YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Penguin City Light Beer has earned high praise from a Sports Illustrated columnist for its cool can, its flavor and the way it helps Youngstown State University athletes.

Noah Henderson, a professor who teaches sport management at Loyola University of Chicago, reviewed the product on SI.com earlier this month.

Henderson regularly reviews local craft beers whose makers have partnered with a Name, Image and Likeness program associated with a university.

Penguin City Brewing gives a portion of its sales of its light beer to the Penguin Collective, which raises money and then disburses it to YSU student-athletes through the NCAA’s NIL rules.

In his column and an accompanying video about Penguin City Light, which was posted Dec. 4, Henderson expresses his love of YSU’s mascot and team name. He also gives the beer a rating of 8.2 out of 10, praising it for its smoothness and drinkability. The beer “has a traditional malt flavor that hits the spot,” Henderson wrote.

The collaboration between the Penguin Collective and the local brewery is all the more impressive because of the relatively small size of the market, he pointed out.

“Not many schools at the ‘low-major’ level, like YSU, have been this innovative in driving NIL funding to their student-athletes,” Henderson wrote. “I commend the athletic department and Penguin City Brewing Company for establishing this initiative that often seems reserved for schools with the biggest spotlight. When it comes to NIL beer, conference affiliation does not matter. Smaller schools like YSU have shown that their breweries can perform as well as anyone else.” 

Penguin City Brewing has always had a strong connection to YSU. Co-owners Richie Bernacki and Aspasia Lyras-Bernacki are both YSU grads and named the company after the school’s mascot.

Penguin City and Penguin City Light beer is sold at all YSU sports events. 

The brewery was founded in 2017 and opened its instant-landmark brewery and pub in downtown Youngstown in 2021. From its inception, Penguin City built its identity on Youngstown – its toughness and its university.

As a fan, Henderson gets a kick out of YSU’s quirky mascot. As a marketing scholar, he salutes the effort that created a link between the beer and the university.

He especially loved the Penguin City Light can, which features a fierce and stylized penguin face on an all-black background.

“I am unsure if I have seen a penguin on a beer can before, but let me tell you, it works,” Henderson wrote. “The can is flat-out cool, the coolest I have ever seen, not just for NIL beer, but for any beer.”

Aspasia Lyras Bernacki said the recognition represents years of hard work being recognized.

“While we may make it look easy, the truth is, it’s anything but,” she said. “Competing in a crowded beer market is tough, and every success is hard-earned.”

Creating a product that is synonymous with its hometown was always the plan at Penguin City Brewing.

“This has been our vision from Day One,” Lyras Bernacki said. “When we first sat down to discuss the idea of Penguin City, connecting with YSU and representing our city was always at the heart of our mission. That connection is even reflected in the design of our can. It’s who we are.”

Michael Pontikos, brand manager for the brewery, gets credit for creating the eye-catching Penguin City Light label design.

“Each year, he takes on the challenge of giving it a fresh new look, and we couldn’t be more thrilled with this year’s design,” Lyras Bernacki said. “It’s one of our favorites.”

Pictured at top: The Penguin City Light beer label design has drawn praise from a writer on Sports Illustrated’s website.