The Northeast's wonderful Grey Lodge is helping celebrate Stoudts first ever pumpkin beer. Unlike other pumpkin beers, Stoudts features peppercorns.
Tomorrow night they will have four different firkins of Stoudts Pumpkin sitting on the bar, each with a different level of peppercorning, from mild to inferno. Yowza!
Yes they will have small pours available so you can try them all. Then you get a full pint or two of your favorite if you'd like.
Jason Notte from thestreet.com:
DENVER (TheStreet) -- In autumn, the barroom brawl between Anheuser-Busch Inbev(BUD Quote) and Molson Coors moves to the pumpkin patch.
At liquor stores throughout the country, Jack's Pumpkin Spice Ale from Anheuser-Busch and Molson Coors' Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale compete with craft brews like Shipyard Brewing Company's Pumpkinhead Ale and Dogfish Head Brewery's Punkin Ale. Why are these beer heavyweights taking on the cramped world of pumpkin ale?
Todd Alstrom, co-owner of beer publication BeerAdvocate, says Anheuser-Busch and Molson Coors are trying to "capture some market share on a popular seasonal product and diversify their portfolios to appeal to a broader group and gain more retail space at stores and bars."
Big brewers have been selling pumpkin ales for half a decade, but their jostling for microscopic shares of the market grows more intense each season. The first salvo was fired after the Blue Moon wheat beer introduced by Coors in 1995 began gaining momentum -- it was the choice of Cambridge Police Sergeant James Crowley at the White House "beer summit" with Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates -- and Anheuser Busch responded with its Shock Top wheat brew.
"When you own as much of the audience of any industry as the macro beer companies do, you can afford to experiment, especially when your research data is showing that they specifically want something other than what you've been providing them for decades," says Matt Simpson, better known as the Beer Sommelier. "So they experiment; creating porters, pale ales and in this case, pumpkin beers."
Their experiments are flavored with a hint of urgency. While brewers like Anheuser-Busch, Molson Coors and SABMiller dominate the U.S. market, the market share for craft brews at the end of 2008 was 4% by volume and 6% by sales, according to the Brewers Association. That share was up 6% and 10%, respectively, from 2007 and has grown 5% and 9% respectively for the first half of 2009 as overall beer sales declined 1.3% during the same period.
The big boys aren't sliding by much, but with 1,525 breweries in the U.S. (the most in a century) as of July, there's a lot more competition. In the macro brewers' defense, it's difficult to tell which backyard brewer will turn into the next Boston Beer Company (SAM Quote), which Anheuser-Busch began targeting two years ago with a line of Michelob specialty beers and commercials that looked suspiciously like those for Samuel Adams.
Anheuser-Busch took it a step further by expanding its flagship Budweiser line, adding American Ale last year and Golden Wheat next month. While American Ale was generally well received, pumpkin ales from Anheuser-Busch and Coors have earned C-plus ratings from BeerAdvocate readers. In contrast, Dogfish Head's Punkin Ale is rated B-plus and has seen its sales rise 37% since last year. The A-minus Pumking from Southern Tier Brewing fetches more than $8 for a 22-ounce bottle.
Gold Medals
* Dogfish Head Chateau Jiahu – Specialty Beer
* Flying Fish Brewing Co. Exit 4 – American-Belgo-Style Ale
* Iron Hill Brewery (Phoenixville) Schwarzbier – German Style Schwarzbier
* McKenzie Brew House Saison Vautour – French and Belgian Style Saison
* Triumph Brewing (New Hope) Hefeweizen German – Style Wheat Ale
* Triumph Brewing (Philadelphia) KinderPils – Session Beer
* Troegs Brewing Troegenator – Bock
Silver Medals
* Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron – Specialty Beer
* Fegley’s Allentown & Bethlehem Brew Works Bag Piper’s Scotch Ale – Scotch Ale
* Iron Hill Brewery (Media) Raspberry Torte – American-style Sour Ale
* Nodding Head Brewing Co. George’s Fault – Specialty Honey Beer
* Troegs Brewing Dead Reckoning – American Style Stout
Bronze Medals
* Dogfish Head Midas Touch – Specialty Honey Beer
* Fegley’s Allentown & Bethlehem Brew Works Rude Elf’s Reserve – Herb and Spice or Chocolate Beer
* Flying Fish Brewing Co. Hopfish – Classic English Style Pale Ale
* Nodding Head Brewing Co. Phruit Phunk – Wood and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer
* Stoudt’s Brewing Co. Kolsch – German Style Kolsch
* Troegs Brewing Sunshine PIls – German-Style Pilsener
The 15th annual Sippin' by the River will take place on Sunday, October 4 at Festival Pier at Penn's Landing located at Columbus Boulevard and Spring Garden Street. The event runs from 1p.m. until 5p.m. and benefits the Philadelphia/Delaware Valley Chapter of the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America.
At the event, visitors will enjoy food from local restaurants, cooking demonstrations, and live entertainment from the band DAME.
Attendees can sample a huge assortment of beers while learning all there is to know from beer expert Gary Monterosso.
Tickets available here.
I was given Steinlager Classic as a gift, I suppose because the bottle's tag line "New Zealand's finest" makes it sound fairly exotic.
This pale lagers pours clear with a decent head. The aroma is surprisingly strong, with breads and malt coming through.
The taste is indeed heavy on the malts with little else to make it stand out. Hop presence here is minimal. Nothing offensive in the taste, just nothing special at all either.
Pretty clean and crisp and very light bodied, this is easy to drink. I wouldn't go out of my way to buy this, but wouldn't complain if you gave me another six either!
C
I haven't had the chance to catch up with a Kona brew since my last trip to Hawaii. Found a few on tap last night in Huntington Beach.
The Longboard Lager pours a pale yellow with a big foam head that dissipates quickly. Muted malty smell and maybe some hops in the aroma.
The taste is light, dry and slightly fruity. Mild hop flavor but overall it is well-balanced, crisp and very carbonated. Very smooth with a nice sweet finish. Easy to drink with my meal.
B
Alan J. Heavens from the Inquirer:
From here to Hong Kong and myriad ports in between, millions will pause tomorrow at 17:59 on the 24-hour clock and raise a glass to the 18th-century Irish brewer who made the day worth celebrating.
The man: Arthur Guinness. While tomorrow is his 284th birthday, it was 250 years ago, on Dec. 31, 1759, that the 34-year-old from County Kildare signed a lease on a four-acre dilapidated ale brewery near St. James's Gate on the edge of Dublin and began producing the dry stout that bears his name.
It was a smart move. Using a 100-pound legacy from his clergyman godfather, and negotiating a 45-pound, 9,000-year lease with brewery landowner Mark Rainsford, Arthur launched what has become a multinational conglomerate - Britain's Grand Metropolitan P.L.C. and Guinness morphed into Diageo P.L.C. in 1997.
Although the product that Guinness fine-tuned from porter is quintessentially Irish, more of it is consumed elsewhere these days, says master brewer Fergal Murray.
That is why tomorrow's birthday bash is a worldwide 250-years-of-Guinness affair.
New local brewer, Prism Beer Company, has their first offering now available on tap and cask at the General Lafayette Inn.
According to Rob at Prism this initial IPA is "for those that are new to the style as well as something different for those who already enjoy them. We used a heaping dose of Honey Malt as well as fresh honey to balance the bitterness with some great sweetness".
Prism expects to release their next beer, Red Rocket Irish Ale, in October with a Belgian Wit, Wit Lightning, to come out in the Spring of 2010. They may also have some limited editions this winter.
I am all about supporting good local beer, so another trip to the General to try this out will certainly be on my to-do list.
For those of you who will be heading over tomorrow night for the grand opening of Resurrection Ale House (Corner of Catharine + Grays Ferry), here is the opening draft list:
Brewer’s Art Resurrection Ale
Stoudt’s Pils
Slyfox O’Reilly’s Stout
Cantillon Cuvee des Champions
Schlenkerla Helles
Dogfish Head Punkin’
PBC Rowhouse Red
Brooklyn Sorachi Ace
Ommegang Rare Vos
Lagunitas Lucky 13
Ayinger Octoberfest
Russian River Pliny The Elder
On Cask : Yards Cape of Good Hope
TMZ Has come out with their top ten fall beers. Not sure I love their list but the mention of Yuengling and Dogfish Head means they at least made it interesting!
Next Sunday join the fine folks from Victory for a fabulous bike tour of the Chester County countryside and a celebration of local foods. Choose from a 25, 50 or 75 mile ride beginning and ending at Victory Brewing Co., followed by a delicious meal of local food and a Victory beer.
The 2nd Annual “Bike Fresh Bike Local” is family friendly and a real community effort. Proceeds support PASA’s work in SE Pennsylvania on behalf of family farms. Last year’s ride attracted over 400 riders, many of who reported it was “the best and most beautiful ride ever.”
The route takes riders “soaring along un-trafficked country roads next to small farms that tend to the land the way it should be tended, and raise the kind of foods we want our children to be eating,” says Royer Smith, one of the ”Bike Fresh Bike Local” organizers. “You’ll see bison and steers, horses and sheep, goats and chickens,” says Smith, a PASA supporter and executive chef at LaSalle University where he has staged local food events. “You’ll pass fields that were plowed by a farmer and his team of work horses, and you might have to slow down for horse-drawn vehicles on the road.”
You can register here.
This week looks like an exhausting one for the folks at Brauhaus Schmitz. Their Oktoberfest events include:
Monday, 9/21 German/Beer Quizzo.
Tuesday, 9/22 - 4 Course Bavarian Dinner with Beer Pairing
Wednesday, 9/23 - Blind Beer Tasting contest
Thursday, 9/24 - Bratwurst Eating contest
Friday, 9/25 - Kick the Keg Lottery.
Saturday, 9/26 - Brauhaus Schmitz 1st Annual Oktoberfest Celebration.
Wish I wasn't in Calif all week. Sounds like some fun!
You can join the folks at the Blue Monkey (2 S. Centre St, Merchantville NJ) on Friday October 2 from 5-9pm for an Oktoberfest to benefit the Merchantville Fire Company.
There will be 15 craft breweries, including Dogfish Head, Flying Dog, Weyerbacher, Erdinger, Lancaster Brewing Co., Lagunitas, Slyfox, Cricket Hill, Smuttynose, Troeg's, Lefthand, Victory, Otter Creek, Wolaver's, Stoudt's.
Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 at the door.
Tomorrow at The Grey Lodge, they will be celebrating International Talk Like a Pirate Day with a treasure chest o gold, gold beers that be. Arrr!
Yo ho ho and a bottle (or two) of Belgian beer, arrr!
They'll also have free, free, free eyepatches for any mateys that piratespeak smartly.
And free booty (another name for pirate treasure, professor, get you mind out of yer bunghole) for any beauties that happen upon our poopdeck!
Coming up on Friday, October 2nd, in conjunction with World Cafe Live's all-day 5th Anniversary Celebration, it's the return of the Philadelphia Ale & Arts Adventure.
For just $30 you get to enjoy a trolley tour of the world-renowned murals of the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, a tour of Philadelphia's own Yards Brewing Company (along with complimentary Yards beers and snacks) and admission to the World Cafe's evening concert at the end.
Art, music and beer make for agreat day out.
So FOOBOOZ polled writers, bloggers, drinkers, commenters and chefs to create a concensus on the 50 best Philly bars.
Well what a lame job they did. Don't get me wrong there are some excellent drinking spots on this list and I am impressed that Standard Tap came in at Number One. But stop at take a look at who is not on this list: Devil’s Den, Eulogy, the Institute, Belgian Cafe, Kite & Key, Earth Bread + Brewery, the Drafting Room and how could they miss McGillin’s.
I have to call into question the people who voted on this. How does Monk's end up at #3 but Eulogy not even make the list? SPTR makes #7 but Devil's Den gets ignored? And how in the world does our greatest pub treasure, McGillin's (currently celebrating their 150th anniversary) not even merit a mention??
I know this isn't a beer bar list per se, but these omissions simply make their list useless.
In honor of the annual Oktoberfest celebration in Munich, Germany, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant has created an exceptional menu of hearty Bavarian dishes that will be served at all eight restaurants from Wednesday, September 16 until Saturday, October 31. Iron Hill’s Oktoberfest menu, which will be served in addition to the a la carte menu, will offer dishes with seasonal autumnal flavors and is an ideal accompaniment to its hand-crafted Oktoberfest and Vienna Red Lager.
“Each year, we look forward to creating a menu that highlights fall ingredients and includes classic Oktoberfest items such as schnitzel, salmon and sausage with as much eagerness as we anticipate tapping the first of our autumn beers,” says Director of Culinary Operations Kevin Davies.
This year’s flavorful Oktoberfest offerings include: Salmon Gravlax, cured in-house and served with pumpernickel, cream cheese, cucumber-onion salad, deviled egg and sweet mustard-dill sauce; Grilled Sausage Sampler, including bratwurst, knockwurst and garlic sausage with braised lentils and assorted mustards; Jaeger Schnitzel, veal cutlets with buttered egg noodles, haricots verts and hunter’s sauce; Sauteed Rainbow Trout with horseradish smashed potatoes, spinach, leeks, tomatoes, garlic and ale sauce; and Black Walnut-Chocolate Torte. Menu items range in price from $4.25 for a cup of Bavarian White Bean and Sausage Soup to $21.50 for Sauerbrated Top Sirloin Steak, marinated in red wine and served with ale-braised cabbage, spatzle and gingersnap gravy.
To pair with this delicious menu is a variety of Iron Hill’s German-style seasonal beers, available at all locations through October. Offerings include the traditional German festival beer, Oktoberfest, a full-bodied amber lager that has a wonderful malty and bread-y aroma and a firm malt flavor balanced with mild bitterness and a clean, dry finish; and the Vienna Red Lager, a European-style, medium-bodied amber beer with a delicate malt aroma and a clean, crisp finish.
This Saturday at the historic 23rd Street Armory (22 S. 23rd St), celebrate the season at the Philly OKtoberfest 2009.
Two sessions, 1-4pm and 6-9pm, will feature traditional German Spaten & Franziskaner, plus 25 more Oktoberfest beers & Pumpkin Ales:
Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest
Paulaner Oktoberfest
Arcadia Jaw Jacker Pumpkin
Ayinger Oktoberfest
Blue Moon Harvest
Dock Street Great Pumpkin
Dogfish Head Punkin
Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin
Erie Fallenbock & Rye-bender
Flying Fish Oktoberfish
Harpoon Oktoberfest
Roy Pitz Gobbler Lager & Ichobod's Midnight Ride Belgian Pumpkin
Samuel Adams Oktoberfest
Saranac Pumpkin
Sly Fox Oktoberfest & Pikeland Pils
Stegmaier Oktoberfest
Stoudt's Oktoberfest & Pumpkin ESB
Twin Lakes Oktoberfest
Victory Fest
Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin & Autumn Fest
Wolaver's Organic Oktoberfest
Yards Spruce & Cape of Good Hope IPA
This Saturday, the Deck at Trump Marina will host their first Fall Craft Beer Fest from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Come enjoy a unique selection of beer from select brewers and discuss there special brews with the brewers themselves. Relax on the Deck, enjoy the view of the bay, listen to live Entertainment and enjoy items from the delicious menu.
Tickets are $25 per person and can be purchased at Mariner's Gift Shop, Docksider Ship's Store or see your Deck Server.
The beer selection will include:
Victory Fest Bier
Jacks Pumpkin Spice
Magic Hat #9 and Palm
Moon Glow
Hacker-Pschorr October fest
Becks Oktoberfest
Otter Creek Oktoberfest
Leinenkugel Oktoberfest
Spatten Oktoberfest
Flying Fish Oktoberfest
Harpoon Oktoberfest
Brooklyn Post road Pumpkin Ale
Long Trail
Blue Moon
Rail Bender
Magner Cider
Ommegang Witte
Sam Adams
Guinness 25th aRnniversary
New York magazine recommends a Philly craft beer run.
Their to-do list includes:
* Swann Lounge
* Belgian Cafe
* Bishop’s Collar
* Tavern 17
* Monk’s
* Beneluxx
* Foodery
* SquareBurger
* The Khyber
* Eulogy
* Triumph
* Tria
Nice dark beer for a cool rainy night. It pours a dark amber color with a big sticky white head. A mild aroma is filled with toffee flavors and roasted malts.
Nice sweet, well-balanced taste with caramel, corn and molasses flavors. Good carbonation, creamy mouthfeel and a sweet aftertaste.
Very tasty and refreshing - the perfect choice for a cool night.
B+
Tomorrow at Manayunk Brewery & Restaurant, the 3rd annual Beer Olympics.
Passes include:
* Beer for your team in all the events
* A team jersey (tee shirt) - one per participant
* Tour of brewing facility
* A chance to win Beer Olympics bronze, silver or gold medals
* Access to food and drink specials
This is not a chug fest, but rather an aptitude test for those that consider themselves well versed in beer. Register as an individual (you’ll be paired up with other singles) or a full team. Declare your country and play the part to vie for the coveted “Spirit Award.” Events include Beer Quiz, Quarters, Flip Cup, Blind Tasting, Beer Pong and the mysterious “Gauntlet,” a final challenge that changes every year!
Note: This is a day-long commitment. Teams must be on-site to compete from 11:00 am - 5:00 pm. You must be 21 or older to participate in this event. Proof of identification is required.
TICKETS MUST BE PURCHASED IN ADVANCE.
$30.00 per person /$120.00 per team
This Saturday at 2PM, Philadelphia Brewing Company (2439 Amber Street) presents ORTLIEB’S, BREWERS BY BIRTH SINCE 1869 - an illustrated talk by Brewery Historian Rich Wagner.
The Philadelphia Brewing Company brews fine hand crafted Ales from their historic brewery building in Kensington. Like the history of brewing in Philadelphia the name “Philadelphia Brewing Company” has gone through many revivals. The same can be said of their brewery building - the former Wiesbrod and Hess Brewing Company complex in Kensington.
For more on Rich’s research on Philadelphia breweries and his programs click here.
Victory had a good day at the track.
Downington, Pa.-based Victory Brewing Company walked off with top honors at the Craft Beer & BBQ Festival, held Saturday and Sunday at Monmouth Park.
Victory's HopDevil Ale and Golden Monkey, a Belgian-style ale, shared first-place honors from a panel of judges that included Peter Kennedy of simplybeer.com.
Kennedy, of Montclair, called HopDevil a "great IPA," while another judge, Joe Collins of Bayonne, described Golden Monkey as "dangerously delicious."
The judges had a delicious, and daunting, time, as they sampled and evaluated 34 beers from a variety of breweries, from Michelob, the Boston Beer Co. (makers of Sam Adams) and Blue Moon to Sea Dog, Shipyard, Otter Creek, Erie Brewing and Hometown Beverages, brewers of New Jersey Lager.
Erie won an honorable mention award for its Fallenbock, an Octoberfest lager, with Otter Creek earning the other honorable mention for its Copper Ale.
"It's a deep-colored Octoberfest, almost Bock-style," Erie CEO Don Chadwick said of Fallenbock. "It's what you'd enjoy with a good meal, not something you'd drink a six-pack of in front of a Giants game."
Judges named Sam Adams' Sample A Pils beer as the festival's "biggest surprise." The brewer's Sample A and Sample B beers were available at the festival; attendees voted for their favorite as part of a nationwide write-in campaign to pick the next Samuel Adams Brewmaster's
Collection beer.
Other beers that made a favorable impression: Stoudt's Pils, Otter Creek Pale Ale, Michelob Dunkel Weisse, Erie's Mad Anthony APA, Hometown Beverages' New Jersey Ale and Stoudt's American Pale Ale.
At tiny cafés all over Italy, it’s common to see a row of beer bottles and a grappa or two lining the top shelf of the coffee bar. A short beer with lunch or a café coretto (espresso spiked with grappa) is a normal part of the day. Now Philadelphians can capture that vibe, and take in a brew accompanied by free WiFi and dessert at The Coffee Bar (Radisson-Warwick Hotel, 1701 Locust St., 215-789-6136).
South Philly Tap Room expat Stephen Stetson has taken over management of the former Capriccio space, which is owned and encompassed by the Radisson-Warwick Hotel. When Stetson found out the café came complete with a liquor license, he wasted no time assembling a list of excellent craft beers.
“I recently came to the Coffee Bar, in many ways, to refocus its original vision. I personally have a love of coffee and well-made craft beer, and I see no reason why they can’t work together in the same comfortable spot,” writes Stetson in an e-mail. “I realize it shocks some guests that we are a coffee shop that serves great beer, and others that we’re a beer bar that serves dessert and coffee.”
The bottle list, which features seasonals like Brooklyn Post Road pumpkin ale and locals like General Lafayette’s Abbey Brune, will change monthly. Stetson hopes to install two draft lines in the near future. For now, The Coffee Bar is running a daily “Post-Happy Hour” Happy Hour, Monday to Friday, from 6 to 8 p.m. with all craft beers for $3. Larger 22-ounce bottles are $10.
“Philadelphia has such a proud and vibrant beer culture, it would be foolish to limit that passion and quality to gastropubs and corner bars,” adds Stetson. Take a look at The Coffee Bar’s full bottle list (with non-Happy Hour prices) after the jump.
Brooklyn Post Road Pumpkin $5
Boulder Obovoid Oatmeal Stout (22 oz) $18
Coronado Islander Pale Ale $5
Dark Horse Crooked Tree IPA $5
Dark Horse Raspberry Ale $5
Eel River Raven’s Eye Imperial Stout (organic) (22 oz) $16
Founders Porter $5
General Lafayette Abbey Brune $6
Furthermore Oscura (Coffee Lager) $5
Sprecher Hefe Weiss $5
Steamworks Colorado Kolsch $5
Starting this Saturday at The Institute is Beer Geeks Happy Hour. This week featuring 3 extremely rare St. Somewhere brews on draft. There will be flight specials and $2 off all other drafts and $2 off all apps.
The Institute will be having Beer Geeks Happy Hour every Saturday from 4-6.
As you know the St. Somewhere is truly delicious. If you are a fan of Belgian Beer at all, I strongly suggest you make it out to this event or try to seek out these brews anywhere you can.
We have this once in a lifetime date (09/09/09) and The Grey Lodge is declaring it John Lennon Day. They are going all out with a special John Lennon Quizzo and some food specials. There will be Instant Karma. And maybe they'll have a Working Class Hero Sandwich and a Give Peas a Chance with Cold Turkey platter.
What an inspired idea for an uninspiring Wednesday.
It is nice to have a bartender you trust. When someone recommends you try a Red Rice Ale from Japan, you really need to think about what faith you have in that person's taste.
Sitting in Brigid's the other night, I had this one strongly recommended by Dan. I never heard this suggested the whole rest fo the evening so I guess it must say something about my drinking style (love everything).
A huge fluffy white head sits on top of the cloudy golden ale. Muted aromas of rice and fruit.
Some odd flavors at work here. Strong rice flavor up front (almost like sake) but is balanced by a heavy malt sweetness. The strawberry flavor and a surprising amount of bitterness add to the hoppy, dry finish.
This almost reminds me of a sour ale. While it is full of contradictions, I did love it. I wouldn't want to drink this all the time, but it made for an awesome change of pace for the evening.
A
Wednesday at 7pm at the General Lafayette meet brewers Brian O'Reilly and Tim Ohst of Sly Fox, and Chris Leonard and Russ Czajka of the General Lafayette Inn.
They will be chatting about beer and serving up Firkins of Sly Fox British Pale Ale and General Lafayette's Union Jack ESB. They also say to expect several other treats from the Sly Fox brewers.
Well the weather tells us fall is close, but this confirms it: the first Oktoberfest beer of the year.
The Sam Adams Octoberfest pours a deep amber color with a quickly dissipating head. It sports a slight aroma of malts and caramel.
The taste is light and spicy with some caramel notes and tasted malt flavor. There are some nice candy hops on the back end.
I was a little surprised at how light this flavor really was. It was tasty but I expected a little more. It is though extremely drinkable.
B-
Enjoy the last official day of summer, the last day before school heads back and have fun. But the Boston Globe explains then its back to work people:
On Monday, millions of Americans will celebrate Labor Day in a time-honored way - by deliberately avoiding labor. They’ll attend barbecues and beach parties; they might even kick back in their hammocks and lawn chairs with a feeling of entitlement, secure in their understanding that the first Monday in September is just a hard-earned reward for the American worker.
They’re wrong about Labor Day. And not only are they wrong, but by the lights of Labor Day’s founders, their whole attitude toward the day makes them less than good Americans.
In 1884, when President Grover Cleveland signed the bill making Labor Day a national holiday on the first Monday in September, he and its sponsors intended it not as a celebration of leisure but as a promotion of the great American work ethic. Work, they believed, was the highest calling in life, and Labor Day was a reminder to get back to it. It was placed at the end of summer to declare an end to the season of indolence, and also to distance it from May Day, the spring event that had become a symbol of the radical labor movement.
The day most of us now spend in happy leisure was created to urge Americans to work more, not less. The holiday’s inventors would have been dismayed to see that Americans today would use it only to float in a pool, play putt-putt golf, or - even worse - to fantasize about a life in which they do nothing but play.
Labor Day, perhaps more than any other holiday, has always embodied a contradiction in American society, the deep gulf between the nation’s self-image and the way its people often behave. And to understand why is to get a clearer look at an important but little-understood piece of our own history: America’s long civil war over fun.
Drinkers Pub (1903 Chestnut St) is doing their part to make this a fun weekend. Participate in the 2009 Baggo Tournament or their Wing Eating Contest today. If games and contests aren’t your thing, you can also try Drinker’s $10 All You Can Eat Tailgate Menu from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Need something to wash it down with? Well I think Drinker’s has you covered there too.
Hey and you certainly don't have to worry about getting up Monday!
I had Japan's Hitachino White Ale earlier this summer and absolutely loved it, so I was thrilled to find this unusual beer on special.
It pours a deep brown with a beautiful tan head. Strong chocolate and toffee flavors overwhelm you in the scent.
This is one delicious coffee stout. Dark coffee flavor sits right up front with lingering vanilla and chocolate tantalizing on the back end. It is rich and creamy with a good body, really coating the mouth.
Whether you like or love this beer is probably going to depend on whether you like coffee stouts. I found this to be a very well balanced treat. If you like this beer style, by all means search for this beer. It is well worth it.
A
It looks like McFadden's will be opening a new venture called Tavern on Broad in the Bellevue basement formerly home to JL Sullivans.
Their website revelas nothing more than a logo with little content so I guess details are to follow!
Saturday, October 3 join the guys from Philly Beer Scene for the second annual Brews For Boobies pub crawl. For $25 you get a t-shirt, food and drink discounts and the choice of Old City or Center City locales, and its all in support of the American Breast Cancer Foundation.
All your details here.
The wonderful Jack Curtin reports that Monk's (16th and Spruce) has finally reopened. I am impressed that they were able to get back to business (the front two rooms at least) for the holiday weekend.
For those of you living in a hole, here is the story behind the closing.
Addendum - Tom Peters just emailed this:
We are OPEN! The City of Philadelphia told us that we could open our doors at 11:30 AM today. All the City officials that we dealt with were amazingly helpful. So we want to give a big thanks to Bart, Scott, Mrs. Ward and everyone else for their extraordinary efforts. Philadelphia Rocks!
The workmen our landlord hired worked long hours to get us reopened. Our landlord has been on-site for 20 hours each day...seriously. He has spared no expense getting the apartments back up to code in as expeditious a manner as possible.
For those few that are not aware of what occured, I’ll give the Cliff Notes version of the events. But first I’d like to make it totally clear that we do NOT own the building. We are tenants in the building, just as are the apartment dwellers upstairs.
1. Near the end of our Saturday evening’s business (just before our 2AM closing time), one of the upstairs tenants fell from the fire escape tower. He had a thrid floor apartment and he and a friend apparently were leaning on a metal railing when it gave way. They both fell several stories. He died and she miraculously is already out of the hospital. We are devistated about what happened. Our landlord knew the gentleman that fell. He is also heart broken.
2. Philadelphia Department of License & Inspection decided to close the building until a structual engineer could do an inspection and certify that the building was safe. They also required our landlord to update the safety systems in the entire building.
3. The landlord has already received the engineer’s certification, but updating the apartment section of the safety systems will take several more days. The restaurant portion of the building is already approved.
Since our back bar area’s emergency exit is under the apartment’s fire escape tower, we cannot open the back bar today. We expect the landlord to have everything finished by next Friday. When his work is done, we will be able to open the back bar to the public.
The Front Bar and the Front Two Dining Rooms are Open! The Ktichen is Open!
Hopefully that information answers most of your questions. Thank you all for your support during this very difficult time. We hope to see you soon.
Tom Peters
Imbibe magazine has released their list of the Best Bottled Beers in the World.
Local highlights:
*Victory Prima Pils (Downingtown) was named as one of the best 10 beers to have with a burger.
*Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron (Milton, DE) was cited as one of the top 10 beers brewed in unusual places.
*Sly Fox Pikeland Pils from (Royersford) was said to be one of the 10 best canned craft beers.
Heading down to Brauhaus Schmitz (718 South St) tonight from 9-11 P.M. for a special Franziskaner event.
Everyone present that orders a Franziskaner product will be entered into a drawing to win a Franziskaner motorized scooter. The scooter will be at Brauhaus Schmitz and will be given away tonight. Come out for your chance to win and enjoy a refreshing weissbier while your at it!
A beer pairing made in heaven (or Lancaster County) tonight at the Institue (549 N 12th St) at 7:00.
A firkin of Lancaster Milk Stout.
Hop Hog IPA draft.
A selection of house made chocolates to pair with the Lancaster beers.
Mmmmmm, chocolate with an IPA. I think I like it!
Yes that is the actual name of a beer. One of the new creations of the Iron Hill in North Wales, this is described as an English style stout with a high roasted malt character and subtle cherry flavor. Supposedly this brew is "smooth and sexy just like Tom".
It sounds tasty but I may struggle trying to order one of these in public!
Sly Fox's Pikeland Pils and Victory's Prima Pils get some love from Joshua Bernstein in Gourmet magazine's new article Eight Great Pilsners.
Pilsner, the world’s most popular beer style, may also be the most maligned. The pilsener was invented in Bohemia in the 19th century, honed in Germany, and nearly destroyed in America. After years of mass-market, ersatz suds, the style has had a resurgence. Here are eight great examples.
