The parade started at the upside down traffic light on Tipperary Hill this past Sunday. Led by a pipe and drum band, it finally ended in front of Coleman’s Irish Pub on Tompkins Street. The green beer had arrived at its destination!
As is customary every year at this time, the green beer was delivered in typical Irish fashion as it has been done since the 1960’s! Peter Coleman, owner of Coleman’s Pub, cannot remember the exact year the tradition started, but he wanted to get a head start on the St. Patrick’s Day festivities because he didn’t have a chance to enjoy the day himself because the pub (smaller at that time) was usually too crowded and too busy!
The green beer is just that: bright green! Where it comes from is the subject of legend. Coleman says it comes “imported from the Emerald Isle.” Wherever it comes from, Green Beer Day is a special occasion. As Peter Colman said himself in a proclamation, Green Beer Day is the start of the St. Patrick’s Day season in Syracuse and Central New York!