August 06, 2026
Provided Image/Philadelphia Cycling Classic
Mainstay Independent Brewing Co. is releasing a Vienna-style lager to celebrate the return of the Philadelphia Cycling Classic after a 10-year hiatus.
Mainstay Independent Brewing Co. is releasing a cycling-themed beer in honor of the return of the Philadelphia Cycling Classic.
The Philadelphia Classic Lager, is a Vienna-style brew with "balanced hop and malt character," according to Mainstay, which is debuting the beer Thursday at a pep rally at Craft Hall in Northern Liberties.
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Beer distributors in the region will be selling cans in the weeks leading up to the Aug. 30 race. It also will be available on draft at the Philadelphia Cycling Classic Fan Fest, held near the Iroquois Sculpture on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway from Aug. 29-30, and at Parks on Tap at Lemon Hill from Aug. 26-30.
The Philadelphia Cycling Classic was established in 1985 as a prestigious international race sanctioned by USA Cycling and Union Cycliste International. It was last held in 2016, but it went on a 10-year hiatus after losing its primary sponsor.
In 2025, former Mayor Michael Nutter and two local businessmen, Eric Robbins and Carlos Rogers, formed Race Street Partners to revive the race with a new sponsor, AmeriGas Propane. The course is a 14.4-mile loop that begins at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, then heads along Kelly Drive and into Manayunk. From there, riders pass through Strawberry Mansion and Fairmount Park before returning to the Parkway.
