"NY Brewfest" news and stories

On a sweltering summer afternoon, I took upon a Herculean task: instructing Asylum's Jake Goodrich about craft brew.

"I like drinking beer from bongs," the PBR fan told me, giving me flashbacks to college days spent swilling Natty Ice. I sighed. This would be a challenge.

However, I had an excellent training ground at my disposal. On Governors Island, a decommissioned military base a couple minutes from Manhattan by boat, awaited the annual New York Brewfest. The festival featured hundreds of beers, from hoppy IPAs to decadent stouts -- perfect for training Jake's palate. I hoped.

More after the jump...

Thursday is the perfect day to debut my beer version of the Slashfood Ate (8). Though, granted, I personally spend pretty much all seven days thinking about beer, for those in the workaday world, Thursday is a far healthier time of week to turn your thoughts towards weekend libations.

This Thursday I'm especially antsy as tomorrow I'm off to the NY Brewfest '08. Around 80 brewers are listed as participating breweries on NYBrewfest.com. As usual, I'm most excited to try new products, but of the names I recognize, these are the eight booths you'll certainly see me stopping by:

1. Hook & Ladder Brewing Company: Their Golden Ale is one of the best kept secrets in the "most drinkable beers" department.
2. Ithaca Beer Company: At the Philly Craft Beer Festival, the Ithaca rep was bragging about how their Flower Power IPA took down the Dogfish Head 90 Minute in a head-to-head competition. They deserved the victory.
3. Allagash Brewing Company: Call me what you will, but I'm all about the wheat beers and Allagash White is one of the best.
4. Southhampton: See above, but replace a single white with Double White.
5. Oskar Blues Brewery: Who says great beers can't come in a can?!
6. La Chouffe: An international classic introduced to me long ago by my friend Grant. I'm gonna try to grab him some swag.
7. Wolaver's Organic, Peak Organic & Orlio Organic: As reported last month in the New York Daily News and mentioned here on Slashfood, supposedly organic booze is less likely to give you hangovers. Admittedly, I've overlooked organic brews in the past, but I'm definitely going to chat with the breweries this time around. Wolaver's Pale Ale made the Daily News' best of organic list.
8. Magic Hat Brewing Company: Magic Hat has become my new old standby. If I still haven't had my fill by the time things are wrapping up, look for me slurring my speech over by the Magic Hat booth.

[Photo Credit: nybrewfest.com]