Breweries Around the Outskirts of Harrisburg (9.6.19)

(Editorial Note: This article was originally written and submitted to Breweries in PA. They will be publishing it in roughly one weeks time on their page and FaceBook page. It was written by lead writer here at The Beer Thrillers – B. Kline, and is being posted here as well. This was a guest-article written by B. Kline for Breweries in PA. Since there is some pertinent and timely information included in the article [namely Tattered Flag & Levante’s Tap Takeovers and Can Releases for 9.7.19] this article is being posted here and now. When it is posted on the Breweries in PA website and FaceBook page, links will be provided to the article’s locations there. Likewise, since this was created for their site and blog, as well as written in Microsoft Online Word DOC the formatting may be off in some places. When the mistakes are noticed, we will try and correct them. -The Beer Thrillers staff.)

Breweries Around the Outskirts of Harrisburg 
By: B. Kline 

In the area surrounding Hummelstown (17036), there is several breweries. In all directions, roughly within 5 miles, there is some fantastic breweries in Hershey, Middletown, and the outskirts of Harrisburg like Rutherford and Union Station. I’m going to take a look at a few of these and suggest a nice weekend trip to these locations that won’t take a lot of your time up, and what all events and plans they currently have going on. In this article, we will be taking a look at Troegs Brewery, Boneshire Brew Works, Newfangled Brew Works, and Tattered Flag Brewery and Distillery.  

There is a lot of great choices of breweries in Pennsylvania, and even in just Harrisburg itself, there is several fantastic choices. Coming from the small town of Hummelstown itself (where I’m located – B. Kline – writer for the blog The Beer Thrillers). In Harrisburg central there is ZeroDay Brewing, The Millworks, and The Vegetable Hunter. Along the outskirts of Harrisburg in Rutherford you will find Boneshire Brew Works and in a small development off of Union Deposit in Union Station you’ll find Newfangled Brew Works. In Hershey you’ll find Troegs Independent Craft Brewing and Iron Hill Brewery. In Middletown you will find Tattered Flag Brewery and Distillery. And soon, in the future in Hummelstown you’ll be able to enjoy some beverages at the old police station by Rubber Soul Brewing.  

I’ve decided to write this in the best route method for driving and convenience. I debated exactly how I wanted to write-up the breweries of Boneshire Brew Works, Newfangled Brew Works, Tattered Flag, and Troegs, and decided this might be the best and most logical way. The times I’ve done this ‘brewery trail’ this is always the way I’ve done it, and it also stops the ‘why was X first and Y last’ arguments. So lets take a look at these four breweries, what they got to offer on tap, what they got going on, and why their worth a stop in and check out. 

Newfangled Brew Works 

Located At: 8001 Union Station Blvd, Harrisburg, PA 17111 
Untappd Link: https://untappd.com/NewfangledBrewWorks 
 

Newfangled Brew Works is located inside Union Station, a recent development built off of Union Deposit Road (a long road that connects Harrisburg to several of the smaller towns in the area like South Hanover Township, Union Deposit, Hoernerstown, and even to Hershey). It is right as you enter into the development in a large building conjoined with its restaurant pairing – Koda. Koda is a high scale restaurant located to the right of the main entrance into Newfangled. Newfangled also has its own built-in Taco Truck tucked away in the back lefthand corner. 

Lets discuss the food first, the taco truck has fabulous tacos, quesadillas, and other taco and Mexican related foods. Artisanal tacos is the best way to describe these, as this is definitely no Taco Bell menu (and a whole heck of a lot better tasting too). Their food menu can be found here: Food, their hours of operation are: Sunday  11AM-9PM, Monday-Friday 4PM-9PM, and Saturday 12PM-10PM.  

Pictured here is the quesadilla taco from the taco truck, with the added beef meat it came to be 7.42$ (pre-tip). Beer picture is the Guava Lemonade Kettle Sour. The taco was extremely delicious and the kettle sour washed it down perfectly. This is the side-porch and patio area to the left of the building (when facing the entrance).  

The brewery itself currently has 16 beers on tap for consumption. Some of their own, and a few others. Of their own currently on tap they have: 

• Passionfruit Blonde Ale – Blonde Ale – 5% 

• Ariana Flockhart – Blonde Ale – 4.9% 
• Blood Orange Blonde Ale – Blonde Ale – 5% 
• Guava Lemonade Kettle Sour – Sour – 5.6% 
• Kettle Sour – Sour – 5.6% 
• Brut IPA – IPA – Brut – 7.7% 

• Double IPA – IPA – Imperial – 8.2% 
• Irish Red Ale – Red Ale – Irish – 6% 
• Saison – Farmhouse Ale – Saison – 6.8% 
• Newfangled American Wheat – Wheat Beer – 5.2% 
• Lager – Lager – 5.2% 

• IPA – IPA – American – 5.8% 
• Stout – Stout – American – 6.5% 

The non-Newfangled Beers on tap are: 

• Yuengling Lager – Lager – 4.5% (Yuengling Brewery) 
• Standard – Cider – 5.5% (Big Hill Ciderworks) 

I have currently had all but their lager, double IPA, Brut IPA, and the blood orange blonde ale. I have enjoyed everything I’ve had so far. Found nothing to be horrible or terrible and no off flavors or infected beers.  

They offer their beers right now in pints or traditional pours, dependent on the style, as well as half pours and flights. Pricing is your normal fair for a craft brewery (5$-7/8$ depending on style and costs to make the beer).  

Currently, Newfangled Brew Works has produced 22 unique beers, and has a global average rating of 3.73. 

Upcoming events for Newfangled are:  

• Live Music – Fridays and Saturdays 7PM – 10PM 
• Trivia – Wednesdays 630PM – 830PM   

Boneshire Brew Works 
Located At: 7462 Derry St, Harrisburg, PA 17111 
Untappd Link: https://untappd.com/BoneshireBrewWorks 

Coming down the road from Newfangled and getting onto Nyes Road it will lead you to Derry Street. From there you take a right hand turn and find yourself after a few blocks at Boneshire Brew Works. Boneshire was started by Alan Miller, Carson Brooks, and Alex Govelovich.  

Boneshire’s brewery is a small little ‘pub’ style brewery. As soon as you enter you feel already a member of a club where everybody knows your name. If you’ve been there once, your second time there, you are a ‘regular’ and quickly become on a first name basis with all of the staff.  

Currently food is limited to a few behind the bar items like pickle flights and bologna, but it is a BYOB environment with a pizzeria just two doors down (to the left of the building is a Crossfit and after that is the pizza shop, how lucky are those crossfit hard-workers being “stuck” between a pizza shop and a brewery?).  

Boneshire currently offers a taplist of their own, as well as a taplist of several breweries from Pennsylvania. Their current taplist is: 

Their own: 

• Dillston – Red Ale – Irish – 5.5% (made with Greystone Public House) 
• Caucus-Race (6.0 Zappa Hops) – IPA – American – 7.5% 

• Harrishire – Smoked – 7.3% (made in collaboration with Harris Family Brewery) 
• AuZealand 2.0 – IPA – American – 6.3% 
• Dark of the Forest (barrel aged) – Stout – Coffee – 10% 
• Derry St. Wheat – Hefeweizen – 5% 
• Good Walk Spoiled – Sour – 4.5%       

Guest tap lists: 

• Jelsa – Mead – Melomel – 12% (Larsen Meadworks) 
• Magic… Under Where? – Pale Ale – 5.5% (Pizza Boy Brewing) 
• Kriek Nouveau – Sour – 6.9% (Free Will Brewing Co.) 
• Brawler – English Mild – 4.2% (Yards Brewing Co.) 

• Pils – Pilsner – German – 4.7% (Stoudts Brewing) 
• Summer Scrumpy – Cider – 5.5% (Big Hill Ciderworks) 
• Fruit Wagon – Sour – 6.3% (Saucony Brewing Company) 
• Java Cask – Stout – Imperial Double – 14.3% (Victory Brewing) 
• Pikeland Pils – Pilsner – German – 4.9% (Slyfox Brewing) 

Boneshire Brewery has a steady string of events going on.  Mondays are D&D nights, Tuesdays alternate between Open Mic Nights and Bar Bingo nights, Wednesdays are trivia nights, Thursdays are live music nights. Their Facebook page has a full list of events with the band names already signed on for each Thursday through October. They also occasionally have live music on Saturday nights. 

Boneshire also does cans to go, in 4-packs of most of their in-house made beers. A few exceptions based on styles and things, but nearly all of their brewery beers are set to go. And typically at much better prices than a pint at the bar. They also do growler fills. 

They currently have 126 uniquely produced beers with a global average rating of 3.82 on Untappd. 

Tattered Flag Brewery and Distillery 

Located At: 1 S Union St Middletown, PA 
Untappd Link: https://untappd.com/TatteredFlagBrewery 

Leaving Boneshire we can get right up onto 322 from Derry Street. There we can then turn right and get off at the Hummelstown / Middletown exit and go along Middletown Road (which becomes Vine Street), not much further we’ll turn right onto Main Street and then turn left to get onto Union and we are at our next destination. Middletown’s first (and so far only) brewery and distillery – Tattered Flag. 

Veteran owned and having just hit their third anniversary they have really been pumping out some outstanding beers in recent history. With new brewing crew of Dave Marrow, Justin Hoak, and Cliff Plank, they have been putting out exceptional IPAs (NE IPAS specifically) and sours. They were just voted Harrisburg best Brewery and Distillery.  

They have been doing some excellent collaborations with numerous breweries in the last few months as well. Beers with Wolf Brewing Co. , Levante Brewing, Abomination Brewing, and up and comer Pilger Ruh Brewing.  

They have a downstairs bar that is also their coffee shop as well as the distillery area. It was called the Nuclear Bean but on Untappd they refer to the bar as the Distillery Bar now. They also have their main restaurant and bar upstairs, though you can order food at either location.  

At the downstairs Nuclear Bean / coffee shop / distillery bar, you can order drinks. Their taplist there currently is:  

• NP Project – Kombucha (Renewal Kombucha) 
• Nuclear Bean Nitro Cold Brew – Coffee 

• Blue Raider Kolsch – Kolsch – 5.2% 
• Teutonic Knight Hefeweizen – Hefeweizen – 5.4% 
• Fatum Series Ale – Strawberry – Sour – 6% 
• Because I Was Inverted (Mango) – IPA – Milkshake – 6.6% 
• Makin’ Love at Midnight (2019) – IPA – Milkshake – 7.8%  

• Silent Professional Foxtrot – Farmhouse Ale – Saison – 7.8% 
• New Zealand Hop Test – IPA – Imperial Double – 8% 
• Don’t Cryo’ver Spilled Milk – IPA – Milkshake – 8% 
• TMI IPA – IPA – American – 6.5% 

They also have cans to go, which you can pick up upstairs or downstairs, there list of cans to go currently are: 

• Tattered Abomination – IPA – New England – 7.8% (made with Abomination Brewing) 
• Prepare to be Flabbergasted – Sour – 7% 
• Teutonic Knight Hefeweizen 
• Blue Raider Kolsch 
• O’Dusseldorf Rules – Altbier – 5% 

• Honey I Added More Hops – IPA – New England – 7% 
• Double Knife Fight in Space – IPA – New England – 8% 
• Makin’ Love at Midnight 2.0 – IPA – American – 7.5% 
• Step 1 Brew Beer Step 2 ? Step 3 Profit – IPA – New England – 8% 
• Makin’ Love at Midnight (Sour) – Sour – 7.8% 

• TMI IPA 

Their taplist upstairs currently is: 

• Silent Professional Foxtrot 
• Blue Raider Kolsch 

• Teutonic Knight Hefeweizen 
• DDH Double IPA – IPA – Imperial / Double – New England – 8.4% 
• Swattier Divide (2018) – IPA – New England – 8.2% 
• Step 1 Brew Beer Step 2 ? Step 3 Profit 
• TMI IPA 

• Don’t Cryo’ver Spilled Milk 
• Should’ve Got a Warrant – Sour – 7.6% 
• Stars and Stripes 20.19 – IPA – New England – 7.8% 
• Sparklerz (Meyer Lemon) – Hard Seltzer – 5% 
• Five Sided Puzzle Palace – Stout – Imperial / Double – 12% (Levante Brewing colab) 

• Because I Was Inverted (Mango) 
• Double Knife Fight in Space 
• Groundhops Day – IPA – New England – 6% 
• Honey I Added More Hops 
• Makin’ Love at Midnight (sour) 

• Prepare to be Flabbergasted 
• Tattered Abomination 

Make sure to check out my blog (The Beer Thrillers) for reviews on Prepare to be Flabbergasted, Tattered Abomination, and Makin’ Love at Midnight (Sour) all due to being posted within the next several days.  

I’m not much of a foody, but I do love going to Tattered Flag or helping with their canning run, just to get to eat there. It is top notch gourmet style food. All bases covered, from hot dogs and hamburgers, to salads, to tacos and quesadillas, to steaks, and seafood. Everything is covered and everything is absolutely phenomenal.  

This weekend, Tattered Flag and Levante Brewing are doing their big release. Saturday, September 7^th, starting at 11AM, they will be selling cans of their collaboration with Levante Brewing – Wasted Away Again, a key-lime pie sour. They will also be selling cans of their collaboration with Levante Brewing – Five Sided Puzzle Palace. As well as having several of Levante’s beers on tap in the brewery. Ontop of this, from 1PM to 4PM the Hershey Biergarten in downtown Hershey will be selling their cans and having the beers on tap as well. Tattered Flag and Levante will also be featured at sip of Soma.

Of course I have to mention that you should check out the distillery if you have any inclination in liquors. Dan, the distiller for Tattered Flag is amazing and provides exceptional spirits. (He also does ghost tours in Gettysburg.) 

Tattered Flag Brewery has 351 uniquely produced beers with a global average rating on Untappd of 3.77. 

Troegs Independent Craft Brewing 
Located At: 200 Hersheypark Dr, Hershey, PA 17033 
Untappd Link: https://untappd.com/troegsbrewingcompany 

And last but not least of our little tour is Troegs Brewery. Which at this point, really needs no introduction. They are always some of the top rated beers in the state, and is generally considered “the top” of the craft industry in the state (behind Yuengling). The brewery itself is always jam packed, weekday, weeknight, afternoon, or evening. Some of which is due to its fantastic location next door to HersheyPark, and some of that due to the excellent beers in production, as well as a top of the line brewery tour.  

 They have certainly been expanding too. Adding the foeders and making a larger cellar room. They’ve added a beer garden outfront. And lots and lots more parking. Which somehow still doesn’t feel like its enough! 

They have also branched out and done a lot more of their Splinter Series beers, done more and more regular scratches, and even begun to can some of the scratch beers, and upped the number of rotational/seasonal beers. Releasing some big hits like Lollihop, Golden Thing, and various Scratches in beer can that have all gotten great reviews. 

They have also added an upstairs loft with its own food menu and its own bar (though the taplist is the same as it is in the side-room by the foeders and at the main bar, just slightly more limited). The pizza upstairs is the best new feature total though, hop on that immediately! 

Their current taplist at the main bar is: 

• Perpetual IPA – IPA – American – 7.5% 
• Troegennator Double Bock – Bock – Imperial – 8.2% 
• Sunshine Pils – Pilsner – 4.5% 
• HopBack Amber Ale – Red Ale – Amber Ale – 6% 

• DreamWeaver – Wheat Beer – 4.8% 
• JavaHead – Stout – Coffee – 7.5% 
• Hop Knife – IPA – American – 6.2% 
• Nimble Giant – IPA – Imperial / Double – 9% 
• Naked Elf – English Ale – 6.9% 

• Golden Thing – DDH – IPA – Double – 8.2% 
• Boysenberry Tart Ale – Sour – 4.5% 
• Raspberry Tart Ale – Sour – 4.5% 
• Fest Lager – Lager – Marzen – 6.1% 
• Dear Peter – Farmhouse Saison – 7.6% 

• Hazy IPA (Scratch 387) – IPA – New England – 5.2%  (same as Trail Day Pale Ale)
• Tangerine Passionfruit Guava Tart (Scratch 386) – Sour – 4.6% 
• Krausened Dunkel Lager (Scratch 385) – Dunkel – 5.4% 
• Tangerine Blackberry Guava Tart Ale (Scratch 384) – Sour – 5% 

In Bottles Only: 

• LaGrave Triple Golden Ale – Belgian – 8% 
• Jovial Dubbel Ale – Belgian – 7% 
• Mad Elf Grand Cru (2018) – Belgian Strong Dark – 11% 
• Wild Elf – Farmhouse Wild Ale – 11% 
• Bourbon Barrel-Aged Impending Descent – Russian Stout – 12% 

• Bourbon Barrel-Aged Troegenator – Double Bock – 9.8% 
• Bourbon Barrel-Aged Flying Mouflan – Belgian – 11.5% 
• Dear Peter  
• Farmette – Farmhouse Saison – 6.5% 
• Blackberry Tizzy – Sour – 7.8% 

• Mortal Cherry – Farmhouse Wild Ale – 6.6% 
• Apricot Farmette – Farmhouse Saison – 7.4% 

Troeg also has cider from Big Hill Ciderworks as well as numerous non-alcoholic sodas in bottle (for children and non-drinking drivers).  

Troegs currently has no events listed for this weekend in their brewery. It has seemed they do less and less events in house at the brewery, and more and more out at various places. Most likely due to how full the brewery already is getting plus it expands the brand more to do these events at a wider range of places. 

They do however have a big event coming up on October 4^th weekend – their annual Hop Harvest Fest. Which since putting in the beer garden they’ve been putting to good use with this. Look for more information to come out soon on bands performing and beers they will be releasing. 

If you’ve never been to Troegs Brewery before, make sure you take the walking tour. It’s a quick 5-10 minute self guided tour but you get to see some neat things along the way (like the krausen for DreamWeaver as well as their bottling and canning lines). 

Troegs currently has 385 uniquely produced beers (according to Untappd, which is a bit dated on this, since a lot of their scratches were released before Untappd was created, and they are currently up to Scratch 387) with a global average rating on Untappd of 3.79. 

Thank you for checking out this brief brewery hopping tour around the outskirts of Harrisburg and centralized around Hummelstown. I hope you all found it informative and helpful and will give these four great breweries a look over. They all definitely deserve your time and attention as they are all pumping out some wonderful beers and have great stuff going on at their breweries all the time.  

And lastly, make sure you hop on over to my beer blog – The Beer Thrillers, where me and beer buddy J. Doncevic have been writing some wonderful beer reviews, brewery reviews, trip recaps, beer event reviews, and all kinds of other beer related things in the Central PA area since May. Make sure to stop and check us out and let us know in the comments that you came from here, we’d greatly appreciate seeing you there!  

• B. Kline
• The Beer Thrillers
• https://thebeerthrillers.com/
• http://twitter.com/thebeerthriller/