Last night Hop Devil Grill enjoyed the good fortune of David Myers’ company, as well as his mead.  If you are unfamiliar with this fermented honey nectar, now is a good time to try it. There are actually three draught meads on tap at Hop Devil Grill.

By the way, I have been compelled to blog by stumbling upon an old acquaintance’s blog.  Not really a friend, as he lives across the river in Williamsburg and I am here in Manhattan.  We other borough-ers don’t often befriend one another, I think its the inconvenience issue. Nevertheless, I was impressed with the frequency with which he shares his thoughts with the world, and even more so with the steady improvement of his prose.  For those of you who don’t know, I am a wanna-be writer, even a novelist.  A dreamer too, never forget.  I also promised to plug a piece of software.   Its called smarthide and I am a fan. With smarthide, nobody can track your browsing or zero in on your isp.

So, the mead was very, very interesting. There is one called Nectar of the Hops. And, it tastes of hops. Columbus and, eh, err, well, I forgot. Some other hop variety. Americans are nuts for hops, and this is the only keg of the nectar in NYC except one that made it to a place in Brooklyn called the “Beer Table”.  I have to get to that place. Apparently its run by a cute couple that are bonkers for beers.  Mead is wine, so be advised: Hop Devil Grill is serving 5 ounce pours (that is a standard wine pour) for $5 and $6, depending on the price of the meads. Its a good deal. There is also the Sunshine Nectar and Black Raspberry, which tends to lie on the lighter side of things.  Its really, really good, and I will post some pics later once my camera recharges, but for now, take my word for it: mead fest was a good time. Screw the vikings.

More good news: Redstone Meadery will be representin’  at Brewtopia a/k/a the GWBF.

Fortunately, I don’t need to say much.  The beers for this event speak for themselves. Its April 29th, after work. 7 PM.  You don’t want to miss it. Here is the lineup:

Levitation
IPA
Smoked Porter
Arrogant Bastard
08.08.08 Vertical Epic
Pale Ale
Oaked Arrogant Bastard
‘08 Imperial Russian Stout
Ruination
Old Guardian Barleywine
‘06 Double Bastard
Sublimely Self Righteous

This just in. I have to start blogging again. I know, I know, I say this all the time. Still, I was talking with the publisher of the Village Voice yesterday, and I know a lot of you are pissed off at me because of my laziness, so here I go.  Just remember, this is a non-paying job, so if I don’t blog, don’t be all that surprised.  

Brewers Association Releases Top 50 Breweries List

“In 2007, 35 of the top 50 brewing companies were small and independent craft brewers. In 2008 there were 37,” states Paul Gatza, Director of the Brewers Association. “Craft brewers continue to have success and generate excitement behind the flavorful beer movement, but not without recent challenges including price increases for raw materials and supplies, as well as access to market issues.”

Changes from last year’s list include breweries moving up or down in the rankings based on volume sales. There was one new entrant into the Top 50 Craft list, The Saint Louis Brewery, and two craft brewers have claimed spots in the Top 50 Overall list–Big Sky Brewing Co. and Mac & Jack’s Brewery. Consolidation of MillerCoors, last year’s number 2 and 3 brewers, opened up a slot, and the merger of Widmer Brothers and Redhook into the company now named Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc. opened up another slot filled by emerging small and independent craft brewers.

A more extensive analysis of statistics on the craft beer segment in 2008 will be released April 22 during the Craft Brewers Conference in Boston, Massachusetts. The Association’s full 2008 industry analysis, which shows regional trends and sales by individual breweries, will publish in the May/June issue of The New Brewer on May 19.

Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies by Beer Sales Volume
(Based on 2008 sales)

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 Pyramid Breweries Inc. Seattle WA
6 Deschutes Brewery Bend OR
7 Matt Brewing Co. Utica NY
8 Boulevard Brewing Co. Kansas City MO
9 Full Sail Brewing Co. Hood River OR
10 Magic Hat Brewing Co. Burlington VT
11 Alaskan Brewing Co. Juneau AK
12 Harpoon Brewery Boston MA
13 Bell’s Brewery, Inc. Galesburg MI
14 Kona Brewing Co. Kailua-Kona HI
15 Anchor Brewing Co. San Francisco CA
16 Shipyard Brewing Co. Portland ME
17 Summit Brewing Co. Saint Paul MN
18 Stone Brewing Co. Escondido CA
19 Abita Brewing Co. Abita Springs LA
20 The Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn NY
21 New Glarus Brewing Co. New Glarus WI
22 Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Milton DE
23 Long Trail Brewing Co. Bridgewater Corners VT
24 Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. San Jose CA
25 Rogue Ales/Oregon Brewing Co. Newport OR
26 Great Lakes Brewing Co. Cleveland OH
27 The Lagunitas Brewing Co. Petaluma CA
28 Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Paso Robles CA
29 SweetWater Brewing Co. Atlanta GA
30 Flying Dog Brewing Co. Frederick MD
31 BJ’s Restaurant & Brewery Huntington Beach CA
32 Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants Louisville CO
33 BridgePort Brewing Co. Portland OR
34 Odell Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
35 Victory Brewing Co. Downingtown PA
36 Mac and Jack’s Brewery Redmond WA
37 Big Sky Brewing Co. Missoula MT
38 Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants Chattanooga TN
39 Karl Strauss Brewing Co. San Diego CA
40 Breckenridge Brewery Denver CO
41 Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe Eureka CA
42 Otter Creek Brewing Co. Middlebury VT
43 Utah Brewers Cooperative Salt Lake City UT
44 North Coast Brewing Co. Fort Bragg CA
45 Blue Point Brewing Co. Patchogue NY
46 Boulder Beer Co. Boulder CO
47 Pete’s Brewing Co. San Antonio TX
48 McMenamins Breweries Portland OR
49 Anderson Valley Brewing Co. Boonville CA
50 The Saint Louis Brewery, Inc. St Louis MO

Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies by Beer Sales Volume
(Based on 2008 sales)

Rank Brewing Company City State

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

For additional statistics, see Craft Brewing Statistics.

* The definition of a craft brewer as stated by the Brewers Association: An American craft brewer is small, independent, and traditional. Small: Annual production of beer less than 2 million barrels. Beer production is attributed to a brewer according to the rules of alternating proprietorships. Flavored malt beverages are not considered beer for purposes of this definition. Independent: Less than 25% of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member who is not themselves a craft brewer. Traditional: A brewer who has either an all malt flagship (the beer which represents the greatest volume among that brewer’s brands) or has at least 50% of its volume in either all malt beers or in beers which use adjuncts to enhance rather than lighten flavor.

 http://www.beertown.org

Its March now, the beginning of Spring. As nature will have it, its really cold outside today. Go figure.

This blog is poised to get a lot better son, what with more pics and the work of others included in it. Kind of like a magazine to a degree, not just my personal spittle. Why? Well, why not? Onward and upward is our motto here. If we can find a way to squeeze more work into out days, somehow, we always do.

In politics, I read that the “pubic is outraged by the AIG bonuses”.  As a member of the public, I for one am not outraged.   Not at the banks for giving out bonuses anyway, and I think taxing those bonuses at a 90% rate is ridiculous, and as an American citizen I am pretty embarassed of our congress for coming up with this bit of legislation. If it holds up following a court challenge, then we will all know our courts have been bought.  Enough with politics. I am sure you are all pissed that I even go there. 

Its early in the morning. A good friend of mine and his family visited last night with their adorable baby girl. We went for beer, and he was doing the buying, extolling all the way the virtues of “light beer”.  Never having been a proponent myself, I can understand the desire to reduce one’s calorie intake by half. So, I wouldn ‘t go for the Bud Light, and convinced him if we must go light, lets try the Samuel Adams Light beer.  Hey, not half bad at 119 calories per bottle. I feel thinner already!

OK, I  haven’t been blogging for a while. I know.  But, I have to, at least a little. You see, last night I told some alumni from Vanderbilt that I have a blog and to check it out and I will share some secrets about what I am doing.  So, here I am blogging. All I needed, it seems, was a bit of incentive, and humiliation always functions as a major avoidance factor for me. So, here we have it.

We were tasting some beers last night.  Saison Dupont is a no brainer for me. It is clearly the best of the best of saisons, and I don’t even think Fantome or Southampton are in the same category. Were I living in Belgium where I could buy this at $1 per bottle around, my fridge would always have at least a few. Mostly for pairing with a salad.  Ever pair a beer with a salad? If you do, choose a saison. They marry the best.   What else did we do? Oh, yeah, Tripel Karmeliet. Now, this is a good tripel.  Not too strong, but most of the characteristics you want in this style are here.  The very best tripel in my opinion, you want to know?  That’d be Westmalle Tripel.  If I were to hold a measuring stick up to that beer, most others would fall well below.  Notwithstanding all that, Tripel Karmeliet is very tasty.    On down the line, we went to a bottle of Pottleoereke (hope I spelled that right).  As usual, I am just winging it here. The aforementioned beer in question can be described as a brune, one pretty heavy on the malt and less than completely inspiring, although a perfectly acceptable ingestive all on its own. One of the lovely lasses from VU described it as “bitter”, and maybe when juxtaposed with another beer, it is such, but hardly bitter by American standards at all.  We next rambled onto the Duchesse de Borgogne, a flavorful sample from the Flanders region of their red sours.  This one is fully rounded and not near as sour as some, albeit a very nice beer with a label I just found out was St. Mary or something such, a woman who died earlier in life than would have normally seemed reasonable.  I suppose she was a duchess.  Door ringing. I must run. I’ll post here, no editing allowed, and perhaps get back later. Cheers

We are in one hell of a recessionary pickle.  First of all, you need to save money on food and drink, and I can tell you tha the Hop Devil Grill has  the best deals going right now. $1 tacos on Tuesdays. $1 tostadas (flat tacos) on Thursdays.  1/2 price craft beers all week from 4 PM till 7 PM. No kidding, there are 30 on tap too! Thursday  nights, if you are a babe or a woman, you get frozen margaritas for just $2! Get stuffed and drunk for under 10 bucks!  Bloody Maries and Mimosas are just $3 all weekend during brunch, which, incidentally, is a mighty tasty brunch and with low, low prices.  That is the first.

Next, I don’t know what everyone else thinks, but I am a real political economic mixture, myself. I believe in temporarily nationalizing the banks. This is taxpayer money being used to fix stuff up, and if there be spoils at the end of the day for taking that risk, it rightly belongs to the taxpayer. On the other hand, if government were ever to get off the back of the little guy, now is the time. Excessive regulation and taxation will tear the heart out of America, and the money right from the soul of this great country.  

We need to get Michael Bloomberg out of here.  The mayor is even trying to destroy our tourism industry. Consider the fact that he wants to put even more burdens on the restaurant industry.  You can’t use these oils, you have to use these.  Now, you have to revamp your menus. You must somehow measure the coloric content on your menu items and make them available to the consumer.  As if you didn’t know those cheese fries can make you fat! If you have a tendency toward obesity, eating those cheesy fries is risky business, if in fact you care about being fat.  Do you need the government regulating your behavior for you?  This rant ain’t over but my time temporatily is! See ya soon.

No, I am not talking about the Beer Bros. We dominate, true, but we are legends in our own mind as well. I am talking about Union Beer Distributors who just wrested the venerable importer Shelton Bros. from Manhattan Beer Distributors, those guys who recently uploaded their Inbev offerings to Aneheuser Busch but still push around with Samuel Adams and Coors.  Its no small thing.  Now Union has control of three or even  four of the major importers.  So much so, that if beer weren’t off the radar, I would be contacting Andy Cuomo with an anti-trust case any time now.  Mark my words: this isn’t good for the beer market. Prices will rise under the control of this behemoth, who incidentally is one of the largest distributors of Anheuser Busch products in the country as well, seeing as they own Brooklyn at least.  

In other beer news today Hop Devil Grill will be debuting the Left Hand brand of beers from Colorado!  Early March is the scheduled releast date so you don’t want to miss it as that is only a few weeks away from today.  Shake me with your left hand and I might just buy you a beer. That is going to be our personal promo!  I first visited the brewery a number of years ago and told the owner that if he got those left handed tap handles into David Copperfield’s every left hander in NYC would be there in a nano-second. We shall see. I gotta go so see ya.

I believe I need a team of technical people. Just for a little example, I want to upgrade this blog to the next version of WordPress, and I think I want to add some “widgets”.  One of the widgets, if I get the moniker correct, and I am not so sure I do, is to add one of the human being identifiers in the comment entry box. You know, one of those things that tell you to interpret what is written and type it in?  Well, I went to the instructions, and I just wind up feeling stupid because I am having trouble with the the very first couple of paragraphs.

AARrrrrggh. Another time.  Too many other pressing items.  I may just change my blogging software if I can figure that out. Nevertheless, last night was Boulder Beer night at David Copperfield’s, featuring 10 different Boulders on tap. Mighty tasty, I have to say.  The first I tried was the Pass Time Pale Ale.  A touch grainy, balanced by just the right amount of hops. A simple brew for a simple time. I could have gone all night drinking these.  

Alas, I need a different keyboard. I am not accustomed to this one, and I am making error upon error. Before I finish with this, I must tell you about a book I am in the middle of. I never before had an opportunity to read it, but its an old classic, “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court”. It brings to mind how long ago it must have been since I read Tom Sawyer, maybe 30 years ago or more. Samuel Clemens is an absolutely brilliant novelist!  How was it possible to write like this prior to word processing I can’t begin to comprehend, and yet read this book!  The one thing that scares me about life is how miserable I understand Clemens turned out to be in the latter half of his life.  Should we focus on success or just trying to make sure we are happy?   

Sorry for that,  I will get back to the Boulder brews later. Onward to real work!

I really have nothing to say today.  I don’t know why I am even writing.   I think I am being Twittered out.  Twitter is one weird new thing. I mean, blogging is like having your own personal newsletter, and anyone can read it if they care to, or not. Twitter. I have like 50 people following me, and I am following a bunch of people. Fortunately for me, most of them are quiet. Why or how I am following them I don’t know, but that is what the page says. So, thats what I am doing.  One of the trickiest things, and I mean tricky because it takes time, is adding images, video and other media to any of this stuff. You can’t just take a picture with your camera or phone and stick it in anywhere you like;  rather you need to go to photoshop or some other such software and fix it up, at least the size.  That takes time.  Who has time, anyway?

I know who has time. All those laid off Wall Street guys who packed away a few million over the years. In fact, I met one the other day at my gym.  He was working for Bear Stearn, and he told me his wife convinced him a couple of years ago to sell all the company stock he was getting as part of his retirement plan and bonuses, etc. He wasn’t a big time guy;  he ran a back office function so probably made decent  bucks, but not millions. Since he sold high however, and worked there for more than 20 years, he is retired in his early fifties with millions.  I am sure he would have liked to have more money, and that he wouldn’t necessarily have left if JP Morgan didn’t take over, but he is a happy camper by comparison to everyone else.  I can respect that.

I am not too keen from what I have seen of Obama.  I know, I know, its too early to tell, but I am not nearly as inspired as everyone else.  Ah, the guy is only human unfortunately.

Utah in particular. Read this bizarro article.  Did you know that in order to go to a bar in Utah you need to fill out an application? Remember folks, alcoholic beverages are not inherantly a bad thing.  As a matter of fact, in one form or another, imbibing goes back to the beginning of written communication.  I fear for our society at times.

On a totally different note, this morning for breakfast I tasted a beer. I only did that because I wanted my palate clean of other influences and I wanted to see if I liked Brooklyn’s new Blunderbuss Old Ale.  The verdict? Its good.  Strong without being course, and a lot of toasted grain notes ends with a bitterness tempered by a solid malt sweetness. This is a beer I could sit at a table and contemplate a while during a conversation. Hopefully a conversation about the beer.  Get it while you can. Its pretty tasty.