This was the first First Friday event that I was able to attend in 2014, having missed March's #ArtOn9 featuring local artists and art galleries in the Ninth Square, and April's #DesignOn9 which featured Connecticut designer, Neville Wisdon's Spring Fashion Show.
If you're not familiar with New Haven's 9th Square District and their First Friday events, on the First Friday of each month from March through December, the Ninth Square in New Haven holds "open to the public" events featuring merchants in the historic Ninth Square district with a theme that draws them all together.
A list of the upcoming events for 2014 appears at the end of this post.
Friday's Brew On 9 featured mostly CT and New England local breweries served at participating merchants. The event was a hopping [pun intended] success which had as much to do with Mother Nature as it did with the merchants we visited and the brew vendors who contributed! It was probably the first warm night of the spring season in Connecticut. YAY! Temperatures were in the 60's making for comfortable weather for walking around the eclectic city streets in the 9th Square District and visiting the participating establishments.
The event planners did a great job of making this event user friendly!
First of all, if you're traveling from out of town and don't want to drive, the Ninth Square is a few city blocks from New Haven's Union Train Station. If you're driving and you're not lucky enough to score on street parking (metered) there's also a paid parking lot on the corner of Orange and George Steets ($8.00). I only wish they would ALSO partner up with On9 to offer reduced parking prices on the night of First Friday Events. (hint-hint)
Second of all, the events are affordable! While many of the events are free, some do require purchased tickets, and so far, none have been more than $20.00 per person.
Third of all, the event includes a map to the participating merchants and inside a little history on each of the craft beers that are offered.
Although we didn't stop in all 17 of the establishments that were participating we did hit quite a few! Here are some pictures highlighting the places we visited and the brews we sampled...
We started at O'Toole's Irish Pub where we sampled some Road 2 Ruin Double IPA by Two Roads Brewing. The beer was really good, but O'Toole's was REALLY busy with their usual Happy Hour so many had a wee bit of a wait.
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| O'Toole's Irish Pub Featuring Two Roads Brewing Road 2 Ruin Double IPA |
Next up was the unique English Market Building - one of my favorite stores in the Ninth Square! They feature antiques and retro collectibles and on this visit I spotted a Polaroid Land Camera! Even the cowboy loved this store and the Penny Weiz Ale we sampled by Hartford Olde Burnside Brewing Company. The peeps at English Market are fun with an amazing eye for good finds. and the cowboy is still mad at me because in spite of all the beautiful girls that work there...I asked him to pose with a mannequin! Honey, just get over it!
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| English Building Market Olde Burnside Brewing Penny Weiz Ale |
Next we stopped at Elm City Market who were featuring a wide array of craft beers. Highlight of the trip was meeting a local photographer who jumped right in and helped me with posing some of the beer pours! One of the great things about attending these events is the incredibly helpful and friendly people you get to meet!
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| Elm City Market Shebeen Brewing City Steam Brewery Olde Burnside Hop't Scot Ale |
Next we ambled over to the Grove to sample some of my hometown of Branford's own Thimble Island Brewery's Coffee Stout. This was my first time to the Grove and I was so impressed with the space. For those not familiar with the concept it's a shared co-op business space, artist studio, intelmedia hub, and more! And I absolutely loved the hearty Coffee Stout!
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| The Grove Thimble Island Brewery - Coffee Stout |
We also visited Neville Wisdom's Design Studio aka NW Boutique who featured Back East Brewing's Porter, a dark beer that I loved because of its chocolate and caramel notes. It was also great to see both Neville and his assistant Lauren in the design studio and hear about their last two fashion events. I finally got to see Neville's Spring 2014 line in person and of course I loved what I saw! Beautiful pastel colors in classic shapes with a modern twist. Now I can't wait to go back and SHOP!!! What's more ... I was THRILLED to see that Neville is featuring my interview of him on his inspiration wall, right alongside articles by the New Haven Register, Yale News, and other prominent publications that he is featured in! (see red arrow in picture below). Did I mention I was thrilled!??!! (Thank you Neville and Lauren!)
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| NW Boutique - Neville Wisdom Design Studio Back East Brewing - Porter |
We had such a great time strolling the 9th Square in New Haven and participating in the #BrewOn9 Event!
See more pictures on our faceook page HERE
See more pictures on our faceook page HERE
And here's a list of the 2014 First Friday Events happening in the Ninth Square!
2014 First Friday Event Schedule - Ninth Square
click on the link to learn more about the event!
| 03.07.14 | Arts On9 | Creative energy flows through the historic 9th Square as artistic enterprises converge to produce a variety of experiences. | |
| 04.04.14 | Design On9 | Celebrate spring with a fashion preview, an On9 signature cocktail contest, and more in the spectacular 45 Church Street space. TICKETED EVENT | |
| 05.02.14 | Brew On9 | Stroll the historic 9th Square while enjoying some of the area’s best craft and home brews. TICKETED EVENT | |
| 06.06.14 | Create On9 | PiazzaOn9 reopens for the summer season (Orange Street is closed between Center and Crown Streets). Enjoy alfresco dining while the Elm Shakespeare Company presents I Am Shakespeare. The neighborhood overflows with live music, gallery openings, and a variety of in-store promotions. | |
| 07.04.14 | No event | ||
| 08.01.14 | Pie On9 | Celebrate CitySeed’s 2nd annual event by baking or tasting pie, all for a good cause. TICKETED EVENT | |
| 09.05.14 | Noise On9 | Work outs, runways, music and treats, it’s the sounds of 9th Square | |
| 10.03.14 | Illuminate On9 | The prelude to LAMP (light artists making place) and kick-off of Citywide Open Studios. | |
| 11.07.14 | Wine On9 | Stroll through 9th Square while enjoying domestic and international wines selected by The Wine Thief. TICKETED EVENT | |
| 12.05.14 | Cookies On9 | Winter weather can’t keep us from our sweetest event. Join us for an evening guaranteed to put you in the holiday spirit as we gather sweet treats from participating merchants. TICKETED EVENT |
I hope to see you at one of the upcoming First Friday On 9 Events!
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