Hop on the Bus

NYC’s Pride beers and a responsible beer fest

Long-time readers of this newsletter might recall the vent session I had about transit-accessible beer festivals back in 2024. Put plainly: it’s downright irresponsible to host a beer festival at a venue where the only option is to drive and expect that every attendee will be responsible enough to leave the event and get back behind the wheel of a car. And in the New York City area, it’s particularly egregious to do this when public transit is plentiful and potential attendees might not even own cars to begin with.

I assumed that would be the case for Logjammin’ VI, the lager festival being held this Saturday at Wayward Lane Brewing in Schoharie, which is about a 45-minute drive from Albany. Its remoteness suggested I’d be out of luck finding ways to get there, but lo and behold, in the “Getting There” section of the site: they’re offering shuttle bus rides from two locations (Fidens in Albany and Mohawk Taproom near Schenectady) to and from the festival. They’re smartly even offering staggered departure times to let people stick around the brewery afterwards for food and post-fest beers. I’m sad that this seems like a novel concept, but I’m also thrilled, because I probably wouldn’t have been motivated to attend otherwise.

As for the festival itself, it’s the sixth edition of a lager tradition started by Philadelphia’s Human Robot. I haven’t missed Logjammin’ since 2022, and passing the torch to Wayward Lane is a fun way to keep the event interesting. Tickets are still available if you’re looking for last-minute weekend plans. See you on the bus!

The Pride Beers are Here!

It’s Pride Month, and for the past few years in New York City, that’s meant breweries releasing beers to mark the occasion. In all, more than a dozen of the city’s breweries are making beers for Pride this year, and here’s just a few of the beers you’ll find in our breweries’ taprooms this month…

Fifth Hammer Ask for Dorothy: This LIC brewery has brought back a Pride Month favorite again this year. This Kolsch-style Ale is crisp and refreshing and for a good cause: the beer supports The Okra Project, an organization that supports the Black Trans community.

Randolph Beer Pride Punch: This year-round fruited sour from the Brooklyn brewpub is a chance to taste the rainbow: pineapple, raspberry, passion fruit, mango, tangerine, strawberry, cherry, lime, blueberry and guava. Conveniently, June might be the best time to sip on a beer like this.

Rockaway Brewing Squish: Squish is yet another beer as colorful as Pride itself — a fruited sour with guava, tangerine, and passion fruit. It’s available in their Long Island City taproom all Pride Month long.

KCBC Super Duper Superheroes: Back again this year, a double dry-hopped version of KCBC’s Superhero Sidekicks IPA brewed exclusively for Pride Month. Proceeds from this beer will benefit The Center, a long-standing community center for LGBTQ+ New Yorkers. The beer is available now at the KCBC taproom.

Brooklyn Brewery Stonewall Inn IPA: Last, but certainly not least… what’s more Pride than the beer named after a New York City icon? This Session IPA, which supports the Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative, is easy to find around the city, but having it at the landmarked West Village bar it shares its name with might be the most appropriate time and place to enjoy it.

Upcoming Beer Events of Note

• Long Island: South Shore Craft Brewery Beer Fest, Saturday 6/6 from 1-5pm, tickets start at $60

• Brooklyn: Farm-to-Pint Panel at Strong Rope Brewery, Tuesday 6/9 at 6:30pm, tickets $5

• Bronx: Brew at the Zoo at Bronx Zoo, Friday 6/12 from 6-11pm, tickets start at $94.99

• Manhattan: Curds & Hops Cheese & Beer Tasting at Murray’s Cheese, Friday 6/19 from 6:30-8pm, tickets $110

• Brooklyn: Green City at Other Half Brewing Gowanus, Saturday 6/20 from noon-4pm, tickets start at $85

• Staten Island: Kills Boro Pizza Party at Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Garden, Saturday 7/25 from noon-4pm, tickets start at $72

Brewery Tracker

Total brewery count: 4,000
Total breweries visited in 2026: 77
Total breweries visited in Pennsylvania: 109

Brewery Visit of the Week

Brewery #4000, Troegs Independent Brewing, Hershey, Pennsylvania (Visited 30-May-2026)

I finally cracked 4,000 breweries this weekend with a place that I should’ve visited a long time ago. Troegs was one of the breweries that opened my eyes to beer, and two beers in particular — Nugget Nectar and Mad Elf — were life-changing and helped redefine beer for me. Ironically, I didn’t have either on my visit there (Nugget Nectar is out of season and I couldn’t bring myself to have a 15% ABV barrel-aged version of Mad Elf). But I still had a great time visiting.

The space was boisterous on a Saturday afternoon, both inside and out, with a graffiti art demonstration in the parking lot, a tent selling their PA Lager outside, and local vendors selling their wares. Inside, long communal tables made it easy to make new friends, and the self-guided tour was a nice place to explore the production space with a beer in hand. While it felt big and polished, Troegs’ taproom still has tons of character and is just as casual and un-intimidating as you’d expect for a brand that has become a staple in fridges across Pennsylvania.

I was delighted to have this be my 4,000th brewery — and I promise I won’t wait more than a decade to visit again.

Also, a shout out to my friends Mike, Deuane, and Carolyn who all helped me celebrate this milestone (and more importantly, get to and from Hershey safely)!

The Doom and Gloom Tracker

At least 2 breweries I’ve visited closed or announced their closure in the past week:

• Brewery #3737, Queer Brewing, London, England [Visited 5-May-2025]

• Brewery #3762, Mordecai Beverage Co., Raleigh, North Carolina [Visited 1-Jun-2025]

The Weekly Reader

• TALEA partners with NYPL on an historical beer [Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian]

• A snapshot of the state of the beer industry from Minnesota [Matthew Alvarez, MPR]

• A primer on banana in beer [Josh Bernstein, Craftbeer.com]

• More ways breweries are getting in on the World Cup [Evan Rail, VinePair]

One Last Thing

Hope you all enjoy some beer this weekend. Thanks for reading, thanks for your feedback, and thanks for your support!

Cheers,
Chris