Indiana Beer News – Feb 28

Tyler Falk is probably right. “State Alcohol Laws Unlikely to Change

But Sen. Boots thinks the liquor store lobby is overreacting. "The majority of the people that I've been working for are not necessarily large businesses," he said. "They're small convenience stores, small grocery stores. And there's no evidence that indicates that liquor stores will be damaged or harmed by this legislation at all."

But SB 0078 (the one to make carding mandatory only for people who look under 40 years old) is alive and well. If anything at all gets done at the state capitol this has a chance. It’s passed the Senate 47 to 3 and has been sent to the house.

Last Saturday’s D’Vine Winter Wine and Beer Festival in Columbus, IN, raised $12,000 for their charity, Developmental Services.

Louisville Magazine says the Bank Street Brewhouse & Brasserie is well worth the drive to New Albany.

Rodney and the gang report from last week’s Rock Bottom Brewer's Dinner.

NABC’s Elector, Elsa, and Hoptimus are appearing on shelves now.

Figure 8 Brewing has two new beers available in growlers. Really two new styles. Jumbo Love is a Black Barleywine and Solar Collector is an American Pale Wheat Ale.

All three Kahn's locations in Indy are running a “Battle of Belgium” 64-beer single elimination blind taste-off.

On March 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, and 12 matchups will be available at Kahn’s locations to sample blindly and vote on the favorite. info sheetbracket  Stop in before March 3rd a fill out your bracket and maybe win a set of glasses and a Kahnoisseurs Klub membership.

Want to grow some of your own hops this year. Your local homebrew store may have hop rhizomes for planting. Butler Winery in Bloomington has a big choice for preorder. info   Oh, and they’ve started a series of brewing classes.

Maturing at Lafayette Brewing – Bumpy Face Agave Wheatwine for a release in about a month. “This unique beer was brewed by packing the mash tun with as much pale and wheat malt as we could and then incorporating 110# of organic raw blue agave syrup into the kettle.  To balance this unique brew, we added a healthy dose of Chinook and Amarillo hops.  The result is a pale, malty beer with a big citrus and agave nose.  A smooth alcohol warming blends nicely with the big citrus and malt flavors.  ABV 8.19%  IBUs 50”

Vertical Jewbelation, a blend of past Jewbelation 8 – 14 recipes and aged in Sazerac rye whisky barrels “throughout 2010” has been released and we should see it on the shelves soon.

Eric Strader looks at the new Bell’s Eccentric Cafe with a picture essay.

KalamazooBCHere’s some of the first report, by Louis Bregger, of Kalamazoo Brewing Co. Printed in World Beer Review, Feb, 1988.

Through the inspiration, leadership, and hard work of Larry J. Bell, President and Brewmaster, the “smallest brewery in the US” is selling beers – all ales – absolutely as fast as they can make it. … Larry began as a homebrewer in 1980 and soon produced more brew than he could consume himself. … The operation moved from Larry’s basement to a commercial building on 315 E. Kalamazoo St. and after a short period of draft-only production, began bottling their ales by December, 1985. … They brew five beers: Bell’s Beer, Great Lakes Amber Ale, Third Coast, Great Lakes Porter, and Kalamazoo Stout. …

Much to my surprise, this is a one-barrel brew system. Converted restaurant soup cookers serve as mash tun and brew kettles. The wort is even stirred with soup ladles and transferred by the bucket load to the brew kettles. There are 2 three-barrel fermenters, 25 one-barrel fermenters, and 1 thirteen-barrel vessel. [with a staff of four].

The local can collectors meet here frequently. In addition, because KBC is licensed as a retailer, you can buy their finely hand-crafted ales directly. In addition they sell a whole array of homebrew supplies. The local homebrew club meets here regularly also. Finally they sell and outstanding selection of 50+ domestic and imported beers.

Indiana Beer News – Feb 24

Today we finalized the beer lineup for Founder's, our guest brewery at Barley Island Restaurant and Brewhouse in Broad Ripple.  John Host from Founder's will be on hand Wed March 9th 6:30 pm.  Tapping:

  • Nemesis - a surprise brew each year, the last keg available in Indiana
  • Double Trouble, an Imperial IPA, 9.4%, 86 IBU's
  • Red's Rye PA - 6.6%, 70 IBU's

Cheers,
Jeff Eaton

Matt Robinson of Indy won the All About Beer, Brew Your Cask Off contest at SweetWater Brewing in Atlanta. read all about it

We’re told some of  Sun King’s Timmie is sitting in a Pappy Van Winkle barrel.

Headline: Illinois Craft Brewers Fight To Protect Right To Distribute


Now for the silliness:

NY Mayor Bloomberg opens the Brooklyn Brewery expansion and puts ice in his beer. article

Shepherd Neame, Britain’s oldest brewery, gets a gold medal at the Brewing Industry International Awards. For Japanese Asahi and Chinese Sun Lik. article

Headline: Beer to be classified as alcohol for first time in Russia

Headline: Paul Routledge braves the world's strongest beer Sink the Bismarck

A Tale of Two Tastings – Scotch & Replicale

When Crown Liquors puts on a Scotch tasting, they don’t fool around. It was advertised as 30 different drams to try but that number wasn’t at all accurate. There were 54 on the program and another 8 or so the distributor reps had under the counter. Whew. Goona be a long evening, what with a Replicale tasting just a block away from the Crown Liquors downtown store in 2 hours.

The basement was filled with 9 fueling stations and probably 200 people. We enjoyed splashes of Aberfeldy 12 and 21yo; Benromach Organic; Dewar’s Signature; Duncan Taylor Black Bull 12yo; Glenfiddich 18yo; Glenlivet Nadura, Glenmorangie Finealta (hot), 15yo French Oak, and Quinta Ruban (A+); Gordon & MacPhail Glenlivet bottling; Highland Park 18yo; Killerran (young); Laphroig 18yo; Smokehead (too smokey); plus Tomatin 12 and 18yo. That’s the imports. From the good ole USA McCarthy’s Oregon Single Malt (peat), Rogue Chatoe, and Wasmund’s Single Malt.

Splash was, gratefully, the serving sizes – appropriate to the amount, strength, and quite frankly, enough to wrap your senses around each and every taste.

People looked to be fairly generous with the donation jar. Proceeds from that went to the FACE Animal Clinic.

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Crown’s Scotch shelves.


A short stroll away, 50 or so people were at the Tomlinson Tap Room to enjoy Imperial Stout Replicale’s from 9 Indiana breweries.

 Replicale-Board

The board says 8 but Broad Ripple Brewpub’s version was there also.

Attendees included the usual suspects, brewers, homebrewers, drinkers, Beer Geeks, and the Indy Beer Meetup folks.

Notes from some of the attendees:

  • Barley Island – Somewhat sweet, malty. Fruity apricot. Too sweet. Style is lost on this.
  • Broad Ripple Brewpub – Light coffee.
  • Crown – Very smooth, sweet, creamy. Terrible. Sweetness dominates. Loss of style.
  • Great Crescent – Best of all. Great dry, smoky finish that balances the sweetness.
  • New Albanian – (Served on gravity from a firkin). Good, dark. Sweet intro balanced by a very complex sensory explosion. Good sipping beer. Lower carbonation and warmer temperature are two of the highlights. Firkin is the proper way to serve and Imperial Stout.
  • People’s – Our favorite. Bitter and malt balance. Not alcoholic as some are.
  • Rock Bottom North – Bitter coffee. Too sweet. Almost sour tasting like bad fermentation.
  • Sun King – The most unique. Subtle but deep citrus backbone cuts some of the sweetness by showcasing it.
  • Upland – Slightly hoppy. Great smoky taste up front. Great mouth feel and balance. Complexity helps cut the sweetness. Perfection.

Replicale-Speech

Jared Williamson of New Albanian wrote the recipe to emulate Ackerman’s Imperial Double Stout from the 1830s. Dave Colt has been driving the Replicales for, what, 4 years now?

More at the HBG site.

Indiana Beer News – Feb 23

Signups for the Ram’s Small Ale homebrew competition are due next week. Bottles are do by March 19th. Lots of 5.5% or less categories are eligible. See this page for more information.

Busy weekend schedule:

Mike and Gina take to the Bay Area, pencil, paper, and camera in hand. travelogue

Indiana, Connecticut, and Georgia (the only 3 without Sunday takeout sales) all have had bills to allow those Sunday sales this session. Georgia’s has been shelved. article. Connecticut’s is on track to pass. article

Sierra Nevada 2011 Bigfoot Barleywine is out. Paul Edwards reports seeing it for $10 / 6-pack at a Marsh store and says sometimes they have all SN on sale for $8.

Indiana Beer News – Feb 19

Roger Baylor, owner of the New Albanian Brewing Company, is running for a seat on the New Albany city council. If you know Roger, you aren’t surprised. If not, read about why he’s running.

Mark your calendars. Dark Lord Day is April 30th. Golden tickets go on sale March 17th.

The biggest change for this year is that a ticket will be required to attend the event. This ticket will also guarantee bottle allocation. Regrettably, changes have to be made to ensure the longevity of the event, safety and shorter lines. Without the ticket, there will be no admission to the premises. More information on ticket sales will be made available in the coming weeks.

Eric Strader interviews Josh Hall of Belmont Beverages, South Bend. article

Frank Petrarca writes:

“Just an FYI- Upland Brewery has hired a new executive chef named Seth Elgar. He has worked at Conner Prairie with Theresa as their executive chef for a few years. Seth is a really nice guy, great chef and craft beer enthusiast/nut.  And he made the best curried beef stew I've ever had!

We met last night for a beer and talked a bit about his plans for Upland. He would really like to include more local meat and produce in his dishes. He's a really huge proponent of all things locally grown & brewed.  All of his family is in Bloomington so this is a homecoming of sorts for him. So after the first of March be sure to say hi to Chef Seth Elgar. He has a true passion for good food & beer and I know his skills will be an excellent fit at Upland but we'll miss him here in Indy!”

Dark Horse is making a beer using baby formula instead of lactose. Because doughnut beer is so passé. article

Colorado is trying to change their laws so beer under 4% ABV can be served in bars and restaurants. article

Indiana Beer News – Feb 16

The Bier Brewery and Taproom in Indy will now be open on Wednesdays. Wed-Fri: 3-7pm. Sat: 1-7pm. Sun Noon-4pm.

Random pictures at Oaken Barrel. Mark Havens, John Treeter, and John Caveda bottle. Venting the new Chocolate Marshmallow Porter (that’s a joke).

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Tastes:

  • Oaken Barrel Nitro Stout – Creamy and less roasty than most.
  • Power House Tripel – Yellow with big foamy head. Lots of Belgian banana aroma that continues and adds yeast-bearing characters. 9% but not hot at all without just overlaying the alcohol with sweetness.
  • Power House Wee Heavy – Deep black but light malt taste. Mild hoppiness then sweet malt finish that becomes somewhat more complex.

MIT Grad’s Invention Turns Brewery Waste into Fuel Methane from spent grain. Now in use by Magic Hat. Saves $2 per bbl.

German Beer is Hitting Rock Bottom at $1.18 a Six Pack

Indiana Beer News – Feb 15 – Featuring Tavern on South

Pints at the People's Brewing taproom: $3.50 ($2.50 on Thursdays). Growlers are $8 (+ $4 for the glass) and $11 for seasonals. ($6/$9 on Wednesdays).

Tavern on South. 423 W. South St. This new near-the-stadium bar in Indy has 12 taps and features Indiana beers, uprated mixed drinks mixers, and small batch bourbons. Pints: $5, Indiana Pints on Tuesdays, $4.

An impressive lunch and dinner menu runs $10 through $24. Next to a business-oriented Holiday Inn Express and walking distance to the newdome and sorta walking distance to the Convention Center. Once the weather allows some leaves on the trees, Tavern on South will become a good intro to Indiana beer pub for visitors, businessfolk, and locals alike.

Winter opening hours are 11am Mon-Fri, 4pm Sat, closed Sun.

TOS-Building

TOS-Taps

Hopefully Tavern on South won’t be hassled for TM problems by Tavern on the Green like Tavern on the Plaza was. article


newcastle-werewolf.jpgBritain has added a 2/3 pint size to the allowable sales volumes (1/4 pint, 1/3 pint, 1/2 pint, and pint – all based on 20oz pints of course).

Newcastle Werewolf. You heard it here first (and maybe last).

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Lafayette Brewing’s Winter Warmer, 2011

Greg and company with a lot of volunteers put on another perfect evening of tasting to benefit Laura’s Kids. An instant sell-out. More good winter ales than ever before.

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Christmas ales and the like at the Lafayette Brewing Winter Warmer (and nearby) – the short, short list.

  • People's Ardelle Xmas – Thick xmas spicing. 6%.
  • People’s Aberrant Amber – Same hop recipe as their IPA but in an American Amber. 5.4%.
  • Sun King Buffalo Tipping – 9.7%
  • Dogfish Head Olde School Stout (the first table upon entering the Warmer set the tone with a 15% stout.
  • Bloomington Brewing Ole Floyd’s Belgian Dart Strong Ale
  • Figure 8 Brewing Jumbo Love – 10%
  • Upland Strawberry lambic 1009. Now heavy on cinnamon.
  • Upland Bourbon Barrel Warmer
  • Tippecanoe Homebrewing Circle Apple Imperial Stout
  • THC Tam’s Dram Scotch Ale
  • Half Moon Reggiewig’s Wee Winter Warmer
  • Barley Island Christmas Ale – Cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg.
  • Lafayette Brewing Big Boris Barleywind – you pick the year.
  • Brugge Brasserie Peach Kitty

The annual Keg Hold contest was won by Forrester 2:02 and for the umpteenth consecutive year, Linda Swihart with a 2:38.

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And a panorama of course (click to biggify).

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Tuxedo Park Brewers – New Indy Homebrew Store

TuxedoParkLogo1139 Shelby St.
Indianapolis, 46203.
www.tuxedoparkbrewers.com

adam@tuxedoparkbrewers.com
brent@tuxedoparkbrewers.com
Jason@tuxedoparkbrewers.com

No phone yet.

1) It’s not in the Tuxedo Park neighborhood.

2) It’s not a brewery. It’s a homebrew shop.

Adam and Jason Burk and Brent Chapman have been brewing for a long time now. Economy bad? Laid off? Time to open a homebrew shop. There’s a garage available in Fountain Square. Never mind that it fronts the alley east of Shelby St. Never mind that they have to build the shop around a Mustang. Just do it.

Right now they’re sorta open. They’re there from 10am-6:30pm Mon through Fri and Saturday from 1am to 5pm. If the customers haven’t heard about them yet, there’s a lot of construction, setup, inventory work and even some brewing to do.

Why would you go to Tuxedo Park rather than Great Fermentations?

1) They’re on the south side. Or at least on your way from downtown to the south side.

2) They will produce vessels, weld fittings, make cuts, etc.

3) Their emphasis is all-grain brewing. No kits on the shelves (although some liquid malt will be around for partial grain folks).

4) No bottles either. Take the labels off some Sam Adams. They know the extra $1 is better spent on ingredients.

5) There’s a boar’s head over the counter.

Free classes start Sat, Feb 19 at 1pm with a beginner class. They plan to have a class on some topic every other week. Male an RSVP if you will.

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Adam and Brent

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The brewhouse is still being set up.

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Indiana Beer News – Feb 11

New Albanian’s all-U.S. Gravity Head menu gets unveiled. Starts Feb 25. Low of 8%, high of 18%, averages near 10% but I’m too lazy to add up all the numbers and divide by 55.

Per Anita Johnson, who knows all and sees all: 683 Beers... 1 Best of Show!

Last Summer a very competitive Indiana State Fair Brewers Cup took place at the Fairgrounds. After three judging sessions of swirling, sniffing and sipping one beer rose to the top. That beer was How Now Brown Cow, a Northern English Brown brewed by John Mills of Evansville. This was the very first competition that John had entered!

One of the great rewards for the Best of Show winner is being able to brew it professionally. Each year the Best Of Show beer is brewed at Indiana's very English Broad Ripple Brewpub and it just seems right that this years winner is such a classic English beer. This past Saturday John had the honor of brewing his beer at The Broad Ripple Brewpub with Head Brewer Kevin Matalucci. We are told that the brew day went perfectly and John was all smiles even when doing the grunt work!

John and Kevin would like to invite you to join them for the tapping of How Now Brown Cow on Saturday, March 12th @ Noon. They will both be available to answer any questions the you may have about this special beer. Congrats again John!

Mad Anthony’s Fort Wayne is celebrating Valentines day on the 12th. Half price pints. Cask Conditioned Imperial Stout tapping at 5pm.

The Java Stout is running out at Oaken Barrel. A nitro stout is already on tap.

Flat 12 Bierwerks brought a 40-bbl fermenter inside yesterday and will be setting it up in the next couple of weeks to increase capacity. Next weekend: Milk Stout. Later Puppet Show Pale APA with Centennial and Simcoe and a Brown ale with coffee.

Sun King will be almost completely replacing their brewing system in the next few weeks. The 15-bbl system is headed to Old Forge Brewing in PA and a new 30-bbl system will go into place, hopefully with only a day or two downtime. Remove five 15 and one 30-bbl vessel. Move in five 30 and one 60-bbl vessels specially built by Poynter in Bloomington. Theoretically they could top 20,000 bbls with this equipment and add to their 250+ self-distributed accounts.

Tastings:

  • Flat 12 Bierwerks Porter. Still the flagship. Missed the Bleeding Heart IPA – Half Cycle with an addition of blood orange zest for Vday.
  • Sun King Dominator doppelbock. Sweet and thick. Top end of style.
  • SunKingTimmie Sun King Timmie Imperial Stout. Small beery nose, bigger beery and alcohol in the mouth. Plenty of black malt throughout as a steady base. Spreads it’s tasty goodness through the entire spectrum and will be enjoyed by everyone. 10%. (Name comes from Life of Brian, not South Park).
  • Rock Bottom, Downtown Indy Sub Zero. Jerry’s World Beer Cup medalist has returned with 9.5% ABV instead of 10 (due to higher mash temperature). Deepish brown. Bold and malty with good balance. Alcohol lets you know it’s there right away.
  • Ram In Hops we Trust is their batch 999. Bright yellow served in 17oz pils glass. Big lemon hops aroma but the late addition hops go into hiding at the first taste. Becomes hop juicy with the strength of Juicy Fruit that stays and stays, unyielding, unchanging, until a big bitter comes in at the finish.

STL Hops reports Schlafly might be sold this year. articleSt Louis Post Dispatch article

“The main reason for the sale is succession planning. Tom Schlafly, 62, an attorney who owns about 75 percent of the company, has no family interested in running the business. He said he doesn't "really want to sell" but is doing so to ensure an orderly transition. He said he hopes to retain a 10 percent to 15 percent share of the company.”

Early 1800s beer found in shipwreck. Tastes “acidic” with burnt notes. article

Lithuanian monks object to being used in Adler Bock advertising. article

Here’s a 10minute video from the U.S. Brewers Foundation – 1952

Firemen called to rescue beer – tale of a dumb drunk.

Indiana Beer News -- Feb. 10

Real news on Eyewitness News, Channel 13, Indianapolis: Eyewitness news reporter Mary Mills covered craft brewing in Indianapolis on their 5:30 newscast today. Profiled were Flat12 Bierwerks, SunKing, Fountain Square Brewing Co., Thr3e Wise Men, plus Tomlinson Tap Room at City Market.

Mills did a good job of getting the lingo right and even telling viewers who don't know, what a growler is. This was a nice promotional piece on craft beer in Indy! Congrats to the breweries featured and to all of our craft brewers who work hard for our pleasure!

Indiana Beer News – Feb 9

No Indiana news but here’s some from around the country and a small village in Belgium.

Washington DC has a problem. Their breathalyzers haven’t been too reliable. The Medial Examiner won’t certify them. Now the AG is dropping DUI cases right and left. Two cops who, combined, made up a third of DUI arrests are testifying for the defense. Some cops are taking urine samples instead. Those two cops are accused of watching a woman pee. It goes on. article

Mississippi bill to legalize homebrewing dies in committee. article Don’t you dare make beer in Mississippi or Alabama. Oh, and the 2 breweries in MS can’t make beer over 5% ABW (someone still measures by ABW?)

Arbor Brewing of Ann Arbor, MI is planning to open a branch brewery. In Bangalore, India. article

Here’s your first chance to see the Westvleteren Abbey. Not the outside (although there isn’t much to see from the road, but the inside. Of the brewery. 56 pictures. Flickr slide show. Good grief, there’s electronic equipment.

StlToday has a beer label quiz. On second thought it’s really too easy.

Surly wants to open a brewpub at their brewery (much like Three Floyds did). But Surly is running up against a Minnesota law that caps brewpubs at 3,500 bbls. inflammatory article

Supervalue, Albertsons, and Cub Foods have a $5.99 12-pack of own-labeled Buck Range Light to combat Walgreens. Haven’t bothered to check if Indiana Cubs carry it yet.

Indiana Beer News – Feb 7

In Plainfield, Three Pints Brewpub has a hearing March 1st for their Indiana license. The Black Swan Brewpub plans to start brewing in early March also.

Joan Easley, matriarch of Easley Winery in Indianapolis and friend of all homebrewers, died last Saturday in Miami, FL.

Skip Duvall and the Alcatraz equipment have found a home.

Craft beer startup to locate in Fountain Square

INDIANAPOLIS (February 3, 2011) – Craft brewing is a popular industry in central Indiana. Growing demand has made a success of more than a few microbreweries and brew pubs in and around Indianapolis. With the belief that there’s still ample room for market growth, three seasoned entrepreneurs have joined to form the Fountain Square Brewing Co., and will be introducing its selection of craft ales starting this summer.

Partners Bill Webster, Jeff Gibson, and Justin Brown have created the vision for the new brewery: a thriving brewery that’s part of the community and supports and enhances the neighborhood. The three partners are passionate home brewers with a diverse professional background, “It seemed natural to put our collective talents together to open a brewery,” says Bill Webster, “Our diverse expertise in automation and controls, business management, and chemistry and biological science will bring a high level of quality and consistency to our crafted beers.” Settling in Fountain Square was an important part of the plan. “We think a microbrewery is a great fit, and we’re excited to be part of this happening neighborhood,” says Webster.

Southeast Neighborhood Development (SEND) is excited too. They have been working to attract a microbrewery for the past year and a half. Community-based microbreweries are a popular business type, and one which is welcome in Fountain Square. “It’s a perfect complement to the unique mix of independent retailers and restaurants, bars and
entertainment venues, artist studios, and arts organizations,” says Mark Stewart, President of SEND. Fountain Square has been steadily building momentum as a retail corridor, and Stewart is confident it will be successful. “We’ll have yet another destination business – like Claus’ German Sausage & Meats, the Fountain Square Theatre, Murphy Arts Center, Joe’s Cycles, Siam Square – that will bring people from far and wide to our fun and funky neighborhood,” says Stewart, “and that’s a key factor in its increasing popularity.” He continues: “People come to buy bratwurst, duckpin bowl, have a meal or a drink, or see a show, and they find out there’s a heck of a lot of cool things in Fountain Square, and that brings them back and gets them in the door of our other businesses.” It also helps towards a SEND goal of creating jobs in the neighborhood.

Fountain Square Brewing Co. has purchased the equipment from a recently-closed Indianapolis brew pub. On opening, they’ll be joined by one of Indy’s most respected brewers, Skip Duvall, the former head brewer at Alcatraz who honed his skills under the tutelage of Omar Castrellon, now with Three Wise Men. “Not only is Skip a great brewer, he shares our passion for great beer and our desire to be actively involved in our community,” says Webster.

Over the next several months the partners will be readying the facility for production. They’re taking over a modest, one-story structure that, until recently, housed a carburetor repair business. And they’ll be right across the street from the former Wheeler-Schebler Carburetor Factory, now home to 36 artist lofts and to SEND’s offices.

Webster has a good feeling about the new venture. “We’re looking forward to working with the community of craft brewers, and with the local businesses and neighborhood organizations in Fountain Square as we bring our high-quality craft brews to central Indiana beer lovers.” Fountain Square Brewing Co.

Bill Webster
1301 Barth Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46203
Facebook: Fountain Square Brewing Co.

Charlie Papazian reports White House serves up own homebrewed White House Honey Ale.

Trade Route Brewing. Pacific, WA. We don’t get it here but the names and styles are worthy of note:

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Indiana Beer News – Feb 5

Great Crescent Brewery will start canning in about a week.

Sun King, er Clayton Robinson, gets ink in the Indianapolis Business Journal. article Bonus video talking about business plans and stuff.

Ron Smith sends lots of AHA news. Contact him for more info about any of these items.

BJCP Study Group and Exam in Indy - For those of you interested in the BJCP (Beer Judge Certification Program),  there will once again be a study group and an exam in the Indy area. The study group will meet on Saturdays at the Payless Liquors in Carmel.  he dates are Apr 9, Apr 23, Apr 30, May 7, and May 12 (a Thursday).  Study group sessions run from around 12:30 - 6:00 (final times TBD).  The exam will be held at the same location on Saturday, May 14 at 1:00.  The cost for the study group is approx $150, plus $50 for the exam (assuming a first time taker). The exam is limited to only 12 test takers, and the study group members will be placed first.

National Homebrew Competition First Round in Indy - The American Homebrewers Association (AHA) hosts the largest homebrew competition in the world, with thousands of entries. To handle this number of entries, there are various First Round Competition sites that a beer must place first, second or third in, in order to advance to the finals. The finals this year will be at the AHA National Conference in San Diego in mid June.  One of the first round competition sites is here in Indy and myself and Brian Steuerwald are the coordinators, along with the help of many other volunteers. This competition will be held at Sun King Brewery on April 15, 16, 17. It is not an open event, but we do need BJCP judges, stewards and other volunteers.

Beer MBA Classes Start This Week - Be sure to sign up right away as I expect this series to sell out. The Friday night series is a great way to end the work week and start the weekend!  See the website, www.BeerMBA.com/classes.php for all the details and to sign up.  Note the new location at the Payless Liquors in Carmel, near the Meijer.  Dates are Feb 11, 18, and 25, each from 6-9pm. Cost is $135 for all 3 classes (or $50 per class).

The classes are designed to be taken in sequence and to take all 3 of them and get your Beer MBA Certificate.  Class 1 is a prerequisite for the other 2 classes, so once you have taken it, you can take the other classes in a future series if you have date conflicts.

Belgium Beer Trip - Summer 2011 - July 24 - Aug 2 - With the way the economy has been, I had somewhat decided to hold off on these trips until things improved, but there seems to be a lot of interest now, so this Belgium trip could be on for this summer. If you have an interest, let me know as soon as possible.  If I can get at least a small group together, we can make it happen.  See  http://www.beermba.com/belgium-beer-vacations.php for details. The dates will soon be changed to Sunday, July 24 to Tuesday August 2, and all the other details are the same. This is an incredible trip that is certainly beer focused, but there is much more to it than beer. Great food, culture, historical sites and of course great beer await.

IUPUI Beer Class - 3 Credit Hour Course - If any of you attend IUPUI or know someone who does, be sure to check out TCEM 328, Introduction to Microbrewing, which is a class I teach.  It is a much more in-depth version of my Beer MBA classes, and includes field trips to breweries and distributors, more information about food and beer pairing, etc.

2189 Falls City Beer gets ink in the Louisville Courier Journal. article “Falls City is sold at some 100 places. Easterling, who lives in Anchorage, said production could triple — to 240 barrels per month — by Kentucky Derby time.”

Odors were rated as more pleasant when sniffed through the right nostril and were more accurately named when sniffed through the left nostril. - Herz, R. S., McCall, C., & Cahill, L. (1999). Hemispheric lateralization in the processing of odor pleasantness versus odor names. Chemical Senses, 24, 691–695.

Indiana Beer News – Feb 3

replicale tapping poster After a year’s absence, the tradition of a side-by-side tasting of the Replicale will return on Wed. Feb 23rd at 6pm at the Tomlinson Tap Room. On tap will be New Albanian, Broad Ripple, Great Crescent, People’s, Rock Bottom North, Sun King, Upland, and maybe more.

We hope HB 1093 isn’t dead, meaning no beer tent at the Indiana State Fair, but Bill Davis, the Chairman of the Public Policy Committee, doesn’t seem to like it. His office’s stock reply to queries says

“On one hand, I understand the desire of many people to have alcohol available at the State Fair, but on the other hand, I also understand the compelling interest in keeping the State Fair a safe and family-friendly place where we show our children that we can have fun without the presence of alcohol.  I am keeping an open mind on this issue and will be sure to keep your thoughts in mind as we proceed.”

In other legislative news:

  • SB 78 – (Don’t card if over 40) has two more sponsors. Tomes and Nugent
  • SB 112 - (Wholesalers can distribute beer, wine, and liquor) has a more authors. Steele, Arnold, Taylor, and Hershman join Merritt. Passed out of the Public Policy Committee. Now there are lots of amendments.

Sammy Smith writes: “I happened to be in Sarasota, FL the weekend of the Winterfest however I did happen to stumble into this craft beer bar called Mr Beery’s. http://www.mrbeeryssrq.com Check out their beer list (draft & bottles). Cheers!

Pete Slosberg’s Pete’s Wicked Ale has been around since 1986. He sold the brand to the Gambrinus Company in 1998 and they are now discontinuing it. Sigh.

Yuengling’s has finally joined the Brewers Association.

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Indiana Beer News – Feb 1

Beer releases this week:

  • Thurs, Feb 3 - Release of Ole St. Mick's Irish Red. Ram both Indy & Fishers. 5pm
  • Thurs, Feb 3 – A new release each Thursday in Feb at Shoreline, Michigan City
  • Thurs, Feb 3 – Release of StoneFree IPA at Bloomington Brewing. 5pm
  • Fri, Feb 4 - Mad Anthony Warsaw, Special release for the Fire & Ice Festival
  • Fri, Feb 4 - Sun King Dominator Doppelbock tapping. At the Rathskeller, Indy. W/music. 8pm.

Greg tells us about Lafayette Brewing happenings: On the bottling front, we ran a very limited bottling of 2010 Big Boris Barleywine.  The 22 oz. bombers are now available for sale from the brewery only.  They are priced at $8.95 + tax. We're now patiently waiting on our new 7 barrel jacketed bright tank to arrive (in May). Marley’s VSOP 4-month Jack Daniels barrel aged Porter will be released at the bar on Feb 12 (at the Winter Warmer (which is sold out).

Ron Smith has kudos for the Carmel Payless Liquors:

“Attn: Saison Dupont Lovers,
All of you that know and love this beer know that it skunks horribly in its darned green bottle, ruining one of the finest beers in the world. Well, my beer education work may be paying off in a way I could have only dreamed of. The Payless Liquors in Carmel, where I teach my Beer MBA classes these days (just off Carmel Drive, near the Meijer) has put a display bottle on the shelf with a sign reading something like... "Saison Dupont in the back, see a salesperson for assistance".
Of course, in the back, it is in a box, protected from the light. I explained to them one day that this is how that beer should be sold, just as I have explained it to many liquor stores over the years, but Lanni, the Manager of this store, actually did it! This is probably the most impressive step I have ever seen a liquor store take to protect a good beer. Show them you appreciate their actions by visiting them sometime.
Beer education is unfortunately a very slow process on the retail side, so these little baby steps have to be seen as giant leaps forward. Just thought I would share this little victory.”

On Feb 5th another Crown Liquors will open in Fishers. 116th & Lantern Rd.

Sun King’s press release says they will start shipping kegs to Bloomington in April. article

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