Joe Sixpack | Today's your lucky 13th - the cask ale party at Grey Lodge

TIME FOR a little spring cleaning. Clear out those barleywines, suck in that gut and let's dust up the beer scene around town.

Friday the Firkinteenth

Everywhere else, it's an unlucky day. But each Friday the 13th, the Grey Lodge (6235 Frankford Ave., Mayfair) turns into a gloriously splashy cask ale party at which small kegs (firkins) are hoisted onto the bar and drained into waiting glasses.

These beers are naturally carbonated inside the kegs, a process called cask-conditioning. There's no need for CO2 tanks when serving from them; the bartenders just open the bungs and let gravity do the work. Without the artificial bubbles, the ales - served at cellar temperature - tend to have a full, soft feel in your mouth.

No other local fest offers so many different varieties of this so-called real ale; this year, publican Mike "Scoats" Scotese promises no fewer than 20 different firkins.

I'm looking forward to Flying Fish Farmhouse Ale, a local summertime favorite that you wouldn't normally think of as a cask-conditioned ale because it's so light and effervescent. This keg, though, has been specially aged with an extra dose of Columbus and Amarillo hops, a process called dry-hopping.

Friday the Firkinteenth kicks off at noon today, which means you'll have a buzz on before dusk. Take public transportation because - with this selection - I guarantee your designated driver will punk out and succumb to the suds.

The new brewpub in town

Triumph Brewing has finally opened its doors at 117 Chestnut St. I'll withhold any review of the place till it gets its legs, but I did want to make three quick points:

_ It's about time! The city hasn't seen a new brewpub in eight years. New blood is always welcome.

_ Excellent location. Old City is already the richest beer-drinking section of town, with the Khyber, Eulogy, Brownie's, Sugar Mom's, Charlie's Pub, City Tavern, Jager's, Skinner's, Buffalo Bill's and the underrated Race Street Cafe. Adding a brewpub to this mix makes the neighborhood a pub crawler's heaven.