Monday, March 23, 2015

Double the Fun

I have to say,  I'm a bit excited about two upcoming events. Partly because I had a hand in organizing them, but mostly because I think they are a going to be a great way to bring some really great beer to a new audience.

On Friday, May 27th through Sunday the 29th, my great friend Paul Engel (of whom I've known for... er, uh... just shy of 30 years) is hosting The Spring Cask Tap at his tavern, the Allen Street Pub. If you've never been, to the pub it's the perfect mix of great craft beer and neighborhood dive-iness—go read what the good Dr. McLeod had to say about the ASP.

In any case, Paul is really into cask beer—I mean really into it—in fact he's a trained cellarman, and that's the impetus for the Spring Cask Tap. To bring in as much great cast beer as he can and revel in it. He's getting local casks, including ones from Argyle Brewing Company, and Wolf Hollow Brewing Company—and an oak cask of Bert's DQ'd Imperial Stout from Wandering Star in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. He's also bringing in two UK-made brews—Postman's Knock from Hobsons, and Dark Star Original, and I imagine a few a few other surprises, too. The star of the show, however, might be BFM's Cuvée Alex Le Rouge—one of only 20 casks imported into the U.S

It's totally free to get in, too.

The following weekend, April 4th, my pal Dora Philip, owner of The Hollow Bar + Kitchen, in downtown Albany, will be hosting the Upper Hudson Valley NanoFest. She asked myself and local beer blogger/author Chad Polenz if we wanted to do a book and beer event, and it exploded into a mini-beer fest featuring five local nano breweries and ten different beers!

The Hollow has become a hot spot for great music and fantastic food, so bringing in great local beer was a no-brainer. The five breweries involved are Argyle Brewing Co., Green Wolf Brewing Company, Rare Form (Troy), Honey Hollow Brewing Company (Earlton) and The Beer Diviner (Stephentown). Chad and I will selling and signing books, as well. NanoFest is a ticketed event, and tickets are available at the Hollow before April 4th for $20, and on the day of the event for $25.

The Allen Street Pub is located at 332 S. Allen Street in Albany. For any questions call (518) 391-9258.

The Hollow Bar + Kitchen is located at 79 N. Pearl Street in Albany. For any questions call (917) 279-8817.



  

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Beery Existentialism - Part Deux

I’ve had a recent revelation.

I don’t enjoy craft beer bars—and by “craft bar" I mean a bar which exclusively serves craft beer, or high-end imports, rather than a brewery taproom, or a brewpub.

Often, when I walk into a craft bar, I get the same feeling I did when I walked into class—mid lecture—after a dentist appointment in high school. All eyes on me. I feel uncomfortable in craft bars, and I’m the kind of person that feels pretty comfortable in most situations. I feel un-cool in craft bars. The problem is, craft beer has become “cool”, and seeing as how I’m not very “cool”, I really do get a tinge of un-cool high school kid anxiety in craft bars. I feel like I don’t know something that everyone else knows, or that I don’t have enough tattoos, or I'm not drinking the right beer. So, to make things simpler, I don’t go to them, at least not very often.

I am much more comfortable in a bar that has a great beer selection but isn’t necessarily a “craft” bar. I like the dive, or the dart league bar, or the neighborhood watering hole where two people can sit at the bar having a conversation about the local high school football team while one drinks from an aluminum bottle of Coors, and the other drinks a pint of the latest and greatest from Stillwater Artisanal. I like the happy co-existence of Bud Light and barrel-aged stouts.

I have no problem with the “craft” bar—and I don’t begrudge their existence—but they might not feel the same way about me.