Author: Professor Good Ales

Written by Eric Braun for mysanantonio.com

Perhaps the most nonsensical of all the Texas beer rules and regulations — although there are plenty to go around — is the rule that dictates what a beer is called based on whether or not it’s above or below 5% in ABV (alcohol by volume). That rule was struck down by Judge Sam Sparks in a ruling yesterday. He also struck down the rule against producers being able to tell customer where to find their beers.

If you’ve ever noticed a label that read ‘Beer in TX,’ it was likely an ale that couldn’t be called an ale because it was under 5%. Meanwhile, lagers over 5% had to be called an ale or malt liquor. As beer lovers know, ales and lagers are the two main different types of beer and the difference isn’t ABV.

This was based on a lawsuit filed by Austin’s Jester King Brewing and others a few months ago which I wrote about here. Essentially, Judge Sparks found that the labeling rules and the rules against beer manufacturers being able to tell consumer where to find their beer to purchase were both unconstitutional according to the guarantees of the first amendment. So those rules will go away assuming there are no successful appeals or other funny business.

Unfortunately, the judge ruled against using the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment to cancel out the regulations wherein brew pubs can’t sell outside of their buildings and breweries can’t sell inside their buildings. That might have been wishful thinking, but it was worth a shot.
Continue reading “‘Beer in TX’ is No More”

Mark Galletly of Marks Home Brew. Picture by Anita Jones

NOTE: The Professor, never having been to Australia, will not question the following statement that’s NOT necessarily true in America: “Whether you use basic kits or mash with malted grain, the results are likely to be better, and cheaper, than average commercial beers.” But the article does provide an interesting perspective on homebrewing in Australia.

Written by Stephen Jones for theherald.com.au

HOME brewing has come a long way in recent decades. Whether you use basic kits or mash with malted grain, the results are likely to be better, and cheaper, than average commercial beers. Home brewing doesn’t take up a lot of time, and the gear you buy should soon pay for itself. But be warned: having a lot of good beer at home can lead some people to imbibe a bit more than they should.

Jeff Corbett

WHEN I started brewing in 1980 it was in a big bucket using Saunder’s malt extract and sugar from the supermarket, hop essence from a health food shop and yeast that had been smuggled out of a brewery.
Continue reading “Herald Beer Experts Talk Home Brewing”

And don’t forget the bacon chocolate, fellas

No writer attributed. From The Wall Street Journal

A growing number of confectioners have crossed what may be the final frontier in candy flavoring: candy made with beer.

They’ve worked out technical kinks — beer burns at the high temperatures used to make many kinds of candy — and developed a market for sweets they describe as “hoppy,” “malty” and “yeasty.”

It’s all part of a push by specialty chocolatiers to make candy more manly, and to get men to reach for a stout caramel or India Pale Ale bonbon as eagerly as they might grab a nice cold one.
Last month, Vosges Haut Chocolat, a chocolate company with an estimated $23 million in sales, rolled out a “Smoke and Stout Caramel Bar,” made with a beer brewed from dark-roasted malt. Gourmet retailer Dean & DeLuca sells a six pack of Roni-Sue’s black-stout and India Pale Ale caramels for $16.95. Anette’s Chocolate Factory has won industry awards for both its Beer Brittle and Firey Beer Brittle, accented by cayenne pepper.
Continue reading “Beer Chocolate, the Latest Candy Innovation, Now on Tap”

Beer is in convenience stores all over the country, but states generally don’t legislatively encourage their C-stores to carry craft beer made in that state. Mr. Schumer is to be commended.-The Professor

Written for csnews.com No author credited.

 

ALBANY, N.Y. — As craft beer grows in popularity one New York legislator has launched a campaign to push the state’s offerings.

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer kicked off his “I Love NY Brew” campaign yesterday in a bid to get locally brewed beer in area convenience stores, restaurants and bars. The move is an effort to grow the industry and allow breweries across the state to expand their businesses.

In a letter to the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) and the New York State Restaurant Association, Schumer urged both groups to stock their shelves with beer brewed at the 77 microbreweries, regional craft breweries and brewpubs in New York. He added that pushing locally brewed beer onto convenience store shelves and into restaurants in major cities like New York City would be a major step forward for an industry that adds millions of dollars to the state’s economy annually.
Continue reading “N.Y. Lawmaker Kicks Off Efforts to Get Craft Beer in C-stores”

Written by Norman Miller for GateHouse News Service

Uncommon Brewers is certainly uncommon among California brewers. Unlike most West Coast breweries that feature hops in most of their beers, this Santa Cruz brewery does not.

Instead, they brew a pair of Belgian ales with uncommon ingredients, as well as a big, malty, Baltic porter.

Uncommon Brewers was founded in 2008 by Alex Stefansky and Reed Vander Schaaf. Both had been homebrewers.

The brewery was in the planning stages for six years, and the goal was to combine Belgian brewing techniques, while melding it with the creativeness of West Coast breweries.

The beer is also organic, which is good for those who care about organic products.

Uncommon Brewers has recently began distributing its three beers to Massachusetts. The beers are all available in 16-ounce cans.

Each of the three available beers are based on traditional recipes, but with unusual (or uncommon to fit with the name) ingredients. If you are someone who likes traditional beers, Uncommon Brewers’ beers are not for you.

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HERE

Written by David Young for coloradoan.com

Sitting in her office on National Repeal Day, the day marking the 78th anniversary of the end of prohibition, Kim Jordan admits she is not invincible.

That may come as a sur­prise to some.

With the success of New Belgium Brewing Co., one of the nation’s most successful craft breweries, Jordan has overseen an average year-over-year gain of 15 per­cent over the past decade.

At the same time she has fos­tered a culture of environmental, social and cultural change with innovative programs such as giv­ing employees’ bikes and donat­ing $4 million in grants.
Continue reading “New Belgium Brewing Co.: Building a Brewery”

 

Some of this is accurate, some not so consequential and some… well you can decide- The Professor