The first Philly Oktoberfest yesterday clearly did not draw the crowd–not nearly the crowd–that the organizers had hoped it would. A lot of that, I suspect, had to do with starting late and then holding it on a weekend when there were considerable beer events of various sorts already scheduled. I hope they don’t get discouraged because I like the concept and the venue.
I arrived at the 23rd St. Armory right before noon, when the doors opened for the VIP session and found most of the Usual Suspects gathered by the Monk’s table where four rare German beers from the Shelton Brothers were being poured.
These were supposed to be a special treat at the event and I carefully wrote down the names of each and every one and now cannot read my own notes (George Hummel’s plan was to find them on the Shelton Brothers website…well, good luck with that). None of the four were particularly impressive, actually, and the first, a Red/Blonde Lager was kinda nasty. There was a Klosterbier (cloister beer, one produced originally in a monastery or convent), a Keller Lager (best of the bunch) and a Helles Landbier (country beer).
I only stayed a couple of hours, leaving around 2pm to catch the train back home and watch the Phillies wrap up the National league East pennant in a real nail-biter of a game on the tube (switching back and forth to watch my alma mater upset #1 Richmond in a game at Villanova), and, I’ve already said, my notes are pretty much unreadable. I usually depend on a small recorder to take my notes and I forgot to bring it along. Given how badly I scribble these days, I really need to learn to print carefully, letter by letter, when reduced to that as my only record.
So I am left with my memory, or left with what’s left of it, and two things do jump out.
First of all, I had my first ever beer from the new Roy Pitz Brewing Company of Chambersburg and an interesting beer it was, Ichabod’s Midnight Ride, a 6% Belgian style Pumpkin ale. Interesting idea, but I really didn’t get much of the Belgian yeast character in my small sample and itt’s a beer I’d like to try again, under more favorable conditions. I have a feeling I could fall in love.
The real high spot for me, though, was the Yards ESA, the first batch from the new brewery, which was just kegged this past week and should be coming to a watering hole near you soon (I know Dawson Street Pub will have one of the first kegs). This was, after too long a wait, the real deal and It took me back to 1995 when craft brewing hereabouts was bright and shiny and new (not as much as a cask version would have, but that wasn’t an option).
Thus inspired, I walked to the other end of the outside beer pouring region and had my first draught of Lord Chesterfield Ale in years (Yuengling’s fault, not mine and i certainly hope this will again be on in the refrigerator at Standard Tap), which took me back to 1980 or so when it was one of the secret delights of my beer drinking world.
I guess I could add that the Spaten and Hacker-Pschorr Okotberfests took me back another 600 years or so, but that would be pushing the envelope.
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Jack, damn it, I kept waiting for you to come over to my table and say Hi..(the last table on the left side, was pouring bottles of Lammsbrau Organic Pilsner & Dunkel Lager, and Schewlmer Bernstein)..I was directly diagonal from where you were gabbing with Tom Kehoe and some red-headed guy for like an hour. I had to go put more money in my meter and by the time I came back, Guyer reported you left out already!
This is twice now that I have seen you at recent events and you only talk to 2 or 3 people then perform your disappearing act…Bryan Kolesar is right..your nickname should be Whodini…Lol
Steve Mashington is going to be crushed to be described as “some red-headed guy,” I suspect. Fame is so damned fleeting.
When I finished talked to him and Tom, I went, as I wrote, down to the other end of that side of the space to get me me some Lord Chesterfield and stayed there a drank for a bit. I never did get very far up the lineup of tables where you were at the end, I guess, getting sidetracked when someone told me a new batch of ESA was pouring. Going for it strikes me as sound, logical reasoning so no regrets even though I would like to have tried the beers you mention.
I was at the event for two hours overall and, as it turns out, happened to jot down the names most of the people I talked to while on the train ride home, something I rarely do (I must have sensed this vicious attack coming). Can’t read most of the names in my scribble but there are over 20 of them, for the record.
As for Bryan, the fact is that I leave most places upon his arrival. It just seems like the right thing to do.
Well I never said he was ugly, not by a long shot!
Perhaps you just didn’t get close enough.
By the way (haha), I saw *your* precious bottles of Beer Valley bombers on Saturday…don’t worry, I didn’t steal them, I remembered from your blog that they were yours!
Oh yeah, Jack, for the record, Bryan said that about himself…he used to pull ‘a Whodini’ at parties and it was his nickname. I thought it was equally fitting for you.
In the future I will make it a point to come to you at an event, interrupt whoever you are talking with and demand your attention..lol how about that??
By not stealing those bottles, you show a wisdom beyond your years. By threatening to demand my attention you show a willingness to succumb to emotions that affect many when I am in the area.
Who is the Bryan of whom you speak? I have already forgotten.
Sounds like me, I suppose? It’s a good thing discretion is a particular strength of mine, since you never can tell how conversations will be recounted and it what forum, yeow….these parallels with JC are making me thirsty
You? I am Shocked! I say Shocked!
Of course, she did mention your full name way up there in the first comment. I should have figured it out, I guess.
Hey, too bad you didn’t get to her table, Jack: that Lammsbräu stuff is tasty.
That is, I presume, why God invented the Bella Vista grand opening this Sunday, to give me a chance to rectify past sins and maybe discover a few new ones.