Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Lagunitas Sucks Holiday Ale

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lagunitas
No, that’s not a judgment call on my part. I love Lagunitas. But that is the name of their new seasonal ale for 2011; Lagunitas Sucks Holiday Ale. They’re calling it that because the new beer is a temporary replacement for their popular — and usual holiday seasonal — Brown Shugga’, which they won’t be able to brew this year due to the installation of their new 250-barrel brewhouse.

From the press release:

It is a sad day at Lagunitas when we have to tell you that our favorite seasonal — Brown Shugga — will take a year off and come back in full force in the fall of 2012 after the installation of our new brewhouse.

A brand new beer that’s sure to please is our “Lagunitas Sucks Holiday Ale”….. it’s our BrownShugga’ substitute.

This beer is a Dry-Hopped ‘Cereal Medley’ of Barley, Rye, Wheat, and Oats…. full of complexishness from the 4 grains, and weighing in at 7.6% abv, it is mondo-dry-hopped for that big aroma and resinous hop flavor.

The entire project has a self-deprecating air about it, including the label notes, which are always written by Lagunitas founder Tony Magee. To wit:

This sad holiday season we didn’t have the brewing capacity to make our favorite seasonal brew, the widely feared BrownShugga’ Ale. You see, we had a couple of good years (thank you very much) and so heading into this season while we are awaiting a January delivery of a new brewhouse we are jammin’ along brewing 80 barrels of IPA and PILS and such every 3 hours. A couple of months back we realized that since we can only brew a mere 60 barrels of Shugga every 5 hours, that we were seriously screwed. For every case of Shugga’ brewed, we’d short 3 cases of our daily brews. The new brewhouse will help insure that this kind of failure never happens again. It’s a mess that we can not brew our BrownShugga’ this year and we suck for not doing it. There is nothing cool about screwing up this badly and we know it. Maybe we can sue our sorry selves. There is no joy in our hearts this holiday and the best we can hope for is a quick and merciful end. F*@& us. This totally blows. Whatever. We freaking munch moldy donkey butt and we just want it all to be over ….

My guess is that the new Lagunitas Suck Holiday Ale will be so good that we’ll all forgive them and Santa will not bring them all a lump of coal this Christmas. They do seem to be appealing to Santa’s better nature but putting a yummy-looking Santa cookie on the label. Perhaps they’ll leave some of them out on Christmas Eve so when Santa comes down the brewhouse chimney, he can eat himself.

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California Beer

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california
Today in 1850, California became the 31st state.

California
State_California

California Breweries

California Brewery Guides

Guild: California Craft Brewers Association

Regional Guilds:

State Agency: California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control

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  • Capital: Sacramento
  • Largest Cities: Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco, Long Beach
  • Population: 33,871,648; 1st
  • Area: 163707 sq.mi., 3rd
  • Nickname: Golden State
  • Statehood: 31st, September 9, 1850

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  • Alcohol Legalized: December 5, 1933
  • Number of Breweries: 305
  • Rank: 1st
  • Beer Production: 23,583,042
  • Production Rank: 1st
  • Beer Per Capita: 19.9 Gallons

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Package Mix:

  • Bottles: 44.1%
  • Cans: 45.7%
  • Kegs: 10.1%

Beer Taxes:

  • Per Gallon: $0.20
  • Per Case: $0.45
  • Tax Per Barrel (24/12 Case): $6.20
  • Draught Tax Per Barrel (in Kegs): $6.20
  • California Redemption Value: $0.04 per containers for all aluminum, glass and plastic less than 24 ounces and $0.08 per container for all containers for aluminum, glass and plastic greater than 24 ounces

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: 6 a.m.–2 a.m.
  • Grocery Store Sales: Yes
  • Notes: Relatively unrestricted; beer, wine and liquor available at grocery stores, convenience stores, gas stations, and warehouse clubs. No statewide holiday restrictions.
    Motor vehicles entering from Mexico may only import 1L of alcohol (duty free). Sale or distribution of alcohol higher than 153 proof is illegal.

    You may serve alcohol if you are at least 18 years of age.

    City and County governments can set different sale hours.

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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.

Bistro IPA Festival Winners 2011

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bistro
Family commitments kept me from attending this year’s Bistro IPA Festival, but owner Vic Kralj was kind enough to send me the list of the winners. Craig Cauwels’ IPA, from Schooner’s in Antioch, California, was chosen best in show at the 14th annual IPA Festival yesterday at the Bistro in Hayward, California. The full list of winners is below.

California Legislative Update

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california
There’s been a flurry of activity in California’s political power center lately, with a couple of new bills signed by governor Jerry Brown in Sacramento this week.

Tasting Room Bill (AB 1014)

The Tasting Room Bill makes it easier for breweries to serve samples of their beer without having to comply with all the same requirements as a full-scale restaurant.

From the press release from the CSBA:

Previously, craft brewers wishing to have a tasting room at the brewery would be required to install several industrial sinks, redo plumbing and electrical wiring among other requirements, simply to provide beer samples. These renovations can cost tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars creating a huge burden for small breweries.

“This bill will relieve craft brewers from the unnecessary burden of installing restaurant grade equipment that simply isn’t needed to pour a taste of beer,” said Tom McCormick, Executive Director of the California Small Brewers Association. “This is a common sense law that garnered bipartisan support at the Capitol. Yet another example that good beer brings people together.”

The bill, authored by Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher, R-San Diego and Assemblyman Wes Chesbro, D-Arcata, passed both the Senate and Assembly floor votes unanimously.

Caffeine Ban Bill (SB 39)

The second bill signed by Governor Brown, SB 39, was authored by Senator Alex Padilla, D-San Fernando Valley, and Assemblyman Jim Beall, R-Santa Clara County, who’s no friend to the beer industry.

Showing just what happens when you don’t pay journalists, the Huffington Post originally reported that passage of Senate Bill 39 meant that caffeine beer was banned, which is not correct. The bill was aimed at alcohol and caffeine energy drinks like Four Loko, Joose and their ilk. The bill only “bans any malt beverage to which caffeine has been directly added as a separate ingredient….” It does not include “beer brewed with coffee, tea or chocolate,” a carve out negotiated by the CSBA.

Beer In Ads #414: Burgie! Original California Beer

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Thursday’s ad is for Burgie, from 1974, and makes a big deal about its California origins. “The California life. You can live it anywhere, because most of all it’s a feeling. Burgie beer was made for that special feeling. Light. Golden. With the true Western taste. If you live our life, you’re going to love our beer.” The can shows an old-time San Francisco scene and that’s where the can says it was brewed, too. So he kicker is that after lavishing all that attention on California, the tagline veers eastward. “Burgie: Original California Beer. Now in Chicago.”

Burgie-1974-cal

Beer In Ads #409: Acme Quality Wins Again

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Thursday’s ad is from 1941, and is for Acme Beer, showing a decidedly western theme, showing a cowgirl and her horse. The slogan seems a bit confused, as I’m not sure what “Quality Wins Again!” has to do with the scene at hand. But I love the text under “Acme Beer.” It reads “* Dietetically NON-FATTENING” and the asterisk qualifies that statement with “* relatively so, compared with other foods.” The Main Institute would have a field day with that one, as their most recent campaign is against any perceived health claims made by alcohol companies, and the Acme Beer almost sounds like it might be good for you. Gasp!

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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 Birthday: Ken Allen

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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.

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

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

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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.