What is a Craft Beer?
Craft Beer is an American term which is also common in Canada and New Zealand
and generally refers to beer that is brewed using traditional methods, without
adjuncts such as rice or corn, and with an eye to what's distinctive and
flavorful rather than mass appeal,
What is a Craft Brewery?
An American craft brewer is small, independent and traditional. Small: Annual
production of beer less than 2 million barrels. Independent: Less than 25% of
the craft brewery is owned or controlled by an alcoholic beverage industry
member who is not themselves a craft brewer.
Beer Info - Brews News Service plus Craft Beer and Homebrew Library
U.S. Craft Beer Brewers
Thrive, Despite Small Share Of The Market(May 20) - It's a good time to
brew beer in America. According to beer expert Julia Herz, U.S. brewing
isn't just on the upswing, it's on top. "We're now the No. 1 destination for
beer, based on diversity and amount of beers," she says. But if you want to
see the strength of America's beer industry, you may want to look past
beverage giants like Anheuser-Busch and MillerCoors. According to the
Brewers Association, nearly 2,000 American brewers operated during 2011.
Complete Story
Beer of the Day - The
Curl
Short's Brewing - Bellaire,
Michigan
Asheville and Grand Rapids
Tie for 2012 Beer City USA Title(May 19) - Voting for the annual
BeerCity USA poll is over. From the start it was clear that communities from
several areas of the United States intended to make a run for winning the
honor of becoming 2012 BeerCity USA. Facebook, Twitter, other community
networks and local media were active throughout the 13-day polling period.
With 55,926 votes cast for 31 different cities the results clearly indicated
that both Asheville, North Carolina and Grand Rapids topped the poll with a
statistical tie.
Complete Story
Lake Barrington's Wild
Onion Brewing Co. Plants Hop Farm(May 18) - Lake Barrington’s finest
brewing company named after the native meaning of Chicago, The Wild Onion
Brewing Co., is thrilled to announce that it will be planting four different
hop varieties this spring.
Complete Story
Craft Brewery of the Week:
Boom Island Brewing Company(May 17) - I had been brewing at home for
about 11 years. In 2005, my wife and I moved to her hometown in China. I
taught her dad to brew while we lived there and we brewed an awful lot of
beer. We started dabbling with the idea of opening this microbrewery. The
following year, we moved back to the U.S. and really started brainstorming. I had fallen in love with Belgian beer in the
very first year I was homebrewing, just based on the completely different
concept of flavor profiles and layering of different flavors beyond just the
malt and the hops.
Complete Story
Governor signs craft
brewery bills in Virginia(May 16) - Gov. Bob McDonnell on Tuesday signed
two bills that will positively influence the way Virginia craft beer
breweries do business. House Bill 359 will allow manufactures to lease space
in their breweries to small-scale brewers, and Senate Bill 604 will allow
retail sales and sampling on premises at Virginia breweries. The governor
signed the legislation at the Hardwood Park Craft Brewery.
Complete Story
Happy American Craft Beer
Week!(May 15) - Craft breweries in all 50 states have been busy planning
special events for American Craft Beer Week (ACBW) and now it's your turn to
celebrate the remarkable and most diverse craft beer culture America has
ever seen. Find an event in your area using the official event calendar or
this cool map, and get ready to celebrate the accomplishments of
America's small and independent craft brewers during "The Mother of All Beer
Weeks," May 14-20, 2012.
Craft Beer Event Map
Double Barrel Brewery to
open in Cincinnati(May 14) - Three friends are set to open a new brewery
in Linwood this summer, Lisa Wakeland of the Community Press reports: The
reason Charles Boucher and two friends started Double Barrel Brewery is
simple. “Because we like beer,” Boucher said. Boucher, of Anderson Township,
along with fellow founders Sean Smith, of Anderson Township, and Greg Brown,
of Hyde Park, have spent nearly a year renovating a former machine shop at
4720 Eastern Ave. in Linwood.
Complete Story
Firestone Walker brews up a
win once again at World Beer Cup(May 10) - Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
was named Champion Mid-Size Brewery and Brewmaster for a record fourth time
at the World Beer Cup earlier this month, continuing its strong showing at
national and international brew contests. The Paso Robles-based craft
brewery and its brewmaster, Matt Brynildson, previously earned the
distinction in 2004, 2006 and 2010 at the Brewers Association's biannual
competition.
Complete Story
Craft Brewery of the Week:
Lucid Brewing(May 9) - For our first Microbrewery of the Week, we sat
down with Lucid Brewing's co-founders Eric Biermann and Jon Messier at their
brewery in Minnetonka. How did your brewery come to be? Originally, Jon and
I were working on the same plan but just didn't really know each other was.
I was working on it for quite a few years, homebrewed for what seems like
forever.
Complete Story
2012 World Beer Cup Medal
Winners Announced(May 6) - Brewers from around the world received awards
from an elite international panel of judges in the 2012 Brewers Association
World Beer Cup. The ninth bi-annual competition boasted the strongest field
of entrants on record, with 799 breweries from 54 countries and 45 U.S.
states entering 3,921 beers in 95 beer style categories. A 17.7 percent
increase over 2010, the entries were eligible for gold, silver and bronze
awards.
Complete Story
Elysian Brewing “Peste”: My
Brew Heaven!(May 4) - Peste is HOT – and I do not mean that in any kind
of metaphorical sense. Peste will make you sweat, just like a good bowl of
Jambalaya will. Peste is a beer about the flat-damned wonderful interplay of
a list of infusions which could have easily been a complete train wreck. IF
the chilis had overwhelmed the chocolate…IF the burn and chocolate murk was
not brilliantly relieved by the sweet, floral cinnamon…
Complete Story
Oskar Blues brewery North
Carolina-bound(May 3) - New Belgium Brewing Co. and Sierra Nevada
Brewing Co., two of the nation's largest craft brewers, have already
announced they plan to open breweries in North Carolina., Now Longmont-based
Oskar Blues will open a new brewery in Brevard, N.C. The brewery, which had
previously eyed Fort Collins for a second location, announced plans to open
a new brewery, restaurant and live music venue by the end of the year.
Complete Story
Mississippi law allows
brewers to make stronger beer(May 2) - Gov. Phil Bryant has signed a
bill into law allowing the manufacture of stronger beer to be sold outside
the state. The law, signed Tuesday, allows state breweries to sell beer with
more than 8 percent alcohol by weight to states that allow sales of stronger
beer. Mississippi only has one brewery, Lazy Magnolia in Kiln. Owners say
the new law will allow them to both expand their offerings.
