Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Beerapalooza Week

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2.10-18

Beerapalooza Week in the Bay Area (4th annual)

A week-long series of beer events beginning with the Bistro’s Double IPA and concluding with the Celebrator Beer News 19th Anniversary Mardi Gra Party at Trumer Brauerei in Berkeley, California. Other events include the Toronado Barleywine Festival, a Beer & Chocolate dinner at the Cathedral Hill Hotel and a cheese and beer tasting at the San Francisco Rogue Ales Public House.

See the Celebrator website for a list of events.

800.430.2337 [ Celebrator website ]

 

Rube Goldberg Pours a Beer

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You probably know what a Rube Goldberg contraption is, even if you don’t know who Rube Goldberg was. He was a cartoonist rightly famous for coming up with the most outlandish, elaborate contraptions that went through numerous steps to do just one simple task. Your first encounter with one was probably as a kid playing the board game “Mouse Trap,” which was inspired by his work. The YouTube video below, while perhaps overly lengthy, shows just such a contraption rigged up to pour a bottle of beer into a glass. They did a nice job of setting it up and showing it at work — and it’s pretty funny, too.

Widmer & Redhook Discuss Possible Merger

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The Oregonian is reporting today that merger talks between Portland’s Widmer Bros. Brewing, the largest craft brewer in Oregon, and Seattle’s Redhook Ale Brewery were disclosed on Wednesday through a mandatory regulatory filing by both Redhook and Anheuser-Busch — who owns almost 40% of Widmer and just over one-third of Redhook.

Although Widmer is probably the healthier company, Redhook (because it is traded on NASDAQ) will likely be the buyer in the deal. Rob Widmer reportedly has said that because it involves a public company that much more will be in the open due to regulatory disclosure requirements. He also stated that it is much too early in the negotiations to say when or even if anything will come of the talks.

The Seattle Times also has a more in-depth article on the talks.

Hitachino a Hit

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A food writer, Kim O’Donnel, with the Washington Post, surprised herself by discovering that beer and food do indeed work quite well together. In the article, she describes having a “palate-changing, food-beer pairing experience” at a Japanese restaurant in New York City when her waiter suggested trying a Hitachino Nest Beer with the meal. In O’Donnel’s Post blog, “A Mighty Appetite,” she then goes on to detail other experiences with the Japanese craft beer and even includes a link to an interview with Kiuchi Brewery owner Toshiyuki Kiuchi at StarChefs.com. Also, at the end, fellow Celebrator writer Gregg Wiggins chimes in with a useful couple of links to additional information about beer and food from beer writer Greg Kitsock and Brooklyn Brewery brewmaster and author Garret Oliver.

Southern California Distributor Shakeup

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Harbor Distributing (One of five regional beer distributors owned by beverage giant Reyes Holdings) is one of the largest in Southern California, distributing throughout Los Angeles and all of Orange County. And it just got bigger. I got an anonymous tip today that Harbor bought Gate City Distributing. Effective March 1, Harbor will be taking over the territory previously serviced by Gate City, which includes Riverside and much of the Inland Empire area. Harbor is one of the biggest Miller distributors and also carries several other popular brands such as Coors, Corona, Heineken, Guinness, Labatt’s, Newcastle, and Sierra Nevada. Consolidation is rarely a good thing for the small craft brewers.

Newcastle Soup

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Thanks to my friend Pete Slosberg, who sent this item in. Today’s San Jose Mercury News has it’s food section devoted to soup and includes a yummy looking recipe using Newcastle Brown Ale. The recipe, called Newcastle Brown Ale cheddar soup, is reprinted below. I know what I’m making for dinner tonight.

Newcastle Brown Ale cheddar soup

Serves 4

2 cups cauliflower or broccoli florets
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 (12-ounce) bottle Newcastle Brown Ale
1 (14.5-ounce) can chicken broth
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups half-and-half
2 cups aged cheddar cheese, shredded
Croutons, to taste

In small saucepan over medium heat, cook cauliflower in water to cover until tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Drain and set aside. In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in onion, garlic and Worcestershire sauce; cook until onion is translucent. Pour in Newcastle Brown Ale and bring to a boil. Pour in chicken broth, then return to boil.

After contents boil, reduce heat and stir in cauliflower. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch with 3 tablespoons of water; stir until dissolved. Set aside. Stir half-and-half and cheddar into the soup until the cheese melts. Stir in cornstarch mixture. Continue to cook and stir until soup thickens. Serve immediately with croutons.

Ben Franklin a Wino, News at 11

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Okay, so maybe I used an overly sensational headline to get your attention, maybe Benjamin Franklin wasn’t exactly a wino, but he did apparently like the stuff enough to say in a letter, “behold the rain which descends from heaven upon our vineyards; there it enters the roots of the vines, to be changed into wine; a constant proof that God loves us, and loves to see us happy.” That’s a little different from the t-shirt in my bedroom dresser, which reads “”Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” I must confess I was always a little skeptical that Franklin’s quote was so perfect, but it was hard not to love the idea of America’s first true genius being such a beer lover. It’s clear Franklin enjoyed beer, as well as wine and rum, from the historical record. I’m sure, for example, he would have enjoyed a pint at the India Queen Tavern in Philadelphia in 1787 where a compromise to our Constitution was hammered out. Or even earlier, in 1774, when newly arrived delegates to the Continental Congress met John and Sam Adams for a pint at the City Tavern. But as for the famous beer quote, it appears to be hogwash. That’s according to a new book by Chicago historian Bob Skilnik, Beer & Food: An American History, which goes deep into our nation’s heritage of beer and food pairing. I’ve seen an advance copy of Skilnik’s book and it’s a great, informative read, especially for those of us who have been beating the drum of beer and food.

Here’s the press release that came out today:

As bookstores make ready for the release of “Beer & Food: An American History” (Jefferson Press, ISBN-10: 0977808610, ISBN-13: 978-0977808618, $24.95) by nationally recognized beer and brewing expert Bob Skilnik, the author thinks it’s time to address one of the biggest historical fallacies concerning Ben Franklin. Beer-themed web sites, brewing organizations and even “beer writers” are fond of quoting the Founding Father and his love of beer. A web search of the supposed Franklin quote, “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy,” yields almost 100,000 hits, all with vague attributions that Franklin did indeed utter the quote or penned it in his long-running pamphlets of sound advice and witticisms known as “Poor Richard’s Almanack.”

Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy
“I challenge anyone to find the documented attribution of Franklin making this beery statement,” says the author and researcher. “My research indicates that Franklin did make a similar quote in a letter to his friend, French economist Andre Morellet, around 1779 while living in France. In the letter, Ben Franklin swoons over the pressings from the noble grape, even mentioning its starring role at the Wedding at Cana, ‘Behold the rain which descends from heaven upon our vineyards; there it enters the roots of the vines, to be changed into wine; a constant proof that God loves us, and loves to see us happy,’ says Franklin, and after reading the entire letter, one might argue that he had consumed more than enough French wine while writing his friend Morellet about its qualities.”

The tweaking of Franklin’s passage about rain from the heavens and its eventual conversion into wine probably took place during the post-Repeal era when the U.S. brewing industry was in a heated battle with liquor manufacturers for the taste buds and dollars of a generation of drinkers who had turned towards ardent spirits during National Prohibition. As part of their marketing plan to groom a bigger beer-drinking audience, the United States Brewers Association began a decades-long advertising campaign that was quick to associate beer and beer drinking with our Founding Fathers, early American history and patriotism.

“With Benjamin Franklin’s 301st birthday coming up on January 17, I hope I can set the record straight about this little white lie. I have no doubt that ole Ben enjoyed a tankard or two of beer with friends and associates, but this beer quote is inaccurate. Imagine if a dairy association had hijacked the original Franklin quote years ago and substituted the word ‘milk’ instead.”