Grab a HooDoo at Voodoo; Shelf Life String Band Bluegrass Jam at Park House (Wed., 9/2/15)

1) It didn’t take long for award-winning Voodoo Brewery to outgrow its Meadville britches. The brewery’s not abandoning operations out of the small Crawford County seat. Rather, in January of this year, the owners opened Voodoo Homestead, a satellite pub which sells only Voodoo beer. The pub offers 12 beers on draft, though do check their website for availability. For the uninitiated, we recommend HooDoo. With this IPA, Voodoo promises your tastebuds a journey down the seven “Cs.” (That’s seven different hops beginning with the letter C.) From the taste of things, we’re guessing one of those Cs is citra, making this piney brew the perfect summer beverage. As for the location, the chalked menu harks to their Meadville base; the old hoses under the cast-iron stairs hark to the location’s old function: firehouse and municipal building. Add in some ceiling art, including God granting Adam a bottle à la the Sistine Chapel, and you’ve got a space as funky as the suds served inside it. The pub also sells snacks and growlers. Mondays, veterans get a dollar off with ID. 205 E. 9th Ave., Homestead.

Members of The Shelf Life String Band bring bluegrass to the Deutschtown Music Festival.

2) Check out the Bluegrass Jam at the Park House, which bills itself as Pittsburgh’s oldest and friendliest tavern. The Shelf Life String Band hosts this weekly event where you can relax and enjoy the music or join the jam. Either way, Yuengling pints are only $2 from 9 p.m. to midnight. Jam starts at 9 p.m.  Enjoy complimentary peanuts and popcorn. 403 E. Ohio St., North Side.

3) The Man from U.N.C.L.E. – D’you ever wonder why movies are the way they are today? Just look at the writing credits on the film version of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. The screenplay is by Guy Ritchie and Lionel Wigram from a story by Jeff Kleeman and David C. Wilson from an earlier story by Ritchie and Wigram based on the television series by Sam Rolfe which was developed, in part, with help from Ian Fleming. Whew! Would it be churlish to point out that Tennessee Williams wrote what many people consider to be masterpieces all by himself? In any event, this is a film version of the 1960’s television series and it’s directed by Ritchie. Though he’s a man with an interesting cinematic vision, he’s also known for the excessive, unsupported violence of that vision. (I suppose, however, that having been married to Madonna probably does leave you with a lot of repressed anger.) Check Fandango for screens and times. (TH)

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