www.cheersonline.com
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MAY 2014
order from one of the 20 taps on the custom copper draft
towers. ese include Italian brews such Birra del Borgo,
Baladin, Birreria Amiata, Birrificio del Ducato, as well a house
beer brewed by local Victory Brewing Co. of Downington, PA.
"We developed a collaboration beer with Victory by sitting
down with their brewer and tasting the entire food menu and
found the ideal style for our house beer, Victory Novello,"
Wildy says. "It's a spicy Belgian blond ale—really compatible
with our beer cheese and house-baked pretzels."
e Novello price is $5 for a 12 oz. glass, using a classic
stemmed glass with a flared bowl. Other American craft brands
such as Stoudt's, Weyerbacher, and Dogfish Head Brewery, are
also featured on draft, priced from $5 to $8.
"ere's been a transition among the more-serious beer
drinkers, from seeking fruit beers that are sweet to now choosing
more complex and sophisticated flavors," Wildy says. "ere's a
better balance between tangy, even sour fruit, and fermentation
flavors from the yeast. e fruit becomes a layer of flavor in the
middle of a more complex, earthier beer."
FRUIT BEER PAIRINGS
Beer constitutes about 20% of overall sales at Alla Spina's
4,000-sq.-ft. restaurant and bar. "Italian beer is very food friendly
and overall, more complementary and less challenging to pair
Tenth and Blake Beer Co. brews the Leinenkugel Berry Weiss beer, as well as the Big Eddy ale line of seasonal, high ABV beers.
32-35 fruit forward beers CH0514.indd 34 5/7/14 10:08 AM