Lagers

Posted in Lore Brewing Co, New Beers

Lore Brewing Co Lorelei Lager

Lore Brewing Co Lorelei Lager

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Sam Adams

Samuel Adams Plans Boston Lager in 16oz Cans

Samuel Adams 16oz Lager Cans

So just to recap, it took Samuel Adams two years and a few million to create a can suitable for Boston Lager. In the past few weeks, the brewery launched the flagship Boston Lager and Summer Ale in new 12oz cans for the first time in the brewery’s history.

It doesn’t stop there. The patented Samuel Adams can will see 4 more ounces of beer in tallboy form.

Style: Lager
Availability: 12oz bottles, 12oz cans, Draft. 16oz Cans (soon)
Arrival: TBA (16oz cans)

 4.9% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Shmaltz Brewing, New Releases

Shmaltz David’s Slingshot Hoppy Summer Lager

Shmaltz Brewing Company (Saratoga Springs, NY) is gearing up for a new brewhouse and hot weather. We could be wrong, but that guy rocking the slingshot on the label looks a lot like brewery founder Jeremy Cowan. Speaking of Jeremy, if you have never taken the time to read his beer label musings, you are missing out.

As a young shepherd, David famously vanquished the giant Goliath with a hand-crafted sling. Our modern anti-hero Bart Simpson clowns through childhood with a slingshot. Homer. Caesar. and Thucydides wrote of slings. The IRA. The Incas vs the Conquistadores. Native Americans and Palestinians have all wielded this iconic weapon of the underdog. A low-status tool, ancient slings were rarely preserved in the tombs of the wealthy. Michelangelo’s David embodied resistance and epic beauty in the Renaissance. Slingshots meant merry mischief to Dennis the Menace, Calvin, Woody Woodpecker and the Beverly Hillbillies. A musician and poet, the teenage David rescued his sheep from the mouth of lions. The first to unite the entire nation of Israel. the lineage of the Messiah descends from him. In Samuel 17, rising to the boasts of a mighty enemy, David refused the armor and weapons of the King. instead proclaiming victory. Not by my sword but by my Spirit” David in Hebrew means “Beloved”. I am approaching the age that my dad. David. died when I was a teenager. A lifelong Special Ed teacher and summer Army reservist. he served as both loving mentor and affable prankster a dedicated advocate for the underdog. In Alchemy, the Star of David equals a mystical union of male/female earth/sky leading to nirvana. The 6-pointed Brewers Star blends fire, water, malt, yeast, hops, and the character of the brewer. In the spirit of a slew of Dards & Slingshots. Shmaltz hoists our tribute to the glories of Summer… L’Chaim! Jeremy Cowan, proprietor

Style: Lager
Availability: 12oz bottles, Draft
Arrival: TBA

5.5% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Half Acre Brewing, New Releases

Ponder the Deep Meaning of Half Acre Stargrazer

Half Acre Beer Company (Chitown) is launching the deep thinking Stargrazer lager this Friday (May 3rd). The crisp, easy drinking beer is lightly hopped with some of the good ol’ American varieties. Here’s a little deep thinking from HA to ponder as you wait for the release:

Outer space is deep, man. Real deep. All sorts of mysterious, other-worldly, indescribable stuff happens out there. When you break it down and really think about it, we’re all part of this space idea as well. I mean, do you realize we’re floating in space? And who’s to say what else is out there? (well, besides scientists and astronomers and all those smarty-pants type folk… they do a pretty good job) Among the information that we do know is the concept of these ultra-high gravity black holes that eat stars. They just cruise around, light years away, and epicly consume stars and photons of light with a voracious appetite. These black holes are sometimes referred to as stargrazers. 

Style: Lager
Availability: Draft only
Arrival: 5/3/13

6% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Brooklyn Brewing, F.X. Matt Brewing, New Releases, Ommegang

Brooklyn, Ommegang, & Saranac Team Up for SAVOR Brew

Much like the Craft Brewers Conference, SAVOR will also boast a special collaboration beer for attendees. It started with SAVOR Flowers, a collab between Dogfish Head and Boston Beer. 2012 found the likes of Sierra Nevada and Boulevard Brewing Co with Terra Incognita.

The 2013 collaboration teams up Brooklyn Brewery, Saranac and Ommegang to create New York Limited. The beer is a bottle conditioned white lager, brewed with a plethora of New York state ingredients including, lemon verbena, honey, state grown hops. Brewed at Brooklyn with a lager yeast, bottle conditioned with an ale yeast.

Style: Lager (w/ Lemon Verbena, Honey, Spices)
Availability: 750 ml bottles. Corked & Caged. SAVOR attendees only

Tickets to SAVOR 2013 in New York are still available.

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Sam Adams

A Few Years & $1 Million Later, Samuel Adams Cans Arrive

Boston Beer, makers of Samuel Adams, didn’t just accept the current beer can technology. In fact, it took about 2 years and over $1 million dollars to develop the new technology. Beer is a sensory experience and founder Jim Koch wanted a can to accentuate that. What’s different?

  • The lid is wider, allowing more airflow.
  • The lid has been moved away from the lip, to help accentuate the hop aromas. Closer to the nose.
  • The hourglass ridge creates turbulence (like the Perfect Pint glass) which “pushes flavor out of the beer”
  • Extended lip places the beer at the front of your palate

Cans of the flagship Boston Lager ship next week. You’ll be drinking Samuel Adams out of a can by Mid-May, 2013.

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Anderson Valley Brewing Company

Anderson Valley Launches El Steinber in Tallboys

Anderson Valley Brewing Company has upgraded El Steinber Dark Lager to 16oz “pounder” cans. They are shipping this week. Back in September of 2012, AVBC launched El Steinber as a draft only offering in California, slowing making its way to tap handles around the country. It’s tall boy time for the dark lager.

…  “We recently added a second canning line that gave us the ability to use larger formats, so why not package our first full-production lager in our first sixteen ounce can?” 

Style: Dark Lager
Availability: Draft, 16oz cans
Arrival: Late April, 2013. All AVBC distribution markets

5.5% ABV
by Reid Ramsay