Back from hiatus

Well, I am back. Sadly, I have been very busy with life. For those who don't know, I have achieved one of the goals I set out for earlier this year and now work in a brewery. This has been great, but it also means I am spending a lot of time working as we are very busy trying to keep great beer flowing! However, now that I have adapted to my new schedule, I will be sharing information about the beer industry and events that are upcoming. Stay tuned for updates!

Guest Blogging!

Sorry I've been out of touch, I've been busy with work and trying to get back on track with life. Regardless, I did get a chance to talk beer yesterday as a guest blogger for www.mylifeatarnolds.com This is the blog for Arnold's Bar in downtown Cincinnati. If you have not beer, you really should get down there as it's an excellent place and has some great Cincinnati tradition as well as some great Cincinnati beer! Even if you don't go, you should still check out the blog post that I sent to them yesterday. Enjoy!

Tsunami Relief Beer

I mentioned awhile back that Stone Brewing Co was creating a special beer for tsunami relief efforts in Japan. Well, I came across this video explaining the beer and the thoughts behind it. Very cool video:

Baird / Ishii / Stone Japanese Green Tea IPA Collaboration from stonebrew on Vimeo.

Rivertown Brewing Co night at The Lackman

This Thursday at The Lackman down in Over-the-Rhine, they will be hosting Rivertown Brewing Company night.  The event promises to be an awesome night with some really great beers and even one special never before released and never to be released again: A Belgian Triple White IPA! The event starts at 5 and goes til 10. The Lackman will have other beers from Rivertown as well such as the Dunkel, Roebling Porter, and Hop Baron, but the star of the show will be the Belgian and once it's gone, it's gone. So make sure not to miss this event!

From The Lackman's Facebook page:

Get ready for the next beer event at The Lackman... Rivertown Brewing Co.! Cincinnati Ohio's newest Craft Brewery. Rivertown specialize in brewing traditional Handcrafted Lagers and Ales, using only the finest and freshest ingredients available. Come down to The Lackman on 6/30 at 6pm to have the opportunity to taste & order 4 Rivertown Beers on tap including a special one time release- Belgian Triple, White I.P.A. !! Mark your calendars dont miss this one, when its gone, its gone! Brewmasters will be on hand to talk about all the beers Beers that will be on tap for the event: --> Dunkel: Our Dunkel is a Munich style dark lager. It has a surprisingly light body with mild roasted flavor and caramel undertones. Using the freshest imported and domestic barley, Noble hops and natural water. Available year round. IBU’s 22 5.8% ABV --> Roebling Porter: This well rounded imperial robust style porter is brewed with imported organic sweet vanilla beans from Uganda and cold pressed with organic Peruvian espresso coffee and organic raw cane sugars. Like a big, chewy, vanilla coffee infused brownie Roebling Porter brings tons of chocolate, nougat and toasted almonds to your mouth. Enjoy! Available in draft only 7.8% ABV --> Hop Baron: This double IPA has a striking copper color that is very inviting. With its lovely notes of citrus and floral hop aromas you will find that it is crisp and full bodied. Brewed with 2-Row Pale malts and Local hops you won’t be able to resist having another sip. Available year round. IBU’s 100+ 8.5% ABV --> Belgian Tripel Wit Ipa: This specialty brew combines the hop bitterness of an IPA with the fruity characteristics of a Belgian Wit. It’s grapefruit aroma comes through via the Citra hops and slight orange flavor reflects back to the wit. There is a sweetness to the beer but finishes dry like a Belgian Tripel should. Using German Pilsner, German Wheat, Abby malts and oats. Brewed for June 30th event at The Lackman IBU’s 60 7.5% ABV Follow us on Twitter: @TheLackman, @FourEG Check out our websites: www.lackmanbar.com www.foureg.com

Now it's official? Yuenling in Ohio

In December I linked to a couple of articles indicating that it looked like Yuengling would be coming to Ohio, finally. Well, according to local newspapers, the wait is soon to be over. Resources are indicating that we may see Yuenlging as soon as October: http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2011/06/20/yuengling-coming-to-ohio-officially

I know this is awesome news, but I am still unsure. I have been hearing that Yuengling would be coming, not since December, but for years now. I hope this time it is true, but I suppose we will see in October. I do hope that shi is trye as it will only bring more people in to liking different beers besides the big 3, which is a huge plus already.

Beer Review - Lonerider Brewing Co Peacemaker

Today I am having the Lonerider Brewing Company Peacemaker Pale Ale.  This beer was sent to me from my brother out in North Carolina.

Beer pours a nice Copper color, with a small, off white head. Smell is a nice sweet amount of malts, mostly caramel. The smell was not very abundant on this one. The taste was a bit more flavorful, with a caramel malt sweetness. There is a bit of bitterness from the hops, but the malt definitely comes through more.

This was one was not quite what I was expecting, but nothing was bad about it. I enjoyed drinking this one, but I could not quite understand why it is considered a Pale Ale. Maybe I am missing something, but I think they fell a little bit short on that, but it is nice to drink regardless.

Me....in a few words.

I guess since this is essentially a beer blog I'll start out by explaining my views on beer and brewing. I'll start with beer. I've always been a bit of a beer snob as with most I got my start with "better" beer by trying Sam Adams I enjoyed the hoppyness and more complex taste than the swill from the macrobrews. That being said there are a few things that annoy me about craft brews. It seems to me in my very humble, uneducated opinion that craft beer is becoming like wine. A bit snooty, try-hard, know -it-all, beer should be unpretentious. Something you can sit around and drink while wrenching on a car in a dirty garage or on a deck on a nice summer day (which im enjoying a Sam Adams Rustic Saison with family as im writing this). You shouldnt feel the need to discuss its bouquet or its earthy undertones.
Now onto brewing. I got into brewing in a completely ass backwards way. Most start by homebrewing batches from a kit then go onto a whole grain brew and so on. I on the other hand started by jumping headfirst into the world of commercial brewing. I began volunteering at Rivertown Brewing and in all honesty they have been more than inviting, patient, and appreciative. Jason, Randy, Andrew, Andrew, and Blake are all trying their hardest and are quite frankly succeeding in the world of craft brewing. I've done things from labeling, packing, kegging, and cleaning( there is alot of cleaning) and enjoy it immensely. As far as home brewing Im signing off to bottle my first batch.

Cheers,
bustedknucklesbrew