@ beer blog

5 Reasons You Should Go to the 2015 Brooklyn Pour

/ Beer Affair / Leave a comment

AKA: A Shameless Listicle of Why I Love the Brooklyn Pour (With Pictures!)

The Village Voice Brooklyn Pour will be celebrated for the fifth consecutive year on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015. This year, the craft beer tasting event will make its Brooklyn Expo Center debut in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, taking place from to 3pm to 6pm for general admission, 2:30pm to 6pm for early admission, and 2pm to 6pm for Very Important Persons.

Here’s why you should love the Brooklyn Pour:

  1. Local beer—and beyond.*
    Ithaca isn't Brooklyn, but we love them like they are.

    Ithaca isn’t Brooklyn, but we love them like they are.

    The craft breweries represented at the Brooklyn Pour (of which there are more than 100) comprise a well-balanced cross section of New York City (many), New York State (several), regional (some) and international (a few) breweries. For a festival that’s positioned as much toward casual beer consumers as it is to the hardcore drinks dorks among us, the list of exhibitors here never disappoints.

  2. Good vibes.
    Look how happy these guys are!

    Look how happy these guys are!

    A friendly atmosphere does wonders when you’re sent upstream in a room crowded enough to get lost in. At the Brooklyn Pour, at the same time that you’re probably getting separated from your friends, you’re making new ones, and for the most part, people don’t get pushy at the tasting tables, either.

  3. Consistency—with surprises.
    She was so surprised to see new beer dudes from Brooklyn, Braven Brewing Company!

    She was so surprised to see new beer dudes from Brooklyn, Braven Brewing Company!

    I’ve been attending the Brooklyn Pour since 2010, and every year, I see the same faces behind many of the coolers, but I see lots of new ones, too. Though it would be difficult to get bored in a room that has hundreds of beers to taste, the variety of old and new faces keeps things familiar and exciting at the same time.

  4. Decent food.
    Food trucks (and porter potties) aplenty.

    Food trucks (and porter potties) aplenty.

    This is Brooklyn, so you can’t really fux with the food choices, because we will notice and we will not be pleased. Brooklyn Pour offerings this year include Keste Pizza, Zum Schneider, Nuchas, Papaya King and Coney Shack.

  5. Finally, the swag.
    You could be rolling in swag shades.

    You could be rolling in swag shades.

    So yeah, I’m a sucker for stickers, coasters and keychains that scream “I like beer way too much” (who isn’t?).  At the Brooklyn Pour, swaggery is not only plentiful, it’s encouraged. You don’t have to get all weird about swiping the free stuff—there’s plenty of it—and generally the brewers, reps and volunteers pouring your beer are super into decking you out, too. Sometimes, there are even games to play to win prizes! (But you don’t have to play them. You can also just have the prizes, if you ask nicely.)

 

*Did I mention great beer? In case you forgot, here are some reminders.

Brooklyn will be represented by the likes of Braven Brewing Company, Brooklyn Brew Shop, Coney Island Brewing Company and Sixpoint Brewery.

Brooklyn will be represented by the likes of Braven Brewing Company, Brooklyn Brew Shop, Coney Island Brewing Company (pictured above) and Sixpoint Brewery.

Queens breweries will include Big Alice Brewing Co. (VIP only), Rockaway Brewing Co., SingleCut Beersmiths (above) and Queens Brewery.

Queens breweries will include Big Alice Brewing Co. (VIP only), Rockaway Brewing Co., SingleCut Beersmiths (above) and Queens Brewery.

Staten Island newcomer, Flagship Brewery will be at the 2015 Brooklyn Pour.

Staten Island newcomer, Flagship Brewery will be at the 2015 Brooklyn Pour.

This guy LOVED Two Roads Brewing Company of Stratford, Conn. Brooklyn Pour attendees also enjoyed out-of-state beer makers like Victory Brewing Company of Downing, Penn., and Harpoon Brewery of Boston. 

This guy LOVED Two Roads Brewing Company of Stratford, Conn. Brooklyn Pour attendees also enjoyed out-of-state beer makers like Victory Brewing Company of Downing, Penn., and Harpoon Brewery of Boston.

For more of my favorite moments of people loving the Brooklyn Pour, check out my 2014 coverage for the Village Voice here.  To skip that and buy tickets, go here.

 

#WomanCrushWednesday: Carol Stoudt

/ Beer Affair / Leave a comment
Photo via The Daily Meal

Photo via The Daily Meal

#WCW: Carol Stoudt

Beer Cred:

Carol Stoudt is often touted for being a craft beer pioneer,  and not only as a woman—she was crowned “Queen of Hops” (a media-given title) as the first female brewmaster and brewery owner in American history post prohibition, but was also one of the first brewmasters and brewery founders of that time, starting her business in what was arguably the most important year of the craft beer revolution, 1987. Filling rolls that were hardly there to be filled, Stoudt showed the country that craft beer belonged here, and she’s continued to do so for the last 28 years.

Well Said:

“My advice to anyone wanting to get in the business is to work in a variety of types and sizes of breweries or restaurants, as well as sales, if one is planning a micro. One needs not only passion but a willingness to work hard in all areas.” – Journey to the Beer Store, April 11, 2013

Beer and Cheese Pairing Guidelines [Infographic]

/ Beer Affair / Leave a comment

There are a few places where the harmony of beer and cheese have been brought to my attention: at the Mondial de la Bière festival in Montreal, where trays of cheeses I’d never seen before sat casually beside rows of Quebec-brewed beer; at Otter Creek Brewing in Middlebury, Vt., where one can enjoy a plate of award-winning cheeses with a pint of award-winning Wolaver’s Pumpkin Ale; and of course, in my own kitchen, where we regularly experiment with flavor combinations in our favorite foods and brews. (There are few last-minute lunches more satisfying than a gouda and sharp cheddar grilled cheese with a homebrewed American pale ale—I urge you to try it).

The practice of beer pairing can be applied to any food item or cuisine, but doing it with cheese has a history older than the swiss you’ll want to pair with a bock after reading this. For those new to the practice, this infographic from Visually* slices beer and cheese pairing into bite-sized guidelines that anyone can enjoy and experiment with.

Please do try this at home:

Beer and Cheese Pairing Guide

 *Beer & Cheese Pairing Guidelines was originally posted on the RedEnvelope blog, which apparently no longer exists.

Brooklyn Brewery Sorachi Ace Kit from Brooklyn Brew Shop

/ Beer Affair / Leave a comment

In case you haven’t heard, you can now brew Brooklyn Sorachi Ace at home.

Sorachi-Ace-Out-Now Thanks to a recent collaboration between Brooklyn Brewery  and Brooklyn Brew Shop, brewing novices and intermediate beer makers have an easy route to replicating Brooklyn Brewery’s Sorachi Ace, a saison showcasing the rare hop varietal of the same name.

Brooklyn Sorachi Ace is available online as well as at the Brooklyn Brewery gift shop in Williamsburg, Brooklyn in both kit (ingredients + equipment) and mix (ingredients only) form. Both options pack all the grains, hops and yeast necessary for brewing the esteemed farmhouse ale in your own kitchen, known among hopheads for revitalizing the Sorachi Ace hop, a quirky, long-forgotten varietal originally created in Japan in the 1970s, later rediscovered by a family farm in Washington State in the early 2000s and officially brought back into the spotlight by Brooklyn Brewery brewmaster, Garrett Oliver in 2009.

See what Oliver and Brooklyn Brew Shop co-founders, Stephen Valand and Erica Shea have to say about the brand new release in this announcement posted on Brooklyn Brew Shop’s The Mash today.

Brew n’ Chew Homebrew and Food Pairing Competition at the Diamond on Sunday, Sept. 20

/ Beer Affair / Leave a comment
The 8th Annual Brew n Chew will take place at the Diamond on Sunday, Sept. 20.

The 8th Annual Brew n Chew will take place at the Diamond on Sunday, Sept. 20.

Brooklyn craft beer bar, The Diamond is known for its fair share of accolades—from being one of the “best jukebox bars in Brooklyn” to receiving honorable mention as one of Craft Beer & Brewing’s national craft beer dive bars, the Greenpoint staple has long enjoyed a reputation for its expertly curated selection of unusual brews from around the world, served in an atmosphere completely devoid of pretension.

This weekend, on Sunday, Sept. 20 from 3 to 5pm, the Diamond will be the one handing out the awards—at the 8th annual Brew n’ Chew homebrew and food pairing fundraiser.

That essential relationship between good food and good beer will be on display at the Diamond, where six homebrew teams will put their beer and food making chops to the test. The menu is subject to change, as the last two teams are still deciding on their offerings (Team 6 not shown).

Brew n’ Chew Team 1

Beer: Stout with coffee, maple syrup and cardamom
Food: “Some kind of waffle-taco hybrid”

Brew n’ Chew Team 2

Beer: Brett Lavender Saison
Food: Tiramisu

Brew n’ Chew Team 3

Beer: Hoppy American Saison
Food: Pork rilletes on crostini with cornichons

Brew n’ Chew Team 4

Beer: Old Ale
Food: Butterscotch pudding

Brew n’ Chew Team 5

Beer: Table Saison with Apricots, or Dry Hopped Saison, or Belgian Singel
Food: Smoked portabello mushroom slider & smoked pork tenderloin slider

One hundred percent of proceeds from Brew n’ Chew will be donated to Horizons Leadership Project, an organization that holds summer academic and elective programming for mostly disadvantaged Brooklyn youth. The winning team will take a trip to Sly Fox Brewing Company, a Phoenixville, Penn. craft brewery which is sponsoring the event.

“I can honestly say that this is one of the greatest days of the year to be at the Diamond and people love this community event,” Pollack said.

Tickets are $25 and will be available at the door, but you can snag them ahead of time here.

Beer Quote: Dave Carpenter on Fresh Hops

/ Beer Affair / Leave a comment

“Fresh hops remind us that there is virtue in reserving some things for special occasions.” — Dave Carpenter, “The Last Seasonal,” Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine,  Aug.-Sept. 2015

I truly savored this Brewers’ Perspectives feature unveiling commercial craft brewers’ approaches to utilizing the extremely ephemeral wet hop. With harvest season upon them, Left Hand Brewing Company ( Warrior IPA), Crazy Mountain Brewery (Sticky Fingers Wet Hopped Ale) and Comrade Brewing Company (Superpower IPA, a 2014 Great American Beer Festival Silver Medal winner in the Fresh or Wet Hop Ale category) each demonstrate the delicate nature of fresh, local hops, and the worth of going great lengths to achieve them.

 

Photo credit: Dave Carpenter “Hops Harvest 2015: Meet the Hops Harvesters“

#WomanCrushWednesday: Jill Redding

/ Beer Affair / Leave a comment

#WomanCrushWednesday is a BeerAffair series highlighting female leaders of the beer and brewing industries. View past crushes by clicking #WomanCrushWednesday or #WCW.

Jill Redding, editor for the Brewers Association.

Jill Redding, editor-in-chief at the Brewers Association.

#WCW: Jill Redding

Beer Cred:

As the Brewers Association editor-in-chief, Jill Redding is responsible for overseeing the bi-monthly publication (every two months) of Zymurgy,  a magazine “for the homebrewer and beer lover” which informs amateur beer makers on trends, best brewing practices, award-winning recipes and industry events, and the New Brewer, “a passionate voice for craft brewers,” created to provide commercial startup breweries with information on topics like brewing technology, problem solving, and management.

The Brewers Association (BA) is a non-profit trade association established “to promote and protect American craft brewers, their beers and the community of brewing enthusiasts.” In addition to its publications, education, insights and statistics pertaining to the craft brewing industry, the BA is responsible for major industry events such as the Craft Brewers Conference, Great American Beer Festival, SAVOR and World Beer Cup.

Well Said:

“Kudos to all homebrew clubs for teaching the world to brew, and for giving back to their communities!” — Brew’s Up, Indeed, Zymurgy Vol. 38 No. 5

 

Cheers, Jill!
Beer Affair

Is this the most significant deal in the U.S. craft brewing industry?

/ Beer Affair / 1 Comment

The Press Democrat is billing the partnership between Lagunitas Brewing Co. and Heineken International “the most significant deal yet in the American craft brewing industry.” Is it?

Tony Magee, founder of Lagunitas Brewing Co. Photo via the Press Democrat.

Tony Magee, founder of Lagunitas, has happily partnered with Heineken. Photo via the Press Democrat.

Last week’s announcement, which also appeared on the Lagunitas and Heineken websites on September 8, described the 50-50 deal as a powerful new partnership that will allow Lagunitas to export their craft beer globally. A strategic move for both parties, to be sure, but what does it say about Lagunitas as a member of the craft beer industry? Is it worth losing the status as “small and independent,” as the Brewers Association defines craft brewery, for an export deal?

Here are the key points of the deal:

  • Lagunitas will continue to operate independently in the US
  • Tony Magee, Lagunitas founder, will remain at the helm
  • Leadership and staff, recipes, suppliers and distributors will remain the same
  • Lagunitas will be able to sell their beer worldwide
  • To keep up with growth, a third Lagunitas brewery is under construction in Azusa, Calif., scheduled to open in 2017

Lagunitas, based in Petaluma, Calif., was listed in as No. 6 in the Brewers Association’s Top 50 U.S. Craft Brewing Companies of 2014. For the Top 50 Overall, it sat at No. 11. Since ratings are based on 2014 sales volume, it’s clear Lagunitas is selling a lot of beer.

So, why stop there? Isn’t that the purpose of starting a brewery in the first place? By sacrificing their status as sixth among the craft brewers, Lagunitas is elevating its status as a brewer, period. If given the opportunity to sell your beer overseas, wouldn’t you take it?

Basically, what I’m getting at is, they’re not wrong.

In the words of Tony Magee, founder of Lagunitas, the partnership is “a profound victory for American craft. It will open doors that had previously been shut and bring the U.S. craft beer vibe to communities all over the world.” That all sounds great, but consider the reverse: isn’t Lagunitas giving Heineken the opportunity to gain a foothold in the craft beer industry here? Aren’t those “doors” swinging doors?

A lot of questions will continue to surface as the deal unfolds. (Will Lagunitas grasp more market share with Heineken’s fists? Will Heineken be brewing Lagunitas’ beer, and vice versa? Will Heineken “partner” with more U.S. craft breweries, taking hold of similarly positioned companies like Sierra Nevada, New Belgium and Gambrinus? Is this as bad as Anheuser-Busch snatching up Elysian, Blue Point and Goose Island?  Will what happened to Dick Cantwell at Elysian happen to Magee?)

After the sudden trepidation passes (if it ever does pass), maybe we’ll start to see that these partnerships aren’t such a bad thing. All we can hope for is that our still-small, still-independent breweries aren’t pushed out further by one of their own.

Read Tony Magee’s (thoughtful, very verbose) blog post on the recent news here.

 

Watch How Other Half Brewing Brews Their Beer

/ Beer Affair / Leave a comment

Ever wonder how beer media darlings, Other Half Brewing craft those magnificently hoppy brews everyone’s drooling over, like Green Diamonds, Hop Showers and All Green Everything?

This video by Team Biscuit Films follows Other Half on a quiet journey through the brewing process, from brewer, Sam Richardson mashing in to parter, Matt Monahan tasting the wort. Teamwork makes the dream work, guys.

Follow Team Biscuit’s journey filming cool people doing cool things on Facebook.com/TeamBiscuitFilms.