First STAG poll in the books

Thanks to the easy to use Blogger poll widget, I ran my first STAG poll this week: "What do you like most on STAG?" The answers weren't really all that surprising.


With 45 people voting, the most popular selection, at 46% with 21 votes was Newsy Stuff: openings, closings, new beers, and the like. Next was Trip Stories, at 10 votes, for 22%. Tasting notes just edged out SBP notes, 6 votes to 5 votes, at 13% and 11%. Penderyn brought up the rear: only 3 votes were for pictures of my dog (and one of the votes was my daughter).

So what? Nothing, really, just for fun. But it is about how the posts work out, roughly, so I hope most of you are happy.

Democrats Don't Get It; Any Republicans?

Choose Responsibility has a YouTube video link up at their blog, a clip of the Democratic presidential candidate debate at Dartmouth last night, where a mother of two asked if any of them would back removing the federal mandate for a 21 LDA, which she believes to be counter-productive. Joe Biden led the very disappointing responses by bloviating about drunk driving deaths, alcoholism, and fetal alcohol syndrome...all of which really have nothing to do with the 21 LDA. Chris Dodd and Bill Richardson fell over themselves to agree, dismissing the very idea of lowering the LDA, or giving that power back to the states (because that, after all, was what the woman was really asking).

Russert cut to the chase and asked if anyone was in favor of it. Mike Gravel (hell if I knew he was even running) and Dennis Kucinich spoke up, Gravel hitting the popular tagline that's driving the 18 LDA movement -- anyone old enough to fight and die for this country should be able to have a drink -- and Kucinich added that we needed to have confidence in young Americans: drinking age of 18, he said, voting age of 16.

None of them have gotten the depth of Choose Responsibility's position (my position): the 21 LDA does not prevent worse damage from young drinking, it is causing it. Still, it's out there in open national debate, at what is arguably the highest level. I have to see this as an advancement for the cause. And I'll predict that in a wide-open Republican debate, the only candidate who will be in favor of an 18 LDA will be the Texas quasi-libertarian, Ron Paul.

What Does John Know? Blogging, now

I told you about the "What Does John Know" feature we added to the Malt Advocate website. After a couple weeks fight--er, working with doing it through the website software, John's come to his senses and gone to a WebPress-based blog. I think you'll find it a lot easier to read (and search) now, and you can add it to your RSS feed, like I did. Comments may be coming soon, too. Welcome to blogging, John!

Problems with the hops crop: the latest word

David Edgar, one of the earliest members of the Association of Brewers (now the Brewers Association), is, among other things, a rep for HopUnion, Ralph Olson's hop company. He posted the following on the BA Brewers Forum this morning, and gave me permission to copy it here. It's pretty much self-explanatory.

(David writes:)Ralph Olson asked me to post to the Forum to help clarify some of the rumors that have been circulating. Following are my notes from a conversation a few minutes ago with Ralph.

"During the past week the hop industry has seen two fires in the US. Both were kiln fires at hop growers facilities. In both cases only the kilns were affected and the picking machines were left intact. However the structural damage to the growers' facilities would have to be considered major; and there were some hops lost.

There have been rumors of warehouse fires. As of this moment in time there has been no warehouse fire. However, harvest is still underway and everyone is still at a heightened alert status, because this is the time of year for spontaneous combustion.

On a larger note, the world hop supply has been very tight and appears to be getting tighter by the day as the crop comes in smaller and smaller than what was anticipated, worldwide. Because of the world shortage we have temporarily held up on sales until we know for sure what is coming in. And yes, prices are going into the stratosphere, however very little is to be found even at these high prices. We have been overwhelmed with requests.

There will be hops available, however you must keep in mind that it may not be the hop that you normally use. I have been talking about a shortage in the making for the last couple of years. Even though I have stated this, I still am taken aback at how great this shortage appears to be. I also see the potential for this to last for a few years, as so many acres have been pulled out, around the world, due to poor prices in the past."

Which about covers it.

Mike Gerhart Leaves Dogfish Head

Heard from a reader (okay, Dan Bengel, who I'm not sure can actually read...) that Mike Gerhart had left his position as Distillery Manager at Dogfish Head. I checked the Dogfish website and found an ad for the position, so I called the brewery to confirm. Sure enough, Sam Calagione's wife Mariah confirmed that Mike had parted on good terms, citing a desire to work closer to family in upstate NY and Vermont. Best of luck to him; microdistilling is popping in both states, and Mike is certainly a skilled distiller.

Sic Transit Gloria Brewpub, Sic Transit Gloria Philadelphia

Dan Gross reports at the Philadelphia Daily News website that the locked-down Independence brewpub will rapidly become a sports bar, confirming what Uncle Jack and Don "Joe Sixpack" Russell said at the time of Independence's abrupt closing. The particulars:

THE OWNERS of the Public House (18th & Cherry) will soon open the Field House (1150 Filbert), a giant, high-end sports bar on the site of the former Independence Brew Pub, which closed abruptly last month.
Brian Harrington confirmed yesterday that he and partner Gary Cardi signed a lease last week on the property and are hoping for a Nov. 15 opening.
They're going for a similar American fare menu to their popular Public House, and Harrington says "it's not your onion rings and frozen appetizers type of place." The bar will have a raw bar and the pair hope to attract conventioneers as well as catering to a local crowd.

Sigh. I guess I should be happy it's at least a local "giant, high-end sports bar", and not another damned ESPN Zone.

But you know? I'm not. I'm still pissed that this great site for a brewpub never reached its full potential. I blame Jim Bell and his pissing contest business tactics, I blame the Dock Street management folks for not committing immediately to the brewery expansion that was desperately needed, and I blame the following owners for their constant announcements of big changes right around the bend that somehow just never occurred. I blame the beer geeks who could never see past the Guinness and Miller Lite taps to give this brewery-handicapped place a fair chance and support the beers that Tim Roberts did such a great job brewing.

Nodding Head's great, Triumph is excellent, and although Manayunk suffers from the same beer confusion Indy did -- I just got a press release about a Corona event there -- there's still damned good beer being made there. (Whoops. Forgot Dock Street. Sorry, haven't had a chance to get there since it opened!) But where the hell are all the brewpubs that should be in this town?

You'd think that with the big Belgian jones this town obviously has -- Bridgid's, Monk's, Eulogy, Abbaye, Zot, the brand-new Belgian Cafe and the Beneluxx Tasting Room -- that a Belgian-beer brewpub like Brewer's Art would be up and running... Anyone? Anyone? Iron Hill, by God, I love you guys, but why no Philly Iron Hill? Can't be the money, right, they've got a big building fund warchest.

Gordon-Biersch builds big lager palaces like mad in Virginia; does Lagerville USA get one? Nope. I'll tell you what: if I were Dick Yuengling, or one of his daughters (okay, try not to think about that one too visually), I'd open a Yuengling brewpub in Philly. It's a freakin' natural, and done right -- like in the Independence site -- it would kill, and they'd sell even more Lager...and maybe we'd finally see some of those specialty recipes from the old days that they used to tease us about. A game menu for that upstate touch, decor like the brewery taproom, a big giftshop, a big promotional on the first day of deer season...you don't have to pay me for the idea, Dick: it's yours. Free.

But no one does anything. All we do is yap about how great we have it here. Well, you know, it's pretty good. Yeah, yeah, I know, I can get a very wide variety of beers, and there are some excellent bars -- I don't really have any complaints about the places that are here, love 'em -- and there are restaurants with real beer lists. I know that, hell, I've said it too, I've been a big friggin' cheerleader for this town.

But I've also been to both Portlands, I've been to Pittsburgh, I've been to DC, I've been to Madison, I've been to Köln and Düsseldorf, and I'm telling you, we could do better, a lot better, and more people should be saying so. Philadelphia needs more brewpubs to truly be a great beer town.

The floor is open.

Just the coolest damned thing

Check out this event on the Michael Jackson Toast list:

"MESZ in the UERIGE-Hof
Bergerstrasse 1, Dusseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia
Description
On Sunday we want to open a fresh barrel of UERIGE Sticke (Unfiltered, about 2 weeks before Sticke-day) to remember Michael Jackson and his work in Düsseldorf. We start at 8 p.m. MESZ in the UERIGE-Hof, the place where Josef Schnitzler met Michael the first time in the early Eighties."

Now...is that just pretty damned cool, or what?

Elk Creek Cafe & Aleworks: "three in the tanks."

News from Millheim, PA: Elk Creek Cafe & Aleworks is "actually going to happen," Tim Bowser tells me. They've got TTB approval, his brewer, Tim Yarrington, best-known for his award-winning beers at the Long Valley brewpub in NJ, has three beers in the tanks, and the PLCB inspection is on Thursday.

The place looks great, too. Tim sent the picture you see, and said Tim has "turned it into a very sophisticated facility."

Millheim's a long way out there, probably easiest to reach from State College. But it's worth the trip just for the scenery, and it's a cute little town, too. And now...it's got a brewpub. We should have word on the actual opening soon; you'll see it here. Brewpubs springing up in the beautiful rural back-country of Pennsylvania: Spring House, One Guy, Elk Creek, Voodoo, Sprague, North Country, and I hear that someone's re-opened...no, we'll do a separate post for that one. You're just not going to believe it.

Saison Imperiale -- De Proefbrouwerij

I got a great box of samples from SBS, courtesy of Alan Shapiro, with mostly De Proef and some De Proef/Lost Abbey collaborations. I had the first one tonight: Saison Imperiale, a Belgian Farmhouse Ale that De Proef brewed once...for now. I didn't read any tasting notes or background on this -- except that I know De Proef, and they make some wild stuff, literally.

So I was expecting a DuPont-like beer, only bigger...but when I poured a beer with a distinctly coppery color, and a funky brett edge in the nose, I wasn't surprised. And this is a unique beer, or at least a rare one. It's 8.5%, malty/sweet in the body, but funk-edged the whole way through, that kind of cheesy rim that brett brings, the horsey/iron stuff. The fun thing is the pleasant amount of body that the malt and size of this one brings to brett beer. Brett beers usually run thin, at least in my experience. This has some malt to it, which I like.

Overall? I'd say, make it again, Sam. Hey, just got an e-mail from Alan: De Proef is making the Saison Imperiale year-round now. Excellent!

SBP: Market Pressures come to bear on SBP

The big story in brewing circles is cost of ingredients (Stan mentions it here). Guys are talking about the price of hops going way up -- maybe to the point that not everyone will get the hops they want -- and the price of barley going up steeply under the demand of land to grow fuel for the Big Ethanol Boondoggle. We're looking at stiff price increases -- a couple bucks a case -- just so brewers can keep up.

What do I think about all this? Well, I'm reminded of something Fritz Maytag said (to a bunch of rye whiskey distillers and bottlers we got together for a Malt Advocate roundtable interview) about the crunch of sharply increased demand for rye whiskey and low aged stocks of the same:

Can I comment on the age thing? Broadly speaking, the whiskey world thinks that older whiskey’s better. It’s like the wine world used to think that older wine was better. And I submit to you that older whiskey is different. Wonderfully different. And many older red wines are wonderfully different. They’re not better, they’re old. And that’s wonderful. But I submit to you that, especially because we have a big shortage of rye whiskey, you are all going to discover the beauty of young rye whiskey.

Yes folks, I think a lot of brewers and drinkers are going to discover the beauty of lower-gravity beers.