American Craft Beer Week and beyond! Celebrate Craft Beer.

May 11-17 is American Craft Beer Week as declared by the Brewers Association, the group that represents craft beer breweries. Andy Sparhawk of the BA tells us Google searches during May the past few years show a spike for the words Craft Beer -- the largest month each year.

Here are just a few beers you might grab to celebrate:

Triton Brewery of Indianapolis will have special events daily: a tap takeover at HopCat (6280 N College) 6:30 PM with beer dinner on Monday, 5/11,TIX HERE $30, tap take-over at Brixx Wood Fire Pizza (8594 E 116 St. Fishers) on Tuesday, May 12, to include a pin of Grapefruit/Blood Orange Railsplitter IPA, Wednesday Wit or Wit-out You + Beer Hammock Shandy Tappings at the brewery (5764 Wheeler Rd), Thursday 5/14 Barn Phantom Sour Tapping at the brewery, Friday, 5/14, Railsplitter Five Alive tapping- IPA with orange, lemon, lime, and grapefruit notes at the Brewery and at Champps on Maryland in downtown Indy.
Triton celebrates with a Two Year Anniversary in Broad Ripple party on Saturday, May 16, starting at Noon at 915 Broad Ripple Avenue.

You might grab a 4-pack of Sun King Afternoon Delight, a bourbon barrel aged Maibock available now. We remember this beer as having nice vanilla flavor from the barrel on top of the sweetness of this light-colored strong beer

You could stop by any Upland Location for Infinite Wisdom Triple, a complex warming, slightly sweet beer with mild fruitiness that was just tapped May 8. (Also available in cans.)

A fast seller around Indiana is Tin Man Damascene apricot sour. We found this is flying off shelves of local liquor stores. This is a refreshing beer that is not puckering sour, yet delivers both the sweetness and tartness of apricot.

Stop by Flat12 on Dorman in Indianapolis on Wednesday, May 13 where the purchase of any pint gives $1 to the Indianapolis Parks Foundation.

Mad Anthony Brewery in Ft Wayne releases their Summer Daze American wheat with a release party on 5/13, 5-8PM.

Bloomington Brewing Company has its first release in 16 oz. cans on May 14. BBC Back Country Session IPA with 8 hops but only mid-range hop bitterness at 46 ibu and only 4.7% alcohol should be a beer with melon, citrus, and spice AND every purchase helps support the Indiana Forest Alliance.

You might also want to stop by one of Indiana's newer and smaller breweries or brew pubs like Wabash Brewing at 5328 W. 79th Street, Indianapolis, where two scientists (literally) are brewing up great beer wabashbrewing.com ; or Function Brewing in Bloomington just 1/2 block from the square on 6th open just over a year now and always a fresh new batch to try www.functiongbrewing.com; or Red Yeti Brewing in Jeffersonville, IN, just blocks from the Ohio River www.redyetibrewing.com

LOOKING AHEAD:


May 29, New Belgium Brewing's Clips of Faith Beer & Film Tour makes its second stop of the season in Bloomington. The brewery's Joanna Laubscher tells us Bloomington is one of the best attended venues for the annual short-film and specialty beer festival. This year a special beer that tastes almost like the Milk Duds candy was brewed and only one keg of this dark, chocolate stout will be available at each stop. In addition, there will be nearly 16 other beers on tap including Coco Mole and the sour Transatlantique Kriek. The Clips of Faith festival starts at 7:30 pm with short films at dusk until 10PM at Bryan Park on Bloomington's south side.


On May 30 come to Clarksville, IN, to help raise money for children's hospitals at the 10th annual Fest of Ale, 320 N Sherwood Ave, Clarksville. Todd Antz, of sponsor Keg Liquors told us, "I had no idea what we'd be able to accomplish while having so much fun" as last year over $13,000 was raised to contribute to the WHAS Louisville-TV Crusade of Children campaign, which funds projects at Southern Indiana hospitals as well as those in Louisville. Over 250 breweries will have beer in the fields behind St. Anthony's Church, including Tin Man and Carson's of Evansville, and Flat12 which has their newer location in Jeffersonville. Fest runs 3-7PM with tickets available at www.kegliquors.com