Well shit, looks like I missed 2 months. Once upon a time, March 30th if you will, I wrote a recap of all the 2012 “What are you Drinking Tonight?” posts, mapping out anything that had been consumed by our fellow readers in the prior 3 months. Since that time, not a single new “What are you Drinking Tonight?” post went up. So for that I say – Whoops, my bad. I’ve still been drinking though, I can promise you that. Mostly I’ve gone with a Palate Wrecker, then a Deviant Dale’s, then probably back to a Palate Wrecker. Throw in about a thousand Sierra Pale Ale cans and that’s what I’ve been doing for the past 2 months. And you know what? I can almost guarantee you that’s my lineup for tonight. Nothing outlandish or rare, I know, but this is my idea of heaven. Those beers, and fish tacos – That is heaven my friends.
In the funny little world of beer-blogging, there’s a strange phenomenon that I’m just coming to grips with. Before I explain, keep in mind the Aleheads site that you’ve been reading for the past couple of years has been, and still is, a completely free site. There’s an ad here and there that you’ll see next to our posts but those aren’t generated by Aleheads, they’re generated by the hosting service that’s nice enough to let us take up space on the internet for practically zero cost (just some extras that we like to pay for). Sure, I’ll take money if someone wants to pony up some cash, but we’re not looking to generate revenue. Not sure why anyone would pay us anyway. Have you read this site? Anyway, being that this is a free site that answers to no one and has no controlling interest in anything, ever, I find it a little strange when our “Feedback” box is filled with various messages from companies asking either if we’ve tried their product and would be willing to review it or if we’d like to try a sample of something new. I think that’s very cool and I love the trust that some people have in a bunch of folks that know just enough about beer to be mildly annoying at a bar, but I’m still learning to deal with the “notoriety” if you will. Now, if this new-found notoriety brings free beer, then I say BRING IT ON! And that’s how we’ve come to this review of Newcastle Summer Ale. Read the rest of this entry »
I was making the same face as the guy on the right the morning after drinking a half-gallon of this beer.
Sure, I COULD do a standard tasting note on the Founders’ Better Half, but really, how interesting is that going to be? It was rich, complex, delicious…blah blah blah. I mean, it’s a goddamn old ale aged in goddamn bourbon-barrels which were used to store goddamn maple syrup and it’s made by goddamn Founders. What would you expect? It’s amazing.
So instead, I’m going to do a tasting note on my hangover the next day. It was epic. It was surreal. It felt, as Muhammad Ali once said about fighting Joe Frazier, like the “closest thing to dying that I know of.” Let’s set the scene shall we… Read the rest of this entry »
Chicago is my ancestral home (or close to it), and as such I pay quite a bit of attention to the Chicago craft beer scene. It helps that said scene is absolutely exploding right now, as home to dozens of breweries that are in the planning or licensing stages. Chicago Craft Beer Week has been one of the great developments that came along with this rapid expansion. Currently wrapping up its third year, the 11-day “week” is a fantastic way to celebrate all of these new breweries as well as the other midwestern ale factories whose beers are found in the city.
Unfortunately, I only had one weekend (one day, really) to spend in the city for CCBW this year, so I picked the event that seemed best to me on the day I was there–the first-ever Mash Tun Festival in Bridgeport, organized by one of my favorite Chicago beer bars, Maria’s Package Goods & Community Bar.* The organization appealed to me: a single $40 ticket bought unlimited sampling of most beers, a set of four tickets for special pours (more tickets available), a commemorative glass, snacks and a copy of Mash Tun, the new craft beer journal for Chicago and namesake of the festival. I like that. Getting lots of stuff for my money = good.
*An aside: Maria’s really is an awesome bar. Not only do they not even try to cater to non-craft drinkers (they offer “$2 random shitty beer” on the menu), their beer-to-go store in the front of the venue often has hard-to-get local stuff that has long sold out of bigger package stores like Binny’s. If you’re looking for something that nobody else has, check Maria’s. Unless, of course, I’m also looking for the same beer as you, in which case, go to hell. Read the rest of this entry »
There are certain cities that Aleheads speak of in hushed tones. Cities that have embraced craft beer culture and feature wonderful, local breweries, taprooms, beer festivals and more. These are the cities that Aleheads are proud to call home. Cities where groups of Aleheads make their pilgrimages to wallow in the craft beer revolution and imbibe a few too many tasty brews. San Diego, San Francisco, Boston, Denver, Chicago, Asheville, Seattle, Philly…these cities all have so much to offer a true Alehead.
But even the most rabid homer knows that one city towers above all others when it comes to craft beer. One city has made craft beer such an integral part of its culture that it has added “Beervana” as one of its many official nicknames. That city? Portland, Oregon. Read the rest of this entry »
What I’ve noticed in the last year and a half (at least) is that Chicago breweries cannot seemingly create enough beer in their current facilities to meet demand. So they’re buying up property all over the city’s industrial areas. I predict the “Brewing District” becoming a reality in the future.
Revolution Brewing, as Kid Carboy Jr. pointed out, is opening a brand new location on Chicago’s northwest-ish side at 3340 N. Kedzie Avenue. Tickets to the grand opening event, May 25, are sold out. If you were lucky enough to snag one, you only paid $15 for admission, but you will also need cash for beer tickets ($4 each). Basically, you’ll spend a lot, but you’ll have a good time. Read the rest of this entry »
“The chalice from the palace has the brew that is true”
It has been trending for at least two years — craft breweries are not just bottling, but canning their most popular brews. There are can-fans (even canned craft beer festivals) and of course, opposers. Beer’s fruity cousin, cider, is no exception.
Though Woodchuck Cider doesn’t quite fit into the “craft” category, it does have a nearly cult-following. Woodchuck President and CEO, Bret Williams, announced May 1 that their amber hard cider would now be available in cans. Read the rest of this entry »
During my recent trip to Portland (more on that in the coming weeks), something amazing happened in Alabama. I would be remiss in my duties as an Alabama Alehead if I didn’t let our readers know about the situation.
The day before I left for Oregon, the Gourmet Bottle Bill was on the Special Order Calendar in the Alabama House. Thanks to the tireless efforts of Free the Hops, the grassroots organization that is the heart and soul of the Alabama craft beer movement, the Gourmet Bottle Bill had passed the Alabama Senate and the House’s Economic Development and Tourism Committee. To get to the Governor’s desk, it just had to pass the House. Read the rest of this entry »
You know, despite having become a huge fan of all sorts of American-made Belgian beer styles in the last few years, Belgian beer that is actually from Belgium can still be something of an oddity for me. I find it much more difficult to select a random Belgian beer off one of the shelves than a comparable American brew, unless I recognize it as being a trappist ale or something else that I figure is a near guarantee of quality. A lot of the breweries I just don’t know, and it’s not like there’s a lot of helpful English description on the side of the bottle to enlighten me.
In the end, I often find myself looking at a beer I don’t fully understand, noting how much more expensive it is than the American-style brew from a brewery I know, and then putting it back on the shelf and buying the “better deal.”
So it was with heightened interest that I actually purchased and tried De Dolle Special Extra Export Stout the other day. Why did I do it? Well, the guy at the package store said “You should try this,” and then graciously allowed me to buy a single bottle, that’s why. And I don’t say no to that sort of thing. It’s part of my “accepting things from strangers” rules–if the thing is beer, then you always say “yes, yes, a thousand times yes.”
What do I expect? I have no idea. “Belgian stout” is such a nebulous pseudo-style that seems like it can taste anywhere from “stout” to “quadrupel” at will. And I am afraid of all the extra descriptors–were “extra” and “export” really needed after “special”? Anyway, on to the tasting. Read the rest of this entry »
I find cooking with beer to be one of the most morally vexing issues of our time. Sure, food is good; some may argue a necessity. Food that tastes good is better still… and adding beer makes everything better. Right?
And yet, I was raised to never waste beer- and I’m talking cheap swill of the sort you wouldn’t order for your worst enemy. Beers like Genny Cream and Milwaukee’s Best. During my formative years beer was regarded as a sacred beverage, and you always had to finish your beer. God forbid if you accidentally spilled a beer, you were duty-bound to drink an equal volume of the same in tribute. All-in-all, I think this outlook is good and worthwhile- we live in a wasteful society, and I despise the notion of drainpours… those beers brewed in such a way that they are rated to be not worthy of your consumption. Get over yourself, people. It’s just beer.
That’s why it’s so hard for me to dump a perfectly good beer into food I’m preparing. I like to cook- nothing fancy mind you. I like to grill meat. I like to cook breakfast. By far the favorite culinary weapon in my admittedly limited arsenal is the crockpot. It’s hard to mess things up; most recipes throw out suggested figures like “cook on low 4-6 hours” (I appreciate a large margin for error when cooking). You can throw a bunch of ingredients in the slowcooker before you leave for the day and come back to a home wafting delicious aromas, with no danger of burning your domicile to the ground. The meal can be kept fresh and hot for the whole family, despite staggered schedules and varying supper times.
That’s why I was excited to stumble across a crockpot recipe that is cheap, easy, hearty, and greatly improved by beer. Does my shriveled Alehead heart feel a pang when I added the fermented ingredient? Sure, a little, but it grows three sizes when I sample the final product. Read the rest of this entry »
Spring is in the air, folks. Amidst the rain and gloominess stands the promise of summer and all the wonderful things that come along with it. The smell of fresh cut grass and barbeque will mingle on decks and patios across the nation. Golf courses will be overwhelmed with people in shorts and t-shirts. Lakes and beaches everywhere will be teeming with the masses – and doesn’t beer taste good under the hot summer sun?
The “summer feeling” you’re looking forward to also means big money to brewers of yellow, fizzy beer. In a completely unscientific survey of beer commercials on cable TV, it turns out that they all had three features in common: Read the rest of this entry »
The evening was unseasonably warm. The hour grew late. The fat, bone-white moon hung overhead…pregnant with a sense of ominous foreboding. We did not heed the signs. We were not prepared.
It all began harmlessly enough. A group of foolhardy compatriots gathering under starlight to sample a selection of fermented treasures. There were rich, redolent barleywines. Bracing, bitter IPAs. Strong, complex Imperial Stouts. There was no hint of the terror to come. No indication of the foul, remorseless beast…biding its time.
We talked of past glories and future plans and laughed loud into the night. At that moment, disarmed by the strong ales we had consumed and the convivial atmosphere, the beast chose the perfect moment to attack. Read the rest of this entry »
I love Chicago Craft Beer Week. The fact that we all get to revel in American Craft Beer Week each year is already cool enough, but when you throw in all the incredible beer events of Chicago Craft Beer Week at the same time, it’s a true embarrassment of riches. In the last two years, I’ve made it to at least one awesome CCBW event during each celebration, like last year’s closing party at Revolution Brewing (it’s at the end of that post, scroll down), and as more and more breweries get on board and the event organization gets better, each year has more and more reasons to get excited.
Reason the first for this year’s third rendition of CCBW: It’s a “week” lasting 11 days. Now that’s my kind of week! You know that when they’ve got so many cool events to cram into a beer festival that 7 days isn’t enough, you’re probably looking at a surplus of opportunities to drink good beer.
As such, with more events being added to the master list daily, you need someone to wade through the big ‘ole list and cherry-pick the absolute coolest of the cool events. That man-boy is ME. So here we go, the coolest events of Chicago Craft Beer Week 2012, arranged in chronological order. Click on each venue in bold to go straight to the event page. Read the rest of this entry »
Received this email from Doc just now… if you’re in the nation’s capitol, go buy him a beer (or at least a 4-ounce pour). In related news, tell us what you’re drinking tonight.
Is it wrong to hang out at Church Key in DC all by yourself while you’re waiting for friends to come to town? I didn’t think so either. Glad we’re clear on that. Started off with some collaboration from Mikellar and Stillwater called Two Gypsies – Our side. Fine Saison for a humid-as-fuck day. Now I’m getting into some 4-oz pours. Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald (for Kid) and Mikellar 19. Pretty much everything they have on draught is some one-off or collaboration between breweries. I’m in love.
Ever since writing a post a few months back about the 20-plus breweries in the process of attempting to open in Chicago, I’ve been fortunate enough to develop open lines of communication with some of the city’s nascent brewers. So when I got an email the other day from Arcade Brewery founders Chris Tourre and Lance Curren letting me know about the launch of their new Kickstarter campaign to raise funds and awareness for their project, I knew this would be a good opportunity to conduct an interview and help them get the word out about their unique concept. Through Arcade, these two nouveau brewers are planning a company that will combine unique, comics-based packaging with user-inspired brews.*
*Partially, anyway.
Because I interviewed these two simultaneously over the phone, I’ve condensed all of their dialogue into one amorphous mass that I have dubbed “Arcade Brewery.” They didn’t seem to mind.
Kid Carboy Jr.: Obvious questions first–how did you guys meet one another and decide you wanted to open a brewery? Read the rest of this entry »
If you’ve read these pages often, you’ll have heard the constant drum-beat of our contributors telling our local legislators to support pro-craft beer laws. I’ve prattled on incessantly about the need for Alabama to keep breaking down the obstacles to craft beer growth in the state (not to beat a dead horse, but if you haven’t written to your local rep about the Gourmet Bottle Bill, it will be on the House calendar tomorrow! Get on it!).
One of the key points in these screeds has always been the idea that freeing up the market for craft beer will create economic growth. Naysayers could argue that even the “freest” beer market simply wouldn’t have much of an impact on a local economy. Well, to those who say “nay”, I simply say this: Asheville, North Carolina.Read the rest of this entry »
An über-beer geek and writer is looking to raise funds for a 30-BBL brewhouse in San Diego? Yeah, that’s somebody I need to talk to… Jacob McKean is in the midst of fundraising for Modern Times Beer and we discuss his experiences working as a social media specialist at Stone Brewing, his Beerpulse Op-ed piece, bringing on famed homebrew blogger the Mad Fermentationist as a consultant, their projected beer line-up (including a homage to Nugget Nectar), and much more.
If you’ve ever thought about taking your homebrew hobby to the pro level, listen to this and understand what you’re getting into.
Follow Modern Times on Twitter, Facebook, and say hello to Jacob if you are attending CBC ’12.
Click below to stream this episode in your browser using the audio player:
I learned after I picked this one up that it is actually an imperialized version of Laurelwood’s Green Elephant IPA. Had I known I would have grabbed one of each, since I haven’t had the standard version. In any case, this comes from Laurelwood’s, “Imperial Series Limited Release,” and was hopped with Cascade, Ahtanum and Amarillo hop varieties (I’ve never heard of Ahtanum hops, which either means I’m utterly uninformed (likely) or they made it up). Read the rest of this entry »
SB294, the “Gourmet Bottle Bill” will be on the Alabama House calendar this Thursday, May 3rd according to Free the Hops. Currently, Alabama law restricts beer sold in the state to 16-ounce containers or smaller. Alabama is the ONLY state in the US with this restriction on the books. SB294 changes that restriction to 25.4 ounces which would allow the sale of 22-ounce and 750-ml bottles, but NOT the more “controversial” 40-ounce bottles.
13 of the 41 “wet” counties in Alabama have actually changed their local laws to allow the sale of larger beer containers. However, the counties containing Alabama’s four largest cities and the majority of its citizens (Birmingham, Huntsville, Montgomery and Mobile) have not passed these laws. Passing SB294 would change the laws at a state-wide level which would allow the citizens in every wet county in Alabama to purchase large-format beer bottles and cans. Read the rest of this entry »
Los Angeles is a city of diversity, and this reflects a lot in what we eat here, but even more so in what we drink. LA is also a city of dreamers, of folks that punch in every day at gigs to pay the bills, but spend every other waking minute pursuing their passions, their reasons for waking up in the morning and putting on a tie and combing their hair. Some folks are fortunate enough to be able to have multiple passions in their life, and an even smaller slice of those folks who consider beer-making or teaching as those passions. Then, we have Henry Nguyen, who, while pursuing his goal of becoming a university professor, discovered that he really digs beer too, and decided, “Hey, why not do both for a living?” Read the rest of this entry »
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