Pottsville/Pottstown - 56 miles Apart

I'm sure if you're coming back the reason is to say "Hey, this doofus doesn't know the difference between Pottstown, Pa. and Pottsville, Pa.!" Other than that, I must thank a reader for actually pointing out the fact that in today's original post I had John R.Brooke being from the same town where Yuengling Brewery is. When in fact the two are about an hour apart.

@burghbeersnob @yuengling_beer Dude, Yuengling is from PottsVILLE.
— Nate Stimmel (@OneDropSoup) March 5, 2013

@burghbeersnob It's ok. Both cities are in eastern PA, so you were close (ish).
— Yuengling Brewery(@Yuengling_Beer) March 5, 2013

I guess it's easy to screw the two up? Kudos to the commonwealth for having two eerily similar town names. Maybe I was caught up in the excitement that I almost had a big historical connection. Hey, Wikipedia is editable.

It's either that or this incident stems from the time last September when my girlfriend and I were on our way  to someones wedding in the eastern side of the commonwealth. I was deathly sick with some form of strep throat. Almost to the point where I had to give up driving for the day. During my sickly delusions I remember going under a highway exit sign for either Pottsville or Pottstown. As of right now, I can honestly say I have no idea which. I was very ill.

I do remember my first inclination was that I was close to the brewery or at least I was in delusional sick land. Hilariously, I still don't know which town I was closest to. Irony is a beautiful part of life. A good thing is that I don't have to feel bad about missing out on visiting Yuengling because there's a 50 percent chance I was nowhere near it.

I'm still not devoid of ideas! John F. Reynolds was from Lancaster. Lancaster Brewing Company should have first priority on that, but Yuengling could get away with that as well. Last I checked, Lancaster doesn't have a brew in its lineup named for Reynolds. There's only one Lancaster in Pennsylvania! Geez I need a Black and Tan.

Monday Rant: Let Yuengling Be

When I first became interested in beer, Yuengling Traditional Lager was that first beer other than the Natural Light and Coors Light you could find in the pubs around your college campus that you drank and reminded yourself that it's a damn good beer.

The bottle has a classic look to it. I don't see many with that green tint anymore. The beautiful brown liquid that houses itself inside that bottle is even better once it hits your tongue. Making it that much better was the fact that this product was made in Pennsylvania. There was always a sense of pride when it came up in conversation. Having family and friends just down the road in West Virginia, I witnessed some of the rejoicing when Yuengling was finally sold in that state.

Dick Yuengling caused a few ripples a few weeks ago when he said that Pennsylvania wasn't the best business climate in the world. He could be right for all we know. I'm not typing this to argue whether or not Pennsylvania (even a spot closer to Pittsburgh) is the best spot for Yuengling to expand. I'm just writing this to bring up the point that Yuengling has earned his and his brewery's right to do whatever he sees fit for his company.

Come on. Yuengling has provided the country with a nationally-recognized product. That beer bottle is pretty much a trademark, isn't it?

Yuengling has done enough. That brewery has done just about everything and more for Pennsylvania. If this supposed expansion occurs in another state, so be it. That's how the cookie crumbles. Yes, it could hurt jobs somewhat in this state, but I don't feel that it's Yuengling's obligation anymore. The brewery can do what it so chooses. I'm still going to be proud the next time I open a bottle of it. It will always be Pennsylvania's beer.