Now Playing at craftbrewcast.com

Audio program posted April 11th, 2009
Drew Cluley invited me to The Pike Brewing Company for their Vertical Barley Wine Tasting and was a fabulous host. They served six vintages of the Old Bawdy side by side to a packed house in the Museum and restaurant in Seattle Washington.

It is remarkable how well those beers have each aged. Fal Allen had brewed the three oldest ones, and Drew the three latest ones. If you haven’t tried Old Bawdy, get ahold of a few bottles, enjoy some of them fresh and let the rest age!

In this show you will hear co-owner Charles Finkel along with Drew Cluley, and Fal Allen each address the crowd with stories from the risqué beginnings of the brewery through its evolution to its current location. Later, you’ll join us in a lively round table discussion on the topic of Beer vs. Wine and more with Pike’s alumni of brewers including Dick Cantwell now with Elysian Brewing Company, Fal Allen now at Archipelago Brewing of Singapore, Kevin Forhan now at Ram Restaurant and Brewery, and Janelle Pritchard now at Snoqualmie Falls Brewing Company.

The Pike Brewing Company is a must see location in Seattle. The staff makes you feel as though you’ve come home, and the breweriana collections in the museum are unbelievable. Add to the experience the fabulous beer, and just you can’t go wrong.

The Pike Brewing Company
Archipalego Brewing
Elysian Brewing Co.
Ram Brewery and Restaurant
Snoqualmie Falls Brewing Co.

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Technorati Tags: Pike Brewing, Fal Allen, Dick Cantwell, interview, Barley wine, brewers, podcast, beer

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This article is worth sharing. Written by Aliza Earnshaw, published in the Business Journal.

Friday, November 7, 2008

A Rogue idea

Brewery celebrates 21st b-day
Making beer entirely from local ingredients

Portland Business Journal - by Aliza Earnshaw Business Journal staff writer

Cathy Cheney | Portland Business Journal Rogue Brewery co-founder Jack Joyce tours the hops field that the company bought last year in Independence, Ore.View Larger

An Oregon craft brewery has come up with a way to become even more Oregonian - and possibly even more successful.

Rogue Brewery will celebrate its 21st birthday next year by launching beers brewed entirely from Oregon ingredients: water, barley, hops and yeast.

The beermaker can do it because last year the company bought ownership of 20 acres of hops production at a farm in Independence, about 14 miles southwest of Salem.

This year, the brewery paid for another 20 acres of hops. It also paid to plant 200 acres of barley at a farm in the Tygh Valley, 10 miles northwest of Maupin on the Deschutes River.

These agricultural investments - unusual, if not unique, for a brewery - total almost $295,000.

That’s not out of scale for Rogue, which has grown to an estimated $35 million to $36 million in revenue this year, according to Jack Joyce, co-founder and “chief wisdom officer.”

Joyce would not comment on Rogue’s profits, other than to say they’re good.

The company employs 238 and sells its beer in 19 countries.

Rogue’s investments in hops and barley should allow it to brew 15 percent to 20 percent of its beer next year entirely from Oregon ingredients.

Next year also marks both Rogue’s 21st anniversary - breweries often celebrate their 21st rather than their 20th - and Oregon’s 150th year of statehood. That offers even more opportunity for the brewery to market its beers as all-Oregon.

Rogue’s acquisition of its most critical ingredients is “a nifty move, and strategically sound,” said Benj Steinman, editor of Beer Marketers Insights Inc., which publishes beer industry newsletters out of Nanuet, N.Y.

Over the past five years, Rogue’s production has grown 112 percent, to 65,000 barrels. That’s much faster than the craft beer industry as a whole, which had five-year growth of 45 percent through 2007, according to Steinman.

Rogue’s sales have far outstripped its production, at 196 percent over five years, according to Brett Joyce, Jack Joyce’s son and the company’s president.

“I know Rogue prices above the market,” Steinman said. “The very name, Rogue, tells you there’s something a little offbeat about it, and Jack is quite the character.”

The company takes the concept of roguery all the way, as is obvious from its labels; the diverse character of its nine pubs; its amusing product names, such as Dead Guy Ale; its recent addition of distilled drinks such as vodka, gin and rum; and its Web site and newspaper.

The company has had a roguish management style since the very beginning, said Bob Woodell, a co-founder of Rogue who was also Nike Inc.’s first chief operating officer. In fact, the idea of buying a hops farm came out of one of Rogue’s shareholder meetings.

“We have very freewheeling meetings, with all sorts of ideas, some good, some stupid, flying around,” Woodell said. “There was a hops shortage, and we knew there would be tremendous price increases the next year. We started talking, and Jack jumped on it, made a ton of calls, and made some visits. Out of it came this relationship where we are now raising hops down there in Independence.”

Jack Joyce liked the idea of ensuring his company’s hops supply, though it’s unlikely Rogue will ever get its entire supply within Oregon. Nor would the brewery, which prides itself on unusual beers, want to limit itself in that way.

Ultimately, Joyce said, he’d like to have enough production so Rogue can act as an agent and sell special, higher-priced hops to other Oregon breweries. The farmers would share in that premium pricing.

Joyce plans to open a tasting room at the hops farm, which he thinks will attract “agro-tourists.” Rogue may even open a pub in Independence.

Joyce and his co-owners don’t seem too worried about the current economic downturn. The brewery continued to grow after Sept. 11.

Good beer may actually be recession proof, Steinman said.

“At bottom, beer isn’t really that expensive,” he said. “Even for more expensive beers, it’s an affordable luxury. It’s cheaper than filling up your tank.”

Libation Station is a new radio show coming out of Portland Oregon.The show is co hosted by the much loved Beer Goddess, also known as journalist Lisa Morrison with Bruce Bjorkman. I asked Lisa to write a few words to entice you to tune it. Here’s what she says:

Want to get the latest beer news from the heart of Beervana? Pour yourself a pint and listen to the Libation Station on KXL 750 AM each Saturday from 3-4 p.m. Co-hosts Bruce Bjorkman and Beer Goddess Lisa Morrison bring you all the brews news that fit to sip. Can’t catch it live? Check out the podcasts at http://www.kxl.com/KXLTalkShows/LibationStation/tabid/85/Default.aspx
–Lisa Morrison

You can also subscribe thru an RSS feed and listen to each episode computer or mobile device FREE! Here’s that link: click here

Here’s a sampling of what you can expect to find on the show

Here’s What We’re Pouring May 17

• Broadcasting from Newberg Tire Factory, 2305 Portland Road, Newberg
• Live Report from Brewers Memorial Ale Festival, Newport, from Jim Cline of Rogue Ales
• EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Rick Sellers, Director of Beer, DRAFT Magazine
• Uncapped Brew News
• Quick Poll
• Cigar of the week!
• Order of the Frothy Head Events Calendar
• All the news that’s fit to drink!

Cheers to Lisa and Bruce for bringing us more Beervana culture!

I found this article in my Google News this morning. Gotta share it! The links are below.

Ethanol Made From Brewing Waste To Power Official Cars

DENVER — The Democratic National Convention is going to be fueled by beer. And it’s not just at the parties at the summertime event.
Brewer Molson Coors is donating fuel made mostly out of beer waste for use at the convention.

The Denver 2008 host committee said the beer-based ethanol-gasoline blend will power the official cars. But ethanol isn’t the only thing coming from the Denver-based brewer.

Molson Coors will also provide beer — for drinking — at convention-related events

http://www.wxii12.com/foodnews/16366605/detail.html (this article)
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/may2008/2008-05-22-093.asp (more in depth)
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Top_News/2008/05/22/coors_to_donate_beer-fuel_to_dnc_gathering/7079/

Technorati Tags: beer ethanol green convention politics democrat

At Lola’s on Harrison, Downtown Hollywood, Florida

When: February 26^th thru Sunday March 2^nd, 2008
Where: 2032 Harrison Street, Hollywood FL

Notes:Chef Michael Wagner and the staff at Lola’s on Harrison invites you and your pooch to come and dine with us. In honor of your k-9 counterparts we will be offering housemade doggie treats, doggie beer (non-alcoholic), and doggie prizes. Our doggie theme transends into our weekly beer flight sampler which offers great boutique craft brews like Abita Turbodog, Stoudt’s Fat Dog, Seadog Blueberry, and Dogfish Head 90 Minute. The whole event centers around Thursday February 28^th with Chef Wagner’s Four Course Charity Beer Dinner Featuring Craft Beer from Dogfish Head Brewery. The first two dinners were a huge success, and some items made it to our regular menu permanently! 5% of the proceeds will be donated to the Broward County Humane Society. Seating is limited and reservations are required, however walk-ins will be welcome based on availability. To make your reservations, please call 954-927-9851 after 3pm. **Dining with pets is permitted outside only and therefore is weather dependent.

February 28th Dogfish Head Beer Dinner Menu:

Course One
Big Eye Tuna Carpaccio with Mache Lettuce,
Roasted Serrano-Chili-Lime Vinaigrette
PAIRED WITH Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA

Course Two

Green Peppercorn Crusted Duck Breast with Golden Raisin Potato Pancakes and Red Current Apple Sauce PAIRED WITH Dogfish Head Raison De’tre

Course Three

India Brown Ale Braised Beef Shank with Creamy Grits and Ginger-Orange Gremolata PAIRED WITH Dogfish Head India Brown Ale

Course Four

Fresh Grape Pie topped with Rolled Oats and Brown Sugar Served with Honey Ice Cream PAIRED WITH Dogfish Head Midas Touch

**Dinner is served from 5-10pm Tues, Wed, Thurs, Sun and from 5-11:00pm Fri, Sat, and for all special menu events. Ample free parking is available behind the restaurant. All major credit cards accepted. Please call for catering and private event information (954) 927-9851

THERE will be something different in the air in Caerphilly next week when Tom Newman starts brewing the town’s first beer in 100 years.

The smell of hops may have been absent for a century but Tom hopes his beer will soon put the town on the brewing map.

Tom has returned to his Welsh roots after relocating his brewery from Somerset and branching out under a new name – The Celt Experience.

Under the new banner, Tom will start brewing his latest creations based on historic Celtic brewing methods.

The first brews of Celt Golden and Celt Bronze are expected to take place on Friday.

When production is up and running around 11,000 pints a day will be barreled and sent out to free houses throughout Wales.

Tom will also continue brewing his other ales, including Wolvers Ale, which won an award in the Winter Beer Festival in Manchester. He started brewing under the name Newman’s Brewery in his garage in Yatton, Somerset, and now his beers are available in 40 pubs in the area.

His £250,000 venture and relocation has been made possible with grants from the Welsh Assembly and Caerphilly County Council.

Tom, 32, who lives in Whitchurch, Cardiff, with his wife Becky and two young children, said his plan had always been to brew Welsh ale for a Welsh market after a few years experience in Somerset.

“All my family are from Nantgarw so it wasn’t the case of why should we move back to Wales but why did we go to Somerset? Becky’s from there and we started the business there but it was always the plan to start a business in South Wales.

“It’s been a bit strange for me coming back to an area I knew from such a young age.

“Everybody talks to me about my dad, uncle and family. It’s quite nice but yes, it’s strange.”

Contractors are currently putting the finishing touches to the brewery based at the old Hill’s factory unit which will employ four people including his wife Becky on a part-time basis.

Tom is planning to brew a lager in the new year and hopes to bottle his creations by March.

He also intends to double his staff by the end of next year.

–Wendy Horton
wendyhorton@mediawales.co.uk.co.uk

December 1, 2007 - From: icWales.co.uk

September 17th was the big day for the 1st brew at Hopworks Urban Brewery aka the HUB. Christian Ettinger formerly of Laurelwood Brewing Company was joined by Ben Love, his assistant brewer at Hopworks Urban Brewery for the big day. Christian’s family was there too, son Jules and his mamma Brandie. It’s definitely a family affair! There are some great pics on their Blog page. Check it out here: (Permalink to Hopworks inaugural brew- September 17, 2007  blog entry)

Hopworks Urban Brewery is going to be a magnificent place. It is a huge 3 level endeavor in SE Portland, Oregon with plenty of festival space out back. Interestingly laid out on the property, the front door to what will be to the pub enters on the street level on SE Powell-the second level. Go around back and you’ll enter the brewery below the pub-the first level! There is also a loft above the pub. Some months back Christian and Ben told me that they’ve planned seating and a game area up in the loft. There will be decks overlooking the southern view off of the pub, a large wrap around bar and even an old walk in safe that is being preserved for use as a private booth.  

This pub will have an under 21 area so that families can commune over ORGANIC brews AND sodas. The loft and other areas will be over 21 only. This is brilliant thinking. It can be tough for parents with kids to find a place to have exceptional brews without ditching their kids. At the same time, when out with adults to enjoy adult conversation and fine craft brew you sometimes would rather pass on the cacophony that children having fun can create. HUB will provide for both of these occasions/groups.

Christian mentioned that he had already been speaking with the Oregon Brewers Guild about hosting festivals at the HUB. So keep an eye and ear out for the happenings at the HUB.

Technorati Tags: Hopworks Urban Brewery, HUB, Christian Ettinger, Ben Love, Organic Beer, Craft Brew, Craft Brew Cast, Oregon Brewers Guild, S.N.O.B.

Craft Brew Cast Shows

Hopworks Urban Brewery

Oregon Brewers Guild

Originally posted August 9, 2007

It seems Comcast has worked things out, and the podcast does play thru iTunes! You can also successfully download the file and it will play just fine too. They player on my home page isn’t playing the lasted episode yet. I’ll continue to work on getting the site player to work. But don’t wait for that, download or subscribe today! - Christine