Bell's Light Hearted Ale

I'll admit it: I shamed Larry Bell into sending me a sample of this beer.

I am not embarrassed to admit that. I saw this beer on my friend John Holl's Facebook timeline, and I lusted for it. So I said in a comment, "Hey, Larry Bell! Where's the love, brother?" and tagged Larry. And sure enough, he sent me a sweet little sixpack, tightly-packaged, a thing of compact beauty, and a mere 110 calories per 3.7% 12 oz. can.

But let me tell you something. It wasn't so much the beer that made me want it, or John's loving description.

It was the name. 

Bell's Two Hearted Ale has been a favorite of mine for years. When it came out in cans, my wife and I giggled with glee, and bought cases of it. Then the Double Two Hearted Ale came out: YOW! I loved it, too, but damn, watch out, you know?

And then... Light. Hearted. Ale. Had to happen. Had to have it. So pitter patter.

Gorgeous light amber, big billowy head. Yum, say my eyes. Fresh bread and sweet citrus aromas. Damn, says my nose. Shut up and drink!, says my mouth.

It is light. Light in feel, light and bright in taste, light and crisply bitter on the finish. It is clearly Son Of Two Hearted, and on a hot day, this is going to be a crusher. And with me looking to lose weight right now? I may have found my moving buddy. It drinks easily, it's bitter without being gaggy (which, sorry, in too light a beer can definitely happen), and the flavor is light and rolling, very, very pleasant. I like the idea of a 110 calorie beer that has some real pale ale flavor.

Thanks, Larry (and thank you, John). I appreciate the sample, and I'll be sharing the other five around. This is good stuff, keep making it!

Beer Friday #10 -- Post-Session Beer Day Blues

Well, Session Beer Day, yesterday, was great. I spent the afternoon at the Bulls Head Pub in Lititz, Penn. (and I'll be back Sunday afternoon to do a whiskey dinner...still a few tickets available!) cruising through 16 taps of session beers at 4.5% and LESS. Great time, some great conversations, and some very nice beers. I'll run through them in capsule style (like I did with the big beers from Split Thy Skull). But I'm kind of dealing with the let-down at this point, the post-Session Beer Day blues. I need some good music to get me going again. Liked this version better anyway; electrifying.



New Glarus Zwickel Bier, 5.3%
A "Zwickel" is a little valve on the side of a fermenting vessel where the brewer can, with proper care and sanitation, pull off a sample of the beer in the tank. An invitation to "tickle the zwickel" is always the high-point of a brewery tour: fresh, unfiltered, unaltered beer, as usually only the brewers get to taste. It's the real stuff.

Some lager brewers will package -- lightly -- a 'zwickel' beer, also called a 'kellerbier,' or 'cellar beer.' The beer gets minimal filtering, usually just a long settling in the tank, and is packaged for quick sale. Get it, drink it, love it. Let's see how Dan Carey did on this one; expectations are high.

Beautifully bright, dark straw gold, bright white head. Wetly-fresh bread, grassy-floral noble hops aroma: it smells fresh, which is the key to a good zwickelbier. Tastes clean, malty, balanced with a bitter finish. A bit sweet up front, but the hops quickly kick in.

Have you heard people say, "This tastes like beer"? Or complain about beers that don't 'taste like beer'? This tastes like beer.

Verdict: Good

Starr Hill Daily Grind Peppercorn Farmhouse, 6.2%
I like pepper. Not peppers, though I like some of them, too, but peppercorns, ground (or whole). I would have been one of those guys sailing leaky wooden caravels around the Cape of Good Hope, searching for the spices of the Indies, because I would want more pepper than anyone else. I'm told that the Pennsylvania Dutch love black pepper, and I do, and once I saw a Berks County friend shake pepper on his ketchup till it was black, that was me. Love that.

So when I see a peppercorn beer, I dive in, and I've rarely been disappointed. The Daily Grind smells a bit perfumey -- but peppery -- and I can't seem to raise a head on it, but I'm still optimistic. Sweet and yeasty, and I'm looking for the pepper. It's subtle, but it's there, and as I take another sip, I can feel it build a bit. But I'd really like more. More sips don't do more; we've hit peak pepper. I'm bummed, because the Starr Hill King IPA Habanero I had the other night was NOT subtle, it did the trick. Sigh. I'll have to keep looking.

Verdict: Okay

The session takeover at the Bulls Head

Session Beer Day Round-up at the Bulls Head
I went up to the Bulls Head Public House in Lititz, Pa., for Session Beer Day yesterday. They did a total session beer tap takeover: all 16 taps, including the two beer engines, were pouring beers at 4.5% and under. Beautiful thing, and only TWO of them were "session IPA." I tore into them, and here are some impressions.

Loch Ness Scotch Ale (tagged as "Malty Brown") -- Might have been my favorite of the day; on cask. "Malty brown" indeed; good body, chocolatey sweet malt, not a bit of cloying stickiness, great beer. If there hadn't been all the choice, I'd have happily drunk this all afternoon.
Neshaminy Creek Croydon Cream Ale -- Clean, lightly sweet, a bit of breadiness, and fresh as a daisy. Nice pint.
Stiegl Radler Grapefruit -- My guilty pleasure. "Like a beery Squirt," as one person put it, and it captures the best of both. The grapefruit is just tart enough, the beer's there without being gak weak. Totally enjoyable.
St. Boniface Bulls Head Bitter -- From a local brewer (Ephrata) specifically for the Bulls Head; nicely done, drinking easy, great light balance of malt and hops. Exceptional.

Enjoying the Tarte Nouveau

Weyerbacher Tarte Nouveau -- Light, tart, refreshing, just enough going on. Well-done sour session.
Oxbow Space Cowboy -- Session-strength biere de garde, which I've learned recently is not so odd after all; BdG was often relatively light. This one's good from nose -- spicy, malty -- to tail -- clean bitter finish. Nicely done indeed.
Ballast Point Mango Even Keel Session IPA -- I always have high hopes on mango beers -- love mango! -- always disappointed. This smelled perfumey with mango, almost too much, and then the beer just slapped me with stupid bitter in the mouth, totally out of frame for its weight, and the mango tasted way off. Not good at all, I left over half of it on the bar.
Harviestoun Old Manor -- Also cask, and delicious. Brit malt -- chewy, tasty, dry, biscuity -- and earthy hop, and light carbonation so you can actually taste it all. Delicious pint.

Verdict: Stellar Session!

Drink Me at Tired Hands...but Be Nice

I found out yesterday that my face -- okay, an interpretation of my face -- is currently adorning the "new beer window" at Tired Hands Brewing in Ardmore, PA. Jean Broillet IV, the owner/brewer, inspired by...something, named his latest beer, a session IPA (Jean makes a lot of hoppy beers (really wonderfully aromatically hoppy beers), a lot of session beers, and a lot of funky beers), Be Nice. It clocks in at 4.2%, and he describes it as a reddish session IPA. When someone -- rightly -- asked if that wasn't the same thing as a pale ale, he responded that it drinks like a DIPA, and he didn't think anyone would guess that it was as low in ABV as it is.

I guess I'm going to have to make the trip out to Ardmore and try this one. I mean, I don't see any way I can not have one (or four) of these, right?! Thanks, Jean, pretty cool!

(A rare cross-posting from The Session Beer Project blog; been doing a lot more posting there these days, you should have a look.)

Philly Loves Lagers: hello, Philly Bierfest!

Gearing up for the second annual Philly Bierfest on February 23rd (1-5), and I'm starting to get a lager Stiffe. The German Society of Philadelphia is hosting the event, along with Brauhaus Schmitz and the Philly Roller Girls (that's right: women-owned and operated roller derby!).

You know I love me some smooth, cold-matured lager loveliness, and there's no place like Pennsylvania to get great fresh examples; er, outside of Germany, that is! For your $45 ticket (or $60 VIP), you'll get lagers and weizens from fantastic Pennsylvania breweries like this: 

Appalachian Brewing Co.          Berwick Brewing Co.
Lancaster Brewing Co.             The Lion Brewery
Pennsylvania Brewing Co.         Philadelphia Brewing Co.
Manayunk Brewing Co.            Neshaminy Creek Brewing Co.
Nodding Head Brewery             Round Guys Brewing Co.
Sly Fox Brewing Co.                Stoudts Brewing Co.
Straub Brewery                       Susquehanna Brewing Co.
Victory Brewing Co.                Yuengling and Sons Brewery

Meanwhile, down in the Ratskellar, the beer-loving folks from The Foodery will be pouring beers from German breweries like Ayinger, Jever, Trauenstein, and a number of smaller, less-familiar (and delish) brewers, including one possible surprise they're still working on; keep your fingers crossed that this famous doublebock makes it in!

Why am I plugging this? What, a guy can't like lagers? Okay, okay: I'm plugging it because I'm in it, a member of the Brewer’s Discussion Panel on ‘Lager-Love and the Resurgence of Session Styles’ (I swear, I had nothing to do with the title!) at 4 pm in the Society's historic Horner Memorial Library.

Other members of the panel? Artie Tafoya, of Appalachian Brewing (and a past-master of hefe-brewing), Bill Covaleski of Victory Brewing (where they've been known to brew a lager or ten), and German beer importer Lars Dahlhaus. It's moderated by Marnie Old, Philly's best-known sommelier...who is also a fierce proponent of beers, especially lagers. We'll have a few good things to talk about.

I hope you can remember to come hear us, after three hours of lager, weissbier, great German eats from Brauhaus Schmitz (snacks for freesies, more substantial -- and the Germans do know "substantial" -- eats for additional bucks), and the bluegrass picking of the Keystone Mountain Boys. 

What do you get for that extra $15 for the VIP ticket? You get a bigger cup...and if that's not enough, you also get in at noon for a tutored tasting on German beer styles by Marnie. Trust me, there are more German beer styles than most people know. It's more than just light lager/dark lager/strong lager/wheat!

Oh, and the Roller Girls. Don't you worry about them, you'll understand that soon enough. So...check it out here, and I'll see you there!

The German Society -- 611 Spring Garden St.  Philadelphia, PA  19123

Philly Beer Week with Lew Bryson: what I'm hosting

I know: it's about time I put this up! Here's what I'm hosting and appearing for during Philly Beer Week -- I took a break from the first two days to celebrate my daughter's high school graduation -- and I hope you'll join us for some of them!

TODAY - Sunday, June 3

Beer From New Jersey...You Don't Expect Too Much...

Okay, you may or may not be familiar with the John Gorka song, but New Jersey beer does tend to get overlooked, excepting maybe Flying Fish, and even that still gets dissed. Get over it! Scoats and I decided to ramble through the Garden State this year instead of our annual roll through upstate PA, and we came back with some excellent beer and some great stories. Join us at the Grey Lodge today, 5-7, for New Jersey beers and an up-to-date look at the state of beer in the Beer Garden State. PAYG.

Lew Vs. Jack: the Scratch Beer Showdown

You've been hearing about this -- the video, the trash talk, the successful sneak preview at Kite & Key on Friday -- and tonight it happens. Uncle Jack Curtin and I were each invited to brew a beer on the small Scratch system at Tröegs, to our design, both of which will be on tap at Standard Tap tonight, from 5-9. Jack brewed his favorite type of beer, the biere de garde; I brewed an unfiltered Dortmunder Export. The guys at the brewery dubbed them Biere de Grouch and Zwickel Licker, and I'm good with both names... We'd both like to win this, but I'm at an obvious handicap: due to scheduling problems (and Jack's fine hand...), I won't be able to get to Standard Tap till  about 7:20, and I know Jack will be pressuring people heavily during that first 2.5 hours. I'm counting on you to keep this fair by stopping in to have a couple Zwickel Lickers (just ask for "Lew's beer," that'll work). There's lots of stuff going on in the neighborhood (check the PhillyBeerWeek site or the app for Northern Liberties/Fishtown); come by and help me out!

TUESDAY - June 5

3 Bourbons, 3 Scotch, and 5 Beers

My singing partner: Jack Daniel

It's an open secret that I sing, and after the fun we had at last December's carol sing that I led at the Grey Lodge, Scoats asked me back for something a bit more topical. 'Pick out 3 of your favorite bourbons and Scotches, and 5 of your favorite beers,' he said, 'and we'll do some booze song karaoke.' Hey, I suck at karaoke, but this is passion; I intend to rise above, and I hope you'll come out and sing and drink with me. Here's the drinks list we came up with: bourbons - Baker's, Elijah Craig 12 Year Old, and Four Roses Yellow Label. Scotch - Glenfarclas 105, Johnnie Walker Black, and Highland Park 15. Beers - Flying Fish Farmhouse, Great Lakes Ed Fitz Porter, Saison Dupont, Stoudt's Pilsner, and Hill Farmstead Edward. The songs? Scotch and Soda, I Like Beer, Whiskey in the Jar, Jockey Full of Bourbon, A Pub with no Beer, A Jug of This...you get the idea. We're going to have some fun, and talk whiskey and beer...and sing a couple songs. That's Tuesday, 7-9, at the Grey Lodge.

Session Beer Panel 

But once again, my schedule is crazy, because I'll be leaving the Grey Lodge as soon as the last song is sung to fly to Center City for this huge Session Beer Panel at the Farmer's Cabinet. It starts at 8:00 -- I'll get there around 9:25 -- and it's going to be some of the most influential bar owners/managers on the East Coast, and they're worth mentioning by name and bar:

• Joe Carroll, owner of Spuyten Duyvil, Brooklyn, NY
• Dave Brodick (or his manager), owner of Blind Tiger, NYC
• Chris Lively, owner or Ebenezer's, Maine
• Greg Engert, partner/beer guy Churchkey, Wash DC
• Casey Hard, beer guy of Max's, Baltimore
• Daniel Lanigan, owner of Alewife, Boston & Baltimore, Lord Hobo's, Boston
• Alec Lopez, owner of Armsby Abbey & The Dive Bar, Boston
• Dave Pollack, owner of The Diamond, Brooklyn, NY

The panel is moderated by Dan Shelton of Shelton Brothers importers (so you know there will be outrageous controversial positions taken), and we'll be going till at least 10 PM...and Dan's a bit windy (not that I'm laconic), so it's probably going to go as late as you want. And this is a ticketed event, and it may seem a bit steep at first look: $50. But take a gander at what you get for that $50 besides the amazing panel. Not only do you get the delish cheese and charcuterie that Farmer's Cabinet is known for, you'll be getting pours -- not samples, pours -- of some of the best damned session beers available:

• Cantillon Gueuze (draft)
• De La Senne Taras Boulba (draft)
• De Molen Engels (firkin)
• Stillwater Premium (bottle)
• An english bitter from either: Timothy Taylor, Coniston, Titanic, or Adnams
• Thiriez Extra (bottle)
• Guinei Riner (bottle)
• Tuatara Pils (bottle)
• Cabinet Gose (draft)
• Amager Fusion (draft)
• Two Brothers Long Haul (bottle)
• Carton Boat Beer (bottle)
• Yards Brawler (bottle or firkin)
• Spezial Rauchbier (bottle)
• Mikkeller Drink In the Sun (draft)

And more, probably; every time I check my email, Dan's suggesting another. Come out and talk and drink session beer (and eat good eats); I guarantee a great time. It's a session beer festival with the best damned session beer seminar you've ever heard.

WEDNESDAY - June 6

Ciders at London Grill 

You probably didn't know that I'm a cider enthusiast; I don't write much about cider, though that's going to be changing. Get the first fruits of my growing research at London Grill, where we'll be pouring ciders from Pennsylvania -- Arsenal Cidery from Pittsburgh with head vintner Bill Larkin, Philly local Revolution Cidery and vintner Johnathon Gradman, and Bucks County's Desiato Cidery and Richard Smithson -- along with a few other very special ciders. There'll be a good range of ciders, and do not expect fizzy boozy apple juice. If you like serious cider, innovative stuff done with fermented apples, this is a great event to stop in and check out (and check out London's draft wine setup, too). We're going to take a great bite of the cider apple; join us! London Grill, 6-9 PM, PAYG.

THURSDAY - June 7

Philly Beer Geek Finals

If you've never been to the Philly Beer Geek finals...it's not just for the competitors and their friends, believe me. This event is a hoot, and the judges -- me and a very ready crew of Philly beer celebs -- will be doing our best to keep the contestants unbalanced, and you laughing your butt off. There's beer passion and knowledge and, well, insanity displayed, and not a bit of it is taken too seriously. Come join us for a surprisingly great time! Plenty of great beer available, too... 8-11 PM at Manayunk Brewing, PAYG. 

Saturday - June 9

Herr Bryson's Brewers Breakfast
Gotta wind up the week big. I usually do a wheat beer breakfast with Scoats at the Grey Lodge the first Saturday of PBW -- an event that the Houston Chronicle once cited as evidence that Philly was a city of drunks... -- but my daughter Nora graduated high school that morning. So...instead we moved it to Hop Angel Brauhaus, and made it a German brewer's breakfast, like you'd find at the gasthaus breweries in Germany -- Früh in Köln, Im Füchschen in Düsseldorf, Fässla in Bamberg -- big plates of wurst and cheese, plenty of pickled herring (hey, it's a buffet, you don't have to eat the herring; more for me), solid rye bread, and shtuff like that. And lots of German beers, and the great German-type beers that our local brewers make. I'll be telling you all about those great little places, and the beers, and why German breakfasts are one of my favorite meals. It's all PAYG, and starts at 11, runs till 2. Just the recovery you need from a hard week of Philly Beer Week...before you make that final event and have that final beer!

Forest and Main quickie

I have an extensive post on my recent trip to Iceland coming up, but meanwhile...Thursday, the day after I got back from the Land of Fire and Ice, I tucked in a quick first visit to Forest and Main, the new brewpub in Ambler. I was headed to a private bourbon dinner I was hired for, and realized I had time to stop in on the way. Stop in I did, and found a very pleasant suburban Philly version of North Country Brewing's setup: a little house, set back from the street just enough to have a small lawn. A brewpub with a lawn: how nice!

I walked in the front door, and ran into partner/brewer Gerard Olson right there. He welcomed me, and took me into the small bar, where partner/brewer Daniel Endicott was behind the bar. Gerald brews the Belgian beers; Daniel brews the more British ones, and since I was going to be driving and drinking bourbon later...wait, I didn't have to make a choice: there were session-strength beers on both side! Of the eight beers on tap, fully half were Session Beer Project™-approved session beers. Hot damn! 


I ordered a Spring Bitter at 3.5%, and it was cool and smooth. Chockfull of flavor? No...which is kind of the point. The Spring Bitter tasted great, but didn't attempt to fill every nook and cranny of my mouth with anything screaming or pounding. It was simply...good. So good, I had another. It was pleasant sitting at the small bar, talking to the people on either side of me (without having to talk over loud music, the one fly in an otherwise wonderful ointment at my Saturday visit to Deep Ellum, where I enjoyed Pretty Things 1945X and Notch Saison...), a beautiful location. As I left, at about 5:40, neighbors were filling up the outdoor tables, and the fish and chips smelled delish. Definitely going to be back to this one.

Run-up to ADI: Mecklenburg Gardens, and Louisville beers

Saturday I drove out to Louisville for the American Distillers Institute craft distilling conference (I'll be blogging about that at the Whisky Advocate blog). Just didn't feel like dealing with the airport again, so I loaded up the TDI and headed west. I had packed a turkey sandwich for lunch (home-roasted turkey breast with some Penzey's Galena Street rub and a raspberry-wasabi mustard on sliced miche, and damn, but that was good); then 5:00 found me just outside of Cincinnati, and I took the recommendation of a Facebook friend to get dinner at Mecklenburg Gardens. Good call: the Kostritzer schwarzbier was clean and fresh as a whistle, and the goulasch was rich and tasty, sitting on fresh-made spaetzel. Nice couple from Indianapolis at the bar, too; we talked all through the meal.

I got into Louisville about 8:20, and holed up in my hotel room till about half an hour after the UK/UofL game was over...and then went out to get a beer. I walked down to the Bluegrass Brewing Company taproom on 4th Street, dropped at the bar, and after considering the sessiony Altbier...went for the Duppy Conqueror, which they described as a "Belgian porter." Tasted more like a roasty dubbel, but hey, there's crossover territory there. Had one more -- a 7.5% Rye IPA that was spicy/hoppy, but maybe a bit heavy for my tastes; I like rye IPAs a bit crisper -- and then called it a night; it was a long day of driving.

Next morning I went to Palm Sunday mass with friends, who then took me to brunch at -- I was going to keep that to myself, actually, because it was nice enough that I wanted to keep it a secret, but that's no way for a blogger to be! We went to 211 Clover Lane, tucked back in a quiet little corner, and had a great meal; I had a great plate of shrimp and grits with tomato gravy (with a lemon cranberry scone before; delicious). There was a good selection of whiskeys, but I just wasn't quite ready for that yet.

I left after this nice quiet moment with my friends and their kids (3 year old daughter and a newborn son, and just beautiful), dodging the remaining thunderstorms that had been blasting through the area since I woke up. By the time I got back closer to downtown, I was ready for a drink...and stopped at Against the Grain, the brewpub at the ballfield. Candace set me up with a Keller Zwickle, a sharply fresh unfiltered lager in a big half-liter willibecker, which just put a beautiful spin on the day for me. I followed it up with a Smoke, a rauchbier that was pounded with smoke, just the thing for a place with barbeque (and smoked cabbage, which I got a side of; delish stuff).

The day was just getting nicer, so I headed across the Ohio to New Albany, aimed at New Albanian Brewing's in-town premises, Bank Street Brewhouse. Now it was time for session beer! I started right in on an imperial pint of Community Dark Mild, one of my favorite American session beers (3.7%, chocolatey and dryly malty). New Albanian owner Roger Baylor popped up -- he was enjoying the day himself -- and introduced me to the guys from Flat 12 Bierwerks from Indianapolis. They're participating in Session Beer Day -- as is New Albanian, in a big way, sounds like as many as seven session beers on tap that day! -- and we had a great talk about it. Then after a glass of Tafelbier (4% Belgian pale ale, and tasty-delicious-spicy), I gave Roger and his friend Jared a ride over to the ADI conference...at which point this becomes the ADI story, which you'll have to read at the Whisky Advocate blog when it goes up. I will tell you that I'm down in Bardstown now, eating country ham -- for work! -- drinking coffee, and going bourbon shopping (gotta take the opportunity when I'm "out of control").

Session Beer Day, April 7!

I don't often double-post from one of my other blogs, but this is one of those times; since the Session Beer Project actually started here, it seems proper. 


I suggested to the members of the small (but rapidly growing) Session Beer Project page on Facebook that we should make April 5th (4.5) or April 7th (Little Repeal Day, when 4.0% ABV beer became legal before repeal of the 18th Amendment) our day, Session Beer Day. We could ask for session beers at our favorite bars, and brewpubs, and suchlike, invite people to try them, gin up plenty of social media whoopee, and all dat.

We decided on April 7: there are a lot of photographs of a LOT of Americans happily drinking 4.0% beer we can use, it's a day the beer industry is already aware of, and...it's a Saturday this year (the day before Easter, which is actually kind of weird for me; I have a tradition of drinking big beers that afternoon), which doesn't hurt when you're planning a beer event!

What to do? If you work at a bar (or manage one, or own one), please consider throwing some under-4.5% beers on for April 7th, and making a special price or promotion for them. Tell folks it's Session Beer Day, and encourage them to see how good lower alcohol beers can be. (Good day to get a "We Support" window sticker, too!) If you're a brewer or wholesaler, encourage your accounts to pick up your under-4.5% beers for that day; it's a great chance to promote those beers! If you're a beer blogger/tweeter/writer, please consider spreading the word about Session Beer Day: use the hashtag #sessionday . And if you're a session beer drinker...get out there and ask for it!

We've got some interest...but this is totally grassroots. This isn't a sponsored event, it's not organized (if you know me, you know that), and it's simply about going out and drinking session beer -- 4.5% or lower, good-tasting, great beer -- and enjoying it. 

Session Beer Project posts this week

I know there's some reader overlap here with my other blog, The Session Beer Project, but in case you don't usually keep an eye on it, I've got two new posts up there that might interest you.

First, there's one about how brewers are jumping on the "session beer train" by using the word sessionable. Well, as of yesterday, I'm not using that word anymore, and I give my reasons why.

Second, and maybe more relevant here, I did an interview with Notch Brewing Company founder/brewer/everything Chris Lohring on the occasion of this all-session beer contract brewer's second anniversary. It's a good thoughtful interview, and I think you'll find it revealing about just how viable sub-4.5% craft beer is.

Session Beer Project revived

I'm not just blogging more here, I've revived The Session Beer Project blog as well. There are two new posts up over there, one on 21st Amendment's Bitter American going year-round (at 4.4%!) and Victory's new 3.9% take on their Dark Lager. Have a look!

Race you to Christmas!

I am becoming a slave to my calendar...yesterday was a taping for American Beer Blogger at Porter's Pub in Easton, had a great time with Larry Porter, and found out about Weyerbacher's coming new graphics and logo, and talked to owner Troy Reynard about Two Rivers Brewing, a new brewpub coming to town soon. Good taping, good fun, good beer...and then on the road along the river back home to make dinner before heading to a dress rehearsal.

After the second of those evening rehearsals this week, my church choir's Christmas concert is tonight (and of course, I'd be happy to see any of you at St. Andrew's RCC in Newtown: it's a very good concert, with a small string ensemble). Tomorrow night I'm at Appalachian Brewing in Harrisburg for a book signing and fundraiser for the "American Beer Blogger" Kickstarter campaign (come out and pledge!).

I get to spend the weekend with the family, then Tuesday 12/20 I'll be visiting Valley Malt in western Massachusetts to see their custom micromaltings operation, dropping in to check out Element Brewing, and checking in with Will Meyers at Cambridge Brewing to sample some beers he's made with Valley Malt...and then over to Craft Beer Cellar for a Kickstarter fund-raising event with Suzanne and Kate, and Chris Lohring will be there with plenty of Notch Session beers (including the new Černé Pivo dark lager), and brewer Nate Heck will be joining us from Harpoon with their latest 100 Barrel release; come on out, 4-6, get some Notch and fresh Harpoon, and make a pledge to bring great beer (and some real fun) to TV! (I then pick up my son and drive home...should get in around 1 AM...)

Thursday 12/22 is the Book Singing Party at the Grey Lodge! It's not a typo: have a beer, pick up a signed copy of Pennsylvania Breweries or New Jersey Breweries, and join the surprisingly musical crowd at the G Lodge in singing some Christmas carols. We just had a great time at the family's annual caroling party, and my pitchpipe's all warmed up. It's an old-time Christmas...in a bar! We'll be harmonizing from 7:30 to 9:00, and remember, we all sound better after a couple drinks. 

After that? Well, next Friday, the family's going to do our usual last-minute Christmas shopping and lunch and wandering around Bethlehem, PA (and maybe grabbing a couple quick beers at Bethlehem Brew Works and the Hotel Bethlehem). After that...it's into the Christmas/New Year's week, and a chance to relax before I start on a round of Kickstarter fundraisers...more about that later!

Half Acre Gossamer

Just finished lunch: a bowl of soup I made using CSA late fall harvest (kohlrabi, cabbage, celeriac, hot pepper, turnips, can of diced tomatoes, plenty of spices), crusty dense wheat bread, smoked cheese, and a 16 oz. can of 4.2% Gossamer, from Half Acre Beer Company. (Thanks to regular reader (and buddy!) Steve Herberger for the trade; I sent him 'Gansett Fest and Sixpoints.)

First time I've had Half Acre in a while, and this was clean, crisply bitter, and refreshing. Great with the soup; flavorful enough to stand up to the celeriac earthiness, not so bitter as to twist the flavors. I could go another couple rounds with this one happily...but I gotta start warming up to sing tonight. Cheers!

Session Beer Event at Farmer's Cabinet

That's right: there's a session beer event at Farmer's Cabinet in Philly on September 9 and 10: over 25 session-strength beers, and I'll be talking about them on the 10th at 1:30. Know where you can find the details? Of course you do.

Tonight in the Lehigh Valley: Session Beer!

I'm joining Eddie Stoudt (yeah, that Eddie Stoudt) tonight at The Pickled Egg in Easton (and I gotta say: cannot think of a better name for a Pennsylvania Dutch area beer bar) for an evening of session beer. I'll be talking about this near and dear subject and signing copies of Pennsylvania Breweries, Eddie will have a fresh firkin pouring (I assume of Karnival Kölsch, but I'm not sure), and proceeds from the firkin will be donated by barowner Laz Melan to the Boys and Girls Club of Easton. Good cause, good times, good beer! Get more details here; hope to see you tonight, 7-10!

Session Beer explodes: you really did hear it here first

Check out some links on the SBP blog here. "Session beer" has exploded in the past two months, and yesterday was a big day. Narragansett has a 4.2% Summer Ale coming out, The Notch continues to do well (and is expanding distribution to western Mass), and of course, Philly's quiet session beer success continues unabated. I do love it when a plan comes together.

One more love note to Victory Brewing...

Some of you probably know I had some input on Victory's Baltic Thunder...in an extended way, a lot of the reason that beer exists is because of an e-mail I wrote to Tom Baker quite a few years ago, a mash note on Baltic Porters that led to Perkuno's Hammer, and then Ron Barchet and I talked Baltics when Victory picked up the beer from him. Strictly an inspiration.

But I also helped -- a very little! -- to inspire Victory's Dark Lager, just a little conversation Ron and I had in the lagering room way back. And yesterday I heard from Bill Covaleski that the Dark Lager (which is on tap at the pub and a few other places right now) is really one of their few sales failures. It doesn't really sell enough to keep making it...but they do anyway. Because they, and a few others of us, just love that beer. It's just so craft beer...

So I wanted to take this opportunity to say "Thank you," to Ron and Bill and the crew at Victory Brewing. Thanks for making Dark Lager despite low sales, thanks for continuing to make great session beers like Milltown and Uncle Teddy's (and Dark Lager, at 4.2%!), thanks for everything. And the rest of you guys...time to drink up!

Session beer event in Brooklyn tomorrow!

You know I love the session beers, so I want to make sure the max people know about this. There's a "session obsession" event at The Diamond in Brooklyn tomorrow, and I'm double-posting it here and at the SBP blog. Check this out:

10/23, Saturday, 3pm, Session Obsession

• 10 killer beers all under 4.5% abv
• Many beers making their NYC debut
• Stuffed cabbage, spaetzle, and pretzels
• Real Pennsylvania ring toss tourney for free bar tab (yeah!)

We’re obsessed and possessed to find fantastic beers with relatively moderate alcoholic content.  It seems an ironic thing to promote in a craft brewing world that often equates quality with strength.  But, look closely at these Diamond featured brews and you will find some of the most challenging, exciting, and rewarding beer being made.  As a matter of fact, if you are in for the long haul playing quoits in our yard all day, they might be just the ticket to keep you going!

Rockin', eh? I can't be there: hop on a train, get on over, and drink all afternoon!

The Session #40: Session Beers

As is quite appropriate, I chose to post my contribution to The Session for this month (topic: Session beers) at the blog for The Session Beer Project™. You'll find it here. It is by far the longest post I've ever put there.

First new post in months on the Session Beer Project

Finally put something up on the Session Beer Project blog. I don't want you all clicking over there just to find out that it's essentially a link to another story, so I'll just link to that story: The Untimely Death of The American Session Beer. It's not just ranting and hand-wringing: Ken Weaver got some numbers to back it up. Good stuff, though some objections could be made.

Hello, Pittsburgh!

I'm headed out to Pittsburgh week after next to do brewery/bar visits for Pennsylvania Breweries 4th edition, and I've managed to book some events. Hope I see some of you there.

On Tuesday, November 17, at 6:15 PM, I'll be hosting an edition of Craft Beer School at the Theater Square Cabaret; it's all about my favorite topic, Session Beers. Details are here and here (sorry, they each have details the other doesn't!). Craft Beer School is the brainchild of Vecenie Distributing's Tony "The Beer Man" Knipling, one of the most dogged, determined champions of craft beer I've ever met, and -- believe it or not -- the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. It's a short, fun session, about an hour, and we'll talk about the beauties of low-alcohol beer.

The next night, Wednesday the 18th, I'll be doing a barrel-aged beer tasting at Bocktown Beer & Grill, and they have corraled some excellent beers: New Holland Oaked Mad Hatter IPA, Stoudt's Scarlet Lady ESB through their "Brewser the Infuser" filled with bourbon-soaked oak, Great Lakes Oaked Black Out Stout, Erie Oaked Railbender, Arcadia Oak-Aged Cereal Killer, and Arcadia Big Dick's Old Ale aged in Pappy Van Winkle barrels. And we may have a few more amazings up our sleeves; still working on that. Expect a lot about the bourbon aging process and the secrets in the wood; I am a beer and whiskey guy, after all. I'll have details on this one soon; watch this space!

And if you're in the biz in the area -- bar or distributor -- Vecenie is throwing a craft beer pep rally Monday night (the 16th) at the Teutonia Männerchor, where I'll be talking about the whole craft beer revolution, where it came from, how it's doing, and where it's headed. Get in touch with them and come on out! (This is for retailers only; sorry, general public.)