Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Daily Brewery Porn Returns

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A while back I had a photoblog up that featured my favorite beer-related pictures that I’ve taken over the years, Brookston Beer Pix. It got lost in the internet migration last year but it’s now been rechristened as a Tumblr blog. Each day I’ll post a new fave picture from my photo archives, of which I have literally thousands. Quite a few of them are brewery porn, which is what I call photos of brewing equipment in all their naked glory. I also have a thing for photographing hoses in the brewery, so you may see a few of those along with many more of my visual obsessions.

If you follow me on Twitter, you’ll automatically be notified when a new photo is posted. Or you can, of course, follow along on Tumblr, which is especially easy if you already have an account there.

SF Beer Week One Month Away

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In exactly one month, SF Beer Week will start up again. For ten days beginning on February 11, beer in the Bay Area will be front and center. Last year we had over 225 diverse events and this year promises to have even more beer-centric events throughout the Bay Area. In a couple of hours — at 4:00 p.m. — this year’s website will go live with the first batch of events added to the schedule. Start filling up your dance card now, to make sure you have a seat at as many of the great events as you and your liver can manage.

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Connecticut Beer

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Today in 1788, Connecticut became the 5th state.

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Connecticut Breweries

Connecticut Brewery Guides

Guild: None known

State Agency: Connecticut Liquor Division

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  • Capital: Hartford
  • Largest Cities: Bridgeport, New Haven, Hartford
  • Population: 3,405,565; 29th
  • Area: 5544 sq.mi., 48th
  • Nickname: The Constitution State
  • Statehood: 47th, January 8, 1788

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  • Alcohol Legalized: April 20, 1933
  • Number of Breweries: 18
  • Rank: 30th
  • Beer Production: 1,879,769
  • Production Rank: 33rd
  • Beer Per Capita: 75.3 Gallons

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Package Mix:

  • Bottles: 45.9%
  • Cans: 44.1%
  • Kegs: 10%

Beer Taxes:

  • Per Gallon: $0.20
  • Per Case: $0.45
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $6.20
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $6.00

Economic Impact (2010):

  • From Brewing: $171,909,053
  • Direct Impact: $751,718,100
  • Supplier Impact: $478,815,175
  • Induced Economic Impact: $477,701,393
  • Total Impact: $1,708,234,668

Legal Restrictions:

  • Control State: No
  • Sale Hours: On Premises: 9 a.m.–2 a.m. (Mon.–Sat.) / 11 a.m.–2 a.m. (Sun.)
    Off Premises: 8 a.m.–9 p.m. (Mon.–Sat.)
  • Grocery Store Sales: Yes
  • Notes: No off-premises sales on Sundays; Sunday on-premises sales subject to local ordinances.

    Beer can be purchased at grocery/convenience stores. Spirits and wine can only be purchased at liquor stores.

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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.

Guinness Ad #50: Spitfire

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Our 50th Guinness poster by John Gilroy was most likely from World War 2, and shows a Spitfire airplane “eying” and speeding toward a bottle of Guinness as a mechanic on the ground races to grab his beer first. It’s slogan is the familiar “My Goodness, My Guinness.”

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Broken Bones Beer Bottles

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I think this is merely a graphic design product and not a commercial product that you can buy. I came across it by accident at Street Anatomy, a blog featuring anything to do with skeletons. A quick search reveals it’s mentioned exclusively on graphic design-oriented blogs and websites, so it was most likely not done for a client. It was created by designer Dustin Joyce, who works for a Minneapolis, Minnesota ad agency.

I must confess, as others pointed out, that while it’s very well executed, the results are not all that appetizing. The bones appear to be almost floating in the beer, which I don’t think is the imagery you want. It doesn’t make people want to actually drink a beer that’s had bones floating in it, or at least plants the idea of that occurring. But it is an impressive design.

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Ominous Sign For The Future of Rock Bottom’s Beer

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I’d been hearing rumors about how the merger between Gordon Biersch and Rock Bottom was going, and the news wasn’t all good. I’d heard there had been few changes for Gordon Biersch brewers, but that life was getting more difficult for Rock Bottom’s brewers, who were used to having a certain amount of freedom to choose what they brewed. It probably didn’t help that Allen Corey, who had been running Gordon Biersch, became President and CEO of the newly merged company consisting of both brewpub chains, plus a third chain. One chain’s philosophy was bound to be favored over the other.

That all seems to have come to a head, as John Fosyton reports in the Oregonian, the Portland Rock Bottom’s celebrated brewer, Van Havig, has been “asked to leave” the company. Havig had been brewing for Rock Bottom for 16 years and consistently brewed some of the best beer I’ve had at any brewery. Foyston speculates that Havig may have been shown the door for publicly voicing his concerns with the direction the company had been taking since the merger, and primarily the loss of freedom for the brewers, for the first time imposing standardization. That was one of the hallmarks of Rock Bottom, their independence, and was the reason they won so many awards at GABF over the years. That they’re now apparently losing that independence can’t be a good sign for the future of the chain’s beers, if not the chain itself.

But the real loss is Havig. Van’s a terrific brewer and not having him brew for Rock Bottom makes them all the poorer. If you know about a brewing job, preferably in Oregon, drop John Foyston a note and he’ll see that Van gets it.

Beer In Ads #283: Just Time For A Goebel Bantam

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Thursday’s ad is yet another one for Detroit’s Goebel beer, from 1948. I figure I may as well keep the inadvertent theme going. I miss the small bottle, which they call a “bantam.” Except for a few extreme beers, you rarely see them anymore. Even Anchor had to abandon that small bottle they used to use for Old Foghorn. I’m told the bottle just became too expensive. But back to the ad. No time to drink 12 ounces? Surely you can drink a 7 ounce bantam weight beer and still make the train.

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