Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Delaware Beer

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delaware
Today in 1787, Delaware became the 1st state.

Delaware
State_Delaware

Delaware Breweries

Delaware Brewery Guides

Guild: Delaware Craft Brewers Guild

State Agency: Delaware Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement

maps-de

  • Capital: Dover
  • Largest Cities: Wilmington, Dover, Newark, Milford, Seaford
  • Population: 783,600; 45th
  • Area: 2489 sq.mi., 49th
  • Nicknames: First State / Diamond State / Blue Hen State
  • Statehood: 1st, December 7, 1787

m-delaware

  • Alcohol Legalized: December 5, 1933
  • Number of Breweries: 10
  • Rank: 40th
  • Beer Production: 723,426
  • Production Rank: 44th
  • Beer Per Capita: 25.7 Gallons

delaware

Package Mix:

  • Bottles: 35%
  • Cans: 54.7%
  • Kegs: 10%

Beer Taxes:

  • Per Gallon: $0.16
  • Per Case: $0.35
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $4.85
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $4.85

Economic Impact (2010):

  • From Brewing: $23,500,426
  • Direct Impact: $189,852,007
  • Supplier Impact: $71,835,338
  • Induced Economic Impact: $124,430,536
  • Total Impact: $386,117,881

Legal Restrictions:

  • Control State: No
  • Sale Hours: On Premises: 9 a.m.–1 a.m.
    Off Premises: 9 a.m.–1 a.m. (Mon.–Sat.)
    noon–8 p.m. (Sun.)Municipalities with a population over 50,000 persons may impose stricter hours of sale by local ordinance.
  • Grocery Store Sales: No
  • Notes: For off-premise consumption, alcohol may only be purchased in liquor stores, taprooms or brew pubs that have an off-premise license. No person under 21 may enter a liquor store or taproom for any reason even for the intent of purchasing only tobacco or lottery tickets. No sales of alcohol by liquor stores or taprooms are permitted during designated holidays.

delaware-map

Data complied, in part, from the Beer Institute’s Brewer’s Almanac 2010, Beer Serves America, the Brewers Association, Wikipedia and my World Factbook. If you see I’m missing a brewery link, please be so kind as to drop me a note or simply comment on this post. Thanks.

For the remaining states, see Brewing Links: United States.

Jeff Bagby Leaving Pizza Port To Open His Own Brewery

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pizza-port
San Diego Beer Blog had the news today that Jeff Bagby is leaving his position as head brewer at Pizza Port in Carlsbad. Nacho will taking his place for now, though Jeff will be staying on in a consultant role while he firms up plans to open his own brewery. That’s awesome news for Jeff and I’m sure that whatever he does will be amazing.

Jeff Bagby & His Girlfriend, from Pizza Port - Carlsbad
Jeff and his fiance Dande at GABF a few years ago.

North Carolina Rebuffs Sierra Nevada

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sierra-nevada
Sierra Nevada Brewing sells its beer in all fifty states, and has sold increasingly more over the last few years. Not surprisingly, there have been rumors circulating for some time about them building a brewery farther east, in such places as Tennessee and Virginia. It seems they had also identified a site in Black Mountain, North Carolina, which is near Asheville. Sierra Nevada had been considering building there “a beer facility and retail outlet that would employ as many as 140 people.” According to ABC Channel 13 in Western North Carolina, “[t]he company requested an interchange at Blue Ridge Road and Interstate 40. The Black Mountain town board asked the state to build it in hopes of luring the business but, it was not approved by the North Carolina Department of Transportation.” No word as to why the state would turn down the request.

Illinois Beer

By

illinois
Today in 1818, Illinois became the 21st state.

Illinois
State_Illinois

Illinois Breweries

Illinois Brewery Guides

Guild: Illinois Craft Brewers Guild

State Agency: Illinois Liquor Control Commission

maps-il

  • Capital: Springfield
  • Largest Cities: Chicago, Rockford, Aurora, Naperville, Peoria
  • Population: 12,419,293; 5th
  • Area: 57918 sq. mi., 25th
  • Nickname: Prairie State
  • Statehood: 21st, December 3, 1818

m-illinois

  • Alcohol Legalized: December 5, 1933
  • Number of Breweries: 52
  • Rank: 10th
  • Beer Production: 8,999,624
  • Production Rank: 5th
  • Beer Per Capita: 21.6 Gallons

illinois

Package Mix:

  • Bottles: 44.6%
  • Cans: 45.4%
  • Kegs: 9.7%

Beer Taxes:

  • Per Gallon: $0.23
  • Per Case: $0.51
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $6.98
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $6.98
  • $0.12/gallon in Chicago & beer sold in clubs plus additional 10% retail tax for all beer sold in clubs

Economic Impact (2010):

  • From Brewing: $748,215,023
  • Direct Impact: $2,730,875,319
  • Supplier Impact: $2,317,033,213
  • Induced Economic Impact: $3,238,802,131
  • Total Impact: $8,286,710,664

Legal Restrictions:

  • Control State: No
  • Sale Hours: On Premises: Depending on local government; 24-hour bars are permitted in Cicero; a handful of 21-22 hour bars exist in Cook County, and the Metro East.
    Off Premises:
  • Grocery Store Sales: Yes
  • Notes: Opening/closing hours are up to the decision of counties or towns.

illinois-map

Data complied, in part, from the Beer Institute’s Brewer’s Almanac 2010, Beer Serves America, the Brewers Association, Wikipedia and my World Factbook. If you see I’m missing a brewery link, please be so kind as to drop me a note or simply comment on this post. Thanks.

For the remaining states, see Brewing Links: United States.

Sumerian Beer: The Origins of Brewing Technology in Ancient Mesopotamia

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sumerian-tablet
Peter Damerow, from the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, in Berlin, has published online a lengthy paper about the origins of Sumerian brewing. Entitled Sumerian Beer: The Origins of Brewing Technology in Ancient Mesopotamia, it’s part of The Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). The opening sentence gives a flavor of its purpose. “The following paper is concerned with the technology of brewing beer in the Sumerian culture of ancient Mesopotamia, which we know about from cuneiform texts of the 3rd millennium BC. and from reminiscences in later scribal traditions which preserved the Sumerian language and literature.”

It’s broken down in to seven sections:

  1. Introduction
  2. Overview of the sources
  3. Beer types and ingredients in proto-cuneiform documents
  4. Beer types and ingredients in the Old Sumerian period
  5. Beer types and ingredients in the neo-Sumerian period
  6. The brewing of beer
  7. What kind of beer did the Sumerians brew?

Sumerian-beer
Fig. 1: Impression of a Sumerian cylinder seal from the Early Dynastic IIIa period (ca. 2600 BC; see Woolley 1934, pl. 200, no. 102 [BM 121545]). Persons drinking beer are depicted in the upper row. The habit of drinking beer together from a large vessel using long stalks went out of fashion after the decline of Sumerian culture in the 2nd millennium BC.

I confess I haven’t read the whole thing yet, but I did download the pdf of it so I can put it on my iPad. Still, just from skimming it appears fairly interesting, and a worthy piece to read over the holidays.

Damaged Lagunitas Brewing Equipment At The Dock

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lagunitas-circle
You may recall that earlier this month, the Lagunitas Brewhouse [Was] Destroyed At Sea. Lagunitas owner Tony Magee, through his Twitter Feed, just posted a number of new photos of the equipment as it arrived at the Port of Stockton this weekend. I’d say my usual “enjoy,” but it’s a little on the painful-to-see side.

lagunitas-smooshed-1
The Lauter Tun at the Port of Stockton.

lagunitas-smooshed-2
The most-damaged side.

lagunitas-smooshed-3
A close-up of the damage.

lagunitas-smooshed-4
And this is a shot of “the crane what done it,” that is smooshed the brewhouse lauter tun.

lagunitas-smooshed
And yet another damaged piece of equipment.

North Carolina Beer

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north_carolina
Today in 1789, North Carolina became the 12th state.

North Carolina
State_NorthCarolina

North Carolina Breweries

North Carolina Brewery Guides

Guild: North Carolina Brewers Guild

State Agency: North Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission

maps-nc

  • Capital: Raleigh
  • Largest Cities: Charlotte, Raleigh, Greensboro, Durham, Winston-Salem
  • Population: 8,049,313; 11th
  • Area: 53821 sq.mi., 28th
  • Nickname: Tar Heel State
  • Statehood: 12th, November 21, 1789

m-north-carolina

  • Alcohol Legalized: April 28, 1933
  • Number of Breweries: 46
  • Rank: 12th
  • Beer Production: 6,183,748
  • Production Rank: 9th
  • Beer Per Capita: 20.8 Gallons

north-carolina

Package Mix:

  • Bottles: 38.9%
  • Cans: 55.2%
  • Kegs: 5.8%

Beer Taxes:

  • Per Gallon: $0.62
  • Per Case: $1.39
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $19.13
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $19.13

Economic Impact (2010):

  • From Brewing: $3,809,238,894
  • Direct Impact: $9,224,009,106
  • Supplier Impact: $10,726,058,038
  • Induced Economic Impact: $13,291,784,223
  • Total Impact: $33,241,851,367

Legal Restrictions:

  • Control State: No
  • Sale Hours: On Premises: No sales between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. Monday through Saturday or between 2 a.m. and noon on Sunday
    Off Premises:
  • Grocery Store Sales: Yes
  • Notes: 15% ABV cap on beer, No sale of alcoholic beverages between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. Monday through Saturday, and from 2 a.m. until noon on Sundays, State stores closed on Sundays. Bottled liquor must be sold in ABC Packages stores, open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Effective December 1, 2010, the North Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Commission, no longer carries any product stronger than 151 proof, citing concerns from a single county that the majority of the 190 proof grain alcohol product was being purchased in package stores near college campuses.

north-carolina-map

Data complied, in part, from the Beer Institute’s Brewer’s Almanac 2010, Beer Serves America, the Brewers Association, Wikipedia and my World Factbook. If you see I’m missing a brewery link, please be so kind as to drop me a note or simply comment on this post. Thanks.

For the remaining states, see Brewing Links: United States.

Jaime Jurado Hired As Susquehanna Brewmaster

By

susquehanna
My good friend Jaime Jurado — who for many years now has been the brewmaster for Gambrinus in San Antonio, Texas — has accepted a new position as the brewmaster for the new Susquehanna Brewing Co. in Pittston, Pennsylvania. He’ll begin in his new position on January 1, 2012.

Jurado’s been the Director of Brewing Operations with Gambrinus since 1997. Gambrinus owns several beer brands, including BridgePort, Pete’s (which they recently discontinued), Shiner and Trumer. Prior to that, Jamie brewed at Stroh’s, Courage Brewing and the Lion in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He was also President of the MBAA from 2005-06.

From the press release:

Susquehanna Brewing Company (SBC), like The Gambrinus Company, is a family-owned company. Owners, Ed Maier, Fred Maier and Mark Nobile have respected the Chairman of The Gambrinus Company for decades. “Gambrinus brews outstanding and varied beers across a broad portfolio, and the creativity, passion and pursuit of excellence is evident in what it has accomplished. We’ve known Jaime for years, and have seen how he has grown and gained impressive depth, which is attributable to The Gambrinus Company. Jaime comes with best wishes of Gambrinus, and no hurdles,” notes SBC President Ed Maier.

SBC represents a new direction in the exciting trajectory of American craft brewing. Founded by the former beer distributors of United Beverage in Pittston, PA, with a rich history of significant regional breweries in one family, as well as a multi-generation beer distribution enterprise in the other, this is the first successful beer distribution company to take up brewing… but being from brewing across generations, there already exists hand’s-on experience from running a regional brewery in the organization in its President.

Whatever that means?!?

cbn18-13
Jaime with Lars Larson from Trumer at the Celebrator’s 18th Anniversary Party.

Questionable press release language aside, I’m happy for Jaime and wish him and SBC the best.

P1030730
Jamie with my son Porter and my wife at the Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, Texas.

Oklahoma Beer

By

oklahoma
Today in 1907, Oklahoma became the 46th state.

Oklahoma
State_Oklahoma

Oklahoma Breweries

Oklahoma Brewery Guides

Guild: No Known Brewers Association

State Agency: Oklahoma Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement Commission

maps-ok

  • Capital: Oklahoma City
  • Largest Cities: Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Norman, Lawton, Broken Arrow
  • Population: 3,450,654; 27th
  • Area: 69903 sq.mi., 20th
  • Nickname: Sooner State
  • Statehood: 46th, November 16, 1907

m-oklahoma

  • Alcohol Legalized: July 15, 1933
  • Number of Breweries: 10
  • Rank: 40th
  • Beer Production: 2,489,794
  • Production Rank: 26th
  • Beer Per Capita: 21.2 Gallons

oklahoma

Package Mix:

  • Bottles: 33.7%
  • Cans: 60.9%
  • Kegs: 5.3%

Beer Taxes 3.2:

  • Per Gallon: $0.36
  • Per Case: $0.82
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $11.25
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $11.25

Beer Taxes Over 3.2:

  • Per Gallon: $0.40
  • Per Case: $0.91
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $12.50
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $12.50

Economic Impact (2010):

  • From Brewing: $81,054,712
  • Direct Impact: $657,487,878
  • Supplier Impact: $277,783,429
  • Induced Economic Impact: $440,207,379
  • Total Impact: $1,375,478,686

Legal Restrictions:

  • Control State: No
  • Sale Hours: On Premises: 6 a.m. to 2 a.m
    Off Premises: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. (Mon-Sat)
  • Grocery Store Sales: 3.2 in grocery stores and gas stations all above 3.2% in Retail Package Stores
  • Notes: 4.0% ABV/3.2 ABW or higher only sold at room temperature in liquor stores, Liquor Stores closed on Sundays and some holidays. As of 2007, liquor stores are now open on election days. State law prohibits public intoxication, many counties and cities also prohibit public intoxication.

oklahoma-map

Data complied, in part, from the Beer Institute’s Brewer’s Almanac 2010, Beer Serves America, the Brewers Association, Wikipedia and my World Factbook. If you see I’m missing a brewery link, please be so kind as to drop me a note or simply comment on this post. Thanks.

For the remaining states, see Brewing Links: United States.