The other night (more like twelve days ago), I went to
Chap’s Taproom for a couple of reasons. First of all, they had their Quizzo
night going. Second, friends of ours were moving to Ireland for a decent
stretch so we wanted to send them out with a good time. Quite frankly, the fact
that the makers of Perkasie’s Free Will Brewing Company were going to be there
had absolutely nothing to do with my walking through the doors on that late-May
night.
Well, a few thoughts:
1)
We won in Quizzo and we didn’t even have to use
our smartphones. Take that, technology. And cowardly users of said technology
for Quizzo purposes.2) Our friends had a wonderful evening and have since touched down safely in the Emerald Isle, where I am sure they are having a swell time and eating lots of Lucky Charms.
3) I sure am glad I got to taste the offerings of Free Will Brewing Company since the experience revealed them as seriously up-and-coming beer makers. Plus, they were darn nice guys.
A couple week’s remove from beer consumption will leave details
about as scarce as ice sculptures in the Sahara so don’t expect much insight on
the beverages here. Let’s just say their Destiny’s Wit was a crisp, refreshing
wheat beer that I wouldn’t mind drinking several of on a warm summer afternoon.
Their Citra Pale Ale, which has been reviewed on this site and beat Stoudt’s
Karnival Kolsch in a hotly contested episode of Growler Wars, is a powerfully
hopped specimen with notes of pine, caramel, grapefruit, and more. And the
crown jewel of their collection – at least in this reviewer’s eyes – is the 7
Course Red Ale, a malty, smoky, almost stoutish monster that was so good it
moved me to buy a growler of it two days after sampling it for the first time.
It went on to beat Long Trail’s Double IPA, making the brewery the first ever
to win two different segments of our Growler Wars series – an honor that
unfortunately is worth about as much as a bunch of gold bricks would be to a
man drowning in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Needless to say, their beer is good. But the story doesn’t
end there. I actually got to talk to the guys. When I realized that the guys
from Free Will were going to be at the event, I threw a shout via Twitter, the
incredibly powerful social media site for people who are naïve enough to think
that other human beings actually care what they think. They returned with one
saying they would like to meet me. After several missed opportunities and
tweets back-and-forth, including one where I accidentally revealed that I had
just returned from the process of urination, we were able to chat for a few
minutes. Shockingly, considering the level of detail I passed along to Dominic
Capece, co-owner and co-brewmaster (with John Stemler)of Free Will, he had no
reluctance to shake my hand and he did not require that Chap’s Taproom supply
him with armed guards before making my acquaintance.
Before I pass along some details about our conversation, you
must realize a few things:
1)
It’s been a week.2) It was somewhat loud.
3) I was somewhat drunk.
4) I am somewhat socially inept.
5) I am somewhat scared that Dominic could have considered our conversation off the record and that I could be sued or, worse, banned from purchase of 7 Course Red for the rest of my days above ground.
So here’s what I got. The guys got their start making beer
at home and then they started making it for parties that a friend would host.
The attendees at those parties enjoyed the brew so much that they decided to
take it larger-scale. Right now, they have a small operation in Perkasie. They make
the three beers that I stated above. They also do not bottle or can. The beer
is only made for draft consumption. However, the gents are eyeing expansion (both
real estate wise and beer genre wise) should growth continue at its current
state. That growth includes not only the event at Chap’s, but the presence of
their beer at establishments like Whole Foods Plymouth Meeting, where the Pizza
Project purchased both growlers reviewed for the site. Although I did not ask
what he does for a “living,” I also learned that Dominic has an actual day job.
This is something that I was shocked to learn because, when you can make beer
this endlessly drinkable, you really shouldn’t be wasting your time doing
things as trivial as punching a clock or curing cancer. As I think back, I
believe that is pretty much all of the details that I got out of Dominic before
leaving due to my own borderline psychotic fear of pauses in the conversation.
Other than the fact that he has wonderful, piercing eyes. Seriously, I’m glad
my wife wasn’t there on this night. She probably would have left with him. The
bastard!
So here is pretty much all you need to know about Perkasie’s
Free Will Brewing Company: It’s very good beer made by very cool people. Try it
if you see it on tap.--
The Pizza Project
Just a nibble: http://twitter.com/ThePizzaProject
Single slice: http://www.facebook.com/ThePizzaProject
The full pie: http://thepizzaproject.blogspot.com/
