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Suggested websites to visit to further your beer education.
When the San Diego Beer News makes a recommendation, I tend to listen. And listening is the key word as there were two recent podcasts highlighted….
I found I Like Beer in my Overcast app and you can check out the Beer for Breakfast show HERE.
Today I have three links where various and sundry beer folks smarter than I talk about what they expect to see in the coming year. The first two are in podcast form and the final is the written word.
What will or won’t come true is up for our future selves to figure out.
Now I have no beef with Dry January or Sober October or N/A May or whatever. I do find it funny that the second Friday in January is Quitting Friday, as in quitting your resolutions.
I would suggest reading this blog post from the Beervana blog. You can also read THIS from the Brewers Association I would add that if your local pub or brewery taproom has food options. Why don’t you go and get some food. Any good craft beer spot usually has soda on offer or if you really want to stay healthy then just get water or hop sparkle water. And usually this month sees some barrel-aged or darker beers, so buy a 4-pack and save if for February. Or if you are easily tempted, buy a gift card so that you can get a future beer.
I have had the great pleasure of judging beer writing so when I saw the announcement of The British Guild of Beer Writers winners, I quickly clicked this here LINK to see how many names I recognized.
And I did see folks who I have mentioned on this blog such as Mark Dredge and Emma Inch and Ruvani de Silva who I will recommend reading again to anyone who is looking for more beer knowledge.
Poking around the ol’ YouTube I saw the trailer, For When You Get Lost. Looks like a travel buddy film revolving around sisters and their familial issues. I would have moved on but there was beer drinking in the trailer. My first thought was that it is probably one of those scenes that makes the trailer but not the movie, but then the Washington Beer Blog posted about it saying that “craft beer and craft breweries are important elements in the story.” and that “The screenwriter and co-star, Jennifer Sorenson, has some background working in the craft beer industry so she brings some authenticity to the story.
You can stream the movie on Amazon Prime Video
Each year, the North American Guild of Beer Writers works with craftbeer.com
to publish beer stories through the Guild’s Diversity in Beer Writing Grant The first of the year seven stories is from Christine Ma-Kellems and explores fermented beverages and Korean musical phenomenon BTS.
The Diversity Grant is supported by craftbeer.com, the Brewers Association, and Allagash Brewing. Thanks to all three.
I am not usually swayed by public opinion as gospel but I do use it to see which way the wind is blowing when it comes to beers and breweries.
In that spirit, let’s take a look at the Untappd 5 Star beers in 2024…
You have the “Not Surprised” category with Heady Topper, Pliny the Elder, Zombie Dust, Westvleteren 12.
Then there are “classics” like Yuengling Amber Lager, Duvel, Spotted Cow.
Then there are the ones that made me think twice with Augustiner Helles, Shiner Bock, Weihenstephan Hefeweissbier on that list.
I along with several fellow NAGBW members heard a lively virtual happy hour led by podcaster and writer Dave Infante with guest, the sociologist and author Dr. Eli Revelle Yano Wilson. Wilson’s latest book is Handcrafted Careers: Working the Artisan Economy of Craft Beer.”
Here are my takeaways from the discussion:
Being the opinionated fellow that I am, I do like to express my opinions and now Chowhound readers know that too as I put in my two cents on good beer cities around the U.S. Read it HERE.
Everyone has a different set of opinions as to what makes a beer city a Beer City but I believe that certain criteria need to be met: A wide variety of beer styles, a good amount of breweries, beer bars and bottle shops, some GABF medals would be nice, a scene in the suburbs of the city is good too.
Thanks to Fiona Chandra for reaching out and listening.
I had the great pleasure and fun to be a judge in the Beer Travel Writing category of the North American Guild of Beer Writers annual awards, so I am going to start this post there and then widen the scope to the other winners.
This was the 10th year of the awards. There were 269 entries from 96 writers covering 15 categories. The big winners were David Nilsen, Dave Infante, Courtney Iseman and Brian Yeager who bagged multiple medals.
Here is the full list of winners: (and I suggest you search these writers out)
Best Beer and Food Writing
First Place: David Nilsen. “How to Pair IPAs with Craft Chocolate.” Bean to Barstool
Second Place: Grace Weitz. “Stumbling Into the Hot Pink Restaurant With the Most Pleasurable Food in France.” Hop Culture
Best Blog/Newsletter
First Place: Jeff Alworth, Beervana.
Second Place: Dave Infante, Fingers.
Third Place: Douglas Veliky, Beer Crunchers.
Honorable Mention: Shana Solarte, Top Crop.
Emerging Voice: Cat Wiest, Hopwire Blog.
Best Book
First Place: Matthew Curtis. Manchester’s Best Beer Pubs and Bars. 2023.
Second Place: Beth Demmon. The Beer Lover’s Guide to Cider: American Ciders for Craft Beer Fans to Explore. 2023.
Third Place: David Nilsen. Pairing Beer and Chocolate: A Guide to Bringing the Flavors of Craft Beer and Craft Chocolate Together. 2024.
Best Brewery Profile
First Place: Lucy Corne. “Women-Led, Women-Brewed — Kweza Craft Brewery in Kigali, Rwanda.” Good Beer Hunting.
Second Place: Holly Regan. “Things Are Not What They Seem — Hildegard Ferments & Botanicals in Seattle, Washington.” Good Beer Hunting.Third Place: Claire Bullen. “10,000 Human Decisions — On Mariage Parfait Oude Geuze, Frank Boon, and Belgian Lambic Culture.” Belgian Smaak.
Honorable Mention: Maloy Luakian. “Supernatural Creatures And Blended Cultures — Dokkaebier’s Story Of Shapeshifting.” Good Beer Hunting.
Emerging Voice: Jacqueline Kehoe. “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger — How Iowa’s Big Grove Brewery Defies the Odds and Categorization.” Good Beer Hunting.
Best Business Writing
First Place: Michael Stein. “When Beer Goes Flat.” Slate
Second Place: Courtney Iseman. “Building the On-Ramp: Vocational Programs for Brewers.” Brewing Industry Guide.
Third Place: Ken Pishna. “Non-alcoholic beer is growing; Should your brewery grow with it?” Malteurop Malting Co.
Honorable Mention: Pete Brown. “Thornbridge to prove Britain’s brewing heritage can be profitable.” The Drinks Business
Emerging Voice: Jacqueline Kehoe. “Wisconsin Intuition — How New Glarus Brewed a State Identity with Spotted Cow.” Good Beer Hunting
Best Commentary or Criticism
First Place: Dave Infante. “The Bud Light Fiasco: How AB InBev Fell for the Gamergate Playbook.” VinePair.
Second Place: Courtney Iseman. “Is Craft Beer Cringe Right Now?” InsideHook.
Third Place: David Nilsen. “On Curiosity, Empathy, and the Flavor of Beer.” Belt Magazine.
Best General Beer Podcast
First Place: Dave Infante. VinePair Taplines
Second Place: Breandán Kearney. The Belgian Smaak Podcast
Third Place: Emma Inch. Same Again?
Honorable Mention: Emily Hutto. RadCraft Industry Relief
Best Historical Writing
First Place: Mark Dredge. “From One to All — The Past, Present, and Future of Lager Yeast.” Good Beer Hunting.
Second Place: Tony Rehagen. “The Utterly Fascinating History and Mystery of Oklahoma’s Choctaw “Choc” Beer.” Garden & Gun.
Third Place: Anaïs Lecoq. “Garçon, un Picon! — The Past and Future Success of Amer Bière in French Drinking Culture.” Good Beer Hunting
Honorable Mention: Noelle Phillips. “Angry Hen Brewing and the Legacy of Shirley Warne.” The BC Ale Trail
Best Local Reporting
First Place: Courtney Iseman. “Secondary Fermentation — New York City’s Strong Rope Brewery and the East Coast Cask Revival.” Pellicle Magazine.
Second Place: Eli Radtke. “THC Takes Over the Twin Cities.” Heavy Table.
Third Place: Brian Yaeger. “Oral History Of Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale.” Bend Source Weekly.
Honorable Mention: Alexander Gates. “An Ode to Lahaina’s Beer Scene.” Frolic Hawaii.
Emerging Voice: Shamim de Brún. “The Quest For A Perfect Smithwick’s in Dublin.” Totally Dublin.
Best National or International Reporting
First Place: Alyssa Pereira. “The Man, Now Myth — Searching for Tony Magee.” Good Beer Hunting.
Second Place: Lucy Corne. “Get to Know Umqombothi, a South African Tradition.” Craft Beer & Brewing.
Third Place: Joshua Bernstein. “The Real Mystery of Bud Light.” The Atlantic.
Honorable Mention: Dave Infante. “How Sapporo USA Sank Anchor Brewing Co.” VinePair.
Best Beer Review
First Place: David Nilsen. “Precious and Grace — Brouwerij Van Steenberge’s Tripel Van De Garre.” Pellicle Magazine.
Second Place: Melinda Guerra. “Stardust and Loss: Friendship, Grief, and a Shared Saison.” Final Gravity.
Third Place: Brian Yaeger. “One Of The World’s Most Obscure Beers Comes To Bend.” Bend Source Weekly.
Honorable Mention: Loren Green. “A breath of fresh air.” Heavy Table.
Best Short Form Writing
First Place: Cliff Lucas. “Café de Hanekeef.” Belgian Smaak
Second Place: Bryan Roth. “b-Roll no. 701.” Good Beer Hunting.
Third Place: Andy Crouch. “Oh Brother: Newly Sober Hulk Hogan Releases “Real American Beer.” All About Beer.
Best Technical or Brewing Podcast
First Place: Jonny Garrett. The Craft Beer Channel.
Second Place: Jen Blair. False Bottomed Girls.
Third Place: John Holl. All About Beer Brewer to Brewer.
Best Technical Writing
First Place: Joe Stange. “Czech Lager: The Art of the Addictive.” Craft Beer & Brewing.
Second Place: Don Tse. “It’s the Malt’s Fault (How Malt Choices Affect Beer’s Shelf Life).” Brewing Industry Guide.
Third Place: Shana Solarte. “How Yeast Affects Flavor.” Top Crop.
Honorable Mention: Matthew Curtis. “Old Gold, Heritage Malts Return to British Beer.” Craft Beer & Brewing.
Since it was the last category of the event, we will finish with the travel category:
1st place: My Father, Lion Lager, & Home by Ruvani de Silva (Final Gravity)
2nd place: A Happy Valley of Beer — Investigating the Pubs and Breweries of Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire, England by Michael Clarke (Good Beer Hunting)
3rd place: Anarchists, Surrealists, & Spanish Brewers by John McMahon (Final Gravity)
Honorable mention: No Blitz — How Arkansas Tech University Fans Tailgate in a Dry County by Brian Sorensen (Good Beer Hunting)
Emerging Voice: Rebirth and Reinvention — As Chattanooga Grows and Changes, Local Beer Follows Along by Drew Pitt (Good Beer Hunting)