5821 Kennett PikeCenterville, DE 19807www.buckleystavern.org

Cork90 Haddon AvenueWestmont, NJ 08108www.corknj.com

Eclipse Restaurant 1020-B N. Union StreetWilmington, DE 19805

Exchange on Market 902 N. Market StreetWilmington, DE 19801

The Firkin Tavern1400 Parkway Ave.Ewing, NJ 08628www.firkintavern.com

Geraghty’s Pub148 W. Broad StreetBurlington, NJ 08016www.geraghtyspub.com

Red White and Brew33 High StreetMount Holly, NJ 08060www.redwhitebrew.net

TrevoseBeer & Soda

Trevose Shopping CenterBrownsville & Andrews Rds

FEASTERVILLE(next to Planet Fitness)

• Kegs• Taps• Tubs• Lottery

• Cigarettes• Ice• Soda• Snacks

215-322-7844

Hours:Mon - Thurs 10am - 8pm

Fri - Sat 10am - 9pmSun 12pm - 5pm

Page 47: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 47

Directory

IN THE PURSUIT OF HOPPINESS

Dock Street Brewery & RestaurauntWest Philly - 701 S. 50th Street

(firehouse, corner 50th & Baltimore)www.dockstreetbeer.com

BrewpubsIron Hill Brewery & Restaurant710 S. Madison StreetWilmington, DE 19801www.ironhillbrewery.com

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant124 E. Kings HighwayMaple Shade, NJ 08052www.ironhillbrewery.com

Triumph Brewing Company138 Nassau StreetPrinceton, NJ 08542triumphbrewing.com

BreweriesFlying Fish Brewing Company1940 Olney AvenueCherry Hill, NJ 08003www.flyingfish.com

River Horse Brewing Co.80 Lambert LaneLambertville, NJ 08530www.riverhorse.com

Retail BeerCanals Discount Liquors2004 Mount Holly RoadBurlington, NJ 08016www.joecanals.com

Circle Super Saver222 Rt. 31 S.Pennington, NJ 08534www.sswines.com

Hops And Grapes810 N. Delsea DriveGlassboro, NJ 08028hopsandgrapesonline.com

Monster Beverage1299 N. Delsea DriveGlassboro, NJ 08028www.wineaccess.com

Walker’s Liquor Store86 Bridge Street Lambertville, NJ 08530

Home Brew SuppliesBeercrafters, Inc.110A Greentree RoadTurnersville, NJ, 07728

Princeton Homebrew208 Sanhican DriveTrenton, NJ 08618

If you would like to be added to our directory, please send your bar, res-taurant, brewpub, brewery, retail beer store, or home brew supply store’s name, address, and contact info to [email protected] or call 215.478.6586 and ask to be included in our next edition.

Page 48: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200948

Beer Events

Beer EventsFor more information about these

events, visit us on the web at

www.beerscenemag.com.

OctoberThursday, October 8thUncorking the PastPenn Museum3260 South St., Philadelphia, PA 19104

Saturday, October 10thKennett Square Brewfest Kennett SquareSouth Broad St., Kennett Square, PA 19348

Beer Fest at BoltonBolton Mansion85 Holly Dr., Levittown, PA 19055

Thursday, October 15thLancaster NightEarth Bread + Brewery 7136 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19119

Saturday, October 17thNewtown BrewfestThe Stocking Works301 S. State St., Newtown, PA 18940

Cravings OktoberfestCravings Café155 Pennbrook Pkwy., Lansdale, PA 19446

Wednesday, October 21stBavarian Barbarian Craft Beer DinnerThe Buck Hotel - Presented by Philly Beer Scene1200 Buck Rd., Feasterville, PA 19053

Thursday, October 22ndFWOToberfest with Philly Beer SceneFingers Wing & Other Things107 W Ridge Pike, Conshohocken, PA 19428

Saturday, October 24thRoxy BrewfestThe Ugly Moose443 Shurs Ln., Philadelphia, PA 19128

Sunday, October 25thBeer Lovers: Singles Night presented by Select Singles Dating and Philly Beer SceneBlue Ox Bistro7980 Oxford Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19111

Wednesday, October 28thSolar Beer Tasting presented by Philly Beer SceneSouth Philadelphia Tap Room1509 Mifflin St., Philadelphia, PA 19145

Thursday, October 29thLeft Hand/ Terrapin Beer DinnerMonk’s Café626 S. 16th St., Philadelphia, PA 19146

Duck Rabbit Firkin Chocolate Insanity The Institute549 N.12th St., Philadelphia, PA 19123

Halloween! Saturday, October 31stHaunted Halloween Rock ConcertJose Pistolas263 S 15th St., Philadelphia, PA 19102

80’s Themed Halloween PartyTriumph New Hope400 Union Square Dr., New Hope, PA 18938

Halloween! Saturday, October 31stTrue Blood: The Halloween MasqueradeTriumph Old City117 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19106

NovemberWednesday, November 4thLancaster NightThe Abbaye 637 N. 3rd St., Philadelphia, PA 19123

TASTE LOCAL! “Stoudts & Chowders: A Belly Warming Experience” presented by Rolling Barrel Philly Kitchen Share 1514 South St., Philadelphia, PA 19146

Friday, November 13thFriday the FirkinteenthGrey Lodge Pub6235 Frankford Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19135

Saturday & Sunday, November 14th & 15thThe Winter Beer Fest Philadelphia Naval Yard 5100 South Broad St., Philadelphia, PA 19112

Friday, November 20thLancaster Shoo-Fly NightGrey Lodge Pub6235 Frankford Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19135

Saturday, November 21stChronology of Technology of Philadelphia’s Brewing Industry 1685-1987Philadelphia Brewing Company 2423 Amber St., Philadelphia, PA 19125

Inside Our Next IssueLook forward to our next issue packed with 48 pages of great topics in our December/January issue. Don’t miss out. Get your

issue right in your mailbox by subscribing online at www.beerscenemag.com/subscribe.html.

A Not Beer Feature: The Beer Lover’s Holiday Gift Guide

All of the awesome products to get your beer loving friends and family during the holidays.

150 Years of McGillins

2010 marks the 150th anniversary of McGillins. Learn a little bit about the history. Join them for one of their many events. Or just come in for a pint of their exclusive 1860 IPA.

Brew: Coffee & Beer

If you start your day with coffee and end it with a beer, isn’t it only natural to assume that a coffee beer is for the mid day transition?

Plus:

• The Tasting Room with Santa • GBPS: Global Beer Positioning System (part 2) • Weird Beer #4: The World’s Strongest Beer

Page 49: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 49

207 Chestnut Street • 215.625.8605 • www.qoldcity.com

LATE NIGHT HAPPY HOUR11PM TO 1AM$15 CLASSIC MARGARITA PITCHERS

$4 CLASSIC MARGARITAS

$4.50 TECATE & SHOTS

ALL DRAFT BEERS UNDER $4$5 BAR BITES

EAGLES& ALL FOOTBALL GAMES

50 WINGS$5 BUD BUCKETS

DJ MATT CAPPYEVERY FRIDAY NIGHT

10PM - CLOSE

THE ULTIMATE TAILGATE TAKEOUTLET US CATER YOUR NEXT AFFAIR

¢

Page 50: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200950

winterbeerfest.com

November 14th-15th 2009 P

hilad

elphia

winterbeerfest.com

November 14th-15th 2009 P

hilad

elphia

winterbeerfest.com

November 14th-15th 2009 P

hilad

elphia

At the Philadelphia Naval Yard, with 100 beers to try. Beers ranging from Affligem Noel to Weyerbacher’s Merry Monk.

All the winter seasonal beers under one roof!

November 14th-15th • 2009 winterbeerfest.com

Philly beer scene ad.indd 1 7/22/2009 11:22:22 PM

Proud to serve Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery Counties with the finest selection of German, Belgium and Craft Beers

on tap with 13 rotating drafts and over 40 bottles!

Authentic German & American Pub Menu

Lunch & Dinner Every Day

Outdoor Biergarten with Authentic Oktoberfest Tables

Sunday Brunch 11am - 2pm

Thursday’s ½ Price Draft Night

At The End of The Regional Rail R-8 Fox Chase

Select Singles Dating Event Sunday, October 25th - 4pm to 8pm

Beer Lovers: A singles night brought to you by Select Singles Dating & Philly Beer Scene Magazine

Register at: beerscenemag.com

Blue Ox Bistro

Authentic German Restaurant and Tavern located in Fox Chase .One of the Oldest and Historic Buildings in Philadelphia.

Built in 1683

Free Parking

$3 Palm Belgium Amber Ale on Sundays all day

7980 Oxford Ave | Philadelphia, 19111 | 215.728.9440 | www.BLUEOXBISTRO.com

Sinatra Sundays Live Music Friday & Saturday evenings

Page 51: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

october/november 2009 51

winterbeerfest.com

November 14th-15th 2009 P

hilad

elphia

winterbeerfest.com

November 14th-15th 2009 P

hilad

elphia

winterbeerfest.com

November 14th-15th 2009 P

hilad

elphia

At the Philadelphia Naval Yard, with 100 beers to try. Beers ranging from Affligem Noel to Weyerbacher’s Merry Monk.

All the winter seasonal beers under one roof!

November 14th-15th • 2009 winterbeerfest.com

Philly beer scene ad.indd 1 7/22/2009 11:22:22 PM

Proud to serve Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery Counties with the finest selection of German, Belgium and Craft Beers

on tap with 13 rotating drafts and over 40 bottles!

Authentic German & American Pub Menu

Lunch & Dinner Every Day

Outdoor Biergarten with Authentic Oktoberfest Tables

Sunday Brunch 11am - 2pm

Thursday’s ½ Price Draft Night

At The End of The Regional Rail R-8 Fox Chase

Select Singles Dating Event Sunday, October 25th - 4pm to 8pm

Beer Lovers: A singles night brought to you by Select Singles Dating & Philly Beer Scene Magazine

Register at: beerscenemag.com

Blue Ox Bistro

Authentic German Restaurant and Tavern located in Fox Chase .One of the Oldest and Historic Buildings in Philadelphia.

Built in 1683

Free Parking

$3 Palm Belgium Amber Ale on Sundays all day

7980 Oxford Ave | Philadelphia, 19111 | 215.728.9440 | www.BLUEOXBISTRO.com

Sinatra Sundays Live Music Friday & Saturday evenings

Page 52: Philly Beer Scene October/November 2009

beerScenemAG.com october/november 200952

Corner of 2nd & Morris • Philly

www.rawdawgssaloon.com

HOW RAW CAN YOU GET?

1700 So

. 2nd

St •

Ph

ila, PA

19148

21

5-4

85

-88

69

RAW

DA

WGS SA

LOON

GRAN

D O

PENING

SEPTEMBER 12, 2009

Calling Zip codes 19145, 19146, 19147, 19148! Bring your ID

and drink for FREE 9pm-11pm

domestic and bar liquor

RAW D

AWGS IS NO

W H

IRINGRAW

BIATCHES AND

RAW BASTARD

S!

South Philly’s # 1 Draft beer

and sports barO

ver 10 tv’s, 60 different beersin stock and great food

Saturday night - International DJ Jay Ski spinning

for South PhillySunday Football - Beer and Food served

all day and all nightCom

e watch your favorite football team

sall w

eekend!

HAV

E A

QU

ICK

LO

OK

AT

SO

ME

OF T

HE

ICE

CO

LD

BE

ER

S W

E O

FFE

R (N

OT

ALL O

N T

AP

)A

MERIC

AN

CRA

FT

DOGFISH H

EAD 60 MIN

UTE IPA • STON

E OAKED ARROGANT BASTARD • SLY FOX PH

OENIX PALE ALE • SKY FOX IN

CUBU

S • ROGUE DEAD GU

Y ALETROEGS TROEGEN

ATOR • TROEGS SUN

SHIN

E PILS • OSKAR BLUES TEN

FIDY •PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G KENZIN

GER • PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G WALT W

ITU

NIBROU

E TOIS PISTOLES • WILD BLU

E • BELL’S AMBER ALE • M

AGIC HAT #

9

IMPO

RTS

STELLA A

RTOIS • H

OEGA

RD

EN • LIN

DEM

AN

’S FRAM

BOISE LA

MBIC • CH

IMAY

BLUE • D

UEV

EL • ST. BERN

AR

DU

S ABT 12

AN

D M

AN

Y M

OR

E!

OPEN H

OU

SE MO

NDAY 8/24/09 1-5PM

1700 So

. 2nd

St •

Ph

ila, PA

19148

21

5-4

85

-88

69

RAW

DA

WGS SA

LOON

GRAN

D O

PENING SEPTEMBER

12, 2009Calling Zip codes 19145, 19146, 19147, 19148!

Bring your ID and drink for FREE 9pm

-11pm dom

estic and bar liquor

RAW D

AWGS IS NO

W H

IRINGRAW

BIATCHES AND

RAW BASTARD

S!

South Philly’s # 1 Draft beer

and sports barO

ver 10 tv’s, 60 different beersin stock and great food

Saturday night - International DJ Jay Ski spinning

for South PhillySunday Football - Beer and Food served

all day and all nightCom

e watch your favorite football team

sall w

eekend!

HAV

E A

QU

ICK

LO

OK

AT

SO

ME

OF T

HE

ICE

CO

LD

BE

ER

S W

E O

FFE

R (N

OT

ALL O

N T

AP

)A

MERIC

AN

CRA

FT

DOGFISH H

EAD 60 MIN

UTE IPA • STON

E OAKED ARROGANT BASTARD • SLY FOX PH

OENIX PALE ALE • SKY FOX IN

CUBU

S • ROGUE DEAD GU

Y ALETROEGS TROEGEN

ATOR • TROEGS SUN

SHIN

E PILS • OSKAR BLUES TEN

FIDY •PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G KENZIN

GER • PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G WALT W

ITU

NIBROU

E TOIS PISTOLES • WILD BLU

E • BELL’S AMBER ALE • M

AGIC HAT #

9

IMPO

RTS

STELLA A

RTOIS • H

OEGA

RD

EN • LIN

DEM

AN

’S FRAM

BOISE LA

MBIC • CH

IMAY

BLUE • D

UEV

EL • ST. BERN

AR

DU

S ABT 12

AN

D M

AN

Y M

OR

E!

OPEN H

OU

SE MO

NDAY 8/24/09 1-5PM

1700 So

. 2nd

St •

Ph

ila, PA

19148

21

5-4

85

-88

69

RAW

DA

WGS SA

LOON

GRAND O

PENING

SEPTEMBER

12, 2009Calling Zip codes 19145, 19146, 19147, 19148!

Bring your ID and drink for FREE 9pm

-11pm dom

estic and bar liquor

RAW D

AWGS IS NO

W H

IRINGRAW

BIATCHES AND

RAW BASTARD

S!

South Philly’s # 1 Draft beer

and sports barO

ver 10 tv’s, 60 different beersin stock and great food

Saturday night - International DJ Jay Ski spinning

for South PhillySunday Football - Beer and Food served

all day and all nightCom

e watch your favorite football team

sall w

eekend!

HAV

E A

QU

ICK

LO

OK

AT

SO

ME

OF T

HE

ICE

CO

LD

BE

ER

S W

E O

FFE

R (N

OT

ALL O

N T

AP

)A

MERIC

AN

CRA

FT

DOGFISH H

EAD 60 MIN

UTE IPA • STON

E OAKED ARROGANT BASTARD • SLY FOX PH

OENIX PALE ALE • SKY FOX IN

CUBU

S • ROGUE DEAD GU

Y ALETROEGS TROEGEN

ATOR • TROEGS SUN

SHIN

E PILS • OSKAR BLUES TEN

FIDY •PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G KENZIN

GER • PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G WALT W

ITU

NIBROU

E TOIS PISTOLES • WILD BLU

E • BELL’S AMBER ALE • M

AGIC HAT #

9

IMPO

RTS

STELLA A

RTOIS • H

OEGA

RD

EN • LIN

DEM

AN

’S FRAM

BOISE LA

MBIC • CH

IMAY

BLUE • D

UEV

EL • ST. BERN

AR

DU

S ABT 12

AN

D M

AN

Y M

OR

E!

OPEN H

OU

SE MO

NDAY 8/24/09 1-5PM

1700 So

. 2nd

St •

Ph

ila, PA

19148

21

5-4

85

-88

69

RAW

DA

WGS SA

LOON

GRAN

D O

PENIN

G SEPTEMBER 12, 2009

Calling Zip codes 19145, 19146, 19147, 19148! Bring your ID

and drink for FREE 9pm-11pm

domestic and bar liquor

RAW D

AWGS IS NO

W H

IRINGRAW

BIATCHES AND

RAW BASTARD

S!

South Philly’s # 1 Draft beer

and sports barO

ver 10 tv’s, 60 different beersin stock and great food

Saturday night - International DJ Jay Ski spinning

for South PhillySunday Football - Beer and Food served

all day and all nightCom

e watch your favorite football team

sall w

eekend!

HAV

E A

QU

ICK

LO

OK

AT

SO

ME

OF T

HE

ICE

CO

LD

BE

ER

S W

E O

FFE

R (N

OT

ALL O

N T

AP

)A

MERIC

AN

CRA

FT

DOGFISH H

EAD 60 MIN

UTE IPA • STON

E OAKED ARROGANT BASTARD • SLY FOX PH

OENIX PALE ALE • SKY FOX IN

CUBU

S • ROGUE DEAD GU

Y ALETROEGS TROEGEN

ATOR • TROEGS SUN

SHIN

E PILS • OSKAR BLUES TEN

FIDY •PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G KENZIN

GER • PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G WALT W

ITU

NIBROU

E TOIS PISTOLES • WILD BLU

E • BELL’S AMBER ALE • M

AGIC HAT #

9

IMPO

RTS

STELLA A

RTOIS • H

OEGA

RD

EN • LIN

DEM

AN

’S FRAM

BOISE LA

MBIC • CH

IMAY

BLUE • D

UEV

EL • ST. BERN

AR

DU

S ABT 12

AN

D M

AN

Y M

OR

E!

OPEN H

OU

SE MO

NDAY 8/24/09 1-5PM

1700 So

. 2nd

St •

Ph

ila, PA

19148

21

5-4

85

-88

69

RAW

DA

WGS SA

LOON

GRAND

OPENIN

G SEPTEMBER 12, 2009

Calling Zip codes 19145, 19146, 19147, 19148! Bring your ID

and drink for FREE 9pm-11pm

domestic and bar liquor

RAW D

AWGS IS NO

W H

IRINGRAW

BIATCHES AND

RAW BASTARD

S!

South Philly’s # 1 Draft beer

and sports barO

ver 10 tv’s, 60 different beersin stock and great food

Saturday night - International DJ Jay Ski spinning

for South PhillySunday Football - Beer and Food served

all day and all nightCom

e watch your favorite football team

sall w

eekend!

HAV

E A

QU

ICK

LO

OK

AT

SO

ME

OF T

HE

ICE

CO

LD

BE

ER

S W

E O

FFE

R (N

OT

ALL O

N T

AP

)A

MERIC

AN

CRA

FT

DOGFISH H

EAD 60 MIN

UTE IPA • STON

E OAKED ARROGANT BASTARD • SLY FOX PH

OENIX PALE ALE • SKY FOX IN

CUBU

S • ROGUE DEAD GU

Y ALETROEGS TROEGEN

ATOR • TROEGS SUN

SHIN

E PILS • OSKAR BLUES TEN

FIDY •PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G KENZIN

GER • PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G WALT W

ITU

NIBROU

E TOIS PISTOLES • WILD BLU

E • BELL’S AMBER ALE • M

AGIC HAT #

9

IMPO

RTS

STELLA A

RTOIS • H

OEGA

RD

EN • LIN

DEM

AN

’S FRAM

BOISE LA

MBIC • CH

IMAY

BLUE • D

UEV

EL • ST. BERN

AR

DU

S ABT 12

AN

D M

AN

Y M

OR

E!

OPEN H

OU

SE MO

NDAY 8/24/09 1-5PM

1700 So

. 2nd

St •

Ph

ila, PA

19148

21

5-4

85

-88

69

RAW

DA

WGS SA

LOON

GRAND

OPEN

ING SEPTEM

BER 12, 2009Calling Zip codes 19145, 19146, 19147, 19148!

Bring your ID and drink for FREE 9pm

-11pm dom

estic and bar liquor

RAW D

AWGS IS NO

W H

IRINGRAW

BIATCHES AND

RAW BASTARD

S!

South Philly’s # 1 Draft beer

and sports barO

ver 10 tv’s, 60 different beersin stock and great food

Saturday night - International DJ Jay Ski spinning

for South PhillySunday Football - Beer and Food served

all day and all nightCom

e watch your favorite football team

sall w

eekend!

HAV

E A

QU

ICK

LO

OK

AT

SO

ME

OF T

HE

ICE

CO

LD

BE

ER

S W

E O

FFE

R (N

OT

ALL O

N T

AP

)A

MERIC

AN

CRA

FT

DOGFISH H

EAD 60 MIN

UTE IPA • STON

E OAKED ARROGANT BASTARD • SLY FOX PH

OENIX PALE ALE • SKY FOX IN

CUBU

S • ROGUE DEAD GU

Y ALETROEGS TROEGEN

ATOR • TROEGS SUN

SHIN

E PILS • OSKAR BLUES TEN

FIDY •PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G KENZIN

GER • PHILADELPH

IA BREWIN

G WALT W

ITU

NIBROU

E TOIS PISTOLES • WILD BLU

E • BELL’S AMBER ALE • M

AGIC HAT #

9

IMPO

RTS

STELLA A

RTOIS • H

OEGA

RD

EN • LIN

DEM

AN

’S FRAM

BOISE LA

MBIC • CH

IMAY

BLUE • D

UEV

EL • ST. BERN

AR

DU

S ABT 12

AN

D M

AN

Y M

OR

E!

OPEN H

OU

SE MO

NDAY 8/24/09 1-5PM

South Philly’s #1 Draft Beer and Sports BarFull NFL and College Football

Packages on Over 10 TV’s

Full Kitchen, Great Food & 60+ American Craft & Import Beers in Stock

Thursday: $2 Coors Light Bottles

Friday: Happy Hour $2 All Domestic Bottles, 5-9pm

Saturday: $2 Lagers All Day & Night College Football Package

Sunday: $2 Miller Lite Bottles & MGD All Day & Night for College Football

Monday: $2 Bud and Bud Light Bottles All Night: Monday Night Football

Tuesday Night: 50% Off Any Craft Beer Bottle

Wednesday: $2 Twisted Teas and Quizzo


Recommended