Last year’s line to get into Saturday’s session of the Vermont Brewers Festival is likely the longest line in Vermont, but it’s totally worth waiting in.
While I’d hate to leave New York City during Good Beer Month, it would be hard to sacrifice my annual trip to the Vermont Brewers Festival this weekend. So, I’ll be making my annual pilgrimage to Burlington, Vermont to enjoy the finest brews that Vermont’s brewers (and some from New York, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Quebec) have to offer. So for this weekend, I’ll recommend some beers they’ll be serving at the festival that you can get your hands on down here in the city.
Brooklyn Brewery will be following me up to Burlington, pouring a lineup of beers you see regularly in the city, but the biggest demand will likely be for BLAST!, their super-hoppy Double IPA. You can sample the hop bomb for yourself at their brick-and-mortar brewery in Williamsburg, or at nearby Luckydog, or at Hop Devil Grill in the East Village.
Harpoon brews a great deal of their beer in Windsor, Vermont, but their 100 Barrel Series Pott’s Landbier is actually brewed in Boston, and is a collaboration with Jorg Pott, a brewer at the historic Pott’s Brauerei in Olede, Germany (founded in 1769). It’s a refreshing lager that’s ideal for the summer, and you can get your hands on it this weekend at Amsterdam Ale House on the Upper West Side and Professor Thom’s in the East Village.
Brattleboro, Vermont-based McNeill’s has quickly made a name for itself in New York, and it too will be well-represented at Vermont Brewers Festival. You can get their big, hoppy Warlord Imperial IPA at The Pony Bar and 22-ounce bottles of their beers at many craft beer shops, including Bierkraft in Park Slope.
Finally, I actually first introduced Quebec’s Dieu du Ciel at the Vermont Brewers Festival two years ago. Last year, they had the longest line at the festival, and with good reasons: (1) their beer got stopped at the border and never made it to Friday night’s session, and (2) they make some pretty amazing beer. They’ll be pouring Routes des Epices, a rye beer brewed with peppercorns, at the festival, and Rattle-N-Hum will be serving it this weekend, too. Rattle-N-Hum will also be pouring Aphrodite, their black ale with vanilla, dark chocolate, and bourbon, which you won’t be able to get at the festival. There… now you can feel special.
See you back here next week with a full report. I’ll be posting pictures and updates from the festival throughout the weekend, so be sure to check back.
These Sixpoint tours won’t be happening again until they can work out some kinks. (photo via nickgray on flickr)
Just a couple months ago, we told you that Sixpoint Craft Ales in Brooklyn was finally resuming public tours after a long hiatus. The tours were predicted to be just as popular as the fledgling young beer brand. Well, after a post on Twitter and Facebook this afternoon, it turns out they were more popular than even Sixpoint could handle:
Seems that the crowds have been a bit thicker than expected (these photos from Matt Garland show a packed house on the tour this past Saturday afternoon). This isn’t entirely bad news, of course. In fact, it’s great news for the brewery; it goes to show just how popular Sixpoint’s offerings have become, and how huge an impact they’ve had on the New York craft beer scene.
So, it’s back to the drawing boards for Sixpoint’s tours; the doors will close, and those who get a peek inside will feel as lucky as Charlie Bucket. Of course, we don’t expect a rush on bombers of Grand Cru for a golden ticket, but when they open their doors to the public again, it’ll be well worth a visit.
This subterranean spot on 9th Street in the East Village will soon house Good Beer.
Come later this summer, the East Village will have a new place to buy good beer and fill growlers. Good Beer will be opening in a former clothing boutique on East 9th Street between 1st Avenue and Avenue A. Along with the ability to buy bottles and growlers of beer, they’ll also serve up a selection of local beer along with some delicious snacks.
“Food will be comprised of local, organic and heritage products that pair well with beer so cheese, cured meats, pretzels, hot dogs, nuts and some chocolates,” says David Cichowicz, the brain behind the operation. Patrons will have the chance to grab a seat at one of the tables in the store and pair the food with some of the 12 beers they’ll have on tap. The beer selection will be mainly local, sustainable products, but David says they’ll occasionally throw in some West Coast, Belgian, English, and German beers as well.
Construction on the store is getting underway this week, and they’re expecting to open the store in late August or early September.
Obviously, there are more updates to come… not just because that’s my job, but also for a more selfish reason: it’s two blocks from my apartment.
Get your drinking shoes ready for a mind-blowing Good Beer Month event as Pennsylvania’s Victory Brewing Company launches a full-scale assault on Blind Tiger Ale House tomorrow night, when they’ll be serving up 31 beers.
Here’s the list, which will include two casks and a gravity keg, too…
1. Victory Hop Devil 2. Victory Golden Monkey 3. Victory Prima Pilsner 4. Victory Lager 5. Victory Storm King 6. Victory Whirlwind Wit 7. Victory Festbier 8. Victory Hop Wallop 9. Victory Old Horizontal ‘07 10. Victory Mad King Weiss 11. Victory Sunrise 12. Victory Donnybrook Stout (on nitro) 13. Victory Braumeister (sladeck) 14. Victory Summer Love Ale 15. Victory Scarlett Fire 16. Victory Helios 17. Victory Pursuit Pale Ale Amarillo 18. Victory CBC Holledauer Bavarian Pale Ale 19. Victory CBC Hallertauer Bavarian Pale Ale 20. Victory Hersbrucker Bavarian Pale Ale 21. Victory CBC Smaragd Pale Ale 22. Victory Smoke’n Oats Porter 23. Victory V-12 24. Victory Kolsch 25. Victory PNB (Pacific Northwest Bitter) 26. Victory Baltic Thunder 27. Victory Altbier 28. Victory Brown Ale Cask Engine 1 – Pursuit Pale Ale Cask Engine 2 – Hop Wallop Gravity – Summer Love
Holy cow. On top of all this, Victory President and Brewmaster Bill Covaleski will be on hand. And for those who have sweated through Blind Tiger’s Great Air Conditioning Shortage of 2010, manager Alan Jestice says he expects the cool air to be blowing again today.
The beers go on at 4pm tomorrow. Get ‘em fast. And if you miss it, there’s always sloppy seconds in the days that follow.
