And IMHO, anything from Slyfox, Oskar Blues, or 21st Amendment is faaar suprior to Magic Hat. Not even close.

May be a West Coast thing. I'm in Philly, and there is no shortage of craft lagers. Besides Victory, Sly Fox makes a couple different lagers. Then there is Stoudt's, they've been making top notch lagers since 1987, including some really complex brews (Honey Double Mai Bock). Eastern PA has deep German ties, so I assume that is a large part of the reason.

Considering you'll be over the July 4th weekend, besides checking to see if places will be open, may want to avoid the Center City area. Unless you want to take in the festivities. The places in South Philly will be very relaxed, lots of people leave town that weekend.

Didn't LeBan (local top food critic) rate Chhya and Ultimo as a tie for best in the city? I'd have one at Chhya, then Ultimo and pick up some special beers to take off the caffiene edge! (Ultimo has a great selection of beers).

Agree with Termini's, Artisan Boulanger, & Belle Cakery. All awesome, very close to each other. And, then you can get the coffee at Ultimo or Chhya (or both). All within walking distance.

Correct. The sap direct from the tree has a viscosity very close to water. So it's pretty easy substitute sap for water in the brewing process. You have to boil it down to make the syrup. About 40-50 gallons of sap will make 1 gallon of syrup. To brew with any real quantity of syrup would be super expensive.

Fiddlehead, in Burlington, VT, made it last year. Not sure if it was draught only though. Good luck getting ahold of any of the Lawson product, I think you have to camp out at the Warren General Store...

Had some of the "All Day IPA" recently. I really like it, plenty of hop flavor. Actually it was hard to tell it was a sub 5% ale.

I like the large format bottles. I remember when they first started popping up in the mid-90's. Pretty sure Rogue was a pioneer of the 220z bomber. Also recall Stoudt's having 750ml of their Honey Double Mai Bock. Rather than carting around a six pack, just grab one or two big bottles and good to go.

I had the pho bo kho at Pho Ta. I thought it was very good. The broth seemed especially rich and there were plenty of nice chunks of steak. I'll go back to try some other soups. I'd put on par with Nam Phung.

Re: Wokano, never had the dim sum, but I've been a couple of times for their more unusual Chinese dishes (duck tounges, fried baby frogs). Not bad.

I think it was $8 for an 8 oz pour.

Yes, there was zero publicity, and those that were there kept tight lipped. But I was really suprised to see still on the next day.

I think it's the variety that may put them on the top of my list. Some of the others have a narrower focus (belgians, italian, german, locals). About a month or so ago, they had Pliny the Younger on tap, all day Saturday and Sunday.

Pub on Passyunk East. The place me kind of a dump, and I would not go there at night due to the crowd of hipsters, but the beer selection may be the best in the city. 13 taps, not your run of the mill micros, usually 3-4 really special brews. They constantly rotate so you never know what's on tap.

Isn't there a place on E. Passyunk Ave. that advertises Prime Meats? I just recall seeing a sign.

They are canned.

I've been enjoying Celebration Ale since the late 80's and have never felt there was an "off year". Wish I had a few extra cases stashed away for the winter.

Target. They actually carry Hatch brand canned chiles.

Northeast Taproom is where I got initiated in good beer, in 1988. I eventually moved two blocks down the street, which meant I spent a LOT of time there! The Taproom was always a great time.

btw, Pete has a new bar in Reading; Mikes Tavern on Exeter St.

This is a new one: http://revolutioncider.com/

Extremely dry and unfiltered. Though, probably impossible to find.

I do not believe this is accurate.