I have a big back-log of beer and beer related videos that I have yet to watch. But I finally got snuck this one in recently and thought I should pass it on, because it’s Fred.
Brewing TV – Episode 20: Fred Eckhardt from Brewing TV on Vimeo.
Thank Heaven for Beer – The Brewery
You read that right. From blog to brewery. And you can help make the dream a reality….
…by clicking HERE to see their presentation on Kickstarter.
And after you have done that, tell your friends, write about it, tweet it, get this video under the nose of anyone who loves craft beer and can pony up even just $5.00.
even OPRAH is talking craft beer!
You know it’s a good list if Craig from City Beer Store in SF had a hand in it.
The lamestream media is covering beer! Take that Tea Party!
Stone Media Day – The analysis
Now that the BIG Stone Brewing news is out in the open air. I want to take a step back and really look at what this means for Stone, San Diego and craft beer in general.
Stone is now putting a lot of projects onto a hopefully large plate. Can they keep up the quality on so many fronts? I believe that they can. They have broad support from the city and community. They have common cause with local brewers some of whom they distribute and I think they have the hard headed gumption to reach 2013. They will need a deep bench of talent to do it. In the following key areas: Hotel management. This can be tricky. They plan to go into this with a company that has expertise. Which is probably the best route. But they will have to monitor and be ready to step in if the Stone ethos doesn’t stay on course. Sour and barrel beers. I am hoping that they have a brewer and staff ready to charge into this field. Could be very exciting but the bar is incredibly high. Cascade, New Belgium and Russian River are high benchmarks.
For San Diego, it is a win-win. More Stone tourist draws spread out to decrease some traffic. And hey, any business opening now is a plus. This also really burnishes the craft beer reputation. Portland and Denver have proven that more can be merrier and this will draw more beer to the region.
For craft beer, I wish I knew. I have a feeling that a Stone backlash will be in the offing. Sam Adams and Sierra Nevada both get “too big” attached to their names occasionally for usually no good reason. I am sure that Stone will get tagged with it as well. But I believe we need all levels of business size to truly compete for the hearts and minds of the beer consumer. A rare beer that only a few can get will not make people put down the bad beer. We need more good beer in more places.
Stone Media Day – the photos
Part two of the Stone blitz is purely photos. Enjoy!
Stone Media Day – quick recap
The Stone Brewing that you know now will be so much bigger and cooler in 2013 than 2011. As you may have seen in the Twitter-sphere and on Facebook, Stone is expanding and in typical Stone fashion, boldly.
I was among the lucky people that got to experience the news in one day straight from the source, Greg Koch and Steve Wagner. We traveled from the Stone World Bistro in Escondido, to Liberty Station near the San Diego airport to a lovely little farm in North San Diego county. And it was jam packed with news. So here goes…..
1. A new Stone store will be opening in the South Park area of San Diego. Similar to the store at the World Bistro. You can get a growler fill, buy a bottle and get a shirt. It will be tremendous for those in San Diego who now don’t have to trek north to get their beer.
2. A new World Bistro will open at Liberty Station. In the old Navy mess hall! And you can play bocce! (OK, I have never played bocce, so I don’t know why I put the exclamation point there) And their will be a brewery on site that might make some interesting one-off beers.
3. And they bought a farm! Yes, a real working farm that supplies part of the food for the restaurant. It may end up hosting educational events that reinforces the Stone locavore ethos and might be the site for beer dinners. It already has an outdoor oven and a great little lake. Combine that with the great San Diego weather and you have a winner.
4. The headquarters is expanding and not by a little. This will be HUGE! A new production facility about the size of what they currently have right next door. An expanded kitchen, more parking, electric vehicle charging spots near the front door. Then across the parkway will be a 50 seat boutique hotel, a barrel aged and sour beer facility and another garden.
5. There will be a lottery for the Barrel aged Macadamia collaboration porter in the new fancy caged and corked bottles because they will not hit the regular distribution chain. Why? There are only 672 of them.
6. Today is the brew day for the charity Green Tea IPA collaboration. A big 9% beer with loads of tea and literally a world of hops in it.
7. The Belgo Anise Imperial Stout is excellent. Big anise and coffee aromas. Not heavy and viscous at all. It is lively and fun to drink. Unless you do not like black licorice. It will be available along with the regular Imperial Stout in a couple of weeks.
Oh and there is something about a brewery in Europe too.
In a couple days, I will talk about what I believe the future holds for these Stone ventures.
Shoot a Brew
This is just fun. Put your Beer geek away and just watch Shoot A Brew….
The acting is, to be generous, a little poor but better than I could do for sure.
Helping the Longshot
Here is your second dose of Sam Adams related news…..
“(Boston, MA) – Samuel Adams today announced that it is expanding its philanthropy initiative, Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream, to home brewers and small craft brewers nationwide. Focused on helping up-and-coming brewers turn their passion for beer into successful businesses, the program will target funding of at least $100,000 to the craft brewing industry in 2011.
The initiative is part of the company’s Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream program, which supports small business owners in the food, beverage and hospitality industry by providing accessible financing, as well as business and financial literacy tools and assistance. Small brewers nationwide can apply for loans ranging from $500 to $25,000 to be used for a variety of business purposes including expansion, equipment, and marketing, with all loan payments recycled back into the fund.
Launched in June 2008 in partnership with ACCION USA, one of the country’s top not-for-profit micro-lenders, the broader initiative has already loaned $540,000 to over 60 businesses – largely in New England – with the goal of reaching $1,000,000 by the end of 2011.
“Our goal with the craft brewing component of Brewing the American Dream is to support small business owners in our niche of the industry who are facing the same hurdles around starting or expanding their nano or microbrewery that I faced when I started brewing Samuel Adams in my kitchen in 1984,” said Jim Koch, brewer and founder of Samuel Adams.”
It is actions like this that make me continue to write about and drink craft beer. What other industry helps out possible competitors like this? And they spent most of the fund money in their own backyard!
Craft Beers of the Pacific NW
More great beer books! You should really pick this one up if you are in the great Northwest or if you are planning on going there.
Lisa Morrison knows the good stuff. That’s why she has a radio show about beer, she writes for Beer Advocate and All About Beer and she is a member of the new Barley’s Angels as well!
So go HERE and grab a copy!
Beer Amongst the Belgians – The Video
I am a big fan of beer movies. Especially ones that show me a side or place that I haven’t seen yet. Enter……
BATB Promo 3.0 from Taylor Brush on Vimeo.
Once you get past the obligatory, “Belgian beer is the best” there is a nice bit of history and discussion of the Art of Brewing which sometimes gets short shrift to the science aspect. Tim Webb is knowledgeable about Belgium to the max so I am looking forward to more of this series.