Friday the Firkinteenth #22

Look out for black cats, don’t break any mirrors, and avoid walking under ladders. It’s Friday the Firkinteenth, the only one for 2010, and two friends of mine (Chris and Christopher) agreed to head down to the Grey Lodge Pub (http://www.greylodge.com/) in Philadelphia to celebrate. I worked out the itinerary (the dreaded Salmon schedule) and we left my folks shortly after 7AM for our adventure.

Yes, I said 7AM. We were in line by 8:06 (got a great parking spot), let inside by 8:37 and I was sipping my first beer at 8:48 (Prism Brewing Tea Party Pale Ale on draft, made with real tea leaves). Starting that early was new to my comrades (sad to say that I’m a pro), and by 9AM they started tapping. We got great seats at the bar (making the early departure worthwhile), and were able to sample all of the initial cask line-up. Christopher’s favorite was Stoudt’s Scarlett Lady ESB that was aged in oak casks, both dark and delicious with the right level of bitterness. Chris’ favorite was his pick from last year, Sixpoint Brewing Righteous Rye. For me, it was Stillwater’s Stateside Saison that Rate Beer gave a rating of 98/100. Saison’s are my new favorite style for the summer, crisp with a spicy finish and still packs a kick (Stillwater’s was 6.8% ABV) that you don’t typically get with wheat beers or Kolschs. We drank water between each glass (hydration is key), and eventually gave our seats to couple that we deemed bar-worthy. And after stopping by for a Rita’s Water Ice (I went for the limited edition Swedish Fish flavor), we were off to our next stop, the Memphis Taproom (http://www.memphistaproom.com/).

Draft magazine recommended the Memphis Taproom for both the beer and the food. The term Gastropub is used to describe a beer bar that offers a great selection of unique foods. The Taproom isn’t in the best area of town and wouldn’t be a place that I would feel comfortable taking my family. The owner indicated that his location helped with the cost of the beer, and while I don’t disagree he may be taking that idea a bit too far. I got the King’s Rarebit; Texas toast with a rarebit sauce (I prefer my sauce to be cheesier) and two eggs. The guys got different sandwiches, both of them being very meaty. I washed my eggs down with a glass of Russian River Supplication, a sour ale whose fruitiness was a great accompaniment. The owner gave me a discount on a bottle of Drie Fonteinen Doesjel, a limited edition lambic that was aged in oak barrels. I liked the atmosphere and would come back again, but maybe not with Jenn.

Next was the Dock Street Brewpub (http://www.dockstreetbeer.com/), which was on the other side of the river. They used to be located at Logan Square, but closed a while back and reopened recently at the new location. Garmin got us there, but the events of the morning were starting to take their toll on the team. Dock Street serves rotisserie chicken and wood fire pizzas, but we stuck to the beer selection. I tried the Satellite Espresso Stout (thought the caffeine might help) and then the Saison Dupott’s. Both were good (not great), and with the day wearing on, we decided to head over to the hotel. We stayed at the Marriott Residence Inn in Center City (GREAT location) thanks to reward points, and while the team got some needed rest I went to explore the area.

Monk’s Café was nearby, but it was closed for renovations after a bus (yes a bus) came through its front window (sorry guys, we’ll have to same this one for another trip). The Good Dog café was open, but it had a limited beer selection. Nodding Head Brewpub was open and I tried their Bill Payer Ale on cask. A solid beer, what you would expect from a beer that is supposed to pay the bills. The barmaid recommended us heading over to the Reading Terminal for a Tommy DiNic’s roast beef sandwich. And since our plans had us heading that way, I gathered up the guys and we got one for our walk down to 2nd street. The sandwich was awesome, seasoned roast beef with really sharp provolone cheese. A great snack before dinner.

We walked down to Eulogy Belgian Tavern, the other notable Belgian bar in town. We tried the wine and the beer mussels, both excellent, in the upstairs portion of the restaurant. I tried the De Houvebrouwers Toria Triple on draft, a nice Belgian ale with a nice alcohol kick. I have to say I was disappointed with the beer selection, three of the beers that we tried to order were either unavailable or there was something wrong with the lines. And they keep the upstairs so dark it felt much more cramped then it needed to be. In the future I think I’ll keep my craving for mussels for Monk’s café when I’m in the city. We then walked across the street to Triumph Brewpub (http://www.triumphbrewing.com/) for a beer. I ordered the Hefe-Weizen, but was only able to get a third throught before declaring that I was done. Apparently this was moment that Chris and Christopher thought they’d never see ,and I couldn’t tell if they were disappointed or relieved to know that there was a limit to my day. It wasn’t the alcohol (or maybe it was), but I just felt saturated. So we walked back to hotel (at this point it felt like a ten block march, I wasn’t talking much) and sat down to watch the Eagles game.

After a 2+ hour break, we each got hungry (can you say munchies?) so we headed over to McGillin’s Olde Ale House for some food. I got the French Onion soup, and was pleased to find some beers that I hadn’t had before. One last round for the team; a Flying Fish Exit 6 (their version of a rye beer), Sixpoint’s Sweet Action Ale, and Stoudt’s 1860 IPA brewed specifically for McGillan’s. It was great end to wonderful day.

The next morning it was back over to the Reading Terminal (http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/) for breakfast (a much better choice than the hotel). We went to see Moses at Smuckers, a Pennsylvania Dutch food stand that was recommended by the butcher on the other side of the place. What a great breakfast! Smuckers specializes in egg sandwiches, so we each got one to start our day. It looked like there was at least a half dozen eggs for each sandwich, and for mine I added scrapple and horseradish cheddar cheese. We then walked around and found folks making homemade donuts. I got a dozen for the family (the cream filled were to die for), and we said goodbye to Philly and headed over to Capone’s for lunch.

I couldn’t believe I was doing it, but I ordered a cheesesteak for lunch to wrap up the weekend. The hot peppers make the sandwich, even though they didn’t offer cheese whiz. I had the Avery 17, an Anniversary Lager, as part of my sampler that came with the meal. I was also able to get a few bottles of beer to go, highlighted by Cigar City Gruit, the Brewery Coton (a bourbon barrel blend), and Mikkeller’s Beer Geek Brunch Weasel, a specialty beer that I plan to save for sharing with my brother.

It was a great trip. I dropped Chris off in New Hope and got Christopher home almost exactly 48 hours after picking him up. We got to tentatively plan our next adventures (Boston, New York, Montreal, Buffalo, or back to Philly). What I appreciated most was being able to share my passion with some good friends. I can’t wait to do it again. - 5566

"You can only drink 30 or 40 glasses of beer a day, no matter how rich you are." – Colonel Adolphus Busch