Come on, Disney (now owner of Lucasfilm)... can't you just be nice for once?
It seems that Empire Brewing Co. in Syracuse, New York, went to get a trademark for a beer they've been brewing for 7 years called 'Strikes Bock', but Lucasfilm is opposed to it!
This strikes a nerve with me because Disney had Twitter take away my original Twitter account name (@TheLionKing) by saying that I said disparaging things about The Lion King (which anyone who knows me would tell you that I would never do). So, Twitter gave me this name instead (@TheLionKing_) which was a HUGE difference!
I'm backing the Rebels (of Empire Brewing Co.) in this fight with the evil empire of Lucasfilm/Disney!!!
Looks like if you were waiting to get tickets for Saturday's session at the Michigan Brewers Guild Detroit Fall Beer Festival, you're out of luck! Tickets are SOLD OUT! Tickets for Friday's session is still available, but may go fast now! Go get them from HERE!
(Note: I've been to enough of these to know that some people will try to sell their extra tickets at the gate. Also, some people will try to sell extras online, but watch out for scalpers... those tickets will probably be disabled/confiscated.)
Also, they have posted the program online in PDF format for your researching purposes. Get a copy of it from this page - link on the right side.
I got my ticket ready for Saturday... See you there!
(Note to anyone from the Michigan Brewers Guild - This blogger [read as: MEDIA] would appreciate info on getting credentials for Friday's session PLEASE!!!)
I don't know how I missed it, but the opening of HopCat Detroit, scheduled for November 15th, has been postponed until 11AM on December 13, 2014 (11-12-13-14).
The Brewer's Association just announced the winners from the GABF 2014 (Great American Beer Festival), which was held in Denver, Colorado on October 2-4, 2014. Hopefully they double-checked their math and clerical entries before making the announcements!!! The press release is below...
234 BREWERIES CELEBRATE MEDALS AT 2014 GREAT AMERICAN BEER FESTIVAL®
268 Professional Medals Awarded, 461 First-Time Participants Compete
Boulder, CO • October 4, 2014—The 2014 Great American Beer Festival (GABF) competition awarded 268 medals to some of the best commercial breweries in the United States, plus three GABF Pro-Am medals. Presented by the Brewers Association, GABF is the largest commercial beer competition in the world and a symbol of brewing excellence. In its 28th year, the 2014 competition surpassed all previous participation records.
To accommodate growth, this year’s GABF competition saw its biggest panel of judges ever, with 222 beer experts from 10 countries evaluating 5,507 commercial entries, plus 89 Pro-Am entries, with assistance from some 150 competition volunteers. Award-winning brewers received prestigious gold, silver and bronze medals in 90 beer categories covering 145 different beer styles (encompassing subcategories), establishing the best examples of each style in the U.S. Winners were chosen from 5,507 competition entries (16 percent more than in 2013) from 1,309 breweries, hailing from 50 states plus Washington, D.C.
2014 Brewery and Brewer of the Year AwardsVery Small Brewing Company and Very Small Brewing Company Brewer of the Year Sponsored by Brewers Supply Group (BSG)
Draught Works
Draught Works Brew Team
Small Brewing Company and Small Brewing Company Brewer of the Year Sponsored by O-I
Marble Brewery
Team Marble
Mid-Size Brewing Company and Mid-Size Brewing Company Brewer of the Year Sponsored by Microstar Keg Management
Devils Backbone Brewing Co.—Outpost
DB Brewery Team
Large Brewing Company and Large Brewing Company Brewer of the Year Sponsored by Beer Institute
AC Golden
AC Golden Brewing Team
Small Brewpub and Small Brewpub Brewer of the Year Sponsored by Briess Malt & Ingredients Co.
Bastone Brewery
Rockne Van Meter
Mid-Size Brewpub of the Year Sponsored by Brewers Supply Group (BSG)
Brasserie Saint James
Josh Watterson & Matt Watterson
Large Brewpub and Large Brewpub Brewer of the Year Sponsored by Country Malt Group
Fifty-two first-time entering breweries won awards.
Four breweries tied for most medals won, with three medals each:
10 Barrel Brewing Co.
Barley Brown’s Brew Pub
Devils Backbone Brewing Co.–Outpost
Left Hand Brewing Co.
Top three states by ratio of medals to entries by state:
New Jersey: 19% with 16 entries and three medals
Alaska: 13% with 16 entries and two medals – tied with – District of Columbia: 13% with 8 entries and one medal
New Mexico: 10% with 84 entries and eight medals
Style Categories
Since 2002, the most-entered category has been American-Style India Pale Ale (IPA), which saw 279 entries in 2014. The top five entered categories were:
American-Style India Pale Ale (279 entries)
Herb and Spice Beer (150 entries)
American-Style Pale Ale (145 entries)
American-Style Amber/Red Ale (140 entries)
Imperial India Pale Ale (135 entries)
The winners in the most-entered (that is, the most competitive) categories were:
Bronze: Coastal Empire Beer Co., Dawn Patrol Breakfast Stout
3. American-Style Pale Ale (145 entries)
Gold: Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits– Sripps Ranch, Grunion
Silver: Peekskill Brewery, NYPA
Bronze: Tampa Bay Brewing Co., Reef Donkey APA
4. American-Style Amber/Red Ale (140 entries)
Gold: Canteen Brew House, Dougie Style Amber Ale
Silver: Capitol City Brewing Co., Amber Waves Ale
Bronze: Bootlegger’s Brewery, Rocco Red Ale
5. Imperial India Pale Ale (135 entries)
Gold: Columbus Brewing Co., Creeper
Silver: Port Brewing Co., Hop 15
Bronze: Russian River Brewing Co., Pliny the Elder
The 2014 GABF competition featured three new categories: Belgian-Style Fruit Beer, with 41 entries; Historical Beer, with 12 entries; and Kuyt Beer, which had no entries. There were two categories in which one of the three possible medals was not awarded:
English-Style Brown Ale (67 entries): no silver medal
Golden or Blonde Ale (90 entries): no gold medal
2014 Great American Beer Festival Pro-Am Competition Sponsored by Briess Malt & Ingredients Co., Country Malt Group, Hopunion and White Labs
Gold, silver and bronze medals were also awarded in the GABF Pro-Am competition, which pairs amateur brewers with professional brewers, who scale up the award-winning homebrew recipes. The medal winners, including the winning professional brewers and American Homebrewers Association (AHA) member homebrewers are: Gold: Bonnie Prince Charlie’s Scottish 80 Shilling, Bear Republic Brewing Co. Brewmaster: Team Bear Republic / Richard Norgrove, and AHA Member Michael Kelly Silver: Spencer Pale Ale, Kokopelli Beer Co. Brewmaster: Kokopelli Brew Crew, and AHA Member Daniel Christensen Bronze: I Wanna Rauch!, Springfield Brewing Co. Brewmaster: Ashton Lewis & Bruce Johnson, and AHA member Keith Wallis
Summary: 2014 Great American Beer Festival Statistics
710 breweries in the festival hall
More than 3,500 beers served at the festival
49,000 attendees
More than 3,200 volunteers
1,309 breweries in the competition from 50 states plus Washington, D.C.
5,507 beers judged (not including 89 Pro-Am competition entries), a 16 percent increase over 2013
90 style categories judged, plus the Pro-Am competition
222 judges from 10 countries
Average number of competition beers entered in each category: 61.2 (excludes Pro-Am beers)
Category with highest number of entries: American-Style India Pale Ale: 279
2014 Great American Beer Festival Official Sponsors
Carhartt
DRAFT Magazine
Microstar Keg Management
Snyder’s of Hanover
KBCO 97.3
103.5 The FOX
850KOA
CraftBeer.com
Additional GABF sponsors are recognized on the festival website.
Contact
Barbara Fusco, Sales & Marketing Director 303.447.0816 x152
About the Brewers Association The Brewers Association is the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American brewers, their beers and the community of brewing enthusiasts. The Brewers Association (BA) represents more than 75 percent of the brewing industry, and its members make more than 99 percent of the beer brewed in the U.S. The BA organizes events including the World Beer Cup®, Great American Beer Festival®, Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America®, SAVOR℠: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience and American Craft Beer Week®. The BA publishes The New Brewer magazine and its Brewers Publications division is the largest publisher of contemporary and relevant brewing literature for today’s craft brewers and homebrewers. Beer lovers are invited to learn more about the dynamic world of craft beer at CraftBeer.com and about homebrewing via the BA’s American Homebrewers Association. Follow us on Twitter. The Brewers Association is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital/familial status. The BA complies with provisions of Executive Order 11246 and the rules, regulations, and relevant orders of the Secretary of Labor.
Thank you Dianna Stampfler from Promote Michigan (Facebook, Twitter) for this information and great news! More great Michigan Craft Beer to come to Midtown Detroit (along with Hop Cat).
(DEXTER, Mich) – Jolly Pumpkin has announced it will be opening a location in Midtown Detroit in early 2015. The 5000-square-foot space at 441 Canfield will serve all the craft beers, distilled spirits and wines available through the Northern United Brewing Company brand – including North Peak Beer, Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, Civilized Spirits and Bonafide Wines, as well as an eclectic pub fare menu.
“We are very excited to be opening Jolly Pumpkin Detroit and becoming part of this incredible neighborhood. Many have helped us develop this project and we are grateful for their support,” says Tony Grant, partner with Ron Jeffries at Northern United Brewing Company. “Sue Mosey at Midtown has been instrumental, as have Invest Detroit and Comerica Bank.”
“Midtown Detroit, Inc. is thrilled to welcome Jolly Pumpkin into the neighborhood,” says Executive Director Sue Mosey. “Their investment and strong brand will draw in more people to Midtown’s burgeoning retail and restaurant district. Their future location, in the historic Willys Complex, compliments other strong businesses such as Shinola, Willys Detroit, RUNdetroit and the Fellow Barber, creating a walkable block of quality commercial storefronts.”
"We are so excited to come to Midtown Detroit,” says Jeffries. “We look forward to being part of this vibrant beer neighborhood.’”
As with all its locations, Jolly Pumpkin will be working with local suppliers in developing its menu, specifically partnering with Avalon Bakery, McClures Pickles and Calder Dairy. Jolly Pumpkin Detroit menu will offer eclectic pub fare, featuring Jolly Pumpkin pizza, truffle fries along with the full tap house and tasting room beverages of all the Northern United Brewing brands.
Jolly Pumpkin is part of Northern United Brewing Co., which also encompasses the Grizzly Peak and North Peak Beer Co. craft beer brands, as well as Civilized Spirits and Bonafide Wines. NUBC’s philosophy focuses on a dedication to conservation, inspiration and locally-sustainable practices.
Find NUBCo products at stores, restaurants, and bars all throughout Michigan, including: North Peak Brewing Company, Mission Table and Jolly Pumpkin Brewery, all in Traverse City; Jolly Pumpkin and Grizzly Peak, in Ann Arbor.
-end-
PHOTOS AND ARTWORK AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
2319 Bishop Circle East — Dexter, MI 48130 — (734) 426-4962
As part of their Grand Opening on November 15th, they are trying to break a world record: Join us on Nov. 15, 2014 for our world record tap takeover in conjunction with Short's Brewing Co. . Short's is creating more than 100 different kinds of beer to break its own record set in 2013. We'll also give the first 200 people in line (ages 21+) free Crack Fries every week for year and everyone will get a free order of Crack Fries all day. That night we'll host a free concert with the acclaimed Pitch Blak Brass Band in our Upstairs @ HopCat venue. Check out HopCat Detroit's website at http://hopcat.com/detroit I hoping to be there on Opening Day... I hope to see you all there too!
I'm a big supporter of giving any craft brewer a boost no matter who they are, but this group is important. More diverse brewers make for more diverse beverages!
While perusing one of my favorite homebrew forums, HomeBrewTalk.com, I found a thread about an interesting online college course that had started after I read the post:
It was being hosted by the University of Oklahoma, and it was FREE if you're not looking for college credit. I hoped that the course would be run again, and was excited to hear that they were running it again starting on August 18th! I just enrolled in the course!!!
I'm hoping to learn a lot more about the beer making process, and maybe get more comfortable with enrolling in online college courses.
See you all at the Delta House! (TO-GA! TO-GA! TO-GA!)
In less than 15 days, I will head off to Grand Rapids, Michigan, to attend my first National Homebrewers Conference! This is an exciting but hectic time as I've brewed two different beers for my homebrew club, the Motor City Mashers. My first beer is the one that made it to the final round of the National Homebrew Competition, "Rafiki's Raspberry Wheat". My other beer is a true experiment! I was honored to brew a stout at National Homebrew Day (Big Brew 2014 aka Mash Bash 2014) with my friend, Kevin. We each took half of the batch and did something different. I went 'way off the reservation' and added mango! I'm calling it "A Stouting We Mango". It's truly different and unique... I'll post my recipes soon. My beers are in the refrigerator being conditioned and carbonated, which I did this weekend.
As we get closer to the event, I'll post more about what I'm doing and hopefully will be blogging at the event itself. I even hope to have some video and pictures!
I'm so excited, as this is my true passion! This will be what I hope is the start of many more events like these...
I finally got my two cascade hop rhizomes planted this evening. I was trying to recall an easy way to plant hop rhizomes, so off to Google I went... and found a quick video on YouTube on how a hop farm does it.
Tonight, I moved the stout that my brew partner Kevin and I made on National Homebrew Day (Mash Bash 2014) at Adventures in Homebrewing (Taylor) from the primary to the secondary fermentor... where I added a little over 5.5 pounds of mango! The FG (final gravity) looks to be spot on!
I also had the honor of 'assisting' my wife, Jennifer (aka SWMBO - She Who Must Be Obeyed), in brewing her second beer. Her first beer (made last year) was the St. Patty's Irish Stout, so this year, she brewed up the Genius Stout. Her first beer was a huge hit, and I think that this one will be just as good!
Why? Because I like beer! I like to drink it, and I LOVE to brew it!
My goal for this blog is to take my passion and share it with the world. I want to do product reviews, book reviews, recipes, stories, beer tastings and anything else I can do, but only about beer.
