I’ve been thinking about this tweet from December a lot lately. Yesterday, I got my Covid-19 booster, which means I’m thirteen days away from having the full protection the vaccine offers, and fourteen days away from cementing plans to have that flight of lackluster beers on a brewpub patio late this Spring.
This brings up a question I get asked a lot: how many breweries that I visit are serving beer that is, indeed, lackluster at best? Plenty.
But lackluster beer doesn’t make a brewery visit underwhelming. In a conversation I had last week with a friend, I noted that for a brewery visit to be enjoyable for me, it has to have two of these three things: good beer, good atmosphere, and good service. If it has all three, great! But if the brewery has a good vibe and the service is friendly and helpful, I’m willing to forgive lackluster beer. If the beer is good, but everything else about the experience is disappointing, then it’s not a place I’m going to go out of my way to visit again (a lot of the “hype beast” breweries I’ve visited tend to fall into this camp, unfortunately, mainly because the staff is overwhelmed and the atmosphere ruined by the crowds who are drawn to these places).
Anyway, cheers to the lackluster beers in my future. Those aren’t tears of disappointment; they’re tears of joy in knowing I can be disappointed again.
Indoor dining in NYC expands to 50% capacity on Friday
New York City’s haphazard stumble back from its mid-winter indoor dining shutdown continues on Friday as the state allows restaurants in the five boroughs to expand to 50% of capacity — the level they were last at during the weekend prior to the full shutdown of dining in March of 2020. On the same day, indoor dining capacity in the rest of the state will grow to 90%, even in the counties that have higher Covid-19 case rates than New York City, because absolutely none of this has ever made sense.
While capacity restrictions have eased, the State Liquor Authority has made no policy changes regarding most of the rules that were imposed during the pandemic, and have not signaled at what point these restrictions, which have never been backed up by the state with any proof that they prevent the spread of the virus, would be lifted. Among them:
All venues must close to patrons at 11pm
Substantial food must be served with the first order of an alcoholic beverage
Walk-up ordering of alcoholic beverages is not permitted
Patrons may not be seated at bars in New York City
Bafflingly, Governor Cuomo announced yesterday that casinos, bowling alleys, and pool halls would have their 11pm curfews lifted on April 5th, but said the curfew for restaurants and bars would remain in place. If you’re wondering how shooting pool at 2am is as safe as at 10pm but eating in a diner is not, don’t worry. The state will be providing scientific evidence that supports this policy on the next snowy day in July.
Adding to the frustration, the State Liquor Authority has been extending its policy on allowing delivery and takeout of alcoholic beverages in fits and starts. This week, the policy was extended to March 28th — the shortest extension in recent memory, after extensions from November 3rd to December 3rd, then to January 1st, then to January 29th, then to February 26th, and then to March 16th. Meanwhile, the restaurant lobby in New York is pushing to make this rule change permanent.
One other new development: New York’s Department of Health is working on guidance for live events to resume on April 2nd. This would end the ban on live performances that are not “incidental music” at bars and restaurants.
Meanwhile, nearly 25,000 new cases of Covid-19 have been diagnosed in the past seven days in New York City. Wear a mask, get tested, and stay safe.
Coney Island Brewery launches Hops for Hospitality program
There’s more drinking for a good cause afoot. Coney Island Brewery has launched a program called Hops for Hospitality to raise money for the NYC Hospitality Alliance, a non-profit that supports and advocates for the restaurant and nightlife industry in the five boroughs. The program is quite simply: at locations throughout New York from March through May, $1 from every can, draft, 6-pack, or 12-pack will go to the organization.
Among these locations are the brewery taproom itself under MCU Park, Rivercrest in Astoria, The Bronx Beer Hall in Belmont, and The Lodge at Bryant Park. There’s a full list of locations for easy reference.
Beer Events on the Calendar
As things inch toward normalcy here in the city, I’ll highlight some beer events on the Brew York Event Calendar. There are just two this week (and none so far next week — if you have an event to announce, get at me through this form):
Thursday, March 18th at 7pm, Flagship Brewing Co. on Staten Island hosts a socially-distanced beer course focusing on Italian Pilsners (and their new Birra Locale), hosted by head brewer Doug Williams. The ticketed event is $45, which includes the class, tasting, and a four-pack of beer to take home.
Saturday, March 20th is a day to celebrate the legendary Belgian Trappist Ale Orval. Orval Day celebrations will take place at Fourth Avenue Pub in Brooklyn and sister bar Third Avenue Ale House on the Upper East Side. All day long, Merchant Du Vin, Orval’s importer in the US, will make a charitable donation based on US sales of Orval — this year, it’s dedicated to food banks across the country.
Brewery Tracker
Total brewery count: 2,105
New breweries in 2021: 31
Breweries visited in Michigan: 76
Breweries visited in Michigan in August 2020: 45
Brewery Visit of the Week
Brewery #1998, Barrel + Beam, Marquette, Michigan (Visited 15-Aug-2020)
Every now and then, there’s a brewery I visit that I’ve never heard of that completely blows me away. Last summer, among the forty-five I visited while spending nearly a month in Michigan, Barrel + Beam was that brewery. Perhaps I just got bad advice from everyone who I asked about beer on the Upper Peninsula, but they seemed to be under the radar, as I had the entire outdoor space to myself on my first visit.
I say “first visit,” because I went back three times over the course of three days in Marquette because the beer was that good. Barrel + Beam is a farmhouse brewery that focuses on Michigan-sourced ingredients and barrel-aged beer. All of the beers I tried over my visits were served out of the bottle, since most are bottle-conditioned, and all of them were spectacular. The Sahti was a lovely Michigan spin on the Finnish beer style, with locally-sourced juniper and rye. The Golden Partager was a strong Saison fermented on brettanomyces and carbonated naturally in the bottle with beet sugar. The Blanc Du Nord was a lovely, traditional Belgian Witbier. And the Saison Terre A Terre was a gold-standard, straightforward, funky Saison.
Adding to the delicious beers was the lovely space, both inside and out, with beer barrels in the brewing space on display and a warming interior that’s probably ideal for those brutal UP winters:
Okay, okay, that might be bordering on a little too twee. But definitely try their beers if you’re passing through Marquette.
Beer of the Week
Alefredo
Interboro Spirits & Ales (Brooklyn, NY)
IPA
6.5% ABV
An IPA is the Beer of the Week! Imagine that! Look, with such a crowded market, it’s often hard for me to find a beer in this style that stands out in some way. And maybe it was the fact that I had it on one of the first sunny, warm afternoons of the year that helped make it more memorable. But I just really enjoyed the flavor profile on this one: loads of pineapple and coconut that made me feel like I was on a tropical vacation sitting outside on Grand Street. I’m thrilled when I find a beer that tastes like this without any adjuncts — it’s just the Sabro, Citra, Mosaic, and Bru-1 hops all pulling their weight.
Long Read of the Week
For an interesting snapshot on how one local brewery has dealt with the past year of the pandemic, here’s a blog entry on Torch & Crown Brewing Co.’s website. The brewery was in the midst of trying to open its Manhattan facility while all of the madness went down, and they quickly pivoted to beer deliveries just days after lockdown started. A year ago this week, T&C’s Marketing Director, Chris McClellan, rushed over from Manhattan to Bushwick with a couple four-packs that I ordered online. It was the first of many beer delivery orders I would make in the ensuing weeks and months.
One More Thing
Hey, I’ve got a question for you for a future issue: what’s the beer that a brewery has retired that you miss the most? Share it in the comments!
I can’t wait until the restriction is lifted and I’m not force fed food! Sometimes you just want a beer.