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Yards Brewing Company

Location	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Opened	1994
Key people	Jon Bovit & Tom Kehoe
Annual production volume	55,000 US beer barrels (65,000 hL) in 2015
Owned by	Tom Kehoe
Distribution	Muller

Yards Brewing Company, a brewery located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Yards specializes in brewing ales, particularly in the English tradition. Yards was established founded in 1994 by friends Tom Kehoe and Jon Bovit, who began producing their own homebrews in 1988. Within the first few months, "the Yards Guys" were producing one six-keg batch at a time out of their 3.5-barrel brewhouse, and supplying ESA, Entire Porter, and several other cask-conditioned ales to bars. As of 2015, Yards Brewery output capacity has reached 55,000 barrels.

History

Yards ESA was first publicly poured at the Philadelphia Craft Beer Festival on April 29, 1995 in booth 406. Many people refer to this day as "Ground Zero" for today’s Philadelphia beer scene. Dawson Street Pub purchased one of the first ESA kegs from Yards, and offered hand-pumped pours to customers during a happy hour on Friday May 19, 1995. The remaining ESA kegs were self-delivered by Bovit and Kehoe to Khyber Pass, Cavanaugh's 39th Street, and Sugar Mom's. Later this same year, Yards introduced Imperial Stout, Olde Bartholomew Barleywine and Entire Porter

Yards outgrew its first garage-sized brewery in the Manayunk section of Northwest Philadelphia, which reached a final output capacity of 795 barrels. By the end of 1996, Yards had released Saison, Old Ale, Grand Cru, Oyster Stout and Imperial Stout. The following year, (1997) Yards moved to the neighboring section of Roxborough. This larger facility, located at 5050 Umbria Street, allowed Yards to bottle its beer for the first time. After a lack of sales with Oyster Stout, the brewery followed suit from Jake and Oliver's House of Brews decision in changing the beer's name to Love Stout. This same year, Yards released their IPA, expanded production of Extra Special Ale, and began working on an early version of Brawler.

By 1998, Yards had received the Best Local Beer award from Philadelphia Magazine's "Best of Philly." Their distribution area had extended to reach New Jersey and Pittsburgh. During this time, Yards was contract brewing for other local breweries, including Manayunk Brewing Company, Dock Street Brewing Company, Barley Creek, and Gravity Brewing Co. (closed). The following year, Yards partnered with City Tavern, which specializes in recreating 18th century recipes, to to create the Ales of the Revolution. Yards drew inspiration for this series from recipes belonging to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin, to recreate a line of historic beer. Co-founder Jon Bovit left the company this same year, stating that he wished to spend more time with his family. Under sole ownership in the year 2000, Tom Kehoe had brewed 2,100 barrels and released Philadelphia Pale Ale, paying tribute to the pre-prohibition Continetal Brewing Company's Philadelaphia Pale Ale.

In 2001, Yards Brewing Company moved into the old Weisbrod & Hess Brewery in the Kensington section of Northeast Philadelphia. Bill Barton and his wife Nancy located the new brewery site. Vacant since 1939, Yards improved the facility and steadily increased production.

In July 2007, Kehoe and the Bartons announced that they were dissolving their partnership, effective August 2007. Kehoe retained the Yards brand and recipes. He moved to 901 North Delaware Avenue in the Northern Liberties section of North Philadelphia. This location once again increased their production capabilities and expanded their product line.

In 2009 Yards was the recipient of the Penn Future Green Power Purchaser Small Business Award for becoming the first 100% wind powered brewery in Pennsylvania and for continued commitment to sustainability.

In 2010 Yards opened its Tasting Room, a 100-person capacity pub room with a 12-tap system. The tasting room features a century-old billiards table.

Philadelphia Pale Ale won Philadelphia Magazine's Best Of Philly award for "Best Local Beer" in 2012, and ESA took home the bronze medal at the Great American Beer Festival that same year.

Yards ales are currently distributed throughout the Mid-Atlantic region with 80% of its nearly 40,000 barrel production being distributed in the Philadelphia tri-state area (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware). As of May 2015 Yards is the largest brewery operating in the city of Philadelphia.

Products

Beer Name	Year Introduced	Style	ABV	IBUs	Availability	Description
Brawler	1998 Reintroduced 2008	English Mild	4.2%	11	Year-round. 6/12/24 pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Malt-forward, delicately hopped. Hints of caramel and toast.
Cape of Good Hope	2009	West Coast Style Double IPA	9.7%	75	Limited Release: August 4/12-pack 1/6 keg, 1/2 keg	Yearly changing recipe. Notes of citrus, melon, and pine from Ella, Azacca, Galaxy, Mosaic, Citra, Chinook, Citra, and whole flower Cascade hops.
Chocolate Love Stout	2013	Chocolate Stout	6.9%	25	Limited release - December 4/12-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Brewed with 100% cacao Belgian dark chocolate. Rich chocolate, dark roasted malts, hints of vanilla and caramel.
Extra Special Ale (ESA)	1995	English Ale	6.0%	47	Year-round. 6/24-pack; 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg Hoff-Stevens cask	British-inspired ale. Subtle spiciness, floral, earthy, and smooth, strong malt backbone. Golden and Styrian hops.
General Washington's Tavern Porter	1999	Porter	7.0%	40	Year-round. 6/12 pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Brewed with molasses. Dark, smooth, complex. Hints of dried fruit.
Golden Hop IPA	2016	IPA	6.0%	55	Limited Release: January 6/12-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Belgian yeasts, dry hopped Amarillo, Cascade, and Mosaic. Melon and citrus taste/aroma.
IBG Grapefruit Pale Ale	2016	Pale Ale	6.1%	N/A	Exclusive Release Philadelphia Independence Beer Garden	Golden-colored pale ale. Grapefruit zest, Azacca, Centennial, and Cascade hops.
IPA	1998	East Coast Style IPA	7.0%	62	Year-round. 6/12/24-pack; 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg Hoff-Stevens cask	Traditional-styled malty IPA, Chinook and Amarillo hops. Pine and Tangerine aroma.
Love Stout	1997	Stout	5.5%	33	Year-round 6/12/24-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg (Nitro only)	Dark roasted malts, notes of chocolate and coffee.
Philadelphia Pale Ale	2000	Pale Ale	4.6%	37	Year-round 6/12/24-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Straw-colored pale ale. Cascade, Centennial, Columbus and Simcoe hops. Crisp, hoppy, citrus.
Poor Richard's Tavern Spruce	2005	Spiced Ale	5.0%	22	Year-round 6/12-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Influenced by Benjamin Franklin's recipe. Barley, Molasses, and locally-sourced spruce clippings.
PYNK	2001 Reintroduced 2013	Fruit Beer	5.5%	6	Limited Release: July 6/12-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Light body, sweet and tart cherries and raspberries. Portions of sales go to breast cancer research and awareness.
Rival IPA	2016	West Coast Style IPA	6.2%	55	Limited Release: October 6/12-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Crystal and rye malts Bravo and nugget bittering hops. Whole-flowed Chinook hops Centennial, Citra, Simcoe and Columbus hops.
Saison	1996	Saison	6.5%	30	Limited Release: April 6/12-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Summer-wheat ale. Belgian yeasts and Styrian hops. Hints of banana, clove, and spice.
Sons of Ben	2014	Belgian Pale Ale	5.0%	37	Limited Release: May 6-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Pale straw color. Cascade and Amarillo hops.
Thomas Jefferson's Tavern Ale	1999	Strong Golden Ale	8.0%	42	Year-round 6/12-pack 1/2 keg, 1/6 keg	Based on Thomas Jefferson's recipe. Brewed with oats, maize, rye, wheat, and locally-sourced honey.
Washington's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Aged Porter	2014	Barrel Aged Strong Porter	7.0%	34	Limited Release: By batch	General Washington's Tavern Porter, aged for six months inside of bourbon barrels. Crystal and chocolate malts, molasses. Scent of vanilla.

Awards

Year	Presenter	Award	Winner
1998	Philadelphia Magazine	Best Local Beer	Yards
2000	Philadelphia City Paper	Best Use Of Oysters	Love Stout
2001	Philadelphia City Paper	Best Guys In A Tough Town	Brewery Staff
2003	Chicago Real Ale Festival	Bronze Medal	ESA
2004	New York Times	Top Five Pale Ales in the Country	Philadelphia Pale Ale
2009	Penn Future	Green Power Purchaser Small Business Award	Yards
2009	Philly Beer Week	Best Beer with a Cheesesteak	Philadelphia Pale Ale
2010	World Beer Cup	Bronze Medal in "Extra Special Bitter"	ESA
2011	94WIP Beer Brawl	Listeners' Choice	Philadelphia Pale Ale
2011	610WIP Beer Brawl	Best Seasonal	Saison
2012	Atlantic City Beer Festival	Best Light Beer	Philadelphia Pale Ale
2012	Great American Beer Festival	ESB Bronze Medal	ESA
2012	Philly Beer Scene	Best IPA/Pale Ale	Philadelphia Pale Ale
2012	Philly Beer Scene	Best Session Beer	Brawler
2012	Philadelphia Magazine's Best of Philly	Best Beer	Philadelphia Pale Ale
2013	Great American Beer Festival	Bronze Medal in Indigenous Ales	Poor Richard's Tavern Spruce
2013	Great American Beer Festival	Silver Medal in English Milds	Brawler
2013	Philly Beer Scene	Best Barrel-Aged Beer	Bourbon Love Stout
2014	Philly Beer Scene	Dark Beer of the Year	Love Stout
2014	Philly Beer Scene	Humanitarian of the Year	Tom Kehoe
2015	Good Food Awards	Beer	Extra Special Ale
2015	Philly Beer Scene	Best Fruit Beer	PYNK
2016	Great American Beer Festival	Silver Medal in Irish Dry Stouts	Love Stout

Events

• Smoke ‘Em if Yous Got ‘Em: A smoked beer and barbecue event on the brewery grounds takes place later in the year. The festival highlights smoked or rauch beers and features many other breweries as well as homebrewers.
• Philadelphia Real Ale Invitational: A session focused around cask conditioned beers is offered once a year on site at the brewery. This event features a wide array of firkins of varied ales from a large selection of breweries in addition to the traditional Yards lineup and one-offs. Food and entertainment are offered.

References

• Brewer's Desk blog ("No posts.")
• Bryson, Lew (July 24, 2007). "Yards partners split up". Seen Through a Glass.
• "Yards Partners Split; Kehoe Keeps Yards Brand & Bartons To Form Philadelphia Brewing Co". The Beeryard. Wayne, PA. July 30, 2007.
• "Yards Distribution Rights Go To Muller Inc.url=http://www.beeryard.com/news/default.cfm?action=view&id=981". The Beeryard. Wayne, PA. December 6, 2007. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)

External links

• www.yardsbrewing.com