Flint Whistler of Rockaway Brewing Co. and Eric Hernandez of Coney Island Brewery.

NYC Beer Week kicks off this Friday, February 19 at 7pm with the “SimulTap,” or simultaneous tapping, of New York City beers, each brewed specially for  Beer Week as part of a 10-day celebration of New York beer. Though the SimulTap marks the start of Beer Week every year, this year’s holds special significance because it will feature 15 NYC brewers’ beers made with State Malt and State Hops, being referred to as “SMaSH beers,” spotlighting local ingredients sourced right here in New York. NYC Beer Week is organized by the New York City Brewers Guild.

Note: SMaSH usually stands for “Single Malt and Single Hop,” meaning one type of malted barley or other malted grain and one type of hop are used in the brewing process. In this case, it stands for State Malt and State Hops. Three types of New York malt and three New York-grown hops were used to brew the NYC Beer Week SMaSH beers.  Continue reading →