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There are tons of advantages in switching from wine to beer, none of which anyone knows about, because who can remember anything without cool rhymes? For suds from a wine-master with the grapes to switch over anyway: Port City Brewery.

Run by a fourth generation Alexandrian who previously grew a multi-million dollar "luxury wine portfolio", Port City's a just-opened, "grain to glass" brewery boasting a tasting room lined with old artifacts (bottles, invoices) from a now-defunct Alexandria suds factory, and a one-of-a-kind, freshness-assuring brew-gun that shoots hops directly into fermenting beer (without adding oxygen) they've dubbed the "Hop Cannon", which is also a version of the Bible that focuses even more on Easter. Saturdays will see 20-30 minute tours of the whole facility, where (before tasting/buying growlers, kegs, and bottles) brew-thusiasts will be taken through every step of the process, including a walkthrough of the industrial "bottling line", and an up-close look at the fermentation tanks followed by the chance to taste mid-ferment unfinished beer, hopefully heading off any pretentious discussions of its finish. The brews themselves include the deep gold, "Essential Pale Ale" made with Columbus, Chinook and Amarillo hops for a "pleasing bitter taste", and an unfiltered varietal brewed in Belgian witbier fashion (with "raw wheat and oats") and dubbed the "Optimal Wit", which Ryan Stiles will take issue with...via some sort of ingenious pun, right off the top of his head!

By the end of the week, they'll also have finished their "Porter" made from "Magnum and Fuggles" hops, and copious amounts of dark chocolate, meaning that regardless of what you drink beforehand, you won't be left in the clear.

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If you love "intensely hoppy" brew, check out the upcoming Monumental IPA and the full beer list at portcitybrewing.com