Philly Beer Videos on tap at gophila.com/beer

New Series Covers Four Neighborhoods And More Than A Dozen Bars

March 4, 2008 – Hosted by Philadelphia Daily News beer reporter Don Russell, also known as Joe Sixpack, a series of beer-focused vodcasts (short videos) launched today on gophila.com/beer and uwishunu.com/beer. The vodcasts guide beer lovers through the bars and pubs of four Philly neighborhoods, teaching informally about beer, food pairings and the people and stories that make Philadelphia “the best beer drinking town in America,” according to Russell. The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) created the videos in celebration of Philly Beer Week, a first-time, 100-event festival running March 7-16, phillybeerweek.org.

Each of the four eight- to nine-minute videos zero in on one distinct neighborhood to bring viewers inside more than a dozen of the city’s gastropubs, restaurants, sports bars, neighborhood taverns and specialty beer shops. Beer lovers will notice that Philly bars are smoke-free, thanks to a city-wide smoking ban. Here’s a summary of the segments:

• Old City: Russell counts more than 150 tap handles in this uber-hip, uber-historic neighborhood. First up is brew master Patrick Jones, who explains the difference between ale and lager (yeast levels) in front of the casks of Triumph Brewing Company, Old City’s only brew pub. Philly’s obsession with Belgian beer is introduced at stop two: Beneluxx, the Belgian tasting room where beer is served in eight-ounce beakers. “Anything goes in Belgium,” says owner, Mike Naessens, in reference to Cantillon Saint Lamvinus, a rare Belgian blend of beer and wine served in his new below-street-level spot. Of course, no Old City pub crawl would be complete without a trip to The Khyber, a live music spot where the bar was built for the Centennial Exposition in 1876 and where the window harkens back to Prohibition.
• Center City: The Philly-Belgian connection is so strong that for many years Achel was served in only two places: the Belgian Monastery where it’s brewed and Monk’s Café in Philadelphia, the first stop on this tour and home to the famous Beer Bible. Next, Russell enjoys a creamy pint of O’Reilly’s Stout fireside at McGillin’s Old Ale House, the city’s oldest tavern dating back 150 years. The most urbane stop on the tour is the last, and that’s Tria Café, where the three varieties of fermentation—beer, wine and cheese—take center stage. Here, owner Jon Myerow demonstrates why he thinks beer and cheese go together better than beer and wine.
• Fairmount: This reborn residential neighborhood is galvanized around the massive stone walls of Eastern State Penitentiary, the historic prison-turned-visitor Mecca. In fact, London Grill offers a brew named after Willy Sutton, the famed criminal who, legend has it, stopped into the bar for a beer after escaping the prison. Next up is Bridgid’s, loved equally for its friendly U-shaped bar around which strangers talk as for its craft beer selection. The Yard’s gravity tap famously pulls live, fermenting beer from the third floor. Finally, it’s off to the Bishop’s Collar. Named for the collar of foam on a pint of Guinness, this spot is famous for its perfectly poured pints of Ireland’s signature beer.
• Northern Liberties: In the shadow of breweries-turned-lofts, Joe Sixpack conjures up Philadelphia’s manufacturing past. The neighborhood where German immigrant John Wagner brewed the first lager in America in 1890 is home to a high concentration of great taverns. Standard Tap tops the favorite list for many Philly beer geeks and foodies, thanks to its local-only beer selection and gastropub menu. However, Don also finds greatness at The Foodery amid 800 bottles of beer. This legendary take-out store lets costumers “mix a six” from its gigantic beer selection. The tour ends at Ortlieb’s Jazz Haus, famed for live jazz six nights a week and Cajun food. This intimate spot was the former “beer-break room” of the now-defunct Ortlieb’s Brewery.

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) makes Philadelphia and The Countryside® a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases business and promotes the region’s vitality. For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit [Back to Press Releases Main]