Oskar Blues Brewing (Lyons, CO) to change the name of their popular Gordon Ale. Gordon Biersch Brewing recently filed a lawsuit regarding the name, stating the use of “Gordon” violates copyright.
Quoting from Denver Westword Blogs:
“Oskar Blues will change the name Continue Reading →
Man I love hearing beer geeks fight. At the end of the day, I just love and want to drink beer. But… there are some style questions that come up along the way. 2010 was a big year for Black IPA errr Cascadian Dark Ales aka the dark-hoppy beers. This is a battle I’ve seen wage on for a while now. What beer geeks sometime forget ( and I’ll get flamed for this) is that there really isn’t anything wrong with calling something a black IPA. At the end of the day, you tell me its a black IPA I know what to expect.
The only real issue is how to evaluate and just these beers in competition. That’s where the Brewer’s Association comes in. Each year they evaluate beer styles and emerging beer styles in an attempt to bring some clarity to the situation.
Best read this one straight from the press release..
Boulder, CO – January 12, 2011–The Brewers Association (BA) recently released its 2011 Beer Style Guidelines. Updated annually, the guidelines currently describe 140 styles of beer and are used in prestigious beer competitions, like theGreat American Beer Festival® and theWorld Beer Cup®.
For 2011, several beer style descriptions have been significantly updated:
Belgo-American-Style Ales
Belgian-Style Flanders Oud Bruin/Oud Red
German Bock
Rye Beer
Additionally, two beer styles have been renamed. American-Style Sour Ale is now known as American-Style Brett Ale, and its description has been significantly revised. American-Style Black Ale is the new name for American-Style India Black Ale, and it too has updated style guidelines.
UPDATE: 11/1/11. Show has been dropped by Discovery Channel. 6th Episode has yet to air.
OFFICIAL WORD FROM DISCOVERY CHANNEL:
I just received a call from Network Communications Spokesperson at The Discovery Channel: [Discovery Channel] is working on completing Continue Reading →
I still can’t believe the success The Bruery (Placienta, CA) has had in 3 years. With good reason. The beers are great. Like this one – Chocolate Rain.
Chocolate Rain has been a draft only, rare offering by The Bruery. Even Continue Reading →
Looks like Brewery Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY) will be closing down for a bit this year. There are internal improvements that the brewery would like to make. From Ommegang:
We’re closing Brewery Ommegang for two weeks in late January 2011. We’ll completely tile the brewhouse and packaging hall as well as make other improvements. Our objectives are improved efficiany, better and faster sanitation, and an enhanced ability to grow. Increased demand has seen our brewing schedule literally double in the past 14 months. While we’re delighted with the growth, we now need some additions, improvements, and renovations to allow brewing and packaging to run more efficiently.
If you drink beer, by now you understand “macro” vs “micro” brewing. Obviously your BMC (Bud, Miller, Coors) qualify as your macro breweries. SweetWater, Stone, Dogfish Head, 3 Floyds, etc are micro brewers aka -craft brewers. The question I hear Continue Reading →
Oskar Blues Brewing (Lyons, CO) to change the name of their popular Gordon Ale. Gordon Biersch Brewing recently filed a lawsuit regarding the name, stating the use of “Gordon” violates copyright.
Quoting from Denver Westword Blogs:
“Oskar Blues will change the name of one of its four year-round beers after the Tennessee-based Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant Group threatened to sue the Colorado company for trademark infringement, says Oskar Blues spokesman Chad Melis.
Gordon, the Oskar Blues beer, is named for Gordon Knight, a fire-fighting helicopter pilot and brewer who helped create the Twisted Pine, Wolf Tongue and Estes Park breweries in the early 1990s. Knight was killed in 2002 when the helicopter he was using to drop water on a fire near Lyons crashed.
The beer will be renamed G’Knight, and Oskar Blues will hold a party on February 19 at itsTasty Weasel tap house in Longmont, to celebrate the beer and its namesake. Knight’s birthday was February 20; he would have been 61.
Black IPA? No. Dark Cascadian Ale? No. American-Style Black Ale? Yes!
Man I love hearing beer geeks fight. At the end of the day, I just love and want to drink beer. But… there are some style questions that come up along the way. 2010 was a big year for Black IPA errr Cascadian Dark Ales aka the dark-hoppy beers. This is a battle I’ve seen wage on for a while now. What beer geeks sometime forget ( and I’ll get flamed for this) is that there really isn’t anything wrong with calling something a black IPA. At the end of the day, you tell me its a black IPA I know what to expect.
The only real issue is how to evaluate and just these beers in competition. That’s where the Brewer’s Association comes in. Each year they evaluate beer styles and emerging beer styles in an attempt to bring some clarity to the situation. As I posted earlier today, the 2011 guidelines have been released. Took me a little while to read over it, but the most resounding clarification in the 2011 guidelines deals with black IPA/dark cascadian ales. Check out the definition:
American-Style Black Ale
American-style Black Ale is perceived to have medium high to high hop bitterness, flavor and aroma with medium-high alcohol
content, balanced with a medium body. Fruity, floral and herbal character from hops of all origins may contribute character. The
style is further characterized by a moderate degree of caramel malt character and dark roasted malt flavor and aroma. High
astringency and high degree of burnt roast malt character should be absent.
Alcohol by Weight (Volume) 5-6% (6 -7.5%) â— Bitterness (IBU) 50-70 â— Color SRM (EBC) 35+ (70+ EBC)
American-Style Black AleAmerican-style Black Ale is perceived to have medium high to high hop bitterness, flavor and aroma with medium-high alcohol content, balanced with a medium body. Fruity, floral and herbal character from hops of all origins may contribute character. The style is further characterized by a moderate degree of caramel malt character and dark roasted malt flavor and aroma. High astringency and high degree of burnt roast malt character should be absent.Original Gravity (ºPlato) 1.056-1.075 (14-18.2 ºPlato) â— Apparent Extract/Final Gravity (ºPlato) 1.012-1.018 (3-4.5 ºPlato) â— Alcohol by Weight (Volume) 5-6% (6 -7.5%) â— Bitterness (IBU) 50-70 â— Color SRM (EBC) 35+ (70+ EBC)
I guess we were all wrong. All things being equal, if you tell me its a black IPA – I get it…
Best read this one straight from the press release..
Boulder, CO – January 12, 2011–The Brewers Association (BA) recently released its 2011 Beer Style Guidelines. Updated annually, the guidelines currently describe 140 styles of beer and are used in prestigious beer competitions, like theGreat American Beer Festival® and theWorld Beer Cup®.
For 2011, several beer style descriptions have been significantly updated:
Belgo-American-Style Ales
Belgian-Style Flanders Oud Bruin/Oud Red
German Bock
Rye Beer
Additionally, two beer styles have been renamed. American-Style Sour Ale is now known as American-Style Brett Ale, and its description has been significantly revised. American-Style Black Ale is the new name for American-Style India Black Ale, and it too has updated style guidelines.
Since 1979 the BA has provided beer style descriptions as a reference for brewers and beer competition organizers. The beer style guidelines developed by the BA use sources from the commercial brewing industry, beer analyses, and consultations with beer industry experts and knowledgeable beer enthusiasts as resources for information. Much of the early work was based on the assistance and contributions of beer journalist Michael Jackson. For 2011, revisions were aided by over 150 comments and suggestions from Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup judges, as well as other beer industry members.
“These guidelines help to illustrate the growth of craft brewers in the United States and also offer insight and a foundation for helping appreciate the hundreds of beer types brewed for the beer lover,” said Charlie Papazian, president of the Brewers Association.
The 2011 Beer Style Guidelines are available for download in the Publications section of BrewersAssociation.org.
UPDATE: 11/1/11. Show has been dropped by Discovery Channel. 6th Episode has yet to air.
OFFICIAL WORD FROM DISCOVERY CHANNEL:
I just received a call from Network Communications Spokesperson at The Discovery Channel: [Discovery Channel] is working on completing the final episode #6 of Brew Masters. It will be airing by early spring. They have NOT cancelled the show. Brew Masters was slated for an initial 6 episode run. Once the 6 are completed, Discovery Channel & Dogfish Head will evaluate the response and future direction.
3:20 pm: Washington Post article indicates show was a 6 episode run. The article concludes mentioning a delay in finishing episode 6, & an uncertain future. Article link —> http://voices.washingtonpost.com/all-we-can-eat/beer/beer-tracking-dogfish.html Article quote: “Also yet to be decided: Whether the Discovery Channel will film additional episodes of “Brew Masters.” “Our production and development people are keeping all options open,” Weinberg said.”
3:10 pm: Found this tweet from Dec 24
3:00 pm: Made calls to Discovery Channels Media/Public Relations line. Only voicemail. No one picks up the phone at Dogfish Head…
2:30 pm – Ok. So much for trying to be an attentive blogger. I think I stepped into a wasp’s nest on this one. A friend in Delaware gathered this info at the brewpub that Brew Masters is basically done. I found another article just now that mentions the same info —> http://wp.me/pBL4g-16g The Discovery Channel maintains there is more content in progress.
So… sorry for any alarm. I can’t find anymore info yet. Time will tell.
1:45pm – UPDATE: The Discovery Channel just sent me a message that they are currently working on show content. Vague, not sure what that means… but seems like cancelled is too hasty. We’ll see. (Special thanks to @HopMonkey too)
12:50pm – A friend close to Dogfish Head just told me that Brew Masters is no more. Or at least that is the rumor.
It’s been weeks since the last episode, and people were starting to wonder whats up. Apparently – nothing. The Discovery Channel website has no mention of the show discontinuing, and The Dogfish Blog has no mention of the state of affairs right now. I hope the rumor is false. But… since we haven’t seen an episode in weeks, seems plausible.
I still can’t believe the success The Bruery (Placienta, CA) has had in 3 years. With good reason. The beers are great. Like this one – Chocolate Rain.
Chocolate Rain has been a draft only, rare offering by The Bruery. Even a bit more rare than “Black Tuesday” an imperial stout aged in bourbon barrels. Why? Its actually Black Tuesday with vanilla bean, & cocoa nibs. Just to recap: Imperial Stout aged in bourbon barrels. Take that tasty treat and add vanilla bean & cocoa nibs. Excuse me while I go get a bib.
This tasty treat is headed for bottles for the first time.
Looks like Brewery Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY) will be closing down for a bit this year. There are internal improvements that the brewery would like to make. From Ommegang:
We’re closing Brewery Ommegang for two weeks in late January 2011. We’ll completely tile the brewhouse and packaging hall as well as make other improvements. Our objectives are improved efficiany, better and faster sanitation, and an enhanced ability to grow. Increased demand has seen our brewing schedule literally double in the past 14 months. While we’re delighted with the growth, we now need some additions, improvements, and renovations to allow brewing and packaging to run more efficiently.
You may know that Duvel brewed some Hennepin, Abbey and Three Philosophers for us back in 2007/08, while we dealt with production issues centered around upgrading our aging bottling line. We were uncertain how people would respond, but quickly discovered that serious beer folks were comparing the beers to see if they could detect any differences. It turned out to be an interesting and enjoyable exercise. Duvel, of course, has impeccable brewing skills and facilities and did a bang-up job filling in for us last time. We expect nothing less this time. Our brewmaster Phil Leinhart and Duvel’s Hedwig Neven will stay in close touch throughout the process while Duvel brews Abbey Ale and Hennepin, which will probably appear on shelves in April at the earliest.
While the tiling and other interior changes are made we’ll also be installing two exterior 360hl unitanks in early February, bringing us to a total of eight. I’m looking out the window at the just completed footings. Also, our store and tasting room will move out of the brewhouse to a dedicated new building about 100 feet from the brewery. This new 4000 sq.ft. building will house an expanded store and tasting area as well as a huge new indoor/outdoor bar and patio, and ta-da! The long-threatened restaurant: Cafe Ommegang. We expect the store move to be in mid-to-late Jan, and that the cafe will be open in late Feb/early March, depending on permits from the NY State Liquor Authority. The interior finishing in the store/bar/cafe is going on right now.
All in all, it’s an extraordinarily exciting time at Ommegang. We’re preparing for continuing growth and brewing more fantastic (and some new) beers. Including a Chouffe collaboration beer, tentatively named Gnomegang, coming out in April. Yes, you read it first right here.
If you drink beer, by now you understand “macro” vs “micro” brewing. Obviously your BMC (Bud, Miller, Coors) qualify as your macro breweries. SweetWater, Stone, Dogfish Head, 3 Floyds, etc are micro brewers aka -craft brewers. The question I hear a lot is what is the difference? First and foremost obviously the beer makes the difference. I mean, put a miller light up against a Stone Levitation. Come on, its a no brainer. A bigger qualifier – production. Allow me to simplify.
The Brewers Association of America basically decides the output definition of macro vs. micro. The Brewers Association is made up of over 1,200 brewers – mainly craft brewers. Until yesterday- the production cut off was 2,000,000 barrels. This knocked Sam Adams (Boston Beer Company) out of the “craft/micro” designation and into big macro territory.
Yesterday’s definition amendment by the Brewer’s Association changed the output qualification from 2 million barrels to 6 million. So, for now The Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams) remains craft.
Question for the readers? What makes craft beer to you? Output? Size? Would you still love Dogfish Head Brewing & Stone Brewing if they produced 4 million barrels a year? Discuss.
Oskar Blues Brewing (Lyons, CO) to change the name of their popular Gordon Ale. Gordon Biersch Brewing recently filed a lawsuit regarding the name, stating the use of “Gordon” violates copyright.
