UJ’s Hopfest
Posted In Beer
Union Jack’s Manatawny hosted their annual Hopfest, an adult’s only bunny hop celebration. The ever popular Pliny the Younger (disguised in the morning as Chinese take-out) was set to be tapped at 1pm and since reservations (yep, they take them) occupied every table in the place, I knew if I wanted a glass of this dopamine-inducing concoction, I’d have to claim a barstool pretty early. So I camped out… those Adirondack chairs are pretty comfy! UJ’s opened at 11am, but anticipating an afternoon of hoppiness, I didn’t want to dive in just yet, first finishing a beer stein of coffee and a growler of water. By noon, UJ’s was swamped with beer geeks packed in like a sold out bock concert. By a quarter to PtY, the bar exceeded full occupancy and the hop cult demanded their Pliny in unison.
Even though Tom bought more glasses for the event, many of the attendees already coveted a glass of something else, from Elder to Moylan’s Moylander Double IPA, when the PtY was tapped. The whole sixtel took just 33 minutes to kick with Royal and John pouring it into anything that resembled a cup. Ever seen a candle holder of Pliny? Ok, maybe not everything! After the first pours had been passed around and the orders settled down for a nanosecond, I also ordered Flight #1 which included Younger, Elder, Manayunk Brewing’s California Dreaming, (hand delivered) Otto’s Double D, and Dogfish 90 Minute IPA, just minutes before PtY kicked. It was replaced in the flight by Two Brothers Hop Juice.
Rounding out draft list were Southern Tier Gemini, Bear Republic Apex, Stone Ruination, Founders Double Trouble, Rogue I2PA, Avery Maharajah, Moylans Hopsickle, and Lagunitas Hop Stoopid. Sounds like my shopping list at Julio’s Liquors… I left around 5pm to chow down and take a quick nap before returning 3 hours later with some food for the overworked staff. They did an awesome job controlling the Pliny mob and reminding me why I’d never want to be a server! With so many great hoppy choices still on tap, the crowd stayed until the wee hours of the night imbibing in the finest IPA’s around.