Month: February 2012

Think only the U.S. has problems when it comes to this kind of big brewer driven nonsense? Think again-PGA

It’s hard to reconcile the ad world of beer – the snow-capped mountains, parties and hockey – with the utilitarian factory-like outlets where most Ontarians actually buy the stuff.
Tibor Kolley/The Globe and Mail

Written by Barrie McKenna for theglobeandmail.com

As Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty mused recently, there are features of the province’s beer regime that make you “shake your head.”

The latest head-spinner is a December decision by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario – later reversed – to block a tiny eastern Ontario brewery from offering home delivery of its beer in conjunction with a prominent Ottawa charity for homeless teens.

Following a complaint from an unnamed brewery, the commission ruled the home-delivery venture must buy its beer from the provincially owned outlets of the Liquor Control Board of Ontario or the Beer Store, jointly owned by three foreign multinationals.

Continue reading “Ontario’s Dated Beer Store Model Benefits No One but the Big Three”

Written by Tiffany Hsu for The Los Angeles Times. From chicagotribune.com

Super Bowl Sunday promises to be another epic day in the annals of gluttony, with Americans consuming 1.3 billion chicken wings, 2,000 tons of popcorn and enough avocados to cover the floor of the Indianapolis stadium 28 feet deep.

But there will probably be a bit less beer to wash it all down because of changing tastes and the growing appeal of wine and cocktails as alternatives.

Beer sales have been on the decline in the U.S., with shipments dipping 1.4% last year to 210 million barrels, an eight-year low, according to trade publication Beer Marketer’s Insights. Anheuser-Busch, whose brands include Budweiser and Bud Light, slipped below the 100 million-barrel benchmark for the first time in a decade.

Brewers are fighting back, introducing craft beers and other spins on the classic beverage in a bid to recapture straying customers. Anheuser-Busch InBev, which is spending at least $30 million on Super Bowl ads, will devote two of its six game-time spots to one of those products, its new higher-alcohol Bud Light Platinum.
Continue reading “Beer Brewers Revise Playbooks to Win Back Lost Customers”

Bartender Leo Stanton at Library Alehouse in Santa Monica. (Lori Shepler / Los Angeles Times)

Also: Beachwood BBQ in Seal Beach and Long Beach will raffle its Pliny the Younger pints to support the Melanoma Research Foundation, as will Library Alehouse.

Written by Todd Martens for The Los Angeles Times

Valentine’s Day shouldn’t be followed by bitterness — unless, of course, you’re visiting Santa Monica’s Library Alehouse beginning Feb. 15. That’s when the Westside’s craft beer destination will launch its 11-day HopHead Heaven festival, which is specializing in hoppy beers.

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Written by Eric Johnston for .japantimes.co.jp

Domestic and imported craft beers have found an ever-growing number of Japanese fans in recent years, and festivals in major cities and smaller towns have offered the public a chance to sample numerous ales, lagers and porters, as well as a variety of German beers and more exotic concoctions that contain everything from sweet potatoes to oranges and chocolate.

Attend a festival or drop by a craft beer restaurant and it’s likely the owner, as well as the punters, will know Phred Kaufman.

The Sapporo-based American is one of the founding fathers of the domestic jibiiru craft beer movement, but the Southern California native got his first taste of Japan well before he became a jibiiru sensei.

Kaufman first came to Japan in 1971 at age 18 to avoid the Vietnam War draft, like many Americans of his generation who decided to leave the United States.

“I just took off,” Kaufman said. “I didn’t know the difference between Japan, South Korea or China at the time. I landed at Haneda airport and ended up getting a job at an area paper box factory for Â¥1,000 a day.
Continue reading “Craft Beer Connoisseur Knows His Suds”

Written by Anthony Orig for craftbeer.com

 

It’s no secret, most everyone knows that the winter of 2011-2012 has been brutal for many. Small businesses are hurting from the poor ski conditions over the holidays and ski resorts are scrambling to attract tourists. But last weekend, the powder gods arrived and the snow was falling. Some lucky resorts saw feet of fresh snow and some ski areas couldn’t even completely open because of the historic storm.

There’s just something about the combination of craft beer and skiing towns. Don’t believe me? Even Skiing Magazine is paying attention to the trend. This year they’ve introduced an interactive Ski Country Brew Finder to help all the ski bums out there find great craft beer while enjoying the slopes.

Continue reading “Craft Beers for Your Next Powder Day”

Murree Brewery bottling line. (Photo: Laura Lynch)

Written by Layra Lynch for theworld.org

Pakistan can be a land of contradictions. And here’s one that has some of the nation’s Muslims crying into their beer.

Well, they might be if they were allowed to drink beer. Pakistan bans alcohol for Muslims – who represent 97 percent of the population.

But get this. There’s a brewery and distillery not far from the capital of Islamabad. A brewery that’s doing a booming business.

To get there, you have to navigate the checkpoints in the city of Rawalpindi, a place better known for its mix of mosques and military installations. First, you can smell it – the unmistakably yeasty scent of brewing hops.
Continue reading “Pakistan’s Murree Brewery Thrives Despite Muslim Laws”

Written by James Scarpa for nrn.com

The first Canned Beer Dinner at Tokio Pub in Schaumburg, Ill., gave guests a grip on two hot topics in today’s industry — craft beer in cans and locally produced beverages.

The four-course, $45-per-person event featured products from Chicago-area craft brewers like double IPA, or India pale ale, paired with Asian BBQ Pork Sandwiches, blonde ale with Tokio Pub Fish and Chips and stout with liquid-center chocolate cake. Adding to the novelty of the evening were beer-inspired plate presentations like a can-shaped parmesan tuile perched atop a green salad and beer-battered onion rings looped around an empty suds can.

“Initially, people were wowed that they each got their own can of beer,” said Jill Koval, general manager of the pub, which blends Asian and Latin-American culinary influences and is part of the Chicago-based Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises restaurant group. “And they really got to see how much we pride ourselves on food presentation. By the end of the night, everyone was pushing their tables together and having so much fun.”
Continue reading “Craft Canned Beer Becomes Trendy Choice”

Written by Norman Miller for GateHouse News Service and metrowestdailynews.com

I go to several beer events throughout the year, mainly beer festivals or other similar events.

But for the last several years, there has only been one can’t-miss event for me: Beer Advocate’s Extreme Beer Fest, usually held in Boston in February.

It is, by far, my favorite Massachusetts beer festival. The best brewers in the United States, all known for brewing great and creative beers, seem to outdo themselves in trying to come up with something “extreme” enough to fit in.
Continue reading “The Beer Nut: Prepping for the Beer Advocate’s Extreme Beer Fest in Boston”