Uprising!

A new beer from the Iron Fist folks. But which style is it? I guess I will have to buy one and find out the hard way or wait for the description to hit their website. Personally, I hope it is more IPA than trippel.

The Next Great American Brewer


The Next Great American Brewer is a reality competition television series, produced by Main Gate Visuals.

“The best amateur and professional craft brewers across the United States are brought together to compete against each other in challenges related to brewing beer and running a successful brewing company. The winner of the competition will have their beer brewed, bottled and distributed to beer drinkers across the country!”

I knew eventually that another occupation themed reality show would be foisted onto the American public that has tired of Ice Truckers and Gator grabbers. But, I didn’t think that they would actually head into the world of craft beer. This could be an interesting and educational show. Or it could be a string of nonsensical challenges tangentially related to brewing. As the great A.V Club website often says though, I remain “cautiously optimistic”.

Game Changers

Why can’t a sports bar have craft beer? It’s a fair question and a matter of taste. I prefer the quiet and well lighted but some people want to watch March Madness AND have a great beer and they should not be deprived of both. Now I see quite a few beer lists for LA bars on a weekly basis and most beer spots that lean towards the “sporty” usually lean to far to the Bud side for my liking. But, if you are a beach person and like the glow of the TV, the list at GameChangers in Hermosa Beach might be for you.

It is now on my list of places to check out the next time that I am nearby.

19


Mikkeller has somehow jammed 19 different hop varietals into one beer. Aptly named 19. For the lupulin curious, here is the list with (rounded off) percentages for each of the hops.
Simcoe – 17%
Citra – 15%
Amarillo – 14%
Sorachi Ace – 10
Bravo – 6%
Columbus – 6%
Cluster – 4%
Warrior – 4%
Cascade – 3%
Centennial – 3%
Palisade – 2%
Challenger, Galena, Magnum, Mt. Hood, Tettnanger – 1%
Nugget, Super Galena and Willamette – below 1%

Two from Firestone Walker

Firestone-Walker has gone all out on two events that you should really ponder attending. They have grabbed some seriously great breweries. (Some of which do not venture to California). Read the descriptions below and start drooling.

“From the Barrel will return for the second year at the Historic Santa Margarita Ranch and will feature some of the best barrel-aged beer in the country as well as Ports, Bourbons and great local food. The event is March 30th and tickets are on sale now at fromthebarrel.net. Breweries that will be there will be Russian River, Jolly Pumpkin, Crooked Stave, Lost Abbey, Ballast Point as well as Firestone Walker. This is a prohibition themed event that was very well received in its first year. There will be even more this year with the inclusion of more Bourbons and a beer cocktail station run by the Beer Wench herself Ashley Routson.”

“The Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Fest will be making its debut on June 9th and will feature a TON of great breweries. In partnership with the Pioneer Day Committee we decided to put on a world class beer event in the middle of wine country. We had a dream list of breweries that we could get to attend this and sent out the invites and to out surprise and pleasure they pretty much all said yes. We have breweries from all over the country and some from overseas as well some of whom have never poured their beer in California. Visit Firestonebeerfest.com for all of the info and the full list of breweries. Tickets will go on sale February 10th.”

The Beer Allowance – March

Instead of waiting until the middle of the month or till the end, in March, despite having a well filled ‘fridge. I took my $20 allowance that I received for Christmas and went to Vendome in Toluca Lake and picked up two beers and still had $3 to spare!

Now in February I bought Rayon Vert from Green Flash which I did not care for. Too medicinal and overpowering for my tastes and I also bought Kili Wit from Logsdon which I haven’t popped open yet.

This month’s choices were Epic Brewing (the Utah one) and their Brainless Golden. Epic has just entered the L.A. market and I wanted to try a “base” beer before getting Big Bad Baptist or Brainless on Cherries. Choice # 2 is from Telegraph of Santa Barbara. Part of the Obscura line. But this one is made with artisinal chocolate.


If they all get opened, I will follow up with my notes and to see what I bought back in January, click HERE.

The History of Beer in NY

“The fascinating yet largely unknown legacy of the cultural history of beer in New York is uncovered in Beer Here: Brewing New York’s History at the New-York Historical Society. The exhibition traces 350 years of the production and consumption of beer in the city—from colonial New York, when beer was a vital source of nourishment and tax revenues, to the current artisanal revolution occurring in microbreweries throughout the state. This exhibition is on view at New-York Historical through September 2, 2012.

Beer has been brewed in New York City since the days of its earliest European settlement. Beer Here: Brewing New York’s History will begin with an exploration of the colonial period in New York when beer was often safer to drink than water, and noted citizens brewed beer as just one aspect of their business activities. It will then take the visitor up to the present popularity of microbreweries and homebrewing. Topics include the nutritional properties of colonial beer and early New York brewers in the age of revolution; infrastructure innovations and the importance of access to clean water; large-scale brewing in nineteenth-century New York and the influence of immigration; temperance movements and the impact of prohibition; bottling, canning, refrigeration and other technological advances; and the promotional efforts of the City’s breweries in the age of mass production. These topics will be highlighted through a display of historical objects and documents such as a 1779 account book from a New York City brewer who sold beer to both the British and patriot sides; sections of early nineteenth-century wooden pipes from one of the city’s first water systems; a bronze medal that commemorates an 1855 New York State temperance law; beer trays from a variety of late nineteenth-century brewers; souvenirs from the campaign to repeal prohibition; and a selection of advertisements from Piels, Rheingold and Schaefer, beloved hometown brewers. The exhibit will conclude with a small beer hall that features a selection of favorite New York City and State artisanal beers.

“Beer is an important cultural influencer,” explained Debra Schmidt Bach and Nina Nazionale, curators of Beer Here: Brewing New York’s History, “and is not a topic typically covered in an exhibition at an Historical Society. We were intrigued by the longevity and popularity of beer in New York throughout the past 300 years, and wanted to bring together objects and documents of historical and cultural importance to investigate this venerable tradition.”

New-York Historical will host a special summer public program, “Beer Appreciation: The History and Renaissance of Beer,” featuring experts Garrett Oliver and Steve Hindy from Brooklyn Brewery, at which local craft beers will be served on Tuesday, July 10, 6:30 pm. Beer Here: Brewing New York’s History curators Debra Schmidt Bach and Nina Nazionale will join the conversation.”

You can also find more information on the Facebook page and on Youtube too.

Eat This, Drink That

L.A.s own Beer Chicks will be hitting the small screen with…..
“Eat This, Drink That, a special on The Cooking Channel starring The Beer Chicks, Christina Perozzi and Hallie Beaune airs Sunday March 4th! They travel to New Orleans to taste local craft beer, go shrimpin’, eat fantastic food and down some artisanal cocktails, then return to LA where Food GPS’ Beer Float Showdown is underway. They team up with Chef Ilan Hall of The Gorbals and Jonathan Porter of Smog City Brewing. Watch the competition go down at Eagle Rock Brewery featuring local chefs and brewers!”

The premier air date of the special is March 4th at 8pm on The Cooking Channel. You might even see, yours truly, in the background at the Beer Float Showdown! And I sure wish I could go to New Orleans because that food must be amazing with beer.

Learn about Hops

I briefly mentioned the Simple Earth Hops people a while back and now Matt Sweeny has announced 2-hour educational “Brewing Up a Community Hops Webinars” in March, April and May of this year, on the third Saturday of each month with a morning and evening session on each day.

From the press release, “commercial topics to be covered include marketing local hops, establishing a commercial hopyard, processing hops, how to use earth-friendly growing practices and lots of time for questions and answers. The cost for each webinar is $20, tickets are available at Eventbrite” and a full schedule is available online.