Down by the river, Part 2

It’s getting to the tail end of the double Belgian wit seasonal that River Horse Brewing introduced in March in draft and bottles.

Co-owner Glenn Bernabeo says they have one more tank to run through, but the beer has exceeded expectations, doing well enough to earn a place in the Lambertville brewery’s year-round lineup.

That’s not official, Glenn says, but the brew has cleared a crucial hurdle toward life as a year-round beer. Stay tuned.

RH's wit (7% ABV) debuted around March 1 as the first of a brewmaster's reserve series, and was a centerpiece of what RH poured at ShadFest April 26-27. (Check out the stills from the video shot at RH’s back lot on the Saturday of the weekend event in Lambertville. The video is for a larger piece we have in the works on RH.)

All of RH’s beers were on tap for the event, and Glenn says the brewery went through nearly 30 half barrels over ShadFest. The brewery sold 1,200 pint glasses as well. And the overall attendance at the brewery? Well, it’s just a guess, but somewhere between 1,500-2,000 people.

FYI: Glenn and Chris Walsh are closing in on their first anniversary of taking over as owners of RH and, as you would expect, are busy making plans for the next year.

Speaking of anniversaries, Tim Kelly notches his first year at the Tun Tavern this month. Tim is an alumnus of Flying Fish in Cherry Hill, and FF’s loss has clearly been the Tun’s gain.

When he took over, Tim noted he wanted to put more pub-brewed lagers on tap in Atlantic City. That’s not always an easy task, since the longer cold conditioning required for lagers ties up tank space, compared to ales, which by nature have faster turn-around times.

But Tim has managed to keep his word, and not just with seasonal lagers, like bocks. Last fall the Tun put on a Vienna lager, although its decoction-mashed Oktoberfest was fermented with an ale yeast.

Right now, the Tun’s winding down its doublebock and pouring a dark lager that’s a response to bar patrons looking for a Yuengling-like beer. But the real treat is on the horizon, a Czech pilsner that’s due on tap some time in June.