Anheuser-Busch to Acquire Goose Island Chicago

Have You Heard The News?

So as you may have heard earlier today, Anheuser Busch has announced that it will acquire Goose Island, a renown craft brewery based in Chicago. AB will acquire 58% of Goose Island's stock. 

Many of you out there were probably dissatisfied with Goose Island's "selling out." So was I for that matter. I lived in Chicago for five months and experienced how this brewery had a firm but warm grip on an emerging Midwest beer culture. They make some quality brews, and I think what I'm getting at in their reviews is that we, the consumers, might benefit from this. At least for us on the West Coast, we'll be able to enjoy a mild winter with a Goose Island Winter or a hot summer with a 312 urban wheat ale fresh off the draft. Think about it: craft beer has made enough noise to which a large brewing titan has had to earn a majority share. Anheuser Busch was partially responsible for Goose Island's success anyway; they've been GI's distributor for several years. Let's also not forget that Goose Island was part of the Craft Brewer's Alliance, a group of four high-capacity craft breweries including Widmer Bros., Redhook and Kona, and that Anheuser Busch was a minority share holder of the CBA. 

In short, expect to see more mergers, acquisitions and collab-brew-ations from larger breweries and international locales. We've already seen this with European breweries, both among each other and with American resources, and now we're seeing the community grow from the top-down. Anheuser Busch is obviously trying to get a piece of the pie, and this is clearly a great outlet. But, as stated in their press release, AB doesn't want to ruin what has been a formula for success.  Do Sierra Nevada and Sam Adams change their formula when increasing capacity? Does Kona Pipeline Porter or Longboard lager automatically suck when it's allied with poser breweries like Redhook? Barkeep...toss a Fire Rock (pale ale) my way!

And don't tell me you won't drink at a social gathering just because there's no craft beer. Drinking beer is part of our lives. Sure, I don't like Budweiser or Bud Light, but I won't say no to a 'dog and a Bud at a baseball game or friend's barbeque.  If only crappy beer was better too!

So for more on this controversial decision, head over to the guys who do it right in Boston, my friend Chris Furnari and Brewbound.com. Chris was my editor when I wrote for the sports section of our university newspaper. They've got great news and content on that site And to listen to a little more about my thoughts on the matter, head over to my YouTube channel.

You Stay Hoppy California,

Pink

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Firestone Walker: Walker's Reserve Review

Firestone Walker, based out of Paso Robles, CA, is a popular microbrewery in the state of California and, interestingly enough, is situated in an area that runs like a small-scale Napa/Sonoma county. You probably know Firestone for their Double Barrel Ale, Union Jack British IPA and CPA 31 (a California pale ale that inspired my latest adventure in homebrewing). But Firestone often releases more exclusive beers of several ale varieties, such as their newest Walker's Reserve. This is a roasted porter that has a somewhat chewy, but not overwhelming makeup. You can attribute this to the roasted barely and oatmeal flakes, as called out on FW's site. Overall, this is an excellent rendition of a porter. Yes California, it's a malty beer but one that finishes with satisfying roasted character. You won't find the chocolate malt presence nor will you find yourself fatigued after a couple sips. I'm digging this porter and recommend it!

4/5- The glass is just about empty.

Coming up next...Irish Red Ale from Ninkasi in Eugene, OR

You Stay Hoppy California,

Pink

Walker's Reserve

My Twitter

Homebrewing: Third Time's a Charm! And About My YouTube Channel

What's up gang,

Several weeks removed from another homebrewing fiasco, I decided to pick up the pieces and give homebrewing another go. This time I stuck to the book, swallowed my pride and buckled down in my friend Greg's kitchen. We went to More Beer in Mountian View and got set up with a solid California Pale Ale kit, or as More Beer calls it, Left Coast Pale Ale. It's going to be a slightly citric, but not too herbal brew with Amarillo hops. I figured it's a great way to bring in the essence of spring once the Northern California storms subside. 

I'm also revamping my account on YouTube slowly but surely. I'm hoping to have more video reviews, homebrewing snapshots and possibly coverage of any events I attend. Obviously, I'd like to do what I can to get out into the craft beer scene a little more. So head on over to my Youtube page, check it out and subscribe if you'd like! And to keep up to date with the beer scene in Caifornia even more, head on over to my Twitter.

I've got a Firestone Walker: Walker's Reserve beer review to post on here very soon, and I will soon be featuring another beer review for an Irish Red Ale. Stay tuned lads and ladies.

You Stay Hoppy California,

Pink

Boston; Craft Beer Capital of North America!

Hey Gang,

This past weekend I had the fortune of spending a weekend in Boston, MA. I was here for a business trip but I definitely had ample time to get out and check on the beer scene. It's no surprise that Boston is the craft beer hub of the western hemisphere. Many of the bars feature local craft brews, and all of them have at least Boston lager and a Sam Adams seasonal on draft (for March it's Noble Pils, a German/Bomhemian hop-infused lager).

In fact, I was here the same weekend as the Extreme Beer Festival so it's sad to say I missed out on all of the action. However, my buddy from college, Chris, and his gang at Brewbound were there covering the event and even spending time with the likes of Sam Calagione (Dogfish Head) and other craft brew icons. 

In addition, I also came across a small chain of brewery-restaurants called Boston beer works. You can get some pretty good pub grub and have a bevy of ales to sample. BBWorks even has seasonals on tap. I was looking for a black IPA, or as they called it, "India porter," but they were out of it for the time being. Oh well, I enjoy one of their Irish Stouts very much. 

hen there was my actual business trip. That went very well! And I also got to see my best friend who lives here. I totally surprised the guy as he no idea I was coming over. Wonderful trip indeed. I'm going to miss this place after four days, so I plan on saving up some dough and getting out here again for some brew, best friend, baseball, and chowda. That's wicked pissah pal. 

You Stay Hoppy California,
Pink

Beer and Lent: When World Collide

A welcomed Ash Wednesday to those of you who partake in the Christian holiday period between now and Easter. I am not a Christian by faith, but I am a believer in that we, regardless of faith, cultural background, etc., can embrace this period of the year as a time to reflect on how we live our lives and how we would like to improve the way we live. Plenty of us out there have fulfilling lives in one way or another, and that's great. But maybe we want to make a difference in how we present ourselves to others, or maybe we would like to spend more time developing our interests outside of the workplace; I for one am on board with the latter! Perhaps we should think of lent outside of giving something up for a concentrated period of time; it's a way for us to add something else in and to do so long-term or permanently. 

Now when it comes to the "giving up" part of lent, I have a simple suggestion. Give up crappy beer, beer that holds us back from enjoying the effort, craftsmanship and TLC that goes into our favorite beers. Toss out the last of your fizzy, yellow-y Keystone Light or Natty 30-rack and put the bottle opener on your key set to work! By now I hope you've learned that craft beer is something that exceeds the initial investment you make. In all honesty, can you remember your last experience that involved drinking a Budweiser? Even if you can, you're probably remembering everything about the experience apart from the beer itself. Everything going on around you enhances your experience with the beer, and therefore the beer is dependent upon the experience. 

With quality craft beer, it's the opposite. The beer is the catalyst, enhancing the consumer's experience of everything around him/her. For example, you could be watching TV on a Wednesday night — pretty regular night and all. But crack open a micro and you'll start to feel like even a common moment in your life has a special place in time. What about if your're at a baseball game and your team is losing? It will take many Miller Lites to chase away your sorrows. But if you sip on an Anchor Steam or Sierra Nevada (served at Northern California MLB stadiums), you'll start to appreciate the people you're at the game with and the reasons that bring people together for America's pastime. You see, craft beer gives us purpose in that it can make any activity or any setting enjoyable, enriching and longer lasting for our memory. 

So for lent, I give you one way in which not only you will give something up, but also you will gain something very rewarding in return. 

You Stay Hoppy California,
Pink

Just passing through: a couple updates

Hey Everyone,

I thought I would take the time, the first time in almost two months, to give you an update as to what's going with beer in California and what I'm up to in my beer endeavors.

I recently joined a Silicon Valley/South Bay homebrewer's group known as the "Worts of Wisdom," or "worts" for short. It's an excellent group of a few dozen people who not only have a passion for homebrewing, but also a talent for homebrewing. Hopefully I'll gain a lot from the worts and learn how to put out some outstanding batches of my own. From crisp kölsch ales, to American IPAs, to chocolate and bourbon-inspired stouts, Worts of Wisdom members have dazzled me with their brews. You are more than likely to find their beers snatching up the awards at local and regional contests.

As for my homebrewing experiences, I have yet to turn out a solid beer in my two attempts. I found that in both batches I left the beer in te primary fermenter too long. I may also be using too much sanitizing solution, especially when it comes to filling the airlock. I think I'll use just boiled/distilled water for that next time. My second beer, a dunkelweizen, looked very promising at one point with a ruby brown color and phenolic/banana aromas. But then I left it sitting there for too long and now t tastes a little too soapy for anyone's liking. I'm definitely going to try brewing it again at some point this year.

As you may know, the SF Bay Area hosted a giant "beer week" in February, bringing in many breweries from up and down the state to showcase quality brew, food and more. Sacramento, a sometimes over-looked micro-hub in California, is in the middle of its beer week right now. These events around the state and in other parts of the US like Colorado and Boston (Extreme Beer Festival March 11-13). Speaking of Boston, I'll actually be in Bean-Town next weekend — unfortunately not for the beer, but for another trade show. I'm sure I'll still have time to sample some great local beer and whatnot. 

Lastly, I'm really enjoying the brews put out by Port Brewing / Lost Abbey out of San Marcos (north of San Diego). I really enjoyed their roasted, but not overly malted, Midnight Expression black lager.  

I'll give you more of an interesting entry when things get...more interesting! In the meantime, please head over to my Twitter where I post some interesting news/features about beer all over the world.

You stay hoppy California,

Pink