Out and About, Good Beer At Every Turn

Every once in a while people around here get all philosophical about how great it is to live in an area with so much beer. With all of the history behind us and history being made, it's nice to reaffirm the thought that we're truly lucky to have it as good as we do. I've done it on here, it's been said many times and many ways, it was spoken by several folks last night. And i say the same way we've got it good with beer, we've got it good with people who appreaciate it too.

There were a lot of folks to bump into last night- Bengel and his rowdy bunch must have gotten kicked out of Ortino's after the rain dances they'd learned in Belgium brought on a really bad storm last weekend because they transplanted their Thursday activities. Mr. Jack Curtin was working hard as ever and had his new internet prodigy at his side...or in his arms..or whatever their configuration was. Cask Ale Kev found the mightiest tap list on the Main Line as did the year older and year wiser Big Steele Kempelos. A late appearance by the West Chester Homebrewing Alliance capped off a mighty fine evening.

Click the link for cross county adventure.


We worked a 'one and done' into our plans last night and that's just a test in trying to beat out complete impossibility with the beer bars around here. Troegs tapped a firkin in celebration of The Drafting Room's 14th season...cool beer, the look of a wheat beer with some major hopping going on. Big palisade dry hop and a bitter finish that had the occasional citrus note. Really nice beer and from the firkin no less. They had it on tap as well, but as i said, one and done.

Jon Trogner was on hand hanging out and talking beer as was brewer Whitney Thompson and Troegs' chief fortmaker and glassware specialist. I love seeing the Troegs folks out when they come to events because they love hanging out and talking beer. They're a great group of people and i am almost positive they get a tax break of some sort for employing Nick Johnson.

So from there we beat it on down the Line to TND. We could've made a stop or two on the way and really stayed up late, but My Yeoman My Captain wasn't able to make the Global Beer promo on Tuesday, so there was a lot on tap for us to tackle. This is what i thought going in, who'd have thought they kicked the list up a few more notches in the last two days. Check this out.

Hoegaarden
Chimay White
St. Bernardus Tripel
Lindy Framboise
Troubador Blonde
Petrus Dubbel Brune
Piraat
Augustijn
Gulden Draak
Petrus Oud Bruin
Poperings Hommelbier
Bornem Dubbel (which kicked and turned into Radeberger Pils)
Ridgeway Blue
Hooker Helles
Sly Fox Helles Bock
Founders Red's Rye
Troegs Pale
Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere
Middle Ages 10th Anniversary IPA (really nice)
Southampton Double White
North Coast Old Stock
Hooker Old Marley
Brooklynator
Sly Fox Stout (nitro)

Handpumps:
Sly Fox Mount Ranier IPA
Sly Fox Sterling IPA

Sheesh. That's a weak-in-the-knees tap list right there. How do you even tackle something like that?

I let an Oud Bruin warm up while enjoying the Mount Ranier. Really interesting beer, especially on cask. Kicked up earthiness was met with just a bit of pale ale fruitiness, definitely check this out while its around. From Oud Bruin i wanted to check out the Southern Hemisphere because i'd gotten a fair crack at Global's stuff and figured i might not see the So. Hem. again. I was curious about this beer and think it was a cool effort on the part of Sierra Nevada. It was a nice beer, but a sample of the Middle Ages made me really wish i'd have ordered that instead: Huge hop aroma and flavor with very little bite, very very nice.

The cellarman says:

Word on the street is that Sly Fox will be doing a Shwarz and a Berliner soon. I will definitely be on the lookout.

A fine Thursday indeed, a weekend of work sits ahead of me, but with TDR's 13th and 14th Anniversary beers on tap as well as the monster list at TND and other great beer things happening in other great beer bars, it'll be a great weekend to get out and have a beer. Cheers.