Lot 13 Blog

What’s Brewing?

October 27, 2010

Looking for an “extraarghdinary” beer experience? Then look no further than Clipper City Brewing Company’s fleet of Heavy Seas Beers (www.hsbeer.com). While this brewery is small in size, it’s anything but small in terms of quality and taste. The Lot 13 staff and family traveled to Baltimore recently and took in a tour of the brewery…and of course enjoyed some beer samples!

On Saturdays between 12:30pm-5pm, a beer lover can get a tour of the facility and receive a Heavy Seas pint glass (yours to keep)…filled with 5 drink tokens – all for a measly $5. The tour is about 30 minutes in duration, and yes, you can bring your beer sample with you on your journey. You can learn all about the production and bottling processes as well as some of the different styles of beer that are made on-site. Tours must be reserved in advanced, so what are you waiting for? (www.hsbeer.com/events/brewery-tours)

But certainly the highlight of the experience is carefully choosing how you want to divide your ration of 5 drink tokens (each good for a 5-oz. sample) among the 6 beers typically kept on tap. You are able to sample beers upon arrival before and after the tour. Heavy Seas divides its beers into 3 separate categories: Clipper Fleet, Pyrate Fleet and Mutiny Fleet. The Clipper Fleet has lower alcohol contents and highly drinkable session beers that are available year-round, including the multiple award-winning Marzen. This is the style of beer used for Oktoberfest beers so you can celebrate Oktoberfest every month of the year! The Pyrate Fleet is a more robust line of bottle conditioned beers, typically in the 7-8% ABV range, and includes their most popular brew, Loose Cannon IPA. The final fleet is the Mutiny Fleet, which showcases Heavy Seas’ biggest and boldest beers of unusual styles (ABV in excess of 8%). These brews can blow you off course in a hurry if not consumed wisely…just read for yourself! (www.hsbeer.com/beers/mutiny-fleet)

We highly recommend that the next time you’re in Baltimore you stop by Clipper City Brewing for a tour and tasting. If you can’t make it to the brewery, look for any of their varieties at your local beer retailer or bar establishment…you won’t be disappointed!

Café 210 West

210 West College Avenue

Café 210 is a Penn State tradition.  While the tree-lined streets of West College Avenue have seen many of its surrounding establishments turnover from one business to the next, Café 210 and its patron-filled patio is a constant in Happy Valley.

The Café continues serving up great food and cheap drinks during their happy hour, especially on Fridays from 6:00-8:00pm, featuring $5.50 Yuengling pitchers, $5.00 Miller Lite pitchers and skillet fries.  For those of you visiting Happy Valley or The Café itself for the first time, sampling a Café Classic is a must.

In 1983 Café 210 introduced their first Café Tea.  In 1991 they enhanced their traditional tea with new flavors like blueberry, watermelon, strawberry, mango, peach, and the crowd favorite Long Island.  Since then, the Café has served up over a half a million teas to patrons who keep coming back for more.

In addition, the Café has also put a lot of thought and effort into compiling a menu that has a little bit of everything without compromising on quality ingredients.  Wraps, wings, grinders and soups are just a few of the items that will hit the spot while listening to the sounds of the local nightly entertainment.

You can hear the sounds of the J.R., James and Natalie, a true State College collaboration, every Friday (6:00-8:00pm) and Saturday (10:30pm), but a word to the wise…get there early.  J.R. and Natalie have built up quite the cult following within the city limits.

J.R. Mangan, guitarist/singer, has been a part of the State College music scene for over 22 years.  He is accompanied by Natalie Berrena, the latest vocalist in a long line of talented ladies gracing the State College stages.  Also joining J.R. and Natalie are guitarist Mark Toci, James Miller playing bass, and Dana Hawk beating the drums.  This group is one that shouldn’t be missed.

But don’t plan on getting to the Café too late, tables on the patio fill up extremely early, especially on a football weekend with alumni kicking back and students cutting afternoon classes to start the weekend celebration early.  Don’t be afraid to make your way through the multi-level restaurant and to the bar yourself, sometimes that gets you served faster than waiting at your table patiently as you watch other people sip their drinks.

Many don’t know it, but Cafe 210 has a small back patio with a backyard feel.  It is spacious enough to seat about 50 of your closest friends and is shaded from the last bits of afternoon sun by a large maple tree.

This week’s edition of What’s Brewing? is a little different than past posts.  Askmen.com has compiled a list of the Top 10 Beer Producing Nations and we want to know your favorite.  This isn’t a poll of your favorite country, but rather a discussion about which country produces the best beer!

Do you prefer Ireland’s Guinness, a light beer from Mexico, or maybe one of the many microbrews in the United States?  Have you been to one of these countries and taken some beer-centered tours?  We want to hear your thoughts!

Before you comment on your favorite beers, check out this compilation of beer commercials from around the world:

The Darkhorse Tavern

128 E. College Ave., State College, PA 16801

http://www.darkhorsetavern.com/

In order to completely immerse yourself in the Nittany Nation, it is essential to designate a night to partaking in the debauchery that fills the bar-lined streets of Happy Valley.  I myself used to prefer Friday nights, but with age, one realizes that they can’t wake up quite as lively as they used to for the 6 o’clock in the morning tailgating wake-up call.

With more than twenty local watering holes, downtown State College offers a wide variety of pubs, clubs and musical venues all serving up a mix of beer, wine, and local specialties, making your choices for a place to continue the celebration after the game somewhat endless.

Enter the Darkhorse Tavern.  Located prominently on East College Avenue with an alternative entrance most natives know on Calder Way, the Darkhorse is most famously known for its signature drink, Tonto’s Demise.  This $7.50 drink is worth every penny, it packs a punch…and frankly, that’s what it is most commonly compared to, fruit punch.

The story I’ve been told stems from the Darkhorse’s dishwasher whose nickname was “Tonto”.  One evening he was sampling some new drinks the bartender was experimenting with, and one in particular sent Tonto over the edge of sobriety and into the land of inebriation.  It’s left to speculation how many drinks Tonto had that night, but when he ended his evening that night by receiving a citation for public drunkenness, he met his demise. That was just the start of the effects Tonto’s Demise would have on the sleepy town of State College.

On any given night you’ll find the brick-lined walls inside the Darkhorse crowded with college students, locals, and alumni listening to music from acts like Spider Kelly playing a mix of songs from the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s.  The bar lined with cups, pre-iced and ready for their next victim, as the bartenders pour your sweet and tangy demise.  The precise ingredients are still unknown, however we do know a few liquors, fruit juice, and grenadine are the masterminds in the Darkhorse’s famous concoction.

Now the key to enjoying this drink is to just have one…okay, maybe two, but no matter how good it tastes or how warm and fuzzy you feel, don’t go for a third or fourth.  After four, the body gives in and you’ll find yourself wandering through State College, dancing on street corners, talking shop to the guys who park their supped up cars on College Avenue, and possibly making a cameo at an underage apartment party where you proceed to take off your clothes to the song Pour Some Sugar On Me.  Instead, try some of Otto’s delicious microbrews which compliment the Darkhorse’s amazing pazzo’s wings (which are worth a visit to the bar) instead, sparring yourself the paralyzing headache and appearance in the police blotter the next day.

The third edition of What’s Brewing is all about the specials.  Why?  It is the end of the summer seasonal brews and the local State College distributors want to empty their shelves!  Below are some of the specials that you can find at Nittany Beverage and W.R. Hickey:

Nittany Beverage
WOODCHUCK SUMMER $19.95

For the summer of 2010, Woodchuck released a Limited Release Summer Cider.  Hand-crafted using century old farmhouse cider techniques, Woodchuck Summer Cider exhibits a slight tartness and begins with a full, robust flavor, followed by the rich, reminiscent taste of New England blueberries. In addition to pairing with favorites such as cheese, Woodchuck Summer Cider is a treat paired withcheesecake, fruits, and event chocolate.

SARANAC 12 BEERS OF SUMMER $19.95

Saranac Amber Wheat-NEW!
Saranac Pale Pale Ale-NEW!
Saranac Summer Ale
Saranac Pomegranate Wheat

.

W.R. Hickey

Beach Bum Blonde Ale $14.95 + tax for 24/12oz bottles

Beach Bum Blonde Ale is a traditional American blonde ale with a slightly spicy hop note and balanced malty flavor.

Ingredients/Brewing: Beach Bum Blonde Ale is brewed with Cascade hops from the Pacific Northwest and Alsace and Hallertau hops from southern Germany. This blonde ale draws its deep golden color from the caramel malt.

Beach Bum Blonde Ale won a bronze medal in the
blonde ale category at the 2006 North American Beer Awards.

Not interested in a summer beer?  How about Budweiser or Bud Lite?  30 packs of cans of each can be purchased for $20.89 OR if you’re a Steelers fan, why not get the 24 12oz bottles for $19.90 and a free Steelers t-shirt?

Enjoy the game!

The Lot 13 Staff

What’s Brewing?

This weekend’s much-anticipated Penn State-Alabama matchup stirs memories of coaches past and present. While one is known for his houndstooth hat and his rolled-up game plan, and the other for his rolled-up pant legs, both Paul William “Bear” Bryant and Joe Paterno are widely regarded as legends of college football.

As a tribute to Saturday night’s contest and two programs shaped by legendary leaders, this week’s column focuses on “legendary beers” – those whose identities are rooted in legend, myth, and history.

Here are a few:

• Titan IPA by Great Divide Brewing in Denver, Colorado – this beer is a very solid India Pale Ale with a fairly strong hop aroma, and at 7.1% ABV you could certainly consider this beer “assertive” as is printed on the bottle.
• Victory Brewing Company’s St. Victorious, made in Downingtown, Pennsylvania – this doppelbock is quite hearty and will keep you warm in the cold winter months (or an unseasonably cold and windy day in Happy Valley such as last week), which is why it is only available December through January. A Pennsylvania beer with the word “victorious” in the name….perhaps a fortuitous sign for the Nittany Lions of things to come this weekend???
• Landshark Lager – this Margaritaville Brewing Company beer is brought to you by legend Jimmy Buffett. We’d put this in the same party class as Corona Light…not bad for a beer to pound throughout a sun-soaked afternoon tailgate. And for about $26 a case at W.R.Hickey’s it’ll save you around $4 over Corona.
• And finally, Legend Brewing Company. Based in Richmond, Virginia, this operation is Central Virginia’s oldest and largest microbrewery. Try Legend for a taste of lager, brown ale, pilsner, porter, golden ale, seasonal brews, and pale ale.  In fact, a member of Lot13Blog’s staff will be watching the PSU-Alabama game on Saturday from a sports bar in Richmond as he passes through town that evening.

Until next week,

WE ARE!