The winds of change are stirring

It has been a few months since I've updated this blog even though I promised myself I'd stick with it. It was becoming boring, plain and simple. The monotony was annoying the shit out of me. However, something new and exciting is coming. Something so fresh and entirely different that it will blow your mind. Seriously. If you like Beer or Man vs. Food or I don't know, awesomeness you will want to stay tuned. Beer Trippin' will soon be getting an overhaul and as my good friend Barney Stinson likes to say, "It's going to be legen...wait for it.....dary."

I'm Always Hungry in Philadelphia

The Team Relentless Network

Beer Trippin'-Baltimore

Believe it or not, Baltimore is one of my favorite cities to drink a beer in. There is an abundance of great food, especially if you like seafood, as well as many fine establishments to quench your ever growing thirst. On top of that, I'm a big Orioles fan, so it's convenient. The next time your driving down I-95, take the exit for Charm City, you'll be glad you did. 

Pratt Street Ale House- Only a short walk from Camden Yards is this magnificent drinking facility that was once known as The Wharf Rat. It has an English feel to it and you can find some nice wood bars with brick walls everywhere. A very comfortable atmosphere... almost a little too comfortable. Now I must admit, I have not been back since they changed the name, but from my understanding, not much has changed. One can still find ales brewed on premises by Oliver Ales.. of which I must recommend the Best Bitter on cask. Damn good.  There is usually 2 or 3 casks on at a time, a handful of Oliver draughts as well as micro and macro guest taps. If you stop by here for lunch or dinner... or lunch AND dinner as I have done on occasion, try the Oliver Ales.... and don't forget about the Best Bitter.

Max's Taphouse- No stop in Baltimore would be complete without spending a few hours at this 

Fells Point gem. I cannot seem to recall the exact number of draughts they had, but it was quite a bit..50 maybe? As far as bottles, they have all the local stuff you would want as well as a good selection of German and Belgian imports.  Their bottle selection really is amazing. No one can come here without finding a few beers you would like. This is a perfect spot to hit a few hours before a ballgame.

Ale Mary's-  Here we have a friendly neighborhood bar located in Fells Point. They don't carry many beers on tap, but that's no big deal because there is always something worth drinking. They also stock some good bottles like Orval and Westmalle. It's definitely worth it to stop by here for a drink or two. If you're feeling up to it head over for their Sunday brunch from 10:30am t0 3p.m.

Clipper City Brewery- For about 15 years Clipper City has been hand crafting some delicious beer and what better way to get the freshest batches than to visit the place for yourself?  If you plan on it, don't forget to reserve your tour tickets. For $5 you get a souvenir glass and some tokens, which are redeemed to fill up that glass with some Loose Cannon or other beers of your choosing. 

The Brewer's Art- This brewpub is just a tad bit upscale, and that is not a bad thing. While there is a very limitedfood menu, the beer they are brewing is worth the trip here. If you're into belgian beers, try their Ozzy. If you fancy session beers, like myself, the 4.8% Beacon Pale Ale is right up your alley. Just remember if you're gonna go here, it doesn't open until 4pm. It would behoove you to check this place out.

Baltimore has many more beer bars and brewpubs that are worth 

checking out. Sometimes it is nice to 'get lost' in a city and see what you can find. That is how I have found many of the great places I have been to throughout this country. I know this is a beer blog, but I love food as well... so if you're looking for a killer breakfast, try The Blue Moon Cafe and get the French Toast with Captain Crunch.

Ok, so I finally graduated college and got an A on my beer thesis paper. Now I'm trying to find a job. Whether it relates to my field of study or beer, I can only hope. Since that's all over with I can start doing these blogs that no one reads again!

I've kinda put this blog on the back burner for a while but I'm hoping that will change. I'm going to be adding a few more cities to Beer Trippin' in the next week or so, in fact I am working on one as we speak.

Time to get this thing rolling again.

long time so see

Whoa, It has been over 2 months since I've posted anything. Not that anyone reads this anyway, but I've just been really busy finishing up college. Just have about 5 weeks more to go, then its off to the job market, hopefully. I will definitely start posting regularly again once I begin to finish up some of these 30 page and 15 page papers I have. 

I have been going to a lot of places and I've been drinking some good beer. I just put a sixtel of Terrapin Rye Pale Ale on my Kegerator, and I think it's really good. I think its gooing to be the quickest I've ever kicked a sixtel in my house... stuff is flying.  I'm looking forward to getting my hands on Exit 1 as well... Also have a bottle of Dogfish Head Pangaea, thought I must admit I picked it up mainly because I'm a geography nerd and I liked the label. I guess i'll be back periodically...

South Jersey Beer News

My wife just came across this blog and passed it along. It seems to be fairly new and looks like it is updated frequently. I love beer trippin, but also love me some South Jersey beer news too! It's good to see other people around here taking some initiative when it comes to craft beer. If you're from around here go check it out.

Beer Trippin'-Brooklyn

This past weekend I had to take a little trip out to Long Island with my wife, Brooke, to see some of her family. We planned it out so that we would stop off in Brooklyn for a few hours on the way home and grab a few pints. As much as I enjoyed it, it kinda sucked because I was the driver, so not much beer for me. I did, however, get to watch everyone else have drink after drink. Awesome, eh? Before I get into some of the places to see in Brooklyn, I'd like to say I've never been a fan of New York. I've never felt any kind of connection with the state itself, and I always feel mildly annoyed when I have to go there. I know, I married someone from New York, but what can you do? I tried my best to keep my feelings about New York at bay and explore the area with an open mind, and what I found out was that Brooklyn has a great beer scene even if hipsters have overrun the entire borough!

Our first stop was the Brooklyn Brewery. Every Friday night from 6 to 11pm they open their doors to the public for happy hour. It is situated in a really old looking building, actually kinda reminded me of The Ghostbusters firehouse,

but it could of just been from the gigantic red doors. Anyway, as you walk in you are staring straight ahead at 4 or 5 fermentation tanks, a mess of kegs, and some bags of malt. To your right is a few more tanks and directly to the left is where the beer lies. First you have to buy tokens and then redeem them for your beer. It is only 20 bucks for 6 tokens, and at 1 token per beer, that is pretty cheap. The only beers that'll run you more tokens are local 1 and 2. There were a good amount of people packed in there sitting at tables or standing around making conversation. You can even order a pizza and bring it in! On tap, they had the lager, pennant ale, eipa, sorachi ace, brown ale, pilsner, blast!, and the weisse. I ended up having a pennant and a very good double ipa in blast! I imagined the building to be a tad larger, but it was still really cool to be there.

Mugs Ale House was the next stop on our journey and it would end up being our last. It was so good of a bar, that we just couldn't leave! They have a great draft list consisting of at least 30 taps and 2 casks, 1 of which was on. I opted for a Bear Republic English Ale, while my wife went for a rye from Blue Point. Also available was Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale, Stone Russian Imperial Stout from 2006 and Chelsea Hop Angel on cask. While I didn't order any food, the rest of my party did. I tried a bite of my wife's ostrich burger and it was delicious. Another impressive quality of this place is their bottle list. Goose Island Bourbon County Stout from 2006 and 2007 and many other finds that are near impossible to get your hands on. Try this place out!

Barcade. If you love beer, you've come to the right place. If you love 80's video games, you've also come to the right place. Combine the two, and thats one hell of a good time! Stop in and grab one of their 20+ outstanding taps and play a little centipede while doing so. They also sell some local snacks for you to munch on as well. This is a big hipster hangout, so be forewarned. It's also open til 4am on weekends, or is that the norm in NY?

Spuyten Duyvil. Here you're only gonna get 6 taps and a cask. I guess it's now appropriate to use the phrase, "It's Quality, not Quantity." They have a fairly lengthy import bottle list and usually some hard to find brews on tap. The inside of the place is small and kitchen-like and the outside is barely marked, so be sure to look close if you're trying to find it. Yet again, this is a hipster hangout, like much of Williamsburg, so prepare yourself for people wearing handkerchiefs around their neck and ridiculously tight pants.

If you're just looking to grab some bottles, I suggest you try Bierkraft. Beer,cheese,chocolate, charcuterie, and more is how it is described on their website... and they do carry a lot of beer. If you're looking for some breakfast you can try Siggy's Good Food, specializing in organic food. They also have beer and wine.

I couldn't help but feel a little out of place around some of the people that live in Brooklyn. I'm not saying everyone who lives there is a pretentious asshole or anything.. I guess my lifelong disdain for everything New York is just poking its way through right now. Either way, it's a great city that has some quality bars that any beer geek needs to check out....despite the hipsters. I'm glad I did.

Help Me

I will be starting my final semester of college in a little less than 2 weeks. Being a geography major, I had to choose a senior thesis topic relevant to that and my professor actually suggested I do it on beer.  My actual topic, as of now, is How microbreweries came about in America and how they began to spread geographically over the country. I have already begun researching, but my question is if anyone that reads this knows of any good books or articles I could use, please let me know. I will appreciate it greatly, and I'll even buy you a beer if we ever run into each other!