The Death of Sparks

It is with great sadness that I inform you that MillerCoors is being forced to reformulate their caffeinated alcoholic beverage, Sparks, effectively making it pointless. This about sums up why:

The beer giant had come under fire from the states as well as several consumer-advocacy groups, for allegedly marketing its top-selling Sparks brand so that it appealed to underage consumers. Critics also complained that the drinks raised potential health risks by masking feelings of drunkenness.

I can maybe understand people being upset about the marketing. Maybe. But, I highly doubt that's what this is about. And it's statements like this one (made by Attorney General Richard Blumenthal) that infuriate me:

Sparks is an insidious and insane drink that deservedly now is down the drain -- like all stimulant-spiked alcoholic drinks should be. . . . Beverages like Sparks are a witch's brew of alcohol and caffeine, energizing drunks and encouraging dangerous, even deadly behavior. Common sense says a drink impairing judgment while conferring excess energy is a very bad idea. Studies show that these drinks lead to binge drinking, car crashes, sexual assaults and other risky behavior. They impair reactions and reasoning, but instill the illusion of alertness and energy.

What next? Banning Red Bull and vodkas? Banning coffee beer? Banning me from slamming some espresso before going out to the bar?

As ridiculous as that comment is, I love the absurd new marketing stipulations:

Remove from Sparks marketing any references to mixing the drinks with caffeinated or stimulant-laced beverages, as well as plus and minus signs, batteries, on/off switches, elevators, lightning bolts and snowboards, and the words "powered” and "ignited."

Yes, because I know that when I was under 21, anytime I was near an elevator, even heard someone whisper the word elevator, I could think of doing nothing but slamming back gallons of alcohol while raping anything and everything that so much as crept into my eyesight.

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The Four Firkins Update 12.12.08

Received an e-newsletter update from The Four Firkins yesterday with news about a few new arrivals. In lieu of reprinting the entire thing, I'll just highlight the two I'm interested in (with links added):

Two Bothers - Hop Juice.
Double IPA - 9.9% and 100 IBU

Those Brothers from Chicago have brewed up a monster of a beer sure to sate even the most insatiable hop-heads amongst you.

Southern Tier Choklat

At Southern Tier, we're not surprised that hieroglyphs of the ancient Maya depict chocolate being poured for rulers and gods. Moving through centuries, the circular journey of cacao has been realized in our brewing house, encompassing the complexity of the darkest, bitter-sweet candy together with the original frothy cold beverage of the ancient Maya to bring to you our Blackwater Series Choklat Stout. 11% Abv

In my opinion, Southern Tier is amazing at flavor matching and somehow still making it palatable. The Crème Brûlée Stout tastes like crème brûlée, the Pumpking tastes like pumpkin pie, and I've heard fantastic things about their coffee beer, (Jah-va Stout). So, I feel like if I'm going to enjoy a chocolate beer, it's probably going to be this one.

The other beers that the email highlighted were the Boulevard Smokestack Series #6 (Bourbon Barrel Aged Quad with Cherries) and the Struise Pannepot.

The Groveland Tap Grab Bag Experience

I finally did it; I went to an event I posted about. I know! And I have to say, it was quite successful. Not only were the beers $2, they were ridiculous. Here's the rundown that our group of five was served:

• Steamworks Steam Engine Lager (12oz can)
  
• Cold Spring Olde Johnnie Ale (16oz can)
  
• Lake Superior Mesabi Red (12oz bottle)
  
• Wittekerke (11.2oz bottle)
  
• Leinenkugel's Honey Weiss (1oz bottle)
  
• Bud Light Lime (12oz bottle)
• Miller High Life (40oz bottle!)

Did you read that last one? A 40. Of Miller High Life. Hi-larious.

Taste-wise, the list ranged from so-so to kind of not so great. I really wish that had thrown in a few fancy-pants bottles to be had throughout the evening...but I can't complain that I paid $2 for any of those. And, it was fun not knowing what was coming our way.

Next Groveland Tap event to attend: root beer/oatmeal stout floats on the 23rd.

Muddy Pig Presents Festival of the Hops + Maredsous

Big ol' update from The Muddy Pig via MNBeer:

Beer Lovers,

We have a few events planned at The Muddy Pig:

Abbey of Maredsous Event. Wednesday, December 17 @ 5:00. We will have all three of their ales on tap; the Blonde 6, Dubbel 8 and Triple 10. Buy a Maredsous and keep the glass (limit one glass per customer).

Flat Earth Event. Monday, December 29 @ 5:00. We will be tapping up kegs of Flat Earth’s Black Helicopter coffee stout and their Winter Warlock English barley wine. Jeff Williamson, Mr. Flat Earth himself, will be here to answer all your questions about St. Paul’s newest brewery.

The 1st Annual Festival of Hops. Thursday, January 22 through Sunday, January 25. Our Belgian Beer Festival in September was so successful we decided to organize another beer event, this one devoted to hop forward beers. We will have 40+ hopped up beers (pale ales and up) on tap throughout the weekend and we hope to rotate through 55 or more different beers in four days.

Yes, this really is the most wonderful time of the year.

Mark

I love Maredsous. I mean, I really love Maredsous. The dubbel? My all-time favorite dubbel. And their tripel? Different, dark, and delicious. Seems unlikely that I'll be able to swing over there at the start time, but I'll see what I can do later in the evening. And they can run out of the glassware. Seriously...I have way too much glassware as it is.

Festival of the Hops also sounds great. If it's half as good as the Belgian Beer Festival they threw earlier this year, it will be amazing. I plan on being there for at least one of the days.

I love the Pig. So much love...

Groveland Tap Presents the 12 Nights of Christmas

Great news about The Groveland Tap from MNBeer:

I just got a note from Craig over at Groveland Tap. He wanted me to share that they’ll be redoing their bar today and will be adding 13 more taps! Thirteen! He also mentioned that Miller Lite will be removed around Jan. 1 for something better.

Also, on Friday the 12th they will be start The 12 Nights of Christmas:

Dec 12: Grab Bag night - till we run out! $2 bottles. They choose, you drink.
Dec 13: Delerium Night. Tis the season to see pink elephants. $6 Taps
Dec 14: St. Pauli Girl Christmas $5 Bomber bottles
Dec 15: Schell’s 150th Anniversary taps $3
Dec 16: Christmas from Across the Border, Wisconsin that is, Rush River $3 taps
Dec 17: Summit Flight Night $6
Dec 18: Meet me in Kansas, Boulevard night $3 taps.
Dec 19: Drop Top Night $3 taps
Dec 20: Double wide night $10 6-pack PBR tall boys
Dec 21: Get your Christmas Goose. Goose Island Matilda $5.
Dec 22: It’s Firkin Christmas! Casks from Summit, Surly, Rush River, Flat Earth and Schell’s
Dec 23: Christmas Parade? Have a float Root Beer or Oatmeal Stout you choose. $4

So many good things from this post. The first, of course, being the 13 new taps, upping their total taps to 27. They already have a fantastic selection of Summit, Surly, and other local favorites. It'll be interesting to see which beers they choose to fill in the rest.

And, wow, these events are fun. Anyone interested in heading over there for a burger and some oatmeal stout floats on the 23rd? Or, really, any of these things.

Mulled Beer at The Blue Nile

Straight from Al of The Blue Nile on the BeerAdvocate forums:

Yup.
Gonna Do it.
Have a keg of Lake Superior's Old Man Winter Warmer I've been saving for a year.
Gonna tap on Saturday the 20th of December, the day before the Winter Solstice...first day of winter, officially...and I'm gonna Wassail it. Gonna mull it, gonna spice it. At least cinnamon, cloves, and ginger, and possibly some fruit.
This will be available on tap as well, but I'm just gonna take some back to the stove, toss on the goodies, and mull it up.
These will be available in hot drink glasses, for a reasonable price.

One of my bartenders cussed me out for messing up a great beer, but you will have a choice that day, messd-up or non-messed up. But, I guarantee a good mess!

cheers,
al

P.S. It'll start right at 4pm, when we open, so hopefully Town Hall pint club members and Sterb's BA gathering goers an make it after or before.

I, personally, have never had a mulled beer, nor have I had Old Man Winter Warmer...but, I have had mulled wine, and it was tasty. Seems fun regardless.

Homebrew Experiment Part I: First Thoughts

All seemed to go well in my first homebrew experience. What amazed me is how simple the brewing process is (at least when you're using an extract kit). A lot of boiling and waiting and taking in the delicious smell of the wort. Seriously, that aroma is fantastic. Of course, drinking beer whilst making beer does make it that much more fun. Also, the fact that none of us got carbon monoxide poisoning as we were boiling the wort on the porch helps as well. We'll see the results in six weeks.

Hopefully, we'll get around to doing another batch in a month or two so we can keep this system going. And the more we do, the more risks we can start taking with flavors, which just translates into more fun to me.

Homebrew Experiment Part I

Tomorrow marks the first day in which I embark on my first homebrew beer. A group of us will be getting together to brew from a witbier extract kit. While wits are not always my favorite style, it's a pleasant style...one that's drinkable and refreshing throughout all the seasons. I feel that if we achieve a nice balance between the wheat, yeast, orange, and coriander, we'll have a solid beer produced. Regardless, an afternoon of brewing, drinking beer, and eating food seems like a fantastic way to spend a Saturday.

In six weeks, I'll let you know how it turns out. Next on tap, perhaps getting ahead of ourselves, we're thinking a boysenberry kolsch. In theory, awesome.

Celebrating the Freedom to Buy Alcohol (Just Not on Sundays)

Today marks the 75th anniversary of the repeal of prohibition. Hooray! Check out this website for lots of info, history, etc. Now if only I could buy beer on Sundays...

Year of PBR & $1,893 Competition...Go!

In the spirit of writing about more competitions, here's one from Pabst Blue Ribbon:

In 2008, we were overwhelmed by the entries that we received for the art contest. Each day that we got a new artistic entry we felt as our ancestors did in 1893 when Pabst won the Blue Ribbon. To bring that feeling back, we are conducting another contest in 2009.

This time, we are asking talented Pabst drinkers to try their hand in four categories: Painting, Sculpting, Photography and Poetry. Official rules are available here. So, get your creative juices flowing and enter the Pabst Art Contest for your chance at $1,893 and a year of beer*

I searched everywhere on the site to figure out what a "year of beer" means. If I had to calculate...I'd say I could finish off about six tall boys a night with ease, multiplied by 365 days...so 2,190 tall boys or 35,040 ounces of PBR. Something makes me think that this is not the case.

This is how the judging is going down:

All entries will be judged on creativity (50%), originality (25%), and ability to capture the essence of the brand (25%).

Oh, and that picture above: taken by k(i)d at Zombie Pub Crawl IV this last October. I somehow doubt that this would fit into their "essence of brand" category.

Surly Jacket & Darkness Competition...Go!

From Surly's site:

So, lets get to it. Announcing the second annual win a bottle of Darkness and Surly jacket competition! Upload your favorite Surly photo to the Flickr site. The brewing crew will pick their favorite photo after the new year.

Photo above? The winning picture of last year. So, yes, that's what you have to compete with...cute dogs. Good effing luck.

Space Beer! The Future is Now!! (Almost)

From BBC News:

Japanese beer brewed from barley which was grown on the international space station orbiting the Earth, has finally been tasted.

The Space Beer will not go on sale, but should help scientists decide which crops astronauts could take with them on prolonged space flights on future missions exploring places like Mars.

Cosmonaut Dr Boris Morukov who spent 11 days in space says potatoes may one day be grown, but not to make space vodka.

Like the IPA, born out of the long journey from England to India, one can only hope that our long trips to Mars will one day produce a new fantastic style of beer: space beer.

Check out a video here. (Silly BBC won't let me embed the video; however, their volume level does go to 11. So, I actually doubt that blogger could handle it anyway.)

Here's a longer, better article about the actual process, in which we finally learn that the barley was grown in space and then brewed by Sapporo on Earth. This is less exciting for two reasons:

1. It's a lot less futuristic than we had previously thought, and
2. Sapporo is not that good.

And the quote that really bothers me is this, "There's really no beer like it because it uses 100 percent barley." Really? Not because it was brewed with barley grown in space!?

Winterfest News

The Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild is putting on their 8th anniversary Winterfest on Friday, February 6, 2009 at the Minnesota History Center. Here's the info:

Date: Friday, February 6, 2009
Time: 7-10pm
Where: Minnesota History Center / 345 W. Kellog Blvd. - St. Paul, MN
Ticket Price: $45 - purchase tickets online via www.uptowntix.com or by calling (651) 209-6799

Tickets go on sale Monday, December 15th promptly at 12pm (noon). We only have one price level and we are only selling 700 tickets (limit of 6 per purchaser). This has been a sell out event for the last couple of years so purchase early! Thank you for your support and please plan ahead for transportation.

Breweries: Current members of the MN Craft Brewers Guild - TBA -
More information on what the brewers are bringing will be displayed closer to the festival

Catering: Bon Appetit at the MN History Center
Live Music: The Jaztronauts

Sexy? Lager

This is the weirdest thing.

I was perusing the Brouwerij Huyghe website after updating the "Current Favorites" section to include Delirium Noel when I stumbled upon this horrific wonder. It's called Rubbel Sexy Lager. There's no explanation for its existence on the website.

According to the BeerAdvocate reviews (all four of them), it's horrible...and apparently its only redeeming factor is that the "sexy" ladies' bikinis are scratch off. So strange. So, so strange. Especially coming from a brewery that produces the amazing Delirium line (Tremens, Nocturnum, Noel).

If you want more not-so-sexy-very-eighties pictures, go here, click "Product," and scroll to the bottom of the page. Yes, it's a crappy website.

Full Sail LTD 01 Coming Soon

Amidst a flurry of updates in Full Sail's newsletter (such as Wassail and Old Boardhead Barleywine 08 hitting the markets among other things), comes this piece about LTD 01:

LTD 01 Coming Soon.
Good news beer lovers, our easy-drinking albeit way tasty LTD Recipe 01 is rocking the fermentation tank as this very moment. We predict LTD 01 will be hitting the shelves in early January, maybe sooner.

Back for its third year, LTD 01 is part of our seasonal line that emphasizes and builds on our brand mantra - both the world class quality of our beers (LTD – Limited Edition) and our celebration of independence (LTD – Live the Dream). We dedicate LTD to everyone who's living the dream, whatever that dream might be. Our dream was to start our own brewery, run it our own way, and do it in an unreal place where all summer the wind pumps and all winter the snow dumps. If you're living your own dream, then cheers to you!

Since its initial release, LTD 01 has racked up two gold medals from the World Beer Championships and received an “A” rating from Beer Advocate Magazine. But, we’ll let you be the judge. If you haven't already tried it, it's a wonderfully balanced medium-bodied, copper colored lager with subtle hop accents and a caramel aroma that goes down smooth - perfect for the winter season.

You can pick up a sixer at your favorite beer store or get it on tap at your local pub until spring when we will follow up with LTD Recipe Number 02. Rumor has it the brewmaster is working on LTD 03 for this summer. Stay tuned.

Can't wait! Also, LTD 03, eh? 01 has been my favorite of the two thus far, so we'll see if this newcomer can tip the scale for me.

Go here for the most current newsletter if you want to read it in full.

Bell's + De Proef

Straight from beernews.org:

(Kalamazoo, MI) - Bells Brewery was named as the co-brewer for next year’s Signature Series collaboration with De Proef in Belgium. Bells’ John Mallet will travel over to Europe to work with De Proef’s Dirk Naudts this coming March. Past collaborators include Tomme Arthur from Port Brewing/The Lost Abbey and Jason Perkins from Allagash. Both beers were Belgian styles and it would be assumed that is the way the series will continue to trend. That said, Bells’ vast collection of beers only includes a relative handful of Belgian styles to date; it will be interesting to see what brew comes out of this joint effort.

I tend to love everything that Bell's makes, and what I've had from De Proef has been quite tasty, so this is a rather exciting collaboration. We'll see how far it will be distributed. Here in MN we get both Bell's and De Proef, so odds are good thus far.

Go here for the full press release.

New Yorker on DFH, etc.

If, for some reason, at some point, you wish there was a rather long, well-written article about extreme brewing with a rather overt focus on Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head Brewing, I would send you here. It's 10 Internet pages (or about 10,000) words long, but well worth it. Here's the opening to get you on your way:

Elephants, like many of us, enjoy a good malted beverage when they can get it. At least twice in the past ten years, herds in India have stumbled upon barrels of rice beer, drained them with their trunks, and gone on drunken rampages. (The first time, they trampled four villagers; the second time they uprooted a pylon and electrocuted themselves.) Howler monkeys, too, have a taste for things fermented. In Panama, they’ve been seen consuming overripe palm fruit at the rate of ten stiff drinks in twenty minutes. Even flies have a nose for alcohol. They home in on its scent to lay their eggs in ripening fruit, insuring their larvae a pleasant buzz. Fruit-fly brains, much like ours, are wired for inebriation.

It meanders through different subject matters, starting with the origination of Dogfish Head's Palo Santo Marron, then shifts to Calagione's general penchant for extreme brewing, then on to the state of beer in America, and so on. Go read it!

Thanks to Josh/Matt for the link.

The First Thanksgiving: The Gift of Beer

Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA

For the first time in 28 years, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. is going to be releasing a new full-time beer: Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA.

Apparently, initially, there was some confusion as to what this beer was or would be, but beernews.org went to the source and got this from Bill Manley, Sierra Nevada Communications Coordinator:

Yes, Sierra Nevada will be releasing Torpedo Extra IPA as a new addition to our year-round staple of beers. The tentative release date is January 15. This is the first change in our year-round lineup since we started back in 1980. The beer will be available in 6-packs, with the same distribution as all of our other year-round and seasonal beers.

There's a lot more information over at beernews.org, if you're curious what The Hop Torpedo is or what the confusion has been surrounding this beer.

Here are the details from Sierra Nevada:

Torpedo is in a grey area, somewhere between an IPA and a Double IPA…We are calling it Extra IPA…

7.4% ABV - IBU’s in the high 70’s to 80’s
Bittering hops: with Magnum
Finishing hops: Magnum, Crystal, Chinook.
Torpedo: Magnum, Chinook, Citra

I'm excited for this. I do love the IPAs, and Sierra Nevada is always pulling off fantastic hoppy beers (Pale Ale, IPA, Celebration, Harvest Series, ESB, etc.)...I'm sure this one will fit in rather well.

Full Sail's 2009 Brewmasters Reserve List

Full Sail Brewing Company has released their 2009 schedule of special Brewmaster Reserve beers. Full Sail, I've found, is always consistent and constantly surprising me. It's hard to go wrong with their core beers (IPA, Pale Ale, Amber, and Session), I went a bit overboard with how many six packs of both the LTD 01 and LTD 02 I went through, and the few Brewmaster Reserves that I've had (Prodigal Sun and Old Boardhead Barleywine 07) have been fantastic. So, it's with some excitement that I reprint at least the basic details of their new lineup. Open up this pdf for full details.

• Slipknot Imperial IPA (January to mid-March)
• Full Sail Imperial Porter (March to April)
• Kellhauler Scottish Ale (mid-March to June)
• Grandsun of Spot IPA (June to September)
• Vesuvius Belgian Style Golden Ale (mid-August to November)
• Lupulin Fresh Hop Ale (mid-September to November)
• Wreck the Halls (November to mid-January)
• Black Gold Bourbon Imperial Stout (February until it's gone)
• Old Boardhead Barleywine (08 released October 2008, 09 in October 2009)

I've yet to see the 2008 Barleywine anywhere around here, although I have snatched up two bottles of the 07 so far this year, and right now I've got a bottle of their 21 Anniversary Doppelbock waiting in the fridge for me. We'll see how long it lasts in there.

Don't Put Forks in your Beer and Other Useful Tips

Somehow, I came across this video. It comes from environmental news and commentary website, Grist.org. I embed to it for two reasons:

1) It gives you helpful information for the removal of fruit from your bottle of beer.
2) It's so, so ridiculously cheesy and weird that I find it funny.



If you liked this, you'll be happy to know there's more where this came from.

Really, though, stop putting fruit in your beer. Seriously. Stop it.

Ode to a Beer

Found this via Surly's website:

Furious Review

Surly Furious:
The best beer I have ever
had out of a can.

It comes from Beer Haiku Daily, a website that publishes...well...little snippets about beer in the form of haiku. Here are a few others that I enjoyed:

Liquid Love

With undue swagger
He proclaimed undying love
Then fell off the stool

Seasons

Autumn approaches.
Time for bocks, brown ales, dunkels,
and Oktoberfests.

I guess if I had to have a go with it, it would be something like:

Oh this barleywine,
So delicious and warming
When all else is cold.

Mike Rowe + Hops

Once, I had a dream that Mike Rowe saved me and a group of people from being trapped in some strange shielded colosseum in a jungle after the end of the world.

We can't all be fortunate enough to have fantastic dreams like that; so, for the rest of you, there's Dirty Jobs. And on this Tuesday, November 25, a new Dirty Jobs is airing in which we will see Mike Rowe pick some hops in Yakima, Washington at Hopunion. The fun begins on the Discovery Channel at 8pm (central), and again at midnight for people like me who will be watching Fringe at 8pm.

So, if you ever wondered what it would be like to watch someone harvest hops while doling out witty banter, this would be the time to tune in.

For some local stories from when he was in Yakima this past September, see these two links:

Yakima Herald
KIMA CBS 29

Jim Gaffigan Pale Ale?

Little late coming to this, but apparently Stevens Point Brewery from Stevens Point, WI is teaming up with Jim Gaffigan to promote the Point Jim Gaffigan Pale Ale.

I don't think I've actually tried anything from Point, but I have heard Gaffigan, and he's hilarious. Whether or not that hilarity somehow translates into a delicious beer, it's anyone's guess.

I can't seem to find information on this anywhere but on beernews.org, so who knows how accurate this is...still seems worth it just for the picture.

(via beernews.org)

New Beer from Jolly Pumpkin, Nøgne-Ø, and Stone

Oh how I wish I would be able to get my hands on this one. Three fantastic breweries collaborating to make a special holiday ale brewed with chestnuts, juniper berry, white sage, and caraway seed.

On Monday, November 24, bottles of this limited edition beer will be distributed to AZ, MA, CA, OH, WA, OR, CO, VA, MI and NY. If you look closely, you'll see that none of those states is MN or WI.

More information can be found on The Stone Blog or on the brewers' sites:

Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
Nøgne-Ø
Stone Brewing Co.

I'm back with Surly news

From Beernews.org:

Surly Brewing got label approval this week for Coffee Bender, a spin-off of its popular brown ale that introduces a coffee kick. This looks like it could be a winter seasonal though an email has been sent to Founder/Owner, Omar Ansari, for more info. While the year-round brands are available in some parts of Illinois, the other seasonal, Bitter Brewer, appears to only be available in Minnesota at the moment (when canned).

Read more at beernews.org.