BEER

[iamjs]

This hasn’t been done in a while, and the pgh brewery scene is pretty robust, so i am requesting that the posters of this fine website give their personal opinion on the best breweries in pgh at the moment.

I'll take a stab.

Brew Gentlemen
Roundabout
Voodoo (anxious to see what comes from sour program)
----decent margin----
Dancing Gnome (higher if you like just IPA)
Grist (all around solid, branching out a bit more lately)
Insurrection/Cellar Works/Cinderlands (combination of good stuff and decent ambition = promise)
Strange Roots (haven't visited since rebrand, hope it allows these guys to rebound a bit)
Hitchhiker (sigh, few good IPAs but overall unproficient trend-chasers)
East End/Helltown/Hop Farm (meh)

Haven't really had enough from the rest to say. Fury and Yellow Bridge seem about the same from the few I've had. ShuBrew seems a bit above those.

I think East End's stuff is decent or at least better than meh, but it's rarely a first, second, or third option if I'm out and I see it on tap.

That said, if I'm at the Strip shopping and I have some time, I'll stop in to see if they have anything new.

[Troy Loney]

Voodoo is Meadville, I don't consider them a Pittsburgh brewer.

Brew Gentleman and Hitchiker are in the same boat to me, I'll look at the draft list when I get there and just be like, "christ, what is all this ****". Half the "beers" on the menu are more like sparkling wines or ciders.

I wish I remembered the brewery, but the Independent had some local Pilsner on draft that was really good. The signature IPA at Grist house is solid, so they're basically just like East End in that regard, a good staple beer for the times you show up and the menu is filled with experimental stuff, you know you can get something.

[MrKennethTKangaroo]

Grist house is probably the best brewery to drink at (at least in the summer) in town.

[the wicked child]

Hell yeah, they are selling cases of The Plague this year.

[iamjs]

so Helltown announced today that they have acquired Rivertowne in a closed auction

Helltown Brewing in Mt. Pleasant appears to be the successful bidder for parts of Rivertowne Brewing, which had been up for sale in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Pittsburgh.

A judge will be asked Tuesday to approve the sale of the Export brewery and assets in the Verona and Monroeville locations to Helltown. Brewery Acquisition Company and Helltown Brewing had the combined winning bid of $2.1 million, according to court records.

The future of assets at Rivertowne locations in North Huntingdon and Pittsburgh’s North Shore will be decided at a later auction, court filings said. Inquiries about both locations were received by Rivertowne, but a bid was not received by the deadline.

Helltown Brewing announced the acquisition Monday in a move that would put both brands in one place. Investor Arnie Burchianti of Mars said he and brewery founder Shawn Gentry are excited to expand.

https://triblive.com/local/westmoreland ... ne-brewing

WTF is Brewery Acquisition Company? There is nothing on google that comes back as a result except the above article.

[Shyster]

I would imagine "Brewery Acquisition Company" is a company created by Helltown as part of its bid so that a separate company will be acquiring the assets. It's very common in business transactions to see companies like "[Name] Acquisition Company" or "[Name] Merger Sub" or "[Name] Real Estate Holdings" involved in the transactions. It's not going to be a separate business from Helltown ; it's just how the corporate/tax lawyers are structuring the deal.

[MrKennethTKangaroo]

Its registered address on the state website is an office building in wexford. There is a Cpa for a the same address. So it is hard to say

[iamjs]

good to know.

I kinda figured it was either that or a larger group that was splitting interest with Helltown.

[Shyster]

Ya. I see it was also created just last week. It's going to be a shell company that was just formed to buy/hold the assets. The corporate guys love to create new companies. It's not uncommon to see an LLC owned by an LLC owned by a limited partnership where the general partner is a corporation whose shares are all owned by a trust. Stuff like that.

[Lemon Berry Lobster]

Oh cool maybe they'll be able to make good beer now. The brewery is only 10 minutes from me.

[robbiestoupe]

Sad to hear Rivertowne went bankrupt. Their beers weren't my favorite, but they always had a good selection of other beers at their place. I also played poker with the owner and remember him talking about starting his own brewery. Cool dude.

[Jim]

They tried to be a craft restaurant chain (Rock Bottom-ish) and a distribution brewery. Had they zeroed in more on one or the other they might have maintained. They just couldn't handle both models.

[Jim]

They tried to be a craft restaurant chain (Rock Bottom-ish) and a distribution brewery. Had they zeroed in more on one or the other they might have maintained. Their product just wasn't strong enough to handle both models.

[Freddy Rumsen]

You can say that again.

[MR25]

Having a Zombie Dust right now. Gotta say, pretty good.

[Jim]

On Fleek. Nom nom nom

[Kraftster]

On Fleek. Nom nom nom

Has to be one of the most underrated shelfie beers out there. I keep planning to buy and hold a bunch and then I can’t help but drink through it. Really hoping there’s some in barrels somewhere.

[tjand72]

I bought a 30 pack of Hamm's for about $14 on the recommendation of a coworker. It's not paradise, but I don't regret it.

[Jim]

On Fleek. Nom nom nom

Has to be one of the most underrated shelfie beers out there. I keep planning to buy and hold a bunch and then I can’t help but drink through it. Really hoping there’s some in barrels somewhere.

Grabbed a case a few months back. Having another now. Good for a lazy sunday.

[iamjs]

I bought a 30 pack of Hamm's for about $14 on the recommendation of a coworker. It's not paradise, but I don't regret it.

I'm more surprised that they still make it.

[Shyster]

Interesting. Hamm's is owned and brewed by MillerCoors. I figured it would be owned by Pabst, which seems to have bought up most of those old brand names (Schlitz, Blatz, Schmidt, Stroh's, etc.).

[robbiestoupe]

Hamm's. My beer of choice in college. Best of the <$20 per case beers imo.

[count2infinity]

Miller high life was my go to and still is my go to for cheap stuff. Living the high life.

[MrKennethTKangaroo]

I had an MGD over the weekend and I didn't regret it.

[grunthy]

Banquet is my cheap beer of choice.