Beer in the news

[Dirt Chicken]

Wasnt there another commercial series for keiths that featured that spilly talker guy with the huge burns, who in real life ended up being either a pedafile or was caught with posession of child pornography?

Sent from my SGH-T989D using Tapatalk 2

[Dirt Chicken]

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2008/08 ... stody.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

nice quote here : "Then, now and in the future, he represents a risk to children," said Crown attorney Allison Dellandrea

I'd probably say the same for the product that labatt is pushing!!!

[Jayme]

This is fucking gross. Kokanee is without a doubt the shittiest excuse for a beer I've ever had in this country. I want it gone, and the people who drink it drawn and quartered.
http://www.thestar.com/business/2013/02 ... movie.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Hahahahahahahahahahaha that takes me back to 2nd year University, before I knew better, and one of the shit heads I hung out with from Vancouver convincing me how great Kokanee was because of the fresh glacier water they used...

[canuck]

I had no problem plunking down $200 for 12 Westvleterns, but I can't see me ever spending $115 per bottle on a Sam Adams beer. Their stuff doesn't impress me whatsoever.

http://www.thestar.com/life/food_wine/2 ... hours.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[chalmers]

Utopias is a different beast completely, but the price tag does mean it's not accessible for most of us. If I had the chance, I'd buy a bottle at that price. Beer Bistro was selling shots of it for $30 when I was there two years ago.

[canuck]

Utopias is a different beast completely, but the price tag does mean it's not accessible for most of us. If I had the chance, I'd buy a bottle at that price. Beer Bistro was selling shots of it for $30 when I was there two years ago.

Oh, I'm sure that it's a different beast entirely. I just think I would have a hard time plunking down that much cash for one bottle of beer coming from a brewery, that for the most part, produces beers that I don't find particularly good. Perhaps this one might be worth the price of admission.....dunno.

[Dirt Chicken]

uploadfromtaptalk1362147441143.jpg

This showed up at the NSLC Quinpool location yesterday not sure what to make of it yet but it's from Maine

Sent from my SGH-T989D using Tapatalk 2

[mr x]

Revolution: Rise of the taproom
Pubs, restaurants and nightclubs now boast 20, 30, and even 140 beers on tap
http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Revolu ... story.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[LeafMan66_67]

http://halifaxmag.com/2013/02/blog/bridging-the-gap/

Bridging the Gap
By Nicole Trask | Feb 28, 2013


While it’s disheartening to witness so many small businesses closing downtown, I can’t help but notice that the North End seems to be blossoming. One of the latest ventures is Bridge Brewing Company, a micro-brewery located on Agricola Street conveniently across from the liquor store. I’ve been anticipating their opening for a while now so I was excited to pick up a growler and try a sample for myself.

The modern exterior of the building is simple and perhaps a little deceiving. The space boasts a surprisingly large cinderblock warehouse in the back which holds the on-site micro-brewery. Owner, Peter Burbridge, was behind the counter when I stopped by and kindly offered to give me an impromptu tour of the building. Burbridge completed his MBA at Dalhousie and has been plotting opening a small business (either in coffee or beer) ever since. He tells me that the idea for Bridge Brewing has been percolating for about three years now.

The brewing room is quite spacious and Burbridge says that they can hold up to 300 liters of beer at a time. Brew-master, Josh Herbin, uses a natural carbonation process instead of forced carbonation (which can create bigger bubbles with less of a refined taste). The recipes are Burbridge’s own and he tells me that once the beer is fermented, it’s primed with a precise amount of sugar. Gus’ and Farmhouse Ales are the two varieties currently available and I snapped up a Farmhouse growler to take home.

I’m impressed by the constant flow of customers and although the business is small in scale they’ve been steadily busy since opening on January 20th. With their ales on tap at Gus’ Pub, Brooklyn Warehouse and Chez Tess, Bridge Brewing Company is quietly gaining speed and recognition. As for their location on Agricola, Burbridge couldn’t be more pleased.

“This is exactly where we wanted to be located,” he says with a content smile. “And I can honestly say that there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”

Aside from my natural tendency to gravitate towards small businesses, there are a number of other reasons why I’m intrigued by Bridge Brewing. This grassroots business is striving to be a zero emissions brewery and they are also trying to source local ingredients whenever possible. Burbridge tells me that Herbin owns a hops farm in the Annapolis Valley and in the future they are planning to harvest these hops in new recipes. I’m also loving the simplicity of their logo and the quaint old-fashioned bottles.

Of course, the most important factor for most beer enthusiasts will be taste. Later that evening, my friend and I sampled the Farmhouse Ale, paired with sweet potato fries. This Belgian ale is crisp and unrefined and the little bubbles really gives way to a pure flavour of sweet malt and subtle fruits. Essentially, it’s a refreshing and slightly complex brew that we found to be memorable and delicious.

Needless to say, I will definitely be bringing my growler back for a refill. Bridge Brewing Company is another wonderful example of an ethical company helping to bridge the gap between big businesses and local start-ups… In the future, I will be happy to take a detour from the liquor store and visit this inspiring brewery instead.

- Nicole

[mr x]

Anheuser-Busch Defends Itself With Newspaper Ads

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Budweiser-maker Anheuser-Busch InBev defended itself against allegations it is watering down its alcoholic drinks by taking out full-page advertisements in newspapers across the United States.

The company was placing ads in more than 10 newspapers nationally, a representative of Anheuser-Busch said on Sunday. The ads featured a picture of a can of drinking water below the caption, "They must have tested one of these." Anheuser-Busch donates water to the American Red Cross.

Beer consumers have filed a proposed class-action lawsuit accusing the company of mislabeling the alcohol content of the brands Budweiser, Michelob, Michelob Ultra, Hurricane High Gravity Lager, King Cobra, Busch Ice, Natural Ice, Bud Ice, Bud Light Platinum and Bud Light Lime.

The company has said the lawsuit is groundless.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2013/03/ ... ml?hp&_r=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[GAM]

BudAd-450x600.jpg

[erslar00]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-o ... cmpid=rss1


“Many people claimed to prefer hoppy beers, but in blind taste tests most chose lighter-tasting brews.”

[chalmers]

Anheuser-Busch Defends Itself With Newspaper Ads

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Budweiser-maker Anheuser-Busch InBev defended itself against allegations it is watering down its alcoholic drinks by taking out full-page advertisements in newspapers across the United States.

The company was placing ads in more than 10 newspapers nationally, a representative of Anheuser-Busch said on Sunday. The ads featured a picture of a can of drinking water below the caption, "They must have tested one of these." Anheuser-Busch donates water to the American Red Cross.

Beer consumers have filed a proposed class-action lawsuit accusing the company of mislabeling the alcohol content of the brands Budweiser, Michelob, Michelob Ultra, Hurricane High Gravity Lager, King Cobra, Busch Ice, Natural Ice, Bud Ice, Bud Light Platinum and Bud Light Lime.

The company has said the lawsuit is groundless.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2013/03/ ... ml?hp&_r=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I'd be very surprised if the alcohol content was off from what is printed on the can/marketing. The beer goes through dozens (hundreds?) of checks along the brewing, fermenting, secondary, packaging process that a systematic error like alcohol content should be impossible. It's such an easy value to characterize and measure (unlike whether it tastes good or not).

Mind you, Subway's footlong sandwiches were only 11" long...

[Jayme]

I'd be very surprised if the alcohol content was off from what is printed on the can/marketing. The beer goes through dozens (hundreds?) of checks along the brewing, fermenting, secondary, packaging process that a systematic error like alcohol content should be impossible. It's such an easy value to characterize and measure (unlike whether it tastes good or not).

Mind you, Subway's footlong sandwiches were only 11" long...

I meant to read about this claim more and write to CBC about it. I haven't though and likely won't. My gut instinct is someone who doesn't know what the hell they're talking about, heard they high gravity brew and then water the beer down a few percentage points. Which we (as in the informed beer community) all know, but to someone who doesn't understand the core concepts of brewing could easily spin it as watering down the final product.

I believe when I heard the story on the radio, the claim was a 5% beer is being watered down to 2-3%.... If that was the case, people would have noticed this long ago... Especially in these low flavour beers. I think it's highly unlikely that the ABV is even 0.1% away from the printed value.

[erslar00]

Another interesting story...

http://www.cbc.ca/hamilton/talk/story/2 ... -beer.html

"The brewery days, though, are well and truly done. Locals pleaded with Labatt to leave the production equipment so that perhaps a craft brewery could locate there. But Labatt’s last act was to strip the place clean."

[pet lion]

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/0 ... al-farmers" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Who Grew Your Pint? How Craft Brews Boost Local Farmers
by April Fehling

Brent Manning is a maltster on a mission. The co-founder of Riverbend Malt House in Asheville, N.C., wants people to be able to taste local grains in North Carolina's beers, just as vino aficionados can identify the provenance of fine wines.

"In the wine industry ... they will tell you that the No. 1 Syrah grape grows on this hillside over here because it's a bit rockier," Manning explains. "It's that very same connection to the soil and the underlying geology that creates these nuances in flavors."

And a critical element in creating beer with truly local flavor, Manning contends, is malt made from local grains.

Asheville's beer lovers are "farm-to-table, local, local, local-focused," Manning says. But when he and business partner Brian Simpson opened Riverbend in 2010, "it was almost comical that with so much of this local beer, the only thing local [in the beer] was the water."
Valley Malt, in Hadley, Mass., works with 25 farmers growing six different types of grain in the Northeast. Enlarge image

As we've reported, water certainly can impart flavor to beer. But when it comes to creating a distinct North Carolina flavor, Manning is focused on locally sourced malt.

Malt is an essential element in beer, along with water, hops and yeast. But while most beer drinkers know that malt comes from grain, many have no idea how it's made.

That's where the maltster — yes, that's the name for people who malt — comes in: between the farmer, who grows the grain, and the brewer, who makes the beer.

To make malt, the raw grain (typically barley, wheat or rye) is sprouted in water, then dried. The process creates enzymes, breaks down the starch in the grain and produces sugars — all critical before brewing can begin.

For decades, breweries have typically purchased their malt from large-scale, mechanized facilities that pool massive volumes of grains grown throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe.

The explosion of microbreweries in recent years has spurred a small but growing craft malt industry, where tiny malt houses — facilities where malt is produced — conduct the malting process, often entirely by hand.

Emphasis on small. Andrea Stanley, who opened Valley Malt in Hadley, Mass., with her husband in 2010, says their business produces in one year what a typical Midwest malt house processes in a single day.
Throwback Brewery in New Hampshire is one of almost 20 New England breweries using malts from Massachusetts' micro-malt house Vally Malt. Enlarge image

Back in Asheville, Brent Manning acknowledges that Riverbend also "is microscopic on the grain-buyer scale right now."

But micro-malting isn't about being big, after all. Riverbend's goal, Manning says, is "to create another niche market for these farmers to sell their grain to."

That's certainly true for farmer Peter Martens, who grows a variety of grains on his certified organic farm in New York's Finger Lakes region. In 2010, he and his father planted 20 acres of malting barley for Valley Malt, "more out of curiosity than anything else."

This year, they've planted more than 80 acres of malting barley. With demand strong, Martens is considering boosting production even further.

Craft malt houses have another benefit for farmers, says Manning: They offer some insurance against the vagaries of the market. Farmers' livelihoods depend on the price they get when they sell their product — and that price can vary wildly. Riverbend's goal "was to get farmers out of that commodity price loop," Manning says.

Amy Poirier says that has proven true on her family's farm, Hoffner Organic Farms, in Mount Ulla, N.C. Contracting with Riverbend has guaranteed a set price for their barley each year, she says. "So those fluctuations," Poirier says, "we don't have to worry about them as much."

Back in upstate New York, farmer Peter Martens says he's now getting calls regularly from new maltsters looking for certified organic barley.

More importantly, the craft maltsters "seem to be really knowledgeable about what they're doing" — and intent on building a business model that can last, Martens says.

Brewing locally sourced beer is a business, after all, which means everyone in the production chain must have an eye toward staying in the black. Even so, the locavore ethos is alive and well.
This cow may have been raised for food on a farm near you, but it may not necessarily have been processed nearby

In Massachusetts, for instance, Valley Malt encourages small farmers just learning how to grow grain for malt, Andrea Stanley says. She and her husband currently work with 25 farmers and offer assistance with seed, equipment and harvesting.
The Know Your Farmer interactive map shows USDA-supported projects and programs related to local and regional food systems for the years 2009-2011.

"It is a lot of coordination and a lot of work," Stanley says. "I could easily just tell one of our [more experienced] farmers, 'Can you plant more acres for me?' ... But for now, we have certain values that are driving our business that just aren't about the bottom line."

[LiverDance]

Trooper: A new premium British beer from Iron Maiden and Robinsons Brewery

http://www.ironmaiden.com/trooper--a-ne ... ewery.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Tony L]

Sierra Nevada opening a new brewery.

http://m.postandcourier.com/article/201 ... /130319778" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[mr x]

http://www.thecoast.ca/halifax/homebrew ... id=3733640" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Homebrew’s where the heart is
The region’s keenest homebrewers get a taste of true blonde ambition at Garrison’s fifth annual Ultimate Brew-off.

"It can be impossible to drink a bourbon barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout in Nova Scotia unless you brew it yourself, and that's the crowd I am firmly planted in," says Chris MacDonald of the Brewnosers Homebrew and Beer Appreciation Club.

He, like many of the group's 200 active members, has been preparing over the past several weeks for this year's annual Ultimate Brew-off, presented by Garrison Brewing Co. and Noble Grape. "It is an ode to homebrewing from Garrison, as Brian Titus began his brewing career as a homebrewer," explains MacDonald. Now in its fifth year, the Beer Judge Certification Program-certified homebrewing competition received a record number of entries (69!), making this the fiercest contest yet.

At the end of each calendar year Garrison puts out a call for entries to Atlantic homebrewers, giving them about three months to brew a 20-litre batch of a predetermined beer style---one the brewery is not currently producing. Past styles have included a standard bitter (Harvey's Bitter, 2009), a Belgian witbier (Nit-Wit, 2010), a schwarzbier (Adam and Eric's Schwarzbier, 2011) and a rye IPA (Citra and the Rye, 2012). After passing through three levels of judging---the last of which takes place during a special gala event at the brewery---the winner receives bragging rights, and spends the weeks prior to the next year's gala event reworking and then brewing their winning entry with Garrison's brewmaster Daniel Girard, after which it gets bottled, labelled and stocked on the shelves of Garrison, private stores and about one-third of NSLCs.

Nit-Wit, the winning 2010 beer baby of Scott Tilford, has created such a following that Garrison has released it as a spring seasonal every year since. But Nova Scotians aren't the only fans. Nit-Wit brought home silver at the 2011 Canadian Brewing Awards in the French and Belgian Style Saison category, flanked by Great Lakes Brewery's Deliverance Saison (gold) and Beau's All Natural Brewing Company's Patio Saison (bronze).

Tilford, an avid homebrewer, has continued to enter the contest since his big win. When this year's style, Belgian blonde, was announced he gathered up some brewing friends to do some research. "We didn't know what to do, so we sampled some," he says. But that's the whole point, according to Tilford: "We all have things we like to brew, but it makes you get out of your rut." And as for the Brew-off itself, "Winning the event is great for bragging rights but spending the day with Daniel [Girard] is a beermaker's dream field trip."

And Girard has a new apprentice this year. Kellye Robertson of Lunenburg spent her spring break from her last semester at the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program at Niagra College driving to Nova Scotia to prepare her winning beer from last year's competition. In preparation for this year's gala unveiling, Robertson has been brewing her winning Rye-PA with Girard over the past few weeks.

"He's just a wealth of knowledge. To be able to pick his brain is invaluable," she says. "Working with someone who's still so passionate about beer is so great. It's Day One for him every day. If you don't already love it, you want to."

Robertson's take on the rye IPA style includes "a super-high rye percentage," with the initial recipe calling for 40 percent. "We had to back it up because the rye would have made the mash gummy," she explains, "so it's at about 36 percent rye." With an expected ABV (alcohol by volume) of between 6.5 and 6.7 percent, as Robertson says, it's "high enough to make it interesting...not super sessionable, but middle-ground."

As for the beer's name and label: top-secret. "Not even Kellye knows, and it's driving her crazy!" laughs Titus. As per Brew-off etiquette, last year's winning beer will be officially unveiled during the gala, complete with samples for attendees. And Robertson can't wait. "The gala's awesome if you're a beer nerd...it's a collection of all the beer nerds in the city in one room for one night!" Tilford won't miss it either. "I look forward to it every year," he says. "One guy I know just brewed a batch so he could come."

The gala will take place at the Garrison Brewery (1149 Marginal Road) on March 21 where this year's top four Belgian blonde entries will be judged by BJCP-certified judges. Plenty of samples will be consumed and, according to Titus, Girard plans to do some "spring cleaning," and will be sharing a few liquid trinkets from his secret stash. "You never know what kind of surprises come out on that night," he teases.

With two tickets given to each contestant, space is at a premium. But a limited number of tickets will be available at the door.

[mr x]

Too bad we didn't get a web link in that article.

[chalmers]

How did I do, guys? They had emailed looking to take a picture, but I'm away in the US, so I couldn't get my mug in the paper. Probably better for their circulation numbers.

[canuck]

How did I do, guys? They had emailed looking to take a picture, but I'm away in the US, so I couldn't get my mug in the paper. Probably better for their circulation numbers.

You did a bang up job, Chris!

[CorneliusAlphonse]

How did I do, guys? They had emailed looking to take a picture, but I'm away in the US, so I couldn't get my mug in the paper. Probably better for their circulation numbers.

Yup good work!

[mr x]

How Beer Gave Us Civilization

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/17/opini ... on.html?hp" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

HUMAN beings are social animals. But just as important, we are socially constrained as well.

We can probably thank the latter trait for keeping our fledgling species alive at the dawn of man. Five core social instincts, I have argued, gave structure and strength to our primeval herds. They kept us safely codependent with our fellow clan members, assigned us a rank in the pecking order, made sure we all did our chores, discouraged us from offending others, and removed us from this social coil when we became a drag on shared resources.

Thus could our ancient forebears cooperate, prosper, multiply — and pass along their DNA to later generations.

But then, these same lifesaving social instincts didn’t readily lend themselves to exploration, artistic expression, romance, inventiveness and experimentation — the other human drives that make for a vibrant civilization.

To free up those, we needed something that would suppress the rigid social codes that kept our clans safe and alive. We needed something that, on occasion, would let us break free from our biological herd imperative — or at least let us suppress our angst when we did.

We needed beer.

Luckily, from time to time, our ancestors, like other animals, would run across fermented fruit or grain and sample it. How this accidental discovery evolved into the first keg party, of course, is still unknown. But evolve it did, perhaps as early as 10,000 years ago.

Current theory has it that grain was first domesticated for food. But since the 1950s, many scholars have found circumstantial evidence that supports the idea that some early humans grew and stored grain for beer, even before they cultivated it for bread.

Brian Hayden and colleagues at Simon Fraser University in Canada provide new support for this theory in an article published this month (and online last year) in the Journal of Archeological Method and Theory. Examining potential beer-brewing tools in archaeological remains from the Natufian culture in the Eastern Mediterranean, the team concludes that “brewing of beer was an important aspect of feasting and society in the Late Epipaleolithic” era.

Anthropological studies in Mexico suggest a similar conclusion: there, the ancestral grass of modern maize, teosinte, was well suited for making beer — but was much less so for making corn flour for bread or tortillas. It took generations for Mexican farmers to domesticate this grass into maize, which then became a staple of the local diet.

Once the effects of these early brews were discovered, the value of beer (as well as wine and other fermented potions) must have become immediately apparent. With the help of the new psychopharmacological brew, humans could quell the angst of defying those herd instincts. Conversations around the campfire, no doubt, took on a new dimension: the painfully shy, their angst suddenly quelled, could now speak their minds.

But the alcohol would have had more far-ranging effects, too, reducing the strong herd instincts to maintain a rigid social structure. In time, humans became more expansive in their thinking, as well as more collaborative and creative. A night of modest tippling may have ushered in these feelings of freedom — though, the morning after, instincts to conform and submit would have kicked back in to restore the social order.

Some evidence suggests that these early brews (or wines) were also considered aids in deliberation. In long ago Germany and Persia, collective decisions of state were made after a few warm ones, then double-checked when sober. Elsewhere, they did it the other way around.

Beer was thought to be so important in many bygone civilizations that the Code of Urukagina, often cited as the first legal code, even prescribed it as a central unit of payment and penance.

Part of beer’s virtue in ancient times was that its alcohol content would have been sharply limited. As far as the research has shown, distillation of alcohol to higher concentrations began only about 2,000 years ago.

Today, many people drink too much because they have more than average social anxiety or panic anxiety to quell — disorders that may result, in fact, from those primeval herd instincts kicking into overdrive. But getting drunk, unfortunately, only compounds the problem: it can lead to decivilizing behaviors and encounters, and harm the body over time. For those with anxiety and depressive disorders, indeed, there are much safer and more effective drugs than alcohol — and together with psychotherapy, these newfangled improvements on beer can ease the angst.

But beer’s place in the development of civilization deserves at least a raising of the glass. As the ever rational Ben Franklin supposedly said, “Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.”

Several thousand years before Franklin, I’m guessing, some Neolithic fellow probably made the same toast.

[canuck]

http://atlanticcanadabeerblog.wordpress ... hat-could/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;