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Hidden Valley is a beautiful, serene setting that rests behind Watkins Glen State Park. There will be an indoor courtyard tasting area with music and specialty food and an outdoor courtyard area also with tasting and live music. Event is held rain or shine.

Some overnight group cabin rentals, sleeping 10-20, will be available for $120, email for details.

For more information about reserving a cabin for groups of 10 or more, or any other information, please contact Kathy at roosterfishbooking@gmail.com, or check the Roosterfish Facebook page.

No one under 21 allowed on the site unless accompanied by a parent.

Designated Driver’s are encouraged.

Wristbands will be issued and must be worn at all time by all people on the site.

Enjoy the best breweries in the Finger Lakes Region and support an amazing cause while you taste, dance and enjoy a festive evening.

Partial list of participating breweries with more joining daily
Continue reading “Beer Festival News”

Written by Michelle Minton for openmarket.org

In the battle between international brewing giants SABMiller and ABInBev, Wisconsin craft brewers could bear the heaviest burden. On May 31, the state legislature’s Joint Finance Committee approved a measure to be added to the state’s budget proposal which would prevent brewers from owning distributorships and retail licenses in Wisconsin. This means that if you’re a brewer, you can’t also sell alcoholic beverages to customers or retail shops.

The biggest backer of the bill is SABMiller, or as it is known in the US, MillerCoors. They have been pushing the measure, they say, in order to protect the vitality of Wisconsin beer in the face of a hostile invasion from their main national competitor, AB InBev, aka Anheuser-Busch. InBev has reportedly begun a nationwide campaign to purchase distributors in many states, something that MillerCoors says threatens all other brewers’ ability to get their beers in bars and on shelves. That’s the line that MillerCoors is peddling, but craft brewers in Wisconsin say they, and their ever increasing presence in the beer market, is the true target of the proposal.

While the text of the measure has not been made available to the public yet, the proposal would reportedly remove brewers’ current right to own wholesaler and retail licenses. Brewers of less than 300,000 barrels annually will still be able to self-distribute, but current brewers and new wholesalers would be required to have 25 independent retail customers prior to being granted the right to distribute. According to a MillerCoors spokesperson, these new rules would also prevent small brewers from banding together to form their own distributorship. In addition to all of that, the measure would prevent brewers from owning retail licenses, meaning that they could have a brewpub, but they would only be allowed to sell their own product. Breweries that already own retailing outlets would be allowed to retain one.

Continue reading “Wisconsin Proposal Hurts Craft Beer, Protects Big Brewers”

Writer unattributed at WaynePost.com

It’s no secret that the Finger Lakes is home to over 100 wineries, but few people realize it’s also home to a number of craft beer brewers as well. With over a dozen microbreweries in the region, plus another dozen or so brew pubs and tap houses, we have the makings of a beer trail — the Finger Lakes Beer Trail that is. Local beer-enthusiasts, Adam Smith and Theresa Hollister, recognized the need for increased awareness and promotion of the region’s growing beer culture, so in February they co-founded Finger Lakes Beer Trail Marketing & Tourism Associates.

While Smith and Hollister modeled the concept of the Finger Lakes Beer Trail after the wine trails of Seneca, Cayuga, Keuka, and Canandaigua, the beer trail is not limited to just the outlines of the lakes. They have mapped out an area that spans roughly 135 miles across the central part of New York state, stretching east-west from I-390 to I-81 and north/south from I-90 to I-86 / NY 17, resulting in a trail abundant with natural beauty along which tourists and beer aficionados alike can enjoy a tasty selection ranging from small-batch pub brews to award-winning bottled craft beers. There are also numerous opportunities for brewery tours along the way.

“Our mission is simple,” says Hollister. “Increase the visibility and reputation of the region’s craft brewers and other brewing and beer-related businesses.”

In doing so, they also hope to attract more beer-loving tourists to the Finger Lakes region, which in turn will help to stimulate the local economy.

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Written by Peter Teske for lagniappemobile.com

As I write this the Brewery Modernization Act has been placed on the post-redistricting break legislative calendar in Montgomery for the Tuesday before our publication.

Everyone I’ve spoken with in the craft beer industry seems optimistic about its passage. Needless to say — knock on wood, throw some salt over your shoulder, say your prayers, etc. — it will be, and may already have been, a great day for Alabama when it passes!
Continue reading “Craft’s Trending Eastward”

Written by Alan Johnson for The Columbus Dispatch

Ohioans could buy beer with a whopping 18 percent alcohol content under a provision in the state budget proposed yesterday by Senate Republicans.

After holding the line on alcohol content in beer for 69 years, lawmakers might be poised to increase it for the second time in a decade. The limit was increased in 2002 to 12 percent from 6 percent, where it had been since the end of Prohibition in 1933.

The alcohol boost in 2002 was promoted by a coalition of statewide distributors and microbrewers.

This time, state Sen. Jimmy Stewart, R-Albany, proposed the amendment after talking to the owners of Jackie O’s Brew Pub in Athens.

“They as well as other small breweries would be very excited about making some products on a limited basis with a higher alcohol content,” said Stewart, noting that Athens also features a number of Ohio-brewed beers at its annual Beer Week each July.

“This is a very small niche market and very expensive craft beers that are more for the aficionados.”
Continue reading “Beer Buzz Would Get a Big Boost from GOP bill”

Written by Cindy McNatt for the Orange County Register

When Brad Daniels told a scientist friend of his that he was going to start brewing beer, the friend replied, “I hate when people say they’re going to do something and then don’t.”

Daniels came from a long line of nonstarters, so with determination and a passion for microbrews, the retired engineer began some serious brewing. And he eventually built the pub to go with it.

Daniels transformed only a part of his 1924 Anaheim garage into a brewery/pub.
Continue reading “Brewing Up a Home Pub”

From beersensoryscience.wordpress.com, writer not attributed. Posts as BeerSensor

Cracking cheese, Gromit!

Have you ever smelled cheese in your beer? How about dirty sweatsocks? It’s more common than you may think. If you’re a homebrewer and you don’t use your hop supply as fast as you should, or if you store them improperly, you may be familiar with this aroma. This is isovaleric acid, and it’s a short-chain fatty acid commonly found in cheese, the valerian herb, foot odor, and sometimes beer. Now that’s an interesting selection of sources!

The commonly accepted threshold for isovaleric acid is about 1ppm, but like most other aromatic compounds, this can vary greatly depending on your genetics. This brief article gives some information about the genetic component of isovaleric acid receptors, exploring some of the sources of variability in how subjects perceive this compound. One of the more interesting things mentioned is that its detection threshold can apparently differ between individuals by up to 10,000 times. Personally, I think my nose has what I call an “acquired anosmia” to this compound. To be anosmic to a particular compound means you can not detect it at any concentration. While my case isn’t that dramatic, I think my sensitivity has dropped due to being frequently exposed to the purified compound when I spike it into my samples (despite using a fume hood and taking protective measures, it’s still possible to get it on you). If you get this stuff on your hands, you’ll stink for the rest of the day, if not longer. For this reason, I often have a hard time being able to tell if my spiked samples are at an appropriate level for the panel. Many times, I have to trust my math more than my nose.

So, how does isovaleric acid get into beer?
Continue reading “Say “Cheese!” Isovaleric Acid in Beer”

Written by Alan Feuer for The New York Times

THERE are some who thought, prematurely, that 2010 was New York’s summer of the beer garden, what with the World Cup and the opening of a half-dozen outdoor, German-style drinking establishments. But not unlike some genetically altered superweed, these ale-and-oompah joints have continued even this year to crop up everywhere you look. They have grown so thick, so fast, that certain neighborhoods (Astoria in Queens and Williamsburg in Brooklyn come to mind) could, with the proper vantage and the help of several pilsners, be mistaken for Bavaria.

Continue reading “Beer Gardens Everywhere”

Part of the beauty that lies in beer is the discovery. There are a plethora of styles, a barrage of nuances,and a myriad of contexts in which to discover the king of beverages. When the would-be beer drinker starts the quest of exploring a fresh world of beer, it seems as though the sky is the limit. Bottles are purchased, locations are scouted, rumors of rare bottles become fictive hopes…

And then it happens.

One day, the beer drinker becomes aware that the thrill for discovery is a little less thrilling. Searching for the rare bottle takes a back seat. The 100 tap handles do not seem as awe inspiring. As Scott from Manland once told me, the kid in the candy store feeling is not there any more.

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