If you build a city around the “presence” model—transportation systems for rush hours, buildings with office space, restaurants and taverns to feed and water all those daily migrants—what happens when they stop showing up? What happens if they just don’t leave their homes?
Read MoreQatar had 12 years to settle on its World Cup alcohol policy, but decided at the last minute—yesterday—to move Budweiser’s very expensive promotional beer tents outside the venues. This is not the first time a religious city has had to decide what to do with marauding, beer-drinking heathens.
Read MoreForty percent of America’s breweries are small neighborhood affairs that, prior to 2020, were fun and rewarding little businesses. With Covid, inflation, supply-chain issues, and difficulties getting to market, how many still are? In Portland, one of them just called it quits.
Read MoreJust spitballing here, but how do you feel about velvet ale? Or maybe satin or velveteen ale, for the slightly mysterious touch? Kansas prairie ale? Caramel macchiato? Someone out there may have a great name, and who knows—it might launch the next hot style!
Read MoreIn the latest Sightglass post, I look at the modern era of American brewing, born around 2012, as hoppy ales became the ascendant craft style in America. What do a selection of breweries founded that year tell us about where we were and how far we've come?
Read MoreAfter an inexplicable two-year hiatus, Brewer Vignettes are back. Today we feature Guinness’ Stephen Kilcullen, who was cagey about an unexpected part of the process: fermentation and maturation.
Read MoreA massively over-spiced bottle of holiday ale from one of America’s grand old craft breweries, not to mention a cringey line extension at odds with the brand, have me worried.
Read MoreIt appears Elon Musk has actually acquired Twitter after all. But whether that’s good news or bad, the major social media sites are in big trouble. Now that legacy media is good and truly gutted, the troubling question is this: what comes next?
Read MoreNearly all the beer in the world is made in a professional brewery, or in small batches for home use. Once, brewing on a scale for non-commercial community consumption was much more common, and a few places still practice it.
Read MoreThe annual Norwegian farmhouse ale festival is remote (even in Norway) and tiny. But that’s what makes it a special event.
Read MoreNorway boasts three major farmhouse brewing regions, and in each place the brewers make beer like each other—but differently from the other regions. Why?
Read MoreOver the weekend, I attended the farmhouse ale festival in Norway. In this post, I offer a visual presentation of Stig Seljeset’s process, from the wood-fired juniper infusion through pitching his own strain of kveik yeast.
Read MoreI will be enjoying a very special field trip to Hornindal, Norway for the next week. Here’s a preview.
Read MoreIn 2017, the Brewers Association launched the “independent brewer” seal as a way of making customers aware of who makes their beer. Looking back after five years, has it made a difference?
Read MoreOne thing writers don’t talk about much is fear, though it gnaws at the edges of our consciousness every time we sit down to work. Instead we talk about “writer’s block,” that inability to put phrase to page, as if it were a cognitive, rather than emotional condition. It’s just fear.
Read MoreToday we visit the hidden land of Franconia, lately a font of lager types Americans are embracing. The most visible ambassador is Mahr’s oddly-named Ungespundet, a perfect example of what makes Franconia so special.
Read MoreNow women win about half the awards each year. This year they won 44% of the awards, but placed first in eight of fourteen categories. New and emerging writers have a good shot. Writers from historically underrepresented groups—in addition to the women, BIPOC and LGBTQ writers—won a number of awards.
Read MoreThe club of the uninfected diminishes by the day, and it appears I’ve joined the one that grows and grows. Yep, I finally caught Covid.
Read MoreRuvani de Silva, the daughter of Sri Lankan immigrants to the UK, posted an exceptional article yesterday about the meaning of identity and empire. I’d like to add an American footnote to the Queen.
Read MoreJohn Holl was in town, and after a false start, he got to drink many fresh-hop beers. I was along for the ride.
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