Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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West Virginia Beer

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west_virginia
Today in 1863, West Virginia became the 35th state.

West Virginia
State_WestVirginia

West Virginia Breweries

West Virginia Brewery Guides

Guild: No Known Guild

State Agency: West Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control Administration

maps-wv

  • Capital: Charleston
  • Largest Cities: Charleston, Huntington, Parkersburg, Wheeling,Morgantown
  • Population: 1,808,344; 37th
  • Area: 24231 sq.mi., 41st
  • Nickname: Mountain State
  • Statehood: 35th, June 20, 1863

m-west-virginia

  • Alcohol Legalized: December 5, 1933
  • Number of Breweries: 6
  • Rank: 43rd
  • Beer Production: 1,426,074
  • Production Rank: 37th
  • Beer Per Capita: 24.4 Gallons

west-virginia

Package Mix:

  • Bottles: 37.5%
  • Cans: 56.7%
  • Kegs: 5.7%

Beer Taxes:

  • Per Gallon: $0.18
  • Per Case: $0.40
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $5.50
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $5.50

Economic Impact (2010):

  • From Brewing: $1,666,818
  • Direct Impact: $323,295,324
  • Supplier Impact: $72,297,062
  • Induced Economic Impact: $142,426,073
  • Total Impact: $538,018,459

Legal Restrictions:

  • Control State: No
  • Sale Hours: On Premises: Beer/Wine: Mon-Sat: 7 am-2 am, Sun: 1 pm-2 am — Liquor: Mon-Sun:8 am-Midnight, Sun/Elections: Prohibited
    Off Premises: Mon-Fri: 7 am-3:30 am, Sat: 7 am-3 am, Sun: 1 pm-3 am
  • Grocery Store Sales: Yes
  • Notes: 12% ABV Cap on Beer. 75% ABV spirits Permitted. Liquor, wine and beer products that are not already in closed packaging must be bagged before exiting retail locations. State does not operate retail stores; retains monopoly over wholesaling of distilled spirits only; stores themselves are privately owned.

west-virginia-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.

Beer In Art #132: Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Dance At Bougival

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art-beer
This week’s work of art is by the famous French artist, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, who painted Dance at Bougival, in 1883. Today it hangs in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and remains one of his most famous works of art.

Renoir-dance

The website for Boston’s MFA includes a typical description of the painting:

The open-air cafés of suburban Bougival, on the Seine outside Paris, were popular recreation spots for city dwellers, including the Impressionist painters. Renoir, who was primarily a figure painter, uses intense color and lush brushwork to heighten the sense of pleasure conveyed by the whirling couple who dominate the composition. The woman’s face, framed by her red bonnet, is the focus of attention, both ours and her companion’s.

But look closely beyond the dancing couple to the green tale behind them and you’ll see mugs of beer in front of the people seated there.

Renoir-dance-detail

You can read Renoir’s biography at Wikipedia and also at the Web Museum, which also has a gallery of other works, too. Other galleries include Olga’s, the Artchive and a third claims to contain Renoir’s Complete Works.

Guinness Ad #73: Guinness Golfing

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guinness-toucan
Our 73rd Guinness ad is again from the “Guinness For Strength” series, with a pair of golfers walking the links, but the one with the bottle of Guinness in this bag seems far more able to manage his large bag while his compatriot is struggling with not only a smaller bag but a wheeled cart. Since it looks likely that the U.S. Open will again be won by an Irish golfer, and in fact Northern Ireland, a golf ad seemed appropriate.

Guinness-golf-bag

Moylan’s Wins Big at Australian International Beer Awards

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moylans
Back in November, the call went out through the BA’s Export Development Program for brewers around the world to enter the Australian International Beer Awards for 2011. When my local brewpub Moylan’s Brewery & Restaurant decided to enter some of their beer, they couldn’t have known how well it would turn out for them.

Moylan’s ended up winning two gold medals, for Moylan’s Moylander Double IPA and Hopsickle Imperial Triple IPA, a silver medal for Chelsea Moylan’s Porter and two bronze medals for both Dragoon’s Dry Irish Stout and Ryan Sullivan’s Imperial Stout. Those wins resulted in them being awarded more points than any other brewery and garnered them two additional bigger prizes: the “Cleanevent Trophy for Champion Small Brewery” and the “Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria Trophy for Champion Exhibitor” for the Highest Scoring Exhibitor, which is the biggest prize awarded throughout the entire competition. Congratulations to Denise and everybody at Moylan’s.

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Yesterday, Dr. Peter Aldred from the AIBA — who’s at UC Davis for a few months — stopped by Moylan’s in Novato to present the Australian International Beer Awards Trophy to Brewmaster Denise Jones and Owner Brendan Moylan.

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The whole gang of brewers from Moylan’s poses with their trophies.

If you want to see the rest of the winners, they’re listed at Australian Brews News.

Beer In Ads #393: Karate Ballantine

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Thursday’s ad is from 1968, when Karate had worked its way into public consciousness, and shows a black belt karate master posing beside four blocks of wood resting on a pair of cinder blocks, ready to be karate-chopped. The only thing standing in his way is a glass of Ballantine Ale. The tagline is pretty funny. “Stronger, Bolder, really means business!”

ballantine68karate

Next Session Seeks Redemption, Beer Redemption

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session-the
Our 53rd Session takes us down a more spiritual path, the road to redemption … sort of. Our host, John Holl, of his eponymous Beer Briefing, has chosen the topic Beer Redemption, for which he offers the following confession:

One thing about drinking a lot of beer is that occasionally you’re going to have a bad one. Perhaps it was infected or spoiled by light. Perhaps the brewer or brewery was new and still working out the kinks on a particular style. Regardless, you couldn’t finish the beer in your glass and moved onto the next one.

John goes on to tell the tale of a beer that, in his youth, he found all but undrinkable and gave short shrift to ever after, only to discover — years later — that it wasn’t so bad after all. He continues.

In that moment I realized the foolishness of youth and how many earlier chances I passed up to properly taste this beer. These days it is not uncommon to find [his beer] of various styles in my refrigerator. I haven’t actually visited the brewery yet, but they are now high on my list.

So, what has been your beer redemption?

So drink three Bloody Marys (made with beer) and two Old Foghorns and seek forgiveness, my sons and daughters, just so long as you blog about it for the next Session on Friday, July 1. Your beer redemption is at hand. To start you down the righteous path, say the Beer Prayer aloud every night before retiring from the evening’s drinking:

“Our lager,
Which art in barrels,
Hallowed be thy drink,
Thy will be drunk,
(I will be drunk),
At home as I am in the tavern.
Give us this day our foamy head,
And forgive us our spillages,
As we forgive those who spill against us,
and lead us not to incarceration,
But deliver us from hangovers,
For thine is the beer,
The bitter and the lager,
Forever and ever,
Barmen.”

Beer Birthday: Ken Allen

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anderson-valley
Today is also the birthday of Ken Allen, former owner of Anderson Valley Brewing. Ken sold the brewery and retired to Belize, at least during part of the year. Join me in wishing Ken a very happy birthday.

boontfest06-02
Owner Ken Allen, former AVBC salesman Ed Chainey, me, Ralph Woodall, from HopUnion and Ken’s former wife.

boontfest06-14
Celebrator publisher Tom Dalldorf (whose birthday is also today) with Ken at the 2006 Boonville Beer Festival.

cbc07-25
Ken, with Larry Bell, from Bell’s Brewing, along with Ed and Carol Stoudt, from Stoudt’s Brewing, at the Craft Brewers Conference in Austin, Texas, in 2007.

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Ken with new Anderson Valley Brewery owner Trey White at last year’s CBC in Chicago.

Beer In Ads #392: There’s Fun A-Field With Rheingold!

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Wednesday’s ad is from 1959 and is for Rheingold beer. It features a formal horse riding outing and Miss Rheingold for that year, Robbin Bain, the 19th woman to hold the title. The tagline for the ad is “There’s Fun A-Field With Rheingold!” Personally, I don’t know how much fun you could have in such stiff attire, but I’m not much of a horse person anyway.

Rheingold-1959-3

Arkansas Beer

By

arkansas
Today in 1836, Arkansas became the 25th state.

Arkansas
State_Arkansas

Arkansas Breweries

Arkansas Brewery Guides

Guild: Arkansas Brewers Association

State Agency: Arkansas Alcoholic Beverage Control Division

maps-ar

  • Capital: Little Rock
  • Largest Cities: Little Rock, Fort Smith, North Little Rock, Fayetteville, Jonesboro
  • Population: 2,673,400; 33rd
  • Area: 53182 sq.mi., 29th
  • Nickname: The Natural State
  • Statehood: 25th, June 15, 1836

m-arkansas

  • Alcohol Legalized: December 5, 1933
  • Number of Breweries: 4
  • Rank: 48th
  • Beer Production: 1,857,115
  • Production Rank: 34th
  • Beer Per Capita: 20.2 Gallons

arkansas

Package Mix:

  • Bottles: 26%
  • Cans: 69.3%
  • Kegs: 4.6%

Beer Taxes (Under 5%):

  • Per Gallon: $0.24
  • Per Case: $0.53
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $7.27
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $7.27
  • 1% excise tax upon all retail receipts derived from the sale of beer (for child care development fund and plastic greater than 24 ounces. education programs)

Beer Taxes (Over 5%):

  • Per Gallon: $0.20
  • Per Case: $0.45
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $6.20
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $6.20
  • 1% excise tax upon all retail receipts derived from the sale of beer (for child care development fund and plastic greater than 24 ounces. education programs)

Economic Impact (2010):

  • From Brewing: $58,485,135
  • Direct Impact: $304,251,893
  • Supplier Impact: $118,438,145
  • Induced Economic Impact: $155,562,087
  • Total Impact: $578,252,125

Legal Restrictions:

  • Control State: No
  • Sale Hours: On Premises: 7 a.m.–2 a.m. (Class A Private Club)
    10 a.m.–5 a.m. (Class B Private Club)
    7 a.m.–1 a.m. (Restaurant)
    Off Premises: 7 a.m.–1 a.m. (Mon.–Fri.)
    7 a.m.–midnight (Sat.)
  • Grocery Store Sales: Yes
  • Notes: Has numerous dry counties and other dry areas, but private clubs can serve even in dry areas.
    Alcohol sales are generally prohibited on Sundays, but exceptions can be made through local option (usually for restaurants and private clubs).
    No sales on Christmas Day.

arkansas-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.