October 2012
Maybe A Junket, Payment, Sample, Freebie, Pal Registry?
Posted by on Wednesday, October 31, 2012 in - 13 comments
Having the odd combination today of a chorus of the "I Can't Quite Follow You" Blues contrasted with being offered an actual beer junket itinerary, it popped into my head that an independent registry of potential conflicts for good beer opinion makers might be in order. Sort of a confessional … read more »
More Evidence Of New North American Beer Journalism
Posted by on Tuesday, October 30, 2012 in - 28 comments
While I was happy to be corrected (again) by Stan last month on the state of beer journalism, one does like to see it in forms where the story is based on new angles and less on relationships. So, happy was I to read Crystal Luxmore's piece posted in the Old and Stale this afternoon developing the …
New Yorkers Stocking Up For Hurricane Sandy
Posted by on Sunday, October 28, 2012 in - 1 comment
When I lived out east in Atlantic Canada, I lived through my fair share of hurricanes which veered too far north for my good. I recall during one wandering around from bar to bar with pals enjoying getting soaked in the warm tropical rain... until half a Halifax building's roof went rolling down …
Time To Start Thinking About The Xmas Photo Contest
Posted by on Saturday, October 27, 2012 in - leave a comment
Time sure flies when you are entering middle age. The last Christmas photo contest of my forties is coming up sooner than you might think. I was reminded myself when Alistair Reece, the Velky Al of Fuggled himself emailed to offer a prize - before I put out a call. Good stuff. You may remember … read more »
Dutch Beer, Breastplate And Growler Circa 1660
Posted by on Thursday, October 25, 2012 in - 12 comments
Just a couple of observations on this painting that I used Tuesday to illustrate the post. It's called "A Dutch Courtyard" and was painted by Pieter de Hooch in 1658 to 1660, nearing the end of the Dutch hold upon the Hudson Valley of New York as part of their North American empire. I like the way …
More International Insurance Map Brewery Fun
Posted by on Wednesday, October 24, 2012 in - 8 comments
It was the best of times and insurance maps. It was the worst of times, you know, and... insurance maps. Errr. a tale of two cities of sorts, I suppose. From the left we have the Kingston Brewery as well as Portsmouth Brewing of my town from 1908 plus, onward to the right, the Albany Brewing …
Albany Ale: Did 1600s Dutch Brewing Culture Travel, Too?
Posted by on Tuesday, October 23, 2012 in - 17 comments
One of the things that Craig has been working on is an unleashing of some dynamite information about the state of brewing in 1600s Albany. One of the things I was wondering as we've been emailing back and forth has been whether the Dutch colony at what became Albany operated like other early …
Macro Brewer SABMiller In The African Market
Posted by on Monday, October 22, 2012 in - 9 comments
I am entirely fascinated by the southern African beer marketplace with its overlaps of mass production industrial and the traditional product like this yeasty sorghum brew: • SABMiller’s Chibuku brand is also targeting home-brew users. It is made from locally grown sorghum and maize. Because of …
Not Beer: Swapping NZ Kids For Kiwi Soda Pop
Posted by on Saturday, October 20, 2012 in - leave a comment
Being a strawberry blond with a lapsed red beard as well as young Santa Claus tendencies, by nature I am not inclined to find this ad from a New Zealand ginger beer manufacturer's marketing campaign. Here is a bit of the initial press release: • ...children are a blessing, but it’s fair to say … read more »
Albany Ale: What The Heck Did Downtown Smell Like?
Posted by on Thursday, October 18, 2012 in - 10 comments
I've told you about the speed of smell thing, right? Maybe. Once I worked in an office building that had been emptied of staff waiting for a reno - except for my corner of one floor and the basement cafeteria. Oddly, they still were cooking for 273 down there even though there were only five of us …
Can Science Really Improve Beer As Known Now?
Posted by on Wednesday, October 17, 2012 in - 15 comments
I am thinking about timelines and milestones these days. One of the things I am thinking about is the beginnings of the effect of science on beer. Which I thought again about when I read this story: • An international consortium of scientists has published a high resolution draft of the barley …
More On The World Atlas Of Beer By Tim 'n' Steve
Posted by on Tuesday, October 16, 2012 in - leave a comment
I have been thinking about this book a bit more. The other day when Mr. B. left a comment, I responded in part "I think you have hit a very sweet spot between newbie and fan. Imagine being the one who created a bridge over that gap." The more I think about that line, the more I think I have hit …
Strange Belief Systems Amongst The Fans Of Beer
Posted by on Sunday, October 14, 2012 in - 7 comments
One of the most drearily frustrating things about the beery discourse is all the belief floating around. Not the opinions or personal experience or subjectivity. No, those things are fine. Given that we share a hobby that is essentially about infusing one's corporeal form with a mild intoxicant …
New York: Scythe & Sickle, Brewery Ommegang
Posted by on Saturday, October 13, 2012 in - 2 comments
A harvest ale. An ale with not only four malts but four separate grain species: barley, wheat, oats and rye. And, unlike collaboration beers, you can actually pick out the characteristics each of these partners brings to the beer. There is the spice note of rye in the finish, the grassy tang of … read more »
Book Review: The World Atlas Of Beer, Tim 'n' Steve
Posted by on Friday, October 12, 2012 in - 3 comments
Not only do I like a good atlas, I believe deeply in the graphic presentation of data. Mapping, graphs, tables, photos and flow charts. These are the things that provide instruction, organize and contextualize. Text is so over valued, isn't it? Anyway, suffice it to say that the WAo'B is lush … read more »
From Field To Glass: What Bits Need Not Be Craft?
Posted by on Wednesday, October 10, 2012 in - 3 comments
A twitter conversation put me in a bit of a social bind. I am sure you can help me out. It was triggered by a link to an ad for a job with a national craft brewer that included, among other things, these responsibilities: • • Responsible for finding those opportunities that allow for our brand …
Two Million Britons Think Beer Source Of Fiber
Posted by on Tuesday, October 9, 2012 in - 6 comments
Odd nutritional news out of the UK today: • The Department of Health recommends a third of each daily main meal should consist of a starchy carbohydrate, such as bread, potatoes or pasta, preferably of a wholegrain variety. But the survey of more than 2,000 British adults for independent baker …
The Oxford Companion To Beer Wiki Still Grows
Posted by on Monday, October 8, 2012 in - 6 comments
I haven't mentioned it since May, but the wiki grows. It's alive. This observation in the section on the letter "C" is my favorite correction in the OCB wiki so far: • "cask" this entry states that "After filing, a plastic or wooden stopper called a shive is driven into the large bunghole on the …
Session 68: What The Heck Is A Novelty Beer To Me?
Posted by on Saturday, October 6, 2012 in - 3 comments
99 Pours told the world that the topic for this edition of The Session would be novelty beers in this way: • With the onslaught of even weirder beards…erm…beers…than before, I can’t help but wonder if novelty beers are going too far. Or maybe not far enough? LOL! As a merchant of beer, I can see …
Kerala Court Favours Mild Beer. Government? Toddy!
Posted by on Thursday, October 4, 2012 in - 2 comments
One of the wonderful things about the English language is the variety of ways it is used. At the risk of being patronizing and colonial - though can one of one ex-colony actually be colonial in relation to another ex-colony's post colonial path in life? - I offer you these opening sentences in a …
British Columbia: Three Beers Sent From Cannery Brewing
Posted by on Wednesday, October 3, 2012 in - 1 comment
Not Canary Brewing. That is what the email said. Not Kan Airy, either, I suppose. Good advice but not information I needed as I've enjoyed a couple of their beers before, the ones placed in the local government store. Local in the sense that it serves about 12 million souls. The beer is brewed …
Sharing Beer On A Quick Trip To Central New York
Posted by on Tuesday, October 2, 2012 in - 6 comments
Nothing convinces me more that my decision never to go beyond the playboy gentleman amateur beery lifestyle that I have achieved through beer blogging than spending too much time on the road convinces. That is, by the way, what was said at the beer writers panel at Beau's Oktoberfest - beer …
