Blue Canoe Brewery opened in late August, filling the space of Four Sons, and apparently features Matt Allyn's beers. I understand that he is the brewery manager, which confirms what I seem to remember Matt telling us back in April at Zeno's Cask Ale event, although after a night like that, I don't trust my memory. I can not confirm whether or not we'll see the beers from Matt's Voodoo Brewing Co. at Blue Canoe, but it sounds like many of the old Four Sons recipes are reappearing! I can't wait to get back that way again to check it out.

A lot closer to home (for me), it sounds like the space on Mill Street in Danville where La Playa Cancun Mexican used to be will soon be opening doors as Old Forge Brewing Company. My hometown paper reported yesterday that the tanks have been moved in, and they are looking at a December opening. Maria and Damien Malfara are responsible for this venture, and the most detailed information can currently be found scattered throughout the Beer Buzz blog. I'll certainly be keeping my eyes open for this one!

Mike Hiller started brewing Steel Drivin' Stout in the last week.  We're told that he threw in some oatmeal, some chocolate malt, and plenty of caramel malt and that the aroma in the mash is just sublime! It's going to be 6% alcohol, so it'll be a nice treat for these chilly fall evenings.

This will be beer #5 in Bavarian Barbarian's line-up. If the quality and popularity of his other beers are any indication, this is a beer not to be missed!

We had a great afternoon / evenin' in town, startin' with a shoppin' trip at Bruisin' Ales (the best place to crawl for a salty bottle 'o grog), followed by a few hours in the new tastin' room at Pisgah with Dave - the man with the bloody birthday, dinner at Ed Boudreaux's with John and Melissa, and some sour Belgians at Thirsty Monk (including Cantillon Lamnivus.)

Aye, I'm expectin' another great day tomorrow - the actual TLPD-2008! Maybe I'll scrawl some news 'bout that Vortex III...

Every beer we had was enjoyable, but the one of special note is Summer Haze Dry Hopped Pale Weizenbock(at Blue Mtn.), which was rich and spicy with clove and well balanced by the hops, yet retained traditional banana and bubblegum notes.

We're looking forward to the rest of our trip - eating some good "Q", tasting some great beers and visiting our Asheville friends and fellow beer travelers. Hopefully I'll find a moment to log in and write about it, but if you don't hear from me, assume I'm having way too much fun!

It's only been available for about a week now, at a tiny handful of establishments. But it's absolutely worth seeking out. It's packed with hoppy goodness. I've been told the most prominent hop in this one is Willamette, with at least one other not being mentioned.

It's a beautiful copper color with a thick creamy head. The smell is a somewhat restrained floral hoppyness. And the taste follows through with a very potent floral punch, backed by a light caramel maltiness. This contrasts markedly with many American IPAs which are so heavy with pine and citrus notes. Honestly, in many ways this reminds me of an English IPA in terms of flavor characteristics, but with much more (typically American) intensity. Much more bitter and in your face, which is exactly what i look for in an IPA, my favorite style.

Wouldn't score high on drinkability with many Alabama residents who have little to no exposure to great American IPAs, but i had two of these and could easily have kept going.

Hopefully it's expanding in availability and will continue to do so, but i know for certain you can find it at The J. Clyde and 5 Points Grill.  Go and imbibe.

And then I started to read mid-July announcements about a collaboration between New Belgium (Fort Collins, CO) and Elysian (Seattle, WA) to reciprocate brewing (the larger New Belgium sending things to Washington to brew in small batches; the smaller Elysian sending things to Colorado to brew in large batches.) I got even more excited!

And then, digging deeper and looking for more possible links to the story, I learned that it has already been told!

For that reason, I will not repeat all of it. I even had the same QUESTION that she ended with...I'm really hoping this means New Belgium is coming soon...but I'm hoping I can answer one of hers below. She asked about the "portfolio", an it looks like, at least for now, we can expect the following:

Four from the general line-up

• Dragonstooth Stout
• Perseus Porter
• The Immortal IPA
• The Wise ESB

And three Seasonals

• Avatar Jasmine IPA
• Bifröst Winter Ale
• Night Owl Pumpkin Ale

I'll be keeping an eye on the list to see if any are added. I assume if they are paying to register them, they are coming.

We first visited Elysian while in Seattle on a beer-cation back in the late '90s. I went back again in 2002 while visiting town on business, and D and I returned in 2005. Obviously I'm a fan of the place, and I'm thrilled to hear we'll soon have the opportunity to get it on the east coast.

New Glarus is busy working on an expansion project, and already brewing at the new facility, but I am speculating that they haven't been producing Raspberry Tart lately. Even at the facility, there were apologetic signs to explain that it can not be purchased on site. This is a unique framboise - a lambic brewed with "Wisconsin farmed wheat and year old Hallertau hops" that is refermented with Brettanomyces yeast found on the Oregon-grown berries - that weighs in at 4% and is found in wax-sealed 22-ounce bombers.

D and Dain went to Steve's Liquors to get some, but Steve's didn't have any. The employee at Steve's referred them to another store, even calling ahead to confirm five cases were available (but not placing a reservation.) In the interest of kindness, our crew allowed some guys from Colorado to go first in Steve's checkout line. Don't you know, those "Coloradans" (we called them something different, but it's not a nice word to use here) overheard the conversation, drove ahead, and bought ALL FIVE CASES?!?!  We just wanted a few bottles and they bought every last one... At $8. a bottle, who would have thought they would get all 5 cases right out from under us?

So we searched and searched, finally finding success in McFarland, WI - two bottles tucked in the cooler at Bob's McFarland Liquor, and ten more after a tense search at J & B Liquor (when he figured out what we were asking for, the guy at J & B was so excited to sell so much to us, he threw in a bottle of New Glarus Belgian Red Cherry Ale!) We celebrated our finds by stopping at Culver's for cheese curds before hitting the road to have lunch,  buy some fudge and cheese, and a take brewery tour in New Glarus.

As for Rübæus, the problem is a little different. We really didn't look very far at first - we get this in PA, an we were planning to go to Founder's on this trip. Our hunt for NG Raspberry Tart changed that plan, but we still felt confident we could get this along on our way. At the Great Taste, however, we learned differently. Rübæus, the brewers told us, will be removed from the line-up due to the overwhelmingly increased cost of raspberries. They are brewing a Cherry Ale (not currently described on the website, but now available at the brewery; they were available side-by-side at the Michigan Brewer's Guild Summer Festival.)

UGH! This news broke my heart, especially because I really didn't care for the Cherry Ale. I love the 7% beer brewed with raspberry puree, served from a bottle with the prettiest label ever (the only thing better than a Rübæus is Rübæus on tap mixed with Founder's Imperial Stout!) Unfortunately, it just doesn't cellar well, so while we did get a case as soon as we got home, and I will savor every bottle, it won't last long.

This sad news came on the heels of hearing that Founder's will also no longer brew Devil Dancer. Norman Miller shared the story with Massachusetts readers, and it's centered around that darn hops shortage.

Well, as far as I know, there is still Raspberry Eisbock from Kuhnhenn in our cellar. If you've never had it, you must read the description at this blog (why not read all of the fruit beer descriptions while you're there - they are terrific reading!)

I've now got plenty of raspberry beers to get me through the summer...

With the crowd limited to 5000, and learning that only 25% of the mail-order lottery tickets were fulfilled, I continue to be amazed that we, and our out-of-town friends, all got tickets. It was convenient to stay miles away from the festival since shuttle buses were organized from points around the city. We were able to walk to a shuttle stop and travel to Olin-Turville Park.

Members of the Madison Homebrewers and Tasters Guild donned beige work shirts and, in a polite manner, herded us into the well-organized line which serpentined around the park grounds. Soon after, more MHTG volunteers arrived trading our tickets for wrist bands (which conveniently displayed the phone number for the cab company) and we obtained the ~60 page booklet and map listing all of the information needed to make it around the festival (the program and other printed materials are available to download in PDF.) The people in line were polite, and there was enough shade and grass to make the wait tolerable.

When the crowd started to move, we were once again herded through the line where we picked up our heavy-bottomed glass, sized to accommodate our 2-oz pours, and the quest for the best beers began.

Five large tents housed 120 brewer's booths, and smaller tents were set up for vendors, food pairings, demonstrations and a Real Ale tent. The Real Ale tent was a great set-up. There were around 25 kegs lined up on either side of the tent, in rows stacked two kegs high, and covered with bags of ice to keep them at a reasonable temperature. There were signs above the kegs, and lists on the tables, so we could order by number. The MHTG volunteers would find the tap and pour from the firkin. In retrospect, I could have spent my whole day right there.

We went to the Real Ale tent for Kuhnhenn's Crème Brulee Java Stout, but missed out by mere seconds. We did, however, enjoy Surly's Tea Bag Furious (while we stared aghast at Surly Darkness draining out at a slow pour from an open tap.) Another one I enjoyed - and apparently my companions did not - was M and D Peanut Butter Brown from the Orland Park Rock Bottom.

The food tents offered lots of snack choices: liverwurst and cheese sandwiches, subs of all kinds, kabobs, brats, dogs, burgers and pizza. And coolers were allowed, so we could bring our own food and water. Earlier in the day, Uncle Jedi took Brandi and I to the farmer's market at the capital building and to Trader Joe's, so I had cheese curds, beef stick and pretzel slims to enjoy between beers.

People had chairs set up in the shade, and acoustic musical groups played throughout the park (the accordion ladies even let me try my hand at the squeezebox - I don't have that talent!) Port-o-potties were plentiful, but I was also pleased to find real flushables in the park. With the Madison skyline in view, and breezes off Lake Monona, it was a perfect spot to spend the day.

It was a wonderful day and there was no way to keep a list of all of the beers, but here are a few of my favorites:

• Piece (Chicago, IL) - Cameltoe
• Blind Tiger (Topeka, KS) - Java Porter
• Founder's (Grand Rapids, MI) - Cherry Ale
• The Livery (Benton Harbor, MI) - Impeche
• Short's (Bellaire, MI) - Cup-a-Joe Coffee Creme Stout, Anniversary Ale 2008 (a double IPA with seven varieties of hops in seven hop additions at 8.5%ABV and 100 IBUs, this was probably my favorite of the festival!) and Nicie Spicie
• Surly (Brooklyn Center, MN) - Coffee Bender and Tea Bagged Furious (on cask)
• Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams; Cinncinnati, OH) - Blackberry Witbier (I say this in comparison to the Coffee Stout; samples of each were available to be voted upon for the 2008 Brewmaster's Selection)
• Central Waters (Amherst, WI) - Brewhouse Coffee Stout
• Viking (Dallas, WI) - Hot Chocolate (chocolate stout made with cocoa, milk sugar and a dash of cayenne pepper)

And in the category of, "How did I miss that?!?!" are the following:

• Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery - Mango Mama
• Flossmoor Station - oh, just about everything! - Organic Woody in the Woods, Sarge, Killer Kowalski
• Goose Island - Juliet
• Three Floyds - Vanilla Bean Barrel-aged Dark Lord
• Free State - Lemon Grass Rye
• White Winter - Plum Mead and Blueberry Yum

It's taken me days to get this post up, so I don't imagine I'll find time to talk about the Surly event we attended at Alchemy (brought to us by The Beer Spot) or the Bell's event at Maduro, but I may find time to talk about the trip home...

So for those who care, let me just tell you where we've been, and not elaborate on how much tremendous fun we are having (or how horrible the traffic has been.)  We are heading into Madison tonight, but our day went something like this:

• Liquor Stop distributor in Highland, IN was our first stop for bottles of Three Floyd's and other things we can't get in PA (I also got a good deal on Chateau St. Jean CabSav - 2003)
• Piece in Chicago for awesome (AWESOME!) beer and pizza
• Lakefront in Milwaukee for a tour and tasting (where I got to be "Shirley" (of Laverne and...), and we got lots of free beer and a pint glass!); you can take your own tour at their site
• and now we are sitting at Tyranena, using the wi-fi and enjoying Scurvy IPA

Tonight we will end up in Madison, where there are many, many special release parties all over town, 105 breweries represented at the festival tomorrow, and more parties in town again tomorrow night.  Hooray for a town with fabulous public transportation!

I'll write when I can, but don't hold your breath!

Three of us had sampler trays with the potential of knocking out half of the inventory. I don't recall having this option on my first visit We received a card with five blank spaces where we could choose our beers. And when she filled them, they fit perfectly into a little wooden stand in an arc arrangement around a raised Dragonmead seal. The card slid perfectly into the back of the wooden stand to remind us which five we had chosen from the massive wall of taps.

I apparently chose wisely, as I really enjoyed all five of my selections. I had small sips from Brandi's tray and Dain's as well, and can't say that anything was less than good, but I loved my selections:

• Andromeda Heather Ale - 4.6% ABV, and much darker in color than I anticipated and host to an array of herbal notes
• Woody's Perfect Porter - 5.0% ABV and served on nitro; this English-style Brown Porter was perfect, as stated in the name; mild and hinting of chocolate
• Crown Jewel's IPA - 7.0% ABV; a beer I had on my last visit and found highly favorable
• Juggernaut Double Red - 8.0%; If we understood correctly, this was their greatest mistake - a blended recipe of the Crown Jewels and Final Absolution (a Belgian ale), and it was the best beer of the lot.
• Reverend Fred's Oatmeal Stout - 5.5% ABV and served on nitro.

I didn't write down things that I tasted from Dain's tray or either of the things Deuane had, but Brandi's selections were:

• Kaiser's Kolsch - 4.6% ABV
• Erik the Red (Irish-style amber ale) - 4.5% ABV
• Wench Water (Belgian pale ale) - 5.2% ABV
• Bill's Witbier - 4.9% ABV
• Redwing Raspberry Wheat - 4.7% ABV

(and yes, Ffej, Brandi tried the Crown Jewels and really liked it!!)

After a leisurely visit there, we took off across town for Kuhnhenn Brewing Co. On my last visit, I thought it looked a lot like a bingo hall, and was hopeful renovations were taking place. Improvements are being made - flooring, paint and a beautiful ceiling, and obviously larger restroom facilities are being installed. The bingo tables are gone, and there are many more high bar tables. A local played at the piano with his buddy drumming up business for him. Basically, if we could hum a few bars, he could play it - just about anything (except Blackbird by the Beatles.) And he wouldn't accept tips or let us buy him a beer. Apparently he just loves the music.

It didn't take much for me at Kuhnhenn. A six-ounce glass of Tenacious Cassis at 16.5% ABV was all I could handle. The black and red current beverage was sweet, tart, thick and (obviously) high in alcohol. It paired perfectly with the dried tomato and basil goat cheese that Brandi chose, and with those powerful flavors, I didn't desire a second beer.

Other beers around the table included American IPA (a boring name, but an awesome beer - fabulous aroma and full balanced sweet hops flavoring; 6.5%), Strawberry Panty Dropper (5%), Loonie Kuhnie Pale Ale (consumed in honor of Dain's wife, Jill; 5.8%), and Simcoe Silly (a golden ale with sweet hops flavor; 8.5%).

We stayed way too long, eating popcorn, cheese and crackers, talking to the owners and singing with "piano man", but eventually got on the road around 7:30 PM. We waved to Dark Horse at the Marshall exit, and to Bell's at the K-Zoo exit, and grumbled at the traffic build up where the highway closed, but making our own detour, we arrived in Benton Harbor before The Livery closed (whew!)

Mikey G. was our bartender, and he was a lot of fun, to say the least! He took great care of us, even without the offering of cask ale (they closed those lines just before we arrived.) I loved the Double Paw IPA (8%), which I was able to get in a 10-oz glass, and the 555 IPA (6.5%), which D and I shared in a pint. We also enjoyed Hoppelbock (10%), Kilt Tilter Scotch Ale (9% - the last drops from the cask), Paris Roubaix (5.5%) and Barrel Aged Apple Cider (6% - we compared this to the Crown Royal!)

Hopefully we will get a chance to stop back in on our way home for a growler fill. The Livery is such a great place...

It's been a rough one with the economy and going part-time at the day job and being an artist with pauper-like funds and microbrew tastes. It's hard no matter how good those happy hour prices are these days. Don't you think it's torturous not to be able to use my super sensitive palette and descriptive skills to good use? Thank god for Trader Joe's and their very fair beer pricing for one of the most sensually delicious microbrews out there: FULL SAIL.

Full sail hails from Hood River, Oregon and it's good starter beer to get you off macro-lager and onto a brew that is built on tasty and satisfying hops. The pale ale and LTD are good gateway brews if all you've ever drunk is Heineken. I have to say that I used to really love Stella Artois but that in recent years I think it's become Belguim's answer to Budweiser and then what do they go and do? Become the same freakin' company.

I have to say that I was really giddy the whole time I was in Oregon last month because it is practically the microbrew capital of the country. There was a Full Sail 18-wheeler on the I-5 with the logos for the pale ale (baby blue), amber (kelly green), and the LTD (orange) that made gasp as if I had just witnessed the birth of christ or something. I didn't drink much of it there because I knew I could enjoy its full-bodied seduction in the comforts of home, which I have and am this week. Mel turned me onto the LTD and my special thug miss brought it home when there wasn't any pale ale on the shelves at TJ's. She said that even the dude at the checkout was singing its praises. So we cracked it open, poured it into a tall pilsner glass (that I keep chilled in the fridge) and we both said "DAMN!" It is crisp and light made with pale and wheat malt, Czech Saaz hops, caramel malt, cascade water (from the very green and protected environment in Oregon--the greenest state in the country), and more delicious Styrian Goldings hops that together all packs a pop and delivers. Balance and tone, baby.  It went well with our summer-y salad and salami sandwiches.

Stay true to your friends and taste buds. Teresa Covarrubias, lead singer of seminal East L.A. punk band The Brat said it right: Life is too short for bad beer.

Located in an unincorporated town of about 30 people, Len and Linda Moeder live the dream of owning their own business.  They've operated the restaurant since 1999, and in 2004 they obtained a microbrewery license and became a brewpub.  In 2006, when we visited, they were brewing on a half-barrel system and had quite a following among the locals.

In addition to owning the restaurant/pub and a house nearby, they bought the defunct bank - the only building in town with a basement - to use for beer storage.  And it's not just the tiny brewing system that makes this place unique.  Where else can you find "gizzards" on the appetizer menu?

I expressed my concern that they would end up as just another brewery, without doing anything we hard core craft beer aficionados would consider "exciting".  He assured me they have just as much desire to do exciting beers as the aficionados have about drinking stuff that's not run of the mill.

I'm now fired up.  I have big dreams of Birmingham hosting a top notch regional brewery, and it looks like Good People may grow into that role over time.  I can hardly wait.

Saturday i had the good fortune to speak with Don Alan Hankins, co-owner and brewmaster. I also got to taste a sample of not-yet-fully-fermented pale ale right out of the fermenting tank. A thrilling experience for a beer geek like me.

Unfortunately for Olde Towne, a hop crisis struck the world while they were finding a new location and building a new facility. Brewers everywhere are having to reformulate their recipes to use different varieties of hops, while hoping to avoid changing their staple beers to something customers won't recognize. Olde Towne is no different, but their year-long absence may actually work to their advantage as no one has a fresh memory of what any particular OT beer tasted like before the fire.

I was fascinated to learn that while Hankins previously utilized all Cascade hops for his pale ale, he is unable to get sufficient quantities of that hop now and has brewed his first new batch of pale ale with Chinook for bittering and Glacier for flavor and aroma. I was happy to hear that he did 30 minute, 20 minute, 10 minute, and whirlpool additions of Glacier. That should produce a hoppy delight perfectly suited to a hop head like me.

After a long drought, the recent arrival of Good People and the rebirth of Olde Towne are finally supplying North Alabama with local beer once again. It nearly brings a tear of joy to my eye. Now if Birmingham can finally join the ranks of Mobile, Montgomery, and Auburn by getting a brewpub, i could die happy.

Another way to the Lost Coast is to branch off the 101 at the town of Cloverdale and take Highway 128 through the Anderson Valley. The Anderson Valley is well known for producing great wine, harboring luscious redwood groves, and the rough and ready village of Boonville. I especially like the village of Boonville because it has one great brewery: Anderson Valley Brewing Company.

Anderson Valley Brewing Company: Well known for their legendary beers like Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout and Hop Ottin' IPA. These big beers are California traditions and not to be missed. I'm excited to go back and see all the changes that have been made since our last visit years ago. They've changed locations, added a visitor center and gift shop, and now offer tours of the brewing facilities.

From Boonville, Highway 128 meanders out to the Pacific Coast following the Navarro River. This is where you start to head north on Highway 1 - pass the town of Mendocino to the city of Fort Bragg. Here lies one of my absolute favorite Breweries.

North Coast Brewing Company: This has been deemed as one of the best breweries in the world by the Beverage Testing Institute. I don't doubt their claims one bit. Here they have a bit of something for everyone - a gift shop (love the beer memorabilia) and a tap room and grill to get your grub on. What more could you need? Great beer, excellent food, and a place to buy your bottle opener and t-shirt souvenirs.

So, my breweries list for this road trip has grown to seven different possible pit stops to enjoy California's great beer. I'm not entirely sure which highways we will end up taking to get to and from the Lost Coast but at least we can say our beer bases are covered for every possible route.

Here's a list of the breweries between the North Bay and Leggett right off the 101. Not a comprehensive list by any means. Just a sampling of the few breweries I've taken note of for this upcoming trip. Working from south to north:

Moylan's Brewery (Novato) One of my personal favorites and high on our itinerary. Robust beers here. Many great road trips have been kicked off by starting here for lunch.

Lagunitas Brewing Company (Petaluma) I once searched in the town of Lagunitas looking for this brewery. I had no clue how far off I was until I went home and read the beer bottle - Petaluma, not Lagunitas!

Russian River Brewing Company (Santa Rosa) This is where you get your Pliny The Elder and Blind Pig IPA. Great beers, also very high on the list.

Bear Republic Brewing Comapany (Healdsburg) World famous Racer 5 IPA. Enough said.

Mendocino Brewing Company (Hopland) A California tradition. They no longer serve food here but you can bring your own and they have a lovely beer garden.

I'm thinking if we can manage to visit just two of these breweries on our upcoming trip then we've done well. Is there any I've overlooked but should have put on our itinerary? What's your personal favorite off the 101? Wish me luck!

On June 21, Tröegs Brewery teamed up with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Central Pennsylvania to put on the annual Harrisburg Brewers Fest® - an outdoor beer and music festival downtown. There were two sessions to reduce the crowds of people filling Locust and Third streets and a special VIP session, complete with gift bags.

The festival was advertised with 35 breweries. We know that some didn't show up, but there was no lack of beverage to be tried. D had to work, and I had a child's birthday party to attend, so we worked very hard to stick to just the things that were new to us and/or special beers. And with the small plastic sample mugs, it was easy to remain sober.

We had a few favorites from the day, including Lovitz Lager - a watermelon lager from Roy Pitz Brewing Company, Coconut Stout from Church Brew Works, Lichtenhainer - a sour, smoked Berliner Weissbier brewed as a collaboration between Marzoni's and East End Brewing Company and is based on an obscure German style, Barrel-aged Beekeeper (part of the bottle-conditioned collection at Bullfrog Brewery, and previous to aging, known as the Beesting Saison) and a firkin of Scratch #12-2008, an English-style IPA from Tröegs.

It was good, clean fun in downtown Harrisburg. Live bands played, including one that we really like at the early session (Herbie), and people were generally polite. I picked up an Otto's tattoo, which finally wore off last weekend, and my favorite tshotshke was the heavy-duty bottle opener from Straub.

At the Harrisburg Brewers Fest®, we learned about the Bavarian Ramble - a fundraiser organized by Mike Hiller, Chief Barbarian at Bavarian Barbarian Brewing Company, to support the Uptown Music Collective. Since we planned to be in the area for the weekend of June 28 anyway, we decided to join in on the ramble around downtown Williamsport.

For a $10 donation, we received 5-10% discounts off food and beverages at The Pub, Rumrunners, Franco's and the 4th Street Grille and Ale House. The evening ended with a private party at the Bavarian Barbarian Brewing Company where we were treated to a terrific performance by students from the Collective.

We met up with Mike at The Pub - one of my college hang-outs. This complete dive bar for college kids has transformed into a pretty nice little place. In addition to Bavarian Barbarian beers, there were several other very decent brews on tap, and a sizable bottle selection (for Williamsport) behind a large, beautiful honey-toned bar. I couldn't get over the cleanliness of this place in comparison to my days of hanging there. Even the bathroom was clean and bright, and while I didn't check it out, I understand there is outdoor courtyard seating.

Rumrunners is a Caribbean-themed restaurant with a huge selection of shelf drinks. I had only been in this building once, and it was so dark I couldn't see my own hand. Now it is bright and cheery, and the menu looks serviceable. We ate at Franco's out of nostalgia, but were thrilled to find Tröegs Nugget Nectar on cask there. I enjoyed a wonderful fresh gazpacho and an artichoke and olive salad with balsamic vinegar. We shared the chicken liver and toast appetizer, and D had a pesto with garlic pasta dish. With our discount, it was amazingly inexpensive, and as always, the staff at Franco's made us feel welcome.

We managed to get a hotel downtown on Priceline, so it wasn't expensive to stay downtown, walking to all of the Ramble locations, and we got a ride home from the party at Bavarian Barbarian. Kira and Mike were such wonderful hosts, and the guys in the band were so professional. It was a really nice night out for a really good cause, and also a good opportunity to let me stroll down memory lane a bit (I love Bullfrog Brewing dearly, but I miss exploring all of the other wonderful food opportunities in Williamsport.)

We ended our weekend with scenic drives through the mountains, taking Rt. 445 from Lamar to Millheim, and then driving a back road north of Winkleblech and Sharpback Mountains as a long way to Selinsgrove. In addition to a nice little hike, we stopped at the breweries (Elk Creek Cafe and Selin's Grove, respectively.) At Elk Creek, we were drinking Old Bertha's Red 99 - a beer created to support the Millheim Fire Company which has been assisting in the community for 99 years. 50-cents from each pint sold goes to the fire company, so we were happy to help (AND it was a good beer to go with my brunch!)

What a great week of drinking beer for the benefit of others!

It wasn't a long drive, however, to stop for another tasting.  Bedondaine & Bedons in Chambly is both a microbrewery/pub and a museum of beer memorabelia.  The beers we chose were all herbal in nature: La Grenouille (a Wit made with green tea), L'Ensorceleuse (made with wild flower honey, coriander seeds, orange rind and created for the brewer's wedding; also tasted a version of it that was aged 7 months); and La Mentheuse (made with mint leaves, juniper berries and rye.)  Charles and Lewis took great care of us, and we chatted with them about their upcoming trip to the Vermont Brewer's Festival.

Then it was back to Burlington where Beth was resting up to take us out for work on our passport. In case I forgot to mention it, when we arrived there on Wednesday, we started working on our Vermont Brewery Challenge passport that night with visits to Magic Hat (where I really enjoyed the Orlio Organic Beer),American Flat Bread/Zero Gravity Brewing (mmmm...cask ale!), Vermont Pub & Brewery and Three Needs Brewery and Tap Room (NICE!)  By collecting stamps from the 18 breweries/brewpubs in the state, we can claim "Drink Vermont Beer" related prizes - and who doesn't like prizes?  These four stamps earned us a bottle opener magnet.

(Beth or Jim's completed passport scanned in below)

On this second night in Vermont, Beth had a plan - we were going to hit The Bobcat Cafe & Brewery, The Alchemist Pub & Brewery and The Shed Restaurant and Brewery.  That would bring us up to seven stamps on the passport, and we could manage three more stops on the way home Monday (all of which didn't serve more than a small taster.)  Ten stamps are worth a t-shirt.  We did all three that night, enjoying a great dinner and very nice pints at the Bobcat Cafe, and a couple of baskets of popcorn at The Shed, but forgetting a stamp there (grrrrrr...) and a single beer at The Alchemist.  

Of the three, I was most looking forward to The Alchemist, but I ended up falling in love with the Bobcat Cafe.  The town of Bristol, nestled in the Green Mountains, is so beautiful and quaint. The beers are very fine, the food menu offered a tasty assortment of snacks and meals, and the decor felt warm and welcoming. There were seven house beers on tap, and six guest taps - I particularly enjoyed the Appalachian Gap Simcoe IPAat 5% ABV and 69 IBUs. There were six beers on at The Shed, and of them, the Russian Imperial Stout, which I did not note the name of, was very nice.  There were seven beers on at The Alchemist, but sadly, none on cask. I settled for the Broken Spokepale ale , weighing in at 5.3% ABV and 30 IBUs. This was an Amarillo-based ale, and lacked aroma but had a wonderful hoppy flavor.

To get between Bristol and Waterbury, we took Lincoln Gap Road, crossing the Long Trail - it was a beautiful ride, which we thought we'd never do again. With only a few hours of sleep, I found it difficult to fully appreciate these spots.

But in the morning, with the goal of hitting another three spots to get stamps AND needing to make up for the one we missed, we mapped out a plan which included another trip on Lincoln Gap Road.  We said good-bye to Beth and the wonderful Molly-dog, fueled up with freshly baked Montreal-style Bagels from Myers Bagels (a facility that is expanding) and fresh-roasted coffee from Speeder and Earl's before hitting our first brewery of the day. 

We stopped in at Switchback Brewing Co.for a stamp and small tasters of their brews, which are available in kegs only, and chatted with Tony, the brewer.  Next, we trekked back to The Shed for the missing stamp, stopping off at Ben & Jerry's in Waterbury (but not taking the tour), and then headed to Rock Art Brewery, which we found on the far edge of Morrisville. Andrea gave us a short brewery tour, and we bought some $3 bombers to go with our merch.  Rock Art is doing a nice expansion project in the sales area, so things were a little dismantled, but the product was as great as ever!

Our final beer passport stamp was picked up at Otter Creek Brewing, where I especially enjoyed my taster of  Wolaver's Oatmeal Stout from the organic line, and D had  the Otter San from the World Tour Series. After getting a photo with the Otter and viewing the brewing operation through the large windows, we picked up a few bottles and some Vermont cheese there, and then headed to town for a late lunch at Tully & Marie's.  We we sat outside overlooking the water enjoying fresh Vermont food. With ten stamps on our passport, I stowed them safely away for mailing or perhaps a return trip to VT at the end of the month.

There was one stop more to make on the way home, and that was in Albany, NY.  We were looking forward to cask ale at Mahar's Public House.  But this place was a real disappointment after a week of great beers and friendly destinations.  They have a good thing going - I can't deny that.  There are at least 26 taps of rotating micros and imports, an extensive bottle collection (which probably suffers from being lightstruck, as I could see it through the window), and six casks.  To my disappointment, all six were from Middle Ages Brewing Co. - a fine brewery, but thumbs down to Mahar's for not mixing it up a little! My schizophrenic feelings of respect and dismay for the place are reflected in the comments of others, so I won't waste space discussing the condescending and ignorant bartender.  I should have expected so much from a place with a website that "eShouts" every word, doesn't care to mention it's own name or address there, and has a distinct set of rules, but shame on me for not reading reviews first.

On the other hand, the place is very interesting - stark decor, but a great collection of tap handles, select-yourself cheese fridge and a self-serve database where you can print a beer list and maintain your Beer Tour membership (drink 50 for a Mahars T-shirt, 125 for a mug engraved with your choice image and good for 20% off future beers, 200 for a free case of your favorite beer, 500 for a brass plate with your name engraved - take THAT KClinger's!!!)  I didn't take any photos, but check out this collection of photos by another visitor.  I'm sure people who live there and love beer the way we do find a way to work out these issues, but I left thinking I'm so glad we don't go through Albany often because I would have to go back often simply for the selection. I did very much appreciate that the beers come in three sizes: Imperial pint, 16-oz and 8-oz.

It was a great trip, and I have many more things I want to post about, but that will have to wait for another night.  If you are looking for additional Mondial commentary, check out the many postings on the Liquid Solutions blog - his story is told so well, and I can't find anyone else talking about it...

Montreal is a great city.  We haven't seen as much of it as I'd like, what I've experienced leaves me wanting more. The pubs are fabulous and plentiful.  There is a wealth of culture here - the diversity is outstanding.  It is clean, trendy, attractive and eclectic.  And the festival - our raison d'être - is c'est magnifique!  These are just a few of the things I've listed:

Pros:

1. five days of tasting - you don't have to pack it all into one day or a four-hour session; doors open at 11 AM each day, close at 10 PM and participants have in/out privileges
2. taste as much or as little as you like - buy as many tickets as you care to, and taste as many beers as you like; very few of the breweries seemed to run out of any particular beer (we missed out on a rhubarb beer, but that's about it!)
3. BYO-glass is acceptable as long as it is 12-oz or less
4. friendly folks running the booths - willing to talk and share
5. open door - come and go as you like (well, if you get there late and there is a crowd, they do make a line out the door...)
6. tasting areas that are both outdoor and indoor (under a glass ceiling so it feels kind of like outdoor); Windsor Station and Courtyard is a wonderful place for a festival
7. the French pavilion, which included 16 exhibitors, 13 of which are microbreweries and one of which was Thiriez (a brewery we fell in love with after Chris and Jen treated us to a bottle at Ebenezer's Pub in Lovell, ME)

8. outstanding restroom facilities - ample, clean, spacious and fully functional (complete with a hook on the door designed just for my mug!)

Cons:

1. five days of tasting where you can taste as much or as little as you like - we like, so we spent a lot of cash!

So what have we had?  Well, we made it a point to taste all of the award winning beers and as many of the 15 anniversary mashes created just for the festival. 

• Awards were given to twelve breweries for a variety of beers. Among them, I particularly enjoyed Aphrodisiaque from Dieu du Ciel - a stout that tasted rich in chocolate and vanilla (kind of like a stout milkshake.)
• For the 15th anniversary, Mondial dela Bière has teamed with places such as À la fût (creators of La Survivante), Brutopia (creators of African ale Nigerian Nectar), Dieu du Ciel (creators of Double Triple), Broue Pub Brouhaha (creators of Special B) and La Barberie (creators of Sangri-Bière.)

My favorite brewery of the festival? That honor goes to Hopfenstark.  They are cool guys with great vision and beer integrity. They work hard to make a perfect product, and won't compromise for popularity.  The Baltic Porter De L'Ancier With Maple Syrup was by far one of the best beers at the festival, and they carried an impressive number of saisons: Station 10 (a sour beer which won a platinum medal!), Saison Station 16 (rye beer) and Saison Station 55(bitter and hoppy.)

Some of the more distinctive beers were La Carotte from Microbrasserie du Lievre (a beer brewed with carrot), Viotlette (made with Aizelles (?) and violets) and Verte (made with Denepi) both from Mont Blanc and Juliette from Brasserie Uberach.

In addition to plenty of beer, we have made plenty of new friends and enjoyed spending time with friend who are not so new to our lives. 

• Our Thursday night table at Dieu du Ciel grew from four to fourteen as friends came and left. With sixteen of their own beers on tap, and all of them right on, it was hard to make a choice!
• On Friday evening, we had a great cookout on the deck, which just happens to straddle the property of our friend Josh (party host) AND the bed and breakfast where we are staying. Several of the attendees were MontreAlers, and it was great fun to meet them.  Josh bought a wide selection of cheeses and beers (mostly from Vermont), and D brought a large selection of beers from our cellar. One of the stars that night was Stonecutter Scotch Alefrom Renaissance Brewing Company in Marlborough, NZ.
• Saturday morning started with a trip to Metro Joanette - a grocery store where we found an awesome beer selection, which I hope to write about it a later post because of our À l'Abri de la Tempête find...
• Saturday afternoon we left the festival with Beth, Jim, Mark and Matt, and we met up with Cornelia and Ray, forming an impromptu pub crawl!  We started out at the microbrewery L'Amer à Boire for Czech lager and stout, then moved down the street to Le Saint Bock, where they brewed their own beers and served plenty of other products on draft and in a wide array of bottles. Next we went to Le Cheval Blanc for a quick visit before taking a cab all the way down to Vices & Versa where 29 Canadian beers were available (and none of them Molson!) I particularly enjoyed Postcolonial IPAfrom Hopfenstark and Hoppy - an IPA from Brasseurs et frères.
• Tired of all the same food at every single pub (nachos, chips, frittes, pizza and pannini), D and I found a nice little Peruvian restaurant called Chicho, where we had a great meal before returning to Josh's apartment to dig back into the bottle tasting
  • My pick of the night was Rock Art Double IPA;
  • Josh chose Green Flash Imperial IPA as his favorite;
  • Troy liked the Otto's Double D IPA and the Smuttynose Wheat Wine quite a bit, but his pick of the night was the 2007 Dark Lord Imperial Stout (even in comparison to the 2008 Dark Lord);
  • D was most impressed by the 2005 Bushwakker Wheat Wine (which we are calling a "double import", since it traveled from Saskatewan to PA for cellaring, and now to Quebec.

Obviously I have a lot to say about this trip, and really, I could keep going, but it's seriously time for bed.  I'm going to slack on the links for tonight, and sign off.

So I was thrilled to learn details from Asheville beer friends James and Tony that Carl's beers will be available possibly by the end of the month!  The Wedge Brewing Co. is located at 151 Roberts Street in the French Broad River Arts District of Asheville, NC and Carl has begun production on Iron Rail IPA, which will be available at the tasting room. Citizen-Times has five photos of the place.

Carl is a beer artist, and during his time at Bullfrog Brewery in Williamsport, PA (approximately September 2002 through January 2004) he created some wonderfully creative brews, such as Organic Carob Maple Porter, Raspberry Imperial Stout and Flander's Golden Ale. Between his years at Bullfrog and Green Man, he was brewing in Georgia. I was thrilled on my first trip to Asheville to learn that he was there, and thoroughly enjoyed his IPA on cask at Green Man in February 2006. I understand that he also brought many fabulous beers to the people of Asheville during his Green Man years (among them, the award-winning Belgian-style Merlin Tripel at 8.4% ABV and Golem - a Belgian strong ale described as "spicy and hoppy, with a sweet, pear-like flavor that finishes dry and slightly bitter" - at 8.8% ABV.)

And now Wedge Gallery owner Tim Schaller is putting his money on Carl to do great things for the Asheville beer scene.

I credit Carl (or at least the results of his work) for helping me get through one of the more painful times in my life - frequent long drives from Harrisburg to Williamsport and back to visit my dying grandfather were comforted by his inventive offerings. Some nights I just stopped in for a half-pint, other times I would dine with my family or bring home a growler. I've heard negative commentary on his personal appearance and his business sense, but I have never heard an adverse criticism on his ability to create fabulous beer.

Congratulations to Carl and to Asheville. I look forward to seeing how things go, and hope we can visit soon!

There is a website where interested parties can register to get updates.  It is possible that the beer refugees will have a reason to return to Hanover soon.

At this time they are not filling growlers but hope to in the near future. The styles they are making are Porter, Wheat, Belgian Dubbel, and Grand Cru.

The address listed for Copper Kettle Brewery is 339 Fairground Road in Millmont, PA.  The phone number on the website is (270)342-1638, but I suspect that is supposed to be a 570 area code unless they are using a cell phone from Kentucky.

The website was available earlier, but it was not informative (and at this moment, is not available.) Russ said it will be updated by the end of the week.  I'll see what I can find out from friends and family in the area, and perhaps get a chance to check it out myself very soon!

Bavarian Barbarian Brewing Company is pleased to announce that Weldspatter IPA is now on tap! Samples and growlers are available at the Horde Room in the brewery, located at 429 W. 3rd St. The beer is also on tap at Kimball’s and B21 in Williamsport.

Weldspatter I.P.A. is a hoppy, though well-balanced beer with a sweet hop flavor and Elysian aroma. This unfiltered beer has a richer, more golden color than most other pale ales. The hops in Weldspatter I.P.A. include Phoenix and Pilgrim varieties imported from England and an American variety called Nugget. India Pale Ale beers typically go very well with pungent cheeses, grilled meats and spicy foods.

Great news, and congratulations!

Weldspatter I.P.A. was the winner in the Barbarian’s Selection ’08 Campaign, which allowed voters to choose the next beer style. It was announced April 1st and immediately brewed with an expected release date of Friday, April 11. Unexpected problems arose during filtration, which ultimately ruined the characteristic hop flavors inherent to the India Pale Ale style and the release was postponed.

In celebration of the release, the brewery will offer growler fills of this new brew for $8 now through the 3rd of May.  I doubt I'll make it up for that, but perhaps a friend or family member will get a chance to check it out.

Okay...the best thing about sharing this news is that I got to use the word "Elysian" in back-to-back blog postings - when does that ever happen?