Pizza, Pizza
Party with pies this weekend and make plans for your next beer trip to Philly
There will be gratuitous references to pizza throughout this newsletter, because I’ve got pizza on my mind… mainly because this Saturday is Kills Boro Brewing Co.’s annual Pizza Party at the Snug Harbor Cultural Center on Staten Island. The celebration of beer and pizza, now in its fourth year, features 25 breweries from across the region like New Jersey’s Icarus and Twin Elephant and New York’s Other Half and Cantina Cantina, and slices from a half-dozen pizzerias, including a true Staten Island classic in Lee’s Tavern. The four-hour outdoor event, starting at noon, is sure to please your tummy and quench your thirst, as I can attest to from past years.
Tickets are still available. The beautiful venue is a quick 15-minute bus ride from the Staten Island Ferry terminal, and Saturday is shaping up to be tolerably warm, rather than oppressively hot. Why not venture over to Staten Island?
A Brief Philadelphia Brewery Guide
My series of guides to breweries in cities around the world has brought us to the City of Brotherly Love, the Cradle of Liberty, the Sixth Borough… Philadelphia. I’ve spent a lot of time here in the past year, and its beer scene always finds new ways to impress. Given that it’s just an hour and change by train from the Big Apple, it’s long overdue that I dig in. While Philly has offered some very excellent beer bars for years (Monk’s Cafe, Khyber Pass, Strangelove’s, South Philly Taproom, and two outposts of Barcade, just to name a few), the brewery scene has seen some explosive growth in the past five years even as other cities have stagnated. Here’s what you’ve been missing if you haven’t been in a while…
For more Brief Brewery Guides, you can see what I’ve done for Chicago, Richmond, Seattle, London, Denver, and Portland, Maine. And if there’s another city you’d like to see featured here, let me know in the comments!
The One for the Lager Louts: Human Robot
If you haven’t heard of Human Robot by this point and you’re a fan of lager beers, then you’ve probably been living under a rock for the past few years. They’ve become one of the most beloved lager makers on the East Coast, hosting an epic all-lager festival every June, and they’ve since expanded from their original location in Kensington to have multiple satellite locations, including one near 30th Street Station and one in South Philly. Czech Pils, German Helles, Mexican Lager… nothing is off limits, and they do make their fair share of non-lagers, too.
The Mixed-Ferm Fave: Fermentery Form
Off the beaten path, hidden in a courtyard, but worth the trek, Fermentery Form is what you might call an urban farmhouse brewery, making mixed-fermentation beers on their Solera system, aging on oak and constantly experimenting with blending. The result is truly unique liquids that are highly sought-after in Philly. The space is not regularly open to the public, but open days are announced regularly on social media and they’re very much worth waiting for.
The New Hotness: Carbon Copy
Less than two years in, Carbon Copy has already made a name for itself in the Philly beer scene. Two former Tired Hands staffers took over a former brewpub in a firehouse in West Philly, and have turned it into something truly special. Stylistically, the brewery is all over the map, making classic European styles, modern American beer, and new twists with unique ingredients, often inspired by collaborative efforts with breweries you’ve probably heard of, like Hudson Valley, Other Half, and Narragansett. They’ve also got some great pizza, including some equally eclectic spins on classics like a samosa-inspired pie, in their taproom to pair with those beers.
The Rising Star: Sacred Vice Brewing
I visited Sacred Vice’s taproom on Berks Street shortly after it opened this Spring, and it’s been on my Philly recommendation list ever since. I was charmed from the second I walked in. The decor is very much mid-century modern, with a wall of vinyl behind the bar and a record player spinning the bartenders’ records of choice. The design is clean and very much intentional — and it seems in keeping with the beer list, which on my first visit included a restrained Pale Ale, a Pub Ale, a Cream Ale, and a Brown Ale — simple, straightforward, beer-flavored beer.
The Lively Taproom: Love City Brewing
I first visited Love City mere weeks after they opened, and I could tell right away that they were trying to create a fun, welcoming environment for drinking beer in a space that was once an old railroad parts factory. The constant lineup of events like concerts, bingo, and drink-and-draws keeps locals coming back. The draw for visitors, though, might be the fact that they’re making great beer, from a easy-drinking house American Lager to a tropical Hazy IPA. On summer days, enjoy a Lime City Lager (their house lager with lime and sea salt) and sit in their spacious garden.
The One Worth the Trip: Wissahickon Brewing Company
Hard to say and hard to get to, but definitely worth the trip. Wissahickon is tucked away in its namesake neighborhood in Northwest Philly, but its cavernous space and great beer makes it a destination that’s hard to skip. The brewery is probably best known for their fruited sours, but don’t sleep on the award-winning Devil’s Pool DIPA, a Citra and Simcoe-hopped masterpiece. Good news, though — they’re working on opening a new outpost in Kensington later this year, bringing their beer much closer to Center City.
The Old Guard of Philly Craft: Yards Brewing
Yards Brewing, arguably Philly’s most successful craft brewer, was among the pioneers of modern beer in the city, opening in 1994. As Yards marks it’s 30th anniversary, its appreciation for classic beer styles has remained steadfast. Among their flagships are the all-Simcoe hopped Philadelphia Pale Ale and an English Mild called Brawler — beers that have been around so long that the cycle of beer has made them cool again. Their sprawling Northern Liberties taproom is a place to experience the roots of Philly craft beer. Go Fridays to experience their weekly Firkin tapping.
The Even Older Guard: Philadelphia Brewing Company
I love it when an old brewery gets repurposed as a new brewery. When new owners renovated the 1880s-era Weisbrod & Hess Brewery at the turn of the 21st century, it was only appropriate that a brewery go into a space that had been dormant for decades. The beers made here today often harken back to the German-inspired beers that a slew of breweries in Philadelphia made back at the end of the 19th century. You can drink them at the taproom here, or better yet, take a free tour on the third Saturday of the month to explore the massive space that first made beer nearly 140 years ago. Go for the history, stay for the beer.
Honorable Mentions: Two Locals Brewing, which just opened in March, is Philly’s first Black-owned brewery and really impressed me on my first visit — I’m excited for what’s to come. Dock Street is Philly’s oldest craft brewer, dating back to 1985, and they’re still making modern beer and wood-fired pizza at their South Philly location (with a satellite location in Fishtown). If you find yourself in South Philly, you should also pop into the pint-sized Brewery ARS and have a couple beers in a humble garage on Passayunk Avenue. If you’re feeling homesick or aren’t from the Northeast, Other Half’s Philly brewery is a roomy spot full of exactly what you’d expect from the region’s hazebro darling.
Brewery Tracker
Total brewery count: 3,447
Total breweries visited in 2024: 163
Total breweries visited in California: 279
Brewery Visit of the Week
Brewery #267, Pizza Port Ocean Beach, San Diego, California (Visited 5-Dec-2014)
While we’re on the subject of pizza, let’s talk about an icon of beer and pizza, and the very first brewery I ever visited in San Diego. In fact, my dad and I took our rental car straight from the airport to Pizza Port OB, and it’s hard to think of a more appropriate way to dive into the culture of San Diego and its beer even now. Ocean Beach is a little less gritty than it was ten years ago, but Pizza Port is still a must-stop on each trip. The Mongo DIPA was the first beer I had here, back when West Coast IPA was on top of the world, and it’s still on my DIPA Mount Rushmore. The chill vibe at this brewpub instantly puts me in vacation mode every time.
The Weekly Reader
Efforts to promote a sustainable African grain started with a phone call between Garrett Oliver and Questlove [Grace Lee-Weitz, Hop Culture]
What’s driving brewery closures in New Jersey? [Gabriela Laracca, Asbury Park Press]
Thoughts on two major changes afoot in the beer industry [Jeff Alworth, Beervana]
Another reminder that brewing is a dangerous business [John Holl, All About Beer]
One Last Thing
This weekend, I’ll be working on visiting breweries in some more uncharted (to me) parts of California. The Golden State has over a thousand breweries, and I’ve barely been to a fifth of them. And to give you an idea of how rife the state is with beer-makers, here’s a map of a rather unremarkable 30-mile stretch of the San Gabriel Valley and Inland Empire. Each green flag marker on the map indicates a brewery I haven’t visited:
I’ve got my work cut out for me.
Cheers,
Chris