No, for me I’d much rather go with a traditional Christmas Present something like this.

By the way this is available for purchase in full size on Amazon.  You can find it here.  Have a great day everyone!

-Don

Those white specs you see drifting across the screen aren’t eye floaters or Don rubbing his dandruffy beard atop the logo, they are digital snow, courtesy of WordPress.  They give folks with WordPress-hosted blogs the option of turning on the snow when the holidays draw near.  We had it on at the tail end of last year and liked it, so I’ve flipped the switch again for 2011.  I say let it snow, let it snow, let it snow – at least on the blog.  I’m driving a Mini Cooper convertible these days and I haven’t thrown my snows on yet!

Anyway, enjoy the flakes, and whatever you do, DO NOT think of Don rubbing his dandruffy beard every time you see them! 

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The past year has seen a proliferation of excellent beers available in cans, which offer many benefits to the consumer and to the environment.  But one thing cans don’t offer is the elegance of a bottle, and that’s at the heart of why Dogfish Head has no plans to can their beers. 

“I love seeing the success of all the canned beers that are out there.  But for us it’s just not an arena we’re choosing to play in” Sam Calagione told us.  Why?  Because cans run counter to his brewery’s mission to elevate beer beyond its everyday image.

“Our focus since the day we opened has been ‘let’s try to bring beer into the context of wine,’ meaning beer can be as flavorful as wine, as complex, and as food compatible as wine.” Sam says.  “That’s at the heart of our mission and we feel it’d be very confusing to put our wine-like beers into cans.  So for now were more committed to the champagne bottle 750 ml format.”

The only thing that might change this is if super high-end American wines start canning their wares. “When you get Screaming Eagle 16 oz pounders in cans, call me back,” Calagione joked.

Calagione and his crew over at Dogfish Head have always danced to the beat of their own drum, and while it’s disappointing that we’ll probably never see 60 Minute IPA in cans, it’s refreshing to see the brewery staying true to who they are.

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Some fathers and sons like to throw the ball around the yard or build models together.  Jimmy Russell and his boy Eddie like to distill bourbon.  The pair have been working together at Wild Turkey for 30 years, with Jimmy serving as Master Distiller and Eddie working his way up to Associate Distiller. The two seem to work well together, as they’ve produced a string of very nice adult beverages and have been inducted into the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame. 

Around ten years ago, they decided it was time to put their heads together and create a bourbon as father and son.  The result is Russell’s Reserve 10, a smooth and leggy charmer with a spicy finish featuring hints of orange peel and lots of warming oak.

Don’s the whiskey expert, and he reviewed Russell’s Reserve 10 last year, so I won’t duplicate his efforts here, except to say that this is the good stuff for sure, especially if you’re into smooth, slow burners.  I recently received free (!) bottle of Reserve 10 from Wild Turkey and have been happily reacquainting myself with its well-rounded goodness.

The reason I received the bottle was to bring attention to a Father’s Day promotion Wild Turkey is doing with Operation Once in a Lifetime, a non-profit group that provides resources to service members of the US armed forces.  Here’s the deal, right from the Turkey’s mouth:

- Wild Turkey 101
- Russell’s Reserve
- Wild Turkey Rare Breed
- Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit
- Wild Turkey American Honey Liqueur

You know, as a Father’s Day gift to myself. 

Memorial Day weekend is finally upon us and my thoughts are turning to lagers, pilsners and stouts (let’s face it, I’m a creature of habit!).  But my thoughts have also been lingering on a more serious subject – drinking and driving. Now before you roll your eyes, let me assure you this will be quick, painless and might actually help us all do some good.

Over the past year, our little site has really grown up.  Traffic is up tenfold, and we’ve been blessed with a loyal and vocal readership of tremendously cool people.  Our voice has grown louder and into a chorus of sorts, with people from all over the country adding their knowledge and humor to the site (and god knows we’ve needed the help!).  I’d like to try and put that to good use. 

Like Don and I, many of you are older, wiser and know how to handle yourselves.  Your days of even considering getting behind the wheel while a little buzzed (or worse) are behind you.  But that doesn’t mean we can’t make a difference this weekend and all summer long.

Please take these tips to heart and share them with your friends:

Have a Plan. Know how you’re going to get home safely before you crack open that first mouth-wateringly delicious IPA.  This might mean having a designated driver you trust, making plans to crash at the party site or even walking to your destination instead of taking the car.  For you married fellas, the best option is to get your wife pregnant so you have a rock-solid way of getting home.  Plus seventeen years down the road, you’ll have someone else to come collect you at the bar.

Pace yourself, big fella.  It’s okay to have a beer or two and get behind the wheel as long as you’re not slamming down the brewskis.  My rule of thumb is one beer every two hours, with lots of water in between.  I know this is pretty conservative, but it’s also a very smart way to approach things.  Another tip is to drink seltzer or sparkling water, which can give you the sensation of drinking a beer, just without the flavor.  Kind of like Coors Light.

Keep an eye on the other guy. Even if you’re being good, it doesn’t mean you can’t do more to help others.  Watch out for people who’ve had too much fun and are planning to get behind the wheel.  Offer to drive them home or call them a cab.  Know who’s driving and suggest they take it easy if they’re overdoing it.  I’ve looked the other way here in the past, mostly because it’s very uncomfortable getting into someone else’s business. It’s a lot easier to ignore the situation, let the person do what they will and hope everything works out.  But what if it doesn’t?  You don’t have to be all preachy about it, but just saying something might make a difference in that moment or in the future.  Man up, buttercup!

Again, most of us don’t need this advice, but I figured it’s a good time for a refresher on doing the right thing, especially as BBQ season begins. Please pass this around as a passive-aggressive way of reminding the folks you care about that part of being old enough to drink is being old enough to do it well.

Alright, ‘m getting a bit dizzy up here on my soapbox, so I’m climbing down.  I hope everyone has an awesome (and safe) holiday weekend!

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There are  lots of breakfast themed beers out there for us beer geeks.  There’s Mikkeller’s Beer Geek Breakfast, Founder’s tasty Breakfast Stout, and even a New Zealand cherry lager that was brewed to compliment your morning meal. Unfortunately, things can get complicated if you actually try to enjoy them at the start of the day, especially on a weekday on your way to work  (even if they might make you day a little more tolerable).

But now there’s something that’s made by beer geeks for beer geeks that’s a wholesome, delicious and smart way to start your day.  They are called Brubar Energy Bars, and I’m totally in love with them. 

Brubars are the brain child of Christian D’Souza, a homebrewer who had an epiphany while on a supply run:

My moment came while eating an energy bar on a drive to purchase homebrewing supplies. I realized that the flavors of energy bars are sometimes close to the flavors of beer (coconut porter, chocolate oatmeal stout) and I wanted to bridge the gap by putting beer flavors in an energy bar. It reminded me of the story of Frank Mars, the founder of the famous Mars candy bar company, who wanted a portable way to carry a chocolate malt.

So like any inspired homebrewer would, Christian started screwing around with a recipe for energy bars.  He kept the ingredient list as simple and locally-sourced as possible.  The result are two flavors of energy bars that are moist, delicious and very unique.

I can’t get these in New Jersey, but Christian was nice enough to send me some samples, which I ate in the car on the way to work this morning.

The Original Malt bar is made with malt extract, rolled oats, dates, almonds, coconut, olive oil, vanilla and cinnamon. The result is a chewy treat that tastes a little like oatmeal with brown sugar and a little like fruit cake, with little almonds nuggets adding flavor and texture to the mix.  They’re totally delicious.  I also got to try the Cherry Almond bar, and they are a lot like the Original, but with a tart cherry kick like you’d find in Founder’s Cerise.  These are wonderful as well.

The bars seem to have good nutritional stats, although they don’t have added vitamins like you’d find in more processed energy bars, but I’m happy about this.  The taste is so wholesome, it doesn’t need other crap messing it up, even if that crap is supposed to be good for you.  I say take a multivitamin and savor the simplicity of a Brubar.

Truth be told, a bowl of Grape Nuts tastes more like a mash bill than a Brubar, and you’re probably not going to think “beer” when you take a bite.  But if you appreciate the wholesome, unadulterated goodness of craft beer, you’re going to appreciate what Christian and his team have done here.  I can honestly say these are the best mass-market energy bars I’ve ever had in my life.

The bad news is that they are only widely available in California, although they are sold in a number of homebrew shops around the country.  They also sell them on their website, and go for $26.99 for a box of 12.  That’s a little pricey, but it’s hard to argue with the value you get in every wrapper.

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A brewery in New Zealand has created what is being called “the world’s first known whisky-beer,” a 7% ABV golden ale brewed with 100% peat-smoked Scottish distilling malt.  “Rex Attitude,” brewed by Yeastie Boys (ugh) in Wellington, New Zealand, is said to be intensely smoky and earthy, and has been described as tasting like bacon or smoked fish.  Some have also described it as tasting like medicine, but I’m assuming those aren’t whisky drinkers, because most alcohol tastes like medicine to the uninitiated.

It actually took me a moment to figure out how I feel about this beer.  Ultimately, my thought process was a lot like the discussion between two elderly art patrons as they gazed upon a portrait of Kramer in the Seinfeld episode “The Letter“:

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Elderly woman: “I sense great vulnerability. A man-child crying out for love. An innocent orphan in the post-modern world.”
Elderly man: “I see a parasite. A sexually depraved miscreant who is seeking only to gratify his basest and most immediate urges.”
Elderly woman:”His struggle is man’s struggle. He lifts my spirit.”
Elderly man: “He is a loathesome, offensive brute. Yet I can’t look away.”
Elderly woman:”He transcends time and space.”
Elderly man: “He sickens me.”
Elderly woman: “I love it.”
Elderly man: “Me too.”

While I find the concept of this beer potentially repellent, I admire the spirit that crafted it.  As a beer geek, I love experimentation and breweries willing to invest in trying out new things, especially when they think they’re going to fail.  Which is exactly what Yeastie Boys brewmaster Stu McKinlay thought. “I thought it would be so intense it would be undrinkable,” McKinlay said.  But his tune changed when he tried it. “We thought we’d have a crack at it, and when we tasted it I knew we were going to have a winner.”  I’d love to taste this beer to see exactly what Stu is talking about.  I’m not a huge fan of beers that taste like fish, but you never know until you give it a try, right?

Stu’s partner is Sam Possenniskie, and he’s okay with the fact that some people are going to be turned off by Rex Attitude. “At a craft brewery you want to make something that people will either love or hate,” Sam says. “It’s not some bland thing you drink for the sake of drinking.”  I like his swing-for-the-fences attitude.

It remains to be seen if Yeastie Boys (it pains me to type that every time) is vying to become the Down Under version of Brew Dog, but it doesn’t look to be the case (otherwise there’d be Kiwi costumes, the beer would be 50 proof and be brewed with Cialis).

Instead, I think this is a case of what’s great about craft beer, especially the American scene – guys messing around trying to come up with some new and tasty.  I say full steam ahead Yeastie Boys – No Sleep ’til Aukland!  (sorry, couldn’t resist).

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Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies
(Based on 2010 beer sales volume)

Rank	Brewing Company	City	State
1	Boston Beer Co.	Boston	MA
2	Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.	Chico	CA
3	New Belgium Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
4	Spoetzl Brewery*	Shiner	TX
5	Deschutes Brewery	Bend	OR
6	Independent Brewers United  (IBU)*	Burlington	VT
7	Matt Brewing Co.	Utica	NY
8	Bell’s Brewery, Inc.	Galesburg	MI
9	Harpoon Brewery	Boston	MA
10	Boulevard Brewing Co.	Kansas City	MO
11	Dogfish Head Craft Brewery	Milton	DE
12	Alaskan Brewing and Bottling Co.	Juneau	AK
13	Long Trail Brewing Co.	Bridgewater Corners	VT
14	Stone Brewing Co.	Escondido	CA
15	Abita Brewing Co.	Abita Springs	LA
16	Brooklyn Brewery	Brooklyn	NY
17	Lagunitas Brewing Co.	Petaluma	CA
18	Full Sail Brewing Co.	Hood River	OR
19	Shipyard Brewing Co.	Portland	ME
20	Summit Brewing Co.	St. Paul	MN
21	New Glarus Brewing Co.	New Glarus	WI
22	Great Lakes Brewing Co.	Cleveland	OH
23	Anchor Brewing Co.	San Francisco	CA
24	Kona Brewery LLC*	Kailua-Kona	HI
25	Rogue Ales	Newport	OR
26	Firestone Walker Brewing Co.	Paso Robles	CA
27	Sweetwater Brewing Co.	Atlanta	GA
28	Flying Dog Brewery	Frederick	MD
29	Victory Brewing Co.	Downingtown	PA
30	Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.	San Jose	CA
31	BJ’s Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc.	Huntington Beach	CA
32	Stevens Point Brewery Co.	Stevens Point	WI
33	Odell Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
34	BridgePort Brewing Co.*	Portland	OR
35	Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants	Louisville	CO
36	Oskar Blues Brewery	Longmont	CO
37	Blue Point Brewing Co.	Patchogue	NY
38	Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe	Eureka	CA
39	Big Sky Brewing Co.	Missoula	MT
40	North Coast Brewing Co. Inc.	Fort Bragg	CA
41	Mac and Jack’s Brewery	Redmond	WA
42	The Saint Louis Brewery, Inc.	Maplewood	MO
43	Bear Republic Brewing Co.	Cloverdale	CA
44	Karl Strauss Brewing Co.	San Diego	CA
45	Breckenridge Brewery	Denver	CO
46	Utah Brewers Cooperative	Salt Lake City	UT
47	Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants	Chattanooga	TN
48	Saint Arnold Brewing Co.	Houston	TX
49	Real Ale Brewing Co.	Blanco	TX
50	Ninkasi Brewing Co.	Eugene	OR

*Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies notes: Spoetzl is part of Gambrinus Company; IBU January-August only prior to sale to North American Breweries (NAB); Kona January-September only prior to sale to Craft Brewers Alliance (CBA); BridgePort is part of Gambrinus Company.

Top 50 Brewing Companies
(Based on 2010 beer sales volume)

Rank	Brewing Company	City	State
1	Anheuser-Busch Inc.	St. Louis	MO
2	MillerCoors Brewing Co.	Chicago	IL
3	Pabst	Woodbridge	IL
4	D. G. Yuengling and Son Inc.	Pottsville	PA
5	Boston Beer Co.	Boston	MA
6	Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.	Chico	CA
7	New Belgium Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
8	North American Breweries*	Rochester	NY
9	Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc.*	Portland	OR
10	Spoetzl Brewery*	Shiner	TX
11	Deschutes Brewery	Bend	OR
12	Independent Brewers United  (IBU)*	Burlington	VT
13	Matt Brewing Co.	Utica	NY
14	Minhas Craft Brewery	Monroe	WI
15	Bell’s Brewery, Inc.	Galesburg	MI
16	Harpoon Brewery	Boston	MA
17	Boulevard Brewing Co.	Kansas City	MO
18	Goose Island Beer Co.	Chicago	IL
19	Dogfish Head Craft Brewery	Milton	DE
20	Alaskan Brewing and Bottling Co.	Juneau	AK
21	Long Trail Brewing Co.	Bridgewater Corners	VT
22	August Schell Brewing Co.	New Ulm	MN
23	Stone Brewing Co.	Escondido	CA
24	Abita Brewing Co.	Abita Springs	LA
25	Brooklyn Brewery	Brooklyn	NY
26	Lagunitas Brewing Co.	Petaluma	CA
27	Full Sail Brewing Co.	Hood River	OR
28	Shipyard Brewing Co.	Portland	ME
29	Summit Brewing Co.	St Paul	MN
30	New Glarus Brewing Co.	New Glarus	WI
31	Great Lakes Brewing Co.	Cleveland	OH
32	Anchor Brewing Co.	San Francisco	CA
33	Iron City Brewing Co.	Pittsburgh	PA
34	Kona Brewery LLC*	Kailua-Kona	HI
35	Rogue Ales	Newport	OR
36	Firestone Walker Brewing Co.	Paso Robles	CA
37	Winery Exchange Inc. / World Brews	Novato	CA
38	Sweetwater Brewing Co.	Atlanta	GA
39	Mendocino Brewing Co.	Ukiah	CA
40	Flying Dog Brewery	Frederick	MD
41	Victory Brewing Co.	Downingtown	PA
42	Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.	San Jose	CA
43	BJ’s Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc.	Huntington Beach	CA
44	Stevens Point Brewery Co.	Stevens Point	WI
45	Odell Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
46	BridgePort Brewing Co.*	Portland	OR
47	Cold Spring Brewing Co.	Cold Spring	MN
48	Rock Bottom Brewery	Louisville	CO
49	Oskar Blues Brewery	Longmont	CO
50	Straub Brewery	Saint Marys	PA

*Top 50 Brewing Companies notes: NAB includes IBU August-December; CBA includes Kona October-December; Spoetzl is part of Gambrinus Company; and IBU is January-August only (sale to NAB); Kona is January-September only (sale to CBA); BridgePort is part of Gambrinus Company. Flavored malt beverages are not considered beer for the Top 50 rankings.