October 2009
Indiana: Beastie Barrel Stout, Barley Island, Nobelsville
Posted by on Saturday, October 31, 2009 in - leave a comment
What to pop on Halloween waiting for the kids to come home and the Yankees - Phillies rain delay to end? I have no pumpkin ale in the stash. At least this oatmeal stout is called a beastie. • It pours black with a thick mocha head. Light seeps through at the mahogany rim. Rich dark malty aroma …
Maine: Two More Beer Dinners At Bar Lola, Portland
Posted by on Thursday, October 29, 2009 in - leave a comment
So, I walk into a bar restaurant in Maine a few years ago. We are there with pals and meeting pals of pals. We'd been going to Portland for years and heard the place was great - family friendly, good Maine beer and good food. That place is gone now but it's one of my favorite memories because when …
NY State Picks An Odd Time To Give A Grant
Posted by on Wednesday, October 28, 2009 in - 8 comments
I live in a border town and follow upstate New York news daily. These days, it's all about cuts to programs for the vulnerable, cuts to colleges and new fees for things like a new license plate whether you need one or not. But there was money for one grant: • The state government last week …
Michigan: Dragon's Milk, New Holland Brewing, Holland
Posted by on Tuesday, October 27, 2009 in - 7 comments
Had the tripel and had concerns. I have no such concerns this evening. • I could make this a short matter and tell you this is like chocolate fudge cake laced with bourbon. Is that so bad? Can't we be happy enough with that? Apparently not. There is coffee, dark plum, dark and milk chocolates as …
"...You Have To Make Sure It Is Of A Demonstrable Quality...'
Posted by on Monday, October 26, 2009 in - 5 comments
What an odd statement. Given that the use of the word "quality" is in itself merely a promise of characteristic and not necessarily a good one, it looks like the sort of thing that one might expect from a PR firm working with faceless MegaCo. But it seems to be the position of CAMRA... if this …
A Good Beer Blog's Xmas Photo Contest Is Coming
Posted by on Sunday, October 25, 2009 in - 2 comments
I have a confession. The Xmas photo contest got a wee bit out of hand last year. Over 500 hundred photos to sort through. I think it is a great thing to do and am happy to help those who need more beer gifts get them. But it got a wee bit out of hand. I have 4 kids in the house, for heaven's sake …
Oregon: Hop Trip, Deschutes Brewing, Bend
Posted by on Saturday, October 24, 2009 in - leave a comment
Oh, happy day. Oh, happy happy day when there are two boxes from Deschutes waiting for me. And on a Friday. Excellent. One of the wee gifties floating in the styrophome chip was this fresh hop pale ale. At 5.5%, a fairly modest proposal as to the style. • The beer pours that Irn Bru orange amber …
Your X-tremely Prudent Micro Brewer Of The Day
Posted by on Thursday, October 22, 2009 in - 3 comments
I wish I was handy. I can do many things. I do laundry well, for example. But there is no money in doing laundry. And no beer. I am unlike the guy behind Aviator Brewing located in North Carolina USA. He is handy: • He launched his craft brewery in November. A detailed plan, a thrifty mind and …
I Am Now Tired Of Typing "Vermonster" But...
Posted by on Thursday, October 22, 2009 in - leave a comment
I checked out the US Patent and Trademark Office again and see that Rock Art's application for trademark has been amended on a "proposed" preliminary basis on the same day that the confidential settlement was announced: • Filing Basis: Section 1(a), Use in Commerce: The applicant is using the …
Is It True? Has Vermonster Been Saved??
Posted by on Wednesday, October 21, 2009 in - leave a comment
There seems to be some news happening this suppertime around the Vermonster saga-ette with news today from the website of Rock Art Brewery and via their Twitter account. Vermont Public Radio seems to have a tidbit more than I am seeing elsewhere on the why and the wherefore of the outcome... even …
Back To The Future Of Homebrewing In Brooklyn
Posted by on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 in - 1 comment
Equipment? We don't need no secondary! Beer styles?? We don't need no stinking beer styles!! We have recipes with names like Apple Crisp Ale and Grapefruit Honey Ale. • It's like rereading the first edition of Papazian's The Joy of Homebrewing with all its freaky illustrations and tripped out …
So Maybe Local Might Be Like Olaf The Ugly's Local
Posted by on Monday, October 19, 2009 in - 2 comments
I am thinking of my dream pub again. Something more interesting than the faux Irish pub at the mini-mall.You know, having a Munich beer hall nearby might be all well and good - but am I going to go all the time? This story reminds me that in my dreams I want a Viking beer hall in my neighbourhood …
Barley Wine: Treblehook, Redhook Ale Brewery
Posted by on Sunday, October 18, 2009 in - 1 comment
The label lists both the Washington and New Hampshire Redhook breweries but I received this last week in the mail from Craft Brands Alliance of Portland Oregon. Bet it's a west coast brew. You know, another brewery told me again last week that it cost too much to get samples through the Maple …
A Yuengling Can Helps Jail Criminal Gang
Posted by on Saturday, October 17, 2009 in - leave a comment
Not exactly a good beer news item but a good item in the news with a beer angle: a child porn ring was located due to a can of Yuengling Black and Tan appearing in one photo: • "There were clues in those images... The image-enhancement software showed that one of the adults involved had been …
More On That US Trademark Law Facing Vermonster
Posted by on Thursday, October 15, 2009 in - 5 comments
You know, it's fun to learn new things. Today, for example, I learned how to use the search tool at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A great example of open government, you can even see the emails on the Office's file listed as Notation to File - thrill to the bureaucratic reality …
Is One Bar With 23 Good Taps Better Than 23 With One?
Posted by on Wednesday, October 14, 2009 in - 9 comments
This is one of those elemental questions that in the end may well lead to not that much. It may be a personality test. It may speak to your experience or innate preferences. It arose from the article in today's New York Times that started with the very attractive photo taken by Piotr Redlinski at …
If "Vermonster" Is Confusing - Isn't "Monster" Worse?
Posted by on Tuesday, October 13, 2009 in - 3 comments
Much is being made of a legal claim being brought against Rock Art, a small Vermont brewer, who makes "Vermonster" beer by a premium soda pop maker whose brands include "Monster" energy pop for confusing the brand - especially since the claim is being made in the name of the soda company's plans … read more »
Vermont: Craft Brewer Greg Noonan Passes Away
Posted by on Monday, October 12, 2009 in - 6 comments
Very sad news this morning of the passing of Greg Noonan, founder of the Vermont Pub and Brewery as well as author of a number of important books on brewing. There is a thread of condolences over at BeerAdvocate with many sharing their memories of him. • I never met Greg but read through his …
Your Very Weird Beer Health Story Of The Day
Posted by on Sunday, October 11, 2009 in - leave a comment
Yes, the verdict on beer and health is all over the place. Seems like it'll help if you want to keep your ticker going so that you have a better chance of facing that cancer it cause. If that's important to you, well, beer may be your drink. It's hard to figure out what you are supposed to think …
Belgium: Margriet, Brouwerji Het Anker, Mechelen
Posted by on Saturday, October 10, 2009 in - 2 comments
Mr. Bad Pour was here. You know, I hadn't intended to be Het Anker week but I had to add my love for this 6.5% Belgian pale ale that has lingered on the shelves of the government store. It's only an LCBO seasonal release, part of that mind numbingly odd strategy of showing the consumer's of … read more »
Pounding Them Back Post-War Style
Posted by on Saturday, October 10, 2009 in - 4 comments
Jay has posted a good post. A very good post this week about a series of ads placed in post-WWII American magazines by the United States Brewers Foundation from 1945-1946. On first glance they are cheery and positive, warm and inviting, family friendly. The kind of thing that rarely gets trotted …
A Beer In Need: XIII, Weyerbacher, Easton, PA
Posted by on Thursday, October 8, 2009 in - 5 comments
So, someone from the Federal sales tax or GST office called and left a message. Seems like when I paid the annual surcharge on the beer blog ads through my bank, well, seems like the bank didn't forward the paperwork with the little stamp on it. Man on the Phone (MOTP) told me they got my money …
Could The New York Times Please Get A Beer Writer?
Posted by on Tuesday, October 6, 2009 in - 6 comments
I am not going to go off my marbles or anything. And I will not cartoon. No, I will not. But a while ago I was turned off by Eric Asimov - the wine writer for the New York Times - and his tale of how craft beer was becoming legitimate because it could be found in places where he liked the food …
Warning: Your Freebie Beer Blogging Ways Are Over!
Posted by on Monday, October 5, 2009 in - 4 comments
A few weeks ago, a wiggling waggy hand rose above the crowd pointing out that there was uncertainty as to who was dabbling in beer blogging in relation to matters in which the blogger had a financial interest. Melissa Cole admitted that there were doubts even about her own writing and that it was …
Doctor Who On Life In The Pub Then And Now
Posted by on Sunday, October 4, 2009 in - 7 comments
Being a modernly moderate drinker with a writing problem is not my only odd habit you know. While being a beer nerd is all very well and good, among other things I have this little itsy-bitsy thing about 1960s and 70s TV sci-fi shows. I have all the Space: 1999 episodes on DVD as well as the …
Belgium: Gouden Carolus Noël, Het Anker, Mechelen
Posted by on Saturday, October 3, 2009 in - leave a comment
I had a Het Anker Margriet after supper, a beer that is on the shelves in Ontario at a incredibly reasonable price for the quality. With the Red Sox winning their last Saturday night regular season game of 2009, I wanted something more. And then I remembered that the good people at Roland and …
Session #32: USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
Posted by on Saturday, October 3, 2009 in - 2 comments
This month's edition of The Session is about beer to the east. I had worried for a while about making sure I had the right be, the most easterly. But to heck with that. I am going to write about my entire relationship with the nation to my east, the U.S.A. • I have to confess something - I buy …
Session #32: Go East, Young Man, Go East
Posted by on Thursday, October 1, 2009 in - leave a comment
Don't forget that tomorrow is the thirty-second edition of The Session. This month is being hosted at Girl Likes Beer and we are supposed to pick a beer from the nation to the east. As you can see, the USA is east of me and I am trying to figure out the most nearly east brewery to me that I have … read more »
