Hops Along: Personal Best
Personal Best Brewing in Ithaca knows what they are all about. Walking in, I immediately understood what the vibe of the place was going to be. No frills, open space, good music, stylish but comfortable seating… It's a place that is meant to be enjoyed, but looks darn good while doing it.
As with any brewery I go to these days, I researched this a bit, looking at their social media and website to see what they pride themselves in or do differently than others. Right away the thing that stood out to me is that Personal Best has LUKR side pour taps available.
Something that comes with a good LUKR side pour tap is a Mliko or “Milk Pour”, where the valve is opened slightly to pour only foam and fill a typically tall and skinny glass. Unlike something like a Guiness, you don’t let this one rest, they are to be drunk quickly.
This was my first order of business at Personal Best, and the two bartenders gladly joined me in this, pouring three glasses of Touch of the Unknown, a Czech-Style dark lager (4.5%). We clinked our glasses, I tapped mine on the bar (something that I picked up from my grandmother, another story for another time) and we chugged. The foam was dense enough to pour, not sticking to the glass, a small amount already condensing into beer in the bottom to aid it along. The flavor of the beer completely changes, bringing out the most subtle of the flavors, and then it’s over, it’s all gone. A milk pour is something you have to try for yourself, if you see it on the menu, get one!
I also ordered a Cone Poem 2025, a Wet-Hopped IPA with Triumph and Rakau hops, it came out almost brass in color. Rich and balanced the flavor was delicately walking the line of citrus and bitter that makes a crowd pleasing IPA. At 6.2% it was on the lighter side of today's heavily hopped and hazy IPAs, and I appreciated that reservation, it went down smooth and easy, so much so I forgot to get a picture of it before it was gone!
For my last drink , my wife and I split a can of Sneaky Flute Music (5.8%), a sour ale with Strawberry, Pineapple and Kiwi. In Jocelyn’s words, “you can really taste every single one of those fruits, in that order”. And as always, she is right! It started with a small, strawberry sweetness coming across first, then pineapple extending that sweetness before the tart hit of sour, kiwi and that slight twitch at the back of your jaw, something I always look for with a sour!
I had never heard of Personal Best Brewing until our own Locally Sourced editor Bob Proehl told me about them, and I really can’t thank him enough for that because this is one that I will be making the effort to stop at any time I’m in the Ithaca area again, and I can’t recommend them enough!
Do you have a favorite brewery I should check out? I’d love to hear from you all what your favorite spots are so I can feature them here! Shoot me an email and tell me what you check out at pzayac@wskg.org.