Capone's and Sly Fox Saturday

My 5-year-old daughter was invited to a birthday party Saturday in Norristown.  So after we dropped her off it seemed like a good idea for me to go to Capone's and have a beer.  My other 2 daughters and my wife seemed very happy to wait in the car but being the kind of father/husband I am I wouldn't leave them out there long.  I had an E.S. Bam from Jolly Pumpkin.  The E.S. apparently for extra special farmhouse ale.  The only other beer I previously had from Jolly Pumpkin was the Bam Biere (not to be confused with the E.S. Bam).  I am just not a fan of these beers.  Although I love the dry finish it is the perfumey, almost chemical taste that I don't care for.  As I said before, it may just be my beer ignorance of this style but regardless, I didn't care for it.  I followed that with a Crazy Ivan IPA from Bear Republic.  They call this a "Belgo-American IPA".  As I have said before, traditional Belgian-style beers are awesome and American IPA's are awesome but it does not necessarily mean that some hybrid of each is going to produce something as good or better than the parts.  Belgian IPA's never work for me.  That is not to say this is a bad beer.  It was pretty good but I think I would have enjoyed a nice Belgian followed by a nice American IPA better (as opposed to both concurrently).  Although I saw Bear Republic's Apex on the menu and was tempted to get one to restore my faith in Bear Republic I decided to head back out to the car because that's the kind of father/husband I am.

As dinner time drew near my 4-year-old daughter shouted "Let's go to Sly Fox for dinner" which was not prompted by me in any way.  My wife didn't like the idea but she suggested I take my two oldest daughters there for dinner and she would enjoy the relative quiet of our home with the baby.  So that is what I did.  I had the Keller Pils which is quickly becoming my favorite Sly Fox beer.  I also ordered a Greek Chicken Wrap which is my favorite sandwich there.  I also took this opportunity to have a Saison Vos.  Ahhhh, now that is what I consider a nice farmhouse ale.  I ended with a Royal Weisse which never disappoints.  The kids behaved and as it turns out it was a very nice dinner.

So Many Beers...So Little Time

It was a pretty busy weekend of beer tasting. On Friday I started at Capone’s Restaurant in Norristown. First up was a Mongo IPA from Port Brewing Company. This was even better than expected. Next up was a B.O.R.I.S. The Crusher Oatmeal-Imperial Stout from Hoppin’ Frog Brewery. This is a nice example of an imperial stout. I followed that with a Victory At Sea Coffee Vanilla Imperial Porter from Ballast Point Brewing Company. This was the best tasting chocolate milk I ever drank (drunk?). I then went to the Black Horse Tavern in Norristown (actually closer to Collegeville) but the best I saw on draught was a Yeungling Lager. After sipping my lager I noticed Chimay and other nice bottles were available. I then went to Pickering Creek Inn in Phoenixville. I had a Quercus Vitus Humulus from Otter Creek Brewing. I loved the big alcohol but not necessarily the taste. I moved on to a Raspberry Ale from Dark Horse Brewing Company. This was pretty enjoyable. Maybe because it followed that Otter Creek, I don’t know. Next up was an Oatmeal Stout from Breckenridge BBQ and Brewpub. This was a nice-enough stout but nothing spectacular. Next was a quick stop at the Sly Fox in Phoenixville for a Pikeland Pils and I finally had my fill.


On Saturday I went to TJ’s Restaurant and Drinkery in Paoli. I had my usual Cajun Chicken Sandwich which was awesome as usual. I had a Greenville Pale Ale from Twin Lakes Brewing Company. This was not so awesome. It was an OK pale ale…just not awesome. So to go with my awesome Cajun Chicken Sandwich I ordered an awesome Mongo IPA (see paragraph above). Now that’s more like it.

For Mother’s Day I took my wife and kids to the Sly Fox in Phoenixville. I had a US Saaz Keller Pils which I enjoyed the heck out of. I then had the Keller Pikeland Pils which was just as good. Actually, I couldn’t taste the difference. I think both are based on the same recipe but one uses US Saaz hops and the other German and Czech. Both are unfiltered and both are delicious.