A toast to a city of brews

Beer is back in Philadelphia, the city that was the Cradle of American Libation.

Brewing roots here are so deep that the Revolution was fermented in local taverns on tankards of the nation's first beers. We brewed the first porter here, and launched the American lager industry.

But when Schmidt's closed its kettles in 1987, it was the first time in three centuries that beer wasn't made in the city once home to a remarkable 100 breweries.

From that low, Philadelphia has been quietly building a head of steam as a modern-day beer mecca. And this month's sprawling Philly Beer Week - with more than 150 events from Passyunk to Paoli celebrating the comeback - is only the tip of the tap.

We boast the country's premier Belgian and import scene. Monk's Cafe pours more draft Chimay ale than anywhere else in America.

A growing stable of stellar local and regional breweries, like Victory, Sly Fox, Stoudt's, Yards and Dogfish Head, have earned national followings. Three new microbreweries opened last year; another is on the way.

More than a dozen gastropubs have redefined our neighborhoods, their craft beers and creative kitchens adding a new edginess to the dining scene. Standard Tap in Northern Liberties launched the trend, followed by places like the Good Dog, N. 3rd, the South Philadelphia Tap Room, and the Royal Tavern.

Yet many Philadelphians have no idea the city is so well-regarded on the national beer radar.

"Philly really is a great beer town," says Vinnie Cilurzo of the widely respected Russian River Brewing Co. in Sonoma County, Calif. His much sought-after barrel-aged Belgian-style brews, such as Pliny the Elder, are available only in California and Philadelphia.

"Having our beers available at Monk's was a really big deal," he said, putting them in one of the foremost Belgian bars in America.

Indeed, Monk's and its co-owner Tom Peters - believed to be the first in the country to put Belgian beer on tap - have been key to the Belgian boom in Philadelphia, a distinction that has brought the city national regard.

"Philly leads with its Belgian fist," said Toronto beer writer Stephen Beaumont. "If Portland is Munich on the Willamette, then Philly is Brussels on the Schuylkill."

The region counts eight Belgian pubs featuring vast arrays of Trappist-style ale and mussels.