beervana

The tariffs are on; the tariffs are off. The tariffs are—it’s exhausting. Last night a federal court ruled they’re off again. But beer fans take note, not all of them, including two biggies. 

The Brewers Association has their official end-of-2024 report out, and along with it their list of the largest US breweries. One thing you can’t help but notice: it’s a lot easier to survive as a larger brewery with a little help from your friends.

Remember that brown-label, gray-market “Corona Mega” I discovered at a Mexican restaurant in Tillamook, Oregon a year ago? Lawyers have gotten involved. (Plus a brief, unrelated comment on the tariffs.)

For most of the craft beer era, Oregon’s major newspaper has assigned someone to cover beer. The accurate, credible information they’ve provided beer fans over the decades probably plays a much bigger role in our beer culture than we appreciate.

Modern cask bitters have evolved. Many include juicy new world hops and modern IPA hopping techniques. But to achieve the delicacy and harmony bitters are famous for, breweries have to do more than just adding Citras. 

Why aren’t Americans drinking beer? Maybe because they’re too busy sucking down water, sparkling water, sports drinks, energy drinks, “natural beverage,” and real and artificial juices.

Assembly Brewing, Portland’s first and only Black-owned brewery, is closing. After just six years, it had become one of the city’s landmark breweries, and owner George Johnson became one of Portland’s most engaging and interesting brewers. It’s a terrible loss. 

It’s taken pFriem 13 years to expand from their original location in Hood River. On Monday, April 7th, they take their next step, with a beautiful, expansive new pub and restaurant in the old City Hall building in downtown Milwaukie, just south of Portland.

Herein lies one of the more interesting ironies of our times: there is a distinctive New England school of IPA. It is characterized by strength, sweetness, lack of bitterness, and high residual sugar. But maybe the haze is negotiable.

How long does it take to make a proper pale lager? Some Czech breweries take months. Most of the books and websites tell you six weeks is more common. What would you say to three weeks? Zoiglhaus’ Alan Taylor learned how to brew in Berlin, and he thinks three is just fine.

Midway through the can of Pure Project’s Neon Bloom, I realized I was having an experience shift. The beer smelled and tasted like a hoppy ale, but I was slugging it down like a lager. Was I drinking a West Coast pilsner or a West Coast Pale ale? Did it matter?

Modern cask bitters have evolved. Many include juicy new world hops and modern IPA hopping techniques. But to achieve the delicacy and harmony bitters are famous for, breweries have to do more than just adding Citras. 

The internet put all human knowledge at our fingertips, transforming the way we understood the world. A recent technological “innovation” may give us answers even faster, but take a wrecking ball to our basic information. 

Sierra Nevada recently won the World Beer Cup gold medal … for ESBs. Violating Betteridge’s law of headlines, I explain why they got it right, including in my analysis a different rule, beer’s One Iron Law.

On this week of the Craft Brewers Conference, when much of the news is a little dour, let’s consider a little context. More and more people are drinking so-called craft beer each year, and it is becoming part of our cultural furniture. There’s a lot of upside to that.

Today we travel to a time where cars sail overhead and money has lost all meaning as we luxuriate in worlds of leisure. And beer? The year is 2050, and if you want to know what beer looks like, click on through.

One of the most interesting historical figures in all of brewing history is Antoine Joseph Santerre, a Parisian brewer in the latter decades of the 18th century. He came from a line of brewers, married a brewer’s daughter, and bought a brewery with his brother. He is far more famous for his politics, however.