I am absolutely digging New York City. Ok, everything but the intense humidity. I feel like I’m back in Houston!
I did a lot of touristy stuff on Thursday; went to the Shake Shack, a local burger joint, the Museum of Sex and the Empire State Building which was awesome! The view from the 102nd floor is absolutely amazing. Fortunately I was up there when it wasn’t too cloudy and the sun was out. I think I could have stayed up there all day enjoying that view. It really was something special. I also took my first Subway ride and got to see Grand Central Station. That’s a very cool place. The history in there is so rich! And yes, I bought an “I love NY” t-shirt. I told ya, I’m owning this tourist thing!
On Friday, I headed into Brooklyn. Of course I wanted to see the bridge but I had beer thoughts on my mind. My first stop was at Barcade, a craft beer arcade with all the best arcade games from the 80′s. It was awesome! I used to kick butt at Donkey Kong and given that it’s been awhile, I did pretty good! Barcade also has some really good beers on tap from the local NY area, the East Coast and even a few West Coast specials. I had a chance to hang out with the owner Paul Kermizian and even shoot a “Beers With” so be on the look out for that soon.
After that I headed to a place called Spuyten Duyvil. One of the local NY beer guys told me about this place and walking up the street, it’s a place you have to know about to find. There are no markings on the outside of the building to indicate it’s a kickass pub; just the address on the door. But it is indeed a kickass pub and I was once again priveleged to hang with and shoot a “Beers With” segment with owner Joe Carroll. And the bonus for me was I caught them just after a Cantillon tasting. They still had 5 different Cantillon beers on tap!!
After that, it was a quick walk to Brooklyn Brewery for happy hour!! I knew Garrett Oliver was on vacation this week so I would miss getting to see him again but I could still enjoy some Brooklyn brews! And enjoy some Brooklyn brews I did! I met Dan Moss, the Assistant Brewer and Doria Wright the Brewery Manager, and they showed me around and let me get my geek on. It was pretty cool. I got some great pics and of course, enjoyed some great beers. Brooklyn had just released the Buzz Bomb Ale which I had not heard of. It’s a Braggot style which is a mead and beer mixed with spices. It was definitely a different flavor and as it warmed slightly, I got more of the honey flavor which was good.
I had a great time meeting some fellow beer lovers there and of course, bought plenty of Brooklyn brews to bring back West. Then it was a quick subway ride back to Manhattan with a big weekend, including my first Yankees game, planned!
