GOLDEN AGE OF BEER IN PHILADELPHIA  TOURS

"BREWERY TOUR X!"

GET ON BOARD -- CONTACT: Richard Pawlak, 609) 406-1432, ESTERRICK@aol.com  

Saturday, March 18, and Saturday, March 25, from NOON to 9:00PM

Click here to learn about the special Tour Beer; a one-shot 
special "old school" version of Yards Philadelphia Pale Ale! 

PHILADELPHIA’S MOST FAMOUS PUB CRAWL

SUPER-SIZED FOR YOUR PLEASURE

(AND OUR TENTH ANNIVERSARY)

WITH A TEN-STOP EXTRAVAGANZA

AND A TOUR-ONLY SPECIAL ALE FROM YARDS BREWING!!

GET ON BOARD -- CONTACT: Richard Pawlak, 609) 406-1432, ESTERRICK@aol.com  

--Local Author and Beer Journalist Lew Bryson A Special Guest—

A KitchenAid The Book and The Cook Event

Bill Clinton was in his second term as President. Muhammad Ali lit the stadium torch to begin The 100^th Olympic Games in Atlanta.  Unabomber suspect Ted Kaczynski was found and arrested.  The Dallas Cowboys beat the Pittsburgh Steelers to win the Super Bowl. And unleaded regular gas was $1.27 a gallon. The year was 1996 and 20 internet beer geeks ventured out on a bitterly cold Saturday to inaugurate the very first GOLDEN AGE OF BEER IN PHILADELPHIA TOUR.

Ten years later, and there are now two nationally famous GOLDEN AGE OF BEER IN PHILADELPHIA TOURS, part of the region-wide Kitchen-Aid The Book and The Cook festival, in its 22nd year of matching nationally and internationally known cookbook authors and food personalities with Philadelphia’s finest chefs and restaurants.

Philadelphia’s status as a mecca for beer appreciation and enthusiasm is now firmly established throughout the country, and this year’s GOLDEN AGE OF BEER IN PHILADELPHIA TOURS, taking place on Saturday, March 18, and Saturday, March 25, from NOON to 9:00PM, will expand the previous years’ TOURS to a 10-stop extravaganza of the city’s beer riches, visiting some of the most well-known venues on the lively Philadelphia beer scene to commemorate the TOURS’ 10^th Anniversary.

The TOURS, which depart the Philadelphia Marriott hotel (13^th & Market Sts.) at Noon, begin with a stop at MONK’S CAFÉ, the cozy Center City Belgian brasserie operated by noted Belgian beer authority Tom Peters. Guests will sample their first beer of the day along with a buffet of choice charcuterie. A special guest will be award-winning local beer journalist, Lew Bryson, author of Pennsylvania Breweries, New York Breweries, and Virginia, Maryland & Delaware Breweries, who will autograph copies of his books, highlight the destinations along the GOLDEN AGE OF BEER IN PHILADELPHIA TOURS, and discuss why Philadelphia is the best beer city in America. “This is simply one of the best beer spots in the world,” says Bryson. “Monk's was not the first place in Philly to concentrate on over-the-top beers, but it's the best.” (Monk's is pouring the Yards Golden Age of Philadelphia Pale Ale.)

Bryson makes no secret of his passion for local craft brews. “Ten years ago, Philly was a great beer town; Yards, Victory, Sly Fox, Flying Fish, and Dogfish Head were all just starting out, “ he notes. “We were all excited about the new breweries and new beers and the Belgian beers that were even then very popular. It was a great place to be drinking beer.”

And what has changed? “Well, it's even better now,” Bryson adds, “thanks to pioneering work by the beer bars and breweries we visit on the Tour. “Monk's Cafe became one of the world's best beer spots almost overnight,” says Bryson, “and Ludwig's Garten has leapt into the top tier of German bars in the country. McGillin's Old Ale House has the best beer selection of any Irish bar for miles around. And the Grey Lodge flies high in the Northeast, still alone, weird, and proud of it,” mentioning four of the destinations on this year’s TOURS. 

The second stop on the TOURS is lunch at LUDWIG’S GARTEN, an authentic German-Austrian eatery with 27 taps of German beer, including many varieties not normally found on tap in the U.S.  Lunch at LUDWIG’S is good starting point for discovery and education. Tour attendees will feast on a specially designed buffet created for the TOURS, replete with a variety of wursts, sauerbraten, German salads and rich onion potato tarts. [And it's a gut-stuffer, folks!]  "Ludwig's flock of German taps," notes Bryson, "ranges from the innocent spritz of a Paulaner pilsner to the spicy menace of the powerful Aventinus weizendoppelbock. Tremendous variety and quality!"

The lively McGILLIN’S OLD ALE HOUSE (just around the corner from Ludwig’s) is the caravan’s next port of call. It’s the oldest continually operated tavern in the city, rich with tradition, and a watering hole for the famous and infamous since 1860.  Here the TOURS will sample a wide variety of local beers, including brews specially made just for McGILLIN’S, along with spicy Buffalo wings and a signature McGILLIN’S dish: wacky, colorful, curly fries nachos. As is his tradition, owner Chris Mullins will also regale the tour-goers with a poignant, Irish toast. (McGillin's is pouring the Yards Golden Age of Philadelphia Pale Ale.)

The next stop, MANAYUNK BREWERY & RESTAURANT, was an original destination on the very first TOUR in 1996. “Manayunk has been home to some seriously iconoclastic - not to say hell-raising – brewers,” says Bryson, “so brewer Chris Firey has quite a tradition to keep up. No fear. He's taken what had become a pretty timid beer-drinking scene and ramped it up with big injections of sticky green hops and funky Belgian yeast, to everyone's benefit.”  The crowd will enjoy samples of Firey’s 8 beers on tap, as well as an assortment of stone oven-baked pizzas. 

And how will Tour-goers get to learn the difference between a good beer and great beer? "Lucky people on this tour get the benefit of over 30 years' combined experience in finding great beers, and Philadelphia's three centuries of brewing and importing them. That's how we find places like McMenamin's Tavern," reminds Bryson. 

The unique, multiethnic neighborhood of Mt.Airy forms the backdrop for the next TOURS destination, McMENAMIN’S TAVERN, “possibly the best unknown bar/restaurant in Philadelphia,” says Bryson, where congenial owner P.J. McMenamin has created a near-legendary oasis for beer aficionados, with 17 taps of local and regional microbrews, an impressive neighborhood bistro menu from chef Larry Melissen, and a warm, turn-of-the-century atmosphere. The TOURS will enjoy “maybe the best variety of American microbeers on tap in the city, but grab that local Yards ESA from the hand pump,” Bryson suggests. “It’s the best version of this great beer I’ve ever had.”  Attendees will also partake in bowls of hearty Irish stew, a Melissen family recipe made with copious amounts of Guinness stout. (McMenamin's is pouring the Yards Golden Age of Philadelphia Pale Ale.)

The next stop on the TOURS is a first-time visit to the GENERAL LAFAYETTE INN & BREWERY, where brewer/owner Chris Leonard has earned a reputation for innovative brews and imaginative beer dinners. “He's got both the talent and the will to make great beers,“ says Bryson, “and The General is becoming a regular way post on beer-hunting traveler's journeys through the area.”  Here the traveling group will enjoy Leonard’s work and a creative assortment of crostini from the kitchen.

The TOURS next head across town to the city’s thriving Northern Liberties neighborhood, to THE STANDARD TAP, a stunning restoration of the historic Bull’s Head Tavern, opened by former Samuel Adams Brewhouse brewer William Reed, and chef/partner Paul Kimport. "Standard Tap is at the heart of fresh, local beer," says Bryson. "That's where you'll find the classically-styled beers of Sly Fox, the weird and wonderful Dogfish Head ales, and the wham-bam combination of Troegs' Hopback Amber and Troegenator Doublebock. And there's so much more, like the acclaimed beers of Victory and the sledgehammer impact of the all big-beer lineup from Heavyweight Brewing from New Jersey." Platters of fried smelts and other tapas will accompany selections from the draft-only beer menu. (Standard Tap is pouring the Yards Golden Age of Philadelphia Pale Ale.)

Next comes a visit and tasting at the YARDS BREWERY in Kensington, where brewer Tom Kehoe will escort attendees through the company’s new headquarters, fashioned from a building that once housed a brewery at the turn of the 20^th century. Tastings of the brewery’s English and Belgian style ales served up by Kehoe will be a special highlight for the beer aficionados in attendance. And you might even get partner Bill Barton to tap a tank for you, like these lucky Tour attendees did last year! (Yards is pouring the Yards Golden Age of Philadelphia Pale Ale...duh!)

From there, the TOURS travel to the city’s northeast, to the cult-favorite GREY LODGE PUBLIC HOUSE, tucked into a nondescript working-class neighborhood, and one of the city’s most clever beer emporiums, with a huge selection of local and imported beers, beer-friendly food---“tomato pies”, chicken quesadillas and hand-cut French fries -- and a cool, retro atmosphere that makes this stop unlike any tavern in the city, and perennial favorite among TOUR attendees. "This bar is different, and you can tell the moment you enter, "says Bryson, "but a lot of effort goes into the GREY LODGE, and the beer selection is full of surprises, like the funky wild things we see from Brewer's Art in Baltimore, and heavy-duty kegs from Weyerbacher in Easton, PA, and Heavyweight in New Jersey. The beer is all happening here, baby!"  (The Grey Lodge is pouring the Yards Golden Age of Philadelphia Pale Ale.)

The finale of each of the TOURS takes place at the INDEPENDENCE BREWPUB AT READING TERMINAL, where chef  Greg Lund and head brewer Tim Roberts will collaborate on an amazing, 3-course Beer Dinner, featuring dishes like petite filet mignon with a roasted shallot demi-glace, paired with brewery’s Extra Special Bitter; grilled salmon with lemon-dill crème fraiche, matched with their India Pale Ale; penne primavera served with Independence Red Ale; and a warm bundt sundae accompanied by Roberts’ signature Oatmeal Stout.  “Drink it where it's made, too,” says Bryson, “when we sit down to dinner and let the fast pace of the day dissolve in a glass of Tim Roberts' dark, delicious Oatmeal Stout, it’s the day’s ultimate reward.”

Bryson, who is the Managing Editor for Malt Advocate magazine, and beer and spirits columnist for Ale Street News and Beverage Business, puts Philadelphia’s beer culture in a national context:  “The same restrictive laws that make Philadelphia a ho-hum place for a wine lover paradoxically make it a paradise for a person who is open to the variety of beer, “says Bryson. “The breweries around Philadelphia win more medals than any other area in the East, and our imported beer scene is second to none in the world. If you want it, we got it...and we got it good.”

“And Rich and I haven't done badly either, “adds Bryson. “These Tours sells out faster than ever, bars beg to be on the tour, and we even have our own commemorative beer this year, a special version of Yards Philadelphia Pale Ale, made just for stops on the Tours. Now that's appropriate.”

GET ON BOARD -- CONTACT: Richard Pawlak, 609) 406-1432, ESTERRICK@aol.com

In Philadelphia from March 17 through March 26, 2006, KitchenAid's The Book and The Cook will match nationally and internationally known cookbook authors and food and wine personalities with Philadelphia’s finest chefs and restaurants. KitchenAid's The Book and The Cook Culinary Market and Showcase will take place at the Fort Washington Expo Center on March 24, 25 and 26, with more than 125 exhibit booths featuring gourmet foods and kitchenware; other highlights include cooking demonstrations, cookbook sales and signings.  For details visit www.thebookandthecook.com.