Room for a Draught

I had time to stop in at the Drafting Room in Exton tonight to enjoy a beer or two.  First up was The Wise ESB from Elysian Brewing Company.  I really enjoyed this one.  Especially the mouth feel and the thick creamy head, not to mention a nice hop flavor worthy of the style ESB.  I followed this with a Gubna from Oskar Blues Brewery.  I enjoyed this one quite a bit as well but it occurred to me that I may have just enjoyed that high alcohol content and not necessarily the taste.  I'll have to give this one another shot in the future.  With a little luck I will make it to Union Jack's Inn on the Manatawny tomorrow for lunch.  Gosh I hope they still have the Jolly Pumpkin on.

Buzz then Beer?

I knew that TJ's Restaurant and Drinkery in Paoli had Pliny the Elder on tap today and I just couldn't resist the tempation to stop in after work for a quick one.  I look forward to the day when Russian River Brewing Company either expands their capacity to the level required to satisfy the demand for this great beer or decides to have it contract brewed, but something has to give.  I guess the same could be said for Pliny the Younger but I don't know because I have never had it.  It is that hard to get!  Sometimes I wonder if it is really a matter of capacity and resources or is it really just an elaborate long-term marketing scheme.  Come on guys, you got the buzz now get the beer.  Kind of backwards huh?

Sly Fox Opens In Phoenixville Once Again

Yesterday without any announcement that I am aware of, the Sly Fox opened it's new brewpub in Phoenixville. My wife noticed that there were balloons and a lot of cars at the new location and surmised that they must have opened. Could they reopen without any announcement? Even their website didn't mention the opening. I had to see for myself. I went over at about 8:30 last night and sure enough they were open. A lot of people somehow learned that they were open because there was quite a crowd. Apparently they did a soft opening in anticipation of some wrinkles which almost always occur with an opening. Good move. Apparently there were wrinkles.

As I was enjoying a tall Royal Weisse I was greeted by owner Pete Giannopoulos. Pete was kind enough to give me a sneak peek into the as-yet unopened part of the dining room which can be isolated from the rest of the restaurant by closing a pair of large sliding doors. Just as the original location had the upstairs section for private parties this room will be available to serve the same purpose. I told Pete that it might have been easy for them to say "Well we have the Royersford location we really don't need a presence in Phoenixville anymore". Pete said that idea "never, never, never" was a consideration. Thanks Pete.  Just like me they call Phoenixville home.

Beer, Wine and...Oh Yeah...Food

Friday after work I had some time to kill waiting for my pizza to get cooked so I stopped in at the Drafting Room in Exton.  I had a Jack D'or from Pretty Things Beer and Ale Project.  I am particularly fond of the saison style and this is a good one.  I drank it so fast I had time for a second beer.  I had to get the cask-conditioned Racer 5 from Bear Republic.  Awesome as usual.  My sister and brother-in-law watched our kids so my wife could take me out for dinner for my birthday.  We went to Daddy Mim's Creole BYOB in downtown Phoenixville.  We started with Crawfish Spring Rolls which were very good.  I then had Grouper on Jambalaya which was fantastic.  My wife had Jumbo Lump Crabmeat Cake which she enjoyed thoroughly.  Before and during dinner we managed to have 2 bottles of wine.  First was a 2006 Rutherford Cabernet Savignon Beaulieu Vinyard (courtesy of my sister for my birthday...the same sister who was watching my kids...what a great sister) and second was a 2006 Roar Syrah Gary's Vinyard.  All-in-all it was a great night out.

Mid-week Shenanigans

On the way home from work last night I stopped at Exton Beverage to pick up my next sixtel for home consumption.  As usual the choices were many but I ended up taking home Red's Rye PA from Founder's Brewing Company.  I have had this in a sixtel at home before and enjoyed the heck out of it.  It is also great in bottles.  As I traveled home up Route 100 I couldn't resist stopping in at the Drafting Room in Exton for a quick one.  I had a Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale from Stone Brewing Company.  This is a dark-as-coal strong ale that tastes like an IPA at first and then after the swallow you get the taste of dark chocolate.  It's a very good beer but I'm not crazy about the style.

I went to TJ's Restaurant and Drinkery in Paoli for lunch today.  I had an Arrogant Bastard also from Stone Brewing Company and also a strong ale although quite different from the Sublimely Self-Righteous.  I could drink a couple of these (but I didn't).  It went well with the Buffalo Chicken wrap that I had for lunch...excellent as always.  After work I went home and tapped my new keg of Red's Rye PA from Founder's Brewing Company.  I can not emphasize enough how very good it is to have this back on tap at the house.  Life is good.

Parties, Beer and Confusion

My 5-year-old was invited to a birthday party yesterday in Limerick and of course she had to go because her mother will not let them miss any kind of party, parade, fair, or activity of any kind.  Luckily the party was being held about 2 minutes away from Craft Ale House.  So my other daughter and I went to pick up the first daughter at the party and found our way to Craft Ale House.  I had an Oberon from Bell's Brewery.  This is a nice American Wheat beer that I will look forward to having as the warmer weather approaches.  Next up was a Hoppin' To Heaven from Hoppin' Frog Brewery.  This is a good American IPA.  Not the best I ever had but I would certainly drink it again.  Finally I had an Iniquity from Southern Tier Brewing Company.  OK, so I thought it was a good beer but I don't get the style.  What is an Imperial Black Ale anyway?  And why do they call these black IPA's.  Doesn't the "P" in IPA stand for pale?  So you have a black pale?  I was a little confused by this beer.  I'm not sure that I am a fan.  I will always be a fan of Southern Tier regardless.

Just Never Happy

I went to the Drafting Room in Exton this evening after work.  Imagine my excitement when I saw they had Wipeout IPA from Port Brewing Company on the chalkboard.  Then imagine my disappointment when after placing my order and waiting with great anticipation for my beer to be delivered I was notified that the Wipeout just kicked.  I had to "settle" for a cask-conditioned Nugget Nectar from Troeg's Brewing Company.  "Settle" is in parenthesis because this beer is no slouch either but I really looked forward to that Wipeout.  After finishing the Nugget Nectar the next best thing on the chalkboard was a Two Hearted Ale from Bell's Brewery.  This too is a really nice IPA but it is on the Drafting Room's "Usual Suspect" list which means you can pretty much be assured that it will be on tap at any given time.  So there you have it.  I had two really good beers after work tonight and I was still disappointed.  Some people are just never happy.

Bitter Sweet

I just kicked my sixtel of Terrapin Rye Pale Ale.  Kicking a keg at my house is always a bitter-sweet occasion.  It is bitter because I really enjoyed that last one but it is sweet because I can now pick out something new to have on tap in the basement.  Speaking of bitter-sweet I read a story on Sly Fox's web page announcing the closing of the Phoenixville location.  We have a lot of fond memories from inside that pub and we will miss it.  That is the bitter part.  The sweet part is that they are opening up a new pub across the street.  I am confident that we will continue to enjoy the Sly Fox experience in Phoenixville albeit in a new building.  I wonder if at one time they considered closing the Phoenixville location leaving only the Royersford location.  If they did I congratulate them on their decision to stay.  The only question now is 'When will the new pub open'?

Union Jack's Union Jack's

I was having the family over Saturday afternoon for a little get-together but I found myself with a little extra time.  So it is Saturday afternoon and I work my way up to Union Jack's Inn on the Manatawny.  I wanted to try an Idiot IPA from Coronado Brewing Company.  But Union Jack's had Apex from Bear Republic Brewing Company on so I had a decision to make.  I know I love Apex and I never had the Idiot IPA.  I ordered an Apex but that was all I had time for.  As I left I was disappointed in myself.  I knew I would love the Apex but I should have taken a a chance on something I never had before.  I vowed I would come back one day and have that Idiot IPA from Coronado.

On Sunday I was looking at my blog and realized that I have had the Idiot IPA before.  I just couldn't remember having it.  I went back to Union Jack's.  Without hesitation I ordered an Idiot IPA.  It was very good.  Probably not as good as the Apex but very good indeed.

Great Friday Night

After work this evening I needed to bring some pizza home so I thought Uno's in Exton would be a good place to get it.  So a quick stop in the Drafting Room was in order.  I started with a West Coast IPA from Green Flash Brewing Company which was very good as usual.  I then had a cask-conditioned Hop Wallop from Victory Brewing Company.  This too was very good.  Unfortunately I had to leave to pick up the pizzas but later in the night I was sent out to the grocery store with THE LIST.  On the way to the grocery store I got really thirsty so I stopped into the Sly Fox in Phoenixville.  I had a Keller Pils which was very, very good.  I followed that with a solid Pughtown Porter.  Then off to the grocery store.  It was a great Friday night.

All Work and Some Play

I spent the whole day reconditioning my deck and I am beat.  I needed to go out for a beer and relax.  I stopped in at Ron's Original Bar and Grille in Exton.  The place was packed, a band was playing loud music and I had to stand while trying to enjoy a Gemini from Southern Tier Brewing Company...which I paid $7 for and then another dollar tip on top of that.  Enough said.  I made my way to the Drafting Room in Exton and had a seat and an Oak Aged Unearthly also from Southern Tier Brewing Company.  Now that's more like it.  I should sleep well now and that's a good thing as I need to get up early and continue working on the deck.

Nice Night for an IPA

This long weekend will be devoted to stripping and staining my deck.  I worked on it until dark last night and then after building up quite a thirst I went to the Craft Ale House in Limerick.  I didn't see anything particularly interesting that I haven't had recently but then I noticed a firkin on the far corner of the bar.  It contained Double Simcoe from Weyerbacher.  That was not on the chalkboard so I was pleasantly surprised.  I remembered this being a little harsh for my taste the last time I had it but of course that was not from a firkin.  What a difference the firkin makes.  It had the same great taste but just a little more mellow.  After that one I asked for a Southern Tier Oat Imperial Stout but it had just kicked.  It was replaced by another beer from Weyerbacher called Heresy.  This is their Imperial Stout aged in oak barrels and the oak really comes through.  After that I tried another Weyerbacher product called Insanity.  This is their barleywine aged in oak barrels.  This was a sweet beer almost like butterscotch syrup.  It was very good but I wouldn't want more than one.  I ended up going back to the Double Simcoe.  Those hops will remove any sweetness left over from the Insanity for sure.

Nice Day for an IPA

It is the Thursday before Good Friday and that makes this a good Thursday considering I have off from work tomorrow. Also consider that it is 70 degrees and not even the hint of a cloud in the sky. Seems like a good day to stop in at TJ’s Restaurant and Drinkery for lunch. I had a cask conditioned Racer 5 IPA from Bear Republic Brewing Company and a Cajun Chicken sandwich. As it turns out this is a great combination. I like both things individually but together they made a fantastic team.  The Racer 5 I have at home in bottles is very good but it can't compare to the cask conditioned version.