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Alan Pusgley’s New Signature Series

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Shipyard Brewing announced today the launch of Pugsley’s Signature Series line, and the first two products in the line, a Barley Wine Style Ale and an Imperial Porter. The new beers will be available in November, in 22 oz. bottles and on draft.

Pugsley’s Signature Series is named after Shipyard’s master brewer, Alan Pugsley. Pugsley is from Hampshire, England where he worked with Peter Austin at the Ringwood Brewery, before moving to the U.S. in 1986.

Barley Wine Style Ale

Barley Wine Style Ale is a big beer made with six different malts (Pale Ale, Crystal, Caramunich, Wheat, Chocolate and Roasted Barley) and balanced with a very full hop charge of Summit, Challenger and Fuggles hops. It is a deep reddish brown color with a complex fruity nose, a very full body, and an interesting balance between grains and hops which ends with a pleasing dry taste. To fully enjoy all the flavors, this ale is best drunk at 55 degrees Fahrenheit. 8.5% alcohol by volume.

Imperial Porter

Imperial Porter is a full bodied, very dark, malty beer with a good roasted character coming from the Crystal, Chocolate and Black Patent Malts used in the mash. Warrior, English Fuggles, and East Kent Goldings Hops balance the malts with a good hop bite. The beer has an OG of 1.070, rounding out after fermentation with just a slight residual sweetness and cutting dry at the finish. 7.1% alcohol by volume.

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Tripel Karmeliet Named World’s Best Ale

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This weekend in London, Tripel Karmeliet was named the “World’s Best Ale” at the World Beer Awards.

Tripel Karmeliet

Tripel Karmeliet is a historical “3 grain” beer, using barley, wheat and oats, and is refermented in the bottle. The recipe originated in a Carmelite monastery in 1679. Today it is brewed according to the same recipe at the Bosteels Brewery in Belgium.

There were also three other big awards. Primator Exkluziv was named World’s Best Lager, Kaltenberg Konig Ludwig Weissbier was declared the World’s Best Wheat Beer, and our own Rogue Shakespeare Stout was named World’s Best Stout/Porter.

World Beer Awards

The rest of the awards are available at the World Beer Awards website.

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Bitch Creek 20th Anniversary Double ESB

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Twenty years ago Charlie Otto began making beer in Wyoming’s first modern brewery, a 210 square foot cabin in Jackson Hole. Since then, Grand Teton Brewing Company has grown into its present 11,000 square foot facility in Victor, Idaho, winning dozens of major awards and bringing innovations like the reusable glass growler to the brewing world.

To commemorate that twenty-year history, Grand Teton’s brewers have chosen four of their year-round beers—three current, one historical—to strengthen and enhance. XX Bitch Creek Double ESB is the final release in our 2008 XX series.

Bitch Creek ESB was first brewed in 2003, and perfectly balances big malt sweetness and robust hop flavor for a full-bodied mahogany ale. It has quickly become our best-selling beer, as well as our most-critically acclaimed, having won medals–including two golds— at four out the past five Great American Beer Festivals.

Bitch Creek

XX Bitch Creek Double ESB is all that and more. We took the Bitch Creek recipe and doubled everything: double the malt, double the hops, twice the flavor. This is a huge beer at 7.5% alcohol by volume, which should be paired with only the most flavorful of foods. Try it with the best steaks, game meats and hearty stews, or with a nice cave-aged Gouda.

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Iron Hill Announces New Jersey Location

Posted in Breweries, News on   

The award-winning brewpub chain, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant, announced today their eighth location, and their first in New Jersey. In May 2009, they’ll open a new brewpub in Maple Shade, New Jersey. The address will be 124 East Kings Highway.

“We hope that beer and food lovers in New Jersey will enjoy our house-brewed beers and delicious cuisine as much as our fans in Pennsylvania and Delaware,” says Iron Hill founding partner Kevin Finn. Along with co-owners Kevin Davies and Mark Edelson, Finn has continuously sought out thriving suburban locations for their award-winning concept, beginning in Newark, DE in 1995.The Maple Shade location is made even more special by the fact that all three owners hail from New Jersey.

Iron Hill

The executive chef and head brewer have not yet been named, but will no doubt continue Iron Hill’s tradition of culinary and brewing excellence. The new location will accommodate 280 guests and serve Iron Hill’s menu of new American favorites including their signature Brewski Burger, with mushrooms, bacon and a choice of American, sharp cheddar, Swiss, provolone or muenster cheeses; Fish and Chips, North Atlantic Pollack battered in their own Vienna lager and served with French fries, cole slaw and malt vinegar; Black Pepper Crusted Ahi Tuna with a salad of lentils, spinach, grape tomatoes and shallots and a port wine vinaigrette; and Pan Roasted Chicken Breast with smashed Yukon gold potatoes, crispy friend onion rings, asparagus and thyme pan jus. Iron Hill will be open for lunch and dinner, seven days a week.

Iron Hill Maple Shade will also offer an impressive selection of their house-brewed beers, including: Vienna Red Lager, an Austrian lager with bread-y malt aroma and a clean, crisp finish; Pig Iron Porter, dark, flavorful and chocolate-y with good balance and a slight bitterness; Raspberry Wheat, a filtered American wheat beer with a touch of natural raspberry flavor; and Ironbound Ale, a celebration of American ales made from the nation’s finest hops varieties such as Cascade, Crystal, Centennial and Chinook.

Plans are also afoot for Iron Hill to add six additional brewpubs by 2011.

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The UFO Vote

Posted in Beer culture, Just for fun on   

Senator Barack Obama holds a commanding lead over Senator John McCain – 10,238 votes (55 percent) to 8,411 votes (45 percent), as of October 21 — in The Flying Saucer Draught Emporium’s 2008 Presidential Election Poll.

The Texas-based restaurant chain kicked off its poll in early September, and polling lasts until election night, Tuesday, Nov. 4. Customers can “vote” for their favorite candidate by purchasing special pint glasses for $5. Votes are tallied and updated at the end of each day, and customers can vote as many times as they like.

“People often discuss politics over a beer, so what better way to get in the spirit of the election than to combine the two – and get to vote for your candidate as many times as you like!” said Shannon Wynne, owner of The Flying Saucer. “Senator Obama leads overall and in the majority of our markets, but Senator McCain does lead in a few. The Flying Saucer is present in several battleground states, so it’s pretty interesting when you look at the breakdown of votes.”

Flying Saucer

The Flying Saucer is hosting the 2008 poll at all of its 13 locations in six states, which include Dallas, Austin, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio, Texas; Kansas City, Mo.; Little Rock, Ark.; Cordova, Memphis and Nashville, Tenn.; Charlotte and Raleigh, N.C.; and Columbia, S.C. Polling data for each location is listed, and appears to updated daily, along with a running total.

The Flying Saucer’s first poll, held in 2004, accurately predicted that incumbent president George W. Bush would defeat Senator John Kerry. For up-to-date poll results on this year’s polling, visit Flying Saucer’s website.

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Kegerator Social Network

Posted in Beer culture on   

Those of you who receive the Realbeer.com Newsletter, RBPMail, may have noticed a link problem in the following ad:

NEWS ALERT! MUST JOIN BEER SOCIAL NETWORK View BEER member profiles, photos, videos, blog posts, forums, events, contest & more! See What all the BUZZ is about.

The correct link to the Kegerator Social Network is http://kegerator-social-network.micromatic.com.

Kegerator Beauty Contest

And congratulations to Ryan Bevers, the Grand Prize winner in Micromatic’s Kegerator Beauty Contest!

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Zima Ziscontinued

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According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, MillerCoors announced today that they will discontinue their clear malternative Zima, Arguably one of the first alcopops made in the U.S. when it debuted in 1994, Zima has managed to stay around longer than many of its competitors, including being remade with new flavors such as Zima Citrus, Zima Pineapple Citrus and Zima Tangerine.

If you’re feeling nostalgic for just one last sip of the lemony malt-based beverage, the final shipments to distributors will likely be in December, meaning Zima should still be found on store shelves through the beginning of next spring.

Zima

“This decision is necessary to reduce complexity when it comes to our brand portfolio, allowing for more focused activity at retail on consumer-preferred brands, especially Sparks,” Andy England, chief marketing officer, wrote in a memo released Monday by MillerCoors, a joint venture formed by merging Miller Brewing Co. and Coors Brewing Co.

According to BrandWeek, alcopop sales have been down lately, presumably due in part to their being targeted by neo-prohibitionist groups in many states.

Overall, the progressive adult beverage category is off 6.6%. Case sales of the Smirnoff Ice brand family are down 11%, while Mike’s Hard Lemonade brands are up 1% and Anheuser-Busch’s Bacardi Silver brands are up 10.4%.

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Voting in the ALEction

Posted in Beers, Just for fun on   

Half Moon Bay Brewing, on the coast of California near Pacifica, has come up with a unique way to decide the election. Their beer line, named Maverick’s, has taken their popular Harbor Light Ale, which their website describes as “a light colored beer brewed with European malt and hops, lager-like flavors and a light, clean aftertaste,” and created two tap handles and labels for the beer.

Though the beer is the same, they’ve labeled one beer for Barack Obama and another for John McCain. At the bar, the tap handle on the left features Obama and the tap handle on the right has McCain. Half Moon Bay’s alection is then tracking sales of both the draft varieties and also 22 oz. bottles, which likewise feature two different labels for each of the candidates. Bottles can be found at the brewpub and also at select bay area retailers (and can be purchased online, but only in California).

Half Moon Bay Brewing

So far, Obama has outsold McCain 5,048 to 1,336 and an ongoing tally is available online. As the Half Moon Bay alection puts it, vote early and often.

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iBeer Suing iPint

Posted in Beer culture, Just for fun on   

Steve Sheraton, magician and inventor, created a little application or the iPhone last year called iBeer. iBeer gives the illusion of a pint of beer on your iPhone, and even allows you to drink it down by tilting your iBeer to one side, the way you’d drain a real pint of beer.

iBeer

Coors appears to have stolen the idea for iPint, promoting one of their global brands, Carling. According to news reports:

Hottrix, a small Las Vegas-based novelty software company, which now owns the rights to Sheraton’s digital gimmicks, last week filed a lawsuit against Coors, seeking $US12.5 million ($18 million) in damages for lost profits and the brewer’s “ill-gotten gains”. The suit claims that iPint had been downloaded more than 6 million times since it launch on July 11 and, being a free download, “significantly” impaired the number of iBeer (paid) downloads.

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GABF 2008: The Full Winner List

Posted in Beer culture, Beers, Breweries on   

The 27th annual Great American Beer Festival awarded 222 medals for beers entered in 75 different style categories.

Category: 1 American-Style Cream Ale or Lager – 25 Entries
Gold: Lone Star, Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL
Silver: Hamm’s, MillerCoors, Milwaukee, WI
Bronze: Henry Weinhard’s Blue Boar Pale Ale, MillerCoors, Milwaukee, WI

Category: 2 American-Style Wheat Beer – 21 Entries
Gold: Pyramid Crystal Wheat Ale, Pyramid Breweries Inc., Seattle, WA
Silver: Spanish Peak Crystal Weiss, Spanish Peaks Brewing Co., Stamford, CT
Bronze: American Wheat, Gella’s Diner and Lb. Brewing Co., Hays, KS

Category: 3 American-Style Hefeweizen – 52 Entries
Gold: Henry Weinhard’s Hefeweizen, MillerCoors, Milwaukee, WI
Silver: Hefeweizen, Widmer Brothers Brewing Co., Portland, OR
Bronze: Whitetail Wheat, Montana Brewing Co., Billings, MT

Category: 4 Fruit or Vegetable Beer – 87 Entries
Gold: Pyramid Apricot Ale, Pyramid Breweries Inc., Seattle, WA
Silver: Alaskan Raspberry Wheat Beer, Alaskan Brewing Co., Juneau, AK
Bronze: Sangre de Frambuesa, Santa Fe Brewing Co., Santa Fe, NM

Category: 5 Herb and Spice or Chocolate Beer – 72 Entries
Gold: Russian Roulette, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, Minneapolis, MN
Silver: Pangaea, Dogfish Head Brewery, Milton, DE
Bronze: State Beach Blonde, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA

Category: 6 Coffee Flavored Beer – 28 Entries
Gold: Java the Hut, CB & Potts Restaurant & Brewery (Flatirons – Westminster), Broomfield, CO
Silver: Big Shot Espresso Stout, Twisted Pine Brewing Co., Boulder, CO
Bronze: Double Espresso Stout, Barley Brothers Brewery and Grill, Lake Havasu City, AZ

Category: 7 Specialty Beer – 21 Entries
Gold: Red & White, Dogfish Head Brewery, Milton, DE
Silver: Hazelnut Brown Nectar, Rogue Ales, Portland, OR
Bronze: Palo Santo Marron, Dogfish Head Brewery, Milton, DE

Category: 8 Rye Beer – 24 Entries
Gold: Roggenbier, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant – Media, Wilmington, DE
Silver: Right On Rye, Rock Bottom Brewery – Bethesda, Bethesda, MD
Bronze: Ryeteous Red, Amherst Brewing Co., Amherst, MA

Category: 9 Specialty Honey Beer – 33 Entries
Gold: Honey Lager, Capitol City Brewing Co. – Capitol Hill, Washington, DC
Silver: Eye of the Storm, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, Minneapolis, MN
Bronze: Honey Moon Summer Ale, Blue Moon Brewing Co., Golden, CO

Category: 10 Session Beer – 33 Entries
Gold: 3.2 Unfiltered Wheat Beer, Boulevard Brewing Co., Kansas City, MO
Silver: USS Minnow Mild Ale, Dry Dock Brewing, Aurora, CO
Bronze: Blonde Bombshell, Cascade Lakes Brewing Co., Redmond, OR

Category: 11 Other Strong Beer – 32 Entries
Gold: Derail Ale, Durango Brewing Co., Durango, CO
Silver: Imperial Oatmeal Stout, Boundary Bay Brewery, Bellingham, WA
Bronze: FiftyFifty Imperial Stout, FiftyFifty Brewing Co., Truckee, CA

Category: 12 Experimental Beer – 82 Entries
Gold: Arquebus, Cambridge Brewing Co., Cambridge, MA
Silver: Fifteen Avery Anniversary Ale, Avery Brewing Co., Boulder, CO
Bronze: Le Pelican Brun, Pelican Pub & Brewery, Pacific City, OR

Category: 13 Gluten-Free Beer – 10 Entries
Gold: Redbridge, Anheuser-Busch, Inc., St. Louis, MO
Silver: New Grist, Lakefront Brewery, Milwaukee, WI
Bronze: Chinquapin Butte Golden Ale, Deschutes Brewery, Bend, OR

Category: 14 American-Belgo Style Ale – 36 Entries
Gold: Xtra Gold, Captain Lawrence Brewing Co., Pleasantville, NY
Silver: Brush Fire Ale, Pump House Restaurant & Brewery, Longmont, CO
Bronze: Big Wednesday, Pizza Port Solana Beach, Solana Beach, CA

Category: 15 American-Style or German-Style Sour Ale – 34 Entries
Gold: The Dissident, Deschutes Brewery, Bend, OR
Silver: Brute, Ithaca Beer Co., Ithaca, NY
Bronze: Fifth Element, Squatters Pub Brewery, Salt Lake City, UT

Category: 16 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Beer – 25 Entries
Gold: Old Jack, Ram Restaurant & Brewery (Indianapolis), Indianapolis, IN
Silver: Buffalo Bock, Ram Restaurant & Brewery (Indianapolis), Indianapolis, IN
Bronze: Beastie Barrel Stout, Barley Island Brewing Co., Fishers, IN

Category: 17 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer – 79 Entries
Gold: Bourbon Barrel Barleywine, Central Waters Brewing Co., Amherst, WI
Silver: The Legend of the Liquid Brain Imperial Stout, Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO
Bronze: Golden Delicious, Captain Lawrence Brewing Co., Pleasantville, NY

Category: 18 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer – 27 Entries
Gold: Beekeeper, Bullfrog Brewery, Williamsport, PA
Silver: Cherry Dubbel, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant – Newark, Wilmington, DE
Bronze: Cascade Kriek Ale, Cascade Brewing Co., Portland, OR

Category: 19 Aged Beer – 38 Entries
Gold: Alaskan Smoked Porter 2006, Alaskan Brewing Co., Juneau, AK
Silver: Vintage Speedway Stout, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Bronze: Samuel Adams Utopias 2003, Boston Beer Co., Boston, MA

Category: 20 Kellerbier/Zwickelbier – 23 Entries
Gold: Helles Keller, Fredericksburg Brewing Co., Fredericksburg, TX
Silver: Hell In Keller, Uncle Billy’s Brew & Que, Austin, TX
Bronze: Zwickel, Chama River Brewing Co., Albuquerque, NM

Category: 21 Smoke-Flavored Beer – 31 Entries
Gold: Rauch Bier, Sly Fox Brewing Co., Royersford, PA
Silver: Alaskan Smoked Porter 2007, Alaskan Brewing Co., Juneau, AK
Bronze: Second Hand Smoke, The SandLot, Denver, CO

Category: 22 International-Style Pilsener – 22 Entries
Gold: Session Premium Lager, Full Sail Brewing Co., Hood River, OR
Silver: Yep, Still Boneheads, The SandLot, Denver, CO
Bronze: OE 800, MillerCoors, Milwaukee, WI

Category: 23 German-Style Pilsener – 44 Entries
Gold: Kaiser Pilsner, Pennsylvania Brewing Co., Pittsburgh, PA
Silver: Party Pants Pilsener, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Bronze: Prima Pils, Victory Brewing Co., Downingtown, PA

Category: 24 Bohemian-Style Pilsener – 34 Entries
Gold: Pleasantville Pils, Durango Brewing Co., Durango, CO
Silver: Pallavicini Pilsner, Pug Ryans Brewery, Dillon, CO
Bronze: Double Aught, Bear Republic Brewing Co., Healdsburg, CA

Category: 25 Munich-Style Helles – 30 Entries
Gold: Himmelbrau Helles, Laurelwood Brewing Co., Portland, OR
Silver: Saint Arnold Summer Pils, Saint Arnold Brewing Co., Houston, TX
Bronze: BS Helles, The SandLot, Denver, CO

Category: 26 Dortmunder or German-Style Oktoberfest – 16 Entries
Gold: Rolling Thunder Dortmunder, Snake River Brewing Jackson, Jackson, WY
Silver: Westy Export, CB & Potts Restaurant & Brewery (Flatirons-Westminster), Broomfield, CO
Bronze: Penn Oktoberfest, Pennsylvania Brewing Co., Pittsburgh, PA

Category: 27 America-Style Light Lager – 25 Entries
Gold: Coors Light, MillerCoors, Milwaukee, WI
Silver: Old Milwaukee Light, Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL
Bronze: Keystone Light, MillerCoors, Milwaukee, WI

Category: 28 American-Style Lager or Premium Lager – 29 Entries
Gold: Olympia, Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL
Silver: Blatz, Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL
Bronze: Henry Weinhard’s Private Reserve, MillerCoors, Milwaukee, WI

Category: 29 American-Style Specialty Lager – 24 Entries
Gold: Hurricane High Gravity, Anheuser-Busch, Inc., St. Louis, MO
Silver: Natural Ice, Anheuser-Busch, Inc., St. Louis, MO
Bronze: Busch Ice, Anheuser-Busch, Inc., St. Louis, MO

Category: 30 Vienna-Style Lager – 28 Entries
Gold: Vienna Red Lager, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant – West Chester, Wilmington, DE
Silver: Oaktoberfest, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Bronze: Clipper City MarzHon, Clipper City Brewing Co., Baltimore, MD

Category: 31 German-Style Märzen – 48 Entries
Gold: Dogtoberfest, Flying Dog Brewery, Frederick, MD
Silver: Saratoga Lager, Olde Saratoga Brewing Co., Saratoga Springs, NY
Bronze: Munsterfest, Three Floyds Brewing Co., Munster, IN

Category: 32 American-Style Amber Lager – 43 Entries
Gold: BJ’s Oktoberfest, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewery – Chandler, Huntington Beach, CA
Silver: Old Scratch Amber Lager, Flying Dog Brewery, Frederick, MD
Bronze: El Oso, Bear Republic Brewing Co., Healdsburg, CA

Category: 33 European-Style Dunkel – 18 Entries
Gold: Munich Dark, Redwood Brewing Co., Flint, MI
Silver: Bastone Münchner Dunkel, Bastone Brewery, Royal Oak, MI
Bronze: Michelob AmberBock, Michelob Brewing Co., St. Louis, MO

Category: 34 American-Style Dark Lager – 12 Entries
Silver: Leinenkugel’s Creamy Dark, Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co., Chippewa Falls, WI
Bronze: Henry Weinhard’s Classic Dark, MillerCoors, Milwaukee, WI

Category: 35 German-Style Schwarzbier – 23 Entries
Gold: B3K, Wynkoop Brewing Co., Denver, CO
Silver: Cherny Bock, Bohemian Brewery, Midvale, UT
Bronze: Black Noddy Lager, Buckbean Brewing Co., Reno, NV

Category: 36 Bock – 39 Entries
Gold: Goat Rancher, The SandLot, Denver, CO
Silver: Bock Lager, Elk Grove Brewery and Restaurant, Elk Grove, CA
Bronze: Butt Head Bock, Tommyknocker Brewery, Idaho Springs, CO

Category: 37 German-Style Strong Bock – 19 Entries
Gold: Capital Autumnal Fire, Capital Brewery Co., Inc., Middleton, WI
Silver: Deep Water Dopplebock, Thomas Creek Brewery, Greenville, SC
Bronze: Red Cock Doppel Bock, Maui Brewing Co., Lahaina, HI

Category: 38 Baltic-Style Porter – 18 Entries
Gold: Kick in the Baltic Porter, Bluegrass Brewing Co., Louisville, KY
Silver: Killer Kowalski, Flossmoor Station Brewing Co., Flossmoor, IL
Bronze: SMP, Sixpoint Craft Ales, Brooklyn, NY

Category: 39 Golden or Blonde Ale – 40 Entries
Gold: Steelhead Extra Pale Ale, Mad River Brewing Co., Blue Lake, CA
Silver: Alaskan Summer Ale, Alaskan Brewing Co., Juneau, AK
Bronze: All Nighter, Chicago Brewing Co., Las Vegas, NV

Category: 40 German-Style K̦lsch Р42 Entries
Gold: Wind Blown Blonde, Stewart’s Brewing Co., Bear, DE
Silver: Sierra Nevada Kolsch Style Ale, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA
Bronze: Guido’s Kolner Brau, Snake River Brewing Jackson, Jackson, WY

Category: 41 English-Style Summer Ale – 34 Entries
Gold: Surfer’s Summer Ale, Pelican Pub & Brewery, Pacific City, OR
Silver: Montgomery Blonde, Montgomery Brewing Co., Montgomery, AL
Bronze: 312 ‘Urban Wheat Ale’, Goose Island Beer Co., Chicago, IL

Category: 42 Classic English-Style Pale Ale – 48 Entries
Gold: Full Sail Pale Ale, Full Sail Brewing Co., Hood River, OR
Silver: Clipper City Pale Ale, Clipper City Brewing Co., Baltimore, MD
Bronze: Summit Extra Pale Ale, Summit Brewing Co., Saint Paul, MN

Category: 43 English-Style India Pale Ale – 28 Entries
Bronze: Hop Daddy IPA, Main Street Brewery, Corona, CA

Category: 44 American-Style Pale Ale – 76 Entries
Gold: Mission Street Pale, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Silver: Drake’s 1500 Pale, Drake’s Brewing Co., San Leandro, CA
Bronze: Firestone Pale 31, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA

Category: 45 American-Style Strong Pale Ale – 71 Entries
Gold: Hop Bomb, Rock Bottom Brewing, Louisville, CO
Silver: Nectar Pale, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Bronze: Organic IPA, Hopworks Urban Brewery, Portland, OR

Category: 46 American-Style India Pale Ale – 104 Entries
Gold: Union Jack IPA, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Silver: Blind Pig IPA, Russian River Brewing Co., Santa Rosa, CA
Bronze: Hop Head, Bend Brewing Co., Bend, OR

Category: 47 Imperial or Double India Pale Ale – 50 Entries
Gold: Hopnotic 2X IPA, San Diego Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Silver: Hip Hop Double IPA, Hollister Brewing Co., Goleta, CA
Bronze: Hop 15, Port Brewing and The Lost Abbey, San Marcos, CA

Category: 48 American-Style Amber/Red Ale – 65 Entries
Gold: Dry Hopped Red, Rogue Ales, Portland, OR
Silver: CascaZilla, Ithaca Beer Co., Ithaca, NY
Bronze: American Amber, Rogue Ales, Portland, OR

Category: 49 Imperial or Double Red Ale – 30 Entries
Gold: Rock Hopera Imperial IPA, Vino’s Pizza • Pub • Brewery, Little Rock, AR
Silver: Alpha Dog Double Red Ale, Big Dog’s Brewing Co., Las Vegas, NV
Bronze: Weekender Red Ale, Amicas, Salida, CO

Category: 50 Bitter or Pale Mild Ale – 42 Entries
Gold: Drop Top, Widmer Brothers Brewing Co., Portland, OR
Silver: Hopsmith Pale Ale, Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO
Bronze: Sawtooth Ale, Left Hand Brewing Co., Longmont, CO

Category: 51 Extra Special Bitter or Strong Bitter – 43 Entries
Gold: Bachelor ESB, Deschutes Brewery, Bend, OR
Silver: Sweetwater Motorboat ESB, Sweetwater Brewing Co., Atlanta, GA
Bronze: Standing Wave Pale Ale, Kannah Creek Brewing Co., Grand Junction, CO

Category: 52 Scottish-Style Ale – 24 Entries
Gold: Highland Courage, Rock Bottom Brewery – Bethesda, Bethesda, MD
Silver: Dells Chief Amber Ale, Dells Brewing Co., Wisconsin Dells, WI
Bronze: Railbender Ale, Erie Brewing Co., Erie, PA

Category: 53 Irish-Style Red Ale – 31 Entries
Gold: Red Rocks Red Ale, Rock Bottom Brewing, Louisville, CO
Silver: Ragtop Red, Rock Bottom Brewery – La Jolla, La Jolla, CA
Bronze: Eric The Red, Rock Bottom Brewery – Orland Park, Orland Park, IL

Category: 54 English-Style Dark Mild Ale or Brown Ale – 48 Entries
Gold: Sweet George’s Brown, Dillon DAM Brewery, Dillon, CO
Silver: Old Elk Brown Ale, Walnut Brewery, Boulder, CO
Bronze: OB-1, Snake River Brewing Jackson, Jackson, WY

Category: 55 American-Style Brown Ale – 47 Entries
Gold: Kick-Ass Brown, C.H. Evans Brewing at the Albany Pump Station, Albany, NY
Silver: Bitch Creek ESB, Grand Teton Brewing Co., Victor, ID
Bronze: Bad Dog Brown Ale, Elk Grove Brewery and Restaurant, Elk Grove, CA

Category: 56 German-Style Altbier – 27 Entries
Gold: The Detroit Dwarf, The Detroit Beer Co., Detroit, MI
Silver: Railyard Ale, Titletown Brewing Co., Green Bay, WI
Bronze: All The Way Alt, Desert Edge Brewery, Salt Lake City, UT

Category: 57 South German-Style Hefeweizen – 52 Entries
Gold: Wixa Weiss, Wynkoop Brewing Co., Denver, CO
Silver: The Love, Starr Hill Brewing Co., Crozet, VA
Bronze: Mueller Hefeweizen, Springfield Brewing Co., Springfield, MO

Category: 58 German-Style Wheat Ale – 32 Entries
Gold: I’m Half the Beer I Used to Be, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewery – Chandler, Huntington Beach, CA
Silver: Dark-n-Curvy Dunkelweizen, Piece Brewery, Chicago, IL
Bronze: Wasatch Hefeweizen, Wasatch Brew Pub, Park City, UT

Category: 59 Belgian-Style Witbier – 53 Entries
Gold: Mothership Wit/Organic Wheat Beer, New Belgium Brewing Co., Fort Collins, CO
Silver: Belgian Wit, Redrock Brewing Co., Salt Lake City, UT
Bronze: Squatters Wit, Utah Brewers Co-op, Salt Lake City, UT

Category: 60 French- and Belgian-Style Saison – 37 Entries
Gold: Saison, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant – West Chester, Wilmington, DE
Silver: Saison, Nodding Head Brewing Co., Philadelphia, PA
Bronze: Luciernaga, Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, Dexter, MI

Category: 61 Belgian- and French-Style Ale – 34 Entries
Gold: Redemption, Russian River Brewing Co., Santa Rosa, CA
Silver: Pride, Midnight Sun Brewing Co., Anchorage, AK
Bronze: Rare Vos, Brewery Ommegang, Cooperstown, NY

Category: 62 Belgian-Style Lambic or Sour Ale – 29 Entries
Gold: Lambic de Hill, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant – Media, Wilmington, DE
Silver: Upstream Gueuze-Lambic, Upstream Brewing Co., Omaha, NE
Bronze: Cassis de Hill, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant – Newark, Wilmington, DE

Category: 63 Belgian-Style Abbey Ale – 53 Entries
Gold: Bishop’s Tipple Trippel, Main Street Brewery, Corona, CA
Silver: Abbey Dubbel, Flying Fish Brewing Co., Cherry Hill, NJ
Bronze: 6th Glass, Boulevard Brewing Co., Kansas City, MO

Category: 64 Belgian-Style Strong Specialty Ale – 44 Entries
Gold: Darth Delirium, Moose’s Tooth Brewing Co., Anchorage, AK
Silver: Brother David’s Double, Anderson Valley Brewing Co., Boonville, CA
Bronze: Golden Armor, CB & Potts Restaurant & Brewery (Highlands
Ranch), Highlands Ranch, CO

Category: 65 Brown Porter – 30 Entries
Gold: BlackWatch Cream Porter, Pyramid Breweries Inc., Seattle, WA
Silver: FireHouse Porter, FireHouse Grill & Brewery, Sunnyvale, CA
Bronze: Prospector Porter, Tommyknocker Brewery, Idaho Springs, CO

Category: 66 Robust Porter – 47 Entries
Gold: Nolan’s Porter, Barrio Brewing Co., Tucson, AZ
Silver: Sweet Sanderine Porter, Il Vicino Brewing Co., Albuquerque, NM
Bronze: Pacemaker Porter, Flyers Restaurant and Brewery, Oak Harbor, WA

Category: 67 Classic Irish-Style Dry Stout – 19 Entries
Gold: Blarney Sisters Dry Irish Stout, Third Street Aleworks, Santa Rosa, CA
Silver: Shaft House Stout, Dostal Alley Brewpub & Casino, Central City, CO
Bronze: Port Truck Stout, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA

Category: 68 Foreign-Style Stout – 28 Entries
Gold: Whiteface Black Diamond Stout, Great Adirondack Brewing Co., Lake Placid, NY
Silver: Black Bear XX Stout, Alameda Brewhouse, Portland, OR
Bronze: Black Hole XXX Stout, Chelsea Brewing Co., New York, NY

Category: 69 American-Style Stout – 23 Entries
Gold: Terminal Stout, Rock Bottom Brewing, Louisville, CO
Silver: Black Mocha Stout, Highland Brewing Co., Asheville, NC
Bronze: Troegs Dead Reckoning, Troegs Brewery, Harrisburg, PA

Category: 70 Sweet Stout – 19 Entries
Gold: Cream Stout, Redwood Brewing Co., Flint, MI
Silver: Milk Stout, Left Hand Brewing Co., Longmont, CO
Bronze: Cow Stout, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA

Category: 71 Oatmeal Stout – 32 Entries
Gold: Oatmeal Stout, Gella’s Diner and Lb. Brewing Co., Hays, KS
Silver: Velvet Merkin, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Bronze: Oatmeal Stout, Schooner’s Grille & Brewery, Antioch, CA

Category: 72 Imperial Stout – 44 Entries
Gold: BORIS The Crusher Oatmeal-Imperial Stout, Hoppin’ Frog Brewing Co., Akron, OH
Silver: Night Rider Imperial Stout, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Bronze: Yeti Imperial Stout, Great Divide Brewing Co., Denver, CO

Category: 73 Strong Scotch Ale – 38 Entries
Gold: AleSmith Wee Heavy, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Silver: Way Heavy, Pizza Port San Clemente, Carlsbad, CA
Bronze: Bag Pipe’s Scotch Ale, Allentown/Bethlehem Brew Works, Allentown, PA

Category: 74 Old Ale or Strong Ale – 40 Entries
Gold: AleSmith Decadence Old Ale, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Silver: Old Scrooge, Silver City Restaurant & Brewery, Silverdale, WA
Bronze: Old Scratch Barley Wine ‘99, Great Dane Pub & Brewing Co., Madison, WI

Category: 75 Barley Wine-Style Ale – 55 Entries
Gold: Treblehook, Redhook Ales Brewery, Portland, OR
Silver: AleSmith Old Numbskull, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Bronze: Scratch #4 “The Flying Mouflan”, Troegs Brewery, Harrisburg, PA

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Barney’s Beanery to “Rock the Beer Vote”

Posted in Beer culture, Just for fun on   

Barney’s Beanery, the third oldest restaurant in Los Angeles and venerable roadhouse/famed celebrity hangout, will be hosting its third “Rock the Beer Vote” with patrons getting a head start casting their votes beginning on Tuesday, October 28th and running until polls close at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, November 4th.

As with the Kerry vs. Bush and Super Tuesday competitions, all presidential candidates will be assigned a brand beer: John McCain (Bud Lite) and Barack Obama (Stella Artois) with each premium brew sold at $3-a-glass (to promote continuous voting) and the colorful photo images of Barack Obama and John McCain on the spigots. At the three Roadhouses, bartenders will be monitoring the vote count on electronic screens in the seven-day voting marathon.

Barney's Beanery

Better than an exit poll data, and more joyous than your average stodgy polling place, this method of voting allows people to have fun and voice their opinions (loudly if need be) while they vote. The original West Hollywood Beanery, as well as more recently opened roadhouses in Santa Monica on the Third Street Promenade and on Colorado Blvd. in Old Town Pasadena, will have every strategically placed TV monitor tuned to a rotating series of political commentators as the votes roll in across the land. For more information, visit Barney’s Beanery website.

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Great American Beer Festival Winners Announced

Posted in Beer culture on   

More than 127 judges labored for three days to evaluate 2,902 beers and pick the best entries and top breweries for this year’s Great American Beer Festival, now in its 27th year. A total of 222 medals were awarded in 75 beer style categories and top breweries and brewers were designated based on the total number of medals won. The five top awards recognize small, medium and large breweries and small and large brewpubs. The awards went to the following breweries:

Large Brewing Company and Large Brewing Company Brewer of the Year:
Anheuser-Busch, Inc.; Doug Muhleman

Mid-Size Brewing Company and Mid-Size Brewing Company Brewer of the Year:
Pyramid Breweries Inc.; Simon Pesch

Small Brewing Company and Small Brewing Company Brewer of the Year:
AleSmith Brewing Co.; The AleSmith Brewing Team

Large Brewpub and Large Brewpub Brewer of the Year:
Rock Bottom Brewing; Rock Bottom Brewing Team

Small Brewpub and Small Brewpub Brewer of the Year:
Redwood Brewing Co.; Bill Wamby

For a list of all the winners, visit the official GABF website.

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Peak Releases Organic Espresso Amber Ale

Posted in Beers on   

Peak Brewing, the organic brewery in Portland, Maine, has released theior newest creation, Peak Organic Espresso Amber Ale!

The Espresso Amber Ale is brewed with Maine-roasted, organic fair trade espresso in collaboration with Coffee By Design. The beer is in partnership with Transfair, a non-profit that works to ensure that farmers and farm workers behind Fair Trade Certified goods are paid fair, above-market prices, helping to support a better life for farming families, community development and environmental stewardship. Peak Organic Espresso Amber Ale is the first Fair Trade Certified beer brewed in the United States.

Peak Espresso Ale

The new brew is a flavorful, robust ale with toasty notes from the espresso in the front palate that delicately compliment the sweeter notes from the malts in the back palate.

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Great Divide Releases Super-Limited Beers

Posted in Beers on   

Great Divide Brewing Company is releasing unique, barrel-aged versions of their Yeti Imperial Stout and Old Ruffian Barley Wine.

The Barrel Aged Old Ruffian Barley Wine was aged for 20 months in used barrels from Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey, Colorado’s only whiskey maker. As it also does for the Yeti, the aging process mellows Old Ruffian’s edge while adding gentle notes of oak, whiskey and vanilla to the 12.7% ABV and 85 IBUs beer. (The original Old Ruffian won a Gold medal at the 2006 Great American Beer Festival and a Silver medal at the 2007 GABF.)

Great Divide

Barrel Aged Yeti Imperial Stout has also been aged for 20 months in Stranahan’s barrels. The rich and robustly roasted beer of 12.2% ABV and 75 International Bittering Units (IBUs) picks up flavors of oak, vanilla and whiskey through the extended aging process. These flavors add greater complexity to the already rich beer, while tempering its assertive nature.

Both of these beers are packaged in 750-ml bottles, then bottle conditioned for a natural carbonation and additional character. The two barrel-aged beers will be available in limited supplies (just 470 bottles of each beer) and will be sold only in Colorado. The suggested retail price for these beers is $25 per bottle.

“Our intent,” says Great Divide founder Brian Dunn, “was to age each beer in the barrels for 9 months. But we got busy with other projects, primarily the addition of a new bottling line, and the beers ended up aging for more than a year and half.” While the labels on the bottles state that the beers were aged 9 months in barrels, both beers were in fact aged 20 months in barrels.

“I think the beers really benefited from our procrastination,” Dunn adds. “When it comes to aging beers in whiskey barrels, I believe the longer the better. The additional time delivers a beer with more oak character than whiskey character, and that’s what we prefer.”

“These are not blended beers,” Dunn points out. “Each of these beers are uncut, 100% from the whiskey barrels.”