On my way to the West Coast...

Sorry it has been a bit since I last posted. I have been busy with work/I forgot my password for my blog account. Anyway, what's new? Well I'm glad you all asked. A couple of things. First of all, I don't know if everyone knows that craft beers are starting to can their beers which is pretty cool. It's cheaper for the brewers which in turn means it should be cheaper for you! Yay!!!! Harpoon said theirs should be hitting the shelves as early as this weekend in some areas. Harpoon tweeted this pic earlier with the caption of "A man among boys"

In other news...Illinois has passed a law that allows small breweries (producing less than 465,000 gallons per year) to self distribute their beer. This is huge. There is a three tiered system in America that is pretty much monopolized by B.M.C. and so unless you have sold your company to them or have some other way into the distribution warehouses you are pretty much S.O.L. I think it is great that the small guys are starting to win against the big ones. Cheers to them. (full article here)

Lastly, I am at Logan airport right now waiting for a flight to Seattle (well Dallas then to Seattle) but I saw a Cisco Brew Pub in terminal B and I had to go in. It was good food. Great beer (I really enjoy Cisco, they are local to MA based outta Nantucket) and the service was awesome. One thing that made me laugh was a couple that came in to grab something to eat and drink. The man had to go to the bathroom when they got there but told his wife to order him a Bud Light. When I heard that I started to chuckle but then when she ordered it and the bartender said "We don't carry Bud Light, we are only micro-brews." This brought a smile to my face and almost a tear to my eye. I just hope that more places start popping up that only serve local craft brews and stop wasting money buying shit light beer. And just for the record they did have a light beer on tap that was from a Microbrewery (I didn't notice the brewery or name of the beer) but the gentleman ordered one after sampling it and said that it was really good. TAKE THAT BMC! I myself enjoyed a 22oz. Bailey's Blonde Ale which was delicious, especially while watching the Red Sox run train on the Indians. 

P.S. Go get 'em tonight Bruins!

Who is looking for something to do this weekend?

Well people, if you are in the Boston area and are of the legal drinking age there is a way to celebrate the American Craft Beer Week. Harpoon brewery is having a festival for a couple of reasons. 1) It is the beginning of summer. 2) They have been in business for 25 years. And 3) It is ACBW. So what better way to celebrate than to grab a couple friends take the T down to the brewery and enjoy the beer, food, entertainment and (hopefully) nice weather. For complete details (costs, who is preforming, and what beers are being served) Click here.

I am particularly excited to try the new 100-barrel series that the founders, Rich and Dan, brewed. It is a Rye IPA. Basically what that means is IPA is my favorite style of beer. So I have high hopes and expectations. The last 100 barrel was good so hopefully this one will be just as good.

Hope to see ya'll there.

America! Hell yeah!

It's American Craft Beer Week. It's like Hanukkah for beer lovers. A whole week dedicated to the great beer artisans of this country that have created on of the fastest growing industries in our country right now. Rejoyce, drink up, and be merry!

I have some good news and some bad news.

The bad news is...beer sales are down 1.0% in America overall. The good news is...Craft Beer Sales are up 11%! I think in this case, the good news definitely out weights the bad. Read the full article here: Beer Sales Continue to Fall But Craft Brews Keep Growing .

Beer Snobs! Unite!

<-----(That's a lot of head)

Hopefully good things to come from this.

"Grocery store owners are planning another push to make it easier for them to sell beer and wine in stores.

Under current law, grocery store owners can only sell beer and wine once they receive an alcohol permit from their local communities, but they are not allowed to hold more than three permits in the state – making it difficult for chain grocery stores to sell alcohol.

Lawmakers will hear testimony to change that restriction Tuesday during a Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure hearing." -BostonHerald

Personally, I think this is a good thing. I mean sure there is the possibility of small mom and pop shops getting closed. However, they could just apply for these permits and obtain the ability to sell alcohol at their stores. I used to live in Washington state and the system they have out there (and I believe in the rest of the NW) is you can buy beer and wine in any grocery store but you have to go to a liquor store to get any other type of alcohol. I would also like to mention that you can get beer and wine until 2am at the grocery stores on the west coast. On the east, everything closes at 11pm. I like the WA way better than the stupid system that we have in Mass. I mean if you are having a party and you have to go to the grocery store to get a bunch of food, it would be so much more convenient if you can get a couple of 18 packs while you are there. All in all, I hope this movement passes.

Four Loko is back.

I don't know if everyone is aware yet, but Four Loko is back in stores (I think as of this past weekend). I am making that assumption because I just saw it for the first time since it was banned when I was at two different liquor stores this weekend. The catch? No more caffeine. The plus? Still 12% ABV and comes in a 24oz. can.

George Washington, Brewing like a Champ.

George Washington Drank Here

"Even George Washington needed to take the edge off sometimes.

The founding father and first president of the republic was a man of the people when it came to his drink of preference. His "Notebook as a Virginia Colonel," dated from 1757, includes a handwritten recipe for "small beer."

That recipe, along with many of Washington's other papers, is part of the New York Public Library's collection. This month, the library is joining with Shmaltz Brewing Co. to recreate a modern version of the porter to celebrate the centennial of its Stephen A. Schwarzman building.

Just 15 gallons will be brewed and offered for tasting. Local brewers Peter Taylor and Josh Knowlton have taken the liberty of tweaking the recipe, which the library has dubbed "Fortitude's Founding Father Brew."

The brewers made batches of the beer, one with molasses—which Washington used—and one without, substituting malted barley for the fermentable sugar.

"Back then, they didn't really have quite the same understanding of brewing science that we do now," said Mr. Knowlton.

Of Washington's beer, "it's pretty light, pretty dry, medium-bodied but roasty," Mr. Knowlton said. "We used some roasted malts in there so it's definitely got some of a roasted, chocolaty, little bit of a coffee flavor."

The ingredient list is fairly basic: bran hops, yeast and molasses. The concoction is to "stand till it is little more than Blood warm," in Washington's words.

Jeremy Cowan, founder of Shmaltz Brewing, which also makes Coney Island Lager, among other beers, called the recipe "tricky."

"The ingredients in the brewing process that he used are kind of pre-modern," he said.

Mr. Cowan figures Washington probably sketched the outlines of the recipe, tweaking it and adding ingredients during the actual production.

"They obviously did a couple of things that aren't written down here, like a grandmother would," he said.

The beer will be showcased at a library gala on May 23. The public can sample it on May 18 at Rattle N Hum in Manhattan."

-WSJ By: Sumathi Reddy

This is cool. I like that beer was such a big part of everyone's life back in "ye olde times". George Washington, the man of the people, our founding father, the first president of the USA was a home-brewer. Cookin' up some "small beer". I wish Obama was brewin' in the basement of the White House or had some sort of large production brew house at like Fort Knox or something. All procedes go to paying off our enormous debt. Thats what we should do...buy out ABInbev and just take all the profits and pay off our debt in like 10 years....yup thats right I just fixed the economy. Beer saves the day, once again.

Osama is dead, Navy SEALs get hammered...

"A bunch of Navy SEALs based in San Diego celebrated their faces off last night ... toasting the UNBELIEVABLE raid carried out by their fellow SEAL brothers by reveling at a S.D. bar ... a bar which happens to be owned by a retired SEAL.

TMZ spoke with American bad ass Greg McPartlin -- owner of McP's pub -- who told us when the news broke, SEALs from the nearby Naval Base Coronado quickly packed the house ... many carrying American flags.

We're told the soldiers went through 8 kegs, 15 cases of beer and TONS of cocktails in just four hours ... while leading the bar in several "USA!" chants.

McPartlin tells us, "It's great -- Osama was expecting his 72 virgins, instead he got 24 Virginians!" (The Navy SEAL team that executed the mission is based in Virginia.)

FYI -- the Naval Base Coronado is the home of the USS Carl Vinson ... the ship from which Osama's body was dumped into the North Arabian Sea.

A media relations spokeswoman at the base tells TMZ there are currently no celebrations taking place at N.B.C., in part because, "Our boys had a lot of fun over at the Irish pub last night!""  -TMZ.com

Not only are SEALs good at killing people, but apparently they are good at killin' kegs, cases, and any other form of alcohol they can get their hands on. I wonder how many of them there actually was that killed the 8 kegs 15 cases and TONS of cocktails? It had to have been a ton. However, let's be honest pretty much any Navy SEAL is 10 time more badass than anyone who is not a SEAL. So it was probably like one SEAL per keg limit and if they finished in an hour they got a case of beer and then anyone who was late to the party had to drink sissy cocktails. Anyway, I hope they enjoyed the celebration. Like I constantly say...beer is made to be shared, celebrated, and most importantly drank with friends.

In closing...America!