Just for fun

A horse has become a regular at a pub in the north of England.

Given that she has a job pulling a cart you figure there a DUI joke in there somewhere.

This just in . . . Breeders of crickets say the insects have become “finger food for beer drinkers” in an age of increasing prosperity in Vietnam compared with the recent past when they might have been food for the hungry or for wartime soldiers surviving in the jungle.

Today’s Denver Post previews next week’s Great American Beer Festival. The focus is in the fact that it is the GABF’s 25th anniversary, and the story concludes with a quote from founder Charlie Papazian:

“It feels great. How many things can we say we’ve done 25 times and enjoyed it?”

Here at Beer Therapy Central we’re having toruble getting past the rather obvious answer.

It’s only Wednesday morning, but this has to be the quote of the week. From Boston Beer founder Jim Koch, speaking at the National Beer Wholesalers Assocation conference about watching the largest brewing companies in America duke it out:

“I feel like I’m a medieval peasant watching these armies marching across the landscape. I’m just hiding out in the forest still living on berries and acorns.”

And beer we would hope.

[Via On the House]

Did you know . . .

Oregon’s Full Sail Brewing puts rock, paper and scissors symbols on the underside of bottle caps on its Session lager, a quick way for beer-drinkers to decide who should buy the next round: paper beats rock, rock beats scissors and scissors beats paper. The brewery helps sponsor tournaments.

[Via The Seattle Times]

Maureen Ogle, author of the new book Ambitious Brew: The Story of American Beer, is “bracketing beer” for a book due out next March titled “The Englightened Brackologist: The Final Four of Everything.”

She offers a full explanation of what this means, including why after two days she had to take a break.

She’s down to a Final Two and about to make her decision, but it will be March before it goes public.

Meanwhile, if you need an immediate “Beer Bracket” fix we refer you to RealBeer.com’s Battle of the Beers (four tournaments, 2003-2005, the last three won by Dogfish head 90-Minute IPA).

Following up on last year’s “Big Ad” for Carlton, Foster’s has rolled out “Flashbeer.”

Half a million people saw “Big Ad” in the first week of its life on the Internet and Foster’s hopes to surpass that figure before the ad launches on TV.

The ad features a prospective Carlton brewer who wins over the brewery’s recruitment panel through the “power of ’80s dance” with his rendition of a scene from the 1983 movie Flashdance.

First California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a measure that would have designated zinfandel the historic wine of California. He said the state produces many fine wines from different grape varietals and that it would be “inappropriate” to single out one for special recognition.

That was followed by this post in the blog called Shiraz:

Breaking News: Late yesterday Australia’s Prime Minister John Howhard announced that his government had passed legislation making Shiraz the national grape. “This decision is not about choosing one variety over another. It recognises Shiraz in its historical role in laying the foundation for the Australian wine industry,” he said.

It was a joke, but maybe there is something in this for the beer industry.

Why not name a national hop?

What would it be? Cascade, which played such an important role in the rise in craft beer? Maybe the fabulously versatile Centennial.

How about Cluster, long the stalwart? Maybe a frsiky newcomer like Simcoe or Summit.

What would you pick?

– Stephen Beaumont celebrates 10 years of World of Beer by offering lists of the best and worst of the last ten years in beer. “Extreme Beers” make both lists.

– The October issue of Men’s Journal hits the newstands with its list of the “25 Greatest American Beers.” A solid list but the best 25?

– Here’s the way a list should be done. Bryan at Brew Lounge lists his favorite beers of the past 4 months. It’s a snapshot in time.