Join us Every Thursday as we tap a special, one-of-a-kind FIRKIN of Brew Works Beer

Every Thursday, 5:00pm at Bethlehem Brew Works. Once-a-month, that evening’s 100% of the firkin sales are donated to a local charity.

WHAT is a firkin ale? A firkin is a small keg, holds about 9 gallons or so of cask-conditioned, 50°F beer.

WHY a firkin ale? If you love beer then this is your chance to experience drinking a real ale! Open up your senses to the hop and malt flavors released by drinking a beer from a hand-drawn firkin served at a respectable temperature. Our brewers then work their magic to give each cask its own special character.

Next Charity Cask Night: Thursday, March 4th, 5pm

The 3rd Annual “Firkin for Furkids”

March 4th at 5pm, Featuring…

“Hair O’the Dog ESB”

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, our brewers seeped Irish Heather into our Fegley’s ESB, pure heaven! Naturally carbonated & served at a traditional cask temperature makes for an enjoyable sippable brew. The cask will be officially tapped at 5pm. All cask sales will be donated to the Center for Animal Health & Welfare. Come out, socialize and raise a pint of “Hair O’the Dog” for a good cause.

Slainte!

The Bethlehem Brew Works offers full service dining in a family friendly atmosphere.

For reservations, call 610.882.1300

About Charity Cask Night

A craft brewery draws its character and strength from its community, but it can also give back to the community and help create positive change. That’s the idea behind the series of benefit events taking place at the Bethlehem Brew Works every month. Each Thursday, beginning at 5 p.m., Bethlehem Brew Works head brewer Beau Baden offers a hand pumped, cask-conditioned ale from a 10-gallon barrel called a firkin. The cask is always a special, one-of-a-kind beer connoisseur’s treat. It is available only until it runs dry, which could be just hours (or less) after it’s tapped.

Since June of 2006, the entire proceeds of the Bethlehem Brew Works first Thursday’s “first firkin” of the month has been donated to a local non-profit organization. Better still, the non-profit recipient has the opportunity to present literature and banners, and have representatives on hand for an informal Q&A and info-session about their community work.

Previous charities that have benefited from the Brew Works event have been the United Way of the Greater Lehigh

Valley, the Historic Bethlehem Partnership, Communities In Schools, WDIY Public Radio, KidsPeace, The Allentown Symphony, TeenCentral.net, Center of Animal Health & Welfare of Northampton County, Miller-Keystone Blood Center, Celtic Cultural Alliance, “Gift of Life Family House”, “Walk for Autism Now” – Autism Speaks and the Alliance for Building Communities, Center for Animal Health & Welfare.

The Bethlehem Brew Works is currently asking for charitable organizations who would be interested in hosting a “first firkin” in 2010 to contact Traci Langer at traci@thebrewworks.com

Upcoming Weekly Firkin Casks

March 11th “Copper Kettle Ale” – There are certain styles of beer that lend themselves perfectly to cask conditioning. This Pale Ale from the Hamilton Street Brew Works location in Allentown is a perfect example.  Refreshing and clean, with a generous hop back that leaves you asking for more.

March 18th “Collide-o-smoke” – Lewis Has got something up his sleeve here! He’s sneaking oak shards into the cask of a smoked IPA to add immense complexity to this cask creation!

March 25th “Savage Henry” – ‘Fear and Loathing’ in a cask…more details to come.

Previous Casks

2009

February 5th · “Hair of the Dog” – A naturally carbonated Belgian Stout. Fermented with sweet orange peel, a touch of honey and Belgian yeast.

February 12th · “St. Valentine’s Day Massacre” – Golden Ale fermented with Brown Sugar and Red Hots Cinnamon Candy (remember the candy you ate when you were a kid?) Come take a walk down memory lane.

February 26th · “100% MAGIC HEMP” – Our Fegley’s ESB fermented with Hemp adds a magical and nutty aroma.

March 5th – “Give-a-Pint Raspberry Wit” At the Brew Works, this is another way we “Donate a Pint” to the community’s only blood supplier…Miller-Keystone Blood Center! Brewed with chamomile, orange peel and coriander, fermented with raspberry to create a smooth citrus finish.

March 12th – “Snake Oil” The Oatmeal Stout fermented with brown sugar and French Oak Chips marinated with real Kentucky Bourbon. A BBW favorite cask.

March 19th – “Hop-To-It Copper Kettle” An American Style Pale Ale aged for several weeks in our traditional firkin. This beer has been dry-hopped; our brewers added an extra handful of hops to this cask just to bring it to the next level.

March 26th – “Old School IPA” – In order for beer to make the long trip around Africa to India, the British over hopped their ales to preserve the beer for its long trip. Doing it ol’ school, we give you this authentic India Pale Ale dry hopped with Amarillo hops.

April 2nd – for the Celtic Cultural Alliance (CCA). Brewer Lewis Thomas is creating a one of a kind cask: “The Celtic Classic Ale,” which is a Scottish Ale fermented with Irish whiskey soaked chips. A blending of flavors from two great Celtic nations!

April 9th —  “Heretic”  An over-hopped ESB reminiscent of an India Brown Ale. Our Brewers decided to over-hop our traditional ESB to be alittle blasphemous this time of year.

April 16th —  “Peeps’  Porter” The fun & flavors of your Easter basket come together in a smooth Porter with hints of marshmallow vanilla & chocolate.

April 23rd —  “Dry Heat” The Brewers are chopping at the bit for warmer weather so they decided to bring the heat by adding some chili peppers to a cask of our Valley Golden Ale. Don’t miss this one!

April 30th —  “Mary Queen of Scots”  Sounds like an old Monty Python skit? Simply, cask conditioned Scottish Ale with nothing added, unfiltered & naturally carbonated.

May 7th - ”Stole My Heart” Cherry Reincarnation. Drink a pint for a good cause! 100% of cask proceeds will be donated to “Gift of Life Family House”. How about a little “Cherry Reincarnation”? Our brewers added a little bit of cherry into a second running of our high gravity beer “reincarnated” from Imperial Stout. The cherry adds that special somethin’, somethin’ to this tasty cask.

June 4th - Pomegranate Hefeweizen “Persephone” Heaven in a glass? Our brewers added the anti-oxidant qualities of pomegranate to a traditional German wheat beer creating what we think is Heaven in a glass.

June 11th – Blueberry Stout “Hematoma” – Our version of a “black & blue” beer is much nicer then waking up with a black eye…..Fresh blueberries in a cask of Steelworker’s Oatmeal Stout, a peaceful solution to end the day!

June 18th – Orange Golden Ale “Agent Orange” – We are scared to ask how the brewers squeezed oranges into a cask of our refreshing Valley Golden Ale but who are we to question their brilliance? And thank goodness because this is one of our favorite casks. Come in early for this one as the last time it was tapped it only lasted one hour!

June 25th – British vs. American Ale yeast strain India Red Ale  “Whale and the Wasp” Not since the revolutionary war has there been such battle.  Two casks, same beer made with two different strains of yeast; one British, one American. We will let you decide the victor. Do you think your palate is up to the challenge?

July 2nd – “Hippie-Hophead Explosion” Super hoppy Pale Ale: the perfect tribute to the “Summer of Love”. Balanced by a mild essence of grapefruit and a malty flavor, (and oh by the way, lots of hop bitterness!) Brewed in the tradition of West Coast Pale Ales, we put loads of malt and hops in our kettle to come up with this sensational ale. Brewed with pale and crystal malts and hopped with Tomahawks from Yakima Valley, WA.

July 9th - “Hen Ysgolion ESB”  (pronounced “h-ai-n is-go-li-on”, meaning “old school” in Welsh)  Oh,
the Celts would be proud! A traditional ESB served “old school”; naturally carbonated, cellar temperatureand hand drawn. Simple, pure & delicious.

July 16th – “Nutter-Butter Stout” 100% all natural, organic peanut butter squeezed into a cask of our Steelworker’s Oatmeal Stout. Nothing goes better than chocolate & peanut butter except for maybe Stout & peanut butter!

July 23rd - “Whale and the Wasp Part Deux” Whale and the Wasp? Not since the revolutionary war has there been such battle.  Two casks of CH-47 American Pale Ale; one fermented with a British ale yeast strain, one fermented with an American ale yeast strain…one Brit, one Yank. We will let you decide the victor. Do you think your palate is up to the challenge?

August 6th – (held at Allentown Brew Works) “UNO MAS” –“one more” which is a delicious Golden Ale inundated with pounds of lime, cask conditioned & served at cellar temperature, then garnished with a fresh lime wedge.  Wow–”Bartender, I’ll have Uno Mas!”Help the Casa Guadalupe Center Capital Campaign get closer to their financial goal. As they kick off their official campaign of $3.4 million for the new center, this will be a great opportunity for you to learn more about Casa Guadalupe and the great programs for seniors and youth, alike. You’ll also get a chance to meet the campaign committee, which includes our friends Miriam Huertas of the Allentown Chamber, and Wendy Body of Alvin H. Butz, Inc., who are co-chairing the campaign!

August 13th -   “Musikfest Recovery” ESB. Our Fegley’s ESB naturally carbonated  to allow for a full comeback from the effects of overfesting (is that even a word?).

August 20th – “Creamation of Sam McGee” Scottish Ale. Orange zest added to a winter warming Scottish ale. Oh, and Sam?…just Google it.

August 27th – “Porter’s Birthday Suit” Porter. A naked version of the Pawn Shop Porter -  and a celebration of baby Porter David Fegley, son of Jeff and Rachel Fegley.

September 3rd CHARITY CASK- “No. 5″ Wit. Pounds of apples fermented with our Steelgaarden Wit Ale. 100% of proceeds to benefit NEVUS Outreach, Inc.

September 10th – “IBA” India Brown Ale…..The brewer dry hopped our ESB, added some more hops, and some more, and some more…..well you get the idea! When you over hop an ESB, woo-la, you get an India Brown Ale, dry & refreshing indeed!

September 17th - “Iron Monkey” India Pale Ale. Iron Monkey + lambic fruits = Brass Monkey but we grabbed a keg of the Iron Monkey out of the fermenter before fruit was added to it. Why? Because it’s simply wonderful naked!

September 24th - “What Did I Do Stout?” Here’s a fun one for you! Our brewer must have sampled a little too much of the cask because he forgot what he put into it. Stop by, enjoy a pint or two, and help us figure out what our Brewer added to our Oatmeal Stout.

October 1st - “Pumpkin Raisin” Our scrumptious pumpkin ale with pureed raisin added to it fermented naturally in a cask. What could be more delicious? How about 100% of the proceeds from cask sales benefiting The American Diabetes Association! This charity cask will be tapped at 5pm. Come out enjoy a pint for a good cause and say hello to our friends at The American Diabetes Association. Hurry, this one won’t last long.

October 8th – “Not So Wee… Heavy” – We make a cask conditioned monster from our Hammer Shop Wee Heavy (which is maturing and coming out later this fall).

October 15th - “Barrel of TNT” The Hop Explosion from Hamilton Street will be served up this week. A fantastic cask conditioned extra hoppy IPA sure to light a fuse to your palate!

October 22nd - “Halloween candy” Luscious cask conditioned porter with a hint of chocolate added for a little somethin, somethin… Mmmmm, trick-or-treat!

October 29th - “Pumpkin Rum Raisin” This necromancer will be Raisin’ spirits in time for Halloween! No Pun’kin intended…

November 12th – “I ♥ Coffee Stout” Wake up to our  eye-opening Steelworker’s Oatmeal stout infused with ground, roasted coffee.

November 19th – “Wing Nut Brown Ale” Our medium bodied, smooth finishing English Brown Ale with a hint of Hazelnut.  Perfect on a chilly Autumn night!

“Santa’s riding an iron horse this winter, so we’re brewing up some Harley inspired casks! Taking a cue from engine styles, as the design of Harley-Davidson engines has evolved through the years, the distinctive shape of the valve covers has allowed Harley enthusiasts to classify an engine simply by looking at the shape of the cover.”

December 3rd – “Knucklehead: ESB” A knucklehead engine (1936-1947) has round knobs on the cover resembling knuckles that give the knucklehead its name. There’s a little bitter orange peel in this brew to bring out the hops that also leaves a little citrus on the back end. Get your knuckles wrapped around a mug of this one!

December 10th -“Shovelhead: West End Red”  The shovelhead engine (1966-1985) got its name from the distinctive look of the engine’s rocker box covers. These covers resemble the heads of coal shovels, which is how the shovelhead got its name. We shovel loads of Chinook and Cascade hops into this beer to give it a piney, grapefruit aroma with a strong malt back.

December 17th - “Fat Boy” At the time of the Fat Boy model introduction (1990-Present) a story rapidly spread that its silver paint job and other features were inspired by the World War II American B-29 bomber; and that the Fat Boy name was a combination of the names of the atom bombs (Fat Man and Little Boy). Whether it’s urban myth or not, there’s a new IPA at the BBW and it is the BOMB! There were no late hop additions during the boil so all the aroma is due to the dry hopping. Kaboom!! Vroom Vroom!!

2010

January 7th – “Peanut Butter & Jelly Stout” Open up your senses to the hop and malt flavors released by drinking a beer from a hand-drawn firkin, naturally carbonated & served at a respectable temperature. The PB&J Stout will be tapped at 5pm, hurry in, this one won’t last long. 100% of sales will be donated to “March of Dimes”

January 14th – “The British Invasion” Our delicious ESB served in the traditional Old-English style, hand pumped, naturally carbonated, no fancy flavors added. A pint of this will make you feel like you are in your favorite English Public House.

January 21st -“Byggvir” Byggvir was the Norse God of Beer. This Baltic Porter cask is our version of the nectar of the Gods. Strong and robust, this beer was brewed for long journeys across the Baltic Sea. Packed with roasted and bitter malts. Beau also likes to call this cask “I’d like to buy a vowel, please.”

January 28th – “Weyerbacher’s Hop Infusion” Our friends at Weyerbacher are created an IPA with complex hops flavor and aromas. Made with seven hop varieties, this deep copper-orange IPA is loaded with juicy hop notes of pine, lemon zest, and a layer of pink grapefruit and a strong foundation of toasted caramel malts underneath it all give this beer a complexity that’s unparalleled. Serving this beer via our cask creates an explosion of these flavors.

February 4th – Chocolate Raspberry Stout. Open up your senses to raspberry, hop and chocolate malt flavors released by drinking a beer from a hand-drawn firkin, naturally carbonated & served at a respectable temperature. 100% of sales will be donated to Miller-Keystone Blood Center. At the Brew Works, this is another way we “Donate a Pint” to the community’s only blood supplier! Cheers!

February 11th – “Agent Orange” We’re lightin’ up the Valley! Our Golden Ale is infused with 2 oranges pureed into the cask. This popular cask is always a winner when it goes on. Get there early for this treat!

February 18th – “Apricot Wit” Steelgaarden Wit gets inundated with Apricots to add zing and zest to the cask!

February 25th – “CH-47″ Nothing better than a cask conditioned American Pale Ale. Certain beers lend very well to the cask. Pale Ales are a style that taste awesome straight from the cask!