Misc News – Aug 19

"Upland is now available in Lucas Oil Stadium. We'll be available at various kiosks and concession stands, as well as in the suites and  the Baker & Daniels East Club and Advantage West Club. Look for us in your game-day program for exact locations."

Oh, and Upland's Oktoberfest is about to hit the shelves.

The Indy Star has basically reprinted an article about the Sunday sales that was written by Convenience Store Decisions with emphasis on cold beer sales in (surprise) convenience stores. It says their petition got about 30,000 signatures.

Ale Street News has consolidated the midwest states' articles into one column but Bob's News from Indiana is online – as are other articles.

BA's mid-2009 numbers. Growing but slowing. We hear it might be more wide-spread than just beer so still growing isn't too bad.

Craft grew 9% in $ (it was 11% in the first half of 2008 and 14% in 2007).
Grew 5% in volume (was 6.5% last year, 11% in 2007) at 4,200,000 bbls.
There are 1,525 breweries (most since 1909).
Press Release - critique of the press release – and another about "organic growth".
Which brings us to The Case Against Carrying Every Craft Beer In Your Local Store.

BrewDog's Tokyo Stout comes in at 18.2% ABV. They've run into official complaints about the marketing. Not the £9.99 per 11oz bottle though. article

• Use of the phrase "intergalactic fantastic imperial stout" in marketing points to hallucinogenic qualities
• Use of the following statement on BrewDog's website: "It is all about moderation. Everything in moderation, including moderation itself. What logically follows is that you must, from time, have excess. This beer is for those times."

Thank Heaven for Beer reviews Marmite.

The Diner’s Journal Blog of the New York Times has the best bacon news yet. Brooklyn Bacon Barleywine.

It turns out that as well equipped as Mr. Oliver’s brewery is, it doesn’t have an actual stove, something he needed to cook up a batch of malt mash. It’s a special malt that was smoked in the same room with some of the bacon made by the legendary Allan Benton. “It’s almost terrifying how much the malt smells like bacon,” Mr. Oliver said.

He plans to brew about 15 gallons of barleywine with that malt. In the meantime, he’s been infusing a brown ale with the flavor of Benton’s bacon fat through a technique known as “fat washing.” (Nick Fauchald described the process in this profile of the bartender Eben Freeman.) Oh, and the bacon-fat-infused ale was also aged in bourbon barrels, because bourbon and bacon go together like, um, beer and bacon.

Eventually, the barleywine with the bacon-smoked malt and the bourbon-aged, bacon-fat-infused ale would be blended to create one monstrously bizarre beer.

“One of two things will happen,” Mr. Oliver predicted. “Either this will be the most amazingly disgusting thing you’ve ever tasted in your life. Or I shall rule the earth.”