Another Belated Posting

Still catching up from the weekend so here goes.
Friday at the Flying Pig in Malvern to go along with a great cheesesteak I had a Le Merle from North Coast Brewing Company.  This is a very good Saison but I needed something a little darker to go with my cheesesteak.  I got a cask conditioned Midnight Sun Porter from Williams Brothers Brewing Company out of Scotland.  It went well with my sandwich.

For dinner my wife and I went out to Daddy Mim's in Phoenixville.  I had a most awesome Seafood Court-Bouillon (COO-B-YOON).  Shrimp, crabmeat, crawfish and scallops in a Creole sauce.  It was excellent.  We had 2 bottles of wine with dinner.  The first was a 2006 Roar Santa Lucia Highland Pinot Noir which I thought was very good and my wife thought was excellent.  The second was a 2006 Seasmoke Botella which I thought was equally good but my wife...not so much.  After dinner we enjoyed the festivities that are Phoenixville on a first Friday of the month during a summer month.  Which includes outdoor concerts and plenty of people watching.  We stopped in at the Iron Hill where I had a cask-conditioned Hoppopotamus.  This big red ale is probably the best Iron Hill has ever had.

On Saturday I made it to Union Jack's Inn on the Manatawny for a quick two.  Up first was a Union Jack IPA from Firestone Walker Brewing Company.  This is a most excellent IPA.  I followed with a quick Mongo IPA from Port Brewing Company.  This is an excellent Imperial IPA but I don't recommend having a "quick" one of these.  I didn't have the time to savor it and frankly it went straight to my head.  No complaints.

Another Weekend

Another weekend will soon be here and I didn't post about last weekend yet.  Here goes:

Friday at the Victory in Downingtown I started with a Helios.  What a great Saison.  Then I moved on to a  Yakima Glory to have with my Reuben Deitrich sandwich.  Both were excellent.  Friday night at TJ's in Paoli I started with a Belgian Independence Day Saison from Brewery Ommegang.  I was a little turned off when I heard the word "spice" in the description but fear not.  This is a very good Saison.  I didn't get the spice.  I got a nice, dry Saison.  I followed with a #500 DIPA from Nogne-O (Norway).  It had a nice floral nose and a nice mouthfeel but the taste...not my thing.  Next I sampled a Tongue Buckler from Ballast Point Brewing Company.  This is an Imperial Red Ale but I didn't care for it at all.  That's surprising considering I usually love this brewer.  I "settled" for a Double Jack DIPA from Firestone Walker.  The "settled" in parenthesis is because there is no settling here.  This is a great DIPA.  On the way home I started to get thirsty so I stopped at the Pickering Creek Inn.  I had an unremarkable Laughing Dog Alpha Dog.  I was expecting an awesome Imperial IPA but it was not to be.  I moved on to Iron Hill (Phoenixville) where my expectations were low.  To my surprise I had a quite enjoyable Hoppopotamus Red IPA.  It was even better when I got the happy hour price of $4 instead of the usual $7.  I wanted another happy hour beer but nothing else on the menu got my attention.  Time to go home but on the way I got thirsty so I stopped in for a quick one at the Sly Fox.  That Saison Vos is a fine beer, isn't it?  Then I had the Route 113 IPA.  I'm still not a fan of this beer but a lot of folks are.

Saturday at the Craft Ale House in Limerick I started with a 18th Anniversary from Avery which is a Rye Saison?  What the heck is that?  It was an OK.  Then I went back for another Lucky 13 from Lagunitas.  Ahhh, that's more like it.  This big red ale is a nice hoppy red. 

The Trapp Door and Beyond

I've had a couple of beers the past week I have been meaning to post about so here goes.

At TJ's in Paoli I had (from a firkin) a Black Strap from Voodoo Brewing Company in Meadville, PA.  This was a nice, dark American Strong Ale...not overdone.

I went to the place that used to be the Tap and Table in Emmaus.  It is now called The Trapp Door.  I started with a Mönchshof Kellerbier from Kulmbacher Brauerie in Germany.  This is a good Keller Bier.  More malty than I normally like but very enjoyable.  To make up for the lack of hops, I had a cask-conditioned Snake Dog IPA from Flying Dog Brewery.  It was very good.  I ended with a Sublimely Self Righteous from Stone.  This is an excellent Black Ale.  The hops come through all that darkness with ease.  I never complain about beer prices because I am happy to pay a premium for the fine beers that I enjoy but...my general feeling is that the beers at The Trapp Door were all priced about $2 more than they should have been.  I mean, $7 for a cask conditioned Sly Fox Chester County Bitter?  Come on!

I made it back to Appalachian Brewing Company in Collegeville and had a cask-conditioned Hoppy Trails IPA along with my reuben sandwich.  Both were excellent.  Then I had the Outta Focus DIPA.  I'm not a big fan of this one.  There was just something in the taste that I just didn't care for and I normally love my DIPA's.