Fermentery Form

If you are a fan of Belgian ales or sour beers, you gotta check out Fermentary Form. I'm a red wine drinker, but on a hot day, I may forego wine and have a beer from Fermentary Form instead. Their beers are refreshing and incredibly easy to drink, with layers of complexity. So far our favorites are the Origins/Sangiovese, Merry Merry (stout), and the Vieux Selection. Currently they're only open at 5:30pm on Thursdays and accept credit card payments, but make sure to follow them on Instagram for any up to date information, including the beers they are selling for the day. The rare ones have a limited supply and do sell out quickly. You can enjoy drinks in their outdoor patio, but we prefer to buy bottles to go. The bottles come in 750 ml bottles, and are easily good for about 2 drinks.

As a former Philly resident who moved down south a couple years ago, I heard all about the greatness of Fermentery Form upon their opening via local friends. Since they're open so rarely, it made it hard to plan a visit. Finally the planets aligned for a trip at the end of September, and our group of four had the best time.We tried a whole bunch of their beers, both on draft and in bottle, and received a full tour/explanation of their operations. We stayed for a few hours at least and it was all around an enjoyable and educational experience. I have a bottle of Slo Mo calling my name in my fridge, and I can't wait to open it with local friends here in Richmond, VA, so they can experience the greatness of this brew-speakeasy as well.Hopefully a return trip will be in the stars soon.

There used to be a time where the majority of alleyways in Kensington/Fishtown led to rare mysteries that most people would be out of their minds to explore! But when times change and Fishtown lead to brand new ventures like distilleries, breweries, axe throwing, indoor batting cages and more it leads to even more possibilities!So when one such building led to indoor/outdoor mini-golf (Mental note: must go!) it led to a great opportunity to create a phenomenal hidden gem brewery. And despite being the tiniest brewery that I ever visited, Fermentery Form is one that delivers some of the most forward thinking sour beers that I ever did try!I give a four because even though the main room is a miraculous one that's filled with antlers, church pews, a mahjong/card table, and more; its a tiny one bar space that gets crammed rather quickly in the winter. But during the spring/summer FF opens up an incredible outdoor side patio that opens up a lot of grand possibilities.Ultimately you come to Fermentery Form for the delicious sour beers, and whether you get them on draft or in big bottles to share among friends, you get some pretty serious winners! My initial favorite was their Pure Phase which is a satisfying tart IPA style that they made with Crime & Punishment (https://www.yelp.com/biz/crime-and-punishment-brewing-philadelphia). But I've also been impressed with their Gestalt dry hopped farmhouse whose flavor changes with batch release, and their dank Super! Belgian tripel. But for their bottles it doesn't get much better than their Slo-Mo which contains decadent notes of cherry and blackberry puree.

Sours excite me. Kensington scares me. However, all I've heard is positive buzz from the time Fermentery Form opened within the past few months. Odd operating hours and the location were deterrents for sure; however, it's well worth the visit.A few important tidbits- 1) They are cash only. Come prepared.2) The bar is extremely tiny; however, they have an outdoor courtyard. Planning a nice day for your visit is ideal.3) Between the drafts and bottles, the menu isn't robust. It won't take too long to "conquer it all" in one visit, especially if you are sharing bottles with a group. No need to plan a full day there.4) It's conveniently located by Federal Distilling and not too far from St. Benjamin's and Evil Genius. Between all the Fishtown hotspots, you can easily make a day in Fishtown and Kensington. I heard it gets pretty dark in that alley at night, so just plan your travels accordingly if you don't like wandering down dark alleyways. 5) They have snack foods, but no real food. I'm not sure their policy on BYOF. Fermentery Form is different because they actually ferment their beers. I'm really not sure the whole process involved, but I'm sure they'd be happy to explain it. It seems like they collaborate with others, as they had just tapped a collab beer with Crime and Punishment. While not immediately jumping to my "favorite sours ever list," I think it's so great to have something new to the beer scene. The beers I tried (Pure Phase, Solmo, Gestalt 8, Super! And Bitter) were very complex and you could taste the intricacies and heart in them. I see great things to come for Fermentery Form, and I'm excited to take that hike over to Kensington.

Been waiting to check this spot out. Finally made it on a Saturday around 5pm which was just in time before a huge rush -- the actual room itself is quite small but they somehow managed to have around 40 people standing there's 3 barstools at the bar for seating and one larger table where people were playing card games. The outside area is HUGE -- great for warmer weather.The owners are extremely nice and knowledgeable on everything they are serving and doing at their locations. Most bottles are able to be purchased to go which is a nice benefit. Price range is $16 for a bottle. If you're going for your first time it's worth it to just buy by the bottle then what's on tap. They're only open one day a week saturdays 2-8pmForm Extra is delicious!

Look for the green light!There's not a whole lot else indicating you're in the right place. You might pass by the weirdly placed Vodka-distillery/ indoor putt-putt place, but other than that, Fermentery Form is situated in a somewhat desolate-feeling spot in a not-so-hot neighborhood. Once you're inside, however, you're transported to a kind of small, industrial feeling barrel house with a modest bar, seemingly sporadic wooden benches and tables, lots of flannel, and good beer. It feels less like a brewery and more like a secret beer club that only the true brew lovers flock to. This could be for a number of reasons - their operation is open only one day a week (sometimes two - check their Instagram/ Facebook for most up-to-date opening information!) It could also be their odd, yet oddly perfect Kensington warehouse location. The beers are as good and funky as they come. I'm not typically one for dark beers, but I loved their sour dark beer (Form to Table - maybe). I can't recall specifically which beers I tried on my visit, but I can tell you one thing - I enjoyed them all. It might be a little crowded, but don't let that deter you. The customer flow is pretty steady all night, and on a cold winter evening, it's the perfect cozy "party." They do have an outdoor seating section in which I'm eager to indulge in the warmer weather. Fermentery Form gets the greenlight.

My husband loves sour beers, so we we're pretty psyched to check this place out. It's conveniently located next to one of our favorite bars/distilleries. Finding it wasn't hard, but can be difficult if you don't know what you're looking for. We went on a Spring Saturday around 5 PM, and it's clear their secret is out. The small seating area was full, but we we're lucky enough to grab the two seats at the bar. The owners/ bartenders were friendly. We enjoyed slo-mo, informal #1, and super then grabbed dark light to enjoy at home. We enjoyed everything, though some was too sour for my tastes. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I was able to enjoy without being a huge sours fan. We look forward to returning with friends and would recommend this place to anyone.

Super cool super low key super unknown(as of yet) spot cranking out top shelf craft beers.From the walk down the alley into the unknown, we were met with a wave of cool air and thankful for the small but kitschy indoor space. Friendly staff, beer geeks abound, we had a blast tasting our way through their current bottle selectionPros:Flavorful unique brewsDrinking amidst the barrelsKnowledgeable staff who are proud of their productOn site slices of pizza brain being slungCons:Small indoor space (the outdoor patio looked super fun and spacious but it's currently 100 degrees out)Bottles are not to go

This is a must-visit. If you like wild ales and are open to the idea of hitting mini golf next door after drinking several of them, this place is for you. Don't be scared of the dark alley and look for the green light on the wall outside. Really pleasant and approachable beer here--they nail the style very well. Nothing pretentious and very laid back. I like that there are several options to enjoy on-premise as well as to-go. I will definitely be back next time I'm in the area.

This place is difficult to find and difficult to catch when their open - but so worth it if you do! Following them on Instagram is the best way to know if they're open or closed. It's pretty hard to locate it and you'll probably miss it a couple times. The beer is great! It's a pretty small room but worth it. Definitely recommend it!