Beer, restaurant week starts today
TROY >> Starting today and running through Sunday, Sept. 20, downtown Troy will celebrate the merger of Troy Restaurant Week and Troy Craft Beer Week.
The Downtown Troy BID hosts Troy Restaurant Week, where a slate of local restaurants throughout the city offer specials and extend fixed priced points of $5, $10, $15, $20 and $30. Kevin Mullen, co-owner of Rare Form Brewery, and Dave Gardell, owner of The Ruck, host Troy Craft Beer Week, which for its second year asked to partner with Troy Restaurant Week. The collaboration has resulted in a full week of giveaways, tastings, special menu pairings, and the launch of a collaborative festival beer crafted by The Ruck, Rare Form Brewery and Brown’s Brewing Company.
“We couldn’t be happier,” said Erin Pihlaja, executive director of The Downtown Troy BID. “This merger really encapsulates what is going on in Troy right now, which is a movement very focused on local producers and makers. This is a great addition to our restaurant week and likewise, the perfect pairing for craft beer week.”
She added, “Troy has a very vivid brewery history and we look forward to growing this event to include tours of not only the current breweries and craftbeer-serving establishments but to highlight the historic places where breweries once operated.”
The special festival beer called “Ménage á Troy” will be available during this special week only. The beer, according to Mullen, is a “hoppy wheat ale” and has a “golden hue with a white head and is a little hazy due to the wheat and oats.” It also features New York state honey.
Gardell is proud of the focus this event puts on Troy and said the inclusion of some NewYork-state- sourced ingredients align with the emphasis on keeping things local. “It’s a lighter beer with more flavor. It is malty sweet with light citrus notes even a touch of pineapple.” Gardell said he also hoped that not only craft beer enthusiasts but those wanting to grow their knowledge of this culture will come out and take part in the festivities.
A pub crawl to establishments serving Ménage á Troy will take place on Monday night. Both Gardell and Mullen expect the beer to sell out and aren’t sure if next year’s festival will include the same beer or if they will go back to the drawing board for a new recipe.
The public can find beer at Brown’s Brewing Co. (417 River St.), The Ale House (680 River St.), O’Brien’s Pub (43 3rd St.), Slidin’ Dirty (9 1st St.) and The Ruck (104 3rd St.), which will host a tapping event Monday at 9:30 p.m. Rare Form will tap one more keg at their location on Wednesday night at will be serving Ménage á Troy at the Troy on Tap Festival in Riverfront Park on Saturday, Sept. 19.
Full event listings may be found at DowntownTroy.org and at Troy Craft Beer week on Facebook.