There is the potential that beer labels will have to squeeze in a lot more information onto them in the future. More specifically, allergens and nutrition information. Which is not good for those, like me, who need major magnification just to read what hops are in the beer. And though I like the idea of a QR code that leads you to more detailed information, what percentage of people are going to use that and then what percentage of those will understand the governmental gobbledygook that passes for information?
You can read more HERE from the Brewers Association.
I am not a homebrewer but I know the vital importance of having them around to push the recipe envelope without having to sell their beers and to be a minor league from which new breweries can spring with new ideas.
And a cool new idea for the Big Brew 2024 on May 4th is to have a theme. That theme? Homebrew recipes inspired by Star Wars.
The recipes are Degobah Dunkel, Jabba Juice Hazy IPA, A New Hope Pale Ale, Empire Strikes Back Dark Ale and rounding out the OG trilogy Return of the Jedi Pale Ale. All OK names but I hope to see some deeper cuts like Ahsoka Amber or Order 66 Betr-Ale.
I am giving you ample opportunity to stock up for April 27th. What am I stocking up on, you might ask? Saisons of course. Throwing no shade on IPA Day or Stout day but other styles need the push more and Allagash has picked the 27th for Saison.
Start looking now, you don’t have to just drink them on one day.
Haven’t been on Netflix for awhile. Too busy catching up on shows on other streamers but they have recently announced an interesting beer series helmed by “Peaky Blinders” writer Steven Knight. Called House of Guinness (for now) it will tell the story of The Guinness Family. Yes, that one.
It “will be set in the 19th-century in both Dublin and New York, and will focus on the aftermath of the death of Benjamin Guinness, who is frequently credited with the brewery’s long-standing fame and success. The plot will follow Benjamin’s children Arthur, Edward, Anne, and Ben as they navigate the challenges of the business in the wake of their father’s passing.”
I do like when a beer label has a little fun fact or a hack on it. Something with a little bit of clever. Such is the case with Allagash White that makes you give a second look to a classic American beer.
I do enjoy when a brewery crowdsources a beer name. I know it might be a headache to go through the weeding out process but I think it can yield an out of the box name.
And for their 30 Year Anniversary celebration this year, Beer of the Month Club is joining up with “The Lost Abbey and Offshoot Beer Co., to craft four exclusive beers that will be made available only to members of The Rare Beer Club® and The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club™.”
More info: “Members and non-members alike will be invited to enter the contest beginning on March 21st with an entry deadline of Friday March 29th. Participants will be able to submit up to three names for each of the four beers to be named in the contest and the winners will be awarded a $150 MonthlyClubs.com Gift Card.”
File this under, why didn’t I think of it. Country Malt Group, with Canada Malting Co. and Great Western Malting have introduced the new PinkBootsMalt.
It is “In celebration of International Women’s Day and in support of women’s craft beer advocacy organization PinkBootsSociety, Similar to the annually released Pink Boots Society Hop Blend by Yakima Chief Hops, the Pink Boots product is a seasonal craft base malt that supports the Pink Boots Society scholarship fund for women.”
Here is more info about it, “Each year, the Pink Boots Malt will highlight a different barley variety and growing region, with characteristics that are versatile enough for every beer or whiskey style, but unique enough to inspire a new Pink Boots beverage each year. This year, the Pink Boots Malt is a well-balanced, low color, Pilsen-style malt, featuring the Odyssey barley variety grown throughout the Pacific Northwest. Crafted with both brewers and distillers in mind, it is also a high extract, low-GN malt product.”
Tarantula Hill Brewing is making a big leap to the San Diego area, San Marcos specifically as the Thousand Oaks based brewery will utilize the space once used by the Draft Republic restaurant. This news was first broken by Brandon Hernandez at SD Beer News.
Will an outer rim of L.A. brewery fly in San Diego County?
The pandemic caused a lot of hidebound rules and regulations to be looked at with a more critical eye and even now in 2024, laws are being questioned.
One such piece of legislation, is Senate Bill 969, which would allow municipalities and counties, starting in 2025, to designate “entertainment zones” where drinking “alcoholic beverages on public streets, sidewalks, or public rights of way” would be legalized. This is similar to when outdoor – streets and sidewalk seating was greenlit.
It means of you and a brewery are in “the zone” that you can buy a beer and take it outside and drink it on the street. The bill was proposed by state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) who is quoted saying, “We have these very strict alcohol laws in California that sometimes need to be made more flexible.”
I am all for flexible. There are far too many rules for any business, let alone a business that sells alcohol. But I am not seeing how wandering around with a plastic cup of beer is all that great. And where are the boundaries of this zone? Can you get a beer and wander into a bookstore? Or cross a busy street? Creating an outdoor seating oasis on a street near restaurants and bars (and breweries) seems a better idea for a bigger group of people to me.
I usually do not venture into the comments in social media because my opinion of humanity is already low enough as it is but when I saw noted home brewing authority Denny Conn posted this in the middle of this month….
….I delved into what people had to say and boy was it an eye opening. There is a lot of bruised feelings and ill will to how the Brewers Association (BA) is handling the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) and not just from rank and file homebrewers but from influential beer people whom I know from their writing and speaking. There is also a lot of low opinions of the marquee festival as well.
It is dispiriting to say the least because the BA and AHA really need each other in the way that a Major League Baseball team needs the minor leagues. And GABF needs to get its mojo back as well.
But despite the low ebb, the tide can turn. I would strongly suggest that the AHA be given autonomy on how it runs events so that the leadership of that group can brainstorm how to make HomeBrewCon and other gatherings more attractive to members. Folding a sliver of the event into GABF seems a small gesture at best. Perhaps smaller regional events are the way to go. But the AHA members should be charting the way not dictated at by Denver.
As for GABF, I have been twice (ages ago) and, yes, it is not for the faint of crowds or cup drop culture. But it is also a fantastic way to sample beers that you otherwise would have to take a year off of work and travel the country to taste. Again, maybe regional events would be a solution with a smaller, focused affair in Denver for those that win judging regionally. Sort of a March Madness model.
First off, there needs to be some fence mending and that means people getting together to talk about craft beer and how pros and amateurs can work in concert.
