Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Winter Brews Festival In Concord January 28

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The 3rd annual Winter Brews Festival, sponsored by the Brewing Network, will be held this year on Saturday, January 28 from Noon to 4:00 p.m. Thanks to the Occupy Berkeley movement, last year’s location was not available and BN thought they’d have to cancel. But the City of Concord came to the rescue, and this year’s event will be held at Todos Santos Plaza, just two blocks from the Concord BART station.
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Tickets went on sale tonight, and can be purchased online through Eventbrite.

Here’s all the info from the press release:

Todos Santos Plaza is normally closed to public events during the winter months. Due to the extreme situation, however, they graciously opened their doors to allow the event to go on uninterrupted. Partnering with the Todos Santos Small Business Association and a local environmental non-profi t organization, this event will proudly promote the value of local breweries, local businesses, and fresh beer.

Visitors will enjoy unlimited tastings from more than 30 world class breweries. Confirmed breweries include the 21st Amendment, Drakes, Heretic, Lagunitas, Magnolia, Triple Rock, and Russian River. This Winter Brews Festival promises to expose beer lovers, new and experienced, to a variety of appetizing and innovative beers. A portion of the proceeds will also benefit local nonprofit, the Coral Reef Alliance.

The 3rd Annual Winter Brews Festival will be held at the Todos Santos Plaza in Concord on Saturday, January 28, 2012, from 12pm to 4pm. Tastings will feature a wide variety of local brews and unique innovations from some of the best brewers around, many of whom will be pouring their own beers giving visitors an opportunity to learn more about how the beer is made. The event will happen rain or shine, with arrangements in place to keep festival goers dry or out of the sun. And with the Concord BART station just two blocks away, this afternoon event will no doubt satisfy locals wanting to enjoy some beers for a great cause. Tickets are $35 pre-sale or $40 at the gate and include unlimited pours and a commemorative glass. For more information on the event, and to purchase tickets, please visit The Brewing Network Ontap.

See you there!

SF Beer Week Opening Event Announced

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The opening celebration to kick-off SF Beer Week for 2012 has been announced. Having outgrown our space last year, this year it’s been moved to a new, larger location at the Concourse pavilion at the Concourse Exhibition Center in SOMA. Here are the details:

On February 10, 2012, over 50 Northern California breweries will converge on the Concourse in San Francisco for the Opening Celebration of SF Beer Week, which kicks off a ten day marathon of beer tastings, small festivals and food pairing dinners across the Bay Area. From 6-10pm, beer lovers will discover newly minted nanobrewers pouring alongside legendary craft brewing pioneers.

Early bird tickets are now available for $55. Each attendee will receive a commemorative glass and enjoy unlimited samples of new, rare and classic beers. Tickets are expected to go quickly. The event is one of the largest and most anticipated gatherings of the region’s beer community. A complete list of attending breweries will be published in mid January.

This year the Opening Celebration has moved to a larger venue in San Francisco’s SOMA district. The Concourse pavilion will provide a more spacious experience, easier access to the breweries and more food options will be available. Artisan producers from around the Bay will serve up a range of delicious choices for purchase, while live music fills the air.

Tickets are available online, the early bird price is $55. See you there.

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More From This Year’s Anchor Christmas Party

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If you saw my post from the Anchor Christmas Party a few days ago, my friend Mike Condie — who’s a much better photographer than I am — sent over some of the pictures he took at the party and I thought I’d share those, as well.

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The Celebrator crew.

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Alec Moss and Tom Dalldorf.

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Me with brewer Mike Lee and Bob Brewer.

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Bob Brewer showing me Anchor’s new bottling line.

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Ron Silberstein, from Thirsty Bear, and Anchor co-owner Keith Greggor.

Thanks for sharing, Mike.

Anchor Christmas Party 2011

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Last night was the annual Anchor Christmas Party, one of my favorite events of the beer year. It’s an opportunity to celebrate the holidays with the local beer community and have a bit of fun before all the family obligations kick in. And it’s always a great party. Anchor pulls out all the stops, putting out a terrific spread and opening the brewery up for one night.

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The Anchor party is one of the few events that my wife Sarah attends with me each year, making it that much more special. We always make a point of having holiday photo taken at the brewery.

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The Celebrator Beer News crew at the party.

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Brewer Mike Lee and Bob Brewer.

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During the course of the evening, I was happy to get a look at Anchor’s new bottling line, which is doubling their filling speed and offering better O-levels and fill level consistency. Plus it’s a beautiful piece of machinery.

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Tom Dalldorf, publisher of the Celebrator Beer News, my wife Sarah, and Keith Greggor, co-owner of Anchor Brewers & Distillers toward the end of the night.

Top 8 Beer Sales Days

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This two-year old SlashFood article showed up in my Paper.li today, retweeted by a brewery I follow. The article, Super Bowl Sunday — The 8th Biggest Beer Day of the Year? questions the list of the top eight “Holidays/Events for Beer.” The list was complied by Nielsen, and as he points out is “combined beer sales from all U.S. outlets (including food, liquor, convenience and drug).” He’s initially is skeptical about why sales for the week following the holiday/event are also tracked, but eventually figured out that’s just how the weeks are tracked. If you want to include a week in which the holiday falls on a Sunday, you have to include the week prior and the week of to get all the relevant sales data. Author Mike Pomranz drew many of his conclusions from his correspondence with Nielsen executives, who naturally have a healthy bias in favor of their own data. As a result, Pomranz may not fully appreciate two additional tidbits about those statistics.

First, Nielsen’s data is almost entirely chain store sales. The big supermarket chains, drug stores, big box stores, convenience stores. As such, it’s a big slice of the pie, but it’s still nowhere near the whole pie. Missing from its numbers are thousands of small independent outlets that sell beer. It works because the sample is the same from period to period and so comparisons and trends can be confidently teased out of the data, and it’s certainly useful, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. What most people outside the industry forget, IMHO, is that it isn’t intended to be all-inclusive. It’s purpose is to identify sales trends and big picture activity. When I was the beer buyer at BevMo, I’d see an endless parade of Nielsen data from various breweries, and each would tell a different story, simply because of the way the information was massaged. There’s so much data that it can be drilled down in endless ways, with each business doing it in a way that was most favorable to their purposes, to show their sales in the best possible light. So it should be taken with a grain of salt. It’s most useful when comparing the same set of data over different periods of time; weeks, months, quarters, years, etc.

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But it tends to break down when comparing different time periods, as in this list, because there are so many more factors that the raw numbers can’t capture. Pomranz certainly gives seasonality its due, concluding that “[i]f you were to normalize sales to account for weekly seasonal changes in overall beer sales, the often beer-centric celebration of the Super Bowl would most likely move significantly up the list.” That’s because climate — the weather — plays a HUGE part in beer sales that can’t be overstated. When the thermometer ticks up, beer sales go up. When it’s time to put on a sweater, beer sales plummet. It’s always been very seasonal that way. But even my old bosses at BevMo failed to recognize its importance and would routinely blame me for poor beer sales (or at least not hitting sales goals) when forces out of my control would hurt the amount of beer people bought. I even had one person tell me I was essentially not allowed to blame the weather, which is a bit like saying you can’t explain getting wet by pointing to the rain.

So not surprisingly, the top four holidays all take place during warm months of the year. And while you don’t normally associate Father’s Day with big beer-soaked picnics, just the fact that it’s in June may account for increased sales. Frankly, Easter is likewise one of those holidays that few people have been able to tie in with beer, but as it usually comes in the spring, it could also be a coincidence of the season.

Second, the Nielsen data is for “Case Sales.” In other words, not kegs. And a lot of holiday or event parties include kegs. For example, every year I was with BevMo our number one weekend for keg sales was Halloween. But in the Nielsen data, it doesn’t even crack the top eight. To me, that suggests another one of the limitations of their list. It’s just common sense. You can’t tell me more people drink beer for Easter than Halloween. Again, that’s because the data is imperfect and not comprehensive. It’s just a snapshot of one particular portion of the beer market.

And in fact, one year later, in 2010, the very same Nielsen chart for the subsequent year has the Super Bowl now in 7th place, with Halloween in 6th, and Easter and Father’s Day no longer registering.
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So while I think we can mostly agree on which holidays or events are the biggest in terms of beer drinking, even if the order they’ll fall in will vary slightly, it’s best not to rely too heavily on incomplete data that’s not intended to be all-encompassing of the total beer market in America.

Beer Anniversary: Vanberg & DeWulf

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Today, 30 years ago, Don Feinberg and Wendy Littlefield launched Vanberg & DeWulf, one of the first companies to specialize in importing Belgian beer to the United States. Originally, they conceived of the company as a way to keep visiting Belgium on a regular basis and see the many friends they’d made when they lived there for three years after college, not realizing they’d be part of a larger movement popularizing Belgian beer in the states. At the time, here’s what they were thinking.

We lived in Belgium for three years right out of college and began importing so that when our companies transferred us to the States we would still have an excuse to return to see our friends and visit the places we loved. What began as a hobby turned into a career, and we have a decades-long wacky, improbable fascination with the culture of the country and its brewers.

As my friend Tom Peters from Monk’s Cafe in Philadelphia put it:

Toast to the pioneers of bringing Belgian beers to the US. Don Feinberg & Wendy Littlefield have been bringing us the likes of Duvel, Boon, Dupont, Scaldis and other top-flight Belgian ales for the past THIRTY YEARS! They were at least a decade ahead of the times. Their portfolio helped me start offering Belgian beer in Philadelphia way back in 1985. Without their efforts Monk’s Café probably would not exist, nor any of the other Belgian beer bars that came along later.

Like many bars and beer establishments, they’re taking part in the Coast-to-Coast Toast tonight, lifting a glass of Belgian beer to Vanberg & DeWulf, and especially to Don and Wendy, for their three-decade efforts.

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When I spoke to Wendy last week, she said they expect about 350 places to participate in the toast, and around 200 have even signed-up on the Eventbrite page, where you can see if there’s one going on in your neighborhood. For a full list, by state, of the more than 350 events that were known as of yesterday, check out that list at their C2CT website.

Even if you can’t make it out — I’m staying in and toasting with the missus, for example — toast them in the comfort of your home. It should be easy enough to find one of the great beers they import. Any beer from the following Belgian breweries will fit the bill.

  • Amiata
  • Castelain (also St. Amand)
  • De Cam
  • Dilewyns
  • Dubuisson (Scaldis and Cuvee de Trolls)
  • Dupont (also Moinette, Foret, Les Bons Voeux and others)
  • Slaghmuylder (Witkap Stimulo Singel Abbey Ale)
  • V&D exclusive collaborations with De Troch (Lambrucha)
  • V&D exclusive collaborations with Et Famille (Lambickx)
  • V&D exclusive collaborations with Scheldebrouwerij (Hop Ruiter)

You can also find a list of all 30 of the beers in their portfolio at their C2CT website.

In addition, Don and Wendy have partnered with Untappd, the foursquare of beer. I confess I’ve only been using Untappd for a couple of weeks now, since I finally scrapped my Android for an iPhone 4s. But so far I really like it, in the same way I enjoy checking into Foursquare for absolutely no reason. It’s just fun. Anyway, check in today (and for the next 30 days) with any of the thirty beers in the Vanberg & DeWulf portfolio and you’ll earn a special Belgian beer badge.

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In addition to the badge, you’ll also be entered into a contest to win a trip for two to Belgium, courtesy of the Belgian Tourist Office and Delta Airlines.

Here’s an overview of some of their other accomplishments, and Lew Bryson has a nice tribute he did for a local Philly distributor.

Don Feinberg and Wendy Littlefield were the first to import Duvel, Rodenbach, Affligem, Boon lambics, Blanche de Bruges to the USA. They were the first Americans inducted into the Belgian Brewers Guild in its 500-year history. Ever and always they have represented beers from independent family-run breweries. They were the publishers of the first US edition of Michael Jackson’s The Great Beers of Belgium. They founded Brewery Ommegang on a former hops farm in Cooperstown in 1994. Ommegang was the first US brewery dedicated to all bottle conditioned, cork-finished, Belgian-style beers. They introduced the 750 ml format to the US craft beer scene, and built the first farmstead brewery in the US in a century.

I first met Don and Wendy about fifteen years ago when I worked for BevMo. At that time they were not just importers, but had recently founded and built Ommegang in upstate New York, a partnership with Duvel Moortgat and others. I saw and talked to them both for a number of years after that, but then I didn’t see them for a time after Duvel bought them out at Ommegang and they moved to Chicago. Happily, I was reunited with them when the Craft Brewers Conference took place in Chicago two years ago and I attended a Dubuisson (Bush) beer dinner where we had a chance to really catch up, before heading to the Publican for a nightcap or three. I love their passion for what they do, and how much they love and value their relationship with Belgian culture and its brewers. I hope I remain half as passionate for what I do after thirty years. They’re a great example of just how much fun you can have when you really and truly love what you do.

Happy Anniversary Don & Wendy, here’s to thirty more years of great Belgian beer!

Jester King Sues Texas Over Antiquated Beer Regulations

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The Jester King Craft Brewery in Austin, Texas, is my new hero, but then I’m a fan of their Don Quixote kind of crazy. The windmill they’re currently tilting at is the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC).

Like most states, and the Federal government, most of the laws regarding alcohol were written in the months following the passage of the 21st Amendment, which ended Prohibition. Unfortunately, most laws and especially regulations, are rarely updated or amended. And while that may be fine for most laws, after 78 years the beer landscape in America is vastly different than it was when the regulations were implemented. Then, the different kinds of beer being made were significantly more modest than today. A lot of the laws that currently govern how beer is defined, sold, distributed and labeled are incredibly antiquated.

I didn’t know specifically how bad it was in Texas, but I was certainly aware of the federal regs and several other states that have similar inconsistencies between their regulations and reality. Essentially, these laws make it mandatory that brewers lie about what their beer is and/or force them to omit information that consumers would undoubtedly find useful. So Jester King, and two other unnamed co-plaintiffs, is suing the TABC in federal court.

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Below is their press release explaining what they’re trying to do:

Jester King Craft brewery, maker of artisan farmhouse ales in the beautiful Texas Hill Country on the outskirts of Austin, has filed suit against the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC). On Wednesday, attorneys representing Jester King Craft Brewery and two other co-plaintiffs filed a motion for summary judgment in federal court asking that the case be decided in our favor.

We have sued the TABC because we believe that its Code violates our rights under the 1st and 14th Amendments to the Constitution of the United States. Under the Code, we are not allowed to tell the beer drinking public where our beer is sold. We are also not permitted to use accurate terms to describe our beers. We are often forced to choose either to label them inaccurately or not to make beers that we would like to brew. Under the bizarre, antiquated naming system mandated by the TABC Code, we have to call everything we brew over 4% alcohol by weight (ABW) “Ale” or “Malt Liquor” and everything we brew at or below 4% ABW “beer.” This results in nonsensical and somewhat comical situations where we have to call pale ale at or below 4% ABW “pale beer” and lager that is over 4% ABW “ale.” The State has arrogantly and autocratically cast aside centuries of rich brewing tradition by taking it upon itself to redefine terms that reference flavor and production method as a simple shorthand for alcoholic strength.

At the same time, the State prohibits breweries from using other terms that accurately reference alcoholic strength like “strong” or “low alcohol.” That means you will not be seeing any Belgian or American Strong Ale in Texas. Further, the State restricts the contexts in which we can communicate the actual alcohol content of our beers. We are not allowed to put the alcoholic content on anything the State considers advertising, which includes our website and social media. We are simply seeking to exercise free and truthful speech about the beer we make and strongly believe that the State has no interest in keeping you from knowing the type of beer we make, how strong it is, or where it’s sold.

Our claim under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, maintains that breweries, like wineries, should be able to sell their products directly to the public. Right now in Texas, we cannot sell our beer at our brewery. We can only sell beer through a retailer or distributor. When people visit Jester King and ask to buy our beer, we have to tell them, “Sorry, it’s illegal.” Brewpubs are faced with an equal and opposite restriction. They can sell beer on-site, but cannot sell beer through a retailer or distributor. Texas wineries on the other hand are allowed to sell on-site and through retailers and distributors. We are suing because the State has no rational interest in maintaining special restrictions aimed at limiting the sale of beer.

Finally, the lawsuit challenges the State’s requirement that every foreign brewery wishing to sell beer in Texas obtain its own separate license. Foreign wineries and distilleries are not burdened by this requirement. They may simply sell their products in Texas through an importer that has one license for all the wine and spirits it brings into our state. The result is that small, artisan beer makers often have their beer kept out of Texas by unduly burdensome fees.

When we started Jester King, part of our plan was to help other small, artisan brewers, from both the United States and abroad, sell their products in Texas. This is something that we remain interested in doing at some point, which is where our material interest in this part of the case comes into play. Our much larger interest, however, is in allowing Texas beer drinkers to have access to the beers that helped shape our desire to build an authentic farmhouse brewery in the Texas Hill Country and that have had a direct influence on the type of beers that we have set out to brew. Many of these beers are from small overseas breweries whose products are currently being sold elsewhere in the U.S., but not in Texas because of exorbitant licensing fees. We would like to have the ability to purchase these beers in our local market and would like for all Texas beer drinkers to be able to do the same.

We have chosen to pursue these matters in federal court after witnessing the lack of progress that has resulted from previous attempts to address the inequities of the TABC Code legislatively. During the last legislative session, there were bills aimed at giving breweries and brewpubs similar rights to Texas wineries, but these bills never even made it out of committee.

We cannot say how likely we are to succeed in this lawsuit. The State has only to show a rational basis for restricting our freedom and the freedom of beer drinkers in this matter. However, as long as there is a TABC Code in Texas that discriminates against and puts undue burdens on breweries both home and abroad, we will continue to do everything in our power to fight for a more just and free system for us and for beer drinkers in our state.

As they say, their quest is a difficult one and the likelihood of success somewhat unlikely, sad to say. But the effort of bringing attention to these problems may increase awareness of them, both in Texas and elsewhere, and long term might start down the long road to changing them and bring them in line with reality. It may be a long quest, but hopefully it’s not an impossible dream.

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Good luck, Jester King. This kind of thing should be happening in every state.

GABF Winners 2011

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The 30th Great American Beer Festival is now in the history books, with some pretty impressive statistics. A record 3,930 beers were judged in 83 categories by 167 judges from 9 nations. Some more factoids on the results and the festival:

  • 18 new breweries entering for the first time won a medal
  • Category with the most entries: American-style IPA – 176 entries
  • Average number of competition beers entered in each category: 48
  • 526 breweries in the competition from 48 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico
  • 466 breweries in the festival hall
  • 2,375 beers served at the festival
  • 49,000 attendees

The Breweries That Won the Most Medals:

  • Sun King Brewing Co., 8 medals
  • Firestone Walker Brewing Co., 6 medals
  • Pizza Port Carlsbad, 6 medals
  • Rock Bottom Brewery, 6 medals
  • Boston Beer Co., 4 medals
  • Boulevard Brewing Co., 4 medals
  • Chuckanut Brewery, 4 medals
  • Pabst Brewing Co., 4 medals
  • Pizza Port Ocean Beach, 4 medals

The Most Gold Medals Won:

  • Sun King Brewing Co., 4 gold medals won
  • Firestone Walker Brewing Co., 3 gold medals won
  • Pizza Port Carlsbad, 3 gold medals won
  • 21st Amendment Brewery, 2 gold medals won
  • Boulevard Brewing Co., 2 gold medals won
  • Chuckanut Brewery, 2 gold medals won
  • Le Cumbre Brewing Co., 2 gold medals won
  • New Glarus Brewing Co., 2 gold medals won

Medals Won by State:

  1. California = 51
  2. Colorado = 44
  3. Oregon = 15
  4. Illinois = 12
  5. TIE: Indiana, Washington = 10
  6. Virginia = 8
  7. TIE: Missouri, Pennsylvania, Utah = 7
  8. TIE: Delaware, Wisconsin = 6
  9. TIE: Massachusetts, Michigan, Tennessee, Wyoming = 5
  10. TIE: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, New Mexico, Ohio, Texas = 4

The 2011 Great American Beer Festival Winners

Category: 1 American-Style Wheat Beer – 20 Entries
Gold: SchWheat, SweetWater Brewing Co., Atlanta, GA
Silver: Shredders Wheat, Barley Brown’s Brew Pub, Baker City, OR
Bronze: Wagon Box Wheat, Black Tooth Brewing Co., Sheridan, WY

Category: 2 American-Style Wheat Beer With Yeast – 38 Entries
Gold: Leavenworth Boulder Bend Dunkelweizen, Fish Brewing Co., Olympia, WA
Silver: Tumblewheat, Altitude Chophouse and Brewery, Laramie, WY
Bronze: Leavenworth Whistling Pig Hefeweizen, Fish Brewing Co., Olympia, WA

Category: 3 Fruit Beer – 56 Entries
Gold: Raspberry Tart, New Glarus Brewing Co., New Glarus, WI
Silver: Brainless on Peaches, Epic Brewing Co., Salt Lake City, UT
Bronze: Derailed Black Cherry Ale, Erie Brewing Co., Erie, PA

Category: 4 Fruit Wheat Beer – 48 Entries
Gold: 5 Lizard, 5 Rabbit Cerveceria, Chicago, IL
Silver: Mr. Pineapple Wheat, SanTan Brewing Co., Chandler, AZ
Bronze: Vintage Blonde Ale, Blue Moon Brewing Co., Golden, CO

Category: 5 Field Beer or Pumpkin Beer – 37 Entries
Gold: Upslope Pumpkin Ale, Upslope Brewing Co., Boulder, CO
Silver: Pumpkin Ale, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewery – Chandler, Chandler, AZ
Bronze: Turnip the Beets, Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO

Category: 6 Herb and Spice Beer – 92 Entries
Gold: Mexican Chocolate Stout, Copper Kettle Brewing Co., Denver, CO
Silver: LSD, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, Minneapolis, MN
Bronze: CBC Heather Ale, Cambridge Brewing Co., Cambridge, MA

Category: 7 Chocolate Beer – 30 Entries
Gold: Chocolate Beer, Barley Brothers Brewery and Grill, Lake Havasu City, AZ
Silver: Samuel Adams Chocolate Chili Bock, Boston Beer Co., Boston, MA
Bronze: Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock, Boston Beer Co., Boston, MA

Category: 8 Coffee Beer – 60 Entries
Gold: Java Mac, Sun King Brewing Co., Indianapolis, IN
Silver: Coffee Monster, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Bronze: Coffee Milk Stout, Dry Dock Brewing, Aurora, CO

Category: 9 Specialty Beer – 24 Entries
Gold: Hazelnut Brown Nectar, Rogue Ales, Newport, OR
Silver: Chateau Jiahu, Dogfi sh Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE
Bronze: Denver Beer Co. Graham Cracker Porter, Denver Beer Co., Denver, CO

Category: 10 Rye Beer – 36 Entries
Gold: Three Flowers IPA, Marin Brewing Co., Larkspur, CA
Silver: Bock in Bock, Tequesta Brewing Co., Tequesta, FL
Bronze: Crank Tank, SweetWater Brewing Co., Atlanta, GA

Category: 11 Specialty Honey Beer – 32 Entries
Gold: Sixteen, Weyerbacher Brewing Co., Easton, PA
Silver: Eye of the Storm, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, Minneapolis, MN
Bronze: Midas Touch, Dogfi sh Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE

Category: 12 Session Beer – 44 Entries
Gold: Provo Girl Pilsner, Utah Brewers Co-op, Salt Lake City, UT
Silver: Twerp, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Bronze: Firestone Walker Extra Pale Ale, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA

Category: 13 Other Strong Beer – 53 Entries
Gold: Wheat Wine Ale, Smuttynose Brewing Co., Portsmouth, NH
Silver: Saison du Summer, Backcountry Brewery, Frisco, CO
Bronze: Totality Imperial Stout, FiftyFifty Brewing Co., Truckee, CA

Category: 14 Experimental Beer – 83 Entries
Gold: Mangalitsa Pig Porter, Right Brain Brewery, Traverse City, MI
Silver: Petit Obscura, Telegraph Brewing Co., Santa Barbara, CA
Bronze: Belgorado, Wynkoop Brewing Co., Denver, CO

Category: 15 Indigenous Beer – 31 Entries
Gold: Hqt, 21st Amendment Brewery, San Francisco, CA
Silver: Monticello Reserve Ale, Starr Hill Brewery, Crozet, VA
Bronze: Hot Rocks Lager, Port Brewing Co., San Marcos, CA

Category: 16 Gluten-Free Beer – 15 Entries
Gold: Gluten-Free Lemon Pale, Strange Brewing Co., Denver, CO
Silver: New Grist, Lakefront Brewery, Milwaukee, WI
Bronze: Seeley Axe White, Kettlehouse Brewing Co., Missoula, MT

Category: 17 American-Belgo-Style Ale – 43 Entries
Gold: Angry Birds, Haymarket Pub & Brewery, Chicago, IL
Silver: Blue Reserve, Blue Mountain Brewery, Afton, VA
Bronze: Boulevard Collaboration #2, Boulevard Brewing Co., Kansas City, MO

Category: 18 American-Style Sour Ale – 21 Entries
Gold: Le Terroir, New Belgium Brewing Co., Fort Collins, CO
Silver: Framboise de Amorosa, The Lost Abbey, San Marcos, CA
Bronze: Ching Ching, Bend Brewing Co., Bend, OR

Category: 19 American-Style Brett Ale – 31 Entries
Gold: Confl uence, Allagash Brewing Co., Portland, ME
Silver: Super Friends IPA, Ithaca Beer Co., Ithaca, NY
Bronze: Grimalkin – Super Kitty Fantastico, Brugge Brasserie, Indianapolis, IN

Category: 20 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Beer – 40 Entries
Gold: Velvet Merkin, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Silver: Wee Pogue, Sun King Brewing Co., Indianapolis, IN
Bronze: Pinot Jubel, Deschutes Brewery, Bend, OR

Category: 21 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer – 118 Entries
Gold: Melange a Trois, Nebraska Brewing Co., Papillion, NE
Silver: BBJ (Bourbon Barrel Johan), Sun King Brewing Co., Indianapolis, IN
Bronze: Barrel Aged Naked Evil BBW, Hoppin’ Frog Brewing Co., Akron, OH

Category: 22 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Stout – 74 Entries
Gold: Bourbon Murder, Deschutes Brewery, Bend, OR
Silver: 2010 Bourbon Barrel Sexual Chocolate Imperial Stout, Foothills Brewing, Winston-Salem, NC
Bronze: Grand Inquisitor, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant, Wilmington, DE

Category: 23 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer – 75 Entries
Gold: Friek, Odell Brewing Co., Fort Collins, CO
Silver: The Wanderer, The Bruery, Placentia, CA
Bronze: Le Serpent Cerise, Snake River Brewing, Jackson, WY

Category: 24 Aged Beer – 36 Entries
Gold: Expedition Stout, Bell’s Brewery, Galesburg, MI
Silver: Release the Hounds, Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO
Bronze: 2004 Triple Exultation, Eel River Brewing Co., Fortuna, CA

Category: 25 Kellerbier or Zwickelbier – 48 Entries
Gold: Kolsch Kellerbier, Mad Fox Brewing Co., Falls Church, VA
Silver: Bottle Rocket Lager, Uncle Billy’s Brew & Que – Lake Travis, Austin, TX
Bronze: B3K Schwarzbier, Wynkoop Brewing Co., Denver, CO

Category: 26 Smoke Beer – 43 Entries
Gold: Smoke Ale, Rogue Ales, Portland, OR
Silver: Smoke Out, Starr Hill Brewery, Crozet, VA
Bronze: Alaskan Smoked Porter 2010, Alaskan Brewing Co., Juneau, AK

Category: 27 American-Style or International-Style Pilsener – 31 Entries
Gold: BEER, La Cumbre Brewing Co., Albuquerque, NM
Silver: Popcorn Pilsner, Sun King Brewing Co., Indianapolis, IN
Bronze: Legacy Lager, Silver Moon Brewing, Bend, OR

Category: 28 German-Style Pilsener – 42 Entries
Gold: Pavlov’s Pils, C.B. & Potts Restaurant & Brewery – Fort Collins, Fort Collins, CO
Silver: Sunshine Pils, Tröegs Brewing Co., Harrisburg, PA
Bronze: Pilsner, Marble Brewery, Albuquerque, NM

Category: 29 Bohemian-Style Pilsener – 42 Entries
Silver: Mama’s Little Yella Pils, Oskar Blues Brewery, Longmont, CO
Bronze: Pilsner, McCoy’s Public House and Brewkitchen, Kansas City, MO

Category: 30 Munich-Style Helles – 38 Entries
Gold: Chuckanut Helles, Chuckanut Brewery, Bellingham, WA
Silver: Where in the Helles Gunner?, Emmett’s Brewing Co., West Dundee, IL
Bronze: Órale, Del Norte Brewing Co., Denver, CO

Category: 31 Dortmunder or German-Style Oktoberfest – 20 Entries
Gold: Move Back, The SandLot, Denver, CO
Silver: Tommy Two Fists, Devils Backbone Brewing Co., Roseland, VA
Bronze: Dog Days Lager, Two Brothers Brewing Co., Warrenville, IL

Category: 32 American-Style Lager, Light Lager or Premium Lager – 55 Entries
Gold: Old Milwaukee Light, Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL
Silver: Busch Light, Anheuser-Busch, St. Louis, MO
Bronze: Pabst Blue Ribbon Light, Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL

Category: 33 American-Style Lager or Cream Ale or Lager – 31 Entries
Gold: Red Dog, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI
Silver: Rainier, Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL
Bronze: Old Style, Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL

Category: 34 Vienna-Style Lager – 32 Entries
Gold: Jomo Lager, Starr Hill Brewery, Crozet, VA
Silver: Cityfest, Brewzzi, West Palm Beach, FL
Bronze: Vienna Red Lager, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant, Wilmington, DE

Category: 35 German-Style Märzen – 58 Entries
Gold: Stein Knocker, Hoppers Grill & Brewing Co., Midvale, UT
Silver: Munster Fest, Three Floyds Brewing Co., Munster, IN
Bronze: Samuel Adams Octoberfest, Boston Beer Co., Boston, MA

Category: 36 American-Style Amber Lager – 58 Entries
Gold: Uberbrau, Humperdink’s Restaurant and Brewery, Dallas, TX
Silver: Colorado Native, AC Golden Brewing Co., Golden, CO
Bronze: Florida Beer Florida Lager, Florida Beer Co., Melbourne, FL

Category: 37 European-Style Dunkel – 23 Entries
Gold: Dunkel Lager, Glenwood Canyon Brewing Co., Glenwood Springs, CO
Silver: Chuckanut Dunkel, Chuckanut Brewery, Bellingham, WA
Bronze: Penn Dark, Pennsylvania Brewing Co., Pittsburgh, PA

Category: 38 American-Style Dark Lager – 16 Entries
Gold: Durango Dark, Durango Brewing Co., Durango, CO
Silver: Session Black, Full Sail Brewing Co., Hood River, OR
Bronze: Schwarzbier, AC Golden Brewing Co., Golden, CO

Category: 39 German-Style Schwarzbier – 26 Entries
Gold: TAPS Schwarzbier, TAPS Fish House & Brewery (Corona, CA), Brea, CA
Silver: Nevermore Lager, Rock Bottom Brewery (King of Prussia, PA), Louisville, CO
Bronze: Gordon Biersch Schwarzbier, Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant (Seattle, WA), Chattanooga, TN

Category: 40 Bock – 34 Entries
Gold: Troegenator, Tröegs Brewing Co., Harrisburg, PA
Silver: PrePro Bock, Coors Archive Brewery, Golden, CO
Bronze: Maibock, Stewart’s Brewing Co., Bear, DE

Category: 41 German-Style Doppelbock or Eisbock – 22 Entries
Gold: Autumnal Fire, Capital Brewery Co., Middleton, WI
Silver: St. Nik Brewer’s Reserve, Pennsylvania Brewing Co., Pittsburgh, PA
Bronze: Eisphyre, Capital Brewery Co., Middleton, WI

Category: 42 Baltic-Style Porter – 19 Entries
Gold: Battle Axe Baltic Porter, Fat Head’s Brewery, North Olmsted, OH
Silver: White Eagle Baltic Porter, Montana Brewing Co., Billings, MT
Bronze: Puddy Porter, Triple Rock Brewery and Alehouse, Berkeley, CA

Category: 43 Golden or Blonde Ale – 56 Entries
Gold: Blonde, Ram Restaurant & Brewery – Seattle, Seattle, WA
Silver: Alaskan Pale Ale, Alaskan Brewing Co., Juneau, AK
Bronze: Kent Lake Kolsch, Iron Springs Pub & Brewery, Fairfax, CA

Category: 44 German-Style Kölsch – 48 Entries
Gold: Chuckanut Kolsch, Chuckanut Brewery, Bellingham, WA
Silver: Great Adirondack Kölsch, Great Adirondack Brewing Co., Lake Placid, NY
Bronze: Capital City Kolsch, Blind Tiger Brewery & Restaurant, Topeka, KS

Category: 45 English-Style Summer Ale – 33 Entries
Gold: Summer Lovin’, Blue Mountain Brewery, Afton, VA
Silver: Peacemaker, Austin Beerworks, Austin, TX
Bronze: Mad Fox Brewing Company English Summer Ale, Mad Fox Brewing Co., Falls Church, VA

Category: 46 Classic English-Style Pale Ale – 25 Entries
Gold: Clear Creek Pale Ale, Silver City Brewery, Bremerton, WA
Silver: MacTarnahan’s Amber Ale, MacTarnahan’s Brewing Co., Portland, OR
Bronze: Prime Time Pale Ale, Big Time Brewery, Seattle, WA

Category: 47 English-Style India Pale Ale – 46 Entries
Gold: Samuel Adams Latitude 48 Hallertau Mittelfrueh, Boston Beer Co., Boston, MA
Silver: Napa Smith Organic IPA, Napa Smith Brewery, Napa, CA
Bronze: Down ‘n’ Dirty IPA, Deschutes Brewery, Bend, OR

Category: 48 International-Style Pale Ale – 20 Entries
Gold: Boulevard Pale Ale, Boulevard Brewing Co., Kansas City, MO
Silver: Intercontinental Pale Ale, Flossmoor Station Brewing Co., Flossmoor, IL
Bronze: Radiant, Ninkasi Brewing Co., Eugene, OR

Category: 49 American-Style Pale Ale – 105 Entries
Gold: Pale 31, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Silver: Mission St. Pale, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Bronze: Ute Trail Pale Ale, Amicas, Salida, CO

Category: 50 American-Style Strong Pale Ale – 103 Entries
Gold: Pako’s Eye P.A., Snake River Brewing, Jackson, WY
Silver: AleSmith IPA, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Bronze: Hop Knot, Four Peaks Brewing Co., Tempe, AZ

Category: 51 American-Style India Pale Ale – 176 Entries
Gold: Elevated IPA, La Cumbre Brewing Co., Albuquerque, NM
Silver: Deviant Dale’s, Oskar Blues Brewery, Longmont, CO
Bronze: Head Hunter IPA, Fat Head’s Brewery, North Olmsted, OH

Category: 52 Imperial India Pale Ale – 102 Entries
Gold: Citra Double IPA, Kern River Brewing, Kernville, CA
Silver: Double Jack, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Bronze: Imperial IPA, Epic Brewing Co., Salt Lake City, UT

Category: 53 American-Style Amber/Red Ale – 82 Entries
Gold: Amber Waves, 21st Amendment Brewery, San Francisco, CA
Silver: Jamaica Red Ale, Mad River Brewing Co., Blue Lake, CA

Bronze: Rocket Red, Big River Grille and Brewing (Chattanooga, TN), Chattanooga, TN

Category: 54 Imperial Red Ale – 57 Entries
Gold: 547 Haight – The Toronado San Francisco’s 20th Anniversary Imperial Red Ale, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Silver: Rhino Chaser Imperial Red Ale, Pizza Port Ocean Beach, San Diego, CA
Bronze: Organic Deranger, Laurelwood Brewing Co., Portland, OR

Category: 55 English-Style Mild Ale – 25 Entries
Gold: Skidmark Brown Ale, Pizza Port Ocean Beach, San Diego, CA
Silver: Dawn Patrol Dark, Pizza Port Solana Beach, Solana Beach, CA
Bronze: Bird and Baby Mild, The Public House Brewing Co., Rolla, MO

Category: 56 Ordinary or Special Bitter – 28 Entries
Gold: DBA, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Silver: New Speedway Bitter, Magnolia Gastropub and Brewery, San Francisco, CA
Bronze: Bonnie Lee’s Best Bitter, Magnolia Gastropub and Brewery, San Francisco, CA

Category: 57 Extra Special Bitter – 43 Entries
Gold: Minaret ESB, Cigar City Brewing, Tampa, FL
Silver: Colorado Kind, Mountain Sun Pub and Brewery, Boulder, CO
Bronze: Harvest Ale, Goose Island Beer Co., Chicago, IL

Category: 58 Scottish-Style Ale – 27 Entries
Gold: Hope and King Scotch Ale, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, Minneapolis, MN
Silver: Naughty Scot, Rock Bottom Brewery (College Park – Indianapolis, IN), Louisville, CO
Bronze: Brown Bear Brown, Rock Bottom Brewery (Bethesda, MD), Louisville, CO

Category: 59 Irish-Style Red Ale – 31 Entries
Gold: O’Rion Irish Red, Equinox Brewing, Fort Collins, CO
Silver: Copperhead Red, Ghost River Brewing, Memphis, TN
Bronze: Colorado Boy Irish Ale, Colorado Boy Brewing Co., Ridgway, CO

Category: 60 English-Style Brown Ale – 45 Entries
Gold: Good Grief Brown, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Silver: Rock Bottom Brown Ale, Rock Bottom Brewery (San Diego, CA), Louisville, CO
Bronze: Molly’s Titanic Brown, Rock Bottom Brewery (Westminster, CO), Louisville, CO

Category: 61 American-Style Brown Ale – 49 Entries
Gold: Great American Brown, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Silver: Redrock Nut Brown Ale, Redrock Brewing Co., Salt Lake City, UT
Bronze: Brave American, American Brewing Co., Edmonds, WA

Category: 62 American-Style Black Ale – 74 Entries
Gold: Blacktop IPA, New Glarus Brewing Co., New Glarus, WI
Silver: Blackened CDA, Carter’s Brewing, Billings, MT
Bronze: Black Racer, Bear Republic Brewing Co., Healdsburg, CA

Category: 63 German-Style Altbier – 30 Entries
Gold: Little Red Cap, Grimm Brothers Brewhouse, Loveland, CO
Silver: TAPS Alt, TAPS Fish House & Brewery (Brea, CA), Brea, CA
Bronze: Chuckanut Alt, Chuckanut Brewery, Bellingham, WA

Category: 64 German-Style Sour Ale – 13 Entries
Gold: Berliner Weisse, Crabtree Brewing Co., Greeley, CO
Silver: Hottenroth Berliner Weisse, The Bruery, Placentia, CA
Bronze: Gordon Biersch Goze, Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant (Rockville, MD), Chattanooga, TN

Category: 65 South German-Style Hefeweizen – 64 Entries
Gold: Hefeweizen, Dry Dock Brewing, Aurora, CO
Silver: Wild Pitch Hefe Weizen, The SandLot, Denver, CO
Bronze: EOS, Nebraska Brewing Co., Papillion, NE

Category: 66 German-Style Wheat Ale – 23 Entries
Gold: Boscos Hefeweizen, Boscos Brewing Co., Memphis, TN
Silver: Weizenbock, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA
Bronze: Dark-n-Curvy, Piece Brewery, Chicago, IL

Category: 67 Belgian-Style Witbier – 53 Entries
Gold: Witte, Brewery Ommegang, Cooperstown, NY
Silver: La Perouse White, Maui Brewing Co. – Brewpub, Maui, HI
Bronze: ZON, Boulevard Brewing Co., Kansas City, MO

Category: 68 French- and Belgian-Style Saison – 65 Entries
Gold: Saison-Brett, Boulevard Brewing Co., Kansas City, MO
Silver: Funkwerks Saison, Funkwerks, Fort Collins, CO
Bronze: Sofi e, Goose Island Beer Co., Chicago, IL

Category: 69 Belgian- and French-Style Ale – 56 Entries
Gold: California Ale, Telegraph Brewing Co., Santa Barbara, CA
Silver: TAPS Biere de Garde, TAPS Fish House & Brewery (Corona, CA), Brea, CA
Bronze: Pin-Up Blonde, Bastone Brewery, Royal Oak, MI

Category: 70 Belgian-Style Lambic or Sour Ale – 51 Entries
Gold: Fifth Element 2008, Squatters Pub Brewery, Salt Lake City, UT
Silver: Blue Sunday, New Holland Brewing Co., Holland, MI
Bronze: Barton Kriek, North by Northwest, Austin, TX

Category: 71 Belgian-Style Abbey Ale – 76 Entries
Gold: Brother David’s Double, Anderson Valley Brewing Co., Boonville, CA
Silver: Wild-Westmalle Tripel, Chicago Brewing Co., Las Vegas, NV
Bronze: Two Tortugas, Karl Strauss Brewing Co., San Diego, CA

Category: 72 Belgian-Style Strong Specialty Ale – 59 Entries
Gold: Buffalo Slumber, Sun King Brewing Co., Indianapolis, IN
Silver: Revelations, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Bronze: The Twelve, Black Diamond Brewing Co., Concord, CA

Category: 73 Brown Porter – 32 Entries
Gold: Out of Order Porter, Wind River Brewing Co., Pinedale, WY
Silver: FireHouse Porter, FireHouse Grill & Brewery, Sunnyvale, CA
Bronze: Porter, Lexington Avenue Brewery, Asheville, NC

Category: 74 Robust Porter – 62 Entries
Gold: Moonlight Porter, Rock Bottom Brewery (La Jolla, CA), Louisville, CO
Silver: DeadEye Jack Porter, LoneRider Brewing Co., Raleigh, NC
Bronze: Pier Rat Porter, Pizza Port San Clemente, San Clemente, CA

Category: 75 Classic Irish-Style Dry Stout – 24 Entries
Gold: Ring of Dingle, Sun King Brewing Co., Indianapolis, IN
Silver: Breakside Dry Stout, Breakside Brewery, Portland, OR
Bronze: Shaft House Stout, Dostal Alley Brewpub & Casino, Central City, CO

Category: 76 Foreign-Style Stout – 23 Entries
Gold: Dark Side Stout, Silver Moon Brewing, Bend, OR
Silver: Malpais Stout, La Cumbre Brewing Co., Albuquerque, NM
Bronze: Z-Man Stout, Pizza Port Ocean Beach, San Diego, CA

Category: 77 American-Style Stout – 37 Entries
Gold: Jules Winnfi eld, Pizza Port Solana Beach, Solana Beach, CA
Silver: Achievement Beyond Life’s Experiences American Stout, Brit Antrim Benefi t Beer,
Pizza Port Ocean Beach, San Diego, CA
Bronze: Disorder Stout, Barley Brown’s Brew Pub, Baker City, OR

Category: 78 Sweet Stout – 19 Entries
Gold: Steel Toe Stout, Ska Brewing Co., Durango, CO
Silver: Cream Stout, Redwood Brewing Co., Flint, MI
Bronze: Outlaw Oatmeal Stout, Great Basin Brewing Co., Sparks, NV

Category: 79 Oatmeal Stout – 36 Entries
Gold: Back Road Stout, Millstream Brewing Co., Amana, IA
Silver: Oatmeal Stout, Crabtree Brewing Co., Greeley, CO
Bronze: Stagecoach Stout, Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co., Buellton, CA

Category: 80 Imperial Stout – 56 Entries
Gold: BORIS The Crusher Oatmeal-Imperial Stout, Hoppin’ Frog Brewing Co., Akron, OH
Silver: Russian Imperial Stout, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant, Wilmington, DE
Bronze: IMOS, Max Lager’s Wood-Fired Grill & Brewery, Atlanta, GA

Category: 81 Scotch Ale – 39 Entries
Gold: Wee Muckle, Sun King Brewing Co., Indianapolis, IN
Silver: Wee Heavy, Vintage Brewing Co., Madison, WI
Bronze: Old Chub Scotch Ale, Oskar Blues Brewery, Longmont, CO

Category: 82 Old Ale or Strong Ale – 35 Entries
Gold: Papier, The Bruery, Placentia, CA
Silver: AleSmith Decadence ‘10 Old Ale, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Bronze: Arctic Alchemy, Fegley’s Brew Works, Allentown, PA

Category: 83 Barley Wine-Style Ale – 42 Entries
Gold: Horn Dog Barleywine, Flying Dog Brewery, Frederick, MD
Silver: AleSmith Old Numbskull, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Bronze: Johan the Barleywine, Sun King Brewing Co., Indianapolis, IN

2011 Great American Beer Festival Pro-Am Competition
Gold: Before Capone, C.B. & Potts Restaurant & Brewery, Westminster, CO
Brewmaster: Dennis O’Harrow, AHA Member: Tom Gardner
Silver: Schwarzherz, Uinta Brewing Co., Salt Lake City, UT
Brewmaster: Uinta Beer Team, AHA Member: Travis Grimm
Bronze: Kriek, Dry Dock Brewing, Aurora, CO
Brewmaster: Dry Dock Brewers, AHA Member: Ted Manahan

The 2011 Great American Beer Festival Brewery & Brewer of the Year Awards

Small Brewing Company and Small Brewing Company Brewer of the Year
Chuckanut Brewery, Bellingham, WA
Brewer: Will Kemper

Mid-Size Brewing Company and Mid-Size Brewing Company
Brewer of the Year
Firestone Walker Brewing Co, Paso Robles, CA
Brewer: Matthew Brynildson

Large Brewing Company and Large Brewing Company
Brewer of the Year
Pabst Brewing Company, Woodridge, IL
Brewer: Bob Newman

Small Brewpub and Small Brewpub Brewer of the Year
Pizza Port Ocean Beach, San Diego, CA
Brewer: Yiga Miyashiro

Large Brewpub and Large Brewpub Brewer of the Year
Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Brewer: Pizza Port Brew Guys

Brewpub Group and Brewpub Group Brewer of the Year
TAPS Fish House & Brewery, Brea, CA
Brewer: Victor Novak

The 30th Great American Beer Festival Judging

By

gabf-2011
Right now I’m out in Denver, Colorado judging at the 30th Great American Beer Festival. Because it’s the 30th year, after orientation last night, they took an impromptu group photo of all 167 judges, or at least as many as would fit in the photo. See if you can find me (hint: I’m a little to the left and two-thirds of the way back). Recognize anyone else? There’s plenty of other faces in the crowd that you probably know.

2011_judges
Click on the photo for a larger view.