From Hoppy to Sour to Coffee, the Weekend was Full of Flavor

It was a good weekend. It started with the IPA Project at Sly Fox (Galena, Amarillo, and Odyssey...in that order, my three favorites...with the Galena far ahead) and ended with Firebird Coffee Porter (coffee beans thanks to Steel City Coffee House, just down the street) and Honey Saison (honey courtesy of Exton Bee Company) at Iron Hill in Phoenixville. In between, there was copious lambic sampling at Iron Hill's Media location (needed to rehydrate after walking dogs in Ridley Creek State Park...of course...something wrong with that?!) By the way, I'm not sure if there's a better brewpub tap list at this particular moment than in Phoenixville at Iron Hill. That Firebird Porter? After the festival on Saturday night, much of the small batch was gone, but a few drops of this smooth wonder still remain...so it's another story of get some while you can. A very, very nice balance of roaster porter and coffee---real good coffee. The honey saison? Not sure if it was the bees and what they ate, but the saison has very nice (and real) floral flavors. Along with a dubbel, an IPA, a winter warmer, an altbier, a russian imperial stout, and their usual house beers, Iron Hill sure has the spectrum spanned this week in Phoenixville. On Saturday the 13th, Mark and company were pouring lambic and other treats in the Media brewhouse while mixed boxes of Bob Barrar's lambics and other numerous bottled goodies were flying out the door. Were they gifts for others or for the buyers themselves? Hard to say, but suffice to say that bottled products are running low at Iron Hill, with Mark reporting that they are beginning to sell out of some varieties....so stop in (perhaps call ahead to ensure availability) and get some bottled Iron Hill beer while you can. Price? If you've never bought bottled product from Iron Hill before...Don't think twice; it'll be worth the few extra greenbacks, particularly the lambics, the Old Ale, and the Russian Imperial Stout.