What the Firkin?

The beer at Pottstown Firkin Fest was served in a commemorative glass.

Never one to turn down an opportunity to taste many beers, your humble blogger was among the hundreds who made their way to Pottstown's Memorial Park Saturday for the first-ever Pottstown Firkin Fest.

As crack Mercury reporter Marian Dennis reported in her story on the subject, a Firkin is "a type of barrel that holds cask-conditioned ale. According to the Firkin Fest website, the beer has less carbonation and, as a result of being unfiltered, is more cloudy and has a 'complex flavor and aromatic profile.' The specific type of beer allows brewers to experiment with different flavors and since all the beers available at the event were brewed specifically for the Pottstown Firkin Fest, guests got a unique opportunity to taste and admire the craft.

Mercury Editor Nancy March was one of several judges,

and, as this photograph shows, she took the job seriously.

What's not to like?

Well, to be honest, I did not like all of them.

But why should I expect to? It was beer, certainly I could find a brew to suite my tastes.

Those tastes run more toward Belgian whites, lagers and pilsners, with an inexplicable fondness for Sly Fox Brewer's oatmeal stout thrown into the mix.

I'm not much inclined toward India Pale Ales, IPAs as we beer-lovers know them, so that limited my choices as many of the selections used that beer as a base for their experimenting.

But some determined searching found a number of brews I favored.

Your humble blogger conducts research.

That searching meant that I spent less time than I should have at The Mercury's table, where we gave away free pretzel necklaces, pens, tote bags and papers.

But this journalist stops at nothing to get to the bottom of a story (or a glass) .... ahem. 

Ever the odd-ball, the beer I discovered I liked best won no awards. 

And even more odd, it was a "double IPA," brewed by "Evil Genius," a name which I confess drew my both my attention and admiration immediately.

What Trevor Fitzgerald had discovered, to my delight, was that running the beer through nectarines not only gave it a fruity taste, but extracted what I find to be the overly metallic bite of an IPA's hoppy character.

It seemed from the smiles on the faces I saw that plenty of other folks found plenty to be happy (and hoppy) about as well.

Happiest among them, perhaps, were the volunteers from the Pottstown Regional Public Library whose volunteerism earned them the proceeds from Pottstown's second great beer event in six months.

And if you don't believe me, take a look at all these Tweets....