Yards Brewing and Lokal Artisan Foods to Make History with New French Toast Bites Ale!
Yards Brewing and Lokal Artisan Foods to Make History with New French Toast Bites Ale!
What started out as a freshly made street food treat in Philadelphia has now found its way onto the beer scene just in time for summer! Yards Brewing Company and Lokal Artisan Foods have joined forces to collaborate on the release of the new French Toast Bites Ale – a smooth and malty collab inspired by the famous French Toast Bites sold at Cherry Street Pier, Spruce Street Harbor Park, Made in America, St. Joe’s University, Better Box, Philadelphia Night Market and Bronx Night Market.
The new beer captures the delicious flavors of sugar and spice and everything nice – with comforting notes of maple syrup, rich brown sugar, spicy cinnamon and delicate vanilla. The beer will be available in 16 ounce cans (four-pack), plus in kegs and sixtels. Yards will produce the beer year-round out of its brewery at 500 Spring Garden Street. Look for it in grocery stores, bottle shops, bars and restaurants throughout Philadelphia, Eastern Pennsylvania, South Jersey and Delaware. goPuff has stepped in to make a major purchase of the beer to support the Black-owned business, and the beer is confirmed to be sold at Acme and Total Wine.
Yards will carry cans and drafts at the taproom and shop at 500 Spring Garden Street. Yards Brewing and Lokal Artisan Foods celebrate the new partnership and new beer with a free French Toast Bites giveaway on the first day of release, Thursday, May 20th. From 5:00pm to 7:00pm, enjoy free French Toast Bites with unlimited toppings outside Yards’ Spring Garden location when you buy a four-pack or order a draft.
“When we met Charisse, we were drawn to her spirit and positive energy, and immediately felt that our values and interests were really well aligned,” said Yards Brewing Company CEO Trevor Prichett. “As a small player in a big field, at Yards we are all about promoting Philadelphia’s hometown companies and entrepreneurs, and we are proud to brew in collaboration with Charisse and to bring her ingenuity to beer lovers throughout our region. A big thanks to Dave Goldman at Urban Village Brewing Company for introducing us to Charisse and helping to kick start this partnership.”
French Toast Bites Ale is a collaboration brew that brings together two of Philadelphia’s most well-known and celebrated food and beer companies. The collaboration brew is a result of months of development work between Charisse and the brewing team at Yards. The end result is an “anytime” amber-colored ale that clocks in at 5.5% ABV. The cinnamon, sugar and vanilla infused beer is perfect for anytime – from breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and all points in between. Yards wanted to create an entirely new beer that was completely inspired by and that celebrates the deliciousness of Philly’s famous French Toast Bites.
This all-new release is the second beer inspired by McGill’s famous bites. Last year, McGill debuted a limited edition small batch run that was an overnight, runaway sensation that sold out in just over 24 hours. For this new beer and partnership, McGill will see the spirit and flavor of her Bites celebrated in the new ale that will go from 366 cases last year to Yards’ initial production order of 2,500 cases. In the first launch of sales, Yards reports immense interest with orders pouring in and confirmed for over 1,000 cases. Yards also confirmed that they are ramping up production for the next initial shipment and they see lots of room for growth and expansion, teasing even possible other flavors for French Toast Bites Ale. For McGill, the partnership is a dream come true during such a challenging time during the pandemic.
“I am excited and thrilled to collaborate with Yards Brewing Company on the new French Toast Bites Ale,” said McGill. “Last year, during my first baby-steps into the beer business, I was overwhelmed at the amazing interest and fast response to my first beer. I was yielding calls, emails and DM’s from people all over Pennsylvania and the country. It was such an amazing process that came during one of the worst years in all of our lives. My pivot journey had me looking onwards and upwards each and every day – and that journey led me to connect with the amazing folks at Yards Brewing Company. Yards wanted to support another Philly business. I am so thankful to Trevor, Tom and the entire Yards team as French Toast Bites Ale heads across the state and into New Jersey and Delaware. I am so proud that we will be positioned to have not one, not two, but three French Toast Bites products on grocery shelves going forward – with the beer, the spice and soon the brand-new coffee with Bean2Bean. I am also so thankful for goPuff for continuing to partner with me and support my business – as they pick up a big order of the new beer with Yards.”
For McGill, the debut of the new beer makes her the first and the only black female in the state of Pennsylvania with her own signature beer. The debut of the new beer is also part of the expansive pivot story for the black-owned, female-owned small and local business operating out of the Philadelphia market. From a devastating loss of special event income for her French Toast Bites business, to a major pivots and grand openings, and now to the debut of this beer, the entrepreneur is getting out of the box, getting creative, working hard and ensuring her success in a year filled with challenges for the hospitality business as a whole.
News of French Toast Bites Ale comes hot on the heels of McGill’s grand opening of her new French Toast Bites at Cherry Street Pier and her second season opening of her location at Spruce Street Harbor Park. While the two locations do not carry the beer due to licensing, the beer is available as a selection at FCM Hospitality’s The Garden at Cherry Street Pier, and the Yards Brewing Company taproom and shop is only just up the street on Spring Garden.
French Toast Bites Ale is available for purchase at Yards’ taproom and shop with four-pack cans retailing at Yards for $13.99 and $7 per print on draft.
Beyond Yards’ homebase in Northern Liberties, look for French Toast Bites at grocery stores, bottle shops, bars and restaurants in the coming days and weeks. ACME and Total Wine have both committed to selling the beer, and goPuff has picked up a major order of the beer for home delivery – as they did for the first release by McGill.
“I am so thankful to our friends at goPuff for stepping up and supporting small independent Black and female owned businesses like mine,” said McGill. “You know you have something special when people can find you on goPuff and have your product on-demand and delivered right to their front door. It is almost a surreal feeling when I get texts from friends and people around the city saying they are ordering French Toast Bites Ale. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure all of this is real. I am so thankful and so honored.”
On the goPuff app, the Yards and Lokal Artisan Foods collab beer will be featured alongside other local iconic brands such as Federal Donuts, Famous 4th Street Cookie Company and La Colombe. The beer will be available in the Local Favorites, as well as the Beer tabs within the app.
“At goPuff, we are committed to working with and supporting local businesses in each of our communities – and this is especially true in Philadelphia, our home city,” said Rafael Ilishayev, goPuff co-founder and co-CEO. “Because of this, partnering with Lokal Artisan Foods, a Black- and female-founded business in Philadelphia, aligns with our mission and we are so excited to work with Charisse to bring her new French Toast Beer to customers.”
For a taste of the actual French Toast Bites, visit McGill and Lokal Artisan Foods at Cherry Street Pier and Spruce Street Harbor this summer. Plus, with restrictions being lifted, watch for McGill back out at festivals, fairs and events when they begin to resume. And of course, watch for McGill to return to Christmas Village and Made in Philadelphia Holiday Market.
