Gritty, the Googly-Eyed Philadelphia Flyers Mascot, Already Has an Aptly-Named Beer Tribute

Sometimes creating a sports team’s mascot is easy: Rowdy, the Dallas Cowboys cowboy or Benny, the Chicago Bulls bull, for instance. Philadelphia, however, has had to think outside the box for some of its teams. Other than the Eagles, pro-sports organizations with names like the 76ers, the Phillies, and the Flyers don’t necessarily have a built-in anthropomorphic animal or caricatured humanoid to fit the bill. Perhaps taking a cue from Major League Baseball team the Philadelphia Phillies’ fictional, nondescript Phillie Phanatic, the city’s professional hockey team, the Flyers, unleashed its own monstrous mascot on the public earlier this month—a hairy, orange, Muppet-y, ice-skating creature named Gritty.

The reaction to Gritty has varied from confusion to shock to horror to… well, that seemed to cover the majority at the outset. But as Gritty’s antics ensue game after game, it seems the mascot may be starting to grow on some fans. Still, that doesn’t mean his bug-eyes and scraggly hair don’t put off some off-putting vibes. That may be why Bristol, PA brewery Broken Goblet Brewing has given Gritty his own beer with the apt name Nightmare Fuel.

According to a Facebook post from the brewery, Nightmare fuel is a "lightly hopped" cream ale brewed with vanilla and bruised oranges, and describing that the “Resin and pine from the Chinook addition, and a touch of Saaz hops accent the sweetness of the vanilla and the tart orange in this fluffy ale.”

The label features a mock-up of Gritty with a black eye and missing teeth, as though he’s been in a brawl—not an unreasonable prospect, given his no-holds-barred attitude on the ice.

The beer will be available at Broken Goblet’s brewpub (1500 Grundys Lane, Bristol, PA 19007) both on tap and in a limited number of 32-ounce crowlers beginning October 13. Pints will sell for $6 while the cans are $13.

Nightmare Fuel is not an official partnership with the Flyers organization, but maybe it should be. With that perma-smile plastered on his face, Gritty looks like he can take a joke.

[h/t The Daily Meal]