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Drink This Immediately: Craft beer at the Khyber
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Drink This Immediately: Craft beer at the Khyber
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| Left to Right: JOE porter, Best Bitter, Backwoods Bastard |
| Photo l Felicia D'Ambrosio |
Though better known for gritty rock shows and grittier restrooms, The Khyber has been serving fancy-ass import beer for ages. "We used to have over 200 bottles," says five-year Khyber veteran bartender Jeremy Thomson. "We had tons of import bottles before there were beer bars like Monk's."
As the bottle list went the way of the blocked fire exits, the Khyber draft list grew to encompass a variety of notable local and national microbrews. Here are a few you should Drink Immediately:
Founder's Backwoods Bastard (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
Each $6 goblet of this 9.2 percent ABV powerhouse has more going on than a hipster-filled hot tub of PBR. Founder's takes their Dirty Bastard scotch ale and ages it in a bourbon barrel to create mouthfuls of complex flavors. Jeremy Thomson commented that "Each sip hits me a different way." The aroma on this baby is pure Scotch, sharp and sweet with evident heat from the high alcohol. The ale's predominant taste is straight whiskey, leavened by oak and tea, and sweet but bright malt. A long finish and warming effect completes the serious beer experience.
Philadelphia Brewing Company JOE Porter (Philadelphia, PA)
Brewed with 50 lbs. of Fair Trade Peruvian coffee, this just-released local brew keeps session drinkers going with a hit of caffeine and 5 percent ABV. Though porters appear as dark as Joey Vento's heart, they drink much lighter than they look. This is a smooth and mild porter, with a nose of roasty coffee grinds. The coffee element was well-integrated and not overbearing; gentle enough that even a non-coffee drinker like myself enjoyed a glass. $4 a pint.
Gritty McDuff's Best Bitter (Freeport, Maine)
Rare East Kent hop flowers are used to bitter and flavor this classic English-style beer. The malts and hops in the golden glass are beautifully balanced and quite sessionable at 5 percent ABV, especially to drinkers exhausted of tongue-drying hop-bombs. Gritty's is distributed by Bella Vista Beverage, who are committed to getting the name of this brewery on the lips of the famously discerning Philadelphia beer crowd. From first tastes, it seems Jeremy Thomson had a bit of second-sight when he ordered this keg of Best Bitter blind. $5 per pint.
The Khyber, 56 S. 2nd St., 215-238-5888
[...] As if noted funny man and loyal Foobooz reader Chip Chantry’s appearance at the Khyber tonight wasn’t enough to snap you out of that “the Eagles are a game from the Super Bowl” stunned state, then check out the draft list. [...]
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