Many people are unaware of BC when it comes to being a beer region. Despite this fact, its staggering just how much good product is coming out of BC breweries. That is why when I sat down to pick the best brewery in BC for 2009 it was no small task. I will state that this opinion comes from a number of factors, and the conclusion was not came to lightly. Considerations include not only quality of beers, but how the participate in the local craft industry, their accessibility, presentation, and marketing. With this in mind I present truecask.com’s best BC brewery of 2009:
Earlier today I got this email from Erik Boles, one of the masterminds behind Beer Tap TV and good friend of truecask.com. The gist of his letter was this: Monster Energy Drink, a Coca-Cola distributed beverage brand is suing a small Vermont brewery over a trademark issue. Despite the fact that the lawsuit is complete baseless, there is little the brewer can do simply because of financial limitations. We, the craft beer community, must do whatever we can in order to stop this from going any further. I don’t even have access to the beer this brewery makes, as I’m sure many of you don’t. However, if we allow this to happen what is to say another major company won’t come after another tiny brewery and slowly but surely destroy everything we love so dearly. I implore you, take Erik’s lead, stand up, let your voice be heard, and fight this as best as you can.
You can hear the tumble weeds rolling through the BC craft scene today. All over the province tap-houses are empty, barstools unoccupied, and pints left unfilled. Although this sounds devastating, rest assured its one of the best things to happen to our scene all year. Why is that? Well you see, today marks the start of the Great Canadian Beer Festival. Hop-heads from all over the pacific north west, Canada, and the world have made their way to Victoria BC in order to participate in the best beer fest Canada has to offer. I am a day away from my trip to the GCBF so in order to keep myself from fidgeting to death, I bring you this week’s Beer News!
Hoppin’ Frog Brewing Company just won Best Double I.P.A. In America with Mean Manalishi, at the 2009 U.S. Beer Tasting Championships! Best Double I.P.A. In America is an award that Hoppin’ Frog is thrilled to receive, because this category is so respected by the lovers of really flavorful craft beer, and is usually dominated by west coast breweries with their close proximity to the hop growers. (via The Full Pint)
How much do we beer / tech nerds love twitter? Enough that we find out about major moves in our local scene via tweets. What the hell am I talking about? Well, Rick Green, president of CAMRA Vancouver, head of the BC Craft Brewers Association, blogger, and I think part time ninja recently tweeted that Tin Whistle Brewery is for sale! Obviously that means many of us BC beers nuts are running to our bank accounts to see the balance in hopes we can be the ones to purchase Tin Whistle, no doubt letting out a large sigh, having to settle for a bomber of the chocolate cherry porterinstead.
Quite the week has passed in the world of beer. As you read this, I am on the road traveling into the Canadian wilderness. I am on a trip to attend a wedding full of small town people who appreciate hard work and the simple things in life. Sort of ironic when you think the odds of macro beer being served at the wedding are high, all while macro-breweries are off suing as many blue collar micro-breweries as they can. Goes to show even the simple folk aren’t immune to big budget marketing…
It’s Friday again. Aside from this marking the start of a weekend of overindulgence, it also means that it’s time for another Beer News weekly round-up. I must say I am a bit boggled at the amount of craft beer news I can throw at you every week. I have decided to pick a cross-section of articles and encourage you to hunt down the rest yourself!
Brewers can recover 50 percent of energy costs from leftovers. After beer is made, the waste from breweries could help generate power, researchers now suggest. (via Courier Times)
It seems like every week momentum behind the craft beer movement builds. That may seem a little out of the blue, but when you consider the underlying reasons, it starts to make sense. History has proven that in times of recession personal entertainment budgets turn from big purchases like vacations and boats, to smaller financial commitments like movies, CD’s, and beer. Add in the facts that big breweries are losing market share, imports aren’t moving units like they used to, and the craft scene is becoming more visible thanks to social media, and what we have here is a leveling of the playing field.
Stone Brewing Co. keeps powering its way through the recession with more growth.
The brewer said Wednesday it increased production of its craft beers by 24 percent in the first half of 2009. By year’s end, it expects to make more than 100,000 barrels, more than a 20 percent increase over 2008. (via North County Times)
There has been a ton of stuff going on this week in the world of beer. From Nevadafish Heads to Tour De Fat hitting the ultimate bike city things are buzzing. I’m not about to report these stories as my own; however, I think its important for craft beer fans to keep up on what is going on in our world. Click the titles to read the full story.
This fall independent craft brewers Sierra Nevada and Dogfish Head, will release two collaborative beers. Limb & Life-a draft-only beer-will debut in October; with Life & Limb 24oz bottles and limited draft to follow in November. (via Dogfish Head blog)
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