Europe

Did Lager Yeast Come From Patagonia?

August 25, 2011

You probably saw this little item, it’s been all over the interwebs over the last few days, about a group of eight scientists positing that a newly discovered yeast strain, dubbed Saccharomyces eubayanus, may have hitched a ride from Patagonia, in South America, to Europe where it got busy with local yeasts there — notably [...]

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Finnish News Anchor Fired For Drinking Beer On Air

October 15, 2010

I’m not sure who moominvillea is, but they appear to have set up a twitter account for the sole purpose of tweeting news outlets about what he’s calling “beergate.” I don’t know much, but apparently “Finnish news anchor Kimmo Wilska [was] reporting on misconduct of bars selling alcohol [and was caught on camera pretending to [...]

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European Study Shows Raising Beer Taxes A Bad Idea

October 15, 2010

Earlier this month, the Brewers of Europe — a trade organization of European breweries — released the results of an independent study they commissioned by PriceWaterhouseCoopers. They asked PWC to “quantify the impact of excise taxes on the overall tax collection, and employment and profitability in the brewing sector compared to other alcoholic beverages.” In [...]

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Beer In Art #91: Andriy Khomyk’s Drinking Beer

August 29, 2010

Today’s painting is done using a unique technique, reverse painting on glass. It’s an ancient process, and today’s artist, Andriy Khomyk, is from the Ukraine where at one time it enjoyed more popularity. According to his website. “No other medium allows for the creation of such deep and energetic color! Painting is done on the [...]

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Asia Overtakes Europe In Beer Consumption

August 23, 2010

For a long while Europe has led the world in beer consumption by continent and also by nation since the EU has increased in economic prominence as a single entity. According to new data by Credit Suisse, China now leads the world in terms of beer consumption, growing at a pace of about 10% per [...]

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EU Rules ABI Cannot Trademark Budweiser

July 29, 2010

Reuters is reporting that the EU equivalent of Europe’s supreme court ruled today that Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABI) “may not register ‘Budweiser’ as a trademark in the bloc, ending a 14-year legal battle over the name with a Czech brewer.” The battle over the naming rights from the town in the Czech Republic has been raging [...]

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A Stiff Drink

July 23, 2010

It’s hard not to chuckle a bit when BrewDog manufactures another controversy to get free publicity. Their latest, and possibly greatest, stunt is their new world-record beater — at 55% a.b.v. — The End of History. As if a 110 proof beer wasn’t enough, each of the limited bottles (only 12 were made) cost £500 [...]

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Beer In Ads #135: Bieres de Lutece

June 22, 2010

Tuesday’s ad is for Brasserie Nouvelle de Lutece in Paris, France, most likely from the 1950s or early 60s. According to Articles of Incorporation for AB InBev France, it may be at least partially owned by ABI, though I’ve seen references to the brewery possibly no longer being operated, too. Still, I love seeing such [...]

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BrewDog In San Francisco

June 16, 2010

Last night Monk’s Kettle in San Francisco hosted a little meet and greet with co-founder James Watt of BrewDog in Scotland. Having just enjoyed a cheesesteak together at Jim’s Steaks with James (and Greg Koch and Bill Covaleski) in Philadelphia the week before, I felt duty-bound to find out how he enjoyed the state sandwich [...]

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Beer In Art #80: David Teniers’ Peasants Celebrating Twelfth Night

June 13, 2010

Today’s work of art is another piece I saw last week wandering around the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C, the day after SAVOR. It was painted in 1635 by David Teniers the Younger, a Flemish artist born in Antwerp. The painting is known as Peasants Celebrating Twelfth Night. Teniers was known for his [...]

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Beer In Ads #121: Amstel of Amsterdam

June 1, 2010

Tuesday’s ad is for Amstel beer, before they added the “light.” It’s from 1961 and also has KLM Airlines as a part of the ad, perhaps a partnership ad. It would appear they were trying to position Amstel as a high-end premium beer.

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Beer In Ads #120: Reszveny Serfozode

May 31, 2010

Monday’s ad is from Részvény Serfözöde, a Budapest, Hungary brewery. The illustration was done by Paul Foldes. I’m not entirely sure when it was done. I chose it because today is Memorial Day, and the idea depicted that beer could end a war is an attractive one. I believe the scene’s supposed to be during [...]

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Beer In Art #78: Peter Paul Ruben’s The Village Fete

May 30, 2010

Today’s work of art is by one the most famous artists to ever paint: Peter Paul Rubens. Rubens “was a prolific seventeenth-century Flemish Baroque painter, and a proponent of an extravagant Baroque style that emphasized movement, color, and sensuality. He is well-known for his Counter-Reformation altarpieces, portraits, landscapes, and history paintings of mythological and allegorical [...]

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Beer In Ads #116: Birra Metzger

May 25, 2010

Tuesday’s ad is for an Italian brewer, Birra Metzger, from Torino. They were founded in 1848 but closed in 1975. The ad is from the 1920s.

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Fucking Hell, I Need A Beer

March 29, 2010

File this under news of the weird. According to the UK’s The Sun, the European Patent Office had to reverse their decision denying a company the right to produce a beer called Fucking Hell, when they were able to prove that Fucking is a real town in Austria. Or rather village, since there are only [...]

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Beer In Ads #66: Tuborg’s Thirsty Man

March 16, 2010

Tuesday’s ad is a favorite of a friend of mine, Christian Kazakoff — who’s the head brewer at Iron Springs Pub & Brewery — and is for the Danish beer Tuborg. I got an e-mail from Christian last night about how much he’s enjoying my “Beer In Advertising” series and sharing with me his personal [...]

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