Some St. Patrick’s Day Alternatives

St. Patrick’s Day

As many of you know Sunday is St. Patrick’s Day. Its also the last day to vote in the Conference Round of 16 in our Battle of the Breweries (March Madness) tournament. Its also the day four years ago we were all just going to take a “short break” from our jobs to help flatten the curves….. but thats a rabbit hole we’re not going down today. Instead, we’re going to go down a rabbit hole of craft beers we can try INSTEAD of Guinness.

No green beer here. No Guinness here. Just craft beer alternatives to try out instead of Guiness on St. Patrick’s Day.

Craft Beers to Try Instead of Guinness

Here is a list (some with pictures and text, some just the names of the beers) of craft beers to try this year instead of your typical Guinness Draught or Irish Car Bomb.

Troegs Independent Brewing: Scratch 509

Scratch 509: Irish Dry Stout on Nitro

Just released today (Thursday, March 14th, 2024). This is Scratch 509 by Troegs Independent Brewing.

Its a small (only sixtels in house, not even full kegs) R & D batch on the Troegs Scratch Pilot system.

Not to go, and not sold in cans or bottles, this is draft only in their tasting room. Super limited, so hopefully it will at least make it til St. Patrick’s Day! Its a delicious Nitro Irish Dry Stout in the vein of Guinness.

Its clocking in at just 4.2% ABV so you can easily go back up to the bar for a second… and a third… and a fourth.

Boneshire Brew Works: Grattan Irish Stout

Grattan Irish Stout by Boneshire Brew Works

One of my personal favorites from Boneshire Brew Works (though to be honest, I say that about nearly all of their beers there), this is a perfect replacement for Guinness.

“This stout is traditionally dry and super drinkable. Beware of the Leprechaun while drinking this one.”

Similar to the Scratch 509 above, and similar to Guinness itself, this Dry Irish Stout clocks in at just 4.5% making it easy to drink, leaving you full in taste and flavor, but not full of the ABV or drunk.

Sold in cans to go or at their brewery (where its also on in Nitro) this is easily one of the best ways to replace Guinness, especially this Sunday.

Wallenpaupack Brewing: O’Days

O’Days by Wallenpaupack Brewing

Can’t go wrong with Wallenpaupack Brewing, and their O’Days is a great choice for a Guinness replacement.

Acclamation Brewing: The Pooka

The Pooka by Acclamation Brewing

Acclamation Brewing just moved to their new location (see our article here: ACCLAMATION BREWING MOVING TO NEW LOCATION). So stop by their new spot and grab yourself a pint of The Pooka.

We got to visit Acclamation in 2022 and absolutely had a blast, great service, delicious beers, wonderful can and label artwork. All around great people. So give them a visit!

Stable 12: Murphy’s Law

Murphy’s Law by Stable 12

My grandfather had a saying: “If it can go wrong — it will.” The inspiration for this being the Law of Murphy, or Murphy’s Law. In which: Murphy’s law is an adage or epigram that is typically stated as: “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” In some formulations, it is extended to “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and at the worst possible time.” (Wikipedia) I think anyone who has kids, or is a home owner, or has a favorite sports team can attest to this – if something can go wrong – it will. So what better way to relieve the pains of things going horribly awry than with a delicious beer, like “Murphy’s Law” by Stable 12 Brewing Company.

Second Sin Brewing: Double O Stout: Quantum of Stoutness

Second Sin Brewing’s Double O Stout: Quantum of Stoutness

Second Sin Brewing Company is constantly recognized for knocking it out of the park. Or hitting one over the rainbow, and they do it again with their Double O Stout: Quantum of Stoutness. (Gotta love the James Bond reference there too). Clocking in at 4.6% its that perfect spot for Irish Dry Stouts (see Boneshire Brew Work’s Grattan Irish Stout, and Troegs Independent Brewing’s Scratch 509, as well as Guinness itself). Their Untappd description reads: “Double O Stout is our rendition of the Classic Irish Dry Stout style. It pours a pitch black color, with hints of ruby at the edges, and a light khaki head up top. Notes of black coffee, baker’s chocolate, and almost too-well-done toast are pulled together by a tight, dry finish. Sláinte!”

Appalachian Brewing Company: Celtic Knot

ABC’s Celtic Knot

A classic – Appalachian Brewing Company (ABC)’s Celtic Knot is a wonderful choice on St. Patrick’s Day (or any other day for that matter).

Some More Fantastic Beers

Here is a list of some other breweries and their Irish Stouts or Dry Irish Stouts, or even just Irish themed beers that would make a great replacement for Guinness on St. Patrick’s Day this Sunday:

• ARTiface Ales and Meads: Cunning
• Back Alley Brewing: MacKINLAY
• Back Mountain Brewing Company: F**K Green Beer
• Back Porch Brewing Company: Leprechaun Juice
• Evil Genius: Magically Delicious
• Bill’s Best: Seamus
• Bru Daddy’s: Red Ale Eddy
• Burghers Brewing: Lobaircin
• Fegley’s Brew Works: The Boondock Stouts
• Floating Feathers Brewing Company: King Richard
• Groove Brewing: Paradorade
• Groove Brewing and Last Minute Brewing: Scranton Party
• Hares Hill Brewing Company: Boxing Hare
• Hemauer Brewing: McFadden
• Lavery Brewing: Red Paddy
• Levante Brewing: Infinite Irish
• Levante Brewing: Green Alligators and Long Neck Geese
• Locust Lane Brewing: Duffy’s Red Ale
• Log Tavern Brewing: Irish Red Ale
• McCallister Brewing Company: Leprechaun Balls
• McCallister Brewing Company: Shamrock Shake
• Newtown Brewing Company: I Don’t Got Friends, I Got Family
• North Country Brewing Company: McCafferty Ale
• Odd Logic Brewing: Dear Boss
• Pittsburgh Brewing Company: Extra Dry Pittsburgh Stout
• Rough Edges Brewing Company: Who’s Your Paddy?
• Vault Brewing: Gold Option
• Warwick Farm Brewing: Galway Stout
• Well Crafted Brewing Company: Irish Potato Blonde Americano
• Wolf Brewing Co: New Moon (Irish Dry Stout)
• Yellow Bridges Brewing Company: Less Than Lucky

Check Out Our Article From 2021

For a fun look back, here’s a similar article we did in 2021: Looking for good local stouts or green beer this St. Patty’s Day? (3.17.21)

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Ready to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day 2021? Since… well… we really didn’t get to last year? Suddenly got an extra 1,400$ in your bank account on St. Patrick’s Day morning and not knowing what to do with it? Why not help out those restaurants that have been hurt for this past year!

Its incredibly crazy to see how its been a year since COVID mitigation efforts started, since shut downs were instituted, and we were all locked inside our homes watching Tiger King on Netflix. Looking back at the memories of the blog and my own and seeing just how little we were all prepared for everything happening… how things unfolded, watching event after event get cancelled, shut down or lock down after shut down and lock down, protocols instituted, changes to restaurants, etc…. its so crazy and surreal and unbelievable to look back on. What a time to be alive?!

Reminds me of Frodo and Gandalf discussing “crazy times to be alive in”:

Frodo: I wish it need not have happened in my time.
Gandalf: So do I, and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.

But here we are, a year out from all those shenanigans (ahh, what a great word to use on St. Patrick’s Day), and its time to celebrate. So what do you do? Let’s help out our local craft breweries instead of just jumping into the Guinness and Irish Car Bombs, let’s look at some of the great craft brewery offerings!

Stouts

There is no shortage of amazing stouts in the area; and by area, I am speaking of my area – which is the Central PA area. Think Hershey, Harrisburg, Middletown, Hummelstown, Annville, Palmyra, Mechanicsburg, etc.

There are plenty of great stouts and we can look at some of them right here. Let’s start with my home town of Hummelstown.

Rubber Soul’s 317 Stout
Rubber Soul just released a brand new coffee stout to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, and its named 317 (…if you can figure out why they named it that, please let our intern know, he’s very confused about the name, because the area code is 717).

Click here to read our Beer Review: 317 Stout (Rubber Soul Brewing Company).

It is a lovely, roasty, toasty, coffee stout. Its a Stout – Irish Dry, and its only 4.9%. The Untappd listing for it is:

Beer: 317
Brewery: Rubber Soul Brewing Company
Style: Stout – Irish Dry
ABV: 4.9%
IBU: None
Untapped Description: Roasty and smooth with a cold coffee finish from the Elementary cold brewed coffee.
Global Untappd Rating: 3.81 (as of 3.17.21)

This would make for a lovely chaser to some Jamison Whiskey, or possibly even could be a wonderful substitute for a Guinness in a Irish Car Bomb.

Troegs Independent Craft Brewery
Let’s stroll over to Hershey now and see just how many different offerings Troegs has in the stout division. (Hint – there’s a few).

First up: JavaHead Stout:

Beer: Java Head
Brewery: Troegs Independent Craft Brewery
Style: Stout – Coffee
ABV: 7.5%
IBU: 60
Untappd Description: JavaHead is like a day at Tröegs; it’s hard to tell where the coffee ends and the beer begins. This creamy oatmeal stout is infused with locally roasted, cold steeped coffee through our HopBack vessel, releasing subtle hints of cocoa, roasted nuts and dark mocha.
Untappd Global Average Rating: 3.7 (as of 3.17.21)

They also have two versions of their Chocolate Stout; regular and on Nitro. My preference is the Nitro (but I also tend to prefer Nitro most times in general, so take that for what it is). They are the same beer.

Beer: Chocolate Stout
Brewery: Troegs Independent Craft Brewery
Style: Stout – Milk / Sweet
ABV: 7.1%
IBU: 41
Untappd Description: Our lush and layered Chocolate Stout showcases the best of an anthology of malts and grains: the soft, coffee-like bitterness of roasted barley, the rich caramel notes of Special B, the subtle sweetness of chocolate malt, and the silkiness of oats. Cocoa nibs add the depth of dark chocolate, and a touch of Madagascar vanilla puts a bow on this roasty winter warmer.
Global Untappd Average Rating: 3.79 (as of 3.17.21)

The Nitro version has a different description:
Six different malt varieties, cacao nibs, dark chocolate, lactose, oats, and vanilla combine to produce a decadent Chocolate Stout. Dispensing via nitrogen yields a lush, velvety texture and rich, smooth finish.
It also has a higher global rating – 3.94. (As of 3.17.21)

This is their latest newcomer to their stout market, and it is possibly my favorite. You can see our review of it here: Beer Review: Grand Cacao (Troegs Craft Brewing).

Beer: Grand Cacao
Brewery: Troegs Independent Craft Brewing
Style: Stout – Milk / Sweet
ABV: 6.5%
IBU: None
Untappd Description: Welcome to Grand Cacao. This deliciously decadent stout is built on a foundation of rich chocolate malt, caramel malt and roasted barley. Cold-steeping on Peruvian cacao nibs and natural vanilla doubles down on the smooth symphony of chocolate, and a splash of milk sugar delivers a velvety sweet and creamy finish.
We taste: milk chocolate, roasty grain, hints of sweet cream.
Global Untappd Average Rating: 3.63 (as of 3.17.21)

Tattered Flag Brewery and Distillery
Lets bounce over to Tattered Flag in Middletown now, who have never had any shortness of wonderful stouts on their menu. Just looking at their Untappd menu they currently have at their brewery in Middletown:

• Leprechaun Wraith
• Peppermint Wraith
• Coconut Stout
• War Bonds Breakfast Stout
• Black is Beautiful

And they have a guest tap of Our Town Brewery’s “Bar Room Hymnal”. Which, I was just at last Friday. You can check out my trip to the Lancaster Breweries in one of my latest travelogues here: “Hiking Turkey Hill Point and Visiting Lancaster’s Newest Breweries – Cartel Brewing, Our Town Brewery, and Big Dog Brewing”.

Let’s look at Leprechaun Wraith:

Beer: Leprechaun Wraith
Brewery: Tattered Flag Brewery and Distillery
Style: Stout – Other
ABV: 12%
IBU: None
Untappd Description: Our Pastry stout base aged in ex Irish whiskey casks for months before conditioning in stainless over marshmallow cream and vanilla. Its like an Irish Car Bomb in a bottle!
Global Average Untappd Rating: 4.01 (as of 3.17.21)

Sounds perfect for tonight’s at-home festivities!

Boneshire Brew Works
Boneshire Brew Works has a wonderful stout of their own that they have for March each year, called Grattan Irish Stout. This is one that is definitely worth a pickup of a 4-pack every year, or at minimum a pint on draft.

Beer: Grattan Irish Stout
Brewery: Boneshire Brew Works
Style: Stout – Irish Dry
ABV: 4.5%
IBU: None
Untappd Description: This stout is traditionally dry and super drinkable. Beware of the Leprechaun while drinking this one.
Global Untappd Average Rating: 3.9 (as of 3.17.21)

Be sure to read our review of it here: Beer Review: Grattan Irish Stout (Boneshire Brew Works).

Rotunda Brewing Company
We would be amiss if we didn’t mention Rotunda Brewing Company’s stout – aptly named: IRISH CAR BOMB. We got to have this before their Kegs and Eggs event last year; right before the shut down (just mere days before the shut down). You can read about the event here: Kegs and Eggs (2020) at the Batdorf – Rotunda Brewing Company.

And you can read our review of the beer here: Beer Review: Irish Car Bomb (Rotunda Brewing Company).

Beer: Irish Car Bomb
Brewery: Rotunda Brewing Company
Style: Stout – Irish Dry
ABV: 5.5%
IBU: None
Untappd Description: On Nitro.
Global Average Untappd Rating: 4.17 (as of 3.17.21)

Rotunda’s Brewery Pub in Hershey also has a few other stouts on hand if you want to give them a try:

• Lady Morrigan Nitro Stout
• Grasshopper Brownie Imperial Stout
• Death by Decadence
• Car Bomb: Imperial Stout (not the same as the one above)

Green Beer

Maybe you don’t want a stout, maybe you don’t like doing Irish Car Bombs and don’t feel like dropping Jamison and Bailey’s into a local craft brewery’s stout. Maybe you just want a good… old fashioned…. green beer?

Well, you are still in luck!

Staying with Rotunda, they released a green beer at their brew pub in Hershey called Green Goodness.

Beer: Green Goodness
Brewery: Rotunda Brewing Company
Style: Sour – Fruited Gose
ABV: 6.9%
IBU: None
Untappd Description: Kettle sour with lactose and conditioned on 7 fruit and vegetable purees.
Untappd Global Average Rating: 4 (as of 3.17.21)

Liquid Noise
Now let’s head across the river to Marysville and see what they have to offer for St. Paddy’s Day. They’ve gotten quite a bit of buzz lately about their recently released green beer in celebration of St. Paddy’s Day. They were even featured on ABC27 News: Liquid Noise on Good Morning ABC27 News.

Beer: A Little Extra – Goin’ Green
Brewery: Liquid Noise Brewing Company
Style: Blonde Ale
ABV: 5.5%
IBU: 30
Untappd Description: Light in body, green in appearance. What else Do you expect on St. Pattys Day?
Global Untappd Rating: (No Average formed yet. Not enough check-ins yet.) (3.17.21)

So let’s celebrate St. Patrick’s Day

Ok, now its time to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day! And lets do it safely everyone. Still obey precautions and rules and laws. What is everyone planning on doing today? What are your big plans for the day? I’m thinking low-key for myself, as I have a lot of writing to do, and not sure on what all to do tonight. But I might be persuaded to go out and enjoy myself some St. Paddy’s beer. Where at? Maybe a nice dinner with bangers and mash? Or Shepherd’s Pie? Who knows! I have about 2% Irish in me, but on St. Patrick’s Day we’re all Irish for the day! So let me know in the comments what you are planning to do for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day!

As always, be safe, be careful, and use Uber or Lyft if going out and celebrating too excessively. Be sure to mind the precautions, and rules, we’re almost there. The light is at the end of the tunnel. April 4th we all will be back to a far more normal world (I cannot wait to drink at a bar again!). Until then everyone, cheers and slainte!

Slainte!

-B. Kline

Be sure to keep following the March Madness and our Battle of the Breweries (2021) Brackets. We are down to the remaining 12 breweries, so hop over and vote!

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