Category Archives: Beer Bar

Grey Lodge Pub

December 27, 2013Beer Bar, Beer Reviews, Beer TastingsFirkins, Firkinteenth, Founders, Sam Adamsgeekybeergal

I recently had the pleasure of meeting up with a dear friend and fellow beer lover at the Grey Lodge Pub in Northeast Philadelphia. It’s been many moons since I last visited the Lodge and I was looking forward to seeing what was new. The transformation this establishment has gone through over the past 15+ years has been remarkable.

When I first visited it was a neighborhood bar with good beer on tap, a fun quiz night during the week, red vinyl booths, stained drop ceilings and a pretty pathetic food selection – think pizza made in a toaster oven. Now the place is a destination beer spot and made my Geekybeergal Philadelphia Pub Crawl list. The owner took over the second floor and put in a real kitchen and a full veggie and meat lover menu is now available. The drop ceilings have been replaced with wood ceilings, gone are the vinyl booths and now there are nice communal wooden tables.

One of the best things about The Grey Lodge Pub has remained the same – FIRKINS! Besides the beers on tap they always offer at least 1 or 2 Firkin beers. If it’s Friday the 13^th than it’s the Firkinteenth! The firkins take over the bar and the beer flows from early morning to late night. Worth trying at least once in your beer life.

On this particular visit the firkins were Evil Genius Naughty or Nice and Iron Hill Winter Warmer. Between the beers I ordered, samples from the bartender and tastes of my friend’s beers I was able to taste many of the beers on tap. The bartender was very nice about providing samples since she didn’t know her beer. Which was the one disappointment this particular visit.

Usually the bartenders know their stuff here, as does the owner, but this particular person didn’t and at least she was honest about it instead of trying to BS her way through things. It would have also been nice if she paid a bit more attention to wiping down the bar after the patrons left.

I started with a pint of Sam Adams Gingerbread Stout…
Merry Maker Gingerbread Stout, Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams), MA 9%
What intrigued about this beer was instead of being a winter ale that it was a stout. The color is baked gingerbread with a nice creamy head. The nose of the beer lets you know before it hits your mouth that you’ll being enjoying gingerbread baked with molasses and the traditional holiday spices of cinnamon and nutmeg. All of these flavors pop in your mouth upon tasting the beer, as well as, a bit of bitter chocolate. There’s a lot going on but is not overpowering and the beer is self is a medium bodied stout and not as robust as one might think it will be. Over all very enjoyable holiday beer.

Next up was the…
Founders Oatmeal Stout, Founders Brewing, Michigan 4.5%

This stout is nice rich dark brownish/black with not much of a head. It has, what I lovingly refer to as, that burnt bitter bakers chocolate taste. This might sound off putting to some but I love it. There is a nice balance of oatmeal and creamy nuttiness. It’s a lighter body stout that goes down smooth and easy. A gentle beer for consumption.

I ended with a 8oz pour of…
Naughty or Nice, Evil Genius Beer Company, PA 5.7%

Deep brown ale with a light tan head. One can definitely taste the dark fruits and winter spices in this beer. It has a nice creamy body that finishes dry and just a hint of bitterness at the end.

I’m glad I had the pleasure of visiting The Grey Lodge Pub and catching up with a dear friend.

Tidbit of Trivia for you – The Grey Lodge is named after the Lodge in the David Lynch TV classic Twin Peaks.

Christmas in NYC

December 27, 2013Beer Bar, Beer Reviews, Beer TastingsBXL Cafe, NYC, Tap Room 307geekybeergal

12/21/13

Every Christmas season, since I was a kid, I go into NYC to visit the Christmas Trees of all Christmas Trees at Rockefeller Center. If you’ve never done this before I highly recommend adding it to your list of things to see in your life time. There is something magical about the Tree.

Over the years my NYC Christmas tradition has grown to include the shops at Bryant Park and a beer or two at my favorite beer place in NYC, BXL Café. This year I decided to try something new and check out the massive display of Christmas decorations at Rolf’s German Restaurant while enjoying a German beer.

Well, my companion and I didn’t realize just how popular Rolf’s display was until we reached the restaurant and discovered a 2 hour wait just to have a drink at the bar. As much as I love German beer and wanted to see the decorations there was just no way I had the patience to stand 2 hours in line to do either of those things. So off we went and started the short trek back to the subway station when we came across TapRoom307 and their slogan No Crap on Tap caught my eye. We glanced at the food (veggie and meat friendly) and beer menus and decided this was the place to plant ourselves for a bit.

TapRoom307 has a pleasant atmosphere that is designed to allow friends to gather and hang out for a while. The bar is long and booths line the walls while long communal tables run the down the center of the establishment. The decor is rustic/wood and very warm and inviting. The only downside sound carries and at times the noise level can make it a bit hard to carry on a conversation.

Since there were 40 beers on tap and I didn’t plan on spending too much time at the Tap Room I decided the best beer route for me to take was a Flight, 4 beers for $12. I decided to try four beers very different from each other.

Weihenstephaner Vitus, Weizenbock, Germany 7.7%
From start to finish this beer was a joy to drink and very refreshing as well. It pours an orange/yellow color with a nice white head. Several flavors mix around as you drink this beer including citrus, banana, cloves and coriander all mixed with a sweet malty aroma. I couldn’t have asked for a better beer to accompany my lunch, kale salad with citrus vinaigrette.

Prelude Special Ale, Winter Warmer, Shipyard Brewing, Maine 6.7%
This beer has a nice dark amber color to it with a tannish head. It’s a descent winter ale that has a nice nutty flavor to and a subtle hops ending. The winter spices are not overwhelming as some winter beers can be. In fact, I would never guess it was a winter ale from tasting it but rather a descent amber ale.

Jolly Pumpkin Noel de Calabaza, Belgian Strong Ale, Michigan 9%
First thought – a Christmas Tree just exploded in my mouth. It has a woody pine taste to it mixed with dark fruit tartness and holiday spices. A small pour of this particular beer was enough for me, I could not imagine drinking a full tulip glass of it. I mixed it with a wee bit of the Harpoon Chocolate Stout and that helped to mellow the flavors out. I enjoyed the combination of the two. Remember to experiment!

Harpoon Chocolate Stout, American Stout, Harpoon Brewery, Massachusetts 5.9%
This beer pours black and has a nice frothy head. The roasted malts take a bit of a back seat to the sweetness of the chocolate and vanilla. The sweetness was a bit overpowering for my taste and mixing with the Jolly Pumpkin helped to cut it. It’s a decent stout but isn’t going to make my top 10 list.

Left to Right: Jolly Pumpkin, Harpoon Stout, Vitus, Prelude

Once we finished up at the Tap Room we headed back up town and to Bryant Park and my favorite BXL Café. BXL is in close proximity to Bryant Park, Times Square, Port Authority and Rockefeller Center but is NOT touristy at all. Several years ago a dear friend and I were on 43^rd headed toward Rock Bottom Brewery when out of the corner of my eye I spotted BXL and we decided to stop in there first. We never made it to Rock Bottom that day. BXL is a wonderfully small intimate bar with a couple of small tables, for two, in the front window area and about a dozen tables in the back for eating. There are several TVs in the café and usually they have on European football. The menu is on the small side but has something for everyone and being a Belgium restaurant there’s a nice selection of mussel dishes to choose from. Of course, the main reason I go is the beer. All Belgium or Belgium style beers are on tap and there’s a nice bottle selection as well. At least 90% of the time the beer is served in the appropriate glass which I just love.

On this visit I decided to enjoy one of my favorites….

Chimay Spéciale Cent Cinquante, Bières de Chimay S.A 10%
How much do I love Chimay? I once had a special, special cat named Chimay. The color of this ale is a beautiful copper with a nice white head. The balance of the spices with the yeast and citrus is just a perfect blend. There’s a nice undertone of peppers with the malt and a crisp dry finish. Chimay never fails to bring a smile to my face.

For this particular visit I had planned on enjoying just this one special beer but then I found out they had Delirium on tap and well…you guessed it….I had to have one.

Delirium Tremen, Brouwerij Huyghe, Belgium, Belgian Strong Ale 8.5%
YUM! This ale pours a nice golden color and has a nice steady stream of bubbles. It’s a bit more carbonated than I usually like but for some reason that doesn’t bother me. The taste is a delicate balance of lemon, apples, honey and just a slight hop essence and is a very crisp and clean beer that finishes dry.

After the Delirium my beer adventures for the day had come to an end and it was time to make our way back to the Port Authority. It was another successful Christmas visit to NYC.

Rattle N Hum, NYC

December 4, 2013Beer Bar, Beer ReviewsCalifornia, German Wheat Beer (Classic Beer Style Series), Madison Square Garden, NYC, Rattle N Hum, Santa Barbara, Southern Tiergeekybeergal

www.rattlenhumbarnyc.com

I’ve heard good things about this place and like their slogan “40 beers on tap and none of it crap” so decided to try it out earlier this year. It’s located within walking distance of Madison Square Garden so it’s a perfect place to stop for a pre show/sporting event beer. The atmosphere is super casual beer bar, nothing fancy, dark and lots of wood. The menu is true bar food.

I decided to go for the taster round so I could try more and since the tastes were only 4oz each I made myself go outside my comfort zone on some of them.

Here we go…
Southern Tier 2 x Stream 8%
Very clean, clear beer with strong citrus flavors and so crisp I believe it snaps when you drink it.

Weihenstephaner Hefe 5.4%
Classic that was just perfect for the warm weather, always refreshing with just a hint of orange. True German wheat beer and I love my German wheat beers. Great summer beer. My none beer loving companion declared this one drinkable!

Peek Skill Simple Sour 4.5%
I’m not a big fan of sours but do enjoy a sip now and again. So went for it and glad I did. Essence of lemon and slight mustiness that comes with a sour beer. Slight malt character as well. It finished light which I appreciated instead leaving my mouth in a puckered state. If you’ve never had a sour I suggest this one as your first.

Boulder Mojo Risin Imperial IPA on Cask 10%
This was very outside the box for me since I’m not an IPA, let alone Imperial IPA, drinker but something about this beer intrigued me so went for it. Glad I tried it and glad it was only 4 oz. Citrusy grapefruit with floral hops and malt undertones. Since it was a cask the carbonation was minimal which helped tone down the hops in some weird way.

O’Hara’s Celtic Stout (Nitro) 4.3%
Ummm, YUM! Pours rich and dark and has a wonderful mocha head. Lots of roasty caramel goodness going on with this beer. Since it’s an Irish stout it’s not heavy and is easily drinkable in warmer weather.

Breckenridge 72 Chocolate Stout 7.2%
Really nice cocoa and caramelized malt flavors with a very creamy texture. Slight coffee undertones but finishes slightly, very slightly sweet and leaves one feeling warm fuzzy as one does when drinking scotch.

Two Brothers Northwind Imperial Stout 8.5%
Easy to drink, medium body with not a lot of carbonation. Nutty/roasty aroma with a touch of mocha. None of the flavors (chocolate, coffee, nutty) are overwhelming and stand out but all blend together.

Firestone Walker Walkers Reserve Porter 5.8%
Vanilla is what hit me first with a slight taste of smokey hops which caught me off guard but I enjoyed. Also, slight cherry tasty. Almost like a chocolate covered cherry but not sweet. Similar to an oatmeal stout in consistency. Very delicious. (I had a chance to visit Firestone Brewery when I was out in CA visiting the San Luis Obispo wine country. My companion I came across Firestone winery and saw they had also started a small brewery. At the time they only brewed 2 beers and they were only available on tap at 2 or 3 places in Santa Barbara. It’s amazing how they have grown.)

I highly recommending stopping in for a beer or two next time your in the city!

Great Lost Bear

September 19, 2013Beer Bar, Beer TastingsBeer, Beer in Scotland, Food, Gearys, Grateful Dead, Grittys, Maine, Portland Maine, Stout, The Great Lost Beargeekybeergal

The Great Lost Bear – Portland, Maine
http://www.greatlostbear.com/
On a Sunday in July I made my way to my favorite bar on the East Coast, The Great Lost Bear! They must have been expecting me because they were playing the Grateful Dead when I arrived and continued to do so through out my time there.I told myself 1 beer and 1 beer only since I still had a 1.5 hour drive ahead of me to my final destination. So I needed to choose wisely and did so with Gritty McDuff’s Black Fly Stout. It’s been a long time since I had a beer from Gritty’s. This stout was ridiculously smooth, light in body but packed with big roasty goodness. It runs in the Irish Stout family but enjoyed it more than the typical Irish Stout because of the full malty flavors.It was so good I couldn’t stop and decided to get a small taster round but decided to stick to local Maine beers.Sebago Runabout Red – nice red color, light body, and good accompaniment to food, hops are there but not overwhelming and without any bitterness, starts strong but the flavor quickly dissipates and leaves the taste buds wondering where the heck the beer went.

Rising Tide Spinnaker (wheat beer) – Super light & fresh beer for summer, spiced orange stands out with definite hints of coriander and subtle hints of green banana. True wheat beer.

Sheepscot Pemaquid Ale (Scottish) – I’m not a true fan of Scottish ales but thought I give it a try. Hmmmm, really all I can say about it was I had to swish it around in my mouth to try and find some flavor and, well, never did. A bit boring for my taste.

Gearys London Porter – I chose this beer to be part of my taster round for nostalgia purposes. This particular beer is one of the first microbrews I ever tried and is partially responsible for me getting into good beer. I joined Beer Across American because of Gearys. (BAA was a home delivery of microbrews long before they were available at the local liquor store.) Roasted chicory, dark fruity hints through out, not too heavy but full body, smooth going down and a true black beauty. Is it the best out there? Nope, but I enjoy it each and every time I have it.

There is something special about eating great veggie food, while drinking good locally brewed beer and listening the Dead that makes The Great Lost Bear perfect.

I also purchased some of their locally made hot sauce that is super yummy! Lost Woods Hot Sauce by Maine Men Co.

Football Sunday

September 17, 2013Beer Bar, Beer TastingsBeer Specials, Hamilon, Review, Uno'sgeekybeergal

UNO’s Hamilton, NJ 9/8/13
https://www.facebook.com/unohamiltonnj

Turns out Uno’s has $4 craft beer during the football games on Sunday, Monday and Thursdays. Suddenly I like football! Their beer selection was pretty impressive this past Sunday so I decided to go for a taster round (4 tastes) instead of the $4 special.

Neshimany Creek Dunks Ferry (Dunkelweizen 5.2%) A good Fall beer but had the slight taste of beer brewed by someone with not a lot of experience. It didn’t have that true dunkelweizen aroma and was a bit heavy on the malt for this style. I think with a few tweaks and a bit more experience brewing it could grow into a wonderful rendition of a dunkelweizen.

Fegley Devious Imperial Pumpkin (PA, 9.0%) Lots of spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves & vanilla) but didn’t really taste the pumpkin. Certainly a full bodied beer but would have prefer a tad of pumpkin flavor.

Avery Karma (CO, 5.2%) –Very light body, not much of anything going on here couldn’t distinguish a particular flavor/taste of anything. Smooth and drinkable just know once you swallow you forget about it. This was my follow-up beer to the Pumpkin and in fairness the spices from the previous beer may have overpowered this beer. Although, I seem to recall trying this before and wasn’t impressed.

Epic Smoke & Oaked Belgium Strong Dark (UT, 10.5%) OH FUN! Ridiculously smooth and clean with a note of whiskey and a light hint of smoke. Pairs well with food and deserves to be sipped. By far my favorite beer of the round.

Normally I would stop after one taster round but there so many beers on the list to try I had to go for another. Plus, one of my all-time favorite beers was on tap so I needed the 2nd taster round to include it.

Triple Karmeliet (Belgium 8.5%) ONE OF MY FAVORITE BEERS! Seeing this beer on tap made me break out into the happy beer dance, much to my companions dismay. This is a crisp, clean beer with nice compliments of fruitiness with pepper undertones. I prefer it not be served cold just slightly chilled. The true character is able to come out in the right temperature. Even though it’s a triple it doesn’t feel like you are drinking a 8.5% beer, it sneaks up on you.

Rogue Chocolate Stout (OR, 6.0%) It’s been a while since I’ve had this beer so decided to add it to the round. The aromas are wonderful, you can smell the cream and chocolate as well as taste it but it’s not too chocolaty you can have this with your dinner besides the dessert course. It’s more of a medium body stout. I once mixed this beer with a Lindemans Frambois and it was divine. Think chocolate covered fruit.

With taster rounds I like to force myself outside my comfort zone with at least one selection and this time that selection was…

Stone Cali Belgique IPA (CA 6.9%) – WOW this is a true California IPA. Personally, I feel the California IPAs taste different from most other IPAs. The hops are in your face but something about them makes it drinkable for the none hops person. They also have a greenish tinge to them with a slight grassy taste. There were hints of lemon and pine as well. To me this was a classic California IPA.

My final beer, that I ordered, was the Founders Nitro Oatmeal but instead was presented with the Founders IPA . How exactly does one confuse an IPA with a Stout?! I was brought my lovely stout and got to keep the IPA as a bonus. This is also the reason I forgot to take a picture of the 2nd taster round, I was in a panic that my nitro stout was missing.

Founders Centennial IPA (MI, 6.9%)- Hops overload. Really I’m good with going outside my comfort zone with one IPA but two is one too many. At least it was free and yes, I left most of it behind. The beer is unfiltered so it pours cloudy and really all I could taste was hops and it left my mouth puckered and parched. I felt I had cotton mouth.

Founders Nitro Oatmeal Stout (MI 4.5%) – Finally my little piece of heaven in a glass. I love how a nitro pours and then settles. It makes me smile as did this beer. Nice rich dark color with a creamy fluffy head. This beer is super smooth and velvety with wonderful aromas/tastes of bittersweet chocolate, oatmeal, roasted malt and rich coffee. It was a wonderful way to end a fun afternoon “watching football”.