For a long time now, if you wanted to try Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.‘s anniversary ale, you had to drive to Chico and visit the brewery pub, because that was the only place it was available … until now. This year, Sierra Nevada will be offering the 27th Anniversary Ale in bottles. I’ve only been fortunate enough to be in Chico at the right time to try the beer one time, many years ago. It’s great that it will now be much more widely available.
From the press release:
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Saturday was the 7th annual Micro Breweries Battling Breast Cancer Brewfest (a.k.a. “Breastfest“) in the courtyard behind Marin Brewing in Larkspur, California. It’s a festival near and dear to my heart because I lost my mother to breast cancer when I was only 21 (and she was 42). It’s a small, crowded place — especially since it’s become so popular — but it’s worthy cause, as far as I’m concerned. There was a lot of good beer and friends in attendance, plus food, music and some pretty wonderful weather. All in all, a great event.
“Gabby” looking fetching in her pink hat, pouring 21st Amendment’s Watermelon Wheat.
Ken and a colleague, both sporting pink hair, from North Coast Brewing.
For more photos from this year’s Micro Breweries Battling Breast Cancer Brewfest, visit the photo gallery.
Mark your calendars, and start training your livers for a marathon, because next month, beginning August 9, a three-day celebration for the Toronado‘s 20th anniversary will take place.
First up, on Thursday August 9,a special night of music and beer will be held at Russian River Brewing in Santa Rosa, California. Two bands, American Dog (from Dave Keene’s home state of Ohio) and Broken Teeth (out of Austin, Texas) will perform. On tap, in addition to the usual beers, will be a special anniversary ale created by Vinnie Cilurzo for the Toronado milestone. No word yet on what time the festivities will begin, but I’ll update that information as soon as I get it.
| The following night, Friday, August 10, this time at Annie’s Social Club in San Francisco another special night of music is planned. Beginning at 9:00 p.m., Alcoholcaust and The Toronado will present the Toronado’s 20th Anniversary Party and Big Daddy Dave’s Birthday featuring Broken Teeth, American Dog and Infested. Annie’s Social Club is located at 917 Folsom Street at 5th in San Francisco. It’s a free show with no cover. |
The big finale will take place Saturday night, August 11, starting at 5:00 p.m., at the Toronado. In addition to the Russian River Anniversary Ale, Tomme Arthur from the Lost Abbey as created a special blended beer for the Toronado anniversary called “Cable Car.” Only six kegs of this beer were made, one of which will be at the Toronado Saturday evening. The remaining five will be bottled as a special release. Also on tap that night will be a special cask version of Anchor’s Porter. It should be an amazing night of beer.
I got the good news over the weekend, the Homebrew Chef, Sean Paxton, has a new apprentice. On Thursday, July 12, at 6:28 a.m., his wife gave birth to a baby girl, their first. She was 8 lbs., 1 oz., and 22 in. Her name is Olivia Rose Paxton. Join me in wishing her and her parents all the best.
Olivia Rose. She already has good taste in beer.
Okay, I promise that was the last bad Bravo pun, but yesterday at Drake’s Brewing in San Leandro the 2nd annual Single Hop Festival & Washoe Tournament took place. This year, 21 breweries made an IPA using only Bravo hops, following roughly the same recipe. The recipe called for mostly 2-row malt, along with Munich and Crystal 45, though the exact malts was left to each brewery. The 21 breweries used seven different ale yeast strains and nine of them filtered the beer. Hop additions were specified in the directions, though mash and fermentation temperatures were left to each brewery.
I was asked to coordinate and lead the judging, and I took a hedonistic approach, meaning we used a standard of which beer would you buy for yourself and a friend. Since they were all IPAs, we didn’t dwell on style considerations. I divided the judges into teams of three each, and gave each group seven random beers, from which they each chose two to push forward to the final round. We were then joined by Mike Sutton, who works for S.S. Steiner (the company that developed the Bravo hop variety) and chose our three favorites from the six. Sometimes when I judge deadlocks are broken by a simple vote with the beers getting the majority of votes being declared the winner. While I understand the rationale for this method, I do not personally like to use it because it’s my feeling that all of the judges should be satisfied with the results, not just a majority. For this reason, I prefer to use more of a jury-like approach where ten angry men talk it out until all can agree with the results. This approach does tend to take longer, but I think the result is a more well-thought out decision that each judge can feel good about. This year, the winners we chose were:
The three other beers that made it to the finals were, in no particular order, from Firehouse Brewing, Seabright and 21st Amendment. The Bravo hop proved to be far milder than last year’s Summit hop and overall made for a better-tasting beer. There did seem to be less variation, too, but also Bravo did not have bold signature aromas the way Summit did. That’s not better or worse, just different. It seems like Bravo should blend well with many other hops and should end up being a successful hop over time. Now that’s my idea of a fun afternoon. The only thing that would have made it better is if I could have played washoes.
Washoes,
Beer and Barbecue.
Shaun O’Sullivan, from 21st Amendment Brewery, James Costa, from E.J. Phair Brewing, and Vinnie Cilurzo from Russian River Brewing.
For more photos from the Single Hop Festival, visit the photo gallery.
Now that’s a slogan: “The Official Beer of Planet Earth.” Butte Creek Brewing Co., the other little brewery in Chico, California, announced today that they will be revamping their entire packaging and introducing two new slogans, “Organic Pioneers” and “The Official Beer of Planet Earth.”
From the press release:
Golden West Brewing Announces Redesign of Butte Creek Organic Ales and Lagers
CHICO, Calif. — Golden West Brewing Company, Inc. announced today that it has completed the redesign of its core product line of Butte Creek Organic Ales and Lagers. The new labels, six-pack carriers, and case boxes released today in select markets eventually will be in all 25 states where Butte Creek is sold.
As part of the redesign of the brand, Butte Creek is using two new marks – “Organic Pioneers” and “The Official Beer of Planet Earth” – as cornerstones of its marketing campaign for the organic ales and lagers.
“We are very excited about the re-branding of Butte Creek Organic Ales and Lagers and believe our updated design is necessary to compete with recent entrants, such as Anheuser-Busch, into the organic beer category,” said John Power, President of Golden West Brewing.
Golden West Brewing has filed applications with the United States Trademark and Patent Office (“USPTO”) for both marks and hope the marks will be successfully registered with the USPTO. However, there is no guarantee the USPTO will publish the marks for opposition.
As part of the redesigning and marketing campaign, Golden West has secured new vendors for the glass and six-pack carriers that should reduce overall cost of these key raw materials.
“A limited price increase that went into effect July 1, combined with more effective purchasing of glass and cardboard, should improve our gross margins in the current third quarter of 2007,” Power said.
Golden West also announced the completion of a private placement of 282,000 shares at $0.33 per share to provide additional working capital. Details of the placement are contained in the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K covering the financing.
About Golden West Brewing Company, Inc.
Golden West Brewing Company, Inc. was formed in 2003 and completed a small self-underwritten public offering in 2006. Golden West through its wholly owned subsidiary, Golden West Brewing Company, acquired the assets and certain liabilities of Butte Creek Brewing Company of Chico, California in August 2005. Founded in 1996, Butte Creek Brewing Company is one of the pioneer certified organic microbreweries in the United States
July 14, from Noon to 6:00 p.m., at Drake’s Brewing in San Leandro, California you’ll have another unique opportunity to taste at least twenty beers all made with the same hop, but with different malt, yeast and water. This year’s hop will be Bravo, a new variety that was “cultivated as a result of a cross in 2000 at Golden Gate Roza Hop Ranches in Prosser, Washington.” The new hop was only patented last year, and is distributed exclusively by S.S. Steiner, who donated the hops for the beers in the festival.
Drake’s Brewing Company 2nd Annual Beer Festival and Washoes Tournament will also feature music by The No Cover Band, The Shuffle Kings, and The Doormats. Your $35 admission price includes unlimited sampling, a commemorative glass, t-shirt and an entry into the Washoe tournament. This should be a lot of fun. Perhaps I’ll see you there.
From the press release:
Drake’s is about a 15-20 minute walk from the San Leandro BART station. Buses run up and down Davis Street. Cabs are available at the BART station. We are located at the loading dock area around the back of the Wal-Mart. Hope to see you here.
Some photos from last year’s inaugural festival:
Drake’s brewer Rodger Davis, Dave Keene from the Toronado, Melissa Myers (also from Drake’s), James Costa from E. J. Phair, along with beer enthusiast Motor.
The Washoes Tournament underway.
Breweries Attending & Brewing the Same Hop IPA
7.14
Single Hop Festival & Washoe Tournament (2nd annual)
Drake’s Brewing, 1933 Davis Street #177, San Leandro, California
510.562.0866 [ website ] [ directions ]
Friday night was another spectacular beer dinner at the Cathedral Hill Hotel in San Francisco. This one featured the beers of German brewery, Georg Schneider & Sohn.
Beer Chef Bruce Paton looks on while Susanne Hecht, Export Manager for Schneider Weisse, talks about the brewery, its history and their wonderful beers.
The main course, Trifecta of Duck Preparations paired with one of my favorite beers, Aventinus Doppelbock. I don’t think I’d had the Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock, which was served with dessert, before and at 12% it packed quite a wallop. But it had some great complexity going for it, too, and worked quite well with the chocolate bread pudding. Also, Schnedier’s Oktoberfest beer, which they can’t call an Oktoberfest beer anymore since they no longer brew in Munich — the Schneider Wiesen Edel-Weisse — was a delight. It’s now certified organic for the U.S. market, and a very easy-drinking beer loaded with flavor.
Sorry about the headline, but I’m pleased to announce that Yuko and Quentin Falconer, who founded the Glen Hay Falconer Foundation is honor of Quentin’s brother, have a new baby boy. Yuko gave birth to Colin Yuji Hay Falconer on the morning June 21. He was 6 lbs., 10 oz. and 19 3/4 in. According to the e-mail I got, “Mother and child are both doing well. Colin is a healthy baby who at any given moment can be found feeding, crying, or sleeping.” Join me in congratulating the proud parents on their happy news.
Yuko and Colin in the hospital. | Colin looking wide-eyed and adorable. |
It’s always cause for celebration when a new brewery opens, doubly so when it represents the resurrection of a long-dead brand. Wunder Brewing last brewed in San Francisco in 1909. So it’s been almost a century since it closed. There was another Wunder brewery in Oakland just after Prohibition ended, around 1934, but it lasted less than a year. So it is with great promise that this historic brand tries to make a go of it once more in San Francisco’s inner sunset district. The only downside to this story is that Eldo’s — and more importantly their brewer Joe — are now gone from the local brewing community. So I wish new owner Carl Durham well, and hope his new venture will be …, well, wunder-ful. According to the brewery’s website, they should be open the first week of July.
I love the tagline they used on this tray, “None Purer, None Better.”
The original Wunder Brewing was first known as Philip Frauenholz & Co. when it opened in 1852. Over the years it went through five more name changes, usually involving some form of Bavaria Brewing, before becoming Wunder Brewing in 1898. That was after John C. Wunder purchased the brewery, having arrived in California a few years before, either in 1895 or on March 15, 1896, depending on the source. The first thing Wunder did upon arriving was found the San Diego (California) Brewing Co. in San Francisco. He later bought out the Bavarian Brewery, organizing his two breweries under the Wunder name.
The brewery was originally a steam beer plant but it’s unclear if it remained so through its many incarnations, not to mention locations, which include Vallejo and Green, Vallejo and Montgomery, and Greenwich and Scott Streets. The brewery on Greenwich was still standing until 1990, when damage from the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake caused it to be torn down. Sometime in the 1920s or 30s it had been turned into a residence and was made to look like a Spanish-style stucco home.
As for the new brewery, they started their first batch at 11:50 a.m. on Saturday, June 9. It was a pale ale, and they expect to also offer a brown beer, which is described on the website as like a Viennese lager, among others. That makes some sense, since Vienna Lager’s color is usually described as reddish brown or copper, with a pretty narrow SRM range (10-12). But there’s certainly no reason why a commercial beer can’t make something close to that style that’s slightly darker. I like Vienna lagers, they’re a little sweeter and toastier than pilsners, but are also clean and crisp like their more popular cousin. I’m looking forward to trying Durham’s interpretation.
I’ve been staring at this poster below for many years now, as there’s one hanging in the Celebrator Beers News‘ offices, so it seems more like a familiar friend than an antique. It’s interesting to note that it’s exactly 100 years old.
