NORRISTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA
Owner and operated by Rick, Eric and Jay Von Czoernig, heirs to the historic Schmidt’s brewing recipes, VON C BREWING CO. opened in Norristown during the winter of 2020, adding a beer garden soon after. Von C’s enormous 20-barrel setup takes up most of the white brick cement floor factory where a 2,500 square-foot pub got carved out for a 22-draught bar.
The rustic overhead doored warehouse includes an aluminum top L-shape bar, several benches and round tables, bark-carved beer menu, exposed pipes, old wood ceiling and large overhead fans. Large rear brew tanks service the pub.
Steadfast in crafting great mainstream fare, oft-times German-styled, Von C combines old recipes and new to skew in the general public’s favor. My wife and I visited Von C’s Saturday at noon, early September ’26.
Polished light-bodied German pils, Fraulein, utilized white crackered Weyermann malt minerality to anchor its herbal Saaz hop dryness and floral-bound Perle hop lemon spritz.
Dry West Coast pilsner, Boundless, let fizzy grapefruit and mandarin orange spritz receive mild pine resin atop lightly creamed oated wheat.
Using an old family recipe, OG Pils Legendary Philly Lager, swept mild maize-flaked barley roast thru musty sorghum, husked corn and sourdough bread.
Classic Vienna Style Lager retained honey-glazed brown breading given slight rye waver, light leafy foliage and distant floral spicing for simple Euro-derived moderation.
Soft-toned beer engine-poured cask conditioned ESB spread honeyed Maris Otter malt toasting across dewy moss, musty florality and brown leaf astringency in traditional British style.
Classic hefeweizen, Why You Hefe To Be Mad, subdued its stylish banana-clove sweetness as white-peppered herbage came aboard the pale wheated pilsner malting.
Lemony orange-peeled coriander and slight black peppering prickled Uncle Jerry’s Wit, picking up mild banana-clove swerve over pilsner-malted white wheating.
Zesty lemon, candied orange and sugared grapefruit gained mild pining for NEIPA, Boundless Love, blending two proprietary hops with Simcoe/ Mosaic-hopped tropical sunshine.
Mild beechwood smoke added proper astringency to lingering coffee-burnt dark chocolate for dry schwarzbier, Midnight In The Priory, an autumnal dark ale.