Rivertowne Meet and Greet Review//Brewers Choice

Monday, April 28, 2014

North Shore, Pittsburgh, PA

Bottom (left to right): Brendan of East End, Matt of Hop Farm, and John of Helltown
Top (left to right): Brandon of Rock Bottom and Jeff of All Saints

Rivertowne North Shore hosted a phenomenal event at their North Shore location between PNC Park and Heinz Field last Monday that ended up being one of my personal favorite events of Pittsburgh Craft Beer Week.  It was a local tap take over featuring a Meet and Greet with the brewers of local breweries. I thought this would be an awesome event to attend and I was not incorrect.

   Sixteen regional breweries were represented by brewers, office personnel, friends and family alike. The draft list included one beer from each and excluded PCBW collaborations in an effort to showcase some of mainstays of each brewery. My favorite part of the event was being able to enjoy the beer in my hand and talk the person that made it. This rare occasion  sparked a question for which I needed an answer: which beer do the brewers themselves enjoy the most from their brewery?

   Now you might imagine this question involved a simple enough answer, but that was not the case. The general consensus was that there was no favorite and there were different reasons for this too. John, from Helltown Brewing, likened picking a favorite Helltown brew to "choosing between two of your own children: one gets good grades, the other writes great sonnets." While Brendan of East End Brewing Company admitted that he really enjoyed the Rojo Ahumado (which I reviewed a while ago), but also went on to clarify his "favorite" by saying that he enjoys all of East End's beers occasionally. His tastes change as do his preferred styles, which was a good thing "because a brewer or brewery that only enjoys one of their beers will focus only on that one style." I can't argue with that logic.

   And neither could most of the other brewers at the event. All the brewers I had the opportunity to chat with told a similar story. Their tastes changed, as most craft beer enthusiasts' preferences and palates likely do. But with a little poking and prodding, I received some answers.

The Brewers Favorite Brews:

North Country Brewing, Nate Troyan stated his current favorite is a collaboration saison with Voodoo Brewery, Teabagger.

Hitchhiker Brewing Co., Andy Kwiatkowski said his favorite beer was the Oatmeal Brown Ale, on tap at the event and soon at their brewpub in Mount Lebanon on May 10th. So stop by if you have a chance.

Rock Bottom Restaurant and Brewery, Brandon McCarthy raved about his Rambler Rye. He told me the story about how brewing a beer occasionally hits perfectly in some areas, but misses in others (ie head retention vs malts vs hops, etc). However, this one perfectly matched what he had in his head: liquid rye bread, spiced with cardamom.
Helltown Brewing, John, quoted above, said his favorite was their Spiteful Saison. But like the paragraph above mentions, he has a hard time choosing between his "children."

Pennsylvania Brewing Company, David Cerminara loves the taste and style authenticity of the Penn Cool River Kölsch.

Hofbräuhaus Pittsburgh, Aaron Reilly really enjoyed the Summer Pilsener, though I'm not sure if he meant the Bohemian Czech Pils or the German Pils.

Photo of Aaron and I at the Rivertowne Local Tap Takeover and Meet and Greet at PCBW2014

Meanwhile, other brewers gave me the same type of answer as John and Brendan, but provided other insight as well.

Rivertowne Brewing Company, Andrew Maxwell said he would drink whatever he was in the mood for, then talked a lot about brewing, canning and packaging deadlines, which was enlightening for me.

All Saints Brewing, Jeff Guidos said he likes all his beers. And we had an enjoyable and engaging conversation about how brewing beer provides an awesome breeding ground where both art and science intertwine.

East End Brewing Company, Brendan mentioned the Rojo Ahumado and how it was selling so fast because and it sort of sucked because he enjoyed it so much. He also forced a booming laugh from me when I asked him about his favorite part of #PCBW2014 so far: "it will be when its all over and I'm not waking up daily with a hangover."

Full Pint Brewing Company, Barrett Goddard admitted he prefers some beers over others, though did not say which. He also talked a little bit about their berliner weissbier, Paw Paw Berliner Weisse (which is a personal favorite of mine).

Overall, the event was awesome and likely one of my top 2-3 favorite events of #PCBW2014. The brewers were all friendly, informative and interesting. All of them answered any questions I had about their beers, brewing process, or how-to's for recipe research and design. Unfortunately, I was only able to talk to Hop Farm's Matt briefly, and the same with Blue Canoe's Justin Dudek (though I cannot wait to go up there and try the Snickers Stout, Heath Bar beer, or his meat beers-smoked sausage flavor IN your beer anyone?). I also did not have time to talk to any reps or brewers from Arsenal Cider House, Roundabout Brewery or Draii Laag--Hopefully we can meet up sometime soon.

Thanks to everyone who attended, organized, or participated in the event. I had a blast.