Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Update on New Ipswich Ale Brewery

Ipswich brewery moving forward with new building

We came across this article from the Salem News today, providing an update on the progress on the new Ipswich Ale Brewery in Ipswich, MA. According to the report, the new facility will more than triple their capacity, which of course means they can pump out more liquid goodness for everyone to enjoy.

Cheers!

Monday, January 30, 2012

Portsmouth Beer Week Movie Premiere

Here's the official press release on some special events happening next month on New Hampshire's Seacoast, courtesy of 2beerguys.com and Sea Coast Beverage Lab:


PORTSMOUTH, NH (January 30, 2012) -- On Friday, March 2nd at 7pm, the third annual Portsmouth Beer Week is proud to present the East Coast Premiere of Alison Grayson’s documentary on women in the craft beer industry, “The Love of Beer”. More than two years in the making, the film examines why women, a small segment of the craft beer industry, do what they do from their everyday lives to their struggles in work. It’s not for feminism or equality, it’s for “The Love of Beer.”

In collaboration with the Portsmouth Music Hall, 2beerguys.com and SeacoastBeverageLab.com present the “Love of Beer” documentary in the gorgeous main theatre. Joinus while we explore & learn about the women of the West Coast beer scene and their inspirations -- this will be an event you won’t want to miss! In addition to being the East Coast premiere of the documentary, it will also feature a panel of special guests. After the movie, leaders in our local craft beer community will be speaking about their experiences in the industry. The panel will be hosted by Amber Jansen of 2beerguys.com (full panel list will be announced soon).

This marks the third straight year that Portsmouth Beer Week has delivered a documentary premiere to the East Coast, with “The Love of Beer” following “Beer Wars” (2010) and “American Beer” (2011). Our partnership this year with the Portsmouth Music Hall is representative of our commitment to supporting local business, as they themselves are tremendous supporters of their community and of documentary film-making.

It all starts at 6pm when the doors open for drinks and a meet-and-greet, followed by the 75 minute documentary premiere at 7:00pm, concluding with the panel discussion on-stage at 8:30pm. Ticket cost is $8.50. Details on the event’s after-party are soon to follow.

Music Hall Premiere Info:
6:00pm Doors Open
7:00pm Documentary Screening
8:30pm Amber Jansen MCs an onstage panel
Advance Tickets On Sale Now

About the Portsmouth Music Hall:

Portsmouth Music Hall, called “the beating cultural heart of New Hampshire’s seacoast” by The Boston Globe, is a performing arts center featuring curated entertainment from around the world in two theaters in its downtown Portsmouth, New Hampshire campus - one, a landmark 1878 Victorian theater, the other the intimate Music Hall Loft around the corner. Acclaimed signature series bring top authors and artists to both stages, while HD broadcasts and independent film fill both screens.

The Music Hall
28 Chestnut Street | Portsmouth, NH 03801
Box Office: 603.436.2400
http://theloveofbeermovie.com/

About Portsmouth Beer Week:

2Beerguys.com and Seacoast Beverage Lab have teamed up with local establishments to host the 3rd Annual Portsmouth Beer Week. Portsmouth Beer Week is a collective celebration of beer within the Portsmouth community. Local breweries (including Portsmouth Brewery, Smuttynose, Redhook, and Throwback) and regional breweries (Boston Beer Company, Sebago, Woodstock Inn and more) have also teamed up with local establishments to provide some unique offerings to their draught lineups. All of this is leading up to Monday which has both ceremoniously and affectionately become know as "Kate the Great Day".

Our goal is to foster a collaborative environment, so we can push Portsmouth further along into the national eye as the great beer city that we locally know it as.

Portsmouth Beer Week
February 27-March 5, 2012
pbw@2beerguys.com
http://portsmouthbeerweek.com

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Watch City Brewery: Rescue One Kölsch



I'm definitely late getting to this, BUT...It definitely needed to be mentioned. Last month a Worcester Fire Fighter lost his life in an attempt to save another. The tragic loss hit close to home for Waltham based Watch City Brewing Co. brewmaster Aaron Mateychuck, as his brother James works within the WFD. Therefore, in an effort to raise some money for The Jon Davies Children's Fund, the brewery is creating a unique beer for the masses.


Here is the official press release:


Watch City Brewing Company, in conjunction with the Worcester Fire Department, will be sponsoring a fundraiser to benefit The Jon Davies Children’s Fund in lieu of the tragic event that occurred Thursday, December 8, 2011. Firefighter Jon D. Davies, Sr., a 17 year Worcester Firefighter, assigned to Rescue Squad 1, passed away from injuries suffered while working in the line of duty trying to rescue a resident from a fire at 49 Arlington Street in Worcester.

Watch City Brewing Company, under the brewing supervision of Aaron Mateychuk (Brewmaster of Watch City Brewing Company and brother of James Mateychuk, WFD Firefighter on Engine 5), Assistant Brewer Kelly McKnight and five Worcester firefighters (all to be named at a later date), will brew a Kölsch style beer. The beer will be named “Rettung Eins Kölsch or Rescue One Kölsch”. A portion of every keg sold will go to The Jon Davies Children Fund.

Kölsch or Köelsch is a local specialty beer brewed in Cologne, Germany. It is a clear beer with a bright straw-­‐yellow hue with prominent, but not extreme,. hoppiness. It is less bitter than the standard German pale lager. Furthermore, Kölsch is warm fermented at a temperature around 13° to 21°C (55° to 70°F) and then cold-­conditioned, or lagered. Besidesthe style, the German connotation has no meaning other than to be a quality, easy drinking beer that will quench the thirst of firefighters and patrons alike.

The Worcester Fire Department will be supplying Watch City Brewing Companythe logo from the fire station to be used for all “Rescue One Kölsch” tap handles and any point of sale material. The price for a ½ bbl (15.5 gallons) for the “Rescue One Kölsch” will be $155.00 and will be sold in this size only.

Any inquires or questions regarding this beer and fundraiser can be directed to Head Brewer Aaron Mateychuk or Assistant Brewer Kelly McKnight. They can be reached at WCBC by calling 781.647.4000 or email atbrewmaster1965@rcn.com.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Wachusett to Launch Imperial Black IPA

I got a press release the other day from Kim at Wachusett Brewing Company, announcing a new Imperial Black India Pale Ale set to launch this month. From what the release describes, it looks like this will be another great beer to the stable of Wachuestt's already impressive line up. Here is the official release:

Wachusett Brewing Company Introduces Imperial Black IPA

Westminster, MA -- Wachusett Brewing Company will be releasing the newest edition to their current ensemble of IPA’s in January 2012. While creating this Imperial Black India Pale Ale our master brewer Howie and his crew incorporated a variety of unique IPA style ingredients. Calypso and Zythos hops compliment the smooth malty flavors of Crystal & Munich. Dry-hopped with Falconers Flight and Centennial, the undertones of roasted and wheat add up to masterpiece of brew.

The 7.3%, 70 IBU jet black, unfiltered ale will be available in 22 oz. bottles and draft until August 2012. The edition of 12 oz. bottles will be in the Box of Brews variety pack scheduled to hit the shelves in April.

The First Taste Imperial Black IPA release party will be hosted at the brewery on January 26th, 2012. A limited amount of tickets are available for the event, and can be purchased in advance by contacting Kim@wachusettbrew.com or calling 978-874-9965 ex. 28.

The Imperial Black IPA will be available for sampling at the brewery and for purchase through the Wachusett Brewery Store starting January 27th. The store is located on 175 State Road East in Westminster, MA. For more information on hours of operation and tours, contact 978-985-9925 or visit the website at wachusettbrew.com.


Wachusett will also be holding a "First Taste" event at their brewery next Thursday, January 26th from 7-9pm. Including in the price of the ticket (price hasn't been confirmed, but was previously $20) and include:

- A limited edition Imperial Black IPA Glass
- Tour of the Facility
- Hors d'oeuvres provided by McNally's Grill & Pub
- Live accoustic set by John Dupont

Of course, there will be plenty of Imperial Black IPA on tap for you, and it is sure to be a fun event!

We missed out on the launch of their Wet Hop beer event in the fall, but made the launch of their Imperial Pumpkin beer in August and had a great time!

For more information on the event and beer, please contact Kim at the brewery.

Beer Summit turns 10! Jubilee Tonight

I didn't get a chance to post this earlier, but tonight is the first day of the Beer Summit Winter Jubillee. Not only is the Winter Jubillee a great event which features the finest of handcrafted winter beers, but it marks the 10th anniversary of the Beer Summit!

As always, they will have three sessions: Tonight from 5:30-9pm, and two sessions tomorrow 12:30-4pm and 5:30-9pm. Tickets are still available for tonight and tomorrow afternoon, but are sold out for the late session tomorrow.

Head over to the Beer Summit website for more details, including the full brewery list, and to get your tickets! Also, check out their Facebook page for the full beer listing!

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Upcoming Beer Events @ British Beer Co.

I got this email last Wednesday from Graham at the British Beer Company regarding some great upcoming beer events/tap takeovers/beer dinners. They all look great, so hopefully you'll are able to make some of them!


Tap Takeover
Thursday January 19th – All Day
British Beer Company Westford

Troegs Brewing of Pennsylvania will be invading the Westford pub starting at noon. We'll be pouring some favorites along with a few rarities. The list includes: HopBack Amber, Troegenator Double Bock, DreamWeaver Wheat, Pale Ale, JavaHead Stout, Scratch Beer #55 and Mad Elf. The Scratch Beer is an experimental beer series where the brewery can try new ingredients and brewing techniques, this one being a Double IPA. Each Scratch Beer is brewed in very limited quantities and is rarely available outside Tröegs' very own Tasting Room.

Our chef’s will be creating some exclusive lunch and dinner specials with these award winning beers including several tasty appetizers and entrees. Chew on this special: Troegenator Fried Chicken - Pink peppercorn spiced fried chicken served with a sweet corn cheddar potato hash and steamed French green beans with a Troegenator chicken gravy. Drool...

Stone and Allagash Bash
Saturday January 21st – All Day
British Beer Company Franklin

Stone and Allagash Brewing will be taking over eight tap lines at the pub all day Saturday. We’ve pulled together a kind of East Coast vs. West Coast battle, in a friendly way. Beers include: Stone Arrogant Bastard, Levitation Ale, More Brown than Black IPA and 11-11-11 Vertical Epic. And from Allagash: Dubbel, Black, Curieux and Odyssey. More Brown than Black is a collaboration between Stone, Ninkasi Brewing and the Alchemist pub of Vermont (which got destroyed by Hurricane Irene). Proceeds from the sale of this beer will go directly to the Waterbury (VT) Good Neighbor Fund, a non-profit organization aiding families affected by Hurricane Irene.

Stone and Allagash reps will be in the pub from 2-6pm offering some tastings and education. There will be a free cheese tasting from 3-5pm compliments of Cabot Cheese. Our chefs will be creating some spectacular lunch and dinner specials by using and pairing up these unique beers. Here’s one of the scrumptious delights: Arrogant Bastard Angus Stew - Cuts of beef slow braised in Arrogant Bastard Ale with carrots, onions, garlic, potatoes, leeks, button mushrooms and fresh herbs. Served in a piping hot crock topped with crispy onion tanglers and a side of freshly baked country bread.

Wild Game Dinner with Fullers
Wednesday January 25th – 6:30pm
British Beer Company Sandwich

Our intimate pub in Sandwich on historic Route 6A makes the perfect backdrop for a Game Dinner. With a fire blazing, a bagpiper, wild game trophies hanging from the walls, muskets and ceremonial swords on display – one might mistake the pub for a banquet room of an eighteenth century Highland Inn.

This dinner will be presented in a Grand Banquet Buffet style and will feature Elk, Wild Boar and Quail. Fullers Beer will play an essential role as an ingredient in many of the recipes along with recommended pairings. This will not be one of those "small plate" events that leaves you wanting more - it will be a bona fide feast! We've also invited Master of Whiskey Jim Zimmerman to offer tastings of Classic Malt Scotches - Cragganmore, Dalwhinnie, Glenkinchie, Lagavulin, Oban and Talisker - representing each of the six major distilling regions in Scotland. Here's a glimpse of the feast: Leg of Wild Boar – presented at a carving station, rubbed with an array of seasonal aromatic herbs then roasted and glazed with Fullers E.S.B and black cherry. Tickets are $50 per person (all inclusive) for the Game Dinner and can be purchased at the pub (or call 508-833-9590).

Media Contact:
Graham Wilson

Follow: @BritishBeerCo

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Cure Me Im Irish: Update

As we indicated on Facebook today, we have finalized the brewers line up for the 2012 Cure Me I'm Irish event. It was a busy, but successful day as we were able to confirm the final two breweries over the course of the day.

You probably recall our second segment of "Meet the Brewer" in October with Helder Pementel. Well, seeing how we had such a good time with that, hanging out at the Samuel Adams / Beer Summit Octoberfest, it seemed like he and his business partner Maggie would have fun at Cure Me I'm Irish and the guests would love their beer. We also learned this week that his brewing company would be distributing throughout the state of Massachusetts, which makes this a good fit for both of us.

With that being said, we're happy and pleased to have Backlash Beer Co. coming to the party on March 10th.

Last but not least comes a great breweries to visit, especially when spending time in one of our favorite places - Woodstock, VT. It also helps that they make some great beers, and one of our go-to IPAs (and probably many, many other people's go-to IPAs).

We're very excited to have Harpoon Brewery round off our group of 10 and pour their brews for everyone in attendance.

So there you have it!! All ten breweries have been confirmed. Once again, they are:

Mayflower Brewing Co - Plymouth, MA
Smuttynose Brewing Co - Portsmouth, NH
Cape Ann Brewing Co - Gloucester, MA
Cody Brewing Co - Amesbury, MA
Baxter Brewing Co - Lewiston, ME
Stone Brewing Co - San Diego, CA
Atlantic Brewing Co - Bar Harbor, ME
Boston Beer Co. / Samuel Adams - Boston, MA
Backlash Beer Co - Boston, MA
Harpoon Brewery - Boston, MA & Windsor, VT

Get your tickets today at www.curemeimirish.org!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Ticket Details for Cure Me I'm Irish

Just to let everyone know, tickets are currently on sale for the 2012 Cure Me Irish event, which is being held on Saturday March 10, 2012 from 8pm to Midnight. The event will once again be held at Lombardo's in Randolph, MA, which is located conveniently near I93.

Tickets holders will receive heavy appetizers, open beer & wine (cash bar for hard alcohol), a chance at some great prizes, and a cup for te beer tasting - which will run from 8-11pm. Also, the U2 tribute band Joshua Tree will be performing from 10:30pm to Midnight.

Tickets are currently priced at $75, but will increase to $90 after February 20th. So, it's recommended that you act quickly and get your tickets ASAP and save a few bucks. Tickets can be purchased online at www.curemeimirish.org right now!

Also, there are a block of hotel rooms for the hotel adjacent to Lombardo's for a special rate of $89. Please see the Cure Me I'm Irish website for further details.

The Friends of Will Cancer Foundation, LLC is a registered 501(c)3 public charity.

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Cure Me I'm Irish: Update

Sorry for the delay on this folks, but there has been a lock down put on us at work regarding the internet, so I haven’t been able to post as often as I’d like to. However, I thought it would be a good day to announce the next three confirmed breweries for the 2012 Cure Me I’m Irish event. I hope you’re as excited as we are!


After receiving confirmation, and announcing the first five breweries at the end of December, we received a Facebook message from Jeff Nelson, one of the New England sales reps for a certain Arrogant brewing company out of San Diego county California, asking if they could take part. Well, not being the one to turn away a brewery eager to help out, let alone one that makes such superb beers, simply because they are not a New England brewery, we instantly said a resounding “Yes!!” to Jeff. It was a no brainer really.


We’re happy to have Stone Brewing Company on hand as the sixth brewery for the beer festival! Jeff said he’s got some vintage kegs he’s going to bring to the party, and who knows what else he’ll bring. All we know is that we’re pretty pumped to have Stone on board.


Similarly, we received an email from Jon Hill the very next day asking if we were still looking for breweries to help out! Holy crap, the second brewery to contact US to see if they could be a part of this event…it was such a cool feeling, and obviously the event was generating some buzz. Well, details were given, and we’re also happy to confirm Atlantic Brewing Company as the seventh brewery. They’ve been handcrafting beers and have been the premier microbrewery in Bar Harbor, Maine since 1991. They brew about 3,000 barrels of beer each year, and will be increasing their distribution in Massachusetts this year, which makes this a perfect match for the beer festival!


Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the better part of the past 25 years, you will no doubt be very familiar with brewery number eight to confirm. They really need no introduction, but we’re just super pumped to have them and we’re curious to know what they’ll be bringing to the party. We’re very pleased to have Boston Beer Company, better known as Samuel Adams, coming to pour their beers to those in attendance.


With that the brewery list comes to eight confirmed and very excited breweries to date – Mayflower Brewing Co, Smuttynose Brewing Co, Cape Ann Brewing, Cody Brewing Co, Baxter Brewing Co, Stone Brewing Co, Atlantic Brewing Co, and Boston Beer Co. There are some breweries yet to confirm; however, we are in strong pursuit of other great New England breweries to round out the list.


As always, check the website often for updates on the event! More info can be found at www.curemeimirish.org as well. You can also follow the event on Twitter (@CureMeImIrish, also @BrewEngland) and on our respective Facebook pages!


Cheers,

Adam & Sarah