Twentifourth Firkinteenth

It isn’t often that you find a loving and caring wife that will let you leave your kids for a day of drinking.  It’s really hard to sell. What do you say, “It’s exercise like with golf?”  So when my cousin Brian and my brother Dave each said they were in I was thankful that I could say “Family Time” for the reason to head to Philly for the 24^th edition of Friday the Firkinteenth at the Grey Lodge Pub.  So I drove south, stopping in New Brunswick, NJ at Stuff Yer Face for their original Stromboli (one of my favorite foods, and highlighted on Man vs. Food (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6otbUX6Or4)) and a Haand Nissefar, a Christmas beer from Norway.  Both were very tasty.  Next I walked down to Harvest Moon Brewpub and tried their Sinterklaas Belgian Winter Ale.  Traditional Christmas spice in a Belgian Ale (around 7.5% ABV), it was a great stop.  When I got to Brian’s, we split a Surly Five, their own sour ale celebrating five years of brewing, while we planned the next day’s events.

The next day it was off to the Grey Lodge Pub for Friday the Firkinteenth (24^th Edition). We didn’t worry about black cats crossing our paths or broken mirrors, since they had more than 25 firkins of cask conditioned ale ready to tap.  With three events this year, the crowd was manageable and we got two bar stools for prime viewing.  We were there early (2 hours or so), but we got to chat and I tried a Victory Smokin’ Oats Porter while we waited for the great unveiling.  The staff has gotten good over the years, so no one got baptized by the spray.  The selection was good, but since I had tried several before, I concentrated on the new beers.  I really liked the Fiftyfifty Rockslide IPA, heavy on hops and with a nose of grapefruit.  Manayunk’s Rye of the Tiger was good too, but it poured like crap.  Dave and Brian enjoyed themselves, taking in the atmosphere and sampling quite a bit.  We decided not to stay for lunch (next time I’m staying for the day), and went over to check out some other of my favorite Philly spots. 

We went for lunch at the Memphis Taproom, one of my favorite places for food and beer.  I had a Yards Old Bartholomew on cask to go with my Shepherd’s pie and fried pickles.  I took the time to update my beer book, even showing off my new “I’m about to be 45 and my eyesight sucks” reading glasses.  I followed it up with a Victory Ranch S Double IPA and surprisingly enough my eyesight got a tad better.  Brian shared a new offering from Dogfish Head called Black and Red, an imperial stout brewed with cherries and mint.  It is rare to find a beer that you would want to gargle with, but this one may qualify.  Brian liked it so much it ordered it twice.

Our next stop was Barcade, a Philly version of the Brooklyn original.  I loved this place when Dave and his wife Christine went with me 5 years ago (documented enthusiastically in my first beer blog).  The beer offering was fantastic (I got the Stone Vertical Epic 11/11/11 on draft), while we went and played some classic arcade games: Joust and Gauntlet (welcome Elf!).  I tried some Damn Good Jerky (actually called Death by Jerky), that lit my mouth on fire.  I put out the heat with a Ballast Point Barrel Aged Porter (it worked really well).  Finally, we stopped by Yards Brewing, mostly because it is easy to get to and it is on the way.  Nice tasting room, and a good vibe.  I continued with our theme of the day and tried their Extra Special Ale brewed with East Kent Golding hops on cask.  I got my family home, playing the music loud to drown out their snoring.  It was a good day.

I would have ended the story then and there, but I promised my mom (and my sister-in-law Christine) that I would take them for mussels the next day at the Belgian Café.  Of all the great Belgian bars in Philly, this one is my mom’s favorite.  I got the Bloody Mary Mussels, seasoned with horseradish and celery salt, to accompany my Flying Dog The Fear, and Imperial Pumpkin ale that was very impressive.  My mussels were fine on weight watchers, my frites were not (but damn were they good).  I’ll have to go back for a taste test at Monk’s and Eulogy.  I can hardly wait. - 5964/11830

“Filled with mingled cream and amber, such hilarious visions clamber, through the chambers of my brain, quaintest thoughts, queerest fancies come to life and fade away; What care I how time advances; I’m drinking ale today.” – Edgar Allen Poe