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Thursday, March 13, 2008

Chasing the Firkins

Yesterday I got kind of sidetracked before heading out to the Philly Beer Week local breweries self guided tour. When we finally headed out around 8PM we intended on hitting up good dog for the Dock Street Satellite Espresso Porter on firkin. Little did we know the moving firkin swilling beast of a bar tour had already pillaged that bar and the lot of them as well. When we got to Good Dog and found out they were killing these firkins in record times we decided to skip a few and hopefully catch up to the tour. We headed out to Devil's Alley hoping to catch some of the Sly Fox Seamus Red Ale but had just missed them so we decided to get a bite to eat there. That is where our luck changed. While the tour was tearing up the rest of the firkins at Nodding Head and Fergie's we had a few Smooth Hoperators and some BBQ. By chance we met Chris Mullins from Mcgillin's who informed us that they did in fact have all of the beers from the tour awaiting the crowd at their bar. Chris was a good guy and chatted it up for a few about beer. We talked about pushing the idea of a "passport" for next year where you would travel around and get stamped for some type of commemorative widget as proof you were out there running around these bars all week. After this we decided to head directly to McGillin's...no passing go or collecting $200. This was certainly the best decision of the night.

When we reached McGillin's the place was jumping and there were people everywhere. Downstairs was karaoke night. The special beer was served from sixtels at a table set up in the corner of the upstairs bar room. They were selling beer tickets for $2 at the bar which you redeemed at the table for your mug of the beer of your choosing. As far as I could tell there were no limits on the tickets, excellent. The only thing I might do a bit different would be to post a sign telling of this setup as some of the people didn't quite "get" it and went directly to the table and jamming up the line. This was remedied by Chris jumping on the Mic (PA system?) and announcing how it was set up. There were a lot of known faces present at the event and I got to meet a few new people throughout the night. I thought the highlights were the Troegs Nugget Nectar and the Dock Street Espresso Porter but I have had those many times now. The Flying Fish Bourbon Abbey Double was also excellent and a nice treat that I never had before.

Overall it was a great night with some great beer and one that wont soon be forgotten. If there is one thing that I learned it is not to underestimate the Philly Beer scene and their ability to drink large amounts of beer in record time. Word had it that they were killing them in 20 minutes. Next time I wont miss the firkin tour!
I didn't get to take any pictures as the bar was a little too dark and I was having so much fun. Cheers. -dOc

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Impressive showings during beer week - Firkin Crazy

I don't know about you but Philly Beer Week has been great to me, so far I have been checking out new establishments that I have been wanting to hit up for some time and tasting new and great beer along the way. One of the new establishments that has made an impression on me is Aspen. Located in Fairmount at 25th and Aspen street I fear that it has been overshadowed by other giants in the neighborhood. With Bridgid's just around the corner and the Bishops Collar and London Grille just steps away I seemed to never have a reason to stop in. Lured in by firkin offerings during Philly Beer Week, I was left with a great and lasting first impression. From great food and beer to the friendly manager It will soon be added into the rotation of great beer bars that I frequent. While they may only have 5 or so taps they bring it strong with an extensive bottle selection.

Other honorable mentions thus far:
-All the firkin beer around the city
-Lost Abbey beer (esp. Avante Garde & Devotion Ale)
-Zot upstairs lounge (Zotikot) and it's bathtub tap tower and sink glass washer

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Welcome...

I know what you are thinking...Oh, no! Not another beer blog. so I assume the title is fitting. I must start by saying that I am not a beer writer, there are already plenty of places to get the standard fare of information out there on the net.(check out the links on the sidebar) What I intend to do here is add a bit to the beer scene in and around Philadelphia by posting my random beer adventures live from the bars in and around the area. As an avid homebrewer and beer seeker I get around the scene a lot. Hopefully this will become sort of entertainment for those of you who may be (like myself) stuck at a desk all day thinking about which beer bar to get to after the long day. With Philly Beer Week upon us there are so many events to choose that we get kinda lost in the fray. Beercrier introduced me to Twitter and mobile blogging from your cell phone with his site. From there I saw possibilities, endless possibilities for live beer information and updates and this is my shot at contributing to the wonderful beer scene we have in Philadelphia. Isn't technology great? Welcome to a small portion of my world and thanks for reading/viewing.