It’s Monday, April 16th. Here’s our list of recommended beer-related events in and around New York after work tonight:

• It’s VSK (Very Special Keg) Monday at Blind Tiger Ale House (281 Bleecker St., at Jones St., West Village). At 5pm, they’ll tap a rare or unique keg of the bar’s choosing. This week, it’s a beer from north of the border: the Dieu du Ciel! Chaman Imperial IPA.
  
  
• On Day 3 of the Brooklyn Beer Summit, Beer Table (427B 7th Ave., at 15th St., Park Slope) hosts a beer dinner from 5-10pm tonight with beers from B. United Importers.  call (718) 965-1196 for more info and reservations!
  
  
• Try out some beer pairings at Morton Williams (130 Bleecker St., at LaGuardia Pl., Greenwich Village). Yes, the grocer hosts sampling and beer pairing from 4-8pm today, with beers from Sierra Nevada, Narragansett, Sixpoint, Flying Dog, and more! Give some different beer and food pairings a whirl and be inspired!

Follow us on Twitter for ongoing updates, like us on Facebook to spread the word, and check us out on Foursquare for great lists of beer bars, stores, and breweries!

Dancing in the Dark is a song by Bruce Springsteen, but it’s also what you could be doing this Saturday night if you head to Brooklyn Blackout at Brooklyn Brewery. $20 gets you all-you-care-to-drink Dry Irish Stout and Mary’s Maple Porter, Ovenly cupcakes, and a toast of a vintage Black Chocolate Stout, plus music, dancing, and more! What the hell are you waiting for? Buy tickets now!

But if you’re scared of the dark for some reason, check out this rundown of other beer events in New York this weekend:

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Dirt, trees, and communal seating: this is a beer garden.

Spring is in the air, and that gives us all the itch to drink outside. We’ve already offered up some of our favorite places to drink outside, but there’s going to be a lot of talk about “beer gardens” in New York City in the next few weeks. But far too often, the term “Beer Garden” tends to be thrown around in New York. And just as we called out the local media for it last year, we’ll do it again this year until it stops.

Case in point: this week’s list of “beer gardens” in Time Out New York. The magazine lists 17 “beer gardens,” but very few are actually beer gardens. Let us tell you why.

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It’s Thursday, April 12th. Here’s our list of recommended beer-related events in and around New York after work tonight:

• The East Coast v. West Coast Heavy Metal Brew Tour crosses the Hudson for its next stop tonight at Barcade Jersey City (163 Newark Ave., at Erie St., Jersey City) . At 7pm, enjoy beer from both coasts. In the East Coast corner: Victory and Smuttynose! In the West Coast corner: Ballast Point and Lagunitas! You get to decide who reins supreme!
  
  
• Jimmy’s No. 43 (43 E. 7th St., at 2nd Ave., East Village) continues their new Thursday tradition: the Thursday Tap. Each week at 5pm, they’ll tap a rare keg, and you’ll get to unleash a frenzy on it. This week, it’s the Ridgeway Bad Elf. Christmas in April!
  
  
• Lagunitas visits One Stop Beer Shop (134 Kingsland Ave., at Beadel St., Greenpoint) tonight starting at 6pm. Enjoy discounts on growlers of beers like Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’, the Doppel Weizen, and more!
  
  
• Tonight, Bierkraft (191 Fifth Ave., at President St., Park Slope) dedicates their taps to California’s Ballast Point. They’ll have a bunch of brews on tap starting at 7pm, including Piper Down Scottish Ale, the Barrel-Aged Black Marlin Porter, and Sculpin IPA, and many more tasty heavily-hopped beers.
  
  
• It’s the annual Dogfish Head Springfest tonight at 6pm at Standings (43 E. 7th St., at 2nd Ave., East Village).  They’ll have 120 Minute IPA, Aprihop, Pearl Jam Faithfull, and more on tap, along with - naturally - free pizza at 8pm.

Follow us on Twitter for ongoing updates, like us on Facebook to spread the word, and check us out on Foursquare for great lists of beer bars, stores, and breweries!

It’s Wednesday, April 11th. Here’s our list of recommended beer-related events in and around New York after work tonight:

• Greenport Harbor visits Blind Tiger Ale House (281 Bleecker St., at Jones St., West Village) today starting at 3pm, pouring a bunch of brews from their North Fork brewery. Try the Supeh Freekeh, Strong Ryeland, a bunch of beers from their Project Hoppiness series, a cask of Harbor Ale dry-hopped with Citra and Glacier hops, and more!
  
  
• The Bronx Bourbon Barrel-Aged Pale Ale will make its debut at a special tasting tonight from 6-8pm at Cafe D’Alsace (1695 2nd Ave., at 88th St., Upper East Side). Meet brewer Damian Brown and Bronx Brewery Manager Chris Gallant and chat about the new, rare beer - their second ever sold!
  
  
• It’s Pennsylvania Beer night at City Swiggers (320 E. 86th St., at 2nd Ave., Upper East Side) tonight starting at 6pm. Enjoy beers like the Penn Weizen, Sly Fox Aft Agley Scotch Ale, Victory St. Victorious Doppelbock, Troegs Scratch #59 Mighty Moose Mild, Weyberbacher Double Simcoe IPA, Stoudts American Pale Ale, and a ton of other beers from across the Keystone State!
  
  
• Enjoy beers from Stone Brewing Company tonight at Rye House (11 W. 17th St., at 5th Ave., Union Square). They’ll be pouring the Ruination IPA, 11.11.11 Vertical Epic, 15th Anniversary Ale, plus the collaboration with The Alchemist and Ninkasi, More Brown than Black IPA. The fun gets underway at 6pm!
  
  
• Top Hops Beer Shop (94 Orchard St., at Broome St., Lower East Side) hosts a New Hampshire beer and Vermont cheese pairing tonight, with two seatings at 6:30pm and 8:30pm. Enjoy beers from Smuttynose paired with cheeses from Consider Bardwell Farm. The cost of the pairing is $25, and it’s first come, first serve!
  
  
• Captain Lawrence pays a visit to Idle Hands Bar (25 Avenue B, at 2nd St., East Village) for their weekly $10 Bourbon and Beer Tasting Series. Enjoy beers like the Liquid Gold and the Captain’s Reserve Imperial IPA! From 7-10pm, $10 gets you 2 full beers, a 3-beer tasting flight, a taste of whisky, and an order of tater tots!

Follow us on Twitter for ongoing updates, like us on Facebook to spread the word, and check us out on Foursquare for great lists of beer bars, stores, and breweries!

Last November’s first Brooklyn Beer Summit flew a bit under the radar. It wasn’t particularly well-organized or well-promoted outside of the bars that participated. This year, though, there’s a bit more planning involved, and it’s an eight-day extravaganza of craft beer events at great beer bars around the borough that kicks off this Saturday with what’s already a favorite of ours: the Bierkraft Cask and Oyster Festival.

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