The Triangle

Issue date: 5/16/08 Section: Arts & Entertainment

Media Credit: Karl Kuchs Yards appears to pull ahead in the race between local Philadelphia India Pale Ales.

I usually judge a brewery by their IPA --- it's a good measuring stick. Dogfish Head and Bell's Brewery have excellent IPAs, and the rest of their lineup is just as good. I reviewed the Wild Goose IPA not too long ago. It wasn't good, and neither are the rest of their beers. I think this works because the IPA is a simple beer that packs a big flavor. It is also pretty variable form brewery to brewery. Most pilsners taste the same, but you can get some distinct IPAs with distinct flavors, and the breweries that go for the big bold IPAs are generally the best.

That brings us to this week's article, a competition between two local IPAs. On one side we have Philadelphia Brewing Company's Newbold IPA. On the other side is Yards IPA. The Yards master brewer had a falling out with the people who ran the business side of things at his old brewery, so he moved to a new location and kept the Yards name. Now his old business partners retained ownership of the old brewery and PBC rose up from its ashes like a phoenix.

Some people are taking sides in this about which brewery is better. Some people take sides based on personal politics, but I don't care about that. I will go with whoever has the best beer. So, let's figure that out. (See chart below.)

Yards has the better IPA, but, quite frankly, both IPAs are subpar overall and these two breweries have so much more to offer. Yards has their 'Ales of the Revolution' led by Thomas Jefferson Tavern Ale, and PBC has their Rowhouse Red, a Philadelphia style bière de garde, a revolutionary ale by its own right. What can I say? Sometimes you have to look past a brewery's IPA to get to their good stuff.

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