I somehow managed to miss out on cask ales for the last two weekends.
One was expected and the other was just sorta kinda anticipated.
But I was at least cask-adjacent, so I think it is worth reporting here.
And I did have some fine brews, and I did get some wholesome exercise.
Welcome to the first of an occasional series where I get to introduce an ex-upstate pug, the titular Amos, to the wonders of the NYC ferry system and the myriad of excellent breweries and other fine drinking establishments in the NYC boroughs that can be reached from the river, either directly or after a little walkies.
With Jason moving into the neighborhood, he expressed an interest in checking out the ferries while, at the same time, giving Amos a good walk and grabbing a beer or two.
You see, somebody reads my stuff.
With that in mind, we instigated a walkies of the week (well weekend) with Amos tagging along (dragging us along more like) to a selected ferry stop each Saturday to explore the beery surroundings.
We have done it the last two Saturdays and a good time was had by all, especially Amos.
This exercise (see what I did there?) started ominously with a planned trip two weekends ago to Strong Rope at Red Hook with severe thunderstorms indicated.
It looked alright when we set off, and I am always ready to roll the dice weatherwise, so there was no way we were going to cut the trip short unless the ferries were not actually able to run.
They were running, and continued to run as the sky darkened and the wind kicked in, and by the time we were pulling into the Wall Street terminal where we were to switch to the South Brooklyn ferry, it was chucking down.
I was absolutely sodden just getting off of the ferry and into the terminal, Jason sensibly brought along a rainproof jacket, and it was just water off of a pug’s back for Amos.
I am a firm believer in wearing as little as possible when heavy showers are predicted, on the theory that it would take less time to dry out again.
We tested that theory three times during this trip, and I must say it actually worked out pretty well, except for my shoes and socks which were total washouts as a result of crossing a couple of intersections in Red Hook that were basically ponds.
Again, Amos took it all in stride (waddle?).
I was very happy to see that Strong Rope was already open when we arrived, which was a bit of a toss-up given the conditions.
After getting very very wet on the outside, outside.
It was time to get reasonably wet on the inside, inside.
Two IPAs, one East Coast (Wolf in the Garden) one West Coast (Seeds of Love and Outrage).
Their latest Pale Ale (Bottom of the Run) which was beautifully fruity, and nicely balanced.
And their wonderful new Helles (Golden Boot), clean and refreshing with delicious underlying bread and cracker notes; I had to try that one seeing as the World Cup was still going on that weekend.
I don’t know how I missed their latest ESB.
Maybe next time.
Maybe I can find it out in the wild on handpump.
Maybe.
Jason started with the Liberty Gold and then settled in on the Seeds of Love for the rest of the session.
Amos explored.
It was good to chat with owner Jason Sahler for a while, and equally good to see legendary bartender Phil (ex-Ginger Man) working a shift there, as I had lost touch with him since he left KCBC.
We stayed long enough to dry ourselves off (a little) before catching a short break in the weather, timed to perfection with the ferry back to Wall Street.
I left Jason and Amos at the 90th Street ferry terminal before heading home to dry off my socks and my shoes.
We had so much fun, especially Amos, that we arranged to do it all again the following Saturday in a different borough, and without the downpours.
Fifth Hammer was the destination this past weekend, but we were also hoping to make a wee crawl of it and get to Rockaway and Focal Point as well.
We did all of that and also made a quick pilgrimage to the original Big Alice location, which is now a mysterious green door in the middle of a block-long mural.
Unlike the previous Saturday, we had glorious weather and I decided almost immediately that we would be doing a crawl; that decision just happened to occur as we were passing by Rockaway Brewing after getting off of the ferry at Long Island City.
I wasn’t sure how dog-friendly Rockaway was, but was reassured as soon as we wandered in and saw that almost the entire back half of the taproom was taken up by two huge Golden Retrievers that had stretched themselves across the floor past the end of the bar.
Amos did what he always does, he ignored them.
They were sweet dogs and were happy to socialize with anybody who took an interest in them.
We just stayed for a single beer, Mexican Light Lager (No Siesta, All Fiesta!) for Jason and the tropical Pale Ale (Vacation Zone) for me.
The lager looked a little too close to Corona for me (the lime slice looked good), but the Pale Ale was spot on; fruity and refreshing and at only 5.5% quite quaffable.
Given the choice between a session IPA and a modern APA at any ABV (5.5% and under please), I would choose the APA any time; they are usually beautifully balanced and don’t come across as something that has been reduced in any way.
After the liquid sustenance, we prepared ourselves for the hike to Fifth Hammer, another block and a half further from the river.
There were a dozen or so folks already there and several other dogs, which Amos again completely ignored.
There was an enormous Silver Retriever (is there such a thing?) sitting on the floor right beside us as we sat ourselves at the bar.
Amos gave it a quick look and just went back to drooling.
Somebody even turned up with a cat while we were there, but they sensibly stayed outside by the entrance.
We stayed for a couple of beers each; this time Jason went for the Pale Ale (Sunny Storms) and Maibock (Marybock) while I opted for the exotics, a sour (Pogolodyte) and a Witbier (Break of Jawn).
I had checked before we set off because my Spidey sense was telling me that it may be time for the cask to be rotated (he means brewed).
Sure enough, the cask was not available and will not be for several weeks while they ramp up production of the next batch.
So keep your eyes on the scorecard below, as I will use that to let you all know when cask is back on at Fifth Hammer.
In the meantime, do what I would do and try some of the other fine offerings available.
I do like the POG.
It would have been easy to wander back to the ferry at this point, but Amos was chomping at the bit again, so we set off in search of the other brewery remaining in LIC, basically just ten minutes away.
Focal Point was packed as usual, both inside and outside, but we managed to find a spot in their original covered garden space off to the side, where we both got to enjoy a very refreshing 2% Radler.
I could have stayed there all day drinking those, but time was ticking and the ferry home was calling out for us.
We haven’t made formal plans for this upcoming weekend yet, but it is looking like a return visit to LIC will be in the cards.
I have several dog-heavy weeks and weekends coming up.
But if it is a Saturday, you can be sure that I will be finding time for more beers (and walkies) with Amos.
Scorecard w/e 07/28/26
In the past week the Cask Whisperer somehow managed to avoid cask ales completely:
- How the heck did that happen?
Upcoming Cask Events (Festivals and Otherwise)
- 9/12/26: Real Ale Harvest Festival @ Noah Webster House, West Hartford CT. It looks like I will be missing it this year, seeing as it falls on Rosh Hoshana and I have picked up several dog walks during the holiday.
Upcoming Random NYC Casks
- 7/30/26 (this Thursday): Eckhart will have a cask of their Blonder Bock collaboration with Brooklyn Brewery at the Eckhart taproom from 6pm onwards.
NYC Cask Venues
Known Operational/Active Beer Engines
- Jones Wood Foundry (x2)
- Fifth Hammer (Between batches currently – check the website first)
- Wild East
- The Shakespeare (x3)
- Drop-off Service
- Rough Draft
Occasional Pins (worth a follow on Instagram)
- Strong Rope
- KCBC
- Tørst
- Blind Tiger Ale House
- Threes Brewing
- Brouwerij Lane (First Friday Firkins)
- The Owl Farm
- City Swiggers
Cask Venues Reachable from NYC by MTA or NJ Transit Train in Under two Hours
Metro-North Hudson Line
- Draught Industries, Beacon NY (one handpump, Old Glenham beer range).
- Coopers, Beacon NY (one handpump, Old Glenham beer range).
- Happy Valley Arcade Bar, Beacon NY (one handpump, Old Glenham beer range).
Metro-North Harlem Line
- The Ambleside Pub, Mt. Kisco NY (four handpumps, Old Glenham beer range).
Metro-North New Haven Line
- Marlowe Artisanal Ales, Mamaroneck NY (one handpump, Marlowe beer range).
- Nod Hill Brewing, Ridgefield CT (two handpumps, Nod Hill beer range).
NJ Transit NJCL Line
- Triumph Restaurant and Brewery, Red Bank NJ (one handpump, Triumph beer range).
- Little Dog Brewing, Bradley Beach NJ (one handpump, Little Dog beer range).
