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Daffodils are sprouting; must be time for a beer festival

It's time to hire some kid to mow the lawn so you can dive into beer-drinking season.

Arbrew Day. (courtesy photo)
Arbrew Day. (courtesy photo)Read more

THE DAFFODILS are sprouting, the grass is growing. It's time to hire some kid to mow the lawn so you can dive into beer-drinking season. Put these events and beers on your springtime to-drink list.

Events

Arbrew Day, tomorrow

TreePhilly and Yards Brewing will encourage beer drinkers to exercise their green thumbs with a pint and a spade. Get planting with a cold glass of Yards ale and a free yard tree and T-shirt at these participating bars: Bourbon Blue (2 Rector St., Manayunk); City Tap House (3925 Walnut St., West Philly); Frankford Hall (1210 Frankford Ave., Fishtown); Grey Lodge Pub (6235 Frankford Ave., Mayfair); and Kite & Key (1836 Callowhill St., Franklintown).

Fare Festival 2014, Sunday

More than 50 breweries, wineries, distillers and restaurateurs will be on hand at The Fuge (780 Falcon Circle, No. 200), in Warminster, for a big-time drinks-and-eats fest.

I'll be there, too, 'cause I want to check out the centrifuge (thus the facility's name) that was used to train astronauts on their way to the moon. Tix: $70 at farephiladelphia.com.

World's Largest Bar Crawl, May 3

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest pub crawl took place last year in Kansas City, with 4,885 participants. Philly can do better, right?

You'll need to drink at least five ounces of beverage at 10 different participating joints around the city. Drink plenty of water, too. Pick up a registration wristband for $10 at thecrawl.com.

Sly Fox Bock Fest & Goat Races, May 4

The goats draw thousands to this daylong festival at Sly Fox Brewhouse & Eatery, in Phoenixville. But it's brewmaster Brian O'Reilly's excellent range of bocks (from Helles bock to Eisbock) that make the running of the ruminants one of the best beer events in America.

Races start at 2 p.m. Free. slyfoxbeer.com.

Biblical Brew-Off, May 10

It's the He-brews vs. the Angli-cans at Congregation Rodeph Shalom (615 N. Broad St.), where the synagogue will take on Roxborough's St. Timothy's Episcopal Church in a home-brew battle for charity. Tix, $30, include beer, barbecue and a souvenir pint glass. 215-483-1529.

Happy Hour Yoga, May 10

Can you think of anything more relaxing than a one-hour, all-levels yoga workout (led by Mrs. Sixpack) followed by a free beer sampling (led by Mr. Sixpack)?

I'll pair all that stretching with some elbow-bending, featuring beers with a yoga theme. (How about Ommm-megang?)

Yoga class, $25, joesixpack.net.

Beers

Floyd D'Rue (and Rue D'Floyd). This pair of collaboration bottles by the Bruery, of California, and 3 Floyds, of Indiana, would draw plenty of interest, if only because they're produced by two cult faves. But something went wrong in the brewing process, and the barrel-aged beers were mistakenly infected by Lactobacillus bacteria that will turn them sour.

Rather than dump the stuff because it didn't meet their standards, the breweries have announced: Buy them at your own risk. It's as if a major carmaker knowingly sold a faulty product - unthinkable!

Stone Sprocketbier. The first in the California brewery's Spotlight Series featuring inventive brews from brewery workers. In this case, a quality-assurance supervisor and warehouse guy came up with an odd, black-rye Kolsch-style ale.

Victory Unity. This collaboration between the Downingtown brewery and the folks from West Philly's Local 44 is a more conventional, pale-colored Kolsch, made with German Hersbrucker hops.

Fegley's Brew Works Hop'solutely, with Brett. This triple IPA is one of my local favorites, and now they've inoculated a batch with Brettanomyces yeast. Look for a dose of funky aroma to pair with its bouquet of Chinook and Amarillo hops.

Long Trail Limbo IPA. The familiar, 25-year-old Vermont brewery is suddenly drawing new regard from hop heads for this strong yet blissful India pale ale. Credit its fruity flavor to an aggressive blend of Pacific Northwestern and Australian hops, including the trendy Mosaic variety.

Barren Hill Biere de Extra. Local favorites Iron Hill and Stoudt's have strong track records, so it was no surprise when they both brought home medals from the 2014 World Beer Cup earlier this month. But Barren Hill?

The 6-month-old Lafayette Hill brewery won bronze in the international contest for this strong, French-style biere de garde from farmhouse ale specialist Scott Morrison.