In a world where Nabisco sells “artisan” Wheat Thins, the designation of Samuel Adams as a craft beer seems perfectly fair.

But the Boston Beer Company, the brewery that was founded in 1984 and makes Sam Adams, is on the verge of outgrowing its coveted craft status — at least according to the Brewers Association, a national trade group that defines craft brewers in part as producing fewer than two million barrels a year.

The federal government defines small brewers similarly, imposing a lower excise tax on those that stay under the two-million-barrel threshold.

Given that Boston Beer helped create the red-hot small-beer movement when it introduced Sam Adams 16 years ago, stripping it of craft credentials could prompt a lot of crying in … well, you know.

“If we’re not a craft brewer,” said Jim Koch, president of Boston Beer, “what else are we? We’re certainly not Budweiser.”

Mr. Koch predicted that Boston Beer would surpass the two-million mark by 2012. But help may be on the way: Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, along with Senator Michael D. Crapo, Republican of Idaho, introduced a bill last month that would increase the yearly production limit for small brewers to six million barrels.

The bill would also cut the excise tax rate for small brewers to $3.50 per barrel, from $7, for the first 60,000 barrels produced, and to $16, from $18, for each additional barrel. A similar House bill has several dozen sponsors. The Brewers Association created a distinct definition for craft brewers, said Bob Pease, its chief operating officer, to differentiate small companies from big ones that were also marketing certain beers as craft.

Mr. Koch said Sam Adams would remain a craft beer regardless of whether the Boston Beer Company hung on to its official craft brewer status. Quite simply, he said, a craft beer is one recognized for flavor versus thirst-quenching qualities.

“A craft beer you would not drink,” he said, “after you just mowed the lawn on a hot day.”

By ABBY GOODNOUGH

Published: June 8, 2010

beeriety:

Stephen Colbert celebrates American Craft Beer Week.

While we’re not sure about his choice in ‘craft beer’ we appreciate his enthusiasm. They’ll be plenty more celebrating tonight at our meetup in Boston. If you’re around be sure to come join us.

During a Google search for my up-coming brewery road trip, I stumbled across this website.

I would like to hug the owners…. great mash-up!

beeriety:

3 Reasons To Join A Mug Club!

Mug clubs are programs at many beer bars and restaurants in which participants are challenged to try (over a year or so) every beer on the menu in exchange for their own custom mug and/or discounts on beer. As the craft beer movement gains momentum in America mug clubs are becoming increasingly popular. There’s lots of great reasons to join a mug club, the least of which is the cool custom mug you usually get when you finish. Here’s three reasons why you should join your local mug club.

The Periodic Table of Beer Styles

The Magic Hat Brewery Tour

This weekend on our way back from Montreal, we took a detour to the Magic Hat brewery.

The brewery resides in South Burlington, Vermont, tucked away between two strip malls. But as soon as you pull up to the building, you know immediately that this is no ordinary brewery. A large “Magic Tube” stands guard, with a pressure gauge measuring what I can only guess is what mood the brewers are currently in (options include: mystified, full-throttle, and “wheelie”). It measured “ecstatic” when we arrived.

Upon entering the brewery, we were greeted with a gift shop filled with Magic Hat branded paraphernalia, including Magic Hat condoms. The shirts were actually well designed, and corresponded to many of their signature brews. We later learned that all the artwork was done in-house, and that they were very proud of their designers. I decided to purchase a green tee with a Ferris wheel on it, with the words “Hefeweizen!” (an homage to their Circus Boy brew).

After sampling a few of the beers on tap (Circus Boy, Wacko Summer Ale, First Chair Ale, the “Odd Notion” Wild Ginger Brew, and their famous #9), it was time for the only tour of the day to start. It was lead by a peppy 21-year old who had just joined the company 3 weeks ago. While this meant the tour was mostly read from an 8 ½ by 11, she definitely had spunk. We started off the tour by watching a video of the founder talking briefly about how the craft beer industry had declined and then was kickstarted again. Unlike Beer Wars, the owner named Anchor Steam as the catalyst of the current revitalization of craft breweries, not Sam Adams as mentioned in the movie.

The owners themselves were bonafied hippies to the core. After leaving the green cleaning company Seventh Generation, two guys were sitting around in a bar one day (unemployed) and decided to give their dream a whirl. [note: Sound familiar??]. This was 1994. Sixteen years later, they are going strong, and in combination with Pyramid Breweries (their sister company), they constitute the third largest craft brewery in the country.

All in all, definitely worth the drive, if not for the hodge-podge tour, then for the free samples of ALL their beer :)

beeriety:

Anchor Brewing Co. sold

The oldest craft brewery in the US has been sold by long time owner Fritz Maytag to a pair of Bay Area entrepreneurs who plan to preserve and expand the iconic brand.

A photo from the Magic Hat Brewery tour. Full review to follow.

I stumbled across Brutopia completely by accident on my last trip to Montreal. Looking for a place to grab a pint on Rue Crescent, this place seemed the most inviting. A truly local establishment, the Habs were showing on the TVs, and Quebequois were lounging on couches cheering on their team to the Stanley Cup. The brewpub carried a series of traditional beers, as well as a slew of homebrewed ones as well. Most intriguing were the Nut Brown and the Honey Beer… and then a combo of the two called “Honey Brown.” Personally, I felt that separately they were passable – the Nut Brown having more depth, but the Honey having a better, sweeter aftertaste. However, put the two together, and you have a winning beer! Complex and sweet, the Honey Brown complimented our appetizers perfectly.

So, I know this is a beer blog, but I would not doing Brutopia justice if I didn’t mention the food. The menu was VERY international – from samosas to quesadillas, onion rings to edamame. Usually, when a menu is this diverse, the result is one “good” dish and a half-assed attempt at the rest. In Brutopia’s case, this could not be farther from the truth. We ordered Pakoras (an Indian dish of fried spinach, onions, potatoes and chickpeas) served with a spicy Tamarind chutney, Belgian frites (served with ketchup and mayo), and Guacamole with fresh, homemade chips. All were superb, and adding the tamarind sauce to the frites made a delicious curry fry. Also on the menu was a burger made from beef, ham, and chicken with avocado and aioli, but we were not daring enough to try it.

Would highly recommend this place for a true local experience in Montreal. 

(CAVEAT: They do NOT have poutine! But you can get that pretty much everywhere else. I’ll let the food bloggers help you find that.)

My family and I first visited Au Pied de Cochon thanks to Anthony Bourdain. It’s tucked away on a little street in Montreal called Duluth. The place is known for their foie gras and pork head & feet, but everything they make is delicious. We had Duck in a Can… and it was divine.

But enough about the food… this is a beer blog! Au Pied de Cochon also has it’s own brew as well. And that is what I’m here to review.

I found their house brew to be a little bland - an ale brewed in a light Belgian style, the beer sharing the name of the restaurant was light on carbonation, alcohol and (in my opinion) flavor. However, since the food was so rich, a heavy beer may not have been appropriate.

Instead of the house brew, I decided to try the Griffon Rousse (Red). Again, a gently flavored red ale, this beer was served warm and left a little to be desired. It took me through the entire first course to finish it, and I didn’t order another. But, as I mentioned before, this could have been a poor pairing for the heavy food I was eating. A heavy beer with heavy food was a little too much for me.

I recommend the restaurant HIGHLY, but when you go, I’d suggest choosing something from their very extensive wine list instead. :)