It was a lazy Sunday afternoon at Clark’s Ale House, with the sun coming through the windows and the banter of hopheads (those who love heavily hopped beers) creating a nice climate to put a few back. ‘People’s Real Ale Fest’ brought in beer lovers, like the founder of the event, Abajay Johnston, to the restaurant to taste and enjoy different beers from New York state breweries, including some local brewers like Landmark.

‘I created this because no one else had done anything like it,’ Johnston said. ‘The response has been phenomenal since the first year we started.’

This weekend marked the fifth year the festival has been running, offering 20 different beers from New York brewers. Breweries such as Brooklyn, Ithaca, Empire, Landmark and Clarks were on tap, featuring cask ales that are held at room temperature at Clarks Ale House in downtown Syracuse.

‘The biggest seller was Ithaca brewery’s ‘Flower Power,” said Steve LaCount, a day manager at Clarks. ‘But most sold out on Saturday night.’

Clarks is a staple in the beer bar circuit in Syracuse, featuring 20 to 25 beers on tap including the Armoury Ale, created by Empire Brewery. They are also known for their hot roast beef sandwiches, which were the perfect addition to the afternoon brewers.

For the cask beers on tap, I arrived too late. By Sunday afternoon there were only a few casks left. After getting vouchers from the bartender, my friends and I went to pick out our first beers.

I started with Sixpoint Brewery’s Righteous Rye Ale, which poured beautifully brown and clear but tasted quite bitter. Being a cask ale, it was at room temperature, making it very easy to drink. However, the taste was just a little more watery than I like. It was pretty bitter and a bit spicy, but smooth overall. I wouldn’t go back for seconds but it was nice to try.

From there I had the Armoury Ale, which is hand pulled from the cask – no carbonation. It was light orange in color and satisfied with a smooth malt flavor. I thought this was better than the Righteous Rye because it was easier to drink and tasted more balanced overall.

After a few cask beers I thought I would try one of Clarks’ special bottled beers. Clarks gets new types of beer every week, including this week’s Oak Aged Unearthly Imperial IPA. At 11 percent alcohol content it was quite pungent but was nicely masked by super hop, orange and wood flavors. Unearthly was delicious and I think my favorite from the day.

My only regret was not getting to Clarks on Friday, as I would have had more choice. But what better way to spend a Sunday afternoon than sipping delicious beer and talking to devoted beer drinkers. The week of Nov. 1 is Syracuse Beer week, which will highlight brewers and beer alike.

wlhalsey@syr.edu

Published on October 25, 2009 at 12:00 pm