Today's Top Beer Stories
September Beer Festivals
Flying Dog Releases The Hounds of Dogtoberfest(August 29) - Dogtoberfest is our annual fall tribute to one of the greatest beer traditions in the entire world, Oktoberfest. Complete Story
Asheville’s Highland Brewing to produce home brewer’s contest-winning cream ale(August 29) - North Carolina - In a few weeks, Highland will deliver its most limited brew yet — nectar called Schenk’s Cream Ale. Complete Story
Review - Firth Of Forth Ale(August 29) - Tart cherry or grapes, bread crust, bitter hops, and finishes with something similar to an Amarillo hop. After a few more sips, I found small notes of chocolate up front. Complete Story
Pyramid Breweries sells 85% of shares to Magic Hat(Aug 27) - Seattle - Magic Hat's parent company paid $2.75 in cash for each share of Pyramid, which last traded at $2.73 on Friday. It will buy the remaining shares at the same price per share, and will no longer be traded on Nasdaq, Pyramid's filing said. Complete Story
Beer of the Month: Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse(Aug 27) - Chicago - Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse is one of the first and one of the best to put in those tall glasses, but skip the lemon and enjoy the natural, classic banana-clove aromas that its special yeast imparts. Complete Story
If There's One Thing Investors Like, It's Cheap Beer(Aug 27) - Forbes - The threat of higher costs and declining consumer confidence failed to deter investors in Heineken on Wednesday, after the Dutch brewer's stock looked oversold. Complete Story
Wynkoop Brewing presents "The Obamanator"!(August 26) - Colorado - The Wynkoop Brewing Company ("Denver's First Brewpub") has taken the groundbreaking step that no business has ever considered implementing before, and taken advantage of the Democratic National Convention. Their new brew, "The Obamanator," utilizes dry hops in a German maibock lager style. Complete Story
Beer ads undermine campus efforts(August 26) - Boston - THE DRIVE by college presidents to drop the campus drinking age could be taken more seriously if these leaders stopped bingeing on beer ads. Complete Story
Craft brewers to strut their stuff at Slow Food expo(August 26) - California - If you like great beer, the only place to be this weekend is the Slow Food Nation Taste Pavilion. Beer, the real stuff, brewed with love and tender care and great creativity, is one of the original slow foods. Complete Story
Cape Cod escapade. Beer in the USA(August 25) - Examiner - Cape Cod Brewery, Hyannis, Massachusetts is one of America’s independent family owned breweries. They don’t make a tremendous assortment of beer, but the ones they make, IPA, Summer Wheat and Red Ale are quality brews on tap at the community restaurants supporting them throughout the Cape. Complete Story
Beer kegs become hot commodity for thieves(August 25) - USAToday - Across the country, crooks are snatching stainless steel kegs in alleyways behind bars and breweries or not returning them after keggers to sell for scrap metal. Complete Story
Colorado's Telluride Festival Combines Beer and the Blues(August 25) - ABCNews - Beer, music and mountain scenery: That's what you'll find at the Telluride Blues & Brews Festival, Sept. 12-14, in the historic Colorado town in the San Juan Mountains. Complete Story
Palisade Brewery enjoys growth, hopes to expand(August 24) - Colorado - Palisade Brewery is looking to complete a $100,000 expansion, adding indoor seating for the winter months, doubling the size of its kitchen, making its own Oktoberfest brew and turning some soda flavors into ice cream. Complete Story
Left Hand Releases Two Seasonal Beers(August 22) - Colorado - Named after the Twin Sisters peaks in nearby Rocky Mountain National Park, Twin Sisters Double IPA is a literal hop farm, grabbing your nose up front with its sweet piney and citrusy aromas. Complete Story
Flying Dog's Belgian-style Woody Creek White impresses(August 22) - Colorado - A new seasonal Belgian-style white beer from Flying Dog Brewery in Colorado and named for a well-known bar in Aspen. Complete Story
Jessica Simpson Now Owns Her Own Beer(August 21) - Jessica Simpson has bought a piece of Stampede Brewing Co. In return, the company will make Simpson the face of one of their most interesting products - Stampede Light Plus - which has vitamins. Complete Story
Brew-It-Yourself(August 21) - Kansas - A typical Friday night for many KU students begins with a trip to the liquor store, though some students and faculty have taken drinking into their own hands. Complete Story
New York beer festival features over 100 breweries(August 21) - USAToday - More than 100 breweries will be offering samples of their craft beers at the third annual NY Brewfest, scheduled for Sept. 12 at South Street Seaport (piers 16 and 17) from 5 p.m.-10 p.m. Complete Story
Bavaria - The "Green" Brewery(August 20) - California - World Brews has partnered with Bavaria, one of Europe's most energy efficient breweries, to be the exclusive US importer of its award-winning portfolio of beers that includes Bavaria, Bavaria Light, and Hollandia. Complete Story
Olympic thirst boosts China beer (August 20) - China - Chinese brewer Tsingtao has reported that half-year profits jumped 42% helped by added publicity due to its 2008 Beijing Olympics sponsorship. Complete Story
Smuttynose welcomed to Towle Farm(August 19) - Smuttynose Brewing Company President Peter Egelston closed on the property at Towle Farm Road on Friday, Aug. 15. The house and barn on the property are the original structures the Towle family occupied through most of the 1800s and 1900s. Complete Story
Small breweries continue Hawaii’s rich beer tradition(August 19) - Honolulu had its own beer war between two local breweries. Primo was a popular local beer with a brewery on Cooke Street. About the same time and practically around the corner, the Chun family built a red brick brewery on Queen Street and bottled Royal Beer with a monarchial label of gold and yellow. Complete Story
Three Creeks Brewing Co. opens its doors(August 18)- Oregon - Three Creeks is brewery No. 7 in Central Oregon. It joins Bend Brewing Co., Cascade Lakes Brewing Co., Deschutes Brewery, McMenamins, Silver Moon Brewing Co. and Wildfire Brewing Co. All are based in Bend except Cascade Lakes, which is based in Redmond. Complete Story
Or How About Olympic Beer Pong?(August 18)- TheDay - In Beer Pong, you drink. In sailing, you drink, at least based on spies who attended the national championships at Niantic Bay Yacht Club this week, who saw many of the participants more than willing to partake in the euphoric nectar. Complete Story
The beers of our fathers are back in fashion(August 18)- San Diego - A few years back, PBR started showing up in yuppie bars, right next to India pale ales and rich stouts. It suddenly became cool and hip and fashionable to drink what was once considered anything but cool and hip and fashionable. It was, um, Pabst. Complete Story
Montana Brewing: More Medals Than Any Other Montana Brewery(August 16) - Instead of a small brewery with a small taproom, which is the case with most Montana breweries, Montana Brewing is three businesses in one--a microbrewery, restaurant and sports bar, all separated but connected, right in downtown Billings. Complete Story
Try a beer with hop to celebrate Olympics(August 15) - Colorado - So what better way to celebrate the Olympics than with a brew that hails to both of these traditions? Eugene City Brewery’s Track Town 200 meter IPA is that beer. Complete Story
Beer goggles theory proven true(August 14) - Australia - A few stiff drinks really does make other people appear more attractive, according to researchers who say the alcohol makes us think about sex. Complete Story
Beer Of The Week-Atlas India Pale Ale(August 14) - Tulsa - With a nice, lasting head and a rich copper color, this beer strikes a good balance between the malt and hops, making it a smooth, mellow pale ale that's extremely drinkable. Try it because it's local. Drink it because it's good. Complete Story
Mid-Michigan Beer & Music Festival(August 14) - Michigan - While entertainment tents abound at area festivals, Bay City will offer a more ''sophisticated'' choice for beer connoisseurs this weekend. Complete Story
Schmaltz Coney Island Lagers - Freaking delicious(August 13) The labels of Schmaltz’s Coney Island Lager series are emblazoned with paintings of real-life sideshow freaks from Brooklyn’s faded seaside mecca. Complete Story
Deschutes Brewery Releases Wildest Brew Yet, The Dissident(August 12) - Beeradvocate - After much anticipation, Deschutes Brewery is proud to introduce its wildest brew yet - The Dissident. Arguing for more time in the cellar, this Reserve Series beer is anything but conventional. Complete Story
Odell Brewing Co. plans for specialty beers(August 12) - Colorado - Odell Brewing Co. plans to grow its niche of specialty beers as part of a brewery expansion at its plant, 800 E. Lincoln Ave. Complete Story
Tapping nostalgia for Schlitz(August 11) - Milwaukee - Schlitz's owner, Pabst Brewing Co., is re-creating the old formula, using notes and interviews with old brew masters to concoct the pilsner again. The maker of another nostalgic favorite, Pabst Blue Ribbon, it hopes baby boomers will reach for the drink of their youth, otherwise known as "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous." Complete Story
Odell Brewing Releases Woodcut No. 1 Oak Aged Ale(August 10) - Colorado - On August 18, 2008 Odell Brewing Company of Fort Collins, Colorado will release its Woodcut No. 1, the first in its Woodcut series of barrel-aged beers. Complete Story
Meet the new King of Beers(August 9) - Fortune - In the beer industry, the merger leaves Boston Beer as the country's largest, independent, publicly-traded brewery. Complete Story
BREWER BIO: Larry Bell of Bell's Brewery Inc. in Kalamazoo(August 9) - Michigan - Larry Bell, president of Bell's Brewery Inc., sat down with KalamaBrew at the Bell's Eccentric Cafe to talk about how he got started. Complete Story
Fort Collins Brewery building bigger digs(August 9) - Colorado - Fort Collins Brewery will more than double its capacity when it builds a new $5 million brewery, upscale restaurant, lofts and commercial space at the northwest corner of Lincoln and Lemay. Complete Story
Special beer for USS New Hampshire submarine: Granite Ghost Ale(August 9) - Portsmouth - With all the hoopla assured to come with the USS New Hampshire commissioning ceremonies in October, the event will even have its own celebratory drink. Smuttynose Brewing Co. will release Granite Ghost Ale in early September. Complete Story
Americans Are Drinking Less Beer — How About You?(August 9) - California - In a recent study conducted over a 50-year span, scientists discovered that people's drinking habits have changed in the US. According to the new study published in the American Journal of Medicine, Americans drink less beer and more wine. Complete Story
Keith says 'Beer' movie set was all business(August 8) - Tennessee - One could only imagine the pickin' party they could have thrown on the back lot of Toby Keith's new movie, "Beer for My Horses." Complete Story
What's on Tap: Ommegeddon 2008 is better than good(August 7) - California - It was like that this week when I popped the cork on a big 750 ml. bottle of Ommegeddon 2008 HHHH from Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown, N.Y. Wow! It's our Beer of the Week and easily one of the best I've sampled this year. Complete Story
1554 Enlightened Black Ale(August 7) - Wisconsin - 1554 is a true original. It doesn’t taste like a German black or dark beer, or any Belgian beer I’ve had. It treads its own path in the beer world, which is no small feat in an era where thousands of beers are available. Complete Story
The Lamar Street Organic Pale Ale is happy, not just hoppy(August 6) - South Carolina - These days, you can’t walk through a grocery store without seeing the words “organic” splashed somewhere on some product. Complete Story
Deschutes Black Butte XX and More(August 4) - Seattle - Deschutes recently released the Black Butte XX, an imperial version of their popular Black Butte Porter that was brewed for their 20th anniversary. It is made with coffee, cocoa nibs (from Theo), and was aged in bourbon oak barrels. Complete Story
AB deal means Boulevard Brewing is No. 1 in state(August 4) - Missouri - Once Belgium-based brewer InBev completes its $52 billion purchase of Anheuser-Busch, Boulevard would take over the No. 1 slot in Missouri brewers. Complete Story
Schell's brewery great with tourists(August 3) - Minnesota - Dick Wilbrecht, a New Ulm native, likes to start at the beginning, as in 1860, the year August Schell first started making beer below the bluffs of the Cottonwood River. Complete Story
Craft beers faring well despite economy(August 3) - Wisconsin - Beer is supposedly one of those Joe Lunchbox products that people continue to buy even when the economy is tanking.But that doesn't necessarily hold up when you're selling a six-pack of Capital Brewery Wisconsin Amber for around $7.50, instead of Miller High Life for about three bucks less. Complete Story
Leinenkugel's adds new seasonal beer(August 2) - Wisconsin - Specialty beer maker Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. said Friday that it will introduce a new seasonal beer in November -- Leinenkugel’s Fireside Nut Brown. Complete Story
"Beer of the Week:" Harpoon IPA(August 2) - Chicago - The focus this week is on Harpoon's India Pale Ale, which is a lighter version of the style. That lightness can be attributed to the Cascade hops used for brewing. The spice imparted from Cascade hops tends to be brighter than with other varietals and also give off floral aromas. Complete Story
Beers with more alcohol, flavor gain market share(August 2) - NY Times - Tucked in a corner at the Deschutes Brewery, barrels that once aged fine wines and whiskeys are nurturing beverages that are challenging drinkers to think of beer more like wine. Complete Story
Organic beer is a natural fit for Elliott Bay Brewing(August 1) - Seattle - Seattle finally has an organic beer to call its own. Elliott Bay Brewing, which has breweries and pubs in West Seattle and Burien, learned last week that a dozen of its beers have been certified organic by the state Department of Agriculture. Complete Story
Sierra Nevada Introduces Estate-Grown Hops IN Chico Estate Harvest Ale(August 1) - Beer Advocate - Fresh from the field to the glass with no stops along the way. With the third installment of Sierra Nevada's Harvest Ale Series, they introduce a beer that is close to the brewery's heart. Chico Estate Harvest Ale is a beer made with hops grown just feet from the brew house. Complete Story
Bell's beer headed back to Chicago(August 1) - Illinois - Bell's Brewery Inc. beers are headed back to the Windy City nearly two years after the company pulled its brands out of the Chicago market following a nasty dispute with a distributor. Complete Story
History of "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous"(August 1) - CNNMoney - A look at the history of Schlitz beer: 1849: German immigrant August Krug opens a small restaurant and tavern in Milwaukee, begins to brew beer and turns it into a brewery. Complete Story
