THE NOISY, laughing, tearful, music-filled scene inside Village Idiot Brewery, in Mount Holly, N.J., was exactly what Rich Palmay wanted.
His business partner was tending bar.
His family and friends were gathered ’round tables.
His son was playing an upright bass.
Everyone’s glass was filled with his beer.
And there was Palmay, cigar stuck in his mouth, taking it all … Read the rest
DID YOU catch the raucous St. Louis Cardinals locker-room celebration after they clinched their third consecutive division title in the final days of the regular season?
Yeah, I know – I hate ’em, too. The Cardinals, as comedian/Cubs fan Bill Murray put it, are “Satan’s messengers on earth. “
But you have to give them credit, for, in a little-noticed … Read the rest
WHAT BEER NEEDS is a superhero.
One of those comic-book action figures – let’s call him (or her) Sudzzler: Faster than a speeding bar tab. Able to open a wax-sealed cork-and-cage bottle with a single twist. More powerful than a multinational industrial-brewing conglomerate. Pitted in an ageless battle against evil archenemy Dr. Wino.
Superpowers include:
Ice-vision, to instantly chill warm … Read the rest
IT TAKES BRICKS and people to build a neighborhood, but don’t forget to bring along the beer.
That’s the message from Ken Weinstein, a private Germantown developer who has converted scores of vacant and deteriorated commercial properties, including some of the city’s popular beer-centric destinations. On Tuesday, he’ll lead a fun but wonky pub-crawl in Mount Airy, called “Beer: An … Read the rest
WASHINGTON greets the pope with a full session of Congress.
New York welcomes him with the United Nations.
Philadelphia? We tap a keg.
No fewer than 10 specially brewed ales will greet Pope Francis on his visit to Philly this weekend – and what else would you expect from America’s holiest beer-drinking city?
Yes, the mildly irreverent names may have … Read the rest
T’S A THIN line between tribute and hokum.
On one side, the new Paterno Legacy Series beer from western Pennsylvania’s Duquesne Brewing is a heartfelt bow toward the memory of Penn State’s popular yet scandalized former head football coach, Joe Paterno.
On the other, well, who can forget Three Stooges Beer?
Or Harley-Davidson Beer? Or Kid Rock American Badass Beer? … Read the rest
PEOPLE WHO SAY they hate pumpkin beer remind me of people who say they never watch TV, as if they’re too good for something so unsophisticated. They stick up their noses and piss all over the spicy brew because it’s a gimmick, because it’s crass, because they’re oh-so-busy rereading War and Peace.
So, as they repeat the same, tired criticism … Read the rest
FROM TIME to time, I like to check in with the U.S. Patent Office for a progress report on the exciting field of beer inventions.
Over the years, we’ve seen brilliant ideas, ranging from tooth protectors on beer bottles to beer pong tables that keep your beer cold. Honestly, if we could channel some of that ingenuity into, say, theoretical … Read the rest
WELL, IT’S about damn time.
Nearly 25 years after New Belgium Brewing started brewing in Fort Collins, Colo., its beloved Fat Tire Amber Ale is coming to Philadelphia.
That makes Pennsylvania the 39th state to get its hands on the brand, behind the likes of Alabama, North Dakota and, I think, Guam.
Fat Tire, of course, is a near-iconic brand … Read the rest
ANYONE who thinks that Philadelphia’s beer scene ends at the Schuylkill River needs to take Regional Rail to Norristown, hop onto the Rt. 99 bus for an hour or so, get off in Phoenixville, curse SEPTA and start walking.
This once-stinky Chester County town has transformed its dinky downtown alongside an abandoned steel mill into a lively restaurant and nightlife … Read the rest