"Philly Beer Week" news and stories

While Schlitz was the beer that made Milwaukee famous, it's not the only town synonymous with suds. San Francisco is linked with Anchor Steam, while Pittsburgh is known for its Iron City. Now, Philadelphia may have its own defining brew.

Last month, in conjunction with Philly Beer Week, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation moved its "With Love, Philadelphia XOXO" motto from billboards to bars. "To be totally legitimate, we might as well have our own beer," says Bill Covaleski, the brewmaster at nearby Victory Brewing. He collaborated with the GPTMC to craft Philly's flagship beer, the Summer Love Ale.

When it comes to brews, Philly's no slouch. The town's packed with killer taverns, from Johnny Brenda's to the Standard Tap, along with stellar breweries such as Yards (its Pale Ale is my beer of the week) and Philadelphia Brewing. But as far as the defining taste of the City of Brotherly Love, Summer Love is a serious contender.

More after the jump...

For many, smoked beers (also commonly known by their German name -- Rauchbiers) are an acquired taste. Though some favorably describe these brews as a delicious mix of the flavors of beer and bacon, others lean towards the suspicion that someone may have ashed a cigar in their pint.

Though the Yards Brewing Company's second annual Smoke 'Em If Yous Got 'Em event for Philly Beer Week did offer up a cigar tent, most patrons paid their admission to pair a healthy selection of professional and amateur barbecue with a world class selection of smoked brews.

The self-described "one-of-a-kind event (translation: there's absolutely, positively nothing else like it in the world)" definitely delivered on the beer front, offering up an exotic mix of 32 drafts (not to even mention the sizable bottled selection) from across the country and around the world, as well as extremely rare selections and one-offs, and one 34-letter beer from Stewart's Brewing that drinkers would be hard-pressed to discuss on Twitter.

After the jump, read more about Smoke 'Em If Yous Got 'Em and check out the amazing selection of smoked beers from this year's event...

Last week, we discussed the possible financial benefits of homebrewing. After last night's Extreme Beer Homebrew Challenge at Jose Pistolas for Philly Beer Week, I was reminded of one of the other major advantages of homebrewing: The ability to experiment.

The event brought out some of Beer Week's finest: Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head was anointed the "Uber Joe Pro" and happily dropped by to help serve up his Palo Santo Marron and Red & White. Though not offering up brews of their own, Lost Abbey's Tomme Arthur and Avery Brewing's Adam Avery were also a few of the notable names who showed their support.

But clearly, the night belonged to the dozen plus homebrewers who proved that though they might not be "rock stars of craft brewing" like their previously mentioned contemporaries, they are certainly on the frontlines when it comes to making small batch experimental brews that only a homebrewer would have the balls to try. And though these guys might be lawyers and IT professionals during the day, many of them have superhero-like secret identities as certified beer judges and casual creative consultants to their big-name counterparts.

"I have a quote for you," said Green Flash Brewing Co.'s Brewmaster, Chuck Silva. And when the man who hand-crafted one of your favorite beers in the world tells you he has a quote, you listen. "The harder you work, the luckier you are," said Chuck in response to my query of how Green Flash has managed to have such great success in such a short amount of time. "It's not that we've been lucky, it's just that we work hard and we've had good fortune."

Chuck Silva has been Brewmaster with Green Flash for approximately four and a half years now. In that time, Green Flash has grown from a small San Diego brewery to one of national prominence and availability. It's hard to believe, but Mr. Silva wasn't even Green Flash's first Brewmaster (they existed for two years without him), which just shows how instrumental he has been to their success. I was lucky enough to be able to accost Chuck during a Philly Beer Week event at the P.O.P.E. (fully known as the Pub on Passyunk East, which, as a bar, is post worthy in it's own right, but I'm going to stay on task for the time being), and he was polite enough to answer a number of questions regarding his brews.

It's Beer Week here in Philadelphia, and while I'm not a huge beer drinker, the city-wide brew celebration has got me thinking about ways to incorporate beer into my cooking (we've also got a surfeit of beer around the apartment, leftover from a recent birthday/engagement party, that needs to be used). One of the tastiest applications for beer I've found recently is in beer braised cabbage.

Before I made beer braised cabbage for the first time, I searched the internet a bit, looking for some inspiration as well as confirmation that the recipe I was forming in my head was on the right track. I found a post by Shauna, the Gluten-Free Girl, in which she braises cabbage with gluten-free beer, and determined that my internal recipe was just about on. A few tweaks and I started cooking. The resultant cabbage was delicious and was an excellent foil for some beer braised brisket (I'm on something of a beer braising kick at the moment). This cabbage would be great St. Patrick's Day side dish, served up with corned beef and boiled potatoes (as well as a nice bottle of Guinness).

Recipe after the jump.