Wed, 30 May 2007 Press Release State's Original
Brewers Festival Turns 19 This Year
Portland, Ore., May 30, 2007 -- Oregon celebrates
its profusion of good beer all year, but July is the state's official Craft Beer
Month. And 2007 marks the 19th anniversary of the Oregon Brewers Festival from
July 27th to 30th. This year's festival features 73 really good beers from craft
brewers around the country along with educational displays and live
entertainment.
Soft, pure water cascades down from the mountains, aromatic
hops spring from the valley's fertile soils, and barley thrives on the high
plains over on the state's dryer eastern side. Oregon beers are truly local and
incredibly delicious. The state's brewers produce traditional styles from pale
ales to Belgian bitters to dark stouts, but they've also pioneered new flavor
profiles, created organic beers, and breathed new life into the typical American
beer style with handcrafted lagers.
Tom McCall Park in downtown Portland provides the
Willamette River and Mount Hood as backdrops for the Brewers Festival. At least
50,000 beer enthusiasts are expected at the Festival during its four-day
run.
Other Craft Beer Month events include a beer and sausage
fest, cheese pairings by the dean of American beer writers, Fred Eckhardt, a
barbecue featuring eight special brews that you can't get at the Brewers
Festival, and a rousing parade of brewers strutting to the beat of the March 4th
Marching Band.
"We are proud to be the only state that has designated a
special month to recognize our local craft brewers as well as those from around
the world who focus on quality and tradition," said Brian Butenschoen, Executive
Director of the Oregon Brewers Guild. "Beer is one of Oregon's iconographic
agricultural products and Craft Beer Month is a wonderful opportunity to stop
and lift a glass to all the passion and talent that we have
here."
America's beer revival began in Oregon in the early 1980s,
and the state, the second largest producer of craft beer in America, is home to
82 craft breweries. Portland has 29
breweries, more than any other city in the world. Industry pioneers such as
BridgePort Brewing, Widmer Brothers, McMenamins and what is now Pyramid
Breweries started in Portland. Full Sail
Brewing, Deschutes Brewery and Rogue Ales also started in Oregon and now have
regional, national and international distribution. Emerging breweries such as Terminal Gravity,
Ninkasi and Cascade Lakes beers can be found all around the state and local
breweries like Amnesia Brewing, Laurelwood Brewing and Roots Organic Brewing
offer unique beers on tap at their neighborhood pubs.
A recent book review in The New York Times cited a study
from The American Journal of American Nutrition suggesting that beer in moderate
consumption is actually good for you, meeting about 11 percent of your protein
needs, 12 percent of your carbohydrates, and significant amounts of essential
vitamins such as phosphorous, riboflavin, and niacin.
Healthy or not, Oregon craft beers taste delicious. Pour
yourself one soon at one of the Craft Beer Month events and visit the Oregon
Brewers Festival in July.
Admission to the Festival is free, but a $4 mug purchase as
well as $1 tokens are required to try the beers. The Brewers Festival opens at
noon Thursday, July 27th and runs through Sunday, July 30. Beer taps shut down
at 9 p.m. Thursday through Saturday; 7 p.m. Sunday. Minors are permitted with a
parent all hours. Category: Oregon Brew News -- posted at: 9:03 PM Comments[1] |
Wed, 30 May 2007 Press Release The Beer Guppy’s Guide to Southern California New Book Picks Top Beer Establishments BURBANK, Calif. - May 25, 2007 - Longtime beer journalist Jay Sheveck (pen name Beer Guppy), has released a new guide to good beer. The Beer Guppy’s Guide to Southern California is the region’s first-ever comprehensive craft-beer destination guide. Inside, over 300 microbreweries, brewpubs, alehouses, restaurants, retailers, homebrew organizations and beer events are identified. The Beer Guppy’s Guide to Southern California can easily be used by every type of beer traveler—from the casual connoisseur to the serious beer enthusiast. Even the general reader will quickly discover its value. Establishments are individually described by oodles of beer-related facts and (mostly) unbiased summaries. Icons placed within each listing allow for quick reference for those on-the-go. Sprinkled throughout the guide are highlights about Southern California’s beer pioneers, breweriana traders, historic beer sites, airport watering holes, and wacky beer oddities. Additionally, the book functions as a real ale field guide for those in search of British-style cask-conditioned beer. "Writing this guide literally took me on a five-year, flavor-filled journey that stretched from Fresno to San Diego, and from Las Vegas to the Pacific," author Jay Sheveck stated. "I am very pleased with the finished product. It accurately describes a region that is filled with fun and exciting beer oases of the highest caliber." Southern California is the first of five regions to be published by the West Coast beer travel guide micro imprint Beer Guppy. Web site sales and retail distribution are set to begin on June 1, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-9795797-0-7, Perfect Bound, 100 Pages, 8.5" x 10.875", Magazine-style Format, $9.95 Author Jay Sheveck has chronicled the American craft-beer movement since the early 1990s. His articles and photographs have appeared in American Brewer magazine, American Breweriana Journal, BEERWeek, Brewing News, Celebrator Beer News, Market Watch magazine and The Local Flavor column in 5th Street magazine. He also produced the independent documentary film Beer Pioneers, which explored America’s first micro-brewers. More info @ www.BeerGuppy.com Category: SoCal Brew News -- posted at: 12:57 AM Comments[0] |
Wed, 23 May 2007  The Northern California Brewers Guild recently held their first brew fest at Raley Field, a fund raiser for the guild and a great event for beer enthusiasts. This show features interview with three Northern California brewers, from Iron Springs, Rafters and Trumer. The show leads off with industry news and announcements, then off to the ball park where Tracy and Rick discuss the beer event that was. Intro Music: The Devil Makes Three singing Old Number Seven Closing Music: James McMurtry singing We Can't Make it Here NEWS: Bear Republic beers in six packs Rick going to Oregon Beer Fest - Are you? San Diego Real Ale Festival - June 1 Feedback? Let us know. Comments[1] |
Wed, 16 May 2007 Earlier in May the PBN crew was invited to take a sneak peek at Northern California's newest beer destination, the Auburn Ale House, in the heart of Northern california's 'Gold Country'. With owner & brewer Brian Ford directing the tour we discuss the ins-and-outs of opening a new brewpub, including construction, permitting and all the stories that go with it. It was a great day and it is a beautiful brewery. Since visiting, Brian has poured two of his beers at the Raley Field Brewfest (which happened over the weekend), the Gold Digger IPA and his Old Town Brown. Both were incredible and wonderfully received. The opening music for this show is Michelle Shocked, closing with Old Man Tucker by a man who needs no introduction...Highlights: - The Background of AAH - Racer 5 - Stories of Construction - The beers of AAH - Geeky yeast talk - pressurized brewing? - Hop Henge - Green Flash Imperial IPA Check out their website: http://www.auburnalehouse.com/ Enjoy the show, and make sure you check this place out if ever you're in Northern California. Comments[1] |
Mon, 14 May 2007  You heard about this on our Deschutes Release Party show a couple months back, here's the official news! We'll be reviewing this beer as soon as we can get our hands on it, we'll let you know when that is. Look for this AND the Deschutes Twilight in stores soon. - Press Release - Deschutes Celebrates 19 Years with Golden Ale (May 11, 2007 - Bend, OR) "We felt we had to do something special to mark our 19th Anniversary," said brewmaster Larry Sidor, "so we took a vow of silence and brewed our first Belgian style ale ever to be bottled." The straw colored Strong Golden Ale is made from an impressively international list of ingredients that acknowledge the diverse roots of craft beer. "We used Czech Saaz, Slovenian Golding, Pacific Northwest Liberty, and Brewers Gold hops," said Sidor, "along with French pilsner malt, and Belgian white candy diamonds and bitter orange peel from the island of Curacao for a little extra kick and sizzle." The vow of silence, a nod to the Belgian monks who brew some of the world's most revered beers, may have been the biggest challenge for the brewers at Deschutes. About half way through adding the 180 bags of malt, one of the brewers inadvertently exclaimed, "Good Lord, this is a lot of malt." Keeping with the spirit of their Belgian counterparts, another brewer answered, "Amen, brother." Deschutes Brewery, a pioneer of Oregon's craft beer industry, opened as a small brew pub in Bend in 1988. As the central Oregon town made the transition from timber and ranching to an outdoor lifestyle destination, the brewery expanded. Deschutes produces 160,000 barrels of craft beer in several distinctive styles which are available in bottles and on tap throughout the region. A new brewpub is scheduled to open in Portland next year. The 19th Anniversary Belgian-style Strong Golden Ale will be available from June through September in 22-ounce bottles and limited draft. Category: Oregon Brew News -- posted at: 3:10 AM Comments[0] |
Fri, 11 May 2007 With the 2007 West Coast Brew Fest just a week away, it's time to start planning out your trip. Below is the official results for the brew fest, which was judged in Sacramento on May 6th. I am trying to track down any sort of "Best of Show" results - assuming there was a BOS - if that is available I'll let you all know as soon as I do. Download The Results If you haven't made arrangements yet, here's the details you need to get there. When: May 19th at 1:00pm (ends at 5:00) Where: Miller Park, Sacramento, Ca Cost: $25 in advance - available online Website: http://www.westcoastbrewfest.com/ Category: NorCal Brew News -- posted at: 11:57 AM Comments[0] |
Tue, 8 May 2007  While America recently took time to celebrate Earth Day, PBN was working behind the scenes to bring in the Sustainability Coordinator for Sierra Nevada Brewing Company to talk about what they are doing for the environment and our future. This is a slide show complimented with audio from the event. It has some great info, practical ideas and is pretty cool to listen to if you're looking to make your workplace and home more sustainable. Pretty cool stuff, really. We'd like to thank Sierra Nevada for coming out and for also allowing us to publish this recording. We hope you enjoy it as well. >> Watch Now - Rick Related Shows: Listen to our tour of Sierra Nevada with head brewer Steve Dresler. Show 1 - Hops, Grains and Yeast - SN Style Show 2 - More on the SN sustainability and community works Show 3 - Bigfoot vertical tasting Comments[0] |
Tue, 8 May 2007 If you live in or around Northern California and you like beer, the next three weeks are what you live for. THIS SATURDAY, 5/12 Raley Field BrewFest, at Raley Field (Sacramento) Tickets - 25 bucks in advance, 30 bucks at door This is a benefit for the Northern California Brewers Guild http://www.raleyfield.com/pagebank/index.html?id=275 NEXT SATURDAY, 5/19 West Coast Beer Fest, at Miller Park (Sacramento) An event of epic proportion, with a rich history - a PBN Favorite SATURDAY, 5/26 Maibock Festival at Rubicon Brewing Co (Sacramento) A great way to celebrate Spring. Three weekends in one city - you can't ask for more. Category: NorCal Brew News -- posted at: 12:14 PM Comments[1] |
Wed, 2 May 2007 Lagunitas completes $4.4 million plant expansion Lagunitas Brewing Company in Petaluma, California has just completed financing and placed an order for a new 80 barrel/10 brews per day German-built Rolec Brewhouse. This completes the $4,420,000 "fundamental re-building in-place" of the company's entire brewery increasing the ultimate capacity to well over 150,000 barrels. Other recently completed plant upgrades include a new BC/Sympac Bottling Line, a new Alfa Laval High-Speed Centrifuge Filtration system, four new 300 barrel fermentation tanks, a new 300 barrel bottling tank and an upgraded keg cleaning and racking line. Lagunitas was founded in 1993 and has consistently been one of the fastest growing breweries in the U.S. In 2006 the company shipped 37,420 barrels of beer and had an 18% increase in growth over 2005. Category: NorCal Brew News -- posted at: 12:57 AM Comments[0] |
