PROST!
As Team VFH Captain Janet Lee is in England with her new grandson and is up to her elbows in dirty diapers and enjoying every swabbing moment of it, I am back home living it up!
As Team VFH Captain Janet Lee is in England with her new grandson and is up to her elbows in dirty diapers and enjoying every swabbing moment of it, I am back home living it up!
Yeah…that’s
right… I’m leaving the toilet seats up, and piling dirty dishes in the sink
AND, get this, I haven’t made the bed since she left two weeks ago. I’m having
the time of my life. Of course, the one drawback in all this is I’m running out
of dishes and I can’t figure out the new dishwasher Janet bought, so I have
been going out to eat a lot when I’m not working. I’ve been going to a lot of
brewpubs when I can and in the burgeoning craft beer market of Pennsylvania there
are a lot of them.
NO BUDS ALLOWED.
Although
craft beers are gaining popularity in New Jersey it still pales in comparison
to Pennsylvania. Go into practically any bar in on this side of the Delaware
and the array of brews is outstanding. For your humble beer enthusiasts, who
have traveled to Belgium just to drink beer, this is a good thing. Of course
you can get good beer in NJ, but there are a lot of brewpubs in PA.
For the
longest time the only brewpub in New Jersey was the Ship Inn in Milford NJ,
near the Delaware River in Hunterdon County and a pleasant scenic drive up
Route 29 from Lambertville. Serving British style beers and food specials like
hamburgers on Tuesdays and fish and chips on Wednesday, this was the only
available destination. Although the
scene in New Jersey has since improved the state still lags behind the proliferation of craft breweries and brewpubs in Pennsylvania.
For example in the nearby town of Phoenixville
a now-thriving community with a vibrant nightlife there are several brewpubs
and breweries. Even in the relatively sleepy town of Collegeville where we now live you can hold your breath and
walk from the townhouse to the Appalachian Brewery. It’s a small Pennsylvania
chain that serves several beers and has a full menu. Although close we rarely
go there, but as I have a few more days before Janet returns I may make a guest
appearance.
HIPSTER ALERT
It’s
remarkable how craft beer has exploded in popularity. Once only the giants like Budweiser, Miller and Coors were available, now there are so many beers
that it’s hard to know what to order! Pub crawls can be mind twisting affairs in trying to figure out what to drink next.
But,
like internet publishing there is no guarantee the product produced is good.
Sometimes with these newer places the beers are either a hit or miss. Attempting
to "up" the beer experience brewers sometime combine and infuse flavors that have
no place I believe in the realm of beers. I guess if you favor your beer
flavored with grapes, etc., then this is good. Sometimes they are just outright
bad. Sadly a triple I had at the Tuned Up brewery in Spring City reminded me
not of grapes, but lipstick. Always ask for a taste before ordering a pint that
you’re not sure about. I know I kind of splatted Tuned Up, but the other beers
we had were powerful and good and I ordered the triple without the requisite
sip. They do not serve food, but I would return for a beer, or two, that is
after a taste.
Even
the much revered Dogfish Head Brewery of Milton Delaware, home to 60 Minute, 90
Minute, Burton Baton and Johnny Cask, experiments. Team VFH has been known to
drink many many many of these delicacies, but some of their others like the
current Alternate Takes #5 a barrel aged raspberry / blueberry sour is not
appealing at all….But thankfully their 60 Minute now comes in cans!
ROAD TRIPS
Victory Brewing
The
brewpubs I have gone on this extended foray in a bachelor feeding frenzy are
all hits. The food is good and the great beers make it difficult to choose two
to drink. I hold myself to two as I have to drive.
The
first brewpub I visited was Victory Brewing in Downingtown. Every chance I get
I travel to this far flung oasis of all things good in the world. (It is too
far to drive to Dogfish Head for the evening.) Even my son shudders with
anticipation when I offer to buy him a few at Victory. How else will I get my
son to drive all this way to visit me?
Large
and airy with ample dining areas and always crowded Victory is the closest
thing to perfection. ALL their beers are drinkable and the difficulty is which
one to choose. Some are very strong like their Golden Monkey Triple and their
Storm King Stout. If I’m driving though, I usually opt for the Hop Devil on
hand pump. Creamy smooth and delicious this IPA is excellent. The Dark Devil is
a combination of their Storm King Stout and the Hop Devil. If you’re not
the DD I suggest you go for one of these.
For dinner
I had an excellent grilled chicken sandwich with bacon and fries.
Stoudts Brewery
This
brewpub is a bit out there in Adamstown out past Reading. Your favorite
quaffers have been there a few times for their well-attended Oktoberfest. The
Mossad would have a field day at this event. There are Lederhosen galore and
people parading behind a roasted pig hoisted on a spit, prancing to a German
oom-pah band. It smacks of the real thing. The brewpub itself is decorated with
knick knacks covering the wainscoting and there is a stilted old feeling to the
brewpub. I had been to the brewpub once before and it’s never crowded, but the
char grilled Black Angus burger topped with blue cheese had me busy so I barely noticed.I had their triple and a double IPA.
Tired Hands
This is
on the mainline in Ardmore. Their Fermentaria was slick and crowded. It was
bright and sun splashed from the wall of windows. All the servers were tattooed
and bearded, except thankfully the women. Here, I found grape flavored beer and
they were rather pretentious about their brews. I ordered a double IPA and was
questioned as to whether or not I was looking for the Obilex or something like
that, even though as far as I can tell there was only one double IPA on their
beer listing. Many of their beers have odd
names like: “Progression Through Unlearning II, or, "Ridiculoid" and have accompanying
descriptions that arched my eyebrows. Their beers had “notes of kiwi, or apricot,
or concord grape, or unripe pear, etc. It all just seemed (and tasted) haughty
and ill-conceived. If not for an excellent and well-priced burger I would never
return. The double IPA…whatever they called it was fine.
Sly Fox
This
established brewpub is on the outskirts of Phoenixville, although the beer is
actually brewed in a different location. It is an honest and reasonably priced
place with a fine selection of honest beers. I had been there before and their
Route 113 IPA is a good beer. My second was a hand pump bitter that was smooth and
delicious. For a refreshing summer beer I have been known to carry out a six
pack of their Royal Weisse. At the brewpub I sat outside in their corralled area
on the sidewalk of a strip mall and had a blue cheese topped burger. It is not
a glamorous place, but the burger was very tasty.
As
mentioned earlier Phoenixville boasts several breweries and brewpubs.
Iron Hill
Iron Hill is a small chain that offers many award winning
beers. It is often our go to place for food and drink. Although expensive,
their food is very good. I favor the Voodoo Chicken Pizza. Special beers like
the Bedotter or the Wee Heavy are excellent, but their regular house beers hold
up very well.
Stable 12
This is
a place where I suggest you sample their beer before ordering it. Some of their
beers are high in alcohol. They have a kitchen serving the usual fare and an
outdoor, dog-friendly seating area offering live music.
Crowded Castle
This
posh bar just opened and the beer taps are manned by one of the several buddies
who started the place. I liked their Belgian Quad.. but who wouldn’t? They do
not have a kitchen, but you can order food delivered to the place.
Root Down
The
latest entry into the Phoenixville brewery scene is Root Down. I haven’t been
there yet, but they also serve food. We’ll get back to you on this one.
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