mybeerbuzz-victory

Victory - Swing Session Saison 12oz Bottles

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 18:55:00 +0000

Here’s an exciting new release from Victory Brewing for Swing Session Saison--ale brewed with spices. Victory describes this as “bracing but benign", this Belgian-style ale enlivens any experience with a spicy aromatic start, citrus snap & fresh finish.” Look for a Spring release for this 4.5% ABV brew.
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Victory Village 2012 Being Brewed Today

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 09:13:00 +0000

Here’s a peek at Bill Covaleski from Victory and the guys from One Village Coffee as they work to brew Victory Village 2012 today. The quick caption from Victory today….It smells glorious in here. 1villagecoffee is here brewing this season's Victory Village.

Victory - Red Thunder (aka Baltic Thunder Aged In Wine Barrels)

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 04:50:00 +0000

Surprise…here’s a new one from Victory that no one expected! Today we have Victory Red Thunder--malt beverage aged in wine barrels….I mean who even knew Victory was playing with wine barrels? This is a big 750ml bottle and yes it’s a porter-style beer….and yes it is perhaps my FAVORITE Victory beer….Baltic Thunder aged in wine barrels. Attn: Karen & Bill…save me some!

Philly Beer Week–Brotherly Sudds Brewing Today @ Troegs

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Mon, 07 May 2012 17:18:00 +0000

Here’s a peek courtesy of Troegs with John Trogner & Bill from Victory Brewing getting ready for the mash. The group included members from Troegs, Victory, Nodding Head, Sly Fox, Stoudts & Iron Hill.

Victory Brewing Will Feature Helles Fire & St Boisterous @ New XFinity Beer Hall

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 07:02:00 +0000

Courtesy of Victory Brewing’s twitter account comes word that in addition to their regular flagship beers, the new XFinity Beer Hall in Philly will feature specialty ales like Helles Fire & St. Boisterous.

Victory Brewing to Open 2nd Brewery in Parkesburg, PA

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 12:50:00 +0000

Victory just released a press-release announcing their long-rumored expansion into a 2nd brewing facility in Parkesburg, PA. From Victory:

(DOWNINGTOWN, PA) – Victory Brewing Company is opening a 2nd brewery in Chester County, Pa., which will allow the company to continue to create new, innovative beers and additional employment opportunities.

In 2012. Victory’s current brewery in Downingtown, PA will reach capacity. In order to keep up with consumers’ demand for full-flavored, high quality beer, Victory is forging ahead with expansion plans.

“Our thirsty fans have been asking us for more,” said Bill Covaleski, President and Co-Brewmaster of Victory Brewing Company. “In order to give them what they want, we need more space to make it happen.”

The new brewery location was chosen because of its similarities to Victory’s home in Downingtown. Just as the home brewery recycled an old Pepperidge Farm factory, the expansion brewery is being built within an existing complex in Parkesburg, Pa. The Downingtown location is situated a mere 14 miles from the headwaters of the east branch of the Brandywine Creek and the Parkesburg brewery will be just 17 miles from the headwaters of the west branch.

Victory Storm King Stout Is Really a Dark IPA?

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:08:00 +0000

Here’s an interesting little video from Bill & Ron @ Victory Brewing outlining the origins of their Storm King Stout as a Dark IPA rather than an Imperial Stout.

Victory – No St. Victorious in 2012 & Counting Calories & Carbs

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 07:55:00 +0000

Courtesy of the Victory Brewing “You Want Answers?” blog post:

Q: I haven’t been able to find cases of St. Victorious this year? What gives? I’m having favorite beer withdrawal.- Brad
A: Unfortunately, related to the capacity issues, and production puzzle we’ve talk about in the past, we had to make the difficult decision to skip bottling the saints this year. They haven’t been martyred completely though; you can find St. Victorious now on draft in a few locations and St. Boisterous on draft in just a few weeks. See if you can track them down by using our beerfinder on the web or on your mobile device. Be sure to call the bar before you venture over there to make sure they haven’t kicked the keg!

Q: I am on a restricted carbohydrate diet and the thing I miss most is a good beer. Do you have nutritional information for your beer that includes carb counts?

A: We are happy to hear that you want to make Victory beer part of your responsible diet. We have answered questions about calorie counts in the past, and you can find that information here. Here are the calorie and carbohydrate counts per 12 ounces of our most popular brands:

Golden Monkey: 270 calories, 19 grams of carbs.
HopDevil Ale: 215 calories, 22 grams of carbs.
Prima Pils: 165 calories, 15 grams of carbs.
Storm King Stout: 290 calories, 28 grams of carbs.
Sunrise Weiss: 175 calories, 17 grams of carbs.
Victory Lager: 145 calories, 12 grams of carbs.

Victory - State of the Brewery & 81, 341 Barrels in 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 04:45:00 +0000

Some great news coming out of Victory Brewing in their “state of the Brewery address”

Last month, President Obama addressed the nation to review the successes and challenges of the past year and to provide an outlook for the coming months. One month later, it’s our turn address our nation, the Victory beer nation. So here it is, short and sweet, our State of the Brewery…

In 2011, as you might expect from a brewery, we made a lot of beer. 81,341 barrels to be exact. That’s 22,516 more barrels than last year. And many of those barrels were filled with our new flagship brand, Headwaters Pale Ale.

The beer was named to pay homage to the pristine water we use in our beers. We decided to do our part to keep it clean by awarding the first-ever Headwaters Grant to the Guardians of the Brandywine. The release of Headwaters Pale Ale was so successful, that we actually ran out of the beer for just about a month. But never, fear! We got the hops we needed and have replenished the market and made dozens of water-related puns in the process.

As we scurried to keep up with the demand for Headwaters, the demand for our more-established flagship brands continued to grow. We had to make some difficult decisions in order to make the beer that our incredible fans demanded of us. In 2011, we stopped giving brewery tours and had to scale back production of a few brands.

We dreaded making those unpleasant announcements, but we made a choice to be transparent to our faithful followers and explain the choices we made. In that vein, we are doing our best to respond to all of your questions, comments and complaints thoughtfully and thoroughly. We heard you asking us to bottle our Root Beer, so we did! Then you complimented our homemade ice cream, so we made that available for take-out purchase as well. Keep those questions and comments coming. They keep us on our toes.

As we’ve gotten closer to reaching capacity and finding a way to expand our production, we’ve grown in other ways as well. We hired 17 new full-time employees, some of whom we’ve introduced you to over the year. As we’ve grown in beer production and employment, we’ve also been able to expand our charitable giving, donating more than $45,000 in beer, merchandise and money.

You don’t have to be a non-profit corporation to get goodies from Victory. We wanted to interact with our fans more, so we introduced the Inspired by Victory contest series and Friday Facebook Quizzes. It has been great hearing from many of you on a more regular basis, and we’ve awarded many cash prizes and plenty of Victory swag.

2011 was a very full year for us, and 2012 is shaping up to be no different. Our brewery schedule is maxed out, our event calendar is filling up and our heads are bursting with ideas for keeping it interesting for you.

Now, more than ever before, you can keep up with all of the Victory excitement. We just released a mobile app that will allow you to stay on top of our latest announcements, locate our beers and join in our events. We will continue to be candid about our plans here on the blog, and look forward to interacting with you even more on Facebook and Twitter.

We encourage you to keep up with us through any of those sources, but more importantly to keep drinking our beer!

Happy 16th Birthday to Victory Brewing TODAY!

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 16:00:00 +0000

Rather than add anything beyond Happy 16th Birthday to everyone at Victory Brewing, I’ll let Bill Covaleski tell the story:

Sixteen years ago today, Victory Brewing Company was born, so to speak. With the opening of our doors on this day (February 15, 1996) that we officially began operations. Today, as we celebrate the sweetness of 16 years in business, we take a moment to reflect on where we started.

Our desire to start a brewery was born years before VBC ever opened. In fact, our original business plan, which sits beside me on my desk as I type this, was dated June 1994. I’ve kept this plan to remind me of our idealism and as a reminder that critics aren’t always right. With the only wealth we had being brewing experience gained in Germany and 5 years of industry work, we were desperate for dollars to start our business, and we naturally turned to family and friends to include them in our dream. One of the first potential investors we identified was an older cousin of mine who had parlayed his accounting degree into quite a successful career for himself. When the plan was returned to me, without a check, he had penned various comments all over this very copy, all of which were negative. Some of which were helpful.

The best comment of them all? “Don’t like this. Is B******t!” Very constructive.

The main criticism from him as a prospective investor was that Ron and I had no experience running a business. But wait! We left out an important fact. Ron and I had months of Junior Achievement in 1979 to fall back on!

During our time at the mentored business experience, Ron took on the role of CEO for our faux business. I took on the role of disinterested employee. Either way, Ron had executive experience. See photographic proof:

But none of this impressed my cousin enough to invest in Victory.

As I scan back through the original business plan, ignoring the nay-saying scribbles, I am pleased that much of our initial vision has come to fruition in our sixteen years.

Even back in 1994, we noted that our competitive advantages would come from the ingredients we use and the techniques we employ. That remains true today. The imported malt and whole flower hops we use today are the same stellar ingredients we proposed as we were getting started. In 16 years of business, we are proud to say that we have never compromised on quality in favor of price.

Some of the most significant developments we’ve made since opening in 1996, make where we started seem almost laughable.

As we got started with Victory Brewing Company, the entire business consisted of just Ron and me. We did every job. We were the brewers, book keepers, marketers and delivery drivers.

“Initially, Victory Brewing Company’s products will be distributed by either of our two Brewmasters and principals, Ron Barchet and Bill Covaleski. Allowing us to forge close links with our retailers and gain customer insight, we feel this is the proper approach to take.”
~ The 1994 Business Plan

Today we have more than 200 employees, people who shouldered the burden that has spectacularly outgrown two elementary school friends.

Not only did we start with just two employees but with just one email address. Drink@victorybeer.com was registered to receive all email for the company in 1997. At the time, we couldn’t understand why a beer business would need to receive email and we certainly wouldn’t need more than one address for such things!

Today, we embrace our web presence and the ability to digitally connect with our audience through email, Twitter, Facebook, texts and soon, an app! This profusion of digital communications options is making me feel old.

Ron and I are proud of the success we’ve achieved and humbled by the dedicated fans who have provided the critical support that our crazy beer notions needed to survive. Though we don’t drive the delivery trucks anymore, we still believe in forging close links with our retailers and customers. We welcome your comments via social media and love answering the questions you submit to us at brewmaster@victorybeer.com.

While many 16-year-olds are hoping for car keys on their birthdays, we are grasping tightly to the keys we already have – the keys to our success that we developed back in 1994. So far, so good.

Currently on Tap @ Victory Brewing

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 19:21:00 +0000

LATEST TAP-LIST UPDATES FROM VICTORY’S WEB-SITE:

Victory Will Not Brew 2012 Old Horizontal

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:47:00 +0000

Looks like the increase in demand will not allow Victory the necessary capacity to brew Old Horizontal in 2012….this from the Victory Brewing
Horizontal Hibernation Blog entry:

Snow made an early appearance this year when our first wintry storm of the season hit us this past Saturday. Clearing downed tree limbs at home this the day after the storm, my freezing fingers yearned for a warming winter brew. As I endured the elements, I began to wish I could simply hibernate through the winter and wake up when it is warm again.

Of course, life won’t allow me to sleep through the season and worse yet, a Victory beer will be doing the hibernating on my behalf: Old Horizontal Barleywine.

Just as the moon catches its Z’s on the Old Ho label, our beloved barleywine will be sleeping its way through 2012.

Here’s why…

As we explained earlier in the year, Victory is experiencing incredible growth and impressive demand for our products. While this surge is mostly good news, it has forced us to make some tough decisions. In order to keep up with the demand for our core brands like HopDevil, Primal Pils, Golden Monkey and Headwaters Pale Ale, we have to take a pass on brewing our dear Old Horizontal.

If you’ve been lucky enough to taste the luxurious brew, you know that it is rich with hop aroma and dense with sweet malt character. These flavors come from the ridiculous amount of hops and malt we use when brewing Old Horizontal. “Luxurious” is an appropriate term for this brew, as it is pricey in both ingredients and time. In order to get the candied fruit flavors we know and love, Old Horizontal requires an incredibly time-consuming brewing process. With most of our beers, we can use the second-runnings of sugar-rich wort (the pre-fermentation liquid from the brew) in the recipe. That is not the case with Old Horizontal, so we have to brew twice as much in order to make half the yield of a “regular” Victory beer. With our brewhouse running at peak capacity, we literally can’t afford the time for our precious Old Horizontal. For this reason, we’re saying “Goodnight Moon” as the brew takes an extra long nap this year.

Skipping Old Horizontal this year is as sad for me as it is for many of you. Even though I am the one making this decision, I still lament the choice. In fact, I’m ruining my own collection – I’ve hoarded a bottle or two of each vintage beginning in 1996, and now the chain will be broken. Yet another reason I’d like to cuddle up with Old Horizontal during its winter hibernation.

But there is some good news to keep me (and you) from too many depressed Old Ho woes. We’ve got a few kegs of vintage Old Horizontal still hanging out in our warehouse. Over the course of the year, Old Ho will wake up and make an appearance on draft here at the brewpub. Keep an eye on our draft list, like our Facebook page or join our mobile mailing list to be sure you know when it will be available.

Victory–Trick out Your Treats

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 18:35:00 +0000

When I was growing up we always had one neighbor who pulled a wagon with him as he took his children trick-or-treating. As a youngin’ I was too preoccupied with my quest for candy to pay much attention to what was he was lugging. I just assumed he might need to tote some candy when the haul got too heavy. Now, as an adult, I recognize his brilliance. The Radio Flyer was his very own Brew Pub on Wheels.

As the kids were amassing goodies, the adults were enjoying a few treats of their own. Genius!

Today I’m expanding on my old neighbor’s ingenuity by offering suggestions to turn your kids’ treats into adult indulgences. Trick out your treats with these beer pairing suggestions.

Festbier + Peanut Butter Cup

Back in 1990, the good folks at Hershey told us “there’s no wrong way to eat a Reese’s.” We agree with that sentiment entirely! Here’s our suggestion for one right way to eat one: pair it with Festbier. The malt used in our Festbier has a sweetness and roastiness that gives it a peanut butter character which pairs perfectly with the delectable treat from Reese’s.

Storm King Stout + Tootsie Roll

I remember scoffing at Tootsie Rolls on Halloween as a kid. The little midgees were weak in comparison to the coveted Reese’s mentioned above. But, in my adulthood, I’ve come to appreciate the goodness packed in that little wrapper. Pair the chocolatey taffy treat with a big beer like Storm King Stout and you’ve got a powerful pairing. Like our Russian Imperial Stout, Tootsie’s got a toasted edge to it. There’s more at play here than just sweetness. The burnt chocolatey undertones of the midgee paired with the roasted malt in our Storm King make for a dark and intriguing tempest of flavor.

HopDevil IPA + Candy Corn

Pairing the most widely available Halloween candy with our most popular beer makes perfect sense. Not only can you track down both of these goodies with ease, but the complementary flavors are a no-brainer. The caramel sweetness evident in both the sugary kernels and the devilish ale meld wonderfully when enjoyed together.

Golden Monkey + Almond Joy

Almond Joy’s got nuts, Monkey’s don’t because, sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t! Actually, this pairing has nothing to do with the almonds. It’s the coconut in the candy and the banana notes in the Golden Monkey that make this a joyful duo. Both boast tropical fruit flavors that work well together. (If you aren’t feeling nutty, Mounds is a simple substitute for this pairing suggestion.)

V-Twelve + Sweet Tarts

Pucker up for a brilliant combination of sweet and sour. The fruitiness and sweetness found in our V-Twelve balance perfectly with the aptly named candies.

With these suggestions in mind, I encourage you to load up your wagon, snag some of your kiddos’ candy and Taste Victory!

Victory–Best By Bottling Date Specifications

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 15:08:00 +0000

I always get asked how long the Best By dates stamped on Victory beers are form the actual bottling dates…

From the Victory Blog:

Hop Devil – 5 months
Prima Pils – 5 months
Victory Lager – 5 months
Hop Wallop – 1 year (this beer is bottle conditioned)
Headwaters Pale Ale – 5 months
Summer Love – 5 months
Golden Monkey – 3 years
Storm King – 5 years
Old Horizontal – 5 years

For example, your HopDevil stamped Dec. 29, 2011 was bottled on July 29, 2011.

Victory Headwaters is in the Tanks Again!

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 17:52:00 +0000

From Victory:

Hoppy October at Victory
Things have been bustling here at Victory Brewing Company over the last month, and much of the action involved hops. If you've been following our Headwaters Blog, then you've witnessed lots of hoppy happenings. The brewery was buzzing when we got the much-anticipated delivery of our Citra hops a few weeks ago. Now our first batch of Headwaters Pale Ale with those hops is in the fermentation tanks getting ready to hit shelves in mid-October. In addition to the Headwaters-specific hoppenings, our brewers got together and selected the hops that we'll be using in all of our beers in the upcoming year. You can see what's involved in evaluating and choosing the hops by watching this video.

New Brew
Our newest beer, Victory Otto Ale, will ship from Victory on Oct. 15. The beer is a smoked Belgian dubbel, inspired by a trip Ron and Bill took in the '80s through Belgium and Bamberg, Germany, home of the smoked "rauch" beers. We like to think that Victory Otto Ale combines the best of both worlds.

Gourd-geous
Gather your gourds and collect your carving knives, it's time to be Inspired by Victory. Carve a Victory logo, brand character or brand image into a pumpkin, take a photo, e-mail it to inspired@victorybeer.com and you could win $50 and eternal glory. Read the rules before you enter.

Dark Wednesday
On Wednesday, Nov. 23, we will be releasing Dark Intrigue. The beer, created by aging Storm King Stout in bourbon barrels, sold out at our retail shop in just 43 minutes last year. We made more this year, but expect fans to start lining up well before our retail shop opens at 11:30 a.m. Check our blog for more updates on the festivities.

In Season
Festbier is the perfect beer for these brisk fall evenings. Our Festbier is a medium-bodied amber lager, brewed in the style of the great Oktoberfest beers of Munich. We brew ours with all German malts, and European whole flower hops, to keep it true to style.

DarkDevil
One dark and stormy night, the ghost of a brewmaster past took a glass, filled it halfway with HopDevil then topped it off with Storm King Stout. As the foam rose to the top of the glass, the DarkDevil was born. This hauntingly good beverage tastes its very best at midnight, on the night of a full moon. (Or anytime, at your favorite watering hole. But don't tell the Ghost Brewmaster we said that.)

Victory–Dark Intrigue, Cans, V-12, Wild Devil & More Questions Answered

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 06:25:00 +0000

From Victory Blog:

After last month’s question and answer blog post, you all seemed inspired to send in more questions than ever. It was great to hear from so many Victory beer drinkers and brewpub visitors. We did our best to compile and answer as many of your questions as possible. Keep reading to see if your inquiring mind can be put to rest.

Keep those questions coming! Send them to brewmaster@victorybeer.com and we will address them in an upcoming blog. If we missed your question this time around, feel free to submit it again. We will do our best to address every query.

Q: Will Dark Intrigue be coming back this year?

A: Yes! In fact, Storm King Stout has already been poured into the bourbon barrels and begun the barrel-aging process. We were thrilled by the popularity of this brew last year, so this year we’re more than doubling our batch. You can get yours at in the retail store at the brewpub on “Dark Wednesday,” the day before Thanksgiving. Fun fact: Last year, we sold 80 cases in just 43 minutes!

Q: Does it truly matter what glass I use (assuming I’m not talking about a coffee mug or sippy cup)? How do I know which kind of glass to use for different styles of beer?

A: We firmly believe that the glassware you use when enjoying beer does make a difference. The experience can be entirely different based on the shape and size of your glass. The shape of the glass directly impacts the amount of aroma you can capture, the color you see and the size of the gulp you can take. Using the coordinating glassware for a specific beer style will allow you to enjoy the full experience as the brewmaster intended. For a good reference to match your beer style and glass, check out this guide from Beeradvocate.

Q: Have you considered canning your flagships?

A: Per CEO and Brewmaster, Ron Barchet: “We already package in cans: 5.16 and 15.5 gallon returnables.” Joking aside, it is something we have considered and it is a possibility down the road. However, at this time, we do not have the space in our tight facility to add another packaging line.

Q: I love all your brews! The 1st one that I tried was V-12. Will this ever be available in 6 Packs?

A: We are glad to hear you enjoyed it! V-12 is a special beer that deserves the regal, 750 ml corked package in which it currently lives. We bottle condition V-12 within the large bottle, which adds to its complexity over the long term. It is also important to note V-12 has a pricey production cost, which makes it hard to price competitively for a 6-pack market.

Q: I was wondering if you could give a status update on WildDevil? It is hands-down my favorite beer. Is there any chance of seeing it again?

A:

While we can’t give you exact release dates for the next batch of WildDevil, we can tell you that it will make an appearance again some day. We consider WildDevil to be so wild that we never know when it’s going to be peeking its head back out. There is no specific date for release, but Bill and Ron have heard your request (and the request of others) for the return of WildDevil and it will likely be brewed again sooner than later. Rest assured; WildDevil will live again.

Q: I was wondering, what are Bill and Ron’s favorite mash-ups of their own beers?

A:

Ron occasionally likes to combine Victory Lager with Bockbier, or he enjoys Festbier with a splash of Prima on top. For some of Bill’s favorites, check out this video.

Q: Would you consider doing a year-round Dunkel similar to say a hofbrau or ayinger? You seem to tackle the German style well and there are so few good American dunkels.

A: Thank you for the compliment. We enjoy our Dunkles here in the winter, when we do a single, draft-only batch. Sadly, our love of the style hasn’t translated to the masses. We bottled it for several years in the late nineties and early 2000s, but the sales couldn’t sustain the brand. With the ever-evolving tastes of craft beer consumers, we are hopeful that the demand and appreciation of the style will grow and someday allow for us to package it again. For now, look for it in our brewpub every winter.

Victory Village Returns (Coffee Brown Ale)

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 06:02:00 +0000

From the Victory Blog:

Peanut butter and jelly. Rocky and Bullwinkle. Green eggs and ham. Wills and Kate. And this week, earning a place in the pantheon of great pairs, Victory beer and One Village Coffee.

The idea for Victory Village, a blend of Victory beer and One Village Coffee’s Smart Blend, started like so many good ideas do, over a beer in our brewpub on a cold January night. Some folks from One Village Coffee were here for a Tweet-up event, and started chatting with Victory Owner and Brewmaster Bill Covaleski. They all realized that combining their coffee and our beer could be a delicious experiment.

They were right. Last year’s batch of Victory Village was such a success, spawning a “Bring Back Victory Village” Facebook page after the beer was gone, that we decided to do just that.

A few weeks ago, when a brown ale we brewed especially to combine with the One Village Coffee was ready, Woody Decasere and Rob Altieri brought 66 pounds of ground Smart Blend coffee here to Victory. Then, along with Bill and Senior Brewer Adam Bartles, they scooped the ground coffee into bags that acted like giant filters and steeped the coffee in one of our tanks. The smell of freshly brewed coffee drifted down hallways and through the fermentation cellar, mingling with wisps of the aroma of roasted malt and fermenting beer. The scent alone made it clear that combining these two popular beverages was an excellent idea.

Once the coffee was brewed, the brewers took over and blended it with the brown ale. The flavors and aromas of blackberry and blueberry in the Smart Blend complement the fruity plum and raisin flavors in the brown ale, giving this year’s batch of Victory Village a unique, delicious flavor.

Victory Village will be available on draft at the Victory Brewpub, and at select locations in Pennsylvania.

Victory–Inspired by Victory Video Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:53:00 +0000

Victory Brewing–Volver Ale (Jose Garces)

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 13:23:00 +0000

Last week I showed off the keg label for Victory Brewing Volver Ale, so today I was surprised to see the 12oz bottle packaging. This “Ale Brewed with Spices” is a collaboration brew with Chef Jose Garces. “Volver is ‘to return’ & we think you will again and again to this crisp refreshing beer. Volver is a wheat ale with distinctive citrus sparkle. Volver a lavida is a beautiful Spanish phrase meaning ‘return to life.’ Volver was created in collaboration with Chef Jose Garces to bring you back time after time. Volver is to return again perhaps to an old friend. Volver is that friend & we hope you’ll share it with yours. “

Victory Brewing–Volver (Jose Garces) & Victory Ice Cream!

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 12:58:00 +0000

Here’s an interesting new keg-only beer from our pals at Victory Brewing. I believe this “Ale Brewed with Spices” is actually an American Wheat style ale that is the house beer at the Jose Garces restaurants in Philadelphia, but stay tuned for further details.

As a bonus I thought you’d want to hear the news that Victory is now making Ice Cream using the unfermented and un-hopped wort they use in the beer making process. Look for flavors like Triple Monkey Banana Ice cream (with nuts & caramel), Hopped Up Devil cayenne & cinnamon ice cream (with chocolate covered coffee beans) and Storm King Crunch chocolate ice cream (with chocolate malted milk balls).

Victory Brewing–Meet Kevin McGovern

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:01:00 +0000

From the Victory Blog:

Last month, in our first entry in the Meet Victory series, we all learned a little more about Ron Barchet, co-founder and CEO of Victory Brewing Company. Now we would like to introduce you to Kevin McGovern, the Senior Cellar Brewer here at Victory. If you’re drinking a Victory beer right now, Kevin had a part in brewing it. We sat down with Kevin over a beer in the brewpub, and here’s what he had to say.

Q: How long have you worked for Victory?
A: It will be four years in August.

Q: What is the coolest thing about your job?
A: Duh! [Takes big drink of beer]

Q: How does your role at Victory affect a Victory beer drinker?
A: As the Senior Cellar Brewer, I am involved with the aspects of brewing once our wort leaves the brew kettle. This includes, but is not limited to monitoring fermentation and maturation, separating and filtering and physical checks (read: drinking!) of clarity, flavor and aroma. So, next time you hoist an aromatic, delicious, bright golden Prima, you can thank me. Or, better yet, buy me one!

Q: What is the worst job you ever had?
A: I haven’t had too many bad ones. I worked at an oyster bar, and had to wash dishes and devein shrimp all day. But I also got to make myself plates of nachos, so that was cool.

Q: Tell me something about yourself that no one would know just by looking at you.
A: I’ve been on America’s Funniest Home Videos. A friend and I were tossing an empty keg back and forth and I tried to do a handstand on the keg and fell off. I see myself on reruns on ABC Family all the time.

Q: When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A: First I wanted to be a carpenter, which I still kind of want to be. Then I wanted to be an architect but I took my first drafting class and decided no. But now I think I could be an architect, because of the attention to detail.

Q: If you won the lottery, what would you do?
A: I would pay off my parents’ house, travel a lot, maybe buy a house. I probably wouldn’t quit my job though.

Q: Finish this sentence: Beer is . . .
A: Dericious.

Q: What is your favorite candy bar?
A: Three Musketeers

Q: What is your favorite line to quote from a movie?
A: I don’t think you can print that.

Q: What is your perfect Victory food and beer pairing?
A: A tall frosted Prima with just about anything from a pig. If you want to get specific, pork chili verde.

Q: What was your favorite TV show when you were a kid?
A: Boy Meets World. They play two episodes now at 7 a.m., so when I’m on night shift I come home, have a beer and watch it again.

Q: They’re making a movie about you, and it starts filming tomorrow. Who is cast as you? Who is cast as your love interest?
A: I get that I look like Keifer Sutherland when my hair is longer, so maybe him. I’ve always had a big crush on the mom from Married with Children, so I would cast Katy Segal.

Victory–Calories

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 11:07:00 +0000

Just in case you were wondering how many calories are in your Victory Brewing beers……this form the Victory Beer Blog:

Some of our beers are more calorie-friendly than others. Here are the calorie counts per 12 ounces of our most popular brands:

Golden Monkey: 270 calories
Headwaters: 160 calories
HopDevil Ale: 215 calories
Prima Pils: 165 calories
Storm King Stout: 290 calories
Summer Love: 160 calories
Sunrise Weiss: 175 calories
Victory Lager: 145 calories

Victory Brewing–Otto Smoked Malt Dubbel

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 13:43:00 +0000

Here’s a great new label approval for our friends down at Victory Brewing. Today we have Otto Ale, a smoked malt Belgian-style dubbel. Otto will come in 750ml corked bottles and hold on to a hearty 8.1% ABV. Victory announced this brew earlier this week so it was cool to see the label approval today. Label Text: “In 1987, when we arrived in Bamberg Germany for the first time, St. Otto was not there to greet two thirsty travelers in a rented Flat. He’d been dead for 848 years but we were alive, and our recent visit to the Belgian brewery of Orval only fanned the flames of our desire for fermented pleasures. The smoked malt (‘rauch’) beers of this lovely town where St. Otto was once Bishop were our siren song, luring us into deep, exotic flavors that we never before imagined in beer. Three decades later we wondered what smoked malt might add to a Belgian-style dubbel ale. Here is it, an Otto revival of sorts. We hope it helps rejuvenate some of our brain cells that were martyred in Bamberg so long ago…Bill & Ron.”…and yes it DOES say Here is it not Here it is?!

Victory Brewing Bill Covaleski–Keeping his Job

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Thu, 19 May 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Good News from the Victory Brewing Blog…Bill is staying!

NEPA Premier of Victory Brewing Headwaters Pale Ale–March 4th on the Friday BeerBuzz & Tasting @ Krugels

noreply@blogger.com (Bil Cord) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 15:48:00 +0000

NEPA craft-beer lovers….Mark your calendars for March 4th

Join us on the Friday BeerBuzz on WILK (103.1FM and wilknewsradio.com) at 8:35AM when we will have Victory on hand to help us sample and launch the NEPA premier of Victory Brewing’s NEW Headwaters Pale Ale.

As if that’s not fun enough, we want to SHARE! Join Brian Whetstone from Victory at Krugel’s Georgetown Deli & Beer (Rt 309 in WIlkes-Barre Twp by the Big Cow!) from 5-7 PM as he and I will be pouring the first samples of Victory Headwaters Pale Ale to hit NEPA. This is Victory’s NEW Flagship beer to be sure to come out and be the first to sample it in NEPA. See you there!