Last night, First We Feast‘s new web series, That’s Odd, Let’s Drink It brought together brewers, fashion fans and beer acolytes as Dogfish Head‘s Sam Calagione, Other Half Brewing‘s Sam Richardson and Matt Monahan, and fashion designers the Hill-Side celebrated their recent collaboration at the label’s new retail location in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Continue reading
Cheersing Sam Calagione with two of Dogfish Head’s latest off-centerd ales.
Last week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Sam Calagione, my personal idol and founder and president of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, at the premiere of his new web series on First We Feast: “That’s Odd, Let’s Drink It.”
The show, created in collaboration between Dogfish Head and First We Feast parent company, Complex Media, calls together craft beer lovers and pop culture buffs to watch Calagione brew crazy beers with some of his idols, following escapades with unique and unusual ingredients inspired by industries spanning cooking to hip hop.
At the event, which was held at Eataly’s rooftop restaurant and microbrewery, Birreria on Wednesday, Sam ordered me a glass of the show’s debut beer and we talked idols, the importance of creative collaboration, and how to turn rotten fruit into delicious, refreshing beer. Here’s what I learned. Continue reading
Sonya Giacobbe and Cat Wolinski cheesin’ at the Village Voice Brooklyn Pour beer festival, Sept. 2014.
Sonya Giacobbe is the better half of KelSo, a Brooklyn-based beer company that launched in 2006 with Kelly Taylor, husband and overseer of the Heartland Brewery restaurant group (the “Kel”) and Giacobbe (the “So”) at the helm.
Recently, KelSo was awarded the Brooklyn-Made Gold Certification from the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce for producing local ales and lagers that meet the Gold qualifications of being headquartered in Brooklyn, staffed in Brooklyn and most-if-not-all made in Brooklyn. The Clinton Hill-based beer company’s products (KelSo Pilsner, KelSo Nut Brown Lager) are now available on draft and in cans up and down the East Coast from Philadelphia, Penn. to New London, Conn.
Along with co-running the KelSo show, Sonya previously served as director of the Simon & Schuster and Machete Speakers Bureaus of the Greater Talent Network.
“You don’t need to push the envelope to make a memorable beer. I want to be able to have two beers with dinner and still be able to give my kids a bath.” — KelSo of Brooklyn, Josh Bernstein, Edible Brooklyn Spring 2011: Issue No. 21
Cheers to that, Sonya!
– Beer Affair
A single malt and single hop (SMaSH) pint awaits live music and schnitzel at Dirck the Norseman.
Orr Shtuhl is a director of user experience at a web design agency, Blenderbox, a cheese pairing instructor at Bedford Cheese Shop and Murray’s Cheese, and a resident of Brooklyn. Why do you need to know this? Because he’s also a beer expert, and he wants to give you “the bestest” tour of bars and brewpubs in what he believes to be New York’s supreme neighborhood for beer: Greenpoint.
When Shtuhl decided to launch The Bestest, the name for his craft beer touring company that will begin tours in November, he had locals’ interests in mind.
“[Greenpoint] is the best neighborhood for beer in New York right now,” says Shtuhl, who lives and works in the neighborhood, and plans to give tours on the side. “It has everything that’s good about beer in New York right now, and it’s still largely undiscovered. There are two brewpubs here within walking distance from each other—that’s insane!” Continue reading
Eric Hernandez, head brewer at the new Coney Island Brewery location on Surf Avenue.
On Saturday, Oct. 24, Coney Island Brewing Company celebrated the kickoff of Freak Week, a city-wide event featuring tap takeovers at NYC bars commencing at the brewing company’s new brick-and-mortar location on Surf Avenue.
Along with a few freaky costumes and a brief tour of the recently developed space, the week-long beer affair began with an impressive lineup of brand new brews, a handful of which will also be debuting at bars such as d.b.a. (Tuesday, Oct. 27), The Allie Way (Thursday, Oct. 29) and New York Beer Company (Saturday, Oct. 31) throughout the week, and the rest, for the time being, available only at the brewery.
“What we’re trying to do here is create a spectrum of beers,” said Adams, the brewery’s operations manager and self-proclaimed stout lover. “We [want to get] as Coney Island as we can get.” Continue reading
hat tip: “10 Beer Quotes To Celebrate National Drink Beer Day, aka The Best Holiday Ever,” Bustle.com, Sept. 28, 2015.
Kim Jordan, co-founder, New Belgium Brewing Company. Photo via NewBelgium.com
Kim Jordan has more than 25 years’ experience in the craft beer industry. As co-founder of New Belgium Brewing Company (est. 1991) and having served as CEO for 15 years, she has strengthened the brewery and craft beer community at large as a leader, speaker and expert in all things beer biz. Jordan recently transitioned into a new role as executive chair at New Belgium, setting her sites set on strategy and advocacy for progressive business practices both within the New Belgium Family Foundation and on the 1% For the Planet Board of Directors.
“Conservation is sexy.” – “Brewing Big (With a Micro Soul),” Entrepreneur.com, Nov. 2009
Cheers to that, Kim!
– BeerAffair
All photos by Patrick Phillips, director of photography at Team Biscuit Films, LLC.
Can you tell which one of these is a beer cocktail? Bill Baker’s, Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Back in the dog days of summer, there was a drinks concept barking up my FOMO tree that I couldn’t seem to shake: beer cocktails. I’d heard of them, seen them, been intrigued by them and even told other people about them, but when it came time to belly up at the bar, I never ordered them. That is, until I decided to write an article about them for Brokelyn, and after some investigative reporting, learned the truth—beer cocktails can be delicious, intricate, interesting and most of all, fun.
My favorite response had to be from Heather Rush, the owner of Pine Box Rock Shop in Bushwick. Continue reading
This year’s BCTC festival, held August 7-9 at Brewery Ommegang, proved, in my opinion, to be the best yet. Read on to find out why the festival remains so successful, year after year, in “Belgium Comes to Cooperstown Boasts Successful Twelfth Year Turnout,” written for the Ale Street News October/November 2015 issue.
Beer Affair 