a beer sort of blog

I Will Not Wax Poetic About Near Beer

2011-09-06T07:43:00.000-07:00

In 2.5 months, I will get to drink an entire real actual beer, all by myself. I am ecstatic for that day. In the meantime, I steal a sip here or there but it is really more of a tease than a taste. Like being stranded in the desert, and tasting a raindrop on my tongue before the blazing hot sun beats down on my head again, these moments are sweet but fleeting. Pregnancy has become my own personal beer desert.

If you are a beer sort of girl, and you are looking for a fake beer to get you through 9 of the longest months ever to grace the planet, and you search the Google and Beer Advocate for non-alcoholic beer options, you will find reviews of NA beer that borderline wax poetic on their near beer qualities. You will find recommendations for Clausthaler, Kaliber, O'Douls, O'Douls Amber, and more. These reviews seem to all be written by men who have either never drank real beer, or were kept from beer by health conditions and sometimes the law, and they are all total bullshit. After trying Kaliber, I gave up searching for better options. Kaliber tastes reminiscent of beer. Malty, carbonated, almost the right color. But it is in no way real beer. Do not believe a word of anyone that says it is. It is NOT. Enjoy it for what it is, or just skip it and order a soda, which is what I have been doing for now.

I am glad that November/December is just the right time of year for porters and stouts and everything dark and delicious. I can't wait.

Blogger on hiatus

2010-04-13T07:57:00.000-07:00

I have some pressing matters to attend to, and while I promise I still love beer, I don't have time to dedicate to blogging about it. There are many others who do it, and do it well. See blogroll for references.

Also, to PR peeps, I am not trying to be rude, but it's really not likely that I will post your random press release, loosely related to beer. Thanks.

Cheers!

Great Guinness Blaze

2009-12-22T11:24:00.000-08:00

Do not fret, friends. The fire at the Dublin brewery didn't harm any beer, according the the AP. Apparently it didn't even halt the tourist activties on the same campus, while the fire blazed on, per Business Week. Two Dublin firefighters are in the hospital, but no one was else was harmed. While this is another hit for Diageo, who was planning to make some dramatic shakeups before the bad economy hit, it will not cause any Guinness shortages or anything. No need to panic. But send your positive thoughts over to Ireland - they had a heck of a day.

Ahem! Announcement time

2009-12-18T09:03:00.000-08:00

If you've been an unfortunate long-time reader of this blog, and I mean LONG TIME, going back to what, 2004? Then you know that I adore Magic Hat #9. I get to have one every once a year or so. Seriously. I hate all fruity beers EXCEPT Magic Hat #9.

Magic Hat #9 is light, English Pale Ale with fruity flavoring, of the peach/apricot variety. It's a total chick beer, but NOT a sickly-sweet chick beer. It finishes dry and crisp, which I really like.

AND IT IS NOW ON TAP IN KANSAS CITY. (via FatCity)
You may or may not find me at any of the bars listed below in the near future:

Record Bar, Westport Flea Market, Harry's Country Club Bar, Charlie Hooper's, Grinders, Swagger, Blue Grotto, The Well and Johnny's Tavern in the Power and Light District

Oh hey! I wonder if this means I could get a keg of it from one of our bar business friends for the office? Hmmmmmmmm....

What Beer Should I Drink?

2009-12-16T07:43:00.000-08:00

Just in time for those wonderful Holiday parties, Eating The Road to the rescue. They figured we may need this one a bit more than the others seeing that we may be a little…ahh, under the influence. Due to that, please use this chart with caution and responsibility.

I tried to post it here, but it is simply to huge to post nicely on my poor little blogger template.

Scientific Studies = DUH

2009-12-10T22:14:00.001-08:00

I know that every beer drinking male in the US caught this side item in the news recently. A German study (go figure) determined that a chemical in hops actually lowers testorone in men, which in turn may reduce their risk for prostate cancer. A snippet of that can be found here, on Guyism.

A competing study on women turns in a less rosy result - moderate female drinkers, that have recovered from breast cancer, are INCREASING their chances of getting breast cancer again. Here's the story from CNN. Of course, the women's study also noted that the 34% of moderate drinker survivors that had a return of cancer were also overweight or obese.

I didn't note those kind of stats in the male study, but rather than rant about any of that, let's add some common sense, shall we? If you're obese, lazy and drink all of the time, you're probably not going to live all that long. Male or female. Just my thought. And now, I am going to the gym. Cheers!

20 Things

2009-12-01T14:47:00.000-08:00

20 Things Worth Knowing About Beer
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/beer

from @oatmeal
http://twitter.com/oatmeal

How cute are they?

2009-11-09T16:17:00.000-08:00

As the jobless rate climbed toward 10 percent this summer, Erica Shea and Stephen Valand, quit their advertising jobs, took $10,000 in personal savings and started selling their 1-gallon home brew beer kits from a stand at the Brooklyn Flea Market, testing the theory that beer is recession proof...

Personal commentary: they worked in advertising, live in Brooklyn, and in a crappy economy the QUIT their jobs to do THIS?!

...Valand said in September online sales through their website - www. brooklynbrewshop.com - surpassed in-person sales at the market for the first time and the couple would like to drive more traffic there, but know that entails a major revamp of the site. In addition Shea said they are also looking to get the kits into retail stores in time for the Christmas rush. That will likely entail hiring more people to do the packaging to free up their time to devote to marketing the product better.

"Our challenges as we continue to grow the business are time and space. There's only so many hours in a day that you can be doing things and there are so many ideas that come up that we really want to pursue, but ultimately there are two of us and we get tired."

via Reuters.com

Can I order a kit from KC to send to someone in Brooklyn? Heh. Guess what my brother & sister in law are getting for this holiday? They'll be thrilled, I am sure. Especially when they find out that brewing inside makes the kitchen smell like dog food.

Excuse me, your beer is showing

2009-11-04T12:56:00.000-08:00

An article in AdAge this week claims, "What Your Taste in Beer Says About You:
How Choice of Brew Relates to Personality, Politics and Purchases."

Being a marketing/advertising/stats nerd as well as a beer nerd means that I read it with a grain of salt and still think they nailed it. This is what marketers are looking at when they craft their messages. Who do they think you are? What are they saying to you? How does that make YOU feel? ;)

My favorite part of the article, of course, is this, because it is the most flattering to me. And because I DO love the Dos Equis campaign:

People who drink a broad portfolio of beers are different than one-brand drinkers as well. Those "indifferent" beer drinkers are more open-minded and emotional people who enjoy a variety of life experiences. Mr. Durant pointed out that they might be the types of people who would identify with a marketing campaign like that of Dos Equis: "I don't always drink beer, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis."

And that is the point of the research, of course -- it's not just all fun and drinking games, but it comes with marketing lessons, Mr. Durant said. For instance, there are a lot of Bud Light drinkers in general, but there is a big difference between the ones who also drink only other domestic beers such as Coors Light and Miller Light, and ones who also prefer craft and import beers.

Extra rice, please

2009-11-04T11:45:00.000-08:00

Last night my husband & I finally went for birthday sushi, only 2 days after my birthday. While we were debating what to eat, my husband considered ordering a stout. I wrinkled my nose at him. A stout? With sushi? Ew. There is a time and a place and a combo for everything. I am sure someone will comment about an amazing stout & fish/rice pairing they like. I just can't do it.

Every time I go for sushi, I drink one of three beers: Kirin, Sapporo or Bud Light. Because they are similar to my undistinguished palate. Not exactly the same, just not dramatically different. They are all inoffensive, clean, filtered and best cold. Perfect for washing down some raw fish and rice without mudding up flavors.

Both Kirin and Sapporo are Japanese Rice Lagers, brewed with *ahem* rice. Beer Advocate says a JRL should be pale yellow in color, soft hop nose, and expect a rounded, firm malty character, moderate bitterness, and a trademark dry finish.

Bud Light is a Light Lager style, which means that a high amount of cereal adjuncts like rice or corn are used to help lighten the beer as much as possible. Bud uses more rice, Miller uses more corn. Very low in malt flavor with a light and dry body. The hop character is low and should only balance with no signs of flavor or aroma.

I like non-intrusive beers with my rice & fish. I don't wander over to the wine side often, and sake is a bit much for most of my nights. (Side note, sake always = Jagermeister to me, with the potential to get a little too wild & crazy. I think the only reason I believe this is because they both can be ordered in "bomb" forms.) What do you normally order to drink when eating sushi?

Boulevard Brew News

2009-10-09T09:11:00.000-07:00

I am not late on this due to laziness, for once. I attended the Boulevard Brewmaster Luncheon today, featuring food and beer pairings from KC Hop's restaurant Barley's Brewhaus. It was amazing. As the post on BeerAdvocate promised, it was a power lunch for my taste buds. The lunch also included a quick tour of the brewery, which is truly a work of art. I have not been over there since the bottling line was installed where the old basketball court had been. Hours after lunch, I am still full from this outing. And after lunch I went back to work instead of taking a nice long nap, which is what I desperately wanted to do! But seriously, take a look at this menu, and tell me you wouldn't need a nap afterwards?

Tank 7 is a lovely, citrusy beer to pair with shrimp (prawns, if you want to be particular) and we all know how much I love Bob's with anything. As the chef recommended, I took a sip after every bit of pork and butternut squash gnocchi. OMG. The Seeyoulater pairing with dessert was inspired. One of the many lessons from lunch is that I need to get myself back to Barley's sometime soon. I haven't been in years, and I couldn't even tell you the last thing I ate there. But if this lunch was anything like what I could expect, it's back on my radar. Huge, massive thanks to Jeremy for the invite.

The brewmaster @ Boulevard, Steven Pauwels, is a great personality for these kind of events. If you see these pop up again, I highly recommend taking a friend, and then taking the rest of the afternoon OFF!!

So in other, related news, Boulevard sent out a press release today about a joint effort between the brewmasters of Boulvard and Orval teaming up for one limited release beer in KC. The press release was covered in it's entirety over at the KC Beer Blog. Not everyone is pumped about an Imperial Pilsner, but I think it'll be a great interesting brew. Not something I would drink all the time, no, but still interesting for nerds and award opportunities, right? Boulevard has been pumping out tons of different limited releases this year, and I couldn't keep up with all of them on the old blog. They've been quite busy and innovative over there, and I am in love with almost all of the Smokestack series, and of course the Single Wide IPA.

So just in case you want to know what on earth an Imperial Pilsner is, I looked it up. My general understanding of anything called "Imperial" is that it is stronger than the regular version, in both flavor and alcoholic content. But I figured a more academic explanation would be more helpful to everyone. Now we just have to wait until January for the release of the Boulevard/Orval take!

Beer Advocate says an Imperial Pilsner is: Similar to a Pilsner in appearance, but expect a more pronounced malty backbone and an intense bitterness. Malt flavors tend to be quite sweet in many examples. Alcohol can be quite aggressive and lend some spicy notes to the flavor.

Great Guinness - Win!

2009-09-24T14:05:00.000-07:00

Raise your glass for a Guinness Toast! The famous Guinness story began in 1752 when Arthur inherited 100 pounds from his godfather. It wasn't until three years later that 34-year-old Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000-year lease for his new Dublin brewery 250 years ago on September 24, 1759, and began brewing stout, a very dark beer the world knows and loves today.

Today is Arthur's Day, and a global toast is organized to take place at 17:59 Dublin local time around the world. That is about 7 hours from now, or midnight for us Midwesterners. I won't be up that late tonight, I am afraid, but the kind folks at Guinness have sent me a lovely little care package to celebrate the day. It includes a bar towel, glass, baseball cap and an autographed glossy photo of Guinness Master Brewer Fergal Murray. I don't have enough readers to try a radio station style contest (250th commenter wins!) but I probably can still up enough of you for 25th commenter, right?

Comment away friends. 25th commenter wins the package. I'll contact you for shipping info.

Stay Classy

2009-09-14T15:54:00.001-07:00

Some think this "viral" campaign by Bud Light for the Bud Light Lime cans is clever or funny. It's not. Not clever. Not funny. Not entertaining. I like dude-rtising. I think the majority of ads targeted to men are funny. Bud Light ads were always funny on the verge of stupid, but this is just flat out retarded. If you had dropped in a line about getting it in the can ONCE, that could have been funny. Repeated over and over, it's not. I think Jonathan over at the Pitch got it right - it 100% reminds me of the movie Idiocracy.

"The years passed, mankind became stupider at a frightening rate. Some had high hopes the genetic engineering would correct this trend in evolution, but sadly the greatest minds and resources were focused on conquering hair loss and prolonging erections. "

Dreams Smashed

2009-09-14T15:50:00.000-07:00

The men at my house this morning from 1-800-Got-Junk were suprisingly strong for their appearances. They carted away my broken retro deep freeze, after 2 Dads, 2 friends and my husband vetoed the idea of hauling the thing up from the basement, lifting it onto a truck, and driving it to the new house, only to have to fix it anyway. The Junk guys had it out of my basement in5 seconds flat, and I considered trying to bribe them to take it to our new place. But I gave up, and let it go. No retro kegerator at our house, then.

Retro Recycling

2009-09-07T16:28:00.000-07:00

This old deep freeze has lived in my basement for a very very long time. It came with the house. It does not work. Now that we're emptying the house to move, I find that I've become attached. How do I turn this 1964 Frigidaire freezer into a most awesome retro kegerator? Anyone know a local who's handy with refrigeration?

Tony Toni Tone know all about it

2009-08-31T09:58:00.000-07:00

It's our anniversary,
Made for you and me and
I've only made plans
To hold your little hand
It's our anniversary (anniversary)

Happy Four Year Blog-a-versary to us, little blog & me. The official 4th anniversary suggestions are fruit or flowers. The only fruit beers we can stomach here at a beer sort of blog are Magic Hat #9, and Dogfish Head's Punkin Ale. I'm ordering some of each.

How y'all doin?

2009-08-24T20:15:00.000-07:00

Sooooo, I just back from Bristol. Tennessee. We rented RVs. It takes about 12-13 hours to drive there from KC. We worked our tails off, saw some NASCAR, debated loving/hating Kyle Busch, made friends in the campground and tried moonshine called "Catdaddy." I picked up a wicked southern drawl that it will take a week of solid Henry Higgins style voice coaching to drop. I now address singular individuals as y'all. No word actually ends in a "g." I can understand Boomhauer from King of the Hill. We drank Busch Light, Miller Lite and Bud Light. Yep. And you know what? I enjoyed the heck out of it. Random post over.

Nada Surf in my head

2009-08-06T19:51:00.000-07:00

I got an email a little over a week ago titled, "Wanna be in Ink?" I said, "Well, yeah, why not?" So I had an interview and photo shoot today. It turns out that they are doing a spotlight on local bloggers, and I am the most sporadic blogger on the list. I was a little sheepish.

So in order to make myself feel a little better, I pulled up some stats on this mess:

Blog Age: 4 years old
Published Posts: 303
Kansas City Related Posts: 86
Beer Reviews: 72
Beer-Related Posts: 161
Non-Beer Related Posts: 70
(So I stay on topic about 77% of the time. That's probably higher than in real life, right?)

Monthly traffic averages a little over 2,000 unique visitors, with about 88% of them being NEW visitors. Thank you, Google Search. You are a strange friend.

With all those newbies visiting, one wonders how they get here.
50% find me by name, blog name, or type it in direct (which makes me think they aren't all NEW visitors)
25% found my WW points for beer post (also the most emailed post, by far)
10% come from feed engines, like the beerinator or alltop.

The remaining 20% are a hodgepodge of sources. Some click from one of the other bloggers who are kind enough to link here, some are searching for one of the hundred actual beer brands/labels included in this blog, some find pictures I have posted here via image searches, or are lead astray by my BeerAdvocate profile. Very rarely do I get the random searches for "beer girls," but when I do, they don't stay long.

So, new visitors, welcome to the world of a beer sort of girl. It's a bit lazy, a little random, and a lot about beer. Drinking it, enjoying it, contemplating it, marketing it, and sometimes even attempting to brew it. Here are a few posts I would recommend, ever so humbly, if you don't want to wade thru the tags on the left:

ATTN BEER BREWERS! Great comment feedback from brewers on how to start homebrewing.
Irish brew breakdown Recommendations for celebrating St. Pat's day without green beer.
Dark Beer 101 Don't be afraid of the dark side, I'll show you the way.

A beer sort of day

2009-07-12T18:12:00.000-07:00

KC Hop Head and OregonAmy were nice enough to let me host July's Brew Day, and despite some ungodly humidity, I think a good time was had by all. I know I learned a lot, just by watching them do their brews. I chickened out, because I still had yet to figure out how to properly carbonate my Questionable Cream Ale in the keg, and am not loving the results I get from extract brewing. KC Hop Head managed to get my beer all set, so it was tested, and deemed drinkable if not delicious. :) The brews brought by Amy and her husband quite awesome, and I am freshly motivated to move on from "kit" beer. It doesn't look quite as scary and difficult, when everyone else can knock it out while hanging out on my back deck. So thanks for the fantastic company and examples to follow. I'm personally interested in the oatmeal raisin stout that was smelling so nice while boiling! Friends showed up all day and evening, and I thank you all.

Everyone brought summertime brews to share, from home brew to special finds. I think my top favorites were the Belgian Cherry that Average Jane brought, the Founder's Scottish Ale brought by Tim, and the IPA brewed by Amy & her husband. Good stuff!

My dog is so exhausted from yesterday that he has only woken up twice so far - both times to eat. Ha!

Edited to add that I inherited both a tan Coleman cooler with one unmarked bottle of homebrew, and a hula hoop after everyone left on Saturday. If you'd like to claim either, let me know!

Brew Day! Deck Party! Super Happy Fun Time!

2009-07-07T08:39:00.000-07:00

Everyone is cordially invited to a Brew Day at a beer sort of house! Saturday, July 11th, starting around noon. We're going with a Summer Beer Trade/Brewing/Drinking theme. Think lagers, pilsners, fruit brews, kolsch, etc. We'll fire up the Weber, have a few yard games, and lots of awesome people there, some even brewing up their own concoctions. The forecast says 92 degrees, but it is always cooler in the shade of Prairie Village, so plan to stop by! Bring your favorite brew to share, and possibly a camp chair. :) Email, twitter, IM, etc for directions.

Oh yeah, edited to add that our house is a couple of weeks from going on the market. If you or anyone you know really wants to move into a remodeled ranch on an awesome street in Prairie Village with great neighbors, come check out the house before it goes on the market.

Ketchup

2009-06-22T13:58:00.000-07:00

Second batch of homebrew is almost ready for second fermentation, so fingers crossed. Bubbling is mostly stopped, gravity truth to be unveiled tonight. The Cream Ale involved way less STUFF, so maybe it's more idiot-proof? We shall see.

Works busy, economy is crap, and I think I am putting my house on the market to buy another one down the street. Gotta keep it interesting, you know.

I am going to Baltimore & DC for the 4th, any recommendations on where to get a decent beer?

Also, Jessica from Obsidian Public Relations thought I might find this interesting enough to post on my blog, so here you all go:

Flying Saucer will present a beer tasting featuring Schlafly Beer on Monday, July 6 at 7 p.m. The event will be hosted by Stephen Hale, head brewer at St. Louis-based Schlafly. Six of Schlafly’s bottle-conditioned and barrel-aged beers will be paired with selected meats, artisan cheeses and dessert. Featured beers include the Tripel, Grand Cru, Bière de Garde, Quadruple, Oak-Aged Barleywine and Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout. Tickets for the event can be purchased at Flying Saucer and are $30 for U.F.O. Club members and $35 for non-members.

Fail Whale Pale Ale

2009-06-13T21:02:00.000-07:00

The name ended up being more prophetic than I would have liked. It's really bad. Like, I don't even want to try anymore. I tried, I did. It smells awesome, but tastes like behonkey. The super low gravity that never rose told me this would be the result a week or so ago, but I really wanted it to succeed. Hope and want are not enough. Perseverance might be. You can get pretty far in a lot of things just by trying really hard and not giving up. I'm pretty stubborn, I don't like to fail, and I do lots of things I was not born to do, so there will be many more attempts.

Boil of a new brew starts tomorrow. In the meantime, I have a lot of cleaning to do. Sigh.

COMPLETELY related note:
I missed out on Amy's brew day today. I really could have used it. Long story, poor me, boo hoo, has everything to do with not so happy neighbors, a landscaping project, and then having to fill in for an employee on a Saturday afternoon/evening.

QUESTION:
That being said, KC brewers, if I can provide an actual venue, a free, private space, a place to gather, consume, discuss and teach/mentor the slower of us (me), would you be interested in an another meet up? The door is wide open. We could even invite home brew stores to come bring us goodies. I work in marketing, people, I will find us free stuff if I need to stoop to that level. Brew club peeps, experts & proven winning brewers (Jeff, I am looking at you) and fans (Bullevard) would you consider it?

Buy a movie ticket, get a free gift

2009-06-03T16:00:00.000-07:00

If you're thinking about going to the movies on Friday, why not head out to AMC's Fork & Screen Studio 30 in Olathe? Boulevard Brewery is having release party of their seasonal beer, Zon, from 5 – 8PM. (Yes, I know Zon has been out in stores for a bit already, but they decided to throw the party now.) There will be free beer sampling with Boulevard staff on-site to talk about their beers and the brewery, free food sampling that goes well with the flavors, and movie swag from the movie “The Hangover” that comes out on Friday – t-shirts, shot glasses, etc. Get your free gift with movie ticket purchase this week.

I've always had a thing with gravity

2009-05-28T20:31:00.000-07:00

Gravity testing on the brew starts now. Then on to moving it from one fermenter to another. Aren't you glad I updated you all on that? I am sure.

I've been kind of busy. Not in a bloggy way. Perhaps a little burnt out at the end of the day, too much time, too little do. Strike that, reverse it, you know. But it is summertime, GORGEOUS, and I have a little positive thing here: I paid a stranger to power wash, strip and restain my deck because I want to enjoy it, and I couldn't face doing it again. Grab a sixer of something interesting & meet me in the backyard, anytime.

Edited to note - This started out around a 1.020, I think. I should have done a better job of reading that specifically. Here's where we are now. Going to 2nd it because it really needs some clarification if my husband is going to drink it at all. :)

Double double toil and trouble

2009-05-19T17:03:00.000-07:00

We have bubbles. One at least every 3 seconds. So I have that going for me. Which is nice.

Got wort?

2009-05-18T19:07:00.000-07:00

I FINALLY have the wort in the carboy, and after messing up the seal, potentially sprinkling the dry yeast wrong, and almost forgetting to take a hydrometer reading, I THINK we may be in business. I have no idea. This batch is my warm up batch. No harm if it sucks, right?

Still haven't started

2009-05-13T08:25:00.000-07:00

I went out of town to visit my mom in New England for Mother's Day, work's been all consuming, and I haven't had at least 4 hours at home to myself in the past 2 weeks, but I think I may be able to start my brewing experiment tonight or tomorrow night. We shall see.

In the meantime, please read Bull E. Vard's announcement that THERE IS MORE SAISON BRETT AVAILABLE! Oh yeah. Happy.

And the waiting begins

2009-04-30T21:30:00.000-07:00

So I took too much time to get distracted by shiny objects, as is my thing. Trey is WAY ahead of me. But I finally got off my duff, went to Northern Brewer, and ordered myself a kit for pale ale, and the starter kit with TWO plastic carboys. Yes, TWO. I have a soda keg, and I bet I can grab 2 cases worth of bottles in a short time period, so I will be brewing two test batches after receipt of said purchases. Kegerator supplied by my employer (ahem). Heaven help both my coworkers and my husband. Here we GO.

ATTN BEER BREWERS

2009-04-24T08:37:00.000-07:00

I need some advice. I really want to start brewing. I have been goofing around with *thinking* about it for about a year. A friend of mine said he would do it with me, but my foot dragging pushed his impatience, and he started without me last night. He's doing a Cream Ale, from some sort of starter kit, and brewing straight to a keg. Booo. But it seems to have been the competitive spark I needed to get off my duff and start.

I bought this book, and I ended up getting a little more freaked out after reading, since it suddenly felt a lot more like chemistry class than home ec. I can bake, I should be able to brew, but now I am over thinking it. I am definitely starting from a kit from a local homebrew store, and I am STILL compiling a list of equipment I need. I'm recruiting the husband into the hobby, so I won't be alone.

I would love feedback from all you awesome people out there, you award winners, you serious brewers that I admire so much. Here are my starter questions:

What are the must have, no messing around, don't bother if you don't own this, equipment that you would recommend?
For a first timer, what style of brew would YOU recommend starting?
Should I attempt bottling, or is keg brewing easier? I have access to kegs and a kegerator, so I feasibly could do it, but am afraid of ruining so much beer all at once.
What are the worst mistakes newbies make, and how can I avoid them?

Thanks guys, I really do appreciate it!

Guinness 250

2009-04-24T08:33:00.000-07:00

Available starting today!
250 years ago, brewing excellence and innovation were set in motion when Arthur Guinness signed the 9,000 year lease on the famous St. James's Gate brewery in Dublin. To mark this remarkable anniversary, GUINNESS 250 Anniversary Stout is being made available in the United States on a limited edition basis (approximately six months). This marks the first new stout offering in the U.S. from Guinness since 1966 -- more than 40 years ago -- when Guinness draught was first introduced to Americans.

The commemorative stout is carbonated, not nitrogenated like the traditional GUINNESS Draught. As a result, it has a near-white frothy stout beer head of larger bubble size than that of GUINNESS Draught, and is poured on draught in a one-part pour or gently from a bottle (as opposed to the two-part pour unique to GUINNESS draught). This product has a crisp effervescent taste with a balanced malty, roasted, hop flavor that is enhanced when released with a lively, refreshing and smooth carbonated mouthfeel. A triple hop addition regime provides a hint of bitterness.

O'Dowd's in Zona Rosa in one of two bars in KC that will have this on tap. They will be tapping it this evening. Where else can you find it?

Office Beer Update 2

2009-04-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

I don't believe the Boulevard Single Wide IPA is very popular at the Global Headquarters of Department Zero. The dry bitterness that I like so much may be to blame, as the less intense Mighty Arrow Pale Ale from New Belgium was already gone by now. Although to be fair, we had several friends help us polish that off during a First Friday's get together. We're at 2 weeks now, with just a 1/6 barrel keg. So in case anyone was worried, we're all back to our mostly non-alcoholic ways.

Update 4/24
We blew the keg last night. Whew.

KC Craft Beer Week Events

2009-04-14T10:44:00.000-07:00

I have been looking for events in the KC area for Craft Beer Week, coming up May 11-17. So far all I have found are the Boulevard events, posted to their FB page. Even BeerAdvocate has let me down. Anyone else have an idea on what else might be going on?

Monday, May 11
Boulevard Smokestack Sampling
O'Dowd's Little Dublin (Plaza location)
http://www.odowdslittledublin.com/

Tuesday, May 12
Boulevard Beer Dinner
Grinder's (Crossroads)
7 pm $30 per person
Call 816-472-5454 for reservations.

Rainy Days & Mondays Always Get Me Down

2009-04-13T16:36:00.000-07:00

I still really want to go on a beer vacation. I think that would be sweet. Colorado, I haven't scheduled it yet, but I will come see you soon.

I just realized that I don't have a tag created for "craft beer." How can this be? I guess I get to start one, and play a re-tagging old posts game tonight.

Today the Brewer's Association released top 50 lists, in terms of sales volume in 2008.

Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies by Beer Sales Volume
(Based on 2008 sales)

Rank	Brewing Company	City	State
1	Boston Beer Co.	Boston	MA
2	Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.	Chico	CA
3	New Belgium Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
4	Spoetzl Brewery	Shiner	TX
5	Pyramid Breweries Inc.	Seattle	WA
6	Deschutes Brewery	Bend	OR
7	Matt Brewing Co.	Utica	NY
8	Boulevard Brewing Co.	Kansas City	MO
9	Full Sail Brewing Co.	Hood River	OR
10	Magic Hat Brewing Co.	Burlington	VT
11	Alaskan Brewing Co.	Juneau	AK
12	Harpoon Brewery	Boston	MA
13	Bell's Brewery, Inc.	Galesburg	MI
14	Kona Brewing Co.	Kailua-Kona	HI
15	Anchor Brewing Co.	San Francisco	CA
16	Shipyard Brewing Co.	Portland	ME
17	Summit Brewing Co.	Saint Paul	MN
18	Stone Brewing Co.	Escondido	CA
19	Abita Brewing Co.	Abita Springs	LA
20	The Brooklyn Brewery	Brooklyn	NY
21	New Glarus Brewing Co.	New Glarus	WI
22	Dogfish Head Craft Brewery	Milton	DE
23	Long Trail Brewing Co.	Bridgewater Corners	VT
24	Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.	San Jose	CA
25	Rogue Ales/Oregon Brewing Co.	Newport	OR
26	Great Lakes Brewing Co.	Cleveland	OH
27	The Lagunitas Brewing Co.	Petaluma	CA
28	Firestone Walker Brewing Co.	Paso Robles	CA
29	SweetWater Brewing Co.	Atlanta	GA
30	Flying Dog Brewing Co.	Frederick	MD
31	BJ's Restaurant & Brewery	Huntington Beach	CA
32	Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants	Louisville	CO
33	BridgePort Brewing Co.	Portland	OR
34	Odell Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
35	Victory Brewing Co.	Downingtown	PA
36	Mac and Jack's Brewery	Redmond	WA
37	Big Sky Brewing Co.	Missoula	MT
38	Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants	Chattanooga	TN
39	Karl Strauss Brewing Co.	San Diego	CA
40	Breckenridge Brewery	Denver	CO
41	Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe	Eureka	CA
42	Otter Creek Brewing Co.	Middlebury	VT
43	Utah Brewers Cooperative	Salt Lake City	UT
44	North Coast Brewing Co.	Fort Bragg	CA
45	Blue Point Brewing Co.	Patchogue	NY
46	Boulder Beer Co.	Boulder	CO
47	Pete's Brewing Co.	San Antonio	TX
48	McMenamins Breweries	Portland	OR
49	Anderson Valley Brewing Co.	Boonville	CA
50	The Saint Louis Brewery, Inc.	St Louis	MO

Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies by Beer Sales Volume
(Based on 2008 sales)

Rank	Brewing Company	City	State
1	Anheuser-Busch InBev	St. Louis	MO
2	MillerCoors Brewing Co.	Chicago	IL
3	Pabst Brewing Co.	Woodridge	IL
4	Boston Beer Co.	Boston	MA
5	D. G. Yuengling and Son Inc.	Pottsville	PA
6	Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.	Chico	CA
7	Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc.	Woodinville	WA
8	New Belgium Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
9	High Falls Brewing Co.	Rochester	NY
10	Spoetzl Brewery	Shiner	TX
11	Pyramid Breweries Inc.	Seattle	WA
12	Deschutes Brewery	Bend	OR
13	Iron City Brewing Co.	Pittsburgh	PA
14	Minhas Craft Brewery	Monroe	WI
15	Matt Brewing Co.	Utica	NY
16	Boulevard Brewing Co.	Kansas City	MO
17	Full Sail Brewing Co.	Hood River	OR
18	Magic Hat Brewing Co.	Burlington	VT
19	Alaskan Brewing Co.	Juneau	AK
20	Harpoon Brewery	Boston	MA
21	Bell's Brewery, Inc.	Galesburg	MI
22	Goose Island Beer Co.	Chicago	IL
23	Kona Brewery LLC	Kailua-Kona	HI
24	Anchor Brewing Co.	San Francisco	CA
25	August Schell Brewing Co.	New Ulm	MN
26	Shipyard Brewing	Portland	ME
27	Summit Brewing Co.	Saint Paul	MN
28	Stone Brewing Co.	Escondido	CA
29	Mendocino Brewing Co.	Ukiah	CA
30	Abita Brewing Co., L.L.C.	Abita Springs	LA
31	The Brooklyn Brewery	Brooklyn	NY
32	New Glarus Brewing Co.	New Glarus	WI
33	Dogfish Head Craft Brewery	Milton	DE
34	Long Trail Brewing Co.	Bridgewater Corners	VT
35	Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.	San Jose	CA
36	Rogue Ales/Oregon Brewing Co.	Newport	OR
37	Great Lakes Brewing Co.	Cleveland	OH
38	The Lagunitas Brewing Co.	Petaluma	CA
39	Firestone Walker Brewing Co.	Paso Robles	CA
40	SweetWater Brewing Co.	Atlanta	GA
41	Flying Dog Brewing Co.	Frederick	MD
42	BJ's Restaurant & Brewery	Huntington Beach	CA
43	Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants	Louisville	CO
44	BridgePort Brewing Co.	Portland	OR
45	Odell Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
46	Victory Brewing Co.	Downingtown	PA
47	Straub Brewery	Saint Marys	PA
48	Cold Spring Brewing Co.	Cold Spring	MN
49	Mac and Jack's Brewery	Redmond	WA
50	Big Sky Brewing Co.	Missoula	MT

Now I HAVE to try brewing....

2009-04-06T13:43:00.001-07:00

because this is officially the name of my first batch.

Office Beer Update

2009-04-05T18:44:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we went on our quest to locate a baby keg of good beer for the office. One week later, during a First Friday impromptu get together, we killed that keg. One week. A 1/6 barrel is about 5 gallons, so that's an average of a gallon a day. Considering there are now 9 of us in our office everyday, that's not really surprising. Just shows you the difference between having good beer around, versus a mega keg of Miller Light! This week brings a new beer quest, and the beginnings of a recommended office beer list. Updates to come on a more regular basis.

1.) New Belgium's Mighty Arrow Pale Ale
2.) Sam Adams White Ale**
3.) Boulevard's Single Wide IPA**

**Yes, we got TWO mini-kegs at the same time. Now this should last us at least 2 weeks. We shall see how the Belgian wheat and hoppy IPA score with the crowd!

Schlitz blows thru town

2009-04-01T10:14:00.000-07:00

Bull over at the KCBeerBlog actually caught the Schlitz Gusto teams at Harry's, and Fox News caught up with them at Paddy O'Quigley's. It hit the news that Schlitz was making a comeback last year. Today they are wrapping up their KC tour, and moving on to STL for tomorrow. Bull, you gotta share some pics of the Gusto Girls. They apparently weren't TV friendly?

Office Beer

2009-03-28T13:29:00.000-07:00

As previously discussed, our office keg has not been replenished since July. JULY! The last thing in there was a big keg of Miller Lite, leftover from a summer party, and no one wanted to drink it. So it sat, and sat, and sat. Ew. We dumped it all out months ago, and left the keg laying around our office for too long. So on Friday Aaron & I went beer shopping for the office, looking for something that fit the following requirements:

is in fact, an actual beer (April wanted cider)
is not too dark (don't want to scare 'em)
is not a mass produced lager (NO BUD OR MILLER, DAMMIT)
is light & seasonal for spring (gotta switch it up now & then)
in no way contains fruit of any kind (I hate fruit beer)

So we haul the keg back to Gomer's, and it had been so long they no longer had our paperwork! No worries, they found us in the system, and we traded that big empty keg in for a 1/6 barrel keg of New Belgium's Mighty Arrow Pale Ale. That's about 5 gallons of good beer, which means we shouldn't have a problem getting thru it in a timely manner. I also took pity on April & grabbed her a sixer of Woodchuck's Granny Apple Cider. And after a full hour of 4 dudes messing around with O rings, we got the lines cleaned and the keg hooked up, and proceeded to have a wonderful Friday afternoon brainstorm.

A few notes about the Mighty Arrow Pale Ale. It's good! Almost sweet, for a pale, but that's b/c it's an APA, not an IPA, which is what I've been drinking lately. It's coppery, like April's cider, and via newbie pouring efforts, we got several inches of foamy head on each pint. I credit Aaron with the pick, since it was well received by everyone in our office, the Busch Light drinkers included. *shudder*

Craft Beer Week is coming

2009-03-19T13:17:00.000-07:00

From BeverageWorld
BOULDER, CO: America's small and independent craft brewers are making special plans for the annual American Craft Beer Week (May 11-17), a national celebration highlighting the culture and contributions of craft beer.

These brewers want the week to inspire beer enthusiasts to declare their independence by supporting breweries that produce fewer than 2 million barrels of beer a year and are independently owned.

In the works are special brewery tours, beer and food pairing events, special release craft beers and festivals all across the U.S.

A Declaration of Beer Independence is available on the program web site and the American Craft Beer Week fan page on Facebook, which participating breweries are encouraging beer enthusiasts to sign.

Local breweries and restaurants will also post a copy of the Declaration of Beer Independence so that patrons can show their support.

"The U.S. has become known as the best beer nation in the world. This reputation is in thanks to the innovation and passion of America's craft brewers who have taken beer styles to the next level. During American Craft Beer Week our goal is to get 10,000 Facebook users to become supporters of the American Craft Beer Week fan page, and thus declare their beer independence," stated Julia Herz, a spokesperson for the Brewers Association.

Small and independent craft brewers provide nearly 100,000 jobs, and in 2008 the total taxable barrels of beer produced by craft brewers was 8,596,971. Additionally, many craft brewers go to incredible lengths and great costs to lessen their impact on their surrounding environment and community. Representing 4.0 percent by volume and 6.3 percent in dollars of the overall beer market, consumer interest in the craft sector continues to grow, but not without challenges. According to the Brewers Association, the cost of operating a small brewery has increased over 39% November 2007 to November 2008.

Today's craft brewers face many challenges including the following:

* Access to ingredients and raw materials
* Increased pricing for materials and supplies
* Access to market (competition for shelf space at the retail level)

In 2006, the inaugural American Craft Beer Week was recognized by the U.S. Congress with House Resolution 753. Since then, the week has continued to attract interest and support from beer enthusiasts and media with more than 180 breweries formally participating in 2008.

Sin City Brewing Co.

2009-03-18T08:01:00.000-07:00

Just sharing an article I dug from the Las Vegas Journal Review. I had a Sin City Amber, I think, last time I was in Vegas, and I wondered where it all came from.

Microbrewer Creates Beers with Distinctly Las Vegas Flavor

A hobby that began in college turned into a 20-year career for Richard Johnson.

And all he was trying to do was get free beer.

Now, Johnson hopes his beverages will become synonymous with a trip to Las Vegas.

Johnson, 46, created the Sin City Brewing Co. in 2003, inventing his own special beer brands and selling them on tap at Las Vegas bars and taverns.

Three years later, he opened a small bar inside what is now the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood Resort where he sells his four custom brands of beer by the pint and offers a line of Sin City Brewing Co. logo apparel and other merchandise.

The 400-square-foot location has done well enough to warrant a second site, which is opening at the end of March at the Flamingo. The 900-square-foot bar will overlook the Flamingo's 15-acre pool area and wildlife complex and also offer an outdoor patio.

Johnson hopes the Flamingo outlet will lead to other Sin City Brewing Co. locations on the Strip.

"We needed a microbrewery that identified with Las Vegas," Johnson said. "People go into cities and the easiest way to get to know the town is to buy some of their products. Beer is definitely one of those ways to get to know the city. It makes you feel like you get a taste of the place."

Microbreweries have exploded across the nation in the past decade, many of which began like Johnson's, as someone's hobby. For three straight years, microbrewery beers have outpaced the sales of imported beers, the American Brewers Association reports.

Johnson creates four beers—Sin City Amber, Sin City Light, Sin City Stout and Sin City Weisse. He brews the beers in small batches (100 kegs at a time) at the Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. on Paradise Road. He helped build the brewery in the late 1990s when he worked for the company.

Johnson said he brews his beer using traditional methods, premium raw materials and a strict adherence to the Rheinheitsgebot, the 1516 German beer purity law.

Johnson employs five people at Sin City Brewing and he oversees production of the beer.

Popularity at the Miracle Mile Shops bar and the new location at the Flamingo means more of Sin City's beer needs to be directed toward the company-owned locations. Johnson has scaled back the bars and taverns to about 15 locations from a high of 50.

He has no plans to turn the microbrew bars into microbrew pubs that offer food service.

"For us, it's all about the beer," Johnson said.

Copyright (c) 2009, Las Vegas Review-Journal

Kennedy's is back!

2009-03-16T07:56:00.001-07:00

So here another reason you should most def hit Waldo for St. Pat's tomorrow. Kennedy's is open again, in their shiny new awesome space! (Thanks to BullEVard)

Check out their Facebook page, with pics.

So, it is almost St. Patrick's Day...

2009-03-15T15:27:00.000-07:00

I wanted to say again that I love this day. I do. But not how others love this day. I don't get crazy, start fights, participate in drunken drama, puke, scream, or otherwise become an asshat on St. Patrick's Day. I don't drink or eat anything dyed green. I take cabs everywhere because I am afraid to risk my car getting hit by a moron. I am not, as you should know, some ridiculous amateur. And it is almost amateur hour again.

But I WILL be eating an Irish breakfast, perhaps cooking up some boxty options for lunch @work, maybe with Guinness floats, and enjoying the little authentic Irish music to be found here & there.

Need info on the parade route? Go here.
Here is the website for Lew's Irish Hooley, where I will be in the afternoon.
Here's my little lecture on being safe.
Here are my favorite Irish brews.

Have fun!

Flo's Cabaret

2009-03-03T14:47:00.000-08:00

I loved the Bar Natasha location, but didn't honestly frequent it all that often. A beer sort of girl rarely finds herself in a martini and piano bar without a group setting. However, I can admit that I am excited that the cool spot will be reopening soon, as a larger variety of non-P&L watering holes in the Crossroads area just improves my quality of life. Work-life. Whatever.

Anyway, I eavesdropped that it might be opening in about a month. As a venue for Flo's cabaret show. Flo will appear Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, while still making Sunday gigs at Tootsie’s, 1818 Main St. They plan other shows Tuesdays and Thursdays, along with Happy Hour offerings.

**Edited 4/8/09**
Opening this Friday, 4/10, with shows Friday and Saturday night. Mark your calendars!

Boulevard/Flying Saucer PSA

2009-02-25T20:36:00.000-08:00

Pausing for a commercial break:

The Flying Saucer Draught Emporium will present a beer tasting featuring Kansas City-based Boulevard Brewing Company on Monday, March 9 at 7 p.m. at its location in the Kansas City Power & Light District at 101 East 13^th St.

The event will be hosted by Steven Pauwels, brewmaster at Boulevard. Five beers from Boulevard’s Smokestack Series will be paired with specially selected artisan cheeses and a dessert. Featured pairings include the Long Strange Tripel with a St. André Tripel Crème; the Smokestack Saison with a Great Pyrenees Goat with green peppercorns; the Double-Wide I.P.A. with Blue Stilton; the Smokestack Imperial Stout as a stand-alone feature; the Sixth Glass Quadrupel with chocolate truffles; and one special “mystery” beer from Boulevard.

“At The Flying Saucer, we want to be the beer destination for the Kansas City area, and hosting tastings with local favorites like Boulevard is a part of that,” said Matt Gardner, general manager at The Flying Saucer. “Boulevard celebrates its 20^th anniversary in 2009, and in those 20 years, it has become the largest specialty brewer in the Midwest, producing great yearlong and seasonal brews. Beer enthusiasts will not want to miss the opportunity to try six Boulevard beers in one sitting. Plus, we don’t even know what the mystery beer will be!”

Tickets for the event can be purchased at The Flying Saucer and are $30 for U.F.O. Club members and $35 for non-members. Reservations are recommended as space is limited.

For more information about the event, please call (816) 221-1900 or visit www.beerknurd.com/stores/kansascity.

I would totally be here on this day, except it's kind of a big day at work, so I prolly won't make it. sniffle Poor me. So, who is going?

A continued love affair

2009-02-23T10:41:00.000-08:00

Me + Winter = Stout Love Forever

I was wandering the shelves of my friendly neighborhood liquor store, looking for something, anything different, really, and not finding much that piqued my interest. At the bottom of a display, I saw a sixer of this. Check out Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout, brewed by the Anderson Valley Brewing Company in Booneville, CA. According to the brewery’s site:

With its deep, dark brown-black color, thick, full-bodied, velvety-smooth mouth feel, mocha character, and, strong yet subtle hop bite, Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout is one of the thickest, richest, and most complex stouts on the market today. In 1990, it became our first gold medal winner, at the Great American Beer Festival. Barney Flats was judged so superior to the other stouts that no other medals were even awarded in its category. Try it and see why Stewart Kallen described it as, "Slippery, creamy, dark, and sweet as a Pacific May morning," in his book, The 50 Greatest Beers in the World.

Jason, of the Almstrom Bros of Beer Advocate, noted the following:
Presentation: 12 oz brown long-neck bottle with no freshness date. Blurb about the beer on the back label.
Appearance: Stout black with a wispy light brown lace.
Smell: Sweet and tangy with a mild coffee and chicory aroma.
Taste: Rich, smooth and textured. A fight between the roasted flavour and hop oil … hop oil finally gives up. Hops give a good fight with a flowery bitterness and leave a short trail of flavour. Roasted flavour keeps on pushing on, full bodied and a bit of sweetness come through. The finish is of a faded tangy roasted ending.
Notes: Seriously hearty stout, very full bodied and pretty much no holds bared on your taste buds. This is what you call a beefed up stout … where is my cigar?

My pathetic reviews can’t top Jason’s insightful notes, so I am not going to try, except to let you all know that this is hands down, absolutely, my favorite stout right this second. Go find some!

Oh, and I ripped this picture off of the Google. I didn't go on a glass buying spree. Mine was consumed from a regular old pint glass. Of course.

Beer at Work

2009-02-13T13:26:00.000-08:00

I need some help from all of my KC brew buddies. Recommendations, anyone?

We have a kegerator at work, and it is currently empty. It is empty because we can't seem to find a decent source of small/pony kegs. When we have giant parties, we go thru standard sized kegs, no problem. But our office staff of 9 can't seem to kill a keg in a timely manner, and the lines get gross, and by then, well, it's just too late. We all like interesting beer, and variety. We have good beer in the fridge, but it just seems like a waste to have a kegerator and not use it.

So, where can we pick up pony kegs of GOOD beer? (Don't tell me to brew my own. I know. I'm just starting to get my head wrapped around that, and you really wouldn't want to subject my coworkers to a first batch.)

One of these things is not like the other

2009-02-12T09:42:00.000-08:00

OK, so this isn't beer related. But I have been living in a bit of a hole, apparently, and I just learned that Phillips Chop House closed. WHAT?! DAMMIT. I haven't been that in love with a restaurant in a while, and now I can't drag my husband there for Valentines Day. Boooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

Snowboarding in 70 degree weather!

2009-02-04T15:38:00.000-08:00

This weekend my company will be dumping 68 TONS OF SNOW on the KC! LIVE Block. Why? Well, because we're having a snowboard tournament in the middle of the Power & Light, of course. Saturday, February 7th. And of course it'll be 70 degrees that day. So you should DEFINITELY come down to see the craziness. It'll be as family friendly as possible, with most of the bars closed during the day. Once the booze-mall picks up steam, the kidlets should have gone home anyway. The later crowd will enjoy the pro-am teams doing crazy tricks on the rails in the later evening.

Over the course of the next three days, a ski hill will emerge in the Live! Block descending from the skywalk to the Live! Stage standing over a story and half tall, 50 feet wide and 107 feet long. A total of 150 pre-registered local and national riders will compete in the event and 16 will be named to the “Scion 16” for an opportunity to team up with one of 16 professional riders for the finals competition. A large crowd is anticipated for the finale as it is the biggest snowboarding event to take place in the Midwest.

Date:
Thursday, February 5, 2009 (Ski hill construction & snow dump)
Saturday, February 7, 2009 (Competition)

Times:
Thursday, February 5, 2009
7:00 a.m. – Ski hill set-up begins (continues all day, until finished)

Friday, February 6, 2009
1:00 p.m. – Snow trucked in from Snow Creek in Weston, Mo.

Saturday February, 7, 2009
7:00 a.m. – Snow trucked in from Snow Creek in Weston, Mo.
9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. (Registration)
Noon – 6:30 p.m. (Snowboarding Competition)
9 p.m. – 11:30 p.m. (Finals)

Location:
The KC Live! Block in The Kansas City Power & Light District

The Foundry

2009-02-03T13:17:00.000-08:00

Have I mentioned how much I love Westport now? Well, I do. Because I am not single OR 23 years old, and I cannot hang in the P&L too often. Westport grew up a little, and I like it better. Especially on slow weeknights.

Yesterday was our 7th anniversary, and we did the fancy expensive dinner thing over the weekend. So we decided to catch happy hour beers and pizza at the Foundry in Westport. Between McCoy's, Blanc, The Foundry, and Harry's, there are quite a few options in Westport, and it makes me happy.

We both had a couple of stouts (Kalamazoo for me, Left Hand for him), some tasty pizza, and good conversation. Even if 75% of it was about work.

Know what else makes me happy? Servers who are so friendly that they draw you happy little pictures on your leftover pizza box.

RIP Rivermarket Brewery

2009-02-03T08:54:00.000-08:00

I got a heads up from a rivermarket resident that the Rivermarket Brewery finally closed. He said, "It disproves my theory that the only reason that place was open was to launder money. It's a good loss because the microbrewery beer was simply god awful, and the food was mediocre at best. It's regrettable that despite the drink, it was close by and I considered it my local. A lot of good friends have lost work."

He makes good points. I haven't been to the Brewery in years. Honestly. I didn't enjoy their beer, and the whole experience of just being there was vaguely uncomfortable. So I am not surprised, unless you think about how long it was open, past when it SHOULD have closed. It's a loss for the Rivermarket community, but it also means that Harry's should be a bit busier on a regular basis. Did anyone else even notice they closed?

**edited to add that this observation was sent to me yesterday, and my late posting due to workload means bullevard and fatcity totally pwned me on this one :)**

Frenemies

2009-01-30T07:40:00.000-08:00

Reports are out that Coors Light has surpassed Miller Light to be the number 3 bestselling beer in the US, behind Bug Light & Budweiser. One of those stories can be found here. Coors latest marketing messaging sticks to one point, only that it should be VERY COLD. (I agree. Kills the taste.) What is funny is that Miller and Coors are supposed to be helping each other, being owned by the same company nowadays. Looks more like sibling rivalry. Clip of the info below:

Miller Lite's sales last year totaled 17.7 million barrels, down from 18.35 million barrels in 2007, according to trade publication Beer Marketer's Insights. Meanwhile, Coors Light's sales increased 2.6%, to 17.75 million barrels compared to 17.3 million barrels.

Coors Light and Miller Lite are the nation's No. 3 and No. 4 brands. The top selling brands are Bud Light, at 42 million barrels, up 0.1%, and Budweiser, at 23.1 million barrels, down 6.1%. Rounding out the top 10 are Natural Light, Corona Extra, Busch Light, Busch, High Life and Heineken.

Overall U.S. beer sales increased 0.5% in 2008.

One Second Superbowl

2009-01-27T11:52:00.000-08:00

Have you heard about this yet? Please don't say no. Anyway, I think it's clever, and if they end up running 30 of these things, I'll be disappointed. Stick with one. See here for the "rejected" ads, and be sure to click on the part that tells you what $30 million could buy you, besides a SuperBowl spot. What do you think? If this is post-game Sunday, what DID you think?

This is the most awesome thing I've heard all day

2009-01-12T14:42:00.000-08:00

I'm buried in work. Up to my eyeballs. Truly. But I spied this on Dan's Gone Mild blog, & I had to post about it quickly. To the Dead Canary Brew crew, just tell me what I can do to help support, beyond becoming a dedicated customer in the future.

Totally ripped off, from Dan's blog:
In 2009, Kansas City will have another brewery opening up, this time in the West Bottoms. Dead Canary Brewing is a woman-owned and run new brewery, setting up in the West Bottoms down off 12th Street, among the haunted houses and great old brick buildings.

Folks, this could be amazing.

They are setting up Beer Pong and Dodgeball Leagues. They are creating a taproom. They are committed to brewing practices that are green and sustainable. They got started on this journey by brewing naked.

Most importantly, they are creating "high content, high flavor, knock you on yo ass beers." Beers like Cat House Stout - (Dry hopped mint chocolate imperial stout), Local No. 12 - (lemongrass maple strong ale), Speakeasy IPA - (honeysuckle grapefruit IPA), Bathtub Barleywine - (copiously hopped barleywine), and Chickory Rhubarb Imperial Porter.

Chocolate for Friday

2009-01-09T12:47:00.000-08:00

Received the below message from 75th Street Brewery today. Still not clear what the brew could be classified as, but sounds good.

Even Darth Vader can't resist the force of the brew we've got on tap now at 75th Street...

Chocolate Assent

75th Street's master brewers are releasing this rich brew to you TODAY!!
Chocolate Assent's dark brown color pours to match the six pounds of Colombian dark chocolate within the brew. The assent's aroma is full-on malty caramel with hints of the chocolate cacophony to come. Your palate will be challenged at first sip with a smooth bitterness start [reminiscent of your first chocolate chip cookie] before the lingering bittersweet chocolate taste tags along. This brew is a go-getter [as in GO GET A GROWLER] that suits a cozy night by the fireside.

But don't plan on us providing the fire. Spark it yourself.

Stop in for a pint TODAY for FIRKIN FRIDAY, January 9th at the 75th Street Brewery in Waldo.

Cheers!

Good, Fast or Cheap - you can only pick 2

2009-01-06T07:29:00.001-08:00

I've read roughly one million articles on how people are changing their consumer behaviors based on the crappy economy, but this one takes the cake. According to The Australian, BEER drinkers feeling the pinch of the economic downturn are engaging in their own form of supply-chain simplification and saving money by brewing at home.

Really? My assumption was that brewing would probably be more expensive, and at least in my case, of debatable quality. Or inconsistent at the very least, in the beginning.

Black Ops

2009-01-05T11:42:00.000-08:00

Remember my little hey-let's-break-the-law-and-send-booze-thru-the-USPS episode? My sister-in-law returned the favor by sending me some Brooklyn brew. I received a bottle of Brooklyn Brewery's Black Ops Imperial Stout last week. I waited for the right moment to break it open, which turned out to be Sunday, the night before my husband and I had to return to work after 10 consecutive days of vacation. Aaaannnnnd, thud. But I slept very well.

Regardless, a strong imperial stout was perfect for the winter evening, and this is definitely a STRONG one. According to Beer Advocate info, Brooklyn Black Ops was aged for four months in bourbon barrels, bottled flat, and re-fermented in the bottle with Champagne yeast. There were 940 cases produced. The label looks much prettier in RL than here in the picture I ripped off of someone else's Flickr.

I kept the 750 ml bottle on my kitchen counter top for more than a day, so it was definitely room temperature by the time I poured the dark, motor oil colored stout into 2 pint glasses, and waited for the abundant dark tan head to settle down before we tried it. The first whiff seemed to contain some of the bourbon barrel character, but to be honest, mostly all I smelled was raw alcohol. Well, it is an 11% ABV beer. It kind of intimidated me, but only because it was a school night. The taste starts with dark roasted malts, chocolate and coffee flavors, maybe a little vanilla, a little bourbon burn, and ALCOHOL. A mostly direct quote from my husband went something like this, "This might be a great evening after all." I refrain from conjecturing what he meant by that.

All I know is that he polished off his glass long before I did. This was a sipper for me. Good, smooth, with the alcohol burn becoming less apparent with each gulp, but still a sipper. I couldn't really imagine having too much of this, but one pint was perfect. I had to get up early in the morning for the first time in almost 2 weeks. Blerg.

New Years Resolutions

2009-01-03T15:49:00.000-08:00

I like to keep things simple, so I don't have a long list. I am putting them here to keep myself honest, to check in on from time to time. Resolutions are very easy to make and very difficult for me to keep.

Be healthier, meaning just to eat less crap and get to the gym an average of 3 times a week.
Drink less beer, in terms of volume, and better beer when I do.
Make sure my house is CLEAN, not just picked up, on a weekly basis. (Monkey hate clean.)
Start homebrewing this year. (This is more of a process, meaning I have a lot to learn and purchase, and a full dance card otherwise, but it is something I always wished I knew how to do.)

What resolutions did you make?

Two thousand and nine already?!

2008-12-31T15:43:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!
I love fresh starts, new beginnings, clean slates and alla that. I love shiny happy hopeful opportunities, inspirational quotes, and the like. So when I wake up tomorrow, hungover or not, I will remember that I have 365 days, 52 weeks, 12 months, or however you like to look at it, all clean and blank and stretched out before me to make amazing. Before I snarl at anyone and bitch and moan about how bad I may or may not feel, I will lay in bed and remember that it's a new day and a new year and it will be as awesome and amazing I allow it to be.

K, had enough sunshine blown up your wazoo? Have a marvelous time tonight, doing whatever you do, and remember, Holiday Cab is back up & running in KC. Call 816-777-1115 for a safe ride home. Driving around on NYE is a bad idea, no matter what. Morons. You know. I will stick to drinking beer tonight. Last time I drank anything else it was a bad plan. V. bad plan. Am grounded from red bull and vodka for life, I am sorry to say.

John's Upper Deck

2008-12-23T16:07:00.000-08:00

Someone who lives near John's in downtown KC says there is something shady going on. They've apparently been closed for over a week for "renovations," but clearly there has been nothing done except to turn off the lights since hanging the sign. So, is John's the next casualty?

Crawling home

2008-12-22T14:44:00.000-08:00

Lee is in town, Lee is in town! Freezing his mild Texas behonkey off in our sub-zero climate, I am sure. He's going to be at McCoy's tonight. Sadly, I will not be at McCoy's tonight. :( If you see Lee, tell him I said hi, and I'll catch him another eve. With beer. I promises.

Tonight my co-workers and I are embarking on what sounds like a Very Bad Idea. We're doing a pub crawl, on a Monday night, as our own little holiday party. All full-time employees and all contract field staff are welcome to attend. We're starting at the office, and heading out into the frigid night around 6 ish. This is what the work fridge looks like right now. Boulevard Pale Ale, Schlafly & Breckenridge Christmas Ales, and a little Hoegaarden, not to mention the Bailey's, Bud Light, Jose Cuervo margaritas, or the bottles of random booze below. I heard that someone is bringing their own 30 pack of Busch Light. A little something for everyone, then. The little mustard bottle looks a little out of his element, don't you think?

Sometimes I just steal things

2008-12-21T08:35:00.000-08:00

Found via DP, who got it from TastyBooze, and reposted here because if you don't know, now you know. Aren't you glad you aren't a girl?

Space Beer?

2008-12-16T21:25:00.001-08:00

Stolen directly from BLDGBLOG:

Last week, Sapporo announced that they would soon be serving space beer, "the world's first beer made with barley descending from plants grown inside the International Space Station."

The barley used in the new beer is a third-generation offshoot of the original plant stored for five months in a Russian laboratory in the station. The company has made only 100 liters of the new brew, named Sapporo Space Barley, which is not for sale. Sapporo says the beer is safe because it has tested microbes in it and did tests with lab animals and Sapporo employees, too. It also says that the space beer tastes just like regular beer.For obvious reasons, this brings to mind China's space seed project, in which "space breeding" puts astronomy to work in the service of contemporary agriculture.

Plant seeds have been blasted into orbit in the hope that "space breeding" holds the key to improving crop yields and disease resistance. Wheat and barley strains developed by the Department of Agriculture and Food in Western Australia (WA) have just landed back on Earth following a 15-day orbital cruise on board China's Shijian-8 satellite. "Space-breeding refers to the technique of sending seeds into space in a recoverable spacecraft or a high-altitude balloon," said Agriculture WA barley breeder Chengdao Li. "In the high-vacuum, micro-gravity and strong-radiation space environment, seeds may undergo mutation."While this certainly offers landscape architects an unearthly way to boost their horticultural repertoire, it also shows that specialty foods cultivated through genetic interaction with the universe might yet find a comfortable place in the human food chain.
Sipping space beer, ingesting astronomical influence, welcoming literally non-terrestrial nutrition into the planetary web of caloric intake, we'll find that Sapporo's newest beer brings a suitably alien tenor to the local amnesia of alcoholic intoxication.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Postal Experiment

2008-12-15T21:36:00.001-08:00

I think I may be breaking the law. I bought a bottle of both Boulevard's Saison Brett and Bourbon Barrel Quad, wrapped them in 900 layers of paper, and shipped them off to my brother & sister in law in NYC. I just placed them in the care of the US Postal Service tonight, using the self-service kiosk at my post office so no postal worker could detect my guilty red face when they ask if the package contains any liquids and I say "NO!" Considering the current temperatures, I am taking bets on the likelihood of both bottles arriving in whole condition, with no explosions, breakage or leaking.

The BBQ Review

2008-12-11T17:50:00.000-08:00

Boulevard's Limited Series Bourbon Barrel Quad
Bottle # 03963

Also posted on BeerAdvocate:
I ran straight down to Cellar Rat over my lunch hour today to fetch a couple bottles of the new limited Smokestack brew.

I do not own a beer goblet. I need to buy one. In the meantime, I decided to experiment with the gorgeous but useless crystal wine goblets received as a wedding gift 6 years ago & once or twice used.

Poured into the goblet, the head bubbled up quickly, brown and effervescent and dissipated quickly. The inch & a half of head left just a thin lace around the edge of the glass in minutes. The color is dark, brownish reddish maroon.

The initial sniff smells strongly of cherries, and the first sip gave a pretty strong hit of the same. A little, fizzy, cherry hit, followed by with a slightly bitter, tangy, vanilla-y taste. This definitely falls in the fruit beer category for me, but I like it. (This is unusual.)

After the initial few sips, I start noticing the bourbon influence, and it takes on a slightly woodsy element. It's warming. I think I like this beer a lot. It's an unusual beer.

Scavenger Hunt - GO!

2008-12-11T09:12:00.000-08:00

Boulevard's Smokestake Series limited run of Saison-Brett appears to have run it's course, so if you can find any, now is the time to start hoarding.

Boulevard's Smokestack Series limited run of the Bourbon Barrel Quad has begun. Go, go now. (pic stolen from MuddyMo who beat us all to it last night.)

A little reminder for you all from a July 1st release (BeerNews):
Saison-Brett will be released to the tune of less than 12,000 bottles and BBQ even more limited at approximately 7000. Each bottle will be individually numbered. The beers will be released into the same distribution channel as the other Smokestack beers. According to John Bryan, Director of the Artisanal Division, that channel includes the following states: MO, KS, NE, IA, ND, SD, MN, WY, IL, AR, OK, TN, and TX. Perhaps most remarkable about this group of limited releases is that they are released in a number of states that have traditionally not been known for carrying a great selection of higher quality craft beers.

Snow Cap Review

2008-12-07T13:42:00.000-08:00

I bought a sixer of Pyramid's Snow Cap Ale last week, and I am a fan. It is a winter-warmer ale, and has an ABV of 7%, so I never drank more than one at a time. The Pyramid sites says:

A rich, full-bodied winter warmer crafted in the British tradition of holiday beers. This deep mahogany colored brew balances complex fruit flavors with a refreshingly smooth texture, making Snow Cap a highly drinkable and desirable cold weather companion.

Beer Advocate members rate it as a solid "B," not amazing, but not bad. I gave it an "A-." It's smooth, malty, toffee-coffee goodness, with a tiny bit of spiciness. It is good. I dig it. I love amber, malty, yummy goodness meant for chilly evenings. And I am extremely happy that I didn't pick up the Shiner holiday brew instead. Even though Lee is a fan, I can guarantee I wouldn't have the same reaction. Me & fruity beers just are not a match.

Hell's Bell's, people

2008-12-02T07:44:00.000-08:00

PR people want my readers to know things. They email me, so I post them. It's practically a public service I provide here. Jessica, from Obsidian PR, which apparently handles either the Flying Saucer or Bell's, sent me the following email. Consider yourselves invited.

The Flying Saucer will present a beer tasting featuring Bell’s Brewery next Monday, Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. I thought you might be interested in this for your blog.

The event will be hosted by Jim O’Connor, a territory manager for Bell’s Brewery. O’Connor will host the two-hour tasting, which will feature six of Bell’s Brewery’s beers – the Third Coast Old Ale, the Porter, the Kalamazoo Stout, the Special Double Cream Stout, the Cherry Stout and the Expedition Stout. The beers will be paired with four select cheeses and a dessert. Tickets for the event can be purchased at The Flying Saucer and are $30 for U.F.O. Club members and $35 for non-members.

Stay Thirsty, My Friends

2008-11-28T14:10:00.000-08:00

Has everyone seen the Dos Equis ads, featuring the World's Most Interesting Man? He doesn't always drink beer, but when he does, he prefers Dos Equis. Well, I was channel surfing last night, and apparently a couple of moons aligned, with HD Channel Mojo needing content and Euro RSCG, the agency for Heineken (aka Dos Equis) needing a place to air a branded show, looking for an assistant for the fictional character, the World's Most Interesting Man. The site is here, where you can vote for who should win the assistant spot. (I voted for Ella on principal, since she was the only chick.)

Beer Drinkers = Individualists

2008-11-28T14:07:00.000-08:00

According to some crazy study done by some marketing professors at the University of Texas at San Antonio, the stereotype of the rugged individualist who enjoys tipping back a few might not be so off the mark. They found that places where individualism is valued over the collective good also tend to be places where a lot of beer is consumed.

Read it all here, you rugged individualists.

Aaaaand, I'm back

2008-11-20T15:41:00.000-08:00

Still digging out from Unread Email Mountain, trying to convince the dog that we really were always going to come back for him, slathering lotion on burned skin and dieting from spending that much time at an all-inclusive. But it was awesome. Just the right balance of sun, sand, sea spray & beverages needed to get me thru the next handful of crazy weeks before a long holiday break.

Back to the Beach

2008-11-14T11:58:00.000-08:00

Our entire company is picking up and headed to Cancun next week. There may be some good beer available. There may not be. I might stick to brightly colored blended drinks served frosty on the beach. Catch ya on the flip side.

Friday Fun Day

2008-11-07T17:53:00.000-08:00

Crappy camera phone pics from the Brooksider, sometime after 2 pm. Yes, we're retarded.

Numbers night for a numbers geek

2008-11-04T18:50:00.000-08:00

I am watching the results roll in with a Boulevard Pale Ale, with one eye on a very sick dog and the other on the TV. No matter the results of the election, I am damn proud of our "young americans" who turned out in historically shattering numbers to rock the vote. I proudly wore my "I Voted" sticker all day, even though I did not take advantage of the freebie offers from Chik-fil-a, Starbucks, Krispy Kreme, McCoy's Public House or that body piercing place in Kirksville, MO.

Let's Go To The Movies

2008-10-29T15:59:00.000-07:00

Let's go to the movies
Let's go see the stars.
Red lights holler
deep Depression
What do we care?
Movies are there!
Only happy endings (boy gets girl, yes)
that's our recipe!
Welcome to a lovely
M-O-V-I-E!

Yeah, I was 6 years old when Annie came out in theaters, and this song is ingrained in my memory, shuddup.

Last night I was invited to a sneak peek event for the new AMC Theatres Fork & Screen concept in Olathe. It officially opens to the public on Friday, October 31st. I got to bring the husband, and we raced home to let the dog out and get all the way out to Olathe by 6:45, when we were to check in. We loitered around the lobby with a collective of other bloggers while we received a press kit, were highly encouraged to snap pictures, twitter and post anything we wanted about the event and venue. Being the lazy blogger you all know me to be, I twittered some, snapped some camera phone pics, and am posting a review almost a full day after the fact. There are a lot of super dedicated bloggers that took high res pics you can view, like I, Shane 's Flickr feed, Scene Stealers' blog, KC Word of Mouth blog, etc, etc.

First of all, let me say that MacGuffins, the bar, looks really really cool. Glamorous, even. I posted the beer list here earlier, along with links to their menus, and yes, I did have a Guinness. I paid for it too. Which they unfortunately poured into a frosty glass, but hey, you can't expect everyone to be a beer snob, can you? The bartender was nice & friendly, which overwrites many sins in my mind. Next time I'll ask for a pint glass that wasn't just pulled out of a freezer. Lucky for me it warmed up quickly.

So why is it called MacGuffins? According to AMC's wonderful tour guide Andy, AND the walls where it was clearly spelled out for all to see, a MacGuffin is a term Alfred Hitchcock coined, and no one outside of film students & movie theater corporate employees probably know. But that might change if more people go to MacGuffins. Wikipedia has an entry for it. It is a plot device that advances the story line, motivating the characters, but the specifics of the object matter very little. Perhaps that is true about the bar as well. It motivated me to love the Fork & Screen, but the specifics of it didn't matter all that much to me.

We were given a buffet of appetizers to sample, which beyond quesadillas and pizza, consisted entirely of fried items. Tasty, to be sure but still all fried. The booths at MacGuffins are borderline sound proofed, so you really get the sense that no one in that cavernous space would hear an intimate conversation.

After that interlude, the well spoken Tour Guide Andy, who I strongly suspect did a stint at Disney at some point in his life, took us into a premium CinemaSuites theatre, where we all plopped down in big, red, leather, cushy recliners and celebrated our luck. Unfortunately, we were not to be able to STAY in the nice theatre, and were escorted back to a Fork & Screen theatre, minus the recliners. Sigh. But honestly? You pay $10 extra for a big cushy chair, and have less people in the theater with you. Roughly 70 people less. It's quieter. But it's still $10 more, each. The Fork & Screen experience is still good, by all theatre standard. There is something like 4 feet of clearance between the back of your chair, and the next row. There are NO feet on the back of your chair. There is a little cocktail table/counter that runs across the front of each row, and servers swing by to see if you'd like a drink, a little snack, anything. It's awesome. Slightly distracting, but you get over it quickly.

We got a $10 appetizer order of chicken fingers, and the husband ordered another beer, and our total in the theater was $14. Considering we can drop $20 for big drinks & popcorn on a usual outing, this is not bad at ALL!! As a childless couple that do not go to the movies all that often, or at least not in the evenings/at night, this really might get us to consider it more often.

I had to do it. I Googled it again. God almighty, KC bloggers are some timely bastards.I swear I am the last to post. But on the other hand, I found a picture of myself being an antisocial geek. That's the problem with some "social" media people. More media, less social. So here I am twittering, playing with my phone, Guinness waiting for me on the side. Sorry ramseym, I stole your pic.

A post in which I bite the hand that feeds

2008-10-21T10:15:00.000-07:00

I got ANOTHER tasty present in the mail this month, from the PR company that does work for Newcastle. I appreciate presents. Who doesn't?! So I'll tell you all about what I got, and I am going to offer my personal 2 cents on the whole thing.

Every now & then the life of a beer blogger includes a good smack on the forehead with the realization that you simply forgot about a brand of beer. Like wiped it out of your memory. Like it was one of your gateway beers in the 90's, when you were labeled a snob for not drinking frat party keg beer, and you haven't tasted it since. Newcastle, Fat Tire, and JW Dundee's Honey Brown all fall into this category for me.

I received a full 6 pack of Newcastle, along with a few sample tips and pages from Newcastle Brown Ale's Holiday MAN-ual. Meaning it's a manual for men to get thru the holiday season. Tips include how to toast (do tell, don't tell), how gifts say a lot about how you feel about the recipient, personal attire tips (Don't wear a sweater that screams, "Look at me, I'm a walking parade float.") and the basics of hosting a party. The funniest thing, IMO, was their recommendation to include wine & liquor in any party, and not JUST serve Newcastle.

The other pages seemed to be printed off of a master book (the Man-ual) included a recipe for something called a beer-nog shooter (yes, a separated shot of beer & egg nog) and a cheese and beer fondue. The fondue DOES include both bacon and beer, and that's manly, right? I want to know, gentlemen readers, would you really make a fondue for a party at your place?

My feedback is personal, because I work in marketing, in the WOM arena, did interactive advertising for years, and still work with others who do blogger seeding now. I'm outing myself, and possibly limiting future presents of the tasty variety. I apologize to Liz in advance, and DO thank you for the free brews. I enjoyed them, and will definitely post a dedicated review.

I appreciate the sentiment, and probably even the brainstorm that took place somewhere in El Segundo to come up with the idea overall. But the name "Man-ual" strikes manly-man beer connotations for me, more like the MGD audience, not Newcastle's perceived refined, educated target. I also strongly believe that the full MAN-ual really should be living online if bloggers are to leverage it well, with the capability for links, for traffic drivers, to generate more interest from a like-minded audience of beer blog readers. It would have been much more beneficial if it had been further fleshed out. I got super busy, & didn't ask for high res images to post here, although they offered. Maybe it would have helped just to post them to a site, and let bloggers access them if they were willing?

Perhaps I am critical because I only see a small window of the whole effort. I hope the MAN-ual gets more support than this small blogger outreach. I still enjoyed Newcastle Brown Ale more than anything else in my fridge, and I PROMISE to post a dedicated review of the beer soon.

Fork & Screen

2008-10-17T09:35:00.000-07:00

If anyone has been out to the AMC Theatres Olathe Studio 30 location in the Kansas City area in the last few months, you are aware that there are some changes coming. They are adding a movie & dinner experience, called the Fork & Screen, to an entire wing of the multi-plex. I've been invited out to a sneak peak/tour at the end of October, so I thought I would pass on what I know so far.

A bar/lounge called MacGuffins will be located next to the auditoriums, and their future menu is already posted here. I figured their pricing would be high, based on the fact that we can spend $20 on drinks & popcorn for 2, but it isn't quite as scandalous. They have a large number of specialty cocktails, but I skipped straight to the beer. A pint or bottle of premium beer is quoted at $4.89. Premium means Boulevard, Sam Adams, Fat Tire or Guinness on tap or Boulevard, Sam Adams, Stella Artois, Amstel Light, Bass, Corona, Guinness, Heineken or Blue Moon in bottles.

The other concept is called CinemaSuites, and features reserved seating, recliners, and in-theatre dining. This is the high end part. Cinema Suites will feature in-theatre Seat-Side Service and is reserved for guests at least 21 years old. Pricing for the Cinema Suites experience is $15.00 Monday through Thursday and Friday, Saturday and Sunday before 4:00pm, and $20.00 Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Holidays after 4:00pm. Cinema Suites guests will also receive a $5.00 coupon to be used toward their dining experience. So what does the food look like for this part? Menu is here, and looks like general casual dining - sandwiches, burgers, lots of apps and a few entrees.

Oktoberfest @75th Street

2008-10-15T15:05:00.000-07:00

Bring your friends & fraus for:

Outdoor Seating
LIVE local music
All the wurst German Eats
[bratwurst, knockwurst, sauerkraut, braised cabbage, German potato salad, GIANT Bavarian pretzels & chocolate cake]

Pints of stein-wothy beers
[75th Street's Imperial Oktoberfest, Bitburger Pilsner & Warsteiner & Paulaner Oktoberfest brews]

Boulevard gives the best presents

2008-10-08T11:56:00.001-07:00

Boulevard is like the childless aunt and uncle you had when you were a kid. They give the BEST presents. (Although admittedly, as a really young girl, I didn't fully appreciate the Sergio Valente jeans my aunt gave me for my birthday one year. I could have only been 5 years old at the time.)

But Boulevard did better than Sergio Valente jeans. They gave beer bloggers a big Smokestake Series-sized bottle of a stout they are working on. It was available for pickup after 3 pm yesterday, and I lost track of time, as I am prone to do. I called their front desk at 5 minutes before 5 pm and begged Amy to wait a few minutes past 5 for me. I was there in 4 minutes. :) THANK YOU AMY!!

I really wanted to enjoy it while watching the debate last night, and graciously shared it with my husband. (I am not so gracious w/beer at times, so I felt I earned extra points for this.) The bottle included a note of thanks for blogging about Boulevard (of course) and some info about the brew contained within. It is a non-release brew that may become a Smokestack Series beer over time. It is based on an Imperial Russian Stout, fermented w/Belgian yeast, and contains a whole variety of hops, malted barleys, rye and oats. Imperial Russian Stout definition from BeerAdvocate:

Inspired by brewers back in the 1800's to win over the Russian Czar, this is the king of stouts, boasting high alcohol by volumes and plenty of malt character. Low to moderate levels of carbonation with huge roasted, chocolate and burnt malt flavours. Often dry. Suggestions of dark fruit and flavors of higher alcohols are quite evident. Hop character can vary from none, to balanced to aggressive.

It poured prettily, with a thick pillowy head that took some time to settle down. Good! It left lacing along the glass throughout. Good! It smelled like roasted goodness, with a healthy hint that this beer has teeth. I could tell it would be heavy in ABV from a sniff. It was 9%, which makes sense with the style. First sip was good, echoing the roasted, burnt smell, a little bitter, perhaps from a hops bite, and dry. Very dry. I kept associating the alcohol burn with the bitter taste, but I couldn't tell you if that is really what it WAS. I thought it was MUCH more bitter, bite-y, and dry in the first few sips. By the time we finished the bottle, I was really enjoying it, finding more sweet and roasted elements than harsh.

I really liked this beer. My husband REALLY liked this beer, and that doesn't always happen with ye old beer blog selections. More often than not, one glass is more than enough for him, but this time he wanted half of whatever was left. Which, again, graciously, I shared. I think it was the bite. He's always been a decent hop head, just not into Belgians, I suppose.

Thank you SO MUCH, friends at Boulevard. The Big Stout was awesome, and I am so happy to hear that you all are working on new artisan beers to add to the Smokestack Series over time. It was cool to be included in that process, even to a small degree.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Fire strikes Free State's production plant

2008-10-05T17:17:00.000-07:00

I received the following email today from the Free State Brewery in Lawrence, KS. While I am happy for them that no one was hurt, this must be a big hit. I doubt that hops are insurable.

Dear Friends,

Im sure that by now many of you know that a fire struck our nearly completed production plant in East Lawrence this morning. The damage was extensive and we do not know the full extent or implications of the fire damage as yet. The structure is intact as near as we can tell, although we will not know the full story until we are able to have engineers come in for a full assessment.

The exact cause of the fire is still under investigation and we are leaving that evaluation to the experts. Fortunately, the building was not occupied at the time and there were no injuries to anyone involved in the fire fighting effort.

Although we lost a substantial inventory of raw ingredients stored in the building, we are still able to continue production at our current levels downtown. What is now on hold is the planned expansion of our wholesale production and distribution. Needless to say, this is a significant setback, as we were hoping to begin brewing in the next couple of weeks.

Finally, our heartfelt thanks to all of our friends who pitched in or offered their help as we struggled to evaluate the situation today. Our thanks also, to the Lawrence Fire Department who handled the situation with professionalism and kindness. We were impressed with their efforts. As a community, we should be proud of these men and women for their service. We will keep you apprised as we move along and as answers appear.

Sincerely,

Steve Bradt

Notes and stuff

2008-10-04T18:54:00.000-07:00

I received a happy note via MySpace this week. (This is why I keep a MySpace profile around, to all of you people who tell me about how they delete their profiles from "dead" social networking sites!)

We have a special treat that we're making available to a select number of bloggers and beer reviewers who have covered Boulevard in the past. If you can send me your full name & address I can mail it to you, or if you would prefer I can leave it for you to pick up at our front desk. Hint: it's delicious.
Cheers,
Marketing & Communications Manager

Cheers, indeed! I love delicious presents, offered to me for no reason other than the fact I have a beer blog that some misguided individuals check on from time to time. I promise to report whatever it is they share with me.

I went to a dinner party last night. It was all very grown up and perfect, with awesome food, fabu wine, even dishes being washed while dinner was being made. Very impressive, you two. When people come to my house, I give them pizza or something else from a box, and still manage to end up with a sink full of dirty dishes the next morning. I know, I don't know how I do it. But it was quite fun, and I can't thank them enough. There was even a chocolate cake made with Fort Collins Brewery Chocolate Stout. That was the best, ever. I had a beer too many, didn't ask for the recipe, and probably didn't thank my hosts enough for all of the trouble. Nice, eh?

Tonight we're sipping on some Avery Redpoint Ale. Yes, drinking it because of my previous post. Neither me nor my husband can face more drinking any more of the pumpkin beers in the fridge, and we had more than a few Octoberfests lately. We needed something different, but still fall-appropriate. The Redpoint is a filtered, coppery ale that foamed up out of the bottle as soon as I flipped the top off, but resulted in a relatively thin head when poured into a glass, and disappeared entirely shortly there after. The nose is malty and nutty, with the promise of some kind of hoppiness to compensate. It is an APA, after all. The first sip is caramel and toastiness, and then with a slightly dry bit of hops. Maybe something sweet and fruity? It isn't terribly complex, but it is good. I dig it. The husband digs it. Hurray. Another beer to add to the "we both love this beer" list, beyond Sam Adams Light and Boulevard Pale Ale.

Flying Saucer on Monday the 13th

2008-10-03T12:01:00.000-07:00

I received the following email, and thought you all might like to know. In my own long standing tradition of working too much and being totally overscheduled, I won't be able to attend. If you do, let me know how it was!

The Flying Saucer in the Power & Light District will be hosting “The Avery Experience” on Monday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. The event will be hosted by Adam Avery, president and brewmaster of Avery Brewing Co. in Boulder, Colo. It will be a two-hour event featuring 15 of Avery’s beers.

Featured beers will be distributed in sample-sized servings and will include Karma Belgian Ale; White Rascal Belgian Wheat Ale; India Pale Ale, an American IPA; Ale to the Chief, Avery’s new “Presidential” Pale Ale; Fifteen, Avery’s latest anniversary ale; Salvation Belgian Strong Golden Ale; The Reverend Belgian Quadrupel Ale; Hog Heaven Barleywine; The Maharaja Imperial India Pale Ale 2008; The Kaiser Imperial Oktoberfest 2008; The Czar Imperial Stout 2003; Samael’s Oak-aged Ale 2008; The Best Grand Cru Ale 2004 and Mephistopheles’ Stout 2006. The beers will be paired with select meats and cheeses.

As Avery is one of the country’s leading craft breweries, it’s pretty exciting to have the president of the company host this event and for customers to be able to taste so many Avery beers in one sitting.

All you can drink for $5

2008-10-01T10:37:00.000-07:00

GenKC is a group of “professionals” in KC who decided that networking groups are stupid and boring, and they really just wanted an excuse to meet cool peeps in KC, you know, and drink. Their first event was in the River Market in June, and over 1,200 KC people in their 20s & 30s showed up. They’ve deemed this idea a success, and are starting to pick up steam.

The next event is tomorrow, at the Power & Light, under the canopy. It’s $5 to get in, free Boulevard beer, and a guaranteed way to meet a ton of people in KC. Link for info is here:

http://genkc.org/event/event_details.htm

If you're gonna drive me crazy, drive me to drink

2008-09-29T18:19:00.000-07:00

I am in the middle of closing out my company's fiscal year, so I've been a little caught up. (I know, it doesn't even sound cool. It isn't. Imagine spreadsheets and accounting software and budget projections and nail biting. I fear the tax man. I really do. Did you ever see Stranger Than Fiction? I wanna pull a Maggie Gyllenhaal and scream, "Get BENT, Tax Man!") Soooo, anyway...I haven't been doing the old blogging thing well. There are reviews a-brewin, I promise, so hang in there with me until October. There's a silver lining, and it happens to be good beer.

What's up with the Bulldog?

2008-09-23T18:59:00.001-07:00

I will look over there tomorrow, but does anyone know what's up with The Bulldog on Main? The building is listed as up for lease on Block & Company's website. Screen shot of the listing above.

My name is Kiiiiiiiddddddd

2008-09-22T21:21:00.000-07:00

Stolen from The Centre Daily Times.
Drinks Americas Holdings, Ltd (OTCBB: DKAM), a leading owner, developer and marketer of premium beverages, today announced that the Company has signed an agreement with American icon and rock and roll musician Kid Rock to develop and market a premium domestic beer. Drinks and Kid Rock will work together to develop and bring to market a product targeted to beer drinkers who appreciate value with an easy to drink, traditional, good tasting American manufactured beer.

Bwahahahahahahaha. I can't wait. They think it will be ready by spring. They are, and I quote, "interviewing breweries," now.

It's All About the Benjamins

2008-09-20T08:31:00.000-07:00

Right outside of Wrigley Field in Chicago are a number of buildings and rooftops visible from inside the stadium, for both live audiences and those watching on TV. One of them is the "Budweiser Building," a bright rooftop that A-B has used to run a giant billboard for Budweiser since 2004. The building has been sold, and the new owners are using a paperwork excuse to kick Budweiser out, and open the space back up to the highest bidder. In 2004, A-B agreed to pay the previous building's owner about $350,000 a year for the space, with a contract that extended thru Feb 2009. I can only imagine what the new owners think they can get for the space now. From the story in the Chicago Tribune:
The new owners failed to send an invoice for September's lease payment to the Chicago office of Jef Schmidt, Anheuser-Busch's director of marketing, according to the brewer's lawsuit. Schmidt contacted the owner's attorney, who then faxed an invoice, but the letter lacked a contact phone, fax and federal tax identification number needed before a check could be cut, according to the beer maker's lawsuit.
The new owner is saying A-B defaulted because they paid their bill 5 days late, which they only did because they didn't have any information on WHERE to send the money. The building owner just wants to be able to open it up, make it available to whomever will pay the most money each month.

What it used to look like from inside the stadium:

Now the rooftop is all covered up:

Down on your knees

2008-09-19T09:48:00.001-07:00

I know! Twice in one year. That's asking a lot.

The 4th annual Falldo Waldo Crawldo is tomorrow, Saturday, September 20th. It is almost exactly like the earlier Waldo Crawldo, except now with more Falldo. And the music on the site was cool in 1997. So apparently it is meant for people in their late 20s/early 30s. Come out! It's safe. It is in Waldo (duh), and now includes TEN of the Waldo bars - 75th Street Brewery, Lew's, Kennedy's, Bobby Bakers, Tanner's, Waldo Pizza, & the Waldo Bar. It starts at 6 pm and goes on as long as you can remain standing.

Blogging is so 5 minutes ago

2008-09-19T09:48:00.000-07:00

MillerCoors declares blogging dead.

Discuss.

Holla!

2008-09-16T14:25:00.000-07:00

I wanted to say thanks to Jules Crittenden. His apparently QUITE popular blog put me & my silly little blog in a post, and he's been sending me traffic. Muchas gracias! I hope he sees this, because WordPress doesn't like me today, and I couldn't comment. Boo.

I've been extolling the virtues of the Milk Stout quite heavily lately. I think I've sold a few 6 packs. You're welcome, Left Hand!

Men's Journal has an article in their Oct issue that contains the Best Beers of 2008. I haven't read it. And they haven't posted it online. But I will find it, and share what I can, whenever that is. In the meantime, let me know if it is worth the "newsstand price."

Oh No They Didn't!

2008-09-15T16:31:00.001-07:00

I saw this on Fuggled , and it was in the New York Times, last week. All I can say is if I got a ticket for drinking a beer on my own front step, I would be angry. Drinking in public = wandering down the street. Sitting on a deck, a stoop, or in front of an open window of your own home shouldn't be considered "public," IMHO.

A 39 year old Prospect Heights resident, who lives in a four-story, 20-unit co-op building with his wife and two children was ticketed for drinking a beer on his own stoop. He had watched Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s speech at the Democratic convention on television, helped put his sons to bed and washed the dishes. The time was 11:52 p.m., the date was Aug. 27, and the beer, for the record, was a 12-ounce bottle of Sierra Nevada.

A police car slowed to a stop, and the police officer in the driver’s seat said something to Mr. VanRy. He left the stoop, walked to the car and, several minutes later, was handed a small pink slip — a $25 summons for drinking in public. The officer who gave Mr. VanRy the summons asked him what brand of beer he was drinking. “I thought it was strange why it mattered,” Mr. VanRy said.

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Like Chocolate Milk

2008-09-09T14:51:00.001-07:00

I grew up as an allergied kid. I always had the sniffles, and had to have some dramatic surgery to make my head all better when I was about 6 which involved my nasal cavity. I know, gross. Turned out that I and my younger brothers are allergic to bovine dairy. Yeah. Milk. And all milk products. Don't tell me about your lactose intolerance, it is NOT the same thing. Children that can't eat ice cream or cheese pizza are going to live their entire adult lives feeling like something was missing.

I try to fill that void with beer, apparently, and I found one I think I heart. I picked up a grab bag of goodies from Rimann this weekend, after a co-worker asked me how she could find a beer that tasted like chocolate. Since I had it on the brain, I picked up some random chocolate stouts, and one Left Hand Brewing Company Milk Stout. I drank it, I didn't share it, and if I bought a 6 pack, I might have to protect it from the Husband like a mother bear protecting cubs. It is seriously that good. AND, it is a dark, sweet, CHICK beer. I promise.

It poured out of the bottle into a pint glass very dark brown, almost black coffee. It had puffy and cappuccino-like head. The smell was awesome, like spiked sweet coffee in a glass. Some maltiness, coffee and hot cocoa-like scents.

Taste was sweet. No joke. Not candy-cloying, but definitely sweet. What I found astounding was the real milky taste and mouth feel. I liked the ever-so-slight slight bitter finish.Overall just so smooth. Like chocolate milk. As a kid who could never, ever, drink a whole big tall glass of chocolate milk, this was like manna to me. I loved it. I will drink more.

But in the meantime, I plan to turn my attention to pumpkin and Oktoberfest brews in the immediate future. We're already well into September!

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Buckbean Brew Review

2008-09-02T07:49:00.001-07:00

It is about darn time that I posted this review! I had a most enjoyable 3 day weekend, but I left my camera cable at work, and I wasn't about to head into the office on a holiday weekend, just so I could retrieve some beer pics. I hope you all understand. Now, on the the beer! As you may remember, the Buckbean Brewing Company sent me some free beer. This was most exciting.

I also received a large "media kit," aka a folder full of official propaganda on the company. The gist of it was that people who adore beer start their own brewery, and decide that cans are much better for the environment. Probably cheaper too. They seem to only brew two styles/flavors of beer, and I got 2 of each. My husband Paul & I sampled the first two cans on Tuesday. My friend Sheri came over last week to help me finish reviewing the last 2 cans the Buckbean Brewery Company sent to me. I wanted to see if different people had different opinions. The bottom result was not really - Sheri, Paul & I all had similar opinions.

First up was the Original Orange Blossom Ale
The materials sent by the brewing company stated explicitly that this is not a fruit beer. It is made with orange blossom water, but not oranges. Both Paul & Sheri were a bit confused as to why it is not a fruit beer. It tasted like a fruit beer. It smelled a little reminiscent of BLVD's Lunar Ale, a little zesty, like orange flowers. When poured from the pint can into a pint glass, the first can had no head, and the second resulted in a thin head that ended up with minimal to no lacing down the sides of the glass. The taste was also zesty, fruity, a little hoppy, and very much like summery, chick beer. Paul preferred the other beer, so I drank the rest of this one on our first taste test. Sheri liked it a lot, so drank it during the second round. If I lived in Reno, this would probably be my favorite.

The second beer I received was the Black Noddy Lager. Poured into a pint glass, it was suprisingly dark for a lager. I KNOW it has Black in the name, but it reminded us of a Coke pouring out of the can. It smelled like dark caramel mixed with licorice. The mouthfeel was interesting, because due to the dark color, everyone expected it to be thick, but it is not. Very smooth, however. The taste was the great divider. It tasted like malts, and licorice. The after taste was odd and lingering, almost like Good & Plentys. Paul liked it, I thought the after taste was a little too chemical for me, and Sheri despised it, being a non-fan of licorice in any form. Anything dark & chock full of flavor like this works better for me when it is cooler out. The end of August wasn't probably the best time of year to try this one on for size, but all in all, it was still pretty tasty.

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Buckbean Brewing

2008-08-27T09:04:00.000-07:00

I received my free cans of Buckbean's Orange Blossom Ale and Black Noddy Lager (2 of each) on Monday. I was so excited, you would think that I would have tried them that night, right? No. I left them in my office overnight. Du'oh! I took them home yesterday & refrigerated them for a bit. The Husband & I both sampled each type of beer last night, and I am saving the last 2 for tonight. Unfortunately, I left my camera with beer pics at home today. (Why yes, there is a theme to this post, and it is forgetfulness. I also drop stuff often, if it makes you feel better to know that too. Awkward turtle, right here. ) So I am going to save any further review/unveiling until I am sitting down with another pint of each all to myself tonight. Stay tuned...

75th Street Brewery

2008-08-25T11:48:00.000-07:00

So the 75th St. Brewery is turning 15 years old this week. And there are specials galore. The little blurb below should give you plans for the week. I'd especially like to point out the Home Brew contest on Saturday and 2 for $15 growlers all week long!

Schlitz is making a comeback

2008-08-24T16:02:00.001-07:00

It has been all over the papers this month, especially in the Mid-West. This snippet is ripped from an Associated Press article from August 1. Leaning heavily on nostalgia in packaging and marketing messages, I think this could make a splash.

It's the beer that made Milwaukee famous. Now Schlitz is making the city nostalgic.

That beer with the old-time mystique is back on shelves in bottles of its original formula in the city where it was first brewed more than a century and a half ago.

Schlitz was the top-selling beer for much of the first half of the 20th century. But recipe changes and a series of snafus made the beer — in many a drinkers' opinion — undrinkable, turning what was once the world's most popular brews into little more than a joke.

But after decades of dormancy, the beer is back.

Schlitz' owner, Pabst Brewing Co., is recreating the old formula, using notes and interviews with old brew masters to concoct the pilsner again. The maker of another nostalgic favorite, Pabst Blue Ribbon, it hopes baby boomers will reach for the drink of their youth, otherwise known as "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous." They also want to create a following among younger drinkers who want to know what grandma and grandpa drank.

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Saturday in Denver

2008-08-19T15:06:00.001-07:00

I ripped everything below from Home Brew Beer, who received an email from Flying Dog directly.

"I just got this message from Steph at Flying Dog...

Hey,

I don't know if you have heard, but our longest standing employee and brewery manager, Mike Freeman, was recently diagnosed with a very serious brain tumor and the most aggressive of its kind! Due to Mike not being able to work and to offset some medical expenses, Mike’s friends and family are hosting a fundraiser. The fundraiser, Rock the Mike: The Freeman Brainefit, is on Saturday, August 23^rd at the old Flying Dog warehouse (24^th and Blake) from 7-2am. We are going to have several bands, free beer from Breckenridge, Great Divide and Flying Dog, free food and a raffle with a $20 cost at the door. All of the proceeds from this event are going to Mike and his fiancée Jennifer.

I was hoping you could help me spread the word in your blog, paper, to your friends, etc. The more people we get in the door, the more money Mike gets!

Please check out the website we set up for him at mikesupport.com.

Thanks for your support!

Cheers,

Stephanie Kerchner

PR and Event Coordinator

www.flyingdogales.com

www.flyingdognews.com

Great Taste, Less Filling

2008-08-19T12:44:00.000-07:00

MillerCoors is bringing back the classic “Great Taste, Less Filling” advertising tagline for Miller Lite. “Research has shown the two factors that matter the most to mainstream light beer drinkers are taste and refreshment,” MillerCoors said on Tuesday in a message to distributors.

-- ripped directly from MillerCoors' BrewBlog

The quiz question for you, dear readers, is this.

If Miller Lite = Great Taste, then Coors Light = ___________?

Lunch

2008-08-15T11:39:00.000-07:00

I had a BLT and a Fat Tire. What?

I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it

2008-08-08T12:01:00.000-07:00

My blog traffic is back up to the levels I had in 2005. Who says blogging is dead? It is just now part of a family of things like twitter, plurk, brightkite and the ever present spaces & books. My little beer blog even appears on AllTop's site, under BEER. Which is why we got the glassware giveaway. Yay. This week I was contacted by a PR person, on behalf of the Buckbean Brewing Company, located in Reno, NV. Right now their beers are really only available in Nevada, and not even widely available at that. But they are beating their drums well, and getting good reviews, so who knows what will happen in the future. The best part is that they are going to SEND ME SOME BEER! Whee! I've been at this for 4 years now. This is my first freebie. I'm so excited.

Part of the email I received from Constance, on behalf of the brewer:

Buckbean Brewing Company
We specialize in microbrews, two in particular, The Original Orange Blossom Ale and Black Noddy Larger. Our company prides themselves in being environmentally friendly by packing the beer only in cans. Beer in cans brings a positive spin on the environment because:

Cans aren’t packed in cardboard, so they don’t have to be rinsed of packing dust, which cuts back on water use
Cans are lighter than bottles, so they require less fuel to ship. When bottled beer is shipped a truck cannot be completely filled because of weight issues.
Unlike bottles, cans don’t require energy to be expended on producing and applying glue and labels.
A case of cans uses about 70% less paper and cardboard than a case of bottles
Cans are the most easily recyclable material

Locally, we're featured in over a hundred bars and stores, and we're quickly expanding into other regions.

Winner winner chicken dinner

2008-08-06T11:37:00.000-07:00

The free glassware contest, sponsored by AwesomeDeals911.com, is closed. All entries were written on scraps of paper, by me.
Then they were folded in half.
Put into this very classy plastic pink hurricane glass left over from the DZ Summer Party.
I stuck my hand in there, and pulled out ONE entry.
Ta da!
sCrockett, you are now the lucky winner of two Piels pilsner glasses! Just shoot me an email with your address, and I will send it on to our lovely giveaway sponsor, AwesomeDeals911.com.

Guaranteed we bring the brouhaha

2008-08-04T12:38:00.001-07:00

The American Royal thinks that many Kansas Citians will pay $22 in advance and $27 on the day of to attend a wine & beer tasting event. The first annual “Wine and Brew Ha-Ha” on Saturday, August 9 from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm will take place in the Hale Arena on the grounds of the American Royal.

So for $22 you can taste as many as 100 different wines & beers? Interesting. Something for the weekend!

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