A Philadelphia brewery is bringing back to life one of the most interesting and famous summer beers.
Evil Genius Beer Co. has purchased 21st Amendment Brewery, the national institution that pioneered craft beer in a can. It means beer lovers will see a return of Hell or High Watermelon just in time for summer.
“Evil Genius and 21st Amendment share the same values and story, rooted in independence and having fun,” said Evil Genius founder Luke Bowen. “I remember falling in love with Hell or High Watermelon. Sipping that beer on the waterfront was my introduction to watermelon beer.”
Evil Genius will continue producing all 21st Amendment beers, including both Brew Free! or Die flagship West Coast IPA and its citrus-infused variant Brew Free! or Die Blood Orange, and the award-winning retro-Americana Amendment Lager.
“No rebrands, no recipe changes,” said Bowen. “21A beers have been on tap next to ours since we started nearly 15 years ago. We met in person through a mutual friend and shared excitement over our love of beer. This isn’t a big beer takeover. This is about two guys who love great beer ensuring the beer people genuinely love stays in their fridges, and ours.”
21st Amendment helped put San Francisco craft beer on the map, leading the charge on canned craft, building a coast-to-coast following, and earning a spot as a Top 50 U.S. craft brewery by volume.
The brewery was founded in 2000 in San Francisco’s SoMa neighborhood by Nico Freccia and Shaun O’Sullivan. Over the past 25 years, it has become one of the most well-known independent craft beer brands in the country, building a national following and pioneering the craft can movement.
Founded in 2011 by Bowen and Trevor Hayward, Evil Genius has spent nearly 15 years building a loyal fan base across the country and proving a craft brewery can maintain a sense of humor while remaining serious about quality.
Under stewardship of Evil Genius, 21st Amendment will remain the independent, craft brand that fans have come to love over the past 25 years.
For more information on this and other beer releases, go to 21st-amendment.com and evilgeniusbeer.com.
The Franklin Fountain is putting new spins on the ice cream game. (Courtesy of The Franklin Fountain)
Franklin Fountain
Speaking of interesting flavors, The Franklin Fountain, 116 Market St. in Old City, the award-winning 1900s-inspired ice cream parlor owned by Media natives Ryan and Eric Berley, is taking ice cream to another level.
Ice cream lovers will find six new flavors monthly: four will be sold as an ice cream flight, and two additional flavors will debut in pints.
These six new monthly flavors will not be available by the scoop. They will be sold on a first come, first serve basis. Monthly drops will include Tea Flights and Pints, Baked Goods, Herbs and more.
For their new small batch, exclusive flavors, Chef Franny Zehmer and her lead ice cream maker Ryan Feldman spent the long, slow winter brainstorming, steeping, churning, and tasting, emerging with 26 new flavors ready to debut.
“Ice cream is meant to be fun,” said Zehmer. “Through my years managing the ice cream department my staff and myself have had so many what-if moments. What if we made this? What if we combined this and that? It got to the point where I asked myself ‘What if we actually took these ideas and made them a reality?’ ”
The expected launch of these interesting flavors are:
• May 2: Tea Flight (Hydrangea, London Fog, Chai, Honeysuckle)
• May 9: Bastani (Saffron, Rose, Pistachio) Pint
• May 23: Caprese Pint
• June 6: Baked Goods Flight (Pomegranate Scones, Blueberry Cobbler, Banana Bread, Lemon Bar); Peach Scone Pint; Box ‘o Chocolate Pint
• July 3: Smokey Cherry Wood
• July 18: Black Sesame Amaretto Pint
• Aug. 8: Herb Flight (Thyme, Rosemary, Sage and Basil); Plum Pint
• Aug. 22: Prickly Pear Passionfruit
For more information, visit franklinfountain.com.