Tag Archives: AUBURN NY

NEXT CHAPTER BREWPUB

United States Brewpubs,

Image result for next chapter brewpub

AUBURN, NEW YORK

Inside a red brick building just down the block from Shep’s at Genesee Center mini mall, NEXT CHAPTER BREWPUB came to life in August 2018. Local married homebrewers Scott and Michelle De Lap decided to open the snugly Auburn nanobrewery where proprietary and guest beers, local spirits, wines and cocktails get washed down by wood-fire pizza, burgers, wings and paninis.

Several cherry red-seated hardwood tables, a cozily couched book-shelved lounge area, a Prohibition Era silver inlet black-tiled ceiling and antique red brick walls fill out the Edison-lit twelve-seat wood bar. A tiled wood stove serves pizzas to the local minions joining my wife and I at Next Chapter early June ’24 on a sunny Friday afternoon.

Sweet red-orange-yellow fruiting glided thru Blondie, a pilsner-malted pale ale that’s sunshiny sessionable.

Adding pureed blood orange to the aforementioned blonde ale, Blood Orange Blondie gained tart mandarin, tangy tangerine and sweet clementine illusions for its sugary mix.

Utilizing a sugary pale malt base, Chapter Blueberry Ale retained a light sweet n’ sour blueberry lacquering and lightly creamed honeyed wheat stickiness.

Contrasting slight earthen melon rind bittering with mild watermelon sweetness, spritzy Chapter Watermelon Wheat Ale gained cucumber watered celery crisping.

Underripe peach tartness countered sweet peach tanginess for Peachy Keen Kolsch, a dry pilsner malted moderation with tertiary apricot skin tannins, lemon licks and cucumber slumber.

Perfumed citrus spicing anchored West Coast-styled NYS IPA, a Cascade-Centennial-hopped medium body with lemony grapefruit bittering and orange-oiled guava and passionfruit tartness.

Local Crow City roasted coffee beans met rich cacao nibs bittering for nitrogenated Chapter Crow City Coffee Stout, but its lemon rind-soured espresso spunk and dry red wine esters nearly prevailed.

SHEP’S BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

Shep's Brewing Company | Auburn NY

AUBURN, NEW YORK

On the corner of Genesee and Williams Street in Auburn, New York (a northern Finger Lakes town), SHEP’S BREWING COMPANY began in a humble Nolan’s Department Store basement. Becoming Auburn’s first brewery since prohibition during 2014, Shep’s is also the oldest brewery in the county. Run by hyperactive entrepreneurial brewmeister, Garrett Shepherd, the glorified nanobrewery crafts many fine one-offs, offbeat variants and distinct standards.

A glistening silver lettered SHEP’S sign leads patrons to the gray walled pub. The bark-topped, plastic tile-fronted bar features pendant lights. A few metal-seated round wood tables, two walled wood pews and an overhead doored front porch provide seating across from the 15-seat bar (with bright blue bar back wall). There are pendant lights, exposed ceiling pipes and twelve stainless steel draught handles at the central tap station. Windowed brew tanks are behind the bar.

While conversing with the animated Shepherd, I sank eleven diversified brews during an early nighttime perusal, June ’24.

Musky herbal lemon saddled grassy-hopped Cash Rulz Cream Ale, a fine light-bodied opener with wispy dried maize rusticity.

Oats-sugared sweety corn paced lemony straw-cleared moderation, Laker Lager, a classic American standard.

Closer to an IPA, Harley Quinn Pale Ale draped semi-sharp lemony grapefruit-peeled orange rind bittering and dry wood flurry over sugared pale malts.

Mossy English-styled Alfie’s Pub Ale draped sweet tea herbage atop reticent rye-dried biscuit bottom.

Dewy peat sweetness, roasted tobacco crisping and mild orange rot merged for B. Shep’s Flashpoint Scotch Ale, a crystal malted wee heavy.

Zesty lemon glimmered alongside mandarin orange tartness and navel orange tanginess for Lit Wit, a mildly spiced Belgian wheat ale with gleaming Cryo hop oiling.

Glistening lemony grapefruit sugaring and brisk orange peel sweetness contrasted pine needled bittering for summertime NEIPA, There Is No Spoon, secured by vanilla-kissed oated creaming.

Luscious lactic dessert treat, Orange Creamsicle Milkshake IPA, perfectly re-created a vanilla-sweetened orange-sugared creamsicle, adding salted lemony pineapple tanginess as well as mild pine resin.

Tidy tropical cocktail, Jim Brady Pina Colada Sour, retained stylish lemon-soured coconut toasting, juicy pineapple punch and mild vanilla creaming.

Walnut bark chocolate sweetness guided Franklin Porter, gaining musty dried fruiting, musky cellared truffle scuttle and weedy soy snip.  

Though lacking peanut butter creaming, Extraterrestrial Peanut Butter and Chocolate Stout tacked dewy earthy soy earthiness onto sweet brown chocolate goodness, picking up tertiary walnut, hazelnut and Brazil nut snips.

 

PRISON CITY BREWING

United States Brewpubs,

Riot Run 5K | Great American Brewery Runs

AUBURN, NEW YORK

Established in 2014, ‘Industrial chic’ downtown Auburn gastropub, PRISON CITY BREWING, expanded beyond its State Street digs in 2020 to include an enormous production facility, known as North Street Brewery & Taproom (with prominent black silo, outdoor courtyard and dairy farm one mile away). The brainchild of married home brewers, Dawn and Marc Schulz, Prison City now includes a third location outside the Finger Lakes in Lake Placid.

A black awning with silver Prison City Pub & Brewing lettering sits above the windowed corner pub at the former Civil War Armory. Its tan-yellowed brick exterior contrasts the old red brick walled interior where exposed pipes hang low from the black art deco ceiling. The L-shaped bar with Edison lights services the surrounding plank wood tables and umbrella-laden, metal-furnished State Street patio.

On a busy Friday afternoon lunchtime jaunt, June ’24, enjoyed turkey club and bisque soup while quaffing ten approachable libations.

Classic light-bodied PC Cream Ale let mild lemon continuance gain subtle herbal spicing then grassy hop astringency above crusty white breading.

Mild lemony orange spicing casually swayed Crispy Boys Light Lager, an off-dry moderation with corn-husked pilsner malting.

Tantalizing coral-hazed light lager variant, Crispy Boys Blood Orange, tossed blood orange tartness into lightly creamed vanilla midst as mild lemon-seeded bittering caressed finishing navel orange rind, pith and peel swipes.

Orange-peeled tangerine puree received funky Belgian yeast fungi for Tangerine Wit, a perky coriander-spiced spritzer with floury white wheat base.

Briskly assertive Mass Riot New England IPA allowed piney Simcoe hop herbage and mild cannabis pungency to scour lemony Citra/Mosaic-hopped grapefruit and orange peel tanginess for juicy sunshine.

Sharp hazy golden cleared Loop Chaser New England IPA coalesced salty lemon lime bittering with tart guava-mango swipe, tangy tangerine snip and dainty herbage above lightly creamed oated wheat.

One-off hazy IPA, Ahhhromatic Pilot, utilized Citra cryo hops to promote its salty lemon liming, navel orange zesting and peachy pineapple tang, letting light pine resin soak the mild oats sugaring.

Spunky lunar eclipse celebrator, Dark In The Daytime Stout, brought chocolate-dipped coffee roast to cocoa-dried nuttiness.

Sweetly creamed Tahitian and Madagascar vanilla influence regaled black chocolate bittering of robust mocha porter, Hibercation, leaving lightly hop char upon tertiary cola nuttiness, coffee bittering and caramelized dried fruiting.

Madagascar vanilla joined toasted coconut sweetness and gingerbread spicing for brown chocolate-backed Imperial Stout, Wham Whams, a perfect dessert treat.