Fresh Hops

There is an interesting article on “Fresh Hops” over at the NY Times.
Check it out here.

Schwabl’s Beef on a Weck

I usually spend my work days pushing pixels at my desk while gazing out the window looking north over the city of Rochester. So it was nice break from routine to go to Buffalo last week on business. Buffalo is definitely on the list of places within an hours or so of me that I’d like to explore more. So once lunch time arrive I was off to seek out  the “original” beef on the kimmelweck at Schwabl’s Restaurant in West Seneca. The restaurants history goes way back to 1837 and Sebastian Schwabl opening up shop on Broadway in downtown Buffalo, this would be start of several other locations including one at Pan Am Expostion in Buffalo in 1901. Several generations of the Schwabl family have proudly represented what’s thought to be the oldest continually operating restaurant in Niagara county. Even prohibiton couldn’t slow down Schwabl’s.

When you pull up to Schwabl’s you see a small house converted into a Restaurant with a lovely vintage steel and neon sign out front. When you enter the restaurant it’s like stepping back in time. The bar is just inside the entance and features cocktails made the old fashion way, no pre-made mixes here. They also feature seasonal old fashioned punches – and I’m kicking myself for not ordering a glass of the Ebenezer Punch. I ordered an Flying Bison Aviator Red Ale which was delicious and then  proceeded to wait a few minutes for a table to become available. Right at the end of the short bar is the master of ceremony – the butcher, frantically sharpening his very large knife and meticulously hand slicing the juicy, roasted beef to order – what a sight. Me and my companion both ordered the Beef on a Weck which comes with 2 sides -  choice of fries/mashed/german potatoe salad and choice of coleslaw or beets. We both ordered our sandwich’s rare and they did not disappoint. Tender juicy beef on the softest kimmelweck roll I’ve ever had, crusted with coarse salt and a sprinkle of caraway seeds. They hand dip the roll into the au jus from the beef before making you sandwich. Dam, this is making my stomach growl as I type this -so if want to taste the original and take step back to good ole’ days get your butt over to Schwabl’s, they won’t disappoint… and do me a favor and order the punch and let me know how it is.

Welcome Fall at the Naples, NY Grape Fest

Foliage just starting to turn, apples being picked, grape pies being baked by the hundreds in mom and pop kitchens to be sold roadside, these are just a few of the offerings you’ll find on a beautiful drive about an hour south from Rochester to the Naples, NY and it’s annual Grape Festival. The family packed into the Subaru and we headed down to Naples for the highly anticipated Grape Fest, fantasizing along the way about what it would be like to give up suburban life for life in the country, nestled into beautiful tree and vineyard covered hills of the Finger Lakes region. I don’t get to explore the Finger Lakes nearly enough as I’d like to, so the Grape Fest is always a great excuse to take in some fresh air and a nice country drive. We saw deer and a few wild turkeys on our journey along with some red tailed hawks swooping overhead. You know you’re getting close once you see the roadside yard sale style stands offering homemade grape pies and sometimes even cookies and tarts along some other varieties including loganberry and the occasional apple pie. Once we got to the festival I didn’t see nearly as much grape stuff as I expected but more of a diverse sample of local products and wares. We did see Arbor Hill Winery’s many varieties of wine jellies, Naples brand and Nunda brand mustard (one my favs) along with many craft and artist booths selling there wares. We also enjoyed watching my 2 year get down to the reggae-ified jam tunes of the always excellent Buddahood band. There was also a wine tent beside the music tent which I didn’t remember from previous festivals. This festival is a great way to welcome fall and enjoy all the wonderful things fall offers in the Upstate. Our last stop of the trip before heading back to Rochester was the highly recommended Joseph’s Wayside Market at south end of Main Street. There you’ll find a wonderful bounty of local flowers, fruit, vegetables, local cheeses along with fresh baked goods and other miscellaneous items and gifts.

Joseph's Wayside Market

The dutch apple pie we picked up from Joseph’s to go along with our grape pie from the festival was still warm and both pies were some of the best we’ve had. My personal favorite is Joseph’s Extra Sharp NY Cheddar a standout as compared to what you’ll usually bring home from the grocery store. (What I consider to be an authentic New York extra sharp cheddar.) In addition we also brought home some mums, a bushel of honey crisp apples along with a jug of cider. So don’t let the changing of the seasons deter you from getting out and exploring or you’ll be missing out on some of the best things Upstate NY has to offer.

Hit the NY Beer Trail!

There is top notch article on Craft Breweries in NY/ Empire State Beer trail over at the Syracuse New Times. A must for any NY craft brewing enthusiast.
Check it out here.
There is also a link to the official State beer trail site at the end of this post.

I’m also looking forward to upcoming Middle Ages Brewing Co. Beer Social at the Tap & Mallet on Wednesday Aug. 26th. Shame on you if you haven’t hit one of these beer socials yet at the Tap & Mallet, I would strongly recommend attending but buy your tickets early because they always sell out. They are a lot of fun and the beer social format is fun and relaxed way to enjoy and learn about a specific breweries brews.

I’ve also heard that  Goose Island’s beers hailing from Chicago Il. are now being distributed in the Rochester area, not sure where exactly other than hearing the Tap & Mallet has one or two on tap (if the kegs aren’t kicked yet). I’m looking forward to giving them a try. I also finally got my hands on Genesee Cream Ale and regular Genesee tall boy cans or “Pounders” as we call them in south central PA. I walked into work Monday and they were sitting on my desk courtesy of a co-worker. It’s funny how certain beer evoke memories of the last time you’ve enjoyed them even if it’s been a decade or more. The tallboy cans for instance reminded me of the days stumbling along the alleys and streets of Oakland-Pittsburgh, Pa when I was in college sipping on of all things Blatz Pounders that we’d get from Chinese restaurant that wouldn’t card you if you were with someone they new. I haven’t had or seen a “Blatz” since then. The Genesee tall boys are available at Aman’s Farm Market in Irondequoit at 2458 East Ridge Road and from what I’ve heard they have a good beer selection over there… So check them out if your in the neighborhood.

More information and maps on the Empire State Beer Trail can be found here.

Nathaniel Square Corner Store

I’d like to start off this post by thanking Jaime Barclay for taking the time to craft this post and for being my first guest poster on my blog. I’ve been catching word on the twittisphere about Nathaniel Square’s Corner Store for a few weeks now (mostly from Jaime) and thought it would be fitting if she wrote a post about them.

I am a bit of an anomaly; I’m a young, professional beer-loving woman in a sea of men. I never over indulge, you won’t see me disrespecting the experience, and my choice is always calculated. I know every spot in Rochester that sells craft beer, which locations will order new beers I’m looking to try, and where to find the freshness.

Beer is an experience; I want my buying to be just as enjoyable as my tasting.

With the tighter economy I may not be going out as much, but I am deliberately choosing where to live my life. One of my favorite sayings is “Thank you for allowing me to spend my money at your store/bar/or restaurant”.

One of my newest and most favorite places to be and be seen is Nathaniel Square Corner Store at 495 South Avenue in the South Wedge. The concept is sheer genius, old fashion corner store with the tastiest, freshest, and most knowledgeable people talking “shop”.

What else would you expect from owners John Roth (aka “Taco John” ~ John’s Tex Mex) and Jay Schreiber (hippest drummer from the Niche & lead singer/guitar for Slow Light), they love the South Wedge and are a couple of the sickest beer, NON snobs around. You walk in and you feel at home; no stuffiness here and no tacky signage. Only glass bottled milk from Byrne Dairy, fresh pastries and bread from Georgie’s, cool craft sodas, and 10 cooler doors of hoppy goooodness.

We only have one Rochester, one today, and one life; why settle for less than what we want. Sometimes we want an $8 12-pk and sometimes we are into a yummy $8 deuce deuce; whatever your choice, make it local.

Nathaniel Square Corner Store is centrally located and lucky for me they are directly on my way anywhere I’m going. They are open Monday – Friday 7am-10pm, Saturday 9am-10pm and Sunday 9am-5pm. They are on Twitter and you can always follow me for updates on all things #craftbeer and #ROC.

Now I’m thirsty….

*I do not work for Nathaniel Square Corner Store, but am proud sponsor of their concept, ethic, and serious craft beer selection.

- In addition to their thoughtfully chosen beer selection they also offer mixed six packs by style/theme. Ex. Some of the ones I’ve heard about are Summer Beers, IPA’s and Stouts availability is limited. – Daron

“Lights ON” at the Genesee Brewery

What else can say but that I am thoroughly impressed and excited about what North American Breweries is doing with the Genesee Brewing Co. In particular restoring the sign on the roof of brewery is a great symbolic move of breathing new life and pride into the brewery. The sign will be officially turned on at an event on Friday, July 17 at 9:30 p.m. at the Pont de Rennes Pedestrian Bridge at High Falls. More info here.

I also here that there’s a new Genny Light radio commercial that is hitting the airwaves, a 30 second spot running in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Columbus, Cleveland, Erie, and Pittsburgh. Now if they could just bring back Jenny! (and NOT a new modern Jenny)

Chinchillas “Wacky Doodle” CD release party

Check out the Chinchillas CD release party
Thursday July 9th at 8:30pm
at Abilene Bar & Lounge located at
153 Liberty Pole Way, Rochester, NY
Cost: FREE

For all of you unfamiliar with the Chinchillas sound its somewhat hard to pin down it runs the gamut from 80’s mod-punk to bluesy rock along with americana rock-n-twang that you can really get down and boogie too. The overall ingredient is definitely fun! There songs cover various subjects from Taco Bell to the great anthem “Genesee Beer”. Check out their tunes for yourself on their myspace page. Perhaps they sum up their sound the best themselves, sounds like: “The thud you hear when the animal in the road disappears from your view.”

I also can’t go without mentioning the great selection of bottled beer over at Abilene! So hunker on down there, grab a Pork Slap and enjoy the Chinchillas on the deck.

Act Now! Before it’s too late.

taken from http://www.sylb.org/
Proposed Increase of Federal Excise Tax a Serious Threat to Small Brewers and Your Beer Choice – Contact Your Senators Now. Small brewers are facing an imminent and extremely serious threat to their businesses. The consequences of remaining silent have the very real potential of reducing your choice of beer and dramatically increasing the price of any beer that you purchase.

The Senate Finance Committee in Washington, DC is currently considering a proposal to increase and equalize the excise tax for alcohol beverages as part of healthcare reform deliberations. This proposal would triple the excise tax for 4.5% ABV beer and impose even higher excise tax rates for higher ABV beers.

We need you to speak out now. Today or tomorrow at the latest.
More info at the link below including a link to contact your senator.
http://www.sylb.org/excisetax.html

Summer is almost upon us.

Summer is almost upon us and as we all know Rochester explodes with fun things to do. I think the beer scene is definitely getting better around here with numerous tastings, beer dinners, tours and fests now happening monthly if not weekly, if only I could get out to more of them! Speaking of that Victory Brewing Co. Beer Festival at Monty’s Krown is this Saturday the 6th and it sounds like a great time, they will be featuring an array of draught and cask Victory beers. Time: 4 p.m. – close. There is no admission fee* for early entry. Pay as you go – Pints will be $2.50 (what a deal.) There will be live music starting at 10pm from BML, Grime Time and Electric Noodle. *There will cover charge of $3 for those hanging out/coming later for the music.

There will also be Rochester Beer Advocate Pub Crawl, Saturday – July 18, 2009 at 4pm it ends at 11pm the Pub Crawl will hit the  Beer Bars In East End and on Monroe Avenue.

I was sorry to hear the Hartmanns Old World Sausage is leaving Rochester for Canandaigua, OK to be honest I was pissed they were leaving Rochester behind for Canandiagua until I heard that they indeed planned on keeping the their original location open on N. Clinton Ave. until they were broken into. Anyone who’s been to that location has seen that that neighborhood is falling apart at the seams and Hartmanns is yet another victim of the ‘hood. Thank god we still have Swan Market to get our German food and sausage fix. I was fortunate to enjoy one of the last glasses of Rohrbach Alt a few weeks during my lunch at Swan Market brewed by the talented Bruce Lish, unfortunately there will no more of Alt or any other of Bruce’s Rohrbach brews since he is no longer working for Rohrbach, I hope he pops up somewhere else in town because I know I’m not the only one that will be missing his brews. Bruce, if you need a drinking buddy or someone to sample some of you homebrew let me know and I’ll send you my references?

I cannot thank Salvatore Fantauzzo and his partners in business enough for purchasing the historic Donuts Delite building in Rochester on Culver Road at Empire Blvd. & Clifford Ave. As big fans of mid-century architecture my wife and me have been fearful of this Rochester landmark being knocked down or turned into a Walgreens ever since it closed in 2005. It makes me very happy to hear that this awesome building will be restored and turned into Salvatore’s Pizzerias flagship location. They plan on opening by July 4th, 2009 and is inviting past owners and staff to the historic re-opening. They plan on now offering breakfast and donut’s of course along with Salvatore’s usual menu. I also heard rumor of getting some of the original owners familly donut recipes. Sound like a great plan!

12 Horse Breweriana Show this Saturday

I would like to invite everyone to the 12 Horse Brewery Collectible Club’s first annual breweriana show this Saturday May 2 from 9am-3pm. Admission is FREE! It’s at the Knights of Columbus Hall at 70 Barrett Drive, Webster, NY 14580.

We have put a lot of work into planning this show and are very happy that all of our dealer tables have sold out. There will be a large amount of interesting brewery memorabilia on display and for sale. There is also a cash bar for refreshments. There will also be raffle giveaways.

I have always been a collector from the toys I coveted as a child to the baseball and comic books of my youth. I think breweriana was a natural progression for me. Obviously I love beer and being a graphic designer I’ve always had a great appreciation/love for vintage advertising. The problem for me was that great examples of vintage advertisng/signs etc. are very expensive and it always frustrated me that the examples I liked were out of my price range. Then one day my wife brought me home a beer tray she got in box lot at an local auction and something just clicked. A lot of beer collectibles are fairly affordable depending on scarcity, pre-prohibition being the rarest and more expensive items. I am quite amusing how each collector I meet has specific love for a certain category or type brewery items. Some people primarily just collect old cans, some just cork lined bottle caps, some love the beer serving trays or coasters. Some will just collect items from a certian city or region.

Beer + Vintage Adversting + a love for Rochester History = Breweriana!

So I  began scowering flea markets and ebay and to my delight these neat items were always right under my nose. I still wonder why I hadn’t noticed them earlier. So now I have modest collection of stuff mostly centering around Rochester Breweries, in particular I  love Tam O’shanter Brewery items and Genesee items, particulary 12 Horse stuff  from the thirties is a favorite. When we moved into our mid-century house I was delighted to see 1950’s style bar in the basement just begging to display my stuff which I quickly coined Tamo’s Speakeasy. So if you have love for beer and an appreciation for vintage advertising I say come check out our show I think you’d enjoy it and maybe you’ll get the collecting bug. Perhaps I will post some my items in the future if there any interest in seeing them?