International Beer Expo. I worked the event for Philly Beer Scene magazine and had such a fantastic time. It was perfect weather for the outdoor event at the Navy Yard and I even got to introduce my sister to her first beerfest.
We were right next to the guys from Philly Beer Week and Unibroue, which made for awesome beer tasting and conversation about the week's events. There were tons of great breweries represented, and even a wine tent, which I had never seen at a beer event before.
Once the general admission was allowed in, the party really began. Lots of pretzel necklaces, Philly t-shirts, and even a few PBW shirts!
These two guys came up to our table a lot. Gotta love the party in the back.
We sold quite a few tshirts, glasses, and a couple posters. Everyone loved looking at both posters, which from 2010 is kind of like a "Where's Waldo" of Philly beer and the 2012 pinpoints where all the breweries are located.
That was about the 20th couple we saw having full blown makeout sessions. Beer makes people happy!
That's Ed from Philly Beer Week. We made friendly and even got him some beer in his full pint glasses! It def helps when you're working the events, they bend the rules a bit.
What a great event and a pretty nice turnout considering it's right in the middle of the first weekend of PBW.
Kite & Key. Next stop, try and catch a little bit of the Gladiator event at Kite. After packing everything from the event, I knew we would miss the action, but we were hopeful to see some leftovers (including beers). We met my husband Steve at a table outside and witnessed the Yards guys trying to turn their gladiator mobile around in the middle of Callowhill street. It was fun to watch, everyone in their cars looked totally confused.
It was a gorgeous day for an outdoor table, dinner, and some beers. I went with the Dogfish Red & White and the Festina Peche while I was there. We finished up quickly and went to a concert to see my sister's friend play in his band, The Bailey Hounds. The concert was held in a cemetery, and it was the perfect getaway from the crowds of PBW. We arrived with some beers in tow and enjoyed some music and scenery.
Near the end of the show, I went on Twitter and saw that James Murphy of LCDSoundsystem was doing a DJ set at Morgan's Pier. I freaked out. I love LCD and even saw one of their final shows at Terminal 5 in NYC. We raced over to Old City and ventured to the overflowing venue. I highly doubt most of the people there were interested in James Murphy, but we got some Boulder Mojo in our hands and waited it out to see him. After about an hour and a half, he arrived, literally right behind us. I was lucky enough to get a quick picture with him, as did my sister. He was super chill and we had front row watching view. He killed it! Now I know this isn't a beer week event, but seriously, how awesome?!
Can you tell how excited I am??
A little blurry, but who cares.
That was a fantastic end to day #2 of beer week. James freaking Murphy. Also, their movie, Shut Up & Play The Hits, will hit select theatres for one day only, July 18th. It follows the band on their last few days of shows at Madison Square Garden. Looks AWESOME.
Day #3
Misconduct. We started the day by heading over to Misconduct for some Heady Topper & the Mat Falco shaving. We unfortunately missed the actual shaving, but here's some photos of it, courtesy Steve Lyfords.
Looking good Falco! As if we hadn't had enough of Heady Topper from our trip, we wanted more. We paired it with burgers and were happily full. I also tried to the Allagash/New Belgium colab called Vrienden. It comes it at 9.2% and is brewed with dandelion greens and elderberries. It was deliciously sour, tart, light, and very drinkable!
Cirque du Saison. We headed to Queen Village to catch some saison action at Tapestry. The bar was swamped, so we grabbed a table, beer, and a cheese/charcuterie board. Hands down, this is the best charcuterie in the city. We washed it down with Stillwater's As Follows.
Outside, they had face painting, jugglers, music, and lots of people. It was really cool to see the neighborhood come together for a small street party.
Bishops Collar. We went back to our neighborhood for a Goose Island happy hour with the reps from GI. They had the Lolita on, which we've never had before, so it was very exciting.
The color of this beer was so vibrant, I couldn't stop looking at it! We also met Andrew & Wade, who were awesome guys that gave us tons of information about Goose Island and their barrel program. I had no idea that Goose Island has the biggest barreling program in the US! Also, Lolita is considering an American Wild Ale, yet at beer competitions, it's considered a Belgian Style Pale Ale. After drinking it, I can see both sides. It drinks with a strong sweetness, but it also has that pucker and funk to it.
Andrew also offered to buy Steve and I a beer, so I switched to Sofie, which is one of my favorite saisons. This beer is also aged in wine barrels and has a champagne quality to it. You can taste funk, orange zest, spice, and slight sweetness.
After having a few more Goose Island beers, I think we "got goosed" at their fantastic happy hour. And that was the exciting day 2 & 3. I took off day 4, so day 5 will be posted shortly. I'm way behind, but I finally was able to catch my breath today and smile back at the awesome time we've had so far. Trust me, day 5 was a crazy one. Stay tuned beer lovers!
Cheers,
Megan
