Luzerne County restaurant inspections: Aug. 3-7

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Rain, cooler temperatures expected through the midweek

<p>As you can tell from my past columns, I get really excited about summer time especially when it comes to summer brews. This time of year, brewing companies come out with a plethora of seasonal beers, many flavored with citrus fruits such as orange, raspberries, blueberries and lemons. These &#8220;fruity beers&#8221; can be found in any bar, restaurant and beer store in the area. I am not a big fan of fruity beers, but I recommend that you try them whenever you can.</p><p>Right down the road in Pittston is the home of the Susquehanna Brewing Company. Back in 1836, Charles Stegmaier, at age 15, was working as an apprentice in his home town of Gmund, Germany, learning the art of brewing beer. If you remember the name of Stegmaier with a smile on your face, you would be around my age. Stegmaier beer was a summer cookout staple with my family along with hamburgers and hot dogs. I remember my first sip of beer as a youngster was a cold Steg. My father allowed me to taste it.</p><p>Charles Stegmaier made his way to the United States in 1851 and shortly after, brewed the first lager ever made in Northeast Pennsylvania, for brewery owner John Reichard. In 1857, Stegmaier and his father-in-law George Baer founded the Baer and Stegmaier Brewing Company. Forty years later, Stegmaier purchased the George W. Flock Brewing Company, then located in Nanticoke and changed its name to the Susquehanna Brewing Company. It operated under this name until Prohibition closed its doors in 1920. As time passed, decedents of Charles Stegmaier moved to wholesale beer distribution and then opened a tavern named the Cat and Canary in West Pittston. Then in 2010 Edward Maier and Mark Nobile formed the Susquehanna Brewing Company as we know it today.</p><p>SBC brews a few good beers so when I had the chance to try SBC summer shandy, Shady Spot, I thought, why not. You see, a lemon flavored beer brewed correctly can make for a summer thirst quenching experience. On the other hand, if the brewer gets a bit heavy with the flavor then you get lemonade rather than a beer.</p><p><strong>Sight:</strong> When I got my first look at SBC Shady Spot, I saw a bright yellow color through the glass. I was now somewhat scared since it kind of looked like lemonade. The head of the shady was very white in color but very slight in size and dissipated rather quickly. Now my beer fright has moved up a notch on the BFS, Beer Fear Scale.</p><p><strong>Aroma:</strong> As I lifted the glass to my nose, all I smelled was a familiar lemon smell. Lemon meringue pie? No. Lemon ice cream? No. Wait, it&#8217;s lemon Pledge. It smelled just like the lemon Pledge that I use to clean my furniture at home. My BFS was rising like a thermometer on a hot summer day. Now my lips are puckering up in anticipation of what was to come</p><p><strong>Taste:</strong> As I lifted the glass of SBC Shady Spot to my lips I thought of that taste you get in your mouth if you breathe in too much Pledge. As I took my first sip, all I could taste was that lemon Pledge. I must say that it was horrible. I thought, try it again, maybe it will taste better. Let me tell you, it did not</p><p>Overall, Susquehanna Brewing Company&#8217;s Shady Spot is a lemon. Frankly, it is not a very good beer. The brewers at SBC really went overboard with the lemon flavor when they made this beer. If I had to pair this summer shandy with food, well I wouldn&#8217;t want to kill the taste of the food.</p><p>Susquehanna Brewing Company brews other beers such as Hop 5 IPA, Goldencold Lager and Pumpkin Ale. I recommend you give these a try. You can pick up an SBC Shady Spot at the Anthracite Caf&#233; in Parsons or at your favorite distributor.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Jim McCabe The Beer Meister </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_james.jpg</photo0><caption0>Jim McCabe The Beer Meister </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_ShadySpot_Web.jpg">
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>Jim McCabe</p><p>The Beer Meister</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p>The Beer Meister is a new column that will appear twice a month in the Times Leader</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p style="text-align: left;">Jim McCabe is an avid beer enthusiast and the circulation manager for the Times Leader.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

The Beer Meister: This Shady Spot is not much pleasure