New Brewery in Md. Market

Hidden away in the usual weekly e-mail from Max's Taphouse promoting the Tuesday Beer Social (this week it's Great Divide of Colorado: Hoss Rye Marzen/Oktoberfest 6.2%; 15th Anniversary- Wood Aged Double IPA 10.0%; Chocolate Oak-Aged Yeti- Chocolate oak Aged Imperial Stout 9.5%; Tripel- Belgian Style Triple), I found a listing of several new beers added to the draft list from Atwater Block Brewery of Detroit, Michigan: Dirty Blonde, made with unmalted wheat, coriander and orange peel, 4.5%; Cherry Stout, a blend of 6 malts combined with Montmorency Cherry concentrate from Michigan, 6.5%; Vanilla Java Porter, a robust porter made with chocolate malt blended with vanilla and coffee beans, and balanced with U.S. Golding Hops, 6.0%, and Teufel Bock, a Weizen Dopplebock dominated with 60% wheat to imparts a nutty-biscuit flavor, complimented with Perle and Hersbrucker hops for a nice sweet finish, 10.9% ABV 20 IBU 20.7 Plato. (Yes, folks, the info is cribbed from the Atwater Block website.)

Let's see if it matches the hype.  I'll have my wife taste the Chocolate Yeti.  She likes oak and chocolate.

BBW Update: 68--no, Now 82 Events and Counting......

Baltimore Beer Week's official listing of events, with the addition of several events at Red Brick Station and Alonso's, is now up to 82 events, with many more still to come.

See HERE for a listing.

Turkey Beer ALREADY!?!?!?!?

Okay, we're still holding out for the first 2009 Xmas beer spottings. The Snow Goose and Clay Pipe Pursuit of Happiness now at Racers' Cafe don't count--they were 2008 batches.

I just got a press release from a brewery that shall go unnamed--such a parcel of rogues in Oregon, mind you--that was promoting one of its ales and how well it will go with Thanksgiving turkey.

Now, on the one hand, I write for beer periodicals, and the deadline for October and November issues are days away............ on the other hand, it's FREAKIN' AUGUST 28TH!!!!!! Go away, you vile twits, and come back when the nights start getting brisk.....

Thursday's events at Metropolitan and Mahaffey's

Metropolitan:

Tonight we have a very special and delicious beer brewed especially for us by Wolaver's in Middlebury, Vermont. Tonight's firkin contains Oatmeal Stout with a twist: it's brewed with grains of paradise and ginger and then dry-hopped with Cascade hops. A special treat indeed. Wolaver's Oatmeal Stout usually runs about 5.90% so expect the same tonight.

Mahaffey's:

As far as beer news is, we are in full swing of Oktoberfest lagers. We are going to blow away our previous record. I'm thinking about offering an Oktoberfest beer flight. Any thoughts? We'll be a little less hoppy than usual for awhile. Bear with us. Seasonality is a double-edged sword. A few new breweries making it to the beer selection in these coming weeks. Lots of new stuff.
Tonight's bomber is actually a 750 ml bottle. Dogfish Head Chateau Jiahu, a honey grape concoction made from an ancient Chinese recipe. At $15, it is a rediculous steal. 12 bottles only.
Loads of fun things planned for Waynestock 9/19. Promises to be better than ever.

CNN Finally Catches Up To the News

CNNMoney.com, August 26th, 2009:

Brace yourself: Beer prices are going up

Brewers say rising commodity costs and lower volumes are forcing them to raise its price tags.

In other news, a hurricane hit New Orleans; gasoline hits $4 a gallon; and Ronald Reagan and Generalissimo Francisco Franco are STILL DEAD.......

Gripe of the Month

In Mid-August, we have eight to ten Oktoberfest beers out on retailers' shelves, with at least four pumpkin beers on drafts by now.

In the spirit of the 1960's "Peanuts" comic strip where Charlie Brown grouses that he went to the store to get a Halloween mask, and they were all out--Violet asks if they were going to order any more, and Charlie Brown says, "Ha! Are you kidding? They were too busy putting up Christmas decorations!"--I'm calling for readers to report the first spotting of a Christmas beer of 2009 vintage (not leftover stock from last year)on a retailer's shelf OR a tap handle.

I'm predicting October 10th. You?

Heavy Seas Prosit!

It's out already. The "usual suspect" retailers have it @ $6 or so a 22-ounce bottle. It's well-balanced, exactly what it claims to be--a German Oktoberfest lager on steroids at 9.0%, perhaps a bit sweeter than some folks will like but with a pronounced ale-like fruitiness in the body.

Max's is having a "kick off" event for it on Thursday the 27th, with the beer both on draft and on cask, with reps from Clipper City on hand beginning at 5 PM. It's already on draft in the bar.

Must-try beer if it's still on while you're there: Brew Dog Dogma from Scotland.

Baltimore Beer Week Update--Updated Again!

Official event updates are now posted at Baltimore Beer Week's official website:

http://www.baltimorebeerweek.com/events.php?eventdate=&eventvenue=0&eventsponsor=0&btn_Submit=Find+Events#

51 events committed so far, and that's not all of them either--there are a couple more big ones in the pipeline, so to speak. Now, granted, 20 of these events are at Max's Taphouse, and some of them overlap significantly, such as events during the BAM Oktoberfest and the Chesapeake Real Ale Fest--but there should be enough now to start planning your liver allocations, hotel rooms, and the like.

UPDATE Aug. 25: I spoke with one beer distributor for the region who told me of the massive "battle map" spreadsheet on his office wall, cross-indexing dates and breweries which he represents. "When we nail down the final plans, we will have probably dozens of events to add to the calendar," he said. "We have breweries that want to do an event every day or night of Baltimore Beer Week." He hopes to have the schedule ready by the end of this week or early next week. So, if you're waiting to hear where Dogfish Head will be.... or Saranac, or Sierra Nevada, or Magic Hat......... patience is a virtue.

MORE: From Steve Jones' blog at the Pratt Street Ale House website:

Thursday 8th October : kick-off party @ The Pratt Street Ale House, sponsored by the Brewers Association Of Maryland
Sunday 11th October : Beer brunch @ Victoria Gastro Pub
Wednesday 14th October : Pint night @ Metropolitan Coffee House & Wine Bar, Federal Hill
Thursday 15th October : Pint Night @ Bertha’s, Fells Point
Friday 16th October : Pint nights @ Racers Cafe, Harford Rd. and the Emerald Tavern, Harford Rd.

Pratt St. Ale House Beer Dinner Tomorrow

We finally have details on tomorrow night's beer dinner at the Pratt Street Ale House, the first in what may probably be many more to come at the rejuvenated Olivers brewpub:

Just wanted to let you know we are doing a 5 course beer and food pairing dinner tomorrow at 7. Its going to be a small event for friends of PSA and Olivers. The price is $35 per person.

Beer Pairing Dinner

BBQ Bacon Wrapped Shrimp served with a cranberry/pear slaw and beer-battered onion pearls
Iron Man Pale Ale

Braised Veal and Chicken Chile topped with a white bean chipolte puree
Amber Ale

Brie Berry Salad
Fresh berries and fried brie with frise and a raspberry vinaigrette
Blonde Ale

Pistachio Crusted Rack of Lamb, porcini mushroom risotto and summer baby vegetables with a mint pesto
Best Bitter

Cookies & cream ice cream, Baileys Irish cream served over a chocolate stout brownie
Blackfriars Stout

Dinner starts at 7 PM. Call 410-244-8900 to make reservations.

UPDATE: Owner Justin Dvorkin notes that plans are for another beer dinner in October and one in December.

SPBW/Homebrewers Crab Feast Sept. 19th

Okay, after what I consider the obligatory "waiting period" to let SPBW members get first shot at them:

It's that time a year for our annual Crab Feast and what a treat we will have this year as we once again partner with the other beer clubs for a big ole' party at Goddard Space Flight Center near Greenbelt.

http://www.mdhomebrewers.com/crab/
When: Saturday, September 19, 2009 Noon-6 pm
Where: Goddard Space Flight Center Recreation Center
What: All you can eat steamed crabs, BBQ Chicken, pulled pork, hot dogs, potato salad, coleslaw, desserts, cask ale (mmmm...cask ale), sodas/water.
Games for adults and kids

Cost: $35 for adults, $10 for 7-13 yr old, 6 and under...free

We are anticipating 5, maybe 6, firkins depending on how brisk early sales are. We ask that if you plan on attending, that you purchase your tickets TODAY so we can get an accurate head count for both crab purchasing and beer procurement. If we get a run of last minute ticket sales, it will really put a strain on all of us who volunteer our time to make these events as fun as possible for all club members and their guests. Help us out and grab your spots today.

By all means, feel free to bring a friend or 20. We will feed 'em and get em [turned on to the virtues of cask ale] for sure!

http://www.mdhomebrewers.com/crab/

See you all there, hopefully!

See the website. Tickets MUST be purchased in advance, as the facility is a secure location. No doubt some homebrew will show up as well.

MABN Hop Tips Calendar--Maryland

Lifted from the Mid-Atlantic region's Hop Tips calendar of events produced by Mid-Atlantic Brewing News. Many of these have already been mentioned here previously...........

Wednesday, August 26th: Meet the Brewery & Prosit! Release – The crew from Heavy Seas will be at Max's for the release of their next Mutiny Fleet recipe Prosit! an Imperial Octoberfest lager made with 5 kinds of malt. Rumors of a firkin are unconfirmed. 5-8pm. 888-675-6297 or www.maxs.com.

Thursdsay, August 27th: Dawson's Liquors & Cafe Bretton Beer Dinner - Come Join Nick Cipriano, Matt Cross, and Danny Cipriano as they pair 6 great beers with 6 amazing courses specially prepaired by Chef Victor Ledezma from Cafe Bretton . Reservations at 410-647-8222 – it will sell out. $75 excludes tip and tax. www.dawsonsliquor.com.

Saturday, September 12th: Maryland Microbrew Fest Homebrew Competition entries are due – Competition to be held at Union Mills Homestead on Sept 26th. This will be limited to 2 beer styles: Scottish 80/- and Belgian Dubbel and the best of show will be brewed by Dog Pub to be served at Buffalo Wild Wings locations in Maryland. Find rules and entry form at http://home.comcast.net/~midnighthomebrewers/2008_competition1.htm.

Saturday, September 12th: GonzoFest at Flying Dog Brewery – It's almost time for their 2nd Annual GonzoFest. Come celebrate the extraordinary life of their Idol, Dr. Hunter S. Thompson, on their brewery grounds. They’ll be providing things like beer (included in the price of your ticket), live music, and chili samples from the Hard Times Cafe Chili Cookoff (for the Maryland State Championship). They're even holding a Hunter S. Thompson lookalike contest - you could win tons of Gonzo stuff if you show up dressed in your best Dr. Gonzo outfit! One of the prizes is a 750ml bottle of their original Gonzo Imperial Porter signed by none other than Ralph Steadman. To boot, a portion of the proceeds benefit United Way of Frederick County. 3-9pm. $20 in advance or $30 at the door. Tickets at www.flyingdogales.com/GonzoFest.aspx.

Friday, September 18th through Sunday, the 20th: Max's 2nd Annual German Beer Fest – They’ll be offering 12oz sample mugs, 1 liter steins, 1 liter boots and 2 liter boots. They’ll also have a full German inspired food menu. Over 80 Authentic German beers on draft and over 70 Authentic German beers in bottles. For the full list of beers, contact chard@maxs.com. 410-675-6297 or www.maxs.com.

Saturday, September 19th: Beer and Bacon fest at Clipper City – It Pyrates, Pigs & Pints for this celebration of Talk Like a Pirate Day! Lot's of bacon and dishes made with bacon. 12 taps, special firkins, and live music! $40 per person includes everything. Noon to 4pm. Tickets go on sale August 1st at 410-247-7822 or www.ccbeer.com.

Saturday, September 26th: Das Best Oktoberfest at the National Harbor – Germany invades our Nation's Capital and they bring a lot of beer! Three times the beer as last year, with double the selection, and triple the amount of food. They've added a VIP-only tent for specialty beers and lots of perks. Wear German attire and get extra beer tokens. Noon to 8pm. 800-830-3976 or www.dasbestoktoberfest.com.

Saturday, September 26th: Maryland Microbrew Fest at Union Mills – Celebrate Maryland microbrews at the 4th annual festival on 16 acres of open beautiful parkland. 12 breweries with over 25 kinds of beer. Food, live music, crafts, and brewing seminars. 11am-7pm. Tickets in advance for $18, non-beer tickets are $5. 410-848-2288 or www.unionmills.org.

October 8th through 18th: Baltimore Beer Week – Join in for the most exciting celebration to ever hit the shores of the Chesapeake. Ten event-filled days including an opening tap event aboard the USS Constellation and The Chesapeake Real Ale Festival. www.baltimorebeerweek.com.

Saturday, October 10th: Das Best Oktoberfest in Timonium – Germany invades Baltimore and they bring a lot of beer! Three times the beer as last year, with double the selection, and triple the amount of food. They've added a VIP-only tent for specialty beers and lots of perks. Wear German attire and get extra beer tokens. Noon to 8pm. 800-830-3976 or www.dasbestoktoberfest.com.

More from other states, indeed nationwide, at http://www.brewingnews.com/calendar/ .

DC Beer Week

Yeah, sorry to be so late, but we're now partway through DC's Beer Week:

http://www.dcbeerweek.com/events.php

Okay, three cheers for them at least trying. But where are the local brewpubs--Gordon Biersch and Cap City??? The ONLY local brewery event I see is tonight:

"Meet the Brewer Happy Hour at District Chophouse – Meet talented Barrett Lauer and check out his brewing setup. Half-price beers from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m."

Folks: Is this worthy of being called a Beer Week, in your opinion? I'd like to think that our Baltimore Beer Week committee can outdo this, or maybe already has.......

Casks Event at Max's Thursday--Mint Beer?

For a change, Max's is holding a cask event that usually would be held on a Tuesday nigh on a Thursday:

Wolavers Oatmeal [Stout] with Vermont Coffee
Otter Creek Copper with a Fresh Mint Infusion

We will be kicking this night off at 5pm and go until the 2 casks are kicked.

Between that "mint beer" and the reports of the Cilantro Martini at the former Whistling Oyster just a couple doors down.......... I dunno........... I mean, I like Otter Creek........... usually.......

Beer, Bowling, and now Bacon?

A New York Times article highlights a bowling-alley-and-bar that has opened up right next to the Brooklyn Brewery in the Williamsburg section of New Your City.

Okay, fair enough.

Then they highlight a new experimental 15-gallon batch of barleywine featuring smoked malt--and bacon fat--and aged in a bourbon barrel.

“One of two things will happen,” Mr. Oliver [Garrett Oliver, Brooklyn's brewmaster, not to be confused with Baltimore's Bill Oliver] predicted. “Either this will be the most amazingly disgusting thing you’ve ever tasted in your life. Or I shall rule the earth.”

You can take your bacon vodka and bacon gummies, Sam Sessa and Bad Decisions. I'll await this.

(Bringing this back to Baltimore, Crabby Charm City has its own bowling bar, Mustang Alley's in Harbor East, which occasionally serves up decent brews such as Clipper City; and bacon is one of the stars of the Beer & Bacon Fest at Clipper City Brewing on Sept. 19th.)

Blob's Park Polkas in City Paper

The Baltimore City Paper has an excellent article on the polka scene at Blob's Park in Jessup. More about the music and dance, barely a word about the beer, but hey, for some folks they could be serving punch and who would know?

Thirst-inducing photo, however.

(Photo from the City Paper website, by Sam Holden)

Baltimore Restaurant Week Extended

Good News: Baltimore Restaurant Week has been extended to August 23rd.

Bad News: most of the beer-friendly places aren't honoring the extension.

See the website for particulars.

Upcoming Events Reminders--Updated as well!

Tomorrow (probably today by the time most of you read this), August 12th, at Pratt St. Ale House, as Stephen Jones himself reports:

O.K. people, just one more day to go until the 3 Lions tattoo event … what more could you ask for … free giveaways, beer specials, a brewer being put under the tattoo needle by awesome local artist Norm of Art With A Pulse AND a 21.6 gallon cask of 3 Lions aged on American Oak for over 2 months. But no, that’s not all. To spice things up even more we’re also releasing Golden Glory, a 5.5% golden wheat ale brewed with root ginger. It has an upfront but subtle touch of ginger on the nose and palate which fades into a sumptuous malt finish …. a perfect Summer Ale. So, come along and make your local brewer a happy man. Festivities start around 8pm but feel free to come early and hang out with the brew team!

Thursday: Victory event at Max's Taphouse, as well as the usual Thursday night events at Mahaffey's in Canton and Metropolitan in Fedral Hill (cask night at the latter).

Next Week: DuClaw launches this year's version of Mysterium, their Belgian ale spiced with Belgian candi sugar, chamomile, grains of paradise, and cardamom, Wed. the 19th and Thursday the 20th at their four locations, including Fells Point. Oh, and don't forget your Real Ale Fest tickets..........

Sept. 12th: Flying Dog/Wild Goose is holding its second annual Gonzofest Sept. 12th, same day as the DuClaw Real Ale Fest. Info/tickets at their website.

Max's German Fest, and more

MAX'S 2ND ANNUAL GERMAN BEER FEST
SEPT. 18-20
11AM-CLOSE EACH DAY
NO ENTRANCE FEE
We will be featuring over 80 Authentic German beers on draft and over 70 authentic German beers in bottles
We will also be serving a full German Inspired food menu.
We will have 12oz Sample Mugs, 1 Liter Steins, 1 Liter Boots, and 2 Liter Boots.
A full draft list will be posted soon.......

MAX'S TUESDAY BEER SOCIAL

THE BRUERY
This Tuesday we are featuring one of my new favorite breweries, The Bruery from Orange County, CA. We will be featuring a bunch of their bottled beers. These guys are brand new to Maryland. The line up:

Orchard White-5.7%ABV. Belgian Style Witbier, with Coriander, citrus peel and Lavender
Black Orchard- 5.7%ABV. Belgian Style Black Witbier, with chamomile, coriander and orange peel
Saison Rue- 8.5%ABV. Belgian/French Style Farmhouse. with a wild yeast strain
Saison De Lente-6.5%ABV. Spring Saison with the fresh hoppiness and Brett
Trade Winds Triple- 8.0%ABV. Belgian Style Golden with An East Asian twist, using rice in the mash and spiced with Thai basil.

These are all in bottles but will be served by the glass. See you All Tuesday

Baltimore Restaurant Week Aug. 7-16

Website right here.

From Baltimore Sun article:

At last count, some 120 restaurants had agreed to participate in this summer's version, which runs Friday through Aug. 16, and most have published their Restaurant Week menus on the Web site (balti morerestaurantweek.com). The basics are the same as in previous years: Participating restaurants offer a fixed-price, three-course dinner for $30.09 or lunch for $20.09, to draw in patrons during a slow time and give diners a reason to check out places they haven't been before. This year, more than ever, there are exceptions to the format, with some restaurants offering more courses, and a few setting a higher or lower fixed price.

Craft-beer-friendly places on board: Alonso's/Loco Hombre, Bertha's, Brewers' Art, Taverna Corvino, and maybe Ryleigh's Oyster also fits. (I've heard a good word or two for Jack's Bistro in Canton--anyone out there want to chime in on their beer menu?)

More on Baltimore Beer Week

First, you can check out the website, www.baltimorebeerweek.com (always on the links to the right side). If you haven't been there lately, it's being updated somewhat frequently by now.

Second, various venues are signing on and making arrangements as I type. Obviously we don't want to make announcements until details are firm, but it looks like there will be a healthy variety of event types, at least--not just beer dinners or tastings.

One notable problem has been that, until now, there hasn't been a big festival-like venue for out-of-Maryland beers--the Oktoberfest at the Md. Fairgrounds on Oct. 10th is Maryland beers, and the Chesapeake Real Ale Festival, though open to any and all cask beers, is cask-conditioned beers only. What if Sam Adams, or Sierra Nevada, or Smuttynose or Southern Tier or Spaten or Samuel Smith want to come out and play? What if--heavens--New Belgium wanted to launch Fat Tire in Maryland at a festival?

Well, I'm going to leak that plans are being worked on for a major downtown beer festival, similar in size, scope, and scale to the City Paper Brew Fests in Fells Point in April. At the moment, the proposal is NOT the City Paper Fest, and NOT in Fells Point, but MAY involve a similarly closed-off street area like the Hampden or Fells Point Fun Fests. Details will be forthcoming as they develop, but make plans for one last round of liver punishment on Sunday, Oct. 18th.

In other news, it appears that the Baltimore City Paper, a media partner with BBW, will be publishing a special insert to their weekly edition on Oct. 7th, with the events schedule, map, and additional information.

With that, a gentle caveat to potential sponsors/participants: Based on experiences with other Beer Weeks in other cities, we know that some places will wait until the last possible minute to "get on board." All is well and good as far as that goes, but the further in advance one joins the efforts, the more promotional value they get out of it. And besides, if you want to do, say, a Flying Dog tasting or whatever, it's best to get you spot on the schedule before the guy down the street tries to do the same thing at the same time!

Why I'm Not On Facebook.... or Twitter....

Today's "Cathy" comic. Click on the cartoon above--been fighting with the Blogspot settings to no avail.

My sister has a MUCH better commentary in the form of a naughty-word-containing YouTube video of a singer's song--accessed here. (NotSafeForWork audio, graphics are safe.)

Max's Victory Event Thursday, August 13th.......And tonight's Social...... and Big DIPA on handpump...........

Do you like Victory beers? Do you REALLY like Victory beers?

VICTORY BLOWOUT EVENT: AUGUST 13, 2009
TIME: 5PM-CLOSE NO ENTRANCE FEE

We have brought in some real gems , thanks to the guys at Victory. We will be serving over 20 Victory beers on draft. A bunch of the guys from Victory will be coming down along with Susan Greene from Global. This is a great chance to try some of the best beers on the East Coast, from one of the best breweries in the Country.

HERE IS THE DRAFT LINE UP:
Hop Devil
Prima Pils
Golden Monkey
Storm King Stout
Festbier
Sunrise Weiss
Whirlwind Wit
Donnybrook Stout
Old Horizontal
Wild Devil
Baltic Thunder
Abbey 8
Rauchbier Porter
Scarlet Fire
Mad Kings Weiss
Helios
Braumeister PIls
Hop Wallop
CBC Weiss
Hop Wallop(Cask)
and maybe a few more......

And while we're at it, tonight's social:

CERVECERIA JEROME

This Tuesday we are featuring a brand new brewery to the US. Cerveceria Jerome. We will be serving Diablo(7.5%ABV English Style Strong Ale), Golden Archangel (9.0%ABV Belgian Style Triple), Negra(6.5%ABV Stout), Roja (6.0%ABV Amber/Red Ale) and Rubia (6.0%ABV Blonde/Wit). These are some really nice Craft beers from Mendoza, Argentina. We will have a few reps here also. These are some great beers from a country that is on the way up in the craft beer scene.These beers are in bottles but will be served by the glass. See you Tuesday

As always we start at 6pm In the Mobtown Lounge
See you All Tuesday

ON THE BEER ENGINES:
Heavy Seas Big DIPA
Whitemarsh Cerveca Sandia

I think I need to make a call to Ruddy Duck in Solomons--I'm betting Argentine native Carlos Yanez wouldn't mind selling a few Argentine beers......

And for those counting, Heavy Seas Big DIPA is also on handpump at Mahaffey's as of yesterday........

Red Brick Station's Watermelon Beer

It's out. Blink, and you'll miss it!!!!!!

From White Marsh brewer Mike McDonald:

We tapped the "Cerveza Sandia" July 22nd and emptied the 10 bbl tank in 10 ten days. It was a very interesting beer to brew. Kevin Ervin, a mug club member and very good homebrewer, had the idea for the brew and did all the test batches. One batch used 5 lbs of watermelon flesh for 5 gallons, and another had 7 Lbs.. We settled on the 7. 35 melons were cut up and rinds removed. 60% were pureed and frozen. 40% was brought to a boil and cooled quickly and the juice was strained out and added to secondary ferment. The frozen puree was added at crash. Jim Wagner of DuClaw saved us brew day when I forgot to collect the Kolsch yeast from Jim Sobczak at Gordon Biersch Annapolis. DuClaw Jim provided us with his American Ale yeast. Some kegs were sent out around Baltimore, so even though you might not get it at Red Brick, you might get some at Ale Marys, Mahaffeys, Max's , or Three.... There are also a few pins out there.

Confirmed at Mahaffey's as of yesterday; Max's will have it on both draft and cask handpump as of this afternoon...........

Bus Trip to Pa. Breweries this Saturday

The SPBW is looking (MAYBE) to sell the last couple tickets for a day-long beer outing to Pennsylvania breweries (e-mail addresses below changed to something humans can figure out but maybe harvesting spambots can't)

http://www.spbw.org/events.htm

Here are the details for those interested in spending a day traveling
around the PA countryside enjoying a cask conditioned beer ON THE BUS and THREE BREWERIES throughout the day of fun!

Departure from Timonium Light Rail Park and Ride at 9:30am
Arrive at Stoudts Brewery 11am and leave at 1pm/1:30pm
Arrive at Victory Brewing at 2ish and leave around 4:30/5pm
Arrive at Sly Fox Brewery around 5pm to 5:30pm and leave at 7:30pm
Arrive back at Timonium at 9:30pm

$30 gets you the Trip, Beer on the Bus and a Small Buffet at Sly Fox. There are 50 seats available and when they are gone, they are gone. There are less than 10 seats remaining so grab your ticket today and please email me when you are done so I can make sure to turn off the PayPal link so that no more than 50 seats are sold.
All other details and ticket sales through Paypal are online at http://www.spbw.org/events.htm
Alan Moore - President, Chesapeake Bay Branch,
Society for the Preservation of Beer from the Wood alan --AT-- spbw.org
Ed James - Secretary, Chesapeake Bay Branch, Society for the
Preservation of Beer from the Wood e-mail is ed.james2 --at-- us.army.mil

Latest Mid-Atlantic Brewing News out

The August-September issue of Mid-Atlantic Brewing News has been reported as arriving at various good beer outlets today. Get yours!

They Didn't Actually SAY That, Did They?

Well, might as well have............

From Dana Milbank and Chris Cillizza's July 31 installment of their WashingtonPost.com video series, "Mouthpiece Theatre".............



It wouldn't be so bad if they hadn't obviously gone through out-of-date beer books to pick out whatever beer names they could find to insult people with. Kudos and extra points for anyone who enumerates which beers are no longer made/available........

(Tip o' the hat to Instapundit for the initial lead.)

Pet Peeve of the Year

Okay, why is it that in almost EVERY drinking establishment I enter in Baltimore has a ton of those damned yellow-and-pink ballpoint pens from a certain BAIL BOND outfit?

Well, yeah, I KNOW why they have them--because said company gives them away by the vanload. They must own their own pen-making company.

But what impression is it making on out-of-towners that every booze place in town has the phone number of a bail bond company floating around?

Extensive analysis here.

DuClaw Real Ale Festival in Bel Air Sept. 12th

See here. 12-4 pm. $45 gets you unlimited samples and food. Only 525 tickets available, advance sell-out likely. 13 breweries, 25-some firkins.

UPDATE: The beers DuClaw is bringing to the event:
* Cinnamon Vanilla Sawtooth
* 2008 Devil's Milk
* Mysterium on orange peel
* Molasses Alchemy
* Twisted Kilt
* 2008 Blackjack