Philly Beer Week Diary
I intended to start this on Friday, but the pace of events and a lousy cold have pushed things back. So on this cold, sunny Sunday I’ll try to catch up.
Friday, 7 a.m. - The first day of PBW starts off early when I find myself behind the bar at London Grill, pouring a pint of Phila. Brewing’s Kenzinger for a promo shot on Fox-29. A live interview follows in which host John Anderson implies it might be a little early for drinking beer.
11 a.m. - After heading back home for a breather, I get a call from my publicist - now CBS-3 wants to do an interview down at the Manayunk Brewery. The camera guy is working alone and asks the questions, too. The taping last 20 minutes - that night, about 15 seconds make it onto the air.
1:30 a.m. - I promised my partners I’d be at the Marketplace at East Falls by 1, but now I’m on the side of the road in my ar, doing a phone interview with CNN.
2:00 p.m. - Five hours till Joe Sixpack’s Philly Favorites and just 2 kegs are on site at the Marketplace at East Falls.
3:00 p.m. - A reporter from a Chinese news agency arrives from Washington, D.C. Yo, buddy, we tell him - you’ve got a long wait till there’s any beer.
5:00 p.m. - We finally start clearing tables and chairs and hang the banners. Shackamaxon Catering shows up and is all business. About half the 23 promised kegs are on site.
6:00 p.m. - An hour before showtime and we’re missing 3-4 kegs. Everyone’s running around looking for handtrucks and serving tables.
7:00 p.m. - I get a call from someone on the mayor’s staff to meet out on the loading dock. Uh, the mayor’s running late, he tells me.
7:05 p.m. - I grab the mic and tell the crowd, “This is Philly, we don’t need no stinkin’ mayor to drink beer. Philly Beer Week starts now!”
7:25 p.m. - Two TV news crews are shooting video, a van full of 15 out-of-town beer writers just showed up, there’s a guy dressed up like Ben Franklin (no, not Woody), 23 breweries are pouring my favorite beers, the band is starting to rock… and Mayor Nutter is in the building. You’ll pardon my smile - it was a great moment. We hustle Tom Peters of Monk’s Cafe, Bruce Nichols from Museum Catering, Jeff & Lisa Baskins from the Marketplace and the mayor onto the stage for the official opening cermony. I tell the mayor we couldn’t wait for him and he tells the crowd that, since he hadn’t formally announced the start of Philly Beer Week, they were all going to start drinking all over. Big roar. Then Nutter surprises everyone with a formal city proclamation that officially declares Philly Beer Week, reading it like he’s a standup on Leno. He caps it off by tapping a firkin of Yards ESA with two blows with his hammer. Ninety seconds later, there’s a pint of leaving a beer ring on the proclamation - classic Philly.
The rest of the night is a whir. Lots of signed copies of my book, lots of beer (the Iron Hill Russian Imperial Stout mixed with Bananas Foster from Shackamaxon was a killer), lots of friends, lots more beer, and a final cleanup. Philly Beer Week was underway.
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